Site plan and special permit approvals are being sought from Harrison by 67 Grant Avenue Associates LLC (Stagg Group) to build a residential development that would have 140 apartments. There would be five studio apartments, 54 one-bedroom units, 76 two-bedroom units and five three-bedroom apartments, all with market-rate rents.
According to Attorney Albert J. Pirro of White Plains-based Abrams Fensterman LLP, the property at the construction site consists of two lots that would be merged to comprise 2.41 acres. Pirro said that the two lower levels of the building would be for parking and there would be 182 spaces. A basement section would be located on the eastern portion of the lowest parking level and would offer 4,254 square feet of storage space including 71 bicycle parking spaces. The lowest parking level would be 10 feet below grade and the second parking level would be at ground level.
Pirro pointed out that the property is located in the Town of Harrison’s General Commercial-Residential Floodplain (GC-RF) District and is bordered on the east by Beaver Swamp Brook.
He said that 46,306 square feet of recreation space would be provided in the development and includes 19,538 square feet of outdoor recreational space on the sixth floor rooftop, along with a 1.136 square foot indoor recreation room. There would be 927 square feet of outdoor recreational space on the fifth floor rooftop that would be accessed via the sixth floor indoor recreational space. The fourth floor rooftop would have 12,439 square feet of recreational space accessed via the fifth floor, which includes the rooftop pool. there would be 13,402 square feet along the western portion of property between the structure and Beaver Swamp Brook.
Much of the property is located within both the 100-year and 500-year floodplains. Pirro said that the development will be constructed atop columns, which will permit floodwaters to pass through the grade level parking facility. Pirro said that single-family homes immediately south of 67 Grant also are within the 100- and 500-year floodplains and, therefore, the threat of flooding is already present and the development will not significantly increase that threat.
A height variance will be needed for the development as designed, since Harrison’s GC-RF District restricts the maximum structure height to 50 feet and the plans call for a maximum structure height of 69 feet and 10 niches.
The apartments were designed to be marketed to young people, empty nesters, and residents without young children. A study indicated that about 20 school-age children could be expected to be living at the building.
A traffic study by LaBella P.C. indicated that there would be no significant impacts to traffic along Harrison Avenue, Halstead Avenue, Oakland Avenue and Park Avenue. It pointed out that the development site is close to Westchester County Bee-Line bus stops and the Metro-North train station.
Pirro said that the development’s “design will integrate modern architectural styles and utilize a variety of facade materials to create an aesthetically appealing, handsome structure.” He said the fifth and sixth floors would be set back from Oakland Avenue in order to reduce the site line disturbance and apparent scale of the building.
A marketing study by Houlihan and O’Malley indicated that there likely would be strong demand for units in the building. It suggested that studio apartments in the project might be expected to rent for $2.600 a month, with one-bedroom units ranging from $2,500 to $3,200. Two-bedroom apartments might be priced at $3,300 to $3,800 per month, while three-bedroom units could be expected to rent for $6,000 per month. The marketing study forecast that it likely would take a year for the project to be 92% leased.
