Elmwood Country Club - Ridgewood Development

I find it necessary to respond to “Hartsdale Resident’s” August 30, 2018 comments in response to my Letter to The Editor of August 25, 2018.

The first comment regarding the reservation of parkland or payment of fees in lieu thereof is premature. Such discussion properly takes place during the final stage of approval of subdivision and/or site applications regarding residential developments.

And, according to both NYS enabling legislation and the Greenburgh Code, it is the Town’s decision, not the developer’s, whether parkland should be reserved or recreation escrow fees paid. In the Ridgewood case, no subdivision or site plan application has been submitted.

Hartsdale Resident accuses the Town Board of “holding the developer  hostage,” requiring the developers “to submit plans for something  they have zero intention of doing,” and delaying projects  “for months if not years before referring projects to the planning board.”

Hartsdale Resident is misinformed. This application does not require  Planning Board input at this time. The only application Ridgewood  has submitted is for rezoning property and amendments to the official  Zoning Map. Zoning changes are discretionary actions that properly  belong before the Town Board. If it so chooses, the Town Board can decide not to entertain the application.

Hartsdale Resident is agreeing with me when he/she states that "the exploration of alternative uses for the site and their impacts  should be done during the SEQR review.”

If the Town Board chooses to consider this application, the following  steps, previously used when considering other large projects  (The Jefferson, Regeneron, Avalon, Stop & Shop, GameOn)  should be employed:

• Issue an Request for Qualifications (RFQ) or Request for Proposal (RFP) for an outside independent consultant Interview replying consultants

• Declare Town Board intent to be Lead Agency under State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) and identify the action as a Type I

• Choose the consultant

• Affirm Lead Agency status, issue a Positive Declaration, order that a DEIS be prepared and direct the consultant to prepare a draft “scope”

• Hold public scoping session(s)

• Refer the Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS) when prepared to the Planning Board and other involved agencies for review and recommendations

• Hold public hearing(s) on the DEIS

• Prepare an Final Environmental Impact Study (FEIS)

• Prepare Findings

Dorrine Livson

President

Worthington Woodlands Civic Association

Letter To The Editor

To A Better Greenburgh,

A Scarsdale Inquirer article of 8/10/18, concerning the proposed development of the former Elmwood Country Club by the New Jersey based company, Ridgewood Realty, contained mis-information and omissions.

The “pre-submission conference” with the Planning Board that was requested by Ridgewood should NOT have been granted because there is no provision in NYS Town law enabling legislation or the Code of the Town of Greenburgh that allows an applicant seeking a map change and proposed rezoning to bypass the normal procedure of first going to the Town Board. According to the Code of the Town of Greenburgh, this type of meeting is allowed for site plan or sub-division approval only. It is not allowed for projects that require changes of zoning. All zoning changes must be approved by the Town Board.

In a July 3rd letter to the Planning Board, Ridgewood blames the Town Board for delaying action on their application. The problem of the delay is not the fault of the Town Board. At a Town Board Work Session, a request was made to Ridgewood to submit their plans (site plans, landscaping, water course, steep slopes, utilities, roads, etc.) for the as-of-right 119 Single Family Homes development. To date, they have only submitted an engineer's rendering of the Single Family Homes. Ridgewood is the problem for the delay, not the Town Board.

In the article, Ridgewood claims that the Town House Condo proposal, an Adult 55+ Community, will generate $350,000 more tax revenue (Town, School, Fire District, etc.) than the Single Family Homes proposal. That statement is incorrect because of the fact that Town House Condo units are assessed at between 50-60% of their value as compared to 100% assessment of Single Family Homes. At comparable selling prices, the 119 Single Family Homes will generate more tax revenue than the 175 Town Houses.

Ridgewood also states that their traffic engineer says that “the traffic generated from the 175 unit development proved to be less than the traffic generated from the as-of-right 119 unit single family home plan”. At our Civic Association meeting, the Ridgewood CEO, made the statement that people over 55 do not go to work. That claim was strongly disputed by the association members. If that assumption is being used as a criteria for the traffic study, there is a major problem.

