Popham Road Bridge to be Closed Thursday and Friday nights
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Drivers take note: Scarsdale Village has announced the following schedule for the closure of the Popham Road Bridge: The bridge will be closed from 8:30 pm on Thursday night August 9 until 5 am on August 10 when the contractor will remove the existing structural steel from the middle section of the bridge.
Detours: Westbound Popham Road traffic will be detoured south on Scarsdale Avenue west to Harney Road and north to Garth Road back to Popham Road. Eastbound Popham Road traffic will be detoured south on Garth Road east to Harney Road and north on Scarsdale Avenue back to Popham Road. Pedestrians must use the Metro-North and Freightway Parking Garage pedestrian bridges to cross over the Metro-North Railroad tracks.
The bridge will again be closed at 8:30 pm on Friday, August 10, 2012 until 5:00 a.m. Saturday, August 11. In addition, Scarsdale Avenue from Popham Road to the commuter parking lot entrance and East Parkway southbound from Christie Place to Popham Road will be closed.
Here are the detours for Friday night:
Southbound East Parkway traffic will be detoured east onto Christie Place, north onto Chase Road, east onto Crane Road, south onto Post Road, west onto Brook Street and west onto Harney Road north to Scarsdale Avenue or Garth Road.
Westbound Popham Road traffic will be detoured north onto Chase Road, east onto Crane Road, south onto Post Road, west onto Brook Street, west onto Harney Road and north onto Scarsdale Avenue or Garth Road.
Eastbound Popham Road traffic will be detoured south onto Garth Road, east onto Harney Road, east onto Brook Street, north onto Post Road and west onto Popham Road.
Northbound Scarsdale Avenue – vehicular traffic will be detoured east onto Grand Boulevard, north onto Post Road and west onto Popham Road.
The rain date for the Popham Road Bridge work is from 8:30 p.m. Saturday, August 11, 2012, until 5:00 a.m. Sunday, August 12.
Greenburgh Town Board Rejects NextG's Bid to Install DAS in Residential Neighborhoods
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In an 18 page decision available here , the Town of Greenburgh decided to reject NextG’s current application to install distributed antenna systems (DAS) in residential locations. NextG, which was acquired by Crown Castle on April 20th, has also applied for zoning considerations in multiple municipalities throughout the country, including Scarsdale (For background information, click here or here , and also read a letter from a concerned resident here).
The decision, handed down on July 24th by members of the Town Board, rejects the current application made by NextG, but leaves the window open for an amended application. After reviewing all of the relevant documents and laws, the town found two violations of the Greenburgh Antenna Zoning Law that could not be ignored. The law, put into place in 1996, was made in order to maintain the character and property values of the municipality and calls for the use of non-residential antennas before new residential ones.
Although the law has many sections, the applicable violations were to the burden of proof that “The facility is needed to provide coverage to an area of the unincorporated area of the Town that currently has inadequate coverage,” and “The facility is the minimum height and aesthetic intrusion necessary to provide coverage.”
As to the first stipulation, NextG argued that their possible clients had inadequate coverage in areas of the town and therefore passed the burden of proof. However, NextG is solely a utility, and its clients are not putting up the DAS. So, the Town Board argued that the facilities are speculative and not actually filling any void in coverage. Furthermore, the Second Circuit decided that any service gap must be decided from the perspective of “users in a given area.” Since Greenburgh residents are not complaining, no void exists.
In regards to the second passage, since NextG’s operations are speculative, it was unable to prove that the amount of space used by its antennas was appropriate. The proposed DAS have the ability to accommodate two carriers. Since NextG does not have two carriers lined up, this size may be unnecessary.
While both of these violations are apparent, the board still had to avoid certain Federal regulations in order to reject the application. For one, NextG attempted to utilize the Federal Telecommunications Act, Chapter 5, Section 332. While the act yields most power to local zoning codes, it provides several caveats. First, it notes that local zoning may not regulate based on environmental effects of antennas if the FCC has permitted them. Since the stated violations are not based on such effects, they stand.
Second, the act states that zoning laws cannot stop wireless service companies from providing service. However, Greenburgh does allow for wireless installations, just not in residential areas or in the right of way.
