January 12th Update- Maplewood Assisted Living, Pedestrian Safety, Proposed Pet Store Law and More
Hello Greenburgh,
Welcome to 2020! This is my first update of the new year and I hope everyone had a great holiday season and didn't get the flu like I did! This is a jam packed update with a number of important updates and upcoming events in January. Upcoming events are summarized at the bottom of the email so make sure to read all the way to the end! If you have questions about any of the below please email me at Eric@ericzinger.com. Please forward this newsletter to your neighbors and friends and encourage them to subscribe.
Maplewood Assisted Living Update-
This past Saturday there was a site visit to the former Maplewood Swim and Tennis Facility off of W. Hartsdale Avenue in Hartsdale. The event was well attended with over 30 members of the public in attendance. Also present were several members of the Planning Board, numerous town employees,Councilman Ken Jones and Councilwoman Gina Jackson.
The large public attendance reflects the many concerns held by the public about the negative impact of the proposed development. Stormwater runoff and flooding, increased vehicle traffic on already congested W. Hartsdale Avenue, large amounts blasting of rock, and the removal of over 351 trees are but a few of the major concerns that reflects the near(total??) universal opposition to said development by members of the public in attendance. I share many of those concerns and I am encouraging neighbors to pay attention now, and attend the numerous upcoming public hearings that will be scheduled where they will have the opportunity to speak on their concerns.
I took a number of pictures while at the site and those can be viewed here. A couple of items that stood out to me from the visit:
The proposed building will be, in a word, massive. It stretches nearly the entire length of the property and seeing that in person was jarring. The developers are asking for a 40% variance to increase the size of the building that they are allowed by zoning currently.
As part of the development proposal, the applicant has filed a tree removal permit indicating they plan to remove 351 trees. It was noted during the walk through that the town will not be independently verifying/counting the number of trees removed. This is an item for concern as its possible even more than 351 trees will be removed.
There are a number of severe steep slopes throughout the property and the applicant is requesting a number of steep slope permits in their application.
Stay tuned for more updates on this project. Also note the below upcoming event regarding an additional assisted living site visit and a proposal to change the zoning laws to allow for more discretion in the zoning code for these kind of developments. Greenburgh can't get enough assisted living it seems.
Hartsdale Neighbors Association Safety Event
The Hartsdale Neighbors Association is hosting a meeting with the new chief of police for Greenburgh that will focus on safety in the Hartsdale community. The event will introduce our new police chief(Chief Bryan Ryan) to the community and there will be an added focus on pedestrian safety. We have all been troubled by the recent increase in pedestrian accidents and HNA has been meeting with town officials to advocate for additional safety measures. HNA has previously hosted Chief McNerney and we are excited that the new chief will be joining us. Please join us Tuesday 1/28 at 7:00pm at Sacred Heart Elementary. All are welcome.
Commercial Sales of Dogs and Cats
There will be a public hearing this Tuesday at 7:00pm at Greenburgh Town Hall on the proposed law to ban the commercial sale of all dogs and cats. This will be the only item on the agenda. You can read the original proposal here. There is an additional version of the law that is being considered which explicitly bans the sale of dogs from puppy mills and I believe is much more reasonable. While it can be debated whether this is an issue that should even be taken up at the local level(there is proposed similar legislation in Albany). The second version of the law under consideration is much more reasonable and the version that I support. That version can be viewed here.
Upcoming Events
1/14 7:00pm at Greenburgh Town Hall "Proposed Commercial Dog and Cat Sale Ban"- There will be a Public Hearing that evening on the proposed law to ban the commercial sale of all dogs and cats in Greenburgh. This is the only item on the agenda for that evening.
1/15 7:00pm at Greenburgh Public Library- "Westchester, Washington, and Rochambeau: The Path To Victory- Susan Seal, President and Founder of Friends of Odell House Rochambeau Headquarters will discuss the historical significance of the old farmhouse on Ridge Rd. in Hartsdale. It played a major role in the Revolutionary war and in American History. Susan will also talk about the exciting new plans to rescue the house and open it to the public.
1/18- 1:00pm Greenburgh Town Hall- Public Discussion on proposed assisted living zoning change to allow for a floating zone to be applied throughout the town.
1/28 7:00pm at Sacred Heart Elementary- Hartsdale Neighbors Association Presents- Hartsdale Safety – A Conversation with Police Chief Bryan Ryan- Join Hartsdale Neighbors Association Tuesday Evening for a conversation with the new Greenburgh Police Chief. Find out more about the HNA Safety Subcommittee and what is going on to make our community a safer place to live. Questions- Email info@hartsdaleneighbors.org.
Eric Zinger
www.ericzinger.com