Our community strongly believes that a full comprehensive SEQRA review of the project should be conducted by an outside, independent consulting firm to study all the issues concerning this development: financial, density, environmental, traffic, alternative development options, etc., as has been done previously by the Town for major projects such as The Jefferson (JPI) and Regeneron.

Dorrine Livson
President
Worthington-Woodlands Civic Assoc.

Witholding Information and Selective Open Government

Last week’s Town Board meeting had two issues of significance that had residents turning out in numbers. The first was the alleged Comprehensive Plan Hearing for the latest iteration of a diluted and less potent Comprehensive Plan document that was met with mostly resistance. The other was numerous residents from Ardsley in attendance to protest the proposed Jefferson housing project in the area of Lawrence Avenue. Previously, several hundred residents had turned out in opposition. In fact, due to the volume of people at that meeting, the Police Chief began enforcing the occupancy limits and herding people into other areas of Town Hall.

While there is much to discuss about the watered-down and almost ineffectual proposed Comprehensive Plan, we want to focus on the lack of open government from 177 Hillside Avenue. Our previous post details an email that was received by Mr Feiner from Rick Rucoba, the Public Affairs Manager from the Akzo Nobel chemical titan that owns the property under contract for sale to create The Jefferson. The contract is only valid however if the developer could get approval to build the 272-unit housing extravaganza. 

Below is a copy of the email Mr Feiner received at 7:27PM on Wednesday night. Where was he at 7:27PM on Wednesday night? Of course, he was at the Town Board presentation arena using up residents’ valuable time forcing a limit with their engagement with a critical public. So he received the email from Mr Rucoba at roughly the beginning of the night’s proceedings. Yet, knowing there were people from the Ardsley community there planning to speak against The Jefferson and seeking his help in doing so, he chose to secret the information and remain silent! Is it possible he chose not to share this crucial information because he would not get as much publicity from it than if he waited and had a full day to publicize this? That’s our belief. In fact, two days later found a rather large article appearing in one of the area’s daily newspapers!

We've highlighted in yellow the 7:27 time stamp when the original email was sent to Mr Feiner. Then, highlighted in purple at 10:11, is the time stamp when he forwarded the email to someone else. Did he forward it to the “Say No to Jefferson” group or his press release list or his press release agent? We know he sits at the dais during meetings ignoring the speakers while he plays with his phone. ABG staffers are convinced he was already mapping a press release strategy during the meeting – concerned residents be damned! 

It’s difficult enough for citizens of Greenburgh to get straight answers and honest information from the Town and it’s elected officials without having to file a Freedom of Information request (FOIL). It’s sad that Mr Feiner would choose to conceal valuable information such as this from a group of people who were anxiously seeking his help. Obviously, politics is more important to him than the welfare of others. This needs to change and more importantly, be stopped. Only then will we get A Better Greenburgh.

Ardsley Residents Victorious Against Jefferson

In a rare residential upset, Ardsley residents who organized the “Say No 2 Jefferson” campaign, will be celebrating after a hard fought battle and a sweet victory against The Jefferson. Originally in contract with Akzo Nobel, the leading global paints and coatings company and a major producer of specialty chemicals giant that used to own the property, the Jefferson’s original plan was to build a 296 units of single and two-bedroom apartments for Millennials, empty-nesters and first-time owners. After meeting with some representatives from the community, the Texas-based company scaled back the quantity to 272 units, to be located at Lawrence Street between Saw Mill River Road and the Saw Mill River Parkway.

Once the neighborhood got wind of the size and scope of the project, there was a backlash that was unforeseen from numerous players: residents, school board members, Village Board members and the Mayor. Normally, Mr Feiner and his Board will approve any project from almost all developers and residents be damned. But with roughly several hundred residents packing the Town Hall meeting, another conference room and the cafeteria, he couldn’t ignore their pleas.

