The town of Harrison is mulling a building moratorium that if approved would immediately pump the brakes on a major residential development being planned close to the Rye border.
The proposed six-month moratorium, which is slated to be discussed at a town public hearing on May 22, would include any new or pending multi-family developments in Harrison’s downtown areas along Oakland Beach, Harrison, and Halstead avenues, Calvert Street and Grant Avenue — where a controversial plan for a massive 140-unit apartment complex on 2.4 acres of land has caught the attention of city officials and residents of the area.
“The Town of Harrison recognizes the amount of recent public concern about the potential impacts of widespread development … . Given these concerns for the public health, safety and welfare, and the current lack of clarity on this issues in these areas of concern, it is necessary for the Town Board to enact a six-month moratorium,” the proposed legislation reads.
If approved, Harrison’s Town Board could potentially block the 67 Grant Ave. proposal — where The Stagg Group seeks to build their development — near the Beaver Swamp Brook, an area linked to numerous floods in Harrison, Rye, and Mamaroneck.
Council members said at their May 7 meeting that the moratorium would give them time to thoroughly consider zoning changes for the flood-prone area. Town Councilwoman Elizabeth Brown, a Republican, said the board was trying to manage the process in a way that would avoid litigation.
Multiple homeowners showered the board with criticism on May 7 for approving a zoning change in August 2023 that allowed multi-family housing to be built in the Beaver Swamp Brook area with no cap on the number of units permitted.
“The Harrison government went ahead with the unrestricted rezoning against 80-plus years of expert advice to the contrary,” said Rye resident Emily Baldwin, who lives in the Glen Oaks section that borders the brook.
Baldwin cited county and state studies that strongly counseled against building in the area because of persistent flooding problems.
The 2023 vote by the town board was either a case of “negligence” or an “intent to disregard the interests of the town,” claimed Harrison resident Marissa Lido.
Several homeowners argued that instead of slowing down consideration of the 67 Grant Ave. proposal, the board should move to quickly alter zoning regulations to once again limit development to general commercial uses or sharply reduce the number of allowable residential units.
The board did not seem open to ramming through new zoning regulations.
Attorney Al Pirro, who represents The Stagg Group, argued at a March 25 Harrison Planning Board meeting that the proposed six-story Grant Avenue complex would not substantially impact flooding largely because it will be built on pillars allowing flood waters to pass through.
Opponents of the project expressed disbelief at such claims.
“How can anyone in their good conscience allow for a building to be built on a lot knowing that it will only take one storm, not even a hurricane, to cause people to lose their home or — God forbid — their life,” said Harrison resident Ronni Gussin.
An Instagram account entitled “halt67grant” had attracted nearly 400 followers, as of May 15.
The developer agreed, at the March 25 meeting, to underwrite an Environmental Impact Study of the project under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), a process that could take many months or even years.
It is unclear whether the developer will now hold off on that study.
The city of Rye is planning to engage an outside environmental consultant to monitor the SEQRA process amid fears of flooding in the Glen Oaks neighborhood.
