Melanie Lekocevic is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media a representative of a Schenectady-based construction management firm recently presented a conceptual site plan to the New Baltimore Planning Board for the building of a new medical facility on Route 9W. Greg Barkstrom, director of real estate development for LeChase Construction, told the board the details of the project are not immediately known because the company is awaiting land-use approval before developing a specific plan. “It will be one, maybe two medical buildings,” Barkstrom said. “It would be on what is known as the Dunphy site on Route 9W.” That property currently houses an abandoned restaurant space in poor condition, Barkstrom said. “It has been vacant for a long time — the place is falling down,” he said. LeChase is looking to merge two adjacent properties for the project. “There are two parcels associated with this. They will be combined,” Barkstrom told the board. “One is 5.8 acres and the other is 2.3 acres.” The area is zoned Development Multi-family Residential, or DMR, which expressly does not permit medical facilities. “In that DMR zone, medical is specifically prohibited, so we are looking for a use variance to allow a medical [facility],” Barkstrom said. Before the project can move forward, the zoning board of appeals would have to make a determination to allow a medical facility in the DMR zone. Planning Board Chair Robert Van Etten referred the matter to the zoning board of appeals for review of the use variance request. Barkstrom said. LeChase will likely bring the matter to the ZBA later this month. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.