BOT Reviews Cable Channel Proposal and Approves Land Sale at 2-4 Weaver Street

Following a meeting between the Scarsdale Board of Trustees and the Cable Commission on Tuesday, September 23rd, plans to merge the operations of the Scarsdale Cable Channel with New Rochelle are now off the table. In addition, after more than five years of discussion, the BOT voted unanimously to sell two small parcels of village-owned land to Frederick S. Fish, allowing him to develop the Heathcote Tavern and parking lot into 14 condominiums.

A proposal by Village staff to consolidate the management of the Scarsdale Cable Channel with the city of New Rochelle brought a rush of objectors to the meeting. Cable Commission Chair Lorraine Fiorello thanked the Board of Trustees for considering their proposal and said she "looked forward to providing a robust tool" for community engagement. Lynne Clark said she cares deeply about "the past, present and future of this wonderful village" and said the consolidation proposal "is not in the best interests of Scarsdale." She continued, "We need to enhance our own cable TV coverage... and keep up with surrounding towns of similar size who are way ahead of us ... we need to keep ahead of the curve here just as we always have done!"

Michelle Lichtenberg and Terri Simon, both members of the Board of the Scarsdale Library, speaking as individuals and not on behalf of the Library Board also opposed the plan. Lichtenberg said, "The library is the hub of all activity in the Village of Scarsdale and is among the most vibrant libraries in the county. It hosts activities for kids and adults and we aim to grow." Simons said, "Scarsdale Public TV is potentially an important partner of this effort. The Cable Commission approached us with a variety of ideas, for example, installing equipment to permit taping, broadcasting and even live-streaming events and speakers in the Scott Room to share access with a broader swath of the community than might attend in person....these are early ideas." "It seems precipitous to rush into such a consolidation before the library and cable commission have an opportunity to explore what could be a fruitful collaboration."

Richard Gerwin of 1 Christie Place also opposed the consolidation adding, "Technology has evolved so that it is far less costly to have cable in Scarsdale." Bruce Wells said the channel has a lot of potential and it would be a "mistake to consolidate with New Rochelle."

At the conclusion of the comments about the cable channel, Mayor Steves said, "The Village Staff suggested that we share an employee with New Rochelle. We would not partner with New Rochelle and they would not dictate the scope of the work – the person would be an independent contractor. However for now, the proposal is tabled until we resolve issues and exchange ideas with the cable commission."

Ending a protracted negotiation, The Board of Trustees agreed to sell 14,634 square of Village-owned land at 2-4 Weaver Street to the Frederick S. Fish Investment Company to build an 11-unit, three-story building on the parking lot at the site and to convert the Heathcote Tavern to 3 additional units. One of the units will be a Fair and Affordable Housing unit (AFFH). The village-owned land was rezoned for business use and the site has passed a SEQRA review that found that the development would not have a significant adverse impact on the environment. The Land Use Committee approved the conversion of the tavern building to residential apartments and the developer received final site approval from the BAR on September 17th.

Development of the site was the subject of intense opposition from the Heathcote Five Corners Coalition who raised objections about potential congestion at the five corners, traffic delays, the loss of an historic building and overcrowding in schools among other concerns. They urged the Village to use the land sale to negotiate development terms that were favorable to the village.

Perhaps in response to these concerns, Trustee Lee explained that the Village would hire a construction monitor who will be charged with the responsibility of seeing that the construction documents are consistent with the plans that were approved by the Planning Board. Lee said, "No building permit will be issued until the monitor certifies the plans." A construction manager will be hired to make sure that the building is built to plan and will monitor any changes to ensure that the building will go up in a way that is consistent with the plans.

Despite these measures Martin Kaufman continued to object to the project. About the sale of Village land to Fish he said, "I urge the Board of Trustees not to enter into this contract in its present form. The contract does not protect the Village against deviations in the construction plans. The building department does not have the resources to enforce the plan. A design monitor is only a half step in the right direction. He would simply review the plans rather than monitor the construction
The project is at the gateway to the Village and provisions for enforcement need to be beefed up."

After Trustees voted to approve the sale, Mayor Steve reflected on the process. He said, "This ends a five-year discussion. I voted "no" five years ago. Over that time there has been substantial community involvement. I thank everyone for bringing these issues to our attention. The board has done what they need to do to bring this project to the next step."