Wednesday Hearing on Turnpike Storefront Church

The Town of Hempstead Board of Zoning Appeals will hold a hearing on Wednesday, March 2, at 11 am to consider an application to convert retail space on Hempstead Turnpike in Franklin Square to religious use and to waive rules for off street parking. The hearing will be held in the Town Meeting Pavilion, Town Hall Plaza, 1 Washington Street, in Hempstead. The meeting is open to public. The original application, brought by the Tabernacle of Victory Pentecostal Church to convert the space at 915 Hempstead Turnpike in Franklin Square to religious use was denied on July 14, 2010. The Tabernacle of Victory Church is now appealing this decision and is further requesting a waiver of off street parking rules.

When a commercial space is leased for religious purposes, it comes off the tax rolls and the increasing number of such storefront churches has many local residents and business owners concerned. For those who own and lease properties on Hempstead Turnpike, occupancy by religious groups, most of whom are not from within the community, is a boon in tough economic times, when some of the storefronts remain empty. But for residential and business communities in the area, the proliferation of the storefront churches and the loss to the tax base is a heavy hit and many believe it reflects negatively on the area.

Also disturbing to many is the request to waive off street parking in an area where parking is premium. Community leaders are urging residents and business owners to attend the March 2 hearing to voice their opposition to the application.