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Village of Lansing Trustees considered a change to the zoning law that would allow The Shops at Ithaca Mall to construct apartment buildings on the mall property.  The idea was presented to the Planning Board last month by the mall's Principal Partner Eric Goetzmann, when he showed plans to build an outdoor mall area with two-storeyed buildings.  "The ground floor is going to be shops," explained Planning Board Chairman Ned Hickey.  "The second floor will be apartments, so we need to have the mixed use authority to do that in our law."

As presented the plan proposes a commons-like area with outdoor parking and walkways in an area between three new buildings to be constructed west of Best Buy.  3,000 to 5,000 square foot boutique-style stores would line the ground floor with parking along the front doors of the shops.  Possibly as many as 42 apartments would be constructed above the shops.  "In an odd sort of way they are sort of looking at duplicating a downtown area," Dubow said.  "On a smaller scale in a mall setting."


Under current Village zoning apartments are permitted in 'Commercial Low Traffic' zones, but The Shops at Ithaca Mall is in what is designated as a high traffic zone.  A change in the law would give the Planning Board the legal right to issue a special permit to allow the mixed use buildings.  "The Planning Board has talked about this at some length," said Village Attorney David Dubow.  "The Planning Board understands that and actually endorses this mixed use approach.  The way our zoning law reads now 'residential use' is not limited to any particular residential use.  It is conceivable that this could permit the building of an apartment building on the Shops at Ithaca Mall Property.  They don't see any reason we would differentiate between Commercial Low Traffic and Commercial High Traffic."

"One of the things that's happening throughout the country is that these one-shell malls are kind of passe," Hickey said.  "Now they are looking at shops that you can park in front of, go into and get what they want, and then if they want to go to the shop next store they go out and walk around.  The apartments would be upstairs.  It just brings another dimension to the mall."

Trustee John O'Neill expressed concerns that the project might have a negative impact on the character of the adjoining neighborhood, depending on what clientele the apartments are targeted toward.  But Trustee Lynn Leopold noted that the trend of older homeowners closing their large houses and moving to smaller homes or apartments to simplify their lives would be served by mall apartments.  "They can walk amongst the shops that they use, and to where they buy food," she said.  "We don't really have anything like that in the Village.  I think a lot of people would be willing to live right where they shop."


Both O'Neill and Trustee Frank Moore had doubts about how the commercial and residential uses would mix, citing the possibility that noise and traffic could upset residents, or that some residents' activities could disrupt shopping.  But Dubow noted that these issues would ultimately go to the planning board to be resolved before a permit to build would be issued.

The Trustees scheduled a public hearing for their December 17th meeting, the next step required in the process of amending the law.

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