Big Geyser Gets the Final OK in Southeast

By Holly Crocco

Final site plan approval was recently granted to Big Geyser, Inc., to redevelop a 6.4-acre property on Sutton Place in Brewster to serve as a warehouse for the distributor that delivers specialty non-alcoholic beverages and snacks from Westchester to Montauk.

The approval came after some debate and discussion over the hours of operation and what’s fair and consistent for operations in the otherwise residential area.

A family-owned-and-operated business since 1986, Big Geyser already operates two facilities – in Maspeth and Brentwood – and with this property seeks to expand its distribution area.

According to the statement of use submitted to the Southeast Planning Board earlier this year, the proposed redevelopment at the site, which used to house the Hardscrabble Tennis Club, includes internal renovations to the existing 68,300-square-foot metal frame building, a 550-square-foot addition at the rear of the building, replacing parking areas, removing the outdoor tennis courts, constructing two areas for loading and access bays, adjusting stormwater management practices, replacing the lighting, and installing new landscaping.

It is anticipated that 70 to 75 employees will operate the facility over two shifts, with overall operating hours of 4 a.m. to midnight Monday through Saturday. That includes about 50 drivers and helpers, 10 to 15 employees that fill orders from on-site stock and prepare the delivery pallets for the trucks to be loaded, and 10 office personnel.

There are 22 long beverage trucks (37-foot) and four long box trucks (39.5-foot) as part of the fleet for this facility. Four full-sized tractor-trailers are also anticipated weekly for deliveries to fill stock for distribution.

According to the statement of use, it is expected that there will be about 20 to 22 outgoing deliveries each day. Drivers would begin the load-out delivery procedures starting at 5 a.m., which continues until all trucks have left.

Trucks begin returning around 10 a.m. and continue throughout the afternoon, until about 2 to 4 p.m. Drivers complete the load-in procedure, then temporarily park their trucks outside. A truck jockey would pull trucks into the building around 4 p.m. to load for the following day’s delivery.

During the Aug. 11 Southeast Planning Board/Architectural Review Board meeting, Chairman Tom LaPerch explained that the board felt it only fair to hold Big Geyser to the same hours as nearby Clancy Relocation & Logistics, which was told it cannot have truck traffic start until 6 a.m.

“After polling the board, I think it’s only fair that we keep our hours of operation consistent with Clancy, which went through a big battle out there,” he said. “So I don’t think we can accommodate your 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. staring times.”

According to Jamie LoGiudice of Insite Engineering, Surveying & Landscape Architecture, P.C., of Carmel, that wouldn’t work for the company. She explained that the smaller beverage trucks will all be loaded inside the building during the late night and early morning hours. Long box trucks and tractor-trailers will already be in place, having been parked the night before, and will just be loaded outside before they take off – not having to back up.

“That’s where we feel that they differ from Clancy and the other projects on Fields Lane,” said LoGuidice.

“I don’t think our issue is with loading the trucks,” said one planning board member. “It’s with the trucks pulling out, accessing Fields Lane… We have to be prepared for Clancy to come back and ask for an adjustment that will match what we approve here.”

Jerry Reda, president of Big Geyser, explained that their operation differs from that of Clancy, just based on what they are transporting or moving.

“The board is concerned about noise – I can see why there’s a lot of concern about moving trucks, because they have to maneuver and get loaded,” he said. “Our trucks don’t do that. Our trucks will be in position at nighttime and will pull straight out without any need to have any backup noise whatsoever. And that’s the way we developed the timeline to accommodate the concern with the noise.”

Reda explained how their operation works. He said sales persons finish their day between 4 and 6 p.m., and begin transmitting their orders to the office, where staff generate pull tags. Between 5 p.m. and midnight, staff pull goods from the aisles and start packing up the trucks – which are already in position at the facility, either indoor or outdoor.

According to Reda, some trucks have to go as far as the Bronx, and many of the hospitals and schools they deliver to have delivery windows before 8 a.m.

“That’s significant business we would lose” if the trucks can’t depart at 5 a.m., he said. About 30 percent of the company’s business goes to schools, hospitals, and other “institutions” like the Bronx Zoo.

“We deliver milk products, we deliver water projects,” said Reda. “Sometimes these people serve breakfast in the morning and they want fresh products before they open up, before the students come in.”

The board was receptive to the explanation of how operations will work, and agreed to allow the trucks to depart at 5 a.m., as long as there is no backing up between 4 and 6 a.m.

“That’s fair,” LaPerch told Reda. “You explained it differently. I guess it’s critical to your business to get out early, to accommodate the schools and things like that… I agree that Clancy has every right to come back if they like, but this is a business model that I think is critical to this operation.”

Final site plan approval and a conditional use permit were approved by the board, with member Lynne Eckardt voting “no.”