Sustainable Port Chester Alliance to host Candidate Forum

The date has changed, but the purpose of the Sustainable Port Chester Alliance candidate forum remains solely focused on the Starwood development project and the future of the United Hospital site. The new date is March 10, 7:00 PM, at the Knights of Columbus, located at 327 Westchester Ave, Port Chester. Residents of Port Chester and anyone interested in redevelopment are welcome to attend.

Hosted by the Alliance and its members, the forum is being organized to help voters know on which side of the issue the trustees and candidates sit. Elections for six trustee seats take place on March 15.

Issues to be raised are: rezoning of the current site; school funding and the proposed payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT); workforce housing; jobs, labor standards, and local hiring practices; traffic and environmental impact; impact on village services such as fire, police, EMS and sanitation.

Starwood Capital, a multi-billion dollar development company based in Greenwich, CT, has distributed postcards and purchased ads in local papers to demonstrate the benefits the village will receive based on its current proposal. The company has yet to sit down with the Alliance to discuss the creation of a community benefits agreement (CBA) the Alliance group seeks, to ensure that neither Port Chester nor its residents are shorted in the development agreement. A CBA is an enforceable, legally binding document that would be signed by the developer and the Sustainable Port Chester Alliance, representing the Port Chester community. The agreement can include a number of benefits that the community would receive in exchange for allowing Starwood Capital to develop the property.

For more information visit www.portchesteralliance.org