Residents of Gillespe Avenue are angry over plans to build an 8,000 square-foot medical center and a two-family home.
Eastern Buildings Groups has partial approval for a three-story, two-family home that will have a health care treatment facility on the ground floor. Residents say parking is already a problem on their block and that their quiet street is no place for a medical facility. They say they don?t want strangers coming in and out for appointments.
Councilman James Vacca voiced his opposition to the project because of its size. People claim the new building will tower over the homes already on the block. They say there are many medical centers in the neighborhood, and to add another on Gillespe Avenue isn?t necessary.
Residents also say the closest stop for public transportation is a five-minute walk away, which is not convenient for a medical center. They say someone with medical problems may not be able to handle the walk on the way to an appointment.
According to neighbors, a single-family home built in the early 1900s used to sit on the plot of land designated for the new building.
Those who live on the block say they blame the Department of Buildings (DOB) for approving the project, and they wish that they were a part of the decision-making process. The DOB says the new building complies with zoning requirements.