Clinton Young believes a varied and large employer base, more middle-class housing, and rehabilitating old facilities are the key to Mount Vernon”™s resurgence in coming years.
The newly minted mayor of the city said last week that while any concrete redevelopment plans this early in his administration are premature, the city needs to take a multifaceted approach to its redevelopment.
“It goes much more beyond aesthetics,” he said. “We need anchors that will attract other businesses.”
And those anchors go much beyond just retail stores, he said.
Former Mayor Ernie Davis last year had solicited proposals from three developers to remake the city”™s downtown near the Metro-North Mount Vernon East train station.
The developers”™ plans called for a mixed-use project around the area of the station, with retail, commercial and office components. A new hotel and convention center would also have been included, with some component of affordable housing.
Young said he would not pursue any of those proposals, and instead would look to attract medium to large-size businesses that could add a significant amount of jobs to the city. He said he would target businesses in dynamic fields, such as technology, in order to make the city more attractive as a business hub.
Young further said he would target “pockets” of the city that can be redeveloped to attract not only businesses but housing and retail to Mount Vernon.
“Ideally, we want as much business for downtown as possible to support the tax base, and bring a positive image for Mount Vernon,” he said. “Affordable housing is also a priority for us.”
Young also said rehabilitating Memorial Field and other athletic facilities is a priority.
But before any of that can happen, Young said the city must draft a new master plan.
“We haven”™t had one since 1962,” he said. “That needs to be done first.”
To that end, Young will spend the next several weeks assembling “stakeholders” throughout the community to form a master plan committee.
Several public hearings would then be conducted before a new plan is adopted, he said.
He said the city also needs to find a new planning commissioner before any serious talks about redevelopment can happen.
The mayor said he had “several quality candidates” in mind, though the post was not filled as of press time last week.
Young said he is optimistic about the city”™s future. He has met with “about eight developers who are excited about the possibilities in Mount Vernon,” though he declined at this time to name them.
Robin Douglas, president of the African-American Chamber of Commerce of Westchester and Rockland Counties, which is based in Mount Vernon, said she agrees with Young”™s vision of businesses development growth.
She also agreed with the need for an updated master plan.
“You have to get the community to be involved (in the master plan process),” she said. “If business owners aren”™t buying into your program, it becomes a headache for the city mayor to draw development to the city. Developers don”™t have a lot of time, patience, energy, or money to waste on lawsuits because the community hasn”™t been consulted.”
She said neighboring cities New Rochelle and Yonkers have been more successful in drawing development than Mount Vernon because “those cities took the time to develop a master plan, develop a strategy, and to implement it.”
When developers do build in the city, Douglas said one of her main priorities is that they use minority and local contractors on their projects.
“That”™s very important to us,” she said.
Douglas said she is excited for the community to participate in the master plan process, and she looks forward to working with Young and his administration.