An email to Mr Feiner stated the following:

Paul Feiner,  

This email is to inform you that Akzo Nobel has terminated contractual relations with a prior potential purchaser of its site at 1 Lawrence St. in Ardsley, NY and has commenced marketing the property for Commercial or Industrial development.

Regards,

Rick Rucoba 

Public Affairs Manager

Akzo Nobel

Not to be outdone, Mr Feiner did an email blast, using the GBList that he was ordered to turn over to the Worthington Woodlands Civic Association, announcing this update. Many other Civic Associations as well as the Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations had worked closely with leaders of the Ardsley community to assist them in the fight. Several of the issues were significant traffic congestion in Ardsley, parking problems, impact to the schools and flooding. We congratulate the Ardsley community for their steadfastness, spirit and resolve.

The Propaganda Scramble

Now that Mr Feiner has alienated his loyal base of Village residents via the revaluation, said to have been handled ineptly by Tyler Technologies, he is scrambling to validate the increased taxes the Villagers will be paying in their next tax bill. But is it enough? This same voting base were his guaranteed votes that would routinely put him back into office year after year.

The Jefferson project proposed at the Ardsley and Dobbs Ferry border between Rt 9A and the Saw Mill River Parkway is just one example. He has rallied against it. Why? We believe he did so because it would increase his school taxes. As you may know, about 60% of your property taxes is school taxes. He also did this on behalf of Ardsley resident and Greenburgh Town Board member Diana Juettner. He did the same thing against an assisted living facility proposed in North Elmsford’s Payne Street area. The location is in the backyard of Greenburgh Town Board member Kevin Morgan. He’s also fought the Yonkers development of a big box store in his own back yard as part of the Stew Leonard’s property expansion claiming traffic concerns. When Greenburgh residents have the same concerns about projects in their neighborhoods, they are summarily dismissed and told to suck it up. Can you say Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY)? Meanwhile, they routinely tell all of us how good this is for the Town, the neighborhoods, the residents, etc. Ultimately, it is not.

Roll Camera. In spewing his “what we’ve done for you lately” propaganda, there are some truths but also a great deal of unsubstantiated showmanship. First, he makes sure that someone else is to blame by saying the Villages are part of the Town because of state law. Second, he provides a breakdown of the taxes Villagers pay, claiming only 2% of their entire tax bill goes to the Town services. Again, according to him 60% goes to school tax, which the Town is obligated to collect. The rest of his tax collection speech is him doing the Feiner vamp, saying nothing and  proving politicians can speak without saying anything. Stop camera.

He says:

What does the town do for the 2% of your entire tax bill? ABG provides a closer to the truth answer to each point.

1. We offer advance life support (ALS) and paramedic services which has a proven record of repeatedly saving the lives of village residents. Hopefully, you won't need them, but if you do these services are ready to respond to your call 24 hours a day.

Real Answer: They do provide this. However, the Villages pay the Town for this service. What he doesn’t mention is that the Village Ambulance Corps augment the Greenburgh ambulances by responding to Greenburgh calls when requested through Mutual Aid. And while Greenburgh is the “owner” of the call and bills for its services, they do not share any of those monies collected with the ambulance corp or fire department ambulances they used.

2. The town's town wide senior program serves or delivers over 30,000 meals to village seniors each year. The program provides a hot meal five days a week to eligible seniors. We have three nutrition sites - in Dobbs Ferry, Tarrytown and unincorporated Greenburgh. Our home delivery program provides delivery services to seniors who cannot come to one of these sites.  

Real Answer: Mr Feiner habitually throws out numbers hoping some of them will “stick”. Sadly, while he is telling you they deliver 30,000 meals to village seniors, we know it's simply not true. No matter how we did the math, there seems to be about 120 seniors out of about 92,000 total residents who are are getting meals from the Town. And there is no informational breakdown available between Town and Village recipients.