Third, the act denies local zoning from “discriminating among providers of functionally equivalent services.” However, it does allow for such discrimination based on aesthetic concerns. Thus, the local zoning objections stand up to Section 332.
NextG also tried to utilize passages in Section 253 of the same act. However, the statutes in the section specifically do not override those of Section 332. So, as long as the local zoning complies with section 332, the rejection is valid.
NextG still can continue its fight. If NextG finds legal problems with the ruling based on provisions in Federal or State laws, they have the right to sue the Town. And, the Town Board ruling also allows for an amended application. However, any such application must include a service gap from the perspective of users, which cannot be solved through the use of antennas in nonresidential areas, and solve the issue of maintenance or removal upon physical damage or possible obsoleteness.
While Greenburgh has finished its initial dealings with NextG and Crown Castle, Scarsdale’s conflict still continues. However, the decision in Greenburgh could expedite the process. Scarsdale’s dealings with NextG have been moving at a snail’s pace. The last Planning Board meeting on the subject was on May 7, and the two parties have no spoken in a while. “Scarsdale has not heard back from Crown Castle,” noted Joseph Van Eaton, partner at D.C based law firm Best, Best, & Krieger and Scarsdale Village’s lawyer on the matter. “Maybe they were waiting for Greenburgh themselves.”
Although the Federal laws are mostly applicable to Scarsdale’s case, Scarsdale and Greenburgh have different local zoning codes. A decision by Scarsdale must use the local codes and make sure that they do not violate and of the previously mentioned Federal acts or any other applicable laws.
Many residents hope that Scarsdale will be successful in attempts to deny the application. “I hope no antennas are put up,” stated one Greenacres Ave. resident. “I’m fine with the service just the way it is.”
Zach Edelman is a 2012 graduate of Scardsale High School who will attend college in September.
Edgemont Home Sales Gain With Scarsdale Steady for 1H 2012
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Scarsdale residential real estate sales remained steady from January 1 through June 30, 2012 over the same period in 2011 while sales in the Edgemont school district saw significant gains. In Scarsdale, 95 homes sold in the first half of 2012 compared with 96 in 2011. However, this year, there were more property purchases in the higher end of the market in both Scarsdale and Edgemont.
In Scarsdale, though the overall volume and the average sale price of a 5 bedroom/4 bath home were even with last year, more homes above $2,000,000 sold this year than last. Homes sold more quickly as well -- with the average days on market decreasing from 193 last year to 165 in the first half of 2012.
Susan Slotnick, Vice President and Associate Broker at Prudential Centennial Realty, says “current sales indicate that when a home is priced realistically it drives buyer interest and sells quickly. When homes are over-priced they sit and lose buyer interest.”
Similarly, a 25-year veteran of the residential mortgage business, Mitchell Steinberg, commented “new lows have spurred a flurry of refinancing and purchase activity. Mortgage rates have breached record lows in recent weeks and according to Freddie Mac, the rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage dipped to 3.66 percent the week of June 22. The four-week moving average of applications for refinances has risen to its highest level since the recession ended.”
Scarsdale Sales Stats
In the Scarsdale School district, 95 total residences sold from January 1 – June 30, 2012. Sales of single family homes were highest in Quaker Ridge (23), followed by Greenacres (20), Fox Meadow (19), Heathcote (16) and Edgewood (10). The minimum selling price was $450,000 for a 1925 brick colonial, with 3 bedrooms and 3.2 baths on 0.385 acres in Greenacres. The maximum selling price was $5,300,000 for 16 Burgess Road, pictured above, a 1998 colonial estate, 6 bedroom, 7.2 bath home on 1.20 acres, in Heathcote’s Murray Hill.
The average selling price of a single family home, 5 bedroom/4.3 bath, 3,696 square feet, was $1,608,349 with 165 days on the market. 27 single family homes, or 31%, sold for $2,000,000 and above. The number of sales grew significantly from $2,000,000 - $3,000,000 from 11 to 23 properties, or a 109% gain, over the corresponding period last year. 34 single family homes, or 39%, sold from $1,000,000-$2,000,000. 27 homes, or 30%, sold below $1,000,000 with volume consistent from the comparable period last year. There was one condominium sale at Christie Place in downtown Scarsdale. Cooperative sales were up from the prior year comparable period at Chateaux Circle.
