Wainwright Receives a Permanent Approval for Events from Planning Commission

Updated Wednesday 12/13: A comment has been adding at the end from abutting neighbor Robert Alexander.

The Wainwright House is three for three.

On Tuesday evening, the City of Rye Planning Commission voted to approve Wainwright’s application to renew its ability to hold events – this time permanently. Wainwright had sought a twenty year approval. After realizing it had approved events at Wainwright over and over for the last twelve years, and that events had been held there for at least twenty years prior to that point, the Planning Commission decided to make the approval permanent.

“The record should reflect we are doing permanent,” said City Planner Christian K. Miller during the Commission’s deliberation prior to its unanimous approval. “To me this is equivalent as a 99 year lease. If you are not viewing this as permanent, you should be viewing this as permanent.”

The approval allows for a set number of events, including outdoor events with amplified music. Those events – largely weddings often booked far in advance – have provided income critical the the operations of the non-profit Wainwright House. Those same weddings have sparked the ire of the immediate neighbors who have lobbied the City, tried to galvanize the larger neighborhood against Wainwright and have sued both the City and the Wainwright House to muzzle the wedding bands that play into the evening.

Just last month, the City of Rye and Wainwright House won the Article 78 proceeding brought by Milton Point Neighbors. And back in the spring, a NY State Supreme Court  judge granted the Wainwright’s motion for summary judgement, dismissing a suit by the neighbors that claimed deed covenants dating back to the 1800s should prevent alcohol sales on the property. No booze would have been no bueno for the group’s event business.

After landing on the winning side of two lawsuits and Tuesday’s Planning Commission thumbs up, it would appear the prospects of Wainwright are looking up.

“It frees the board to do the work of the house,” said Wainwright board member Kelly Jancski after the Commission vote.

“We are very pleased,” said Bob Manheimer, president and treasurer of the non-profit’s board. “This has been a very big diversion for us and an expensive diversion.”

Both said the clarity and the fact Wainwright will no longer have to regularly seek Planning’s approval will allow it to more effectively compete in the marketplace for wedding or corporate type events that bring in critical funds.

The Planning Commission received 38 public comments ahead of their decision. The majority supported Wainwright with the exception of six comments from the neighbors and one from the neighbor’s lawyer. No neighbors were in attendance at Tuesday’s meeting. A few neighbors contacted have yet to provide any comment.

One thing judges and commissions cannot mandate is if there will now be a peace between Wainwright and its neighbors.

+++

Updated: the following comment was provided by abutting neighbor Robert Alexander after our initial story was published:

“What the planning board had done granting Wainwright’s application for a tent in perpetuity is analogous to what the city council is doing with Nursery field. The city wants it, so will just make it happen. All the public hearings and public comment are just for show. Outcome is predetermined.”

“I get it everybody loves Wainwright, but that does not make what they are doing religious and give them a right to operate as they do in a residential neighborhood. Make no mistake Wainwright today is not your mother’s Wainwright!

“Wainwright is operating under a religious exception which never should have been granted in the first place. Now the city likes and encourages the community center programing Wainwright has morphed into, and the City will not say no. Every time Wainwright has come before the planning commission they ask for more, more, more. This last application is no exception.

“To be clear the neighbors are not against all of this non-religious programming taking place at Wainwright. We are against the loud weddings that take place when Wainwright rents their facility (mostly to non-Rye residents) to pay the bills, essentially balancing Wainwright’s budget on the backs of their neighbors.

“It’s the same story, everybody loves Wainwright but just wants somebody else to pay for its operation. In this case it is the neighbors who are denied quite enjoyment of our properties.”

+++