Owners of Chappaqua Crossing will not drop state and federal lawsuits against town of New Castle officials despite the town board”™s approval of limited development on the former Reader”™s Digest Association property.
The New Castle Town Board in April approved construction of 111 units of multifamily housing in one area of the 114-acre property ”“ reducing the developer”™s already scaled-down 199-unit proposal for two areas ”“ and agreed to remove occupancy restrictions on commercial tenants in the roughly 700,000-square-foot former Reader”™s Digest headquarters.
The board acted nearly two months after attorneys for the developer, Summit Greenfield, filed lawsuits seeking compensation from the town for effectively taking the landmark property by resorting to delays and stalling tactics on the partners”™ mixed-use development proposal. Attorneys claimed the town wanted to maintain a “park-like campus setting” for the property”™s wealthy residential neighbors at the expense of the owners and to prevent development of below-market-rate housing for racial minorities, the elderly and socially disadvantaged persons in the affluent community.
A partnership based in Southport, Conn., Summit Greenfield paid $59 million for the Reader”™s Digest property in 2004.
In amended legal complaints this month, attorneys said the town board”™s April vote ”“ after nearly four years of project reviews ”“ showed again the town”™s “sham” approval process. The board”™s actions intentionally make the project “economically unfeasible” and are designed to prevent Summit Greenfield “from ever obtaining the necessary approvals to put shovels to ground,” attorneys claimed in their state Supreme Court filing.
