HAMPTON INN FOES STRIKE:

Ladder Truck

Needed; 4th

Story Must Go

By PATRICK WAGER • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com

HARTWICK – From the Hampton Inn & Suites engineer’s point of view, all the issues – traffic, sewage, safety – had been addressed.

But Hartwick Fire Company #2 Chief David Bryant and Les Sittler, lawyer for the Holiday Inn Express owners, who face a new competitor, had different takes.

Some 40 people showed up at the Tuesday, Jan. 8, public hearing the town hall on the four-story, 100-plus hotel planned just south of the Dollar General in Hartwick Seminary, and a stack of chairs, normally unused and stored in a corner, had to be set up.

Rudy Zona of RZ Engineering, Syracuse, the project engineer representing Skyline Hospitality, emphasized that all previous Planning Board concerns have been addressed in the new site plan.

“DOT says the entrance has been approved and no traffic study is required,” said Zona. “We will close down two of the current entrances (to the trailer park there now), grade them and put in grass so that no one will drive over them.

The new approved entrance is directly across from the Hartwick #2 fire station.

While Skyline is waiting for final comments, “we have been in contact with the DEC weekly and they have had no objections to the water, utilities, and the storm water plans,” Zona said.

Sidewalks will be built and connected to Route 28, and fire trucks would have two access points, he said.

But Fire Chief Bryant wasn’t satisfied: “As fire equipment exits, hotel traffic may interfere.  We propose moving the planned entrance further north on the property.  Additionally, there is a small rise may impede visibility.  The proposed entrance could be a used as a secondary entrance.”

Since the planned hotel is four-stories tall, the Hartwick Fire Department will need a ladder truck to reach the top floor, he continued.  “We don’t have the proper equipment, couldn’t house it properly if we did, and don’t have the funds to purchase it.  The ladder itself is 104-feet long,” he said.

The closest ladder truck is in Cooperstown.  Bryant said he spoke with Cooperstown Fire Chief Jim Tallman, and although Cooperstown and Hartwick have reciprocal agreements, “Tallman indicated that the ladder truck will be 20 years old in two years time, and may be nearing the end of its life.

“If Cooperstown decides to refurbish the equipment, it could be out of service for as long as six months.  Furthermore, if the ladder truck is needed it could take as long as 20 minutes to get it from the Cooperstown Fire Department to the hotel,” Bryant continued.

“It’s a five-minute drive, but Cooperstown is also a volunteer department and it takes time for the volunteers to get to the station,” he said.

Bryant’s other concern was for the sprinkler system.  Although the proposed design will exceed code and there will be a backup generator, there is always the chance that it will go down, too.”

Sittler, representing Rainbow Hospitality, which operates Holiday Inn Express, voiced objections about the proposed fourth floor.

Over a decade ago, Rainbow also wanted to build a four-story hotel, but the Planning Board denied the project over the same safety concerns.

“It’s important to have a level playing field and that one hotel should not be allowed to build a four-story hotel while another company was prevented from doing so,” the Fly Creek lawyer said.

Sitler presented documentation to the effect that no hotel or business has been allowed to build a fourth  story.  “Skyline can build the same number of rooms by expanding the floors outward,” he said.