The developers seeking to build housing for people age 55 and older on the Reader”™s Digest Association Inc. campus in Chappaqua are scheduled to appear before the New Castle Planning Board Nov. 20.
“We”™re going to explain what we”™re proposing and why it makes sense,” said Geoff Thompson, a spokesman for Summit Development and Greenfield Partners L.L.C. of South Norwalk, Conn.
The Town Board has declared itself the lead agency for the project and will be in charge of conducting the environmental quality review.
Summit Development and Greenfield Partners bought the campus from Reader”™s Digest in November 2004 for $59 million. The developers initially proposed building 348 townhouses on the site. In July, they presented a new plan calling for 278 units: 222 senior age-restricted, market-rate; 32 affordable “work-force” housing units for municipal employees and emergency service volunteers; and 24 “affordable” age-restricted units. The housing would be built on 64.3 acres that would be zoned for multifamily planned development.
The new plan came eight months after the Town Board refused to proceed with the approval process for a 348-unit age-restricted project that would have required the town to create an entirely new zone.
“The fact that we are proposing to use the town”™s existing MFPD district is a major difference from our earlier plan,” Felix Charney, president of Summit Development, said in a statement. “We have listened carefully to the many ideas and comments that have come from town officials, the general public and neighbors. We believe that this plan significantly reduces density, precludes significant impact on Chappaqua schools and preserves the overall appearance of the site by providing a substantial open-space perimeter buffer.”
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