Elmwood CC Club Development Proposal Hearing, Assembly race endorsements and other Greenburgh News
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Eric Zinger's Greenburgh Information and News
Hello Greenburgh,
Right to the news but first a quick plug: I'm asking everyone of you to forward this email to an interested neighbor/colleague or friend, encourage them to subscribe, and help spread the word. I want everyone to know what is going on in the Town and want this newsletter to continue to grow. To do that I need your support. If you can't think of anyone who is interested, I'd ask that you consider a donation to help offset web hosting fees and the costs involved in running this page. Any amount would be greatly appreciated.
Elmwood Country Club Development Proposal
On Wednesday at the Town Board meeting, there is a public hearing regarding the long in the works proposed residential development at the site of the former Elmwood Country Club on Dobbs Ferry Road. Location Link. This is one of the largest residential development projects in the area in years with 175 proposed townhomes in the original proposal. The hearing is for the Town Board as lead agency to hear comments from the public on the Final Environmental Impact Statement developed by Ridgwood for various options for developing the property.
Part 1
Part 2
If you'd like to read even more about the proposal you can view additional documents here which include the traffic data as well as the Conservation Advisory Council report.
There are pros and cons to each of the 5 proposed options. Each proposal varies in terms of the number of units, types of units, and the differences are well summarized in the below graphic. I encourage anyone who wishes to speak on this topic to attend the meeting on Wednesday but also to make sure to read the FEIS first as it has a detailed analysis and applicant response in Part 2 to many of your likely questions. My main thoughts:
It is truly sad to see that option I is the only option on the table that includes any affordable housing units. We all know that a housing crisis exists in Westchester and the cost of housing is devastating for people on the lower end of the economic spectrum. That we could have a proposal for hundreds of millions of dollars of new development and not have any affordable units including is unacceptable. My comments on Wednesday will focus specifically on this point.
It should be noted that options G and options I are condominium proposals that would have condominiums taxed like single family homes or "fee simple". This is "a concession" from the developer because condominiums in NY are taxed at much lower rates then single family homes because of the way they are assessed which results in lower assessments Lower assessments equals lower taxes. I put concession in quotes because it is ludicrous to think that the second the ink is dry on the site plan permits that this wouldn't immediately be challenged in court and in my opinion would have no basis to stand. We just saw the town negotiate millions of dollars in tax refunds to "The Landing" in Dobbs Ferry. That was a development that wished to convert from Fee Simple to condo and the Town Board tried to block/delay that till they could pass a law saying any property converted to Condominium tax type would not have its tax status changed. The tax refund is a tacit admission by the Town Board that this proposal would never hold up under challenge and with millions in tax revenue at stake, anyone who thinks that this wouldn't immediately be challenged has their head in the sand. I'm not saying proposals G and I should be scrapped entirely, but they should be considered only with the expectation of condominium tax structure. This is the other key point I will focus on Wednesday.
I'll also note under the single family home proposal 2.5x as many trees will be cut down, 506 as per the FEIS.
Mary Jane Shimsky For Assembly
The vast majority of the Town of Greenburgh is located within the 92nd Assembly District. Up until the recent redistricting, the entire town was within the 92nd district. Only through the likely political engineering of incumbent Tom Abinanti, was Edgemont (an area where unpopular doesn't do his status justice) and a portion of Hartsdale gerrymandered out of the district into the neighboring 88th. The 92nd District also includes most of Mt. Pleasant and now a tiny portion of Yonkers. At an organized convention of Democrat Party District Leaders, those DL's representing the 92nd district(those remaining after Edgemont was gerrymandered out) overwhelmingly chose to support Mary Jane Shimsky as the next Assemblywoman as the endorsed candidate. I was one of those District Leaders and I cannot overstate how important this race is and we rally around Mary Jane. Mary Jane also this week picked up the endorsement of the Working Families Party. Incumbent Abinanti is still running and will be on the ballot so its important to spread the word and tell all registered Democrats to vote Mary Jane Shimsky for Assembly in the June primary.
Additional Updates
Capital Budget- The Town Board is set to approve the 2022 Capital Budget at Wednesdays Town Board Meeting
Notable items include a complete renovation of the basketball courts at E. Rumbrook Park, multiple new vehicles for the town police department, a new traffic light at Central Avenue and Lawton in Hartsdale, $1mm for pedestrian safety improvements, $2.5mm for road resurfacing and an additional $2mm for curb replacements.
Lawsuits
Kristen Stein Case- We are now up to $175k in authorized legal defense spending for the Kristen Stein case.
In related news, the parent company of Lohud/Journal News is suing Greenburgh for failing to disclose police disciplinary records. Link "Greenburgh, located in Westchester County, denied the request for its officers' disciplinary files"
The Landing- The landing recently negotiated a massive tax rebate as a result of significantly lower assessable values of their properties as a result of their conversion to a condominium tax structure. This ends their lawsuit against the Town for refusing to lower their assessment.
Hopefully you have found this informative. Please forward to your friends and neighbors. If you have questions about any of the above, please email me at Eric@ericzinger.com