3. The town has a recreation program for developmentally disabled residents.

Real Answer: This may be, but we could find nothing about this on the Town website.
4. The town's animal control department responds to calls for service within the villages. If there is a stray or injured animal the animal control unit will respond. We transport the animals to an appropriate medical facility for care.

Real Answer: This is sort of true. Animal Control is only available between 9 to 5, if the animal control people are available/working. By the way, they won't take every type of animal.
5. The town's civil defense unit provides civil defense services during natural disasters and other major events, such as post 9/11 and during blackouts. These services include coordination of communications for police, fire, paramedics and refilling of air packs and fresh air for specialized rescues. The unit also responds to refill the air tanks of village volunteer firefighters during fires.

Real Answer: While we applaud the work performed by the Civil Defense, this is an extremely small group of volunteers without the personnel necessary to do a lot during an emergency. In fact, they are augmented by the Town's C.E.R.T. group. They DO go to fire scenes and fill air tanks for any firefighters who request them. The paid fire departments have their own systems and don't utilize them. In fact, there's a move now by the paid departments to replace all of their air packs which will require that they purchase new refilling systems. If they didn't use the Civil Defense's system for free, they could go to the Westchester County Fire Training Center in Valhalla and refill their air tanks there 24-7-365 at no charge.

6. The town's highly trained and specially equipped special weapons and tactics (SWAT) team is available 24/7 to respond to emergencies. Officers from throughout the town who meet very rigorous standards are readily available to respond to emergencies in the villages.

Real Answer: This is true. The Town's special operations groups are comprised of the paid fire department members and the police department members and require overtime that the taxpayer must pay. Once dispatched, their positions are required to be "backfilled" by off-duty members. This is mostly billed as overtime to the taxpayers. The County has the same special operations teams that can be called out at a moments notice and at no charge to the community and have much more resources available to them.
7. The town's road striping unit is responsible for striping roads, including the center and side lines and crosswalks on roads in all six villages.

Real Answer: While valuable, we're guessing this is not vital. What is vital is to have more police officers on the road, patrolling our communities.

8. The town acts as a collection agent for the schools and county. The town guarantees 100% of the taxes to both entities. If you do not pay your school or county tax bill the town pays it for you. The town then has to use its offices to pursue collection of all unpaid taxes.

Real Answer: This is true, the Town is obligated by law to collect these monies. They don't do because they want to help the Villages out.

9. The Town Clerk
• Responds to FOIL requests from residents town-wide; and provides…

Real Answer: All government agencies are required to respond to FOIL requests. The Town of Greenburgh seems to take an inordinate amount of time fulfilling this obligation while other communities seem to do this more quickly and at less cost to the taxpayers.

• dog licenses to residents, town-wide;

• marriage licenses to residents, town-wide; New York State Licenses: Fishing, Hunting, Handicap Parking Permits;

• Town of Greenburgh Licenses: Cabaret, Canvassing/Peddlers & Solicitors, Filming, Sanitation (private), Taxicab and Taxi Driver;

• Senior Citizen Rent Abatement Program (ETPA) for qualified town residents;

• Management of all vital records (marriages and deaths) that occur in the Town of Greenburgh;

• Sales Tax Letters to residents and businesses for correct Sales Tax amount for the town; and several other miscellaneous services.

Real Answer: While all of this is true, it's our understanding that these services take up a miniscule part of the Clerk's office time and frankly, that's their job, regardless of the Villages' usage of it or not.
10. The Town's Sewer Department responds to calls for service from the villages for sewer emergencies 24/7, which require the use of The Town’s jet/vac truck and operator.

Real Answer: While it is available, our understanding is that it is not used that often.
Because the Theodore Young Community Center was paid for with federal and state tax dollars, residents of the villages have the ability to use the indoor pool at the Theodore Young Community center and to participate in their programs.

Real Answer: While true, most people are unaware of the center because of where it is and if they are aware of it, find there is very little time available to use it because there are daily programs already filling their burgeoning calendar.

The above are some highlights representing the services offered to village residents. I hope this information answers some questions. Feel free to contact me with any further questions.

