FASNY: French American School Applications

Dear Mayor Roach and Members of the Common Council:

In the current application, FASNY proposes shared use of the athletic fields by organizations other than FASNY at times when FASNY is not using them. This is but another example of FASNY's incomplete and flawed submissions in connection with its latest attempt to ram through its massive project.

The flaws in the application include the following:
1. The Common Council has already determined that shared use of the athletic fields is not an allowed use under the City zoning ordinance. In Finding A-1(2)(i), this Council found that such use, except for occasional, informal use, is not permitted as an accessory use under the Zoning Ordinance. FASNY did not object challenge this Finding and is, accordingly, bound by this Finding.
2. FASNY provides no meaningful information concerning the extent of such proposed use. There is no discussion of the full scope of the proposed use, the number of vehicular trips associated with such use, most importantly, there is no proposed mitigation in respect to this use. As set forth at pp. 9-10 of the report of Mary Manning dated April 3, 2017, FASNY's analysis is faulty because it lacks any analysis that of the potential impacts of this proposed activity. As residents of the neighborhood for over 27 years, we can tell you there is extensive use of our streets by bikers, walkers, runners and joggers throughout the year. this activity picks up significantly when the weather turns warm. Just this past weekend, we saw a number of very young children riding bicycles with their families on Hathaway Lane and Gedney Esplanade. Yet FASNY now wants to invite an unknown number of persons to use these same streets to access its fields, yet will not tell you or us anything about the scope of such use.
3. FASNY failed to provide any analysis of the noise impacts of this commercial enterprise. FASNY did not include a proposal for commercial use of its athletic facilities in the FEIS. Accordingly, it did not perform an analysis of noise impacts of use of its field by outside entities. In the current submission, FASNY relies upon the noise impact analysis of use by the school contained in the FEIS to show that the commercial use will not have negative noise impacts. FASNY has not shown that the impacts will be the same, and logic dictates that noise impacts use by school children will likely be different than impacts caused by outside groups.
4. FASNY proposes to turn its tax-exempt not for profit school into a commercial enterprise in the heart of a residential neighborhood. This plan bespeaks a callous indifference to the rights and safety of residents of the adjoining neighborhoods.

FASNY has shown utter contempt for any person or organization that dares to stand in the way of its project. It called the White Plains School Board "immoral" for opposing the MPP/North Street plan; makes ad hominem attacks on the adjoining property owners who speak out against he project, and constantly threatens the City with legal action.

To be clear, we believe that the Council should deny FASNY's applications in their entirely. We raise these issues to point out yet another flaw in FASNY's proposal.
Joseph and Denise DeMarzo
Hathaway Lane