Brewery, Arcade and Event Space Proposed for 511 Fishkill Avenue As Industrial Arts Brewing Co. Looks To Expand To Beacon

The large property at 511 Fishkill Avenue (aka Route 52), which is between AutoZone and the Healey car dealership, has been acquired by Diamond Properties, a commercial real estate and property management business located in Mount Kisco, New York. This is the old Mechtronics building on 9 acres of property; technically it’s in Beacon, but it’s outside of downtown Beacon. The property is a 147,500-square foot, two-story flex/industrial warehouse and office building and includes loading docks, warehouse, office, and on-site parking, according to the website of Diamond Properties.

The vision is to transform part of the space into a warehouse, brewery, accessory office, arcade and event space, to accommodate Industrial Arts Brewing Company, who would be a tenant in the building, according to the application submitted by the applicant, DP 108, LLC.

Industrial Arts Brewing Company, who is based in Garnerville, NY (over to the southwest of us, in Rockland County), is looking to expand in Beacon by way of this location. The plan would be a new brewery production space with warehouse capacity, and an event space on the second floor of the building, which could include arcade use. The architect for the project is Aryeh Siegel, who is the architect behind several projects under construction in Beacon, as well as completed projects.

While the intent of use for an arcade is there, Beacon has an older, or vintage if you will, zoning requirement on the books that does not allow for arcades in Beacon, unless they are offering vintage machines.

An excerpt from the arcade zoning law reads like this (which was posted with the 12/11/2018 Planning Board agenda): “Such amusement center shall contain only vintage amusement devices that were built prior to the year 1980 or noncomputerized devices with the exception of first generation computerized games such as those manufactured prior to 1990.”

The requirement also has provisions for noise levels, and that windows are to be kept closed, and doors “open only during ingress and egress,” as well as a calling for no vibrations to occur off the premises. Children under the age of 18 years old would also not be allowed to be in before 3 pm (school release time), and that age range cannot operate the machinery after 10 pm.

The Public Hearing was triggered after a representative from the project came before the Planning Board during a Planning Board meeting on 12/11/2018 to review the application to amend an existing Site Plan Approval and needed zoning law changed to allow amusement centers that include more current games, not just vintage.

During the 12/11/2018 Planning Board meeting, it was explained this way: “Right now, amusement centers are prohibited unless they are vintage amusement centers. In which case they are allowed by special permit. We are taking that distinction away and just saying ‘Indoor Commercial Recreation is a permissible use.’” The Planning Board discussed amending the old zoning requirement, and then sent their unanimous recommendation of “Yes, Amend” to the City Council for a vote.

In order to vote, the City Council must hold a Public Hearing to hear opinions from the public, which is scheduled for today, Monday December 17, 2018. An email from a Beacon business owner, Paulette Myers-Rich, who owns No. 3 Reading Room & Photo Book Works on Main Street in Beacon, is on file to be present during the Public Hearing, in which Paulette asks that the special permit remain in the legislation in order to give more selection to which business opens where.

According to the proposed draft change of the law, the only proposed change coming from the City Council’s attorney seems to be to the vintage aspect of the zoning requirement.

Screenshot of the proposed Draft Change of the arcade law, which is what is being discussed at a City Council Public Hearing Monday, December 17, 2018.