PLANNING BOARD AGENDA
Common Council Chambers
February 19, 2026 – 4:30 PM
PUBLIC HEARING
PB Case No.: 01-26 Zone: Residential Single
Address: 11-15 Fairfax Place Requested Action: Site Plan Review and
Applicant: Naomi Romero Special Use Permit
Owner: Naomi Romero
Pursuant to City of Utica Zoning Code Section 2-29-312(c), the applicant is seeking Special Use Permit review and Site Plan review of a plan to convert the attic of an existing two-family home into an accessory dwelling unit.
According to plans submitted by the applicant, the unit will offer two bedrooms and one bathroom and measure just under 800 square feet. Access to and from the proposed will unit will be via an existing back corridor and a proposed stair addition to the front corridor. Parking for the unit is proposed to be in the rear yard.
In the Residential Single zoning district, this is a use that requires approval of both a Special Use Permit and a Site Plan; a public hearing is required as part of the Special Use Permit.
PB Case No.: 04-26 Zone: Urban Mixed Use
Address: 224 North Genesee Street Requested Action: Site Plan Review and
Applicant: Strange Names, LLC Special Use Permit
Owner: Northstar LI Properties, LLC
Pursuant to City of Utica Zoning Code Section 2-29-125(b), the applicant is seeking Special Use Permit review and Site Plan review of a plan to convert space previously occupied by a credit union into a marijuana dispensary/retail.
According to plans submitted by the applicant, the conversion of the space will require light demolition of the existing entryway and some interior changes to the room layout along with limited cosmetic work to the existing drive-through structure. Also, signage is planned for the area above the front entrance and the drive-through. The proposed hours of operation are from 8 AM to 2 AM.
In the Urban Mixed Use zoning district, this is a use that requires approval of both a Special Use Permit and a Site Plan; a public hearing is required as part of the Special Use Permit.
PB Case No.: 05-26 Zone: Urban Mixed Use (UMU)
Address: 350 Leland Avenue Requested Action: Site Plan Review and
Applicant: Mohamed Altairi Special Use Permit
Owner:
Pursuant to City of Utica Zoning Code Section 2-29-125(b), the applicant is seeking Special Use Permit review and Site Plan review of a plan to convert space previously utilized as a smoke shop into a neighborhood convenience store.
In the Urban Mixed Use zoning district, this is a use that requires approval of both a Special Use Permit and a Site Plan; a public hearing is required as part of the Special Use Permit.
NEW BUSINESS
PB Case No.: 06-26 Zone:
Address: Citywide Requested Action: Common Council
Applicant: City of Utica Report
Owner:
Pursuant to City of Utica Zoning Code Section 2-29-21(b)(6), the City of Utica Common Council has requested a report from the Planning Board on a proposed zoning text amendment.
Due to support from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), the City received numerous calls from potential developers in the first half of 2025 regarding the City’s zoning regulations governing the siting and development of battery energy storage systems. As a result, the Common Council adopted a 6-month moratorium on such facilities on August 27, 2025.
Draft regulations governing the siting of such facilities have been drafted, largely based on a model ordinance made available through NYSERDA. It is the recommendation of the Department of Urban & Economic Development that such facilities be permitted in the City’s Industrial (I) and Industrial Mixed Use (IMU) zoning districts, requiring site plan review by the Planning Board together with issuance of a special use permit.
The Common Council has scheduled a public hearing on the draft zoning text amendment for their next meeting on Wednesday, February 25, 2026.
PB Case No.: 07-26 Zone:
Address: Citywide Requested Action: Common Council
Applicant: City of Utica Report
Owner:
Pursuant to City of Utica Zoning Code Section 2-29-21(b)(6), the City of Utica Common Council has requested a report from the Planning Board on a proposed zoning text amendment.
In a short span of several months, the Zoning Board of Appeals reviewed and approved use variances for three new billboards in the City – one on North Genesee Street near the Harbor, one at the western gateway into the City on Oriskany Street West and yet another billboard on the North-South Arterial. As such, the Department of Urban & Economic Development (U&ED) submitted legislation to the Common Council seeking a 6-month moratorium on all new billboards; the Common Council adopted the moratorium on August 27, 2025.
Based on a citywide survey, it is estimated that there are 36 billboards currently in existence throughout the city, though most are concentrated along the N-S Arterial and Oriskany Street East and West; this number does not include two of the three that were recently granted approval by the Zoning Board (NYS DOT did not provide necessary approval to the third at the western gateway). It is the Department’s position that billboards are urban blight, even when new, as they block views of the city’s businesses, building fabric and historic architecture. Instead, the Department feels that such signs belong in rural locations set off from major highways like the Thruway an appropriate distance. As such, the Department is proposing an amendment to the zoning ordinance that would outright prohibit all new billboards in the future.
The Common Council has scheduled a public hearing on the draft zoning text amendment for their next meeting on Wednesday, February 25, 2026.
