SUNDERLAND — The Zoning Board of Appeals has continued the public hearing on a proposed 9,100-square-foot Dollar General store on Route 116 to June 24.

The continuance came at the request of applicant Calito Development Group at the hearing held May 28 in order to provide more time to finalize the building design, traffic study and drainage plans after hearing that the ZBA preferred an alternative layout design presented during the meeting.

“We’re not quite there yet, but we’re well on our way,” project engineer Rob Levesque said.

Levesque said that the proposed layout was changed to take into account feedback given at the last hearing held on the proposed retail site, as well as the state Department of Transportation (DOT). The new design for the site rotates the building to be closer to the street and has parking on the side rather than in front. He said rotating the building sideways will give it a smaller visual impact from the road and create a “more efficient layout,” requiring less impervious surface and impact on wetland areas.

Additionally, the curb cut will be directly across from the entrance to the Dunkin, Levesque said. The entrance on Route 116 will be for right turns only, requiring drivers facing south towards Amherst to turn left onto Clark Mountain Road, and then left into the parking lot.

“My opinion is this is better than what you presented the first time,” ZBA Chair Steve Krol said.

Board members said they preferred the new layout to the original one, but still had concerns about impacts on traffic and the location of the entrance to the lot. Zoning Board Clerk Stuart Beckley said the proposed curb cut is 100 feet from Clark Mountain Road, but the town’s zoning regulations require 250 feet.

Levesque said Calito Development would review the plans and discuss it with their attorney, who believes DOT has jurisdiction over curb cuts on state highways such as Route 116.

Emily Buck, a project manager with Bowman Consulting which conducted the traffic study for the project, said that they “wouldn’t anticipate significant impact” from constructing a Dollar General at the site. During peak hours the store would see 60 visits an hour, and would not cause traffic to back up at the traffic light at the intersection of Route 116 and the Social Amherst apartments driveway.

Members of the public in attendance said the traffic study under-represented traffic in the area, and said the road is busy, gets backed up frequently and can be dangerous to pedestrians.

“I do believe we’re severely underplaying the dangers,” Aaron Williams said. “Our traffic in this town fluctuates very much based off the colleges and the schools and I myself have witnessed a lot of accidents in these area involving pedestrians and cars.”

Residents added that even if the entrance on Rt. 116 is marked “right turn only” some drivers would still attempt a left turn.

“We can only control the traffic design, we can’t control bad actors,” Levesque said.

Members of the public also asked who got to determine what type of business went into the site, as they would like to see Sunderland remain a small town with small, locally owned businesses.

“I feel like we’re getting bullied into accepting a retail establishment that is not like anything else in this town at all,” Deborah Wilder said. “It’s going to change the face of this town a lot and by opening that door we have to open the door to other retail establishments.”

Krol said the town’s zoning bylaws do not regulate brands and ownership of businesses — the bylaws allow retail stores of the size proposed. If a property owner wishes to sell to a chain business they can, so the board must remain “retailer neutral.”

The board plans to meet again to discuss the project on June 24 at 7 p.m. at the Sunderland Town Offices on School Street.

Reach Madison Schofield at 413-930-4579 or mschofield@recorder.com