Real Answer: While these services may be available to the Villages, it hardly justifies the significant tax increase revaluation is placing on many residents. This is pure Feiner Deflection, changing the subject from the original discussion to something unrelated. It has to stop. Only then will we get A Better Greenburgh.

Town Board Goes Against A Good Project

There is a proposal in front of the Town Board to build an apartment complex at Lawrence Avenue and Saw Mill River Road (and Parkway). It is comprised  of 272 apartments, down from its original proposal of 296, based on feedback the Jefferson Management team received from the community. Almost immediately after the proposal “hit the bricks,” Mr Feiner came out against it, as did Ardsley resident and Town Board member Diana Juettner, claiming it would burden the infrastructure. While hypocritical to say the least, the Jefferson offered to make significant changes to the area, even going as far south of the project itself to Jackson Avenue. The Loft complex approved by Mr Feiner and his Board near Jackson Avenue offered no changes. Nor has Mr Feiner and Ms Juettner ever offered help to the area.

But the lies have already begun from the corner office. The offering has not generated as much “significant controversy” as Mr Feiner would have you believe. It is he that is trying to create a controversy where controversy does not exist. The development, while overgrown with weeds, dumped dirt and debris, offers value from the stand point of flooding and water absorption Still, they resist this property in a commercial area, ideally suited for a project such as this. You can read more about this project in our earlier post from Sunday, April 19, 2015
JPI Proposing 296 Multi-Family Apartments Jefferson at Saw Mill River(http://abettergreenburgh.blogspot.com/search?q=jefferson)

Mr Feiner claims he is “proposing initiatives” that frankly are either already in the original proposal or too ridiculous to entertain. However, Mr Feiner's standard method of operation is to throw these types of inane ideas out there and hope that something gains traction. But he knows that if he can get some of his supporters to be at the meeting to parrot these points, he’ll get what he desires in publicity from the media, a quote or two on News 12 and possibly other TV stations - depending on whom he invites.

Here's a few of his “initiatives.” Ours are in black, his are in blue:

Widening of both Lawrence Street and Saw Mill River Road to include turning lanes as appropriate from Lawrence street to entrance of the thruway. I believe that the entire length of Saw Mill River Road from Jackson Ave to Ardsley downtown should be widened. 
The plans show a widening and turning lane added on 9A at Jackson Avenue to allow for an increase in traffic heading south on 9A. As we’ve written previously, the Ginsburgh developer of The Loft should be doing this but is not. Nor, is Mr Feiner saddling them with similar conditions.

Construction of sidewalks and bike lanes on both Lawrence and Saw Mill Road from Jackson to downtown Ardsley to promote safe pedestrian/bicycling.

Sidewalks are a condition in our Town for all new construction, regardless of whether or not they connect or lead to anything. These were in the initial plans that had been submitted. The Jefferson project has also made accommodations for bike path use as well as creating a section of public parking that bikers can use to come to the site by car, park and ride the bike path.

Construction of an overpass from Lawrence Street westbound to Saw Mill River Parkway Southbound. As it is the light is problematic, prone to back up and causes systematic delays.

Our staffers travel this route every day and say the light is not so much the issue as are the quantity of construction vehicles moving to and from the area, slowing things down. As our elected representatives, if the traffic light is problematic, then it is up to he, Ms Juettner and the other Town Board members to get it fixed, not the Jefferson!

Construction of additional parking in downtown Ardsley to address the shortage of parking in the business district. Almost 300 new apartments will definitely increase parking problems.
While parking in Ardsley has been an issue for at least 24-years, Mr Feiner’s tenure as Supervisor, he has never made any overtures to address their parking issues. In fact, their Village Board had sidewalks added in Town through grant money Mr Feiner didn't even apply for. The Jefferson plans show all parking for the facility will be provided on their property and not utilize any from the Village proper. If this facility was in the Village itself it might affect parking – but it’s not and it won’t.

Possible construction of additional parking at area train stations to address commuter parking problems.

