Hearing On Cortlandt's MOD Postponed To April

CORTLANDT, NY — Opposition is mounting to a proposal to turn more than 100 acres of residential Cortlandt into a mix of medical, residential, assisted living, hotel and commercial uses as well as parking and public amenities on multiple parcels. As a result, town officials have delayed their vote until April 17.

The MOD or "Medically Oriented District" was created as part of ENVISION CORTLANDT, the town’s Sustainable Comprehensive Plan.

Its stated purpose is encourage revitalization and economic expansion in the area immediately surrounding the New York Presbyterian-Hudson Valley Hospital Center and along the Route 202/35 corridor. The town approved it in 2018.

But now the size and scope of what's planned has astonished and alarmed residents, who say it is too big to fit the town's stated goal of a "healthy, mixed-use, neighborhood-scale district that benefits residents and employees of the district as well as patients and families visiting the MOD."

They've expressed dismay at two sessions of a public hearing, in November and in January.

Resident Sal Farina objected to the attitude of "we cannot stop change, this is better for the future" that he says he hears not only from the developers but from some town officials.

"Of course things change, it’s the nature of life," he said, but "you can’t just build anything. That’s why we have zoning laws in the first place, to protect the integrity of the residents' quality of life and the vision of the town itself."

Representatives from the Evergreen Manor and Gyrodyne developments told The Examiner News they were confident, after two years of work with town officials, that their plans would not only bring needed services and tax revenues but also improve existing traffic patterns.

The Evergreen Manor development includes an assisted living facility, a hotel, retail and office space, rental apartments and a restaurant. The site is comprised of three parcels totaling 28 acres. It is southeast of the hospital and has about 1,500 linear feet of frontage located on the south side of Crompond Road and about 150 linear feet of frontage on the east side of Lafayette Avenue.

The Gyrodyne development includes medical offices and retail, apartments and lots of parking space. It is 13.8 acres and comprised of eight separate parcels south of the hospital, with 450 linear feet of frontage located on the south side of Crompond Road and 770 linear feet of frontage on the west side of Lafayette Avenue.

At the Jan. 14 hearing, Town Supervisor Linda Puglisi said she thinks the project is too large. She told Westfair Communications afterward that she had reached that conclusion after feedback from residents and her own study of the draft environmental impact statement, which the town accepted in October for review.

The board voted to adjourn the hearing for three months.

Find out more about the MOD on the town's website.