By Damon R. Maher

There’s a sad and perplexing coda to the New RoAR News 1/28/25 article heralding a new day at the NR Industrial Development Agency (IDA). Instead of bringing in new, pro-labor, pro-community, pro-schools, pro-affordable housing blood onto the Board, the City Council whiffed, at its February 28 meeting, by quickly, quietly and unanimously reappointing the current IDA Chair, whose extended time on the IDA has been marked by continuing to dole out generous tax breaks for projects of dubious value to the community as a whole. And now the School Board is in crisis mode, talking about laying off 200 employees and increasing homeowners’ property taxes by 4%.

Two of the most recent IDA deals are particularly egregious.

One is for the for-profit, indoor tennis facility at the old Fountainhead catering hall site on Quaker Ridge Road.The new developers say it will draw upscale residents of nearby Larchmont, Scarsdale and Eastchester. The developers admitted that a reason for their request for tax relief was to get their investors an earlier return on their capital contributions. Well, you gotta give ‘em an “A for honesty” on that one! They made no firm commitment to build their facility with any local, youth or union labor in exchange for the tax break, and permanent job creation will be minimal. Why didn’t the City work harder, in a time of an admitted housing shortage, to incentivize mixed-income residential development at this location, which is in walking distance to restaurants, other shops, banks, doctors’ offices, bus lines and several houses of worship?

The other project recently getting an IDA tax break is construction of high-rent townhouses just off Fifth Avenue on the steep hill overlooking the former WVOX building. The reason this developer gave for his request was the additional cost of dealing with an “unexpected” rock condition on the site, which is one block over from……ROCKLAND PLACE! Again, no labor concessions were required by the IDA (or offered by the developer), and no requirement that the developer do any more than the bare minimum on percentage of Affordable Housing required on any new construction that doesn’t get tax abatements.

It’s disappointing to think that, without a change in the majority or leadership of the IDA Board, we would have to expect more of the same kinds of decisions.

But maybe we will see the appropriate changes next year when three members’ terms expire, according to the online Board Structure page. Those three are all connected to the management/finance/sales side of real estate development. Not one of them lives within the three miles of the core downtown New Rochelle redevelopment projects that they have incentivized in granting various tax breaks, and none of them is a renter. Next year the City Council will again have the opportunity to appoint members more in tune with the lifestyles and wishes of a majority of our community.