Even after being lifelong residents, this has us baffled as we cannot locate a train station in Ardsley.

A requirement that frequent shuttle service be provided to train station and downtown Ardsley.
Again, there is no train station in downtown Ardsley.This indicates that this is purely a boilerplate exercise by Mr Feiner.

We need to analyze ability of first responders to come to the assistance of those with emergency medical needs if the Parkway is closed and there are major traffic jams on Lawrence and on Saw Mill River Road.
This is a phony excuse. There has been no study for any other projects anywhere in the Town that was ever denied for lack of access to emergency responders. Emergency vehicles always get through traffic. In fact, the one project that actually does have inadequate access for emergency vehicles is the Brightview Assisted Living facility at Rt 119 and Benedict Avenue. Yet, Mr Feiner and his Board made themselves the lead agency for the project and then approved every aspect of it. Fire trucks responding there are forced to pull in, do whatever is needed and then back their rigs out when they are finished. This is absurd! But, Mr Feiner wanted this regardless of what was needed. In fact, a similar project endorsed by him is the Shellbourne Assisted Living project where the old Sprain Nursery was located. They too, will be building more than the property and surrounding area can handle, thwarting the effectiveness, efficiency and safety of the emergency services responders. Apparently, the safety of assisted living living residents also means little to Mr Feiner and his Board.

There has also been discussion that the Ardsley Schools District will be overrun with new students. According the a spokesman at The Jefferson, the goal of this project is to attract single and newlywed Millenials, and not families with school age children. In fact, our discussion with them indicated that this is a “starter” home for both of those groups, leading them toward purchasing a home when the do have kids. While no one can guarantee this will be the case, the Jefferson Management based their information and projections on other projects of theirs throughout the country.

You may be wondering why the Town Board would object to this project when it seems to be in the right spot, doesn't negatively impact the area, and in fact improves it, falls in line with the other developments Mr Feiner and his Board readily approved and can add to the tax roles, albeit at a discounted tax rate? Because Ms Juettner is afraid of making her constituents mad and losing votes. But, it’s not just her, it’s also Mr Feiner not wanting to lose any votes from Ardsley. After all, the Villages add an awful lot of votes to their campaigns. Sadly, they’re not doing what’s right for the taxpayers and constituents. Rather, they’re acting in their own best interests.

This project is right for the area and needs to be approved. Ultimately, it will go through and be built. In the meantime, we believe Mr Feiner will try to coerce more from the Jefferson Management than is required for approvals. Don’t believe us? Just look at the disastrous results of the Fortress Bible Discrimination case that Mr Feiner lost in Federal court and was found guilty on seven counts. Come and weigh in this Wednesday night at the Town Board meeting at 7:30PM. Be an active part of the Town. Only then will we see A Better Greenburgh.

Double Standard in Greenburgh

ABG staffers recently sat down with the developers of The Jefferson at Saw Mill and discussed their plans to build what we understood to be a 296-unit apartment building. We subsequently learned that the size was scaled down to 272 units after management heard from the residents of the area who expressed concern about the size and scope of the development. We discussed their model for what they are seeking to build with their on-site representative, Steven Hutton, who explained that they are a residential-oriented developer and not an assisted living or nursing home builder. Their Corporate headquarters is located in Dallas, Texas and they have offices across the U.S. They are a private, not public corporation and strive to "play" to the character of the region. For this particular project, their research indicated a "mill' heritage and designed The Jefferson at Saw Mill to have that type of feel to it.

The interiors of the apartments are very much upscale with quality fixtures and designs used throughout. The price range of these apartments are tentatively anticipated to be about $3,000 per month and are geared toward Millennials. They have also adjusted the height of the buildings to be four-stories, down from five-stories. We also discussed some of their plans for the area, such as impacts on traffic and the schools. They showed us their plans to refine some of the traffic conditions ignored by the Town as far away as Jackson Avenue, hoping to have a positive impact from their location on Lawrence Street, which is a bit south of the Ashford Avenue area in Ardsley and Dobbs Ferry. Just south of The Jefferson is the new development already underway called The Loft on Saw Mill River, a new upscale, 66-unit development being built by Ginsberg Development,in Hastings. We haven't heard of any similar improvements they may be offering to the region since having broken ground.

