Moon supervisors have turned down an application to rezone property from residential to commercial on Coraopolis Heights Road that would have allowed an assisted living personal care home.

The developer immediately proposed a second reuse of the property as a site for four group homes, which are permitted in a residential zoning district.

More than 20 residents spoke against the rezoning proposal March 3, saying it would ruin the quiet neighborhood in the 1500 block of Coraopolis Heights Road.

The supervisors voted 4-1 against the rezoning, with Jim Vitale the lone supporter.

The applicant, Wegman Companies of Rochester, N.Y., presented the request to rezone about four acres to develop an assisted living facility at the intersection with Beaver Grade Road.

The property is owned by Art Tarquino, who was not at the meeting. His son, Ron, and his daughter, Anita Marcocci, attended with about 70 Moon residents who live in the Nyetimber neighborhood.

Mrs. Marcocci told the board that the house was bought by her mother, who is now deceased. She said after the meeting that her mother would have wanted the home to remain intact to be used as an assisted living home.

"I hope they are happy," Mrs. Marcocci said. "Now, they are going to get four group homes."

The proposed Emeritus Assisted Living Facility would have had 66 studio apartments and 15 one-bedroom units. All of the rooms would have had have private baths and kitchenettes.

Plans called for 20 rooms on the first floor secured for patients with Alzheimer's disease. Nurses would have been on staff and doctors would have on-call.

The developer said the facility would have been a for-profit entity that would have paid school and municipal taxes to Moon. About 50 people would have been employed to work three shifts. Of those jobs, 35 would have been full time.

Glenn Bush, who has lived in the neighborhood for 50 years, said, "We are not objecting to personal care facilities. We are objecting to rezoning."

Richard Sica said he lives in the immediate vicinity of the site. He said he bought his home in 1981 and that organized opposition to rezoning existed then.

Mr. Sica said that in 2007 the Sunrise Assisted Living Personal Care Facility was seeking a curative amendment to the zoning. He said that an assisted living personal care home does not fit into the township's comprehensive plan.

"We don't have an axe to grind," said Robert Capwell, who lives on the east side of the Tarquino property.

Mr. Capwell said that the Tarquinos are good neighbors and would do anything for anyone in the neighborhood. He also said he didn't want smells from trash bins for a commercial kitchen next door to his home. Mr. Capwell said the project would have only a negative impact on the neighborhood.

"This is a bad project," resident Larry Buffalino said, noting that the township spent a lot of money defending this process in the past.

The hearing for the four group homes will be scheduled within 60 days. The board voted unanimously to table the motion to approve or deny the application.

Three years ago, Nyetimber residents opposed a proposal to build a Sunrise senior living facility on two lots on Coraopolis Heights Road.

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