Lansing residents left unsure about potential Dandy

At the corner of Route 34 and Route 34B in Lansing sits a 4.7-acre plot of land that is currently not being used for development. On one corner sits the Rogue’s Harbor Inn, which opened in 1830, and the other corner could soon be the home of a gas station.

Dandy Mini Mart recently received an extension from the original May 31 deadline on the right to purchase the land from current landowners, according to Dandy spokesperson Bill Bustin.

In an email to Tompkins Weekly, Bustin did not specify the length of the extension granted. The Lansing Planning Board will host a public hearing on the potential gas station June 27 at 6:30 p.m. at Lansing Town Hall, located at 29 Auburn Rd.

Rogue’s Harbor owner Eileen Stout said she thinks most of those in attendance at the meeting will be against the Dandy addition.

“I think [Lansing residents are] beyond not happy,” she said. “Lansing has a voter-approved comprehensive plan that dictates future development in a number of ways — size, aesthetics, clustering of commercial versus residential — not unusual for a small town. However, this kind of flies in the face of that entire comprehensive plan.”

The site plan proposal calls for a 6,100-square-foot convenience store with two gasoline fueling islands, one diesel fueling island and a drive-through window. The site plan also calls for 25 passenger vehicle parking spaces and six tractor-trailer parking stalls.

Stout said this kind of congestion in that area of Lansing could be harmful, in more ways than one.

“It puzzles me that the Town Board and Planning Board would stand by as a nearly 5-acre, noisy, airport-lighted development would go in as, sort of, one of the anchors in what they hope will be a developing town center,” she said. “It’s not a local business. It’s too big, it’s too noisy, and it would exert pressure on an already-busy corner.”

Lansing Town Supervisor Ed LaVigne said he understands why residents are opposed to a gas station being built on a corner where so much traffic comes through Lansing, but the Town Board might not have a way to block the purchase.

He said if Dandy Mini Mart wants to purchase the land, it can. Before building happens on the site, however, there must be a public meeting and approval from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s State Environmental Quality Review Act, which has not happened yet.

“If it’s an ‘allowed use,’ it’s very difficult and dangerous to try to zone something out, because then it’s a ‘taking,’” LaVigne said. “Am I for this or against this? I don’t have any skin in the game one way or the other. But if it’s an ‘allowed use’ for a business to come in or somebody else to come in and do something, then you go through the proper channels.”

LaVigne said he sympathizes with residents’ concerns.

“People can be frustrated with that, and I respect their opinion, but if you try to prevent this, it’s called a ‘taking,’ and we’ll go to court on this,” he said. “As our town attorney says, and I agree with him, if you go to court, you’ve already lost.”

Local businesses offer the same types of services, State Assemblyperson Anna Kelles argued. Those businesses could come under fire if a large-scale gas station and convenience store opened nearby, she said.

“A quarter of a mile away is a large minimarket and gas station,” she said. “Basically, this is duplicating something that’s already there, that is locally owned and will be put out of business because of this Dandy Mart. They’re not gaining property tax. They’re not even gaining jobs. They’re replacing one for the other.”

Stout agreed with Kelles, saying that while Lansing needs businesses to take some of the property tax burden off of residents, she doesn’t see a Dandy Mini Mart as a long-term solution.

“In the short run, it will provide more tax revenue for the town. In the not-so-long-run, it’ll put several other small businesses under,” she said. “Leaving those businesses to not operate and not generate sales tax but also to not be able to upkeep those properties and generate property tax as well [will be bad]. I believe in the end, it’ll have a negative impact.”

Bustin responded by saying in an email that Dandy Mini Mart, which has stores in New York and Pennsylvania, is committed to serving as a town center for Lansing.

“Dandy intends to do what we do best, which is operate an award-winning convenience store that offers made-to-order deli items, hand-pressed pizza, fresh bean-to-cup coffee, cold brew, and breakfast foods from our café, as well as grocery staples,” he said. “The location will also offer several fueling options, including non-ethanol [gasoline] and our first EV charging station.”

Bustin continued, saying Dandy Mini Mart is an important community resource in many places already.

“The majority of Dandy stores are located in towns just like Lansing, and we’ve made our mark for nearly 40 years serving rural communities in Pennsylvania and New York,” he said. “In many communities, Dandy is the town center –— whether that means the local grocery store, or a place for students to hang out like in Dundee or Waverly, NY, or the many seniors who enjoy their ‘coffee clubs’ at our stores in the morning.”

Stout said she believes a town center shouldn’t be a gas station. While she has not advocated for her historic landmark to be the center of Lansing, she thinks the growth and development of her business could be hampered by the noise, light and air pollution that a high-traffic gas station could bring into the town.

“I’m looking to develop Rogue’s Harbor into something more upscale,” she said. “I’m always pouring time and money into this beautiful landmark, but to have a big gas station across the street is counterproductive to that effort.”

In April 2021, the New York State Assembly and Senate passed a bill that would require all newly made passenger cars be 100% electric by 2035, with all medium-heavy duty vehicles becoming electric by 2045.

Gov. Kathy Hochul signed that bill into law in September 2021. Kelles said that makes a large gas station in Lansing potentially obsolete in the next two decades.

“They’re going to be building underground, massive natural gas tanks for a facility that has, maybe, 20 years because of the state law,” she said. “Then what? They’re going to leave? And leave it up to the municipality to do the clean-up? Not only is it short-sighted because we’re transitioning to all-electric, but they’re going to build tons of infrastructure that will be a stranded asset.”

A stranded asset is an asset that is unable to earn its original economic return due to devaluations, Kelles explained.

While local politicians and residents have expressed concern about a Dandy Mini Mart inhabiting the corner of Route 34 and Route 34B, Bustin said the store could model other stores that serve as more than a store, like a town center.

“There are expressions of community support for this project, as well as opposition,” he said. “I would encourage your readers to view the planning board meetings over the past six months or so on YouTube to get an idea of how Dandy has responded to feedback from the board thus far. This will be a one-of-a-kind Dandy that intends to fit in Lansing, similar to other unique Dandy stores in Hector, NY, and Wysox, PA, where the overarching goal is to fit in with the existing built environment.”

Stout is a resident and business owner. She has experienced the burden of increasing costs to manage her business and pay her taxes. She still believes a Dandy Mini Mart wouldn’t fit in Lansing.

“The Dandy Mini Mart doesn’t bring anything to the town that we don’t already have,” she said. “They bring nothing to the table but a negative impact. They have 65 stores. They don’t care about Lansing.”

Lansing at Large appears every Wednesday in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@VizellaMedia.com.