There was also a recent exposé about the soon-to-open, resort-style, assisted-living housing complex called The Ambassador, on Saxon Woods Road in Scarsdale. The exposé detailed the unlicensed operation of the Prospect Park Residence in Park Slope, Brooklyn, that was operated by the same management company from 2009 to 2012. The alleged violations also included insufficient care for some of its residents during the tenure of its former Executive Director, David Pomerantz, who has since been replaced with a new Executive Director, Jean Dunphy. During his tenure, the facility was advertising itself as a "full service senior facility," despite its lack of certification or ability to treat patients suffering with dementia and other medical conditions. Mr Feiner had endorsed the new facility and Director Pomerantz, reminding us of other endorsements he's made of people who have lost their positions under questionable circumstances.They recently opened on June 25th, with help from Westchester County through financial incentives.The County Executive has stated there will not be a tax increase in this years budget. Perhaps if government stops giving our money away to wealthy developers that don't really need it, our taxes could actually be lowered.

The Jefferson, appears to be a different kind of proposal, offering to build what they refer to as high-quality, luxury rental apartments consisting of studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom configurations. Ironically, a bit farther south will be The Lofts on Saw Mill River, a 66-unit apartment complex on Route 9A in Hastings-on-Hudson. Obviously, developers are more apt to build luxury as opposed to affordable units as the profits, clientele, upkeep, and visitors offer less issues. However, three of the affordable units will be available to households earning up to 50 percent of the area median income and nine will be reserved for households earning up to 60 percent of the area median income. The affordable units will rent at $874 per month for a studio and up to $1,484 monthly for a three-bedroom apartment. The question always raised is how well will the people in the affordable units fit in?

Mr Feiner recently endorsed the Ginsburg project and rejected the The Jefferson. It's no secret that Mr Feiner has a long-term relationship with Ginsburg, so there's also no surprise he would support Ginsburg's project while being against The Jefferson. Is it because it will impact his Town Board colleague Diana Juettner's community? Is it similar to his rejecting the assisted living proposal off of Payne Street between the Sprain Brook Parkway and the aqueduct near High street because another colleague, Councilman Morgan lives near by? It's interesting how politicians always ignore residents concerns and insist they know what is best for everyone else's neighborhood as they destroy them, but theirs must remain untouched.

Westchester County has agreed to provide Ginsburg approximately $1.2 million toward land acquisition and infrastructure costs. The county Industrial Development Agency has approved sales and mortgage tax exemptions for the project that total $679,780. It's difficult for us to fathom why the County is giving money to Ginsburg Development when this is the fourth site of luxury apartments for Ginsburg in addition to Harbor Square, a $65 million, 188-unit apartment development on the Ossining riverfront; River Tides at Greystone in Yonkers, a $100 million, 330-unit apartment complex on Warburton Avenue; and Riverside in Rockland County, a 106-unit luxury apartment building at Harbors at Haverstraw.

Is Mr Feiner correct when he says The Jefferson is too much because the Town's infrastructure can't handle it? Probably. But the infrastructure he so conveniently complains about and uses to his advantage to stop one or two "non-blessed" developers is the same infrastructure he has ignored with the help of his Town Board colleagues for these last 22-years! While we prefer to see a greener Greenburgh, not congested with affordable housing, that will go unchecked as long as Mr Feiner and crew can easily operate with impunity while they stay in office unopposed. Until Mr Feiner dedicates resources to improving the Town's infrastructure, he cannot turn down any proposal that is made because infrastructure cannot handle it. He should have thought of this 22-years ago. Now that it's a little too late, his behavior promises more lawsuits against the Town. It must change. Only then will we get A Better Greenburgh.