All Out for March 10 Hearing on Downtown Redevelopment!

The New Rochelle City Council is currently reexamining and updating the Downtown Development Plan. On Tuesday, March 10 at 7:00pm, a hearing will be held on proposed amendments.

Among the changes, the City is proposing to add an additional 2,800 apartments to the Downtown Overlay Zone. (The Full Environmental Assessment Form detailing the proposed changes can be found here; a summary of the proposals can be found here.)

The proposed extension of DOZ 8 is shown in deep pink.

The plans do not address the need for truly affordable housing, creation of family supporting jobs, and green space. The City’s plan continues to fail to demand that developers meet the community benefit goals that received the most “likes”set out in the city’s 2015 online survey.

During the Council’s review of the proposed plans on February 10, Council Member David Peters spoke of growing concerns about the city’s redevelopment.  “Developers cannot drive everything,” Peters said.  “Everything cannot be what they would like to see happen. … There are things that we can do now that we’re not doing” to address the needs of the community. 

Council Member David Peters addresses the Council on February 10.

This will be the last opportunity for the public to express their opinions and demand that this City Council move from merely suggesting that developers provide real community benefits to demanding that jobs and careers, truly affordable housing and much needed green space are codified in the overlay zones. Now is the time for residents to let their elected leaders know what needs to get done to bring equity to the city and to ensure every resident has the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of the redevelopment.   

As our neighbors discovered at the most recent Planning Board meeting, public input on  a project before the Planning Board has no meaningful impact under the overlay zoning structure once it is adopted by City Council.