P&Z Approves Ferris Acres Creamery Expansion

By Andrew Gorosko

The Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) has approved plans for an expansion of the Ferris Acres Creamery ice cream stand at Ferris Acres, a family-operated dairy farm at 144 Sugar Street (Route 302).

Following a December 3 public hearing, P&Z members unanimously approved modifying the special permit for the premises, endorsing an expansion of the commercial building by 400 square feet, allowing it to increase from its current 600-square-foot size to 1,000 square feet. The seasonal ice cream stand opened for business in 2004.

The expansion project would come in the form of a building addition measuring 20 feet by 20 feet.

Applicants for the expansion are Charles D. Ferris III and Shirley Ferris, doing business as Ferris Acres Creamery. The popular ice cream stand is on the dairy farm operated by the Ferris family.

Ms Ferris explained aspects of the expansion project to P&Z members at the public hearing.

No changes in vehicle parking would be made. The driveway on the site leading from Sugar Street would remain unchanged. Some of the equipment used in the existing building would be moved into the addition to provide more space in the existing building. The project would allow the business to have more servers on duty during busy periods.

Ms Ferris explained that customers’ orders for ice-cream cakes and for pies have greatly increased, so having additional space would allow the business to keep up with customer demand and not be cramped. By having additional space, the business could open an “express service window” for certain take-out orders, allowing customers to be served more quickly, creating better customer flow at the site and thus easing parking pressure there, she explained.

Ms Ferris stressed that the business would not have a drive-through window.

At the public hearing, resident Brian Donnelly of 2 Longview Heights Road said the presence of the ice cream stand generates noise and traffic in the area, as well creating litter.

Mr Donnelly posed several questions about the ice cream stand expansion project. He asked whether the project would involve any additional exterior lighting and whether the structure would become an ice cream parlor with indoor seating. He asked whether an expanded building would be used for some purpose beyond the original building’s use as an ice cream stand.

P&Z Chairman Lilla Dean explained that the business operates under the terms of a P&Z special permit, so if the applicants want to change its specific use, they would need to formally apply to the P&Z to do so, thus triggering another P&Z public hearing.

In response to a question from P&Z member Robert Mulholland, Ms Ferris said that no additional exterior lighting would be installed at the site.

In approving the ice cream stand expansion, P&Z members decided that the project: is consistent with the 2004 Town Plan of Conservation and Development: meets the standards and criteria required for a special permit; and complies with the terms of the FR-2 (Farming/Residential-2 Acre) zoning regulations.

Ms Ferris said on December 4 that Ferris Acres Creamery plans to have its building expansion constructed for the business’s next season. The ice cream stand is open from April through October.