2019.08.26 J. Feinstein Comments
Dear Mayor Rosenberg and Trustees,
I am away and unable to attend the hearing on Tuesday, August 27 but want to provide my
thoughts regarding the 259 North Ridge Street application.
As the former Mayor of Rye Brook, I am familiar with the genesis of the proposed project
at 259 North Ridge Street and encourage the Board of Trustees to vote in favor of the application.
After the 2009 settlement of the litigation between Westchester County and the federal
government, Rye Brook, which was one of the 31 communities cited in that litigation,
commissioned a study to determine sites within Rye Brook that had the potential for affordable
housing. One of the locations was 259 North Ridge Street. In addition, in 2011 the Board of
Trustees passed legislation to encourage affordable housing in our community by the creation of
the FAH District, a floating zoning district that may be applied to particular parcels by an
amendment to the Zoning Map of the Village of Rye Brook. The purpose of this district is to
provide flexible land use regulations, a streamlined permitting process and incentives to encourage
the development of fair and affordable housing within Rye Brook.
The developer of the subject property met informally with Village Administrator, Chris
Bradbury, and me approximately nine years ago and he suggested the possibility of building 32
units of affordable housing at 259 North Ridge Street. Obviously, that was more than ambitious
and rejected and in the last few years the project has been responsibly scaled back to four units in
response to legitimate and fair concerns raised by the community and the Board.
Consultants to the Village have worked tirelessly to ensure that any adverse impacts from
the proposed project, including traffic and flooding, will be mitigated.
Vacant land will not always remain stagnant and the status quo will not always remain.
However, residents often resist any kind of real estate development. Property owners have the right
to develop their land in a responsible manner. The look of the proposed affordable housing homes
will be consistent with the character of the community.
Our village encourages affordable housing. We want people who work in our community
to live here, such as teachers, municipal workers, police officers and firefighters. The current
guidelines provide that an owner who has a family of four can make an income of up to $86,600.
I urge the Board of Trustees to vote “yes” to the proposed application. Thank you.
Joan L. Feinstein
6 Robins Roost