Luxury condo development back on track in Bronxville

The 2008 economic downturn and, most recently, a housing discrimination lawsuit have stood in the way of Kensington Road becoming a downtown luxury residential hub in Bronxville.

With those obstacles cleared, construction began in June for VillaBXV, a four-story, 54-condominium building adjacent to Metro-North Railroad tracks and a short walk from the upscale village”™s downtown.

The project, expected to cost roughly $60 million, is rising on a state brownfield site formerly occupied by a power plant and gas station on Kensington Road. The units are expected to open for residents in spring 2017, said Geoffrey Thompson, a spokesman for Greenwich-based Fareri Associates, the site”™s developer.

Thompson said starting prices for the condos, which include one-, two- and three-bedroom units and penthouses that run from 1,300 square feet to 2,000 square feet, will range from $1 million to $3.6 million.

A Bronxville sales center is expected to open by Thanksgiving at 9 Park Place.

A rendering of the VillaBXV development

Construction crews this month poured the piers for the foundation of a 309-space parking garage on the site that is expected to be completed in one year. Of the 309 spots, 106 will go to residents of the condos; the remaining will be for village use. Bronxville officials required the developers to build the parking garage before construction could begin on the condominiums, which will rise across from Christ Church on Sagamore Road.

“There were a lot of challenges in getting this site ready,” Thompson said. “This site is really the kind of construction work you”™d see in an urban area because it is basically surrounded by other utilities, a church and train tracks. It”™s not just building on an open field. It”™s very tricky.”

Original plans called for blasting ledge rock on the site, but the Metropolitan Transportation Authority nixed those plans because of the proximity to its railroad tracks. Instead, crews had to hammer out the ledge rock, which slowed the construction process several months, Thompson said.

During the excavation process, crews also discovered an underground utility tunnel, owned in part by the New Rochelle Water Co., which had to be filled to make room for the parking garage”™s foundation.

According to Fareri Associates, VillaBXV will have Mediterranean-style architecture, a 24-hour concierge, a fitness center, an outdoor garden and rooftop terraces. Thompson said Fareri expects the New York State Attorney General’s office to approve an offering plan which could allow sales of the condominiums to begin as soon as this week. He added initial interest has been “exceptional” following advertisements in The New York Times.

Originally marketed for empty nesters, VillaBXV encountered a legal obstacle in January when Gateway Kensington LLC, the development entity of Fareri Associates, were sued by Westchester Residential Opportunities, Inc., a nonprofit promoting equal and affordable housing in the county. The organization claimed the development violated the Fair Housing Act and discriminated against families with children.

The lawsuit was settled in September after Bronxville changed its zoning code to no longer allow for an age-targeted special permit “designed to appeal primarily to individuals and couples without children,” Westchester Residential Opportunities said, citing the village”™s zoning code. According to Westchester Residential Opportunities, the village paid the organization $95,000 in damages and legal fees. Fareri will be required to construct a play area for children on the site.

“Families with children, people amid adoptions and pregnant women are all protected from housing discrimination by law,” Westchester Residential Opportunities Executive Director Geoffrey Anderson said in September. “I am pleased this matter is now settled and Bronxville has eliminated its discriminatory permit category.”

Following the lawsuit settlement, Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin wrote in her weekly column the new development would generate significant tax revenue for the village and would provide much-needed parking for both downtown merchants and shoppers. She said she is pleased the Bronxville code no longer provides for an age-targeted special permit and was excited to bring new children into the school district.

“We believe the Kensington condominiums will be a great new addition to our village, and we are excited to see them coming to fruition after many years of careful planning,” Marvin wrote.

The former home of Lawrence Park Heat, Light and Power Co., the development site was bought by the village in 1986. The village initially planned to build parking facilities there, but the discovery of contaminated soil on the site, which would require environmental remediation, made construction too expensive.

After nearly two decades of vacancy, WCI Communities Inc. was chosen in 2004 to build a 54-unit, 110,000-square-foot condominium development with a 300-space parking garage on the site. But that plan also fell through after the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2008 during the recession.

The village signed an agreement with Fareri Associates in March 2014.

Marvin said last year Fareri Associates paid Bronxville $3.85 million to acquire the property and was expected to pay between $7 million and $10 million to clean up the site.

Fareri Associates also developed The Harbor at Greenwich, a community of 11 luxury condominiums and homes, as well as Chieftains, a group of 28 estate homes on the former Gimbel estate in Greenwich.

John Fareri, principal of Fareri Associates, said the Bronxville project will build upon the company”™s other luxury developments in the area.

“Our company”™s expertise is in building intimate luxury properties in some of the finest communities in the region,” he said. “VillaBXV fits perfectly with our experience and character.”

Correction: An earlier version of this story stated the offering plan allowing formal sales to take place was to be approved by by the Village of Bronxville. The state Attorney General would approve the offering plan, not the village.