SUNDERLAND — The Zoning Board of Appeals on Thursday continued the public hearing for a proposed 9,100-square-foot retail building expected to house a Dollar General at the corner of Route 116 and Clark Mountain Road with concerns over traffic and safety on the busy state highway.

Calito Development Group, a Torrington, Connecticut-based construction and management group, is proposing the creation of a retail store with up to 46 parking spaces on an approximately 3-acre parcel of land with curb cuts on Route 116 and Clark Mountain Road. The developer, Gary Eucalitto, explained his company has broad experience in developing retail stores for decades and this building’s expected tenant is Dollar General.

As part of the purchase-and-sale agreement for the property, Eucalitto and project engineer Rob Levesque also said the plan is to split the property at the proposed egress on Route 116, which would allow further development of a small plaza if the current land owner sees fit.

While Eucalitto and Levesque said the store would generate “low-impact traffic,” especially with several nearby apartment complexes that would likely just generate foot traffic, the ZBA expressed significant concern about potential traffic impacts on Route 116.

“Traffic flow, especially in this particular location, is a serious issue,” ZBA Chair Steven Krol said, adding there is a “history of bad accidents and fatalities over the last 20 years,” but the installation of a traffic light, which took a lot of effort in meeting with MassDOT, has alleviated it. “I’m anticipating more accidents, plus when the light goes red, traffic is beyond the driveway and sometimes to Clark Mountain Road … I think we’ve got a semi-safe situation now and I’m concerned it’s going to upset it.”

Concerns about traffic also came from letters written by Fire Chief Steven Benjamin and Police Chief Erik Demetropoulos, with the former asking if it was possible to prohibit left turns out of the Route 116 entrance, as crossing busy lanes of traffic could prove dangerous.

Eucalitto said he does not “see a problem with eliminating the left [turn] out,” but he will need to speak to his prospective tenant to see if they agree.

“As long as we have that side entry [on Clark Mountain Road], then I don’t think that would be an issue,” he added.

While traffic is a major concern, Krol said Dollar General could provide a grocery outlet for Sunderland residents, who currently have to travel to Greenfield, Northampton or Hadley for a grocery store. There are small stores in Sunderland, such as the corner store in the downtown village, as well as a convenience store in the plaza across from the Cliffside apartment complex.

“Under the criteria of community need … I’d say this is a positive thing,” Krol said. “You have to go a long way to buy a loaf of bread.”

The applicant, which is still working with MassDOT to finalize approval for a curb cut on Route 116, did not provide a traffic study to the ZBA, as they want to progress further in their talks with the state. Levesque and Eucalitto, however, did say they will be more than happy to provide a study at a future meeting. The matter also will come before the Planning Board on March 11.

With a traffic study expected in the future, as well as the Planning Board’s scheduled meeting, the ZBA continued the hearing to April 17 at 7 p.m.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.