Edgemont sales rebounded from previous lows with significantly more sales in the first half of 2012. Similar to the buying pattern shift in Scarsdale, sales volume in Edgemont moved upwardly towards sales above $1,000,000 over the comparable period last year.
Scarsdale real estate attorney, Keith Schutzman, related that this June has been his busiest season by far in at least five years. He said “June is the real estate equivalent of April 15 tax season!”
Edgemont Sales Stats
Information provided by Angela Manson, licensed real estate salesperson with Prudential Centennial, Scarsdale..Contact her at 914-420-9878 or amanson@prucentennial.com.
Keith Schutzman, real estate attorney, may be reached at 914-713-0001 or keith@shutzmanlaw.net.
Sidewalk Sale Friday and Saturday in Scarsdale
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- Written by Adrienne Fishman
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It’s a Scarsdale tradition! Don your shopping shoes and head to the village center. The annual Scarsdale Sidewalk Sale, Sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, runs Thursday, July 26, through Saturday, July 28. 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM.
Merchants will display their wares on the sidewalks, and offer discounts you won’t find throughout the year. On Saturday, there will entertainment for kids from Scott Kazan and his Amazing Animal Balloons in Boniface Circle, plus music from DJ Dave from Summit Entertainment on Thursday and Saturday. There will be refreshments for sale.
Rain or Shine.
Additional metered parking can be found in the Christie Place garage, on Scarsdale Avenue, or on the Freightway garage roof. On Saturday, parking is free in the Freightway garage, and on the two lower levels of the Christie Place garage.
Comings and Goings
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The capricious environment for retailers continues to be evident in the changing storefronts around town. Supermarkets seem especially volatile as giants like ShopRite, with cut-rate prices take their toll on less competitively priced grocers.
This week we noticed that Morton Williams on Central Avenue closed. Morton Williams, a branch of a Manhattan chain of markets opened its doors in 2007 in the space formerly occupied by Turcos–- but this branch of the Manhattan chain never took hold in the suburbs. Morton Williams lacked Turcos fresh green market -- and prices for shelved items were high. The store was rarely full – and once ShopRite opened further down Central Avenue and H Mart showed up next door Morton Williams faced stiff competition.
In Scarsdale Village, another big loss. the Verizon store is history, leaving two empty storefronts next to Learning 
Express. With the Good Life Gourmet gone next door, there are now two adjacent storefronts vacant in a prime stretch of Scarsdale Village. Though we are not sure why the Verizon store, someone speculated that the store owners lost their contract with Verizon. Now you'll have to go to Central Avenue to replace your phone.
On the positive side, Malvina Guretsky has opened her jewel of a couture shop, MAG Tricote, on Christies Place, next to Patisserie Salzburg featuring her custom-designed, handmade, one-of-a kind knit creations. The charming store has a lovely selection of knit dresses that can be bought off the rack or custom ordered to suit. The dresses and tops are hand knit or crocheted by artisans around the world using fine yarns. Stop in and let Malvina know you read about her on Scarsdale10583.com.
Also open on the Popham Road Bridge in Scarsdale is SkinTheraP, featuring non-invasive procedures to improve your look. The new medical cosmetic spa is run by Dr. William Greenberg who has 25 years of experience helping patients achieve their beauty goals without surgery. At their Popham Road site, they are offering “coolsculpting” to “freeze” layers of fat, “Ultherapy” a new procedure that uses ultrasound to target sagging skin. plus cosmetic injections, fillers and facials. 
Visit or call their new location at 15 Popham Road and mention Scarsdale10583 to get $100 off a “coolsculpting” treatment from now through August 31. (914-819-0409)
Down the road, on Fischer Avenue in Eastchester, stylist Piero Pirri has opened his second salon, Pirri, that features an express styling bar. In July and August, blow-dries are just $25 when you mention Scarsdale10583. Pictured here are Piero and his brother Luigi at the 
opening of Pirri at 130 Fischer Avenue in Eastchester - call (914) 395-1700 to make an appointment.
And furniture retailer West Elm opens next Thursday – June 28th next to Chase Bank in the Vernon Hills Shopping Center. Featuring affordable designs for modern living, store associates can help customers with planning and home design.
