On Wednesday, May 13th, the Greenburgh Town Board, via a Zoom meeting, unanimously and we believe illegally approved a site plan application by Lewis Masters Holdings LP to demolish the multiplex cinema at 320 Saw Mill River Road (Route 9A) in Elmsford across from Sam’s Club and build a ShopRite supermarket.
There were 2 Public Hearings held on the ShopRite development. The March 11th Public Hearing, held at Town Hall, had public participation but the April 22nd Public Hearing via a Zoom meeting was presumed to be illegal because of limited participation by the public. Numerous letters of concern were sent to the Town Board which were not acknowledged or heard by the public.
The site, which had other retail space and still has the KFC and Taco Bell restaurant, covers 10 acres and is in between 9A and the Westchester Hills Condominium. Old Country Road, which runs uphill from Route 9A(east) is a well-traveled road used by school buses from 4 different public school districts as well as Private and Parochial Schools, residents and pedestrians.
The roadway was originally the only access and egress for the 215 Westchester Hills Condominium owners until Executive Boulevard was created and joined Old Country Road at the top of the hill. Pocantico Park scatter site housing which is run by the Greenburgh Housing Authority, lies to the north. That is the side of the property where the developer plans to build the entrance way which will circle up to the new building.
The ShopRite supermarket will be 75,711 square feet including an accessory interior restaurant space together with approximately 10,765 square feet of attached separate retail space after they tear down the existing National Amusements multiplex cinema and other buildings which contained a number of small businesses.
The application was first submitted to the Town Board on April 15, 2019. However, Mr Feiner instructed the developer to meet with the area residents to get their buy-in. They met at the Westchester Hills Condominium’s Recreation Center. The room was full. And, full of it. Mr Feiner snuck in after the meeting had begun with his Town Board members. Once recognized, he took a lot of hits from residents. While most were okay with a ShopRite coming in, they emphatically insisted that they did not want a curb cut on Old Country Road with the subsequent truck traffic and even car traffic as it’s already a congested road.
The ShopRite supermarket will be 75,711 square feet including an accessory interior restaurant space together with approximately 10,765 square feet of attached separate retail space after they tear down the existing National Amusements multiplex cinema and other buildings which contained a number of small businesses.
The application was first submitted to the Town Board on April 15, 2019. However, Mr Feiner instructed the developer to meet with the area residents to get their buy-in. They met at the Westchester Hills Condominium’s Recreation Center. The room was full. And, full of it. Mr Feiner snuck in after the meeting had begun with his Town Board members. Once recognized, he took a lot of hits from residents. While most were okay with a ShopRite coming in, they emphatically insisted that they did not want a curb cut on Old Country Road with the subsequent truck traffic and even car traffic as it’s already a congested road.
Another major concern raised by the residents of Orchard Lane, which abuts Old Country Road, is the issue of blasting and rock chipping. Their homes were built on cement slabs which contain pipes for radiant heat and water. This issue must be continuously monitored as demolition and construction proceeds.
Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner said, “This is positive news for the town especially during this difficult time in our history when so many residents are out of work due to COVID-19. There will be significant construction jobs and permanent job opportunities after the supermarket opens up.” There may be people out of work due to Covid-19 but Mr Feiner also favors keeping the economy shut down which would limit who and how many people may get construction jobs from this project. Our guess would be very few from the area.
The approval contains a number of conditions that the developer must meet. Some of these are:
• The use of LED and motion activated lighting;
• Putting in new sidewalks;
• Making modifications to Old Country Road such as mountable curbs and shifting lanes;
• Designing and installing public improvements such as an updated bus stop and traffic signal modifications;
• Planting additional evergreen screening and repairing fencing;
• Restricted hours for truck deliveries and operation of the trash compactor
All of the claims by the Town Board to not want to vote for this resulted in what was expected: a unanimous vote approving another one of Mr Feiner’s pet projects. The phony compassion from this Board has to stop. Only then will we get A Better Greenburgh.
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