The Rye City Council has scheduled a public hearing to consider a proposed local law establishing a temporary six-month moratorium on certain development applications within targeted areas of the city.
A draft of the proposed law was posted to the City of Rye website the night of May 13, and the hearing will take place at the next city council meeting on May 27.
The six-month moratorium would temporarily prohibit the review, processing, or approval of any application in:
- The Central Business District
- B-1 and B-2 districts adjoining the Central Business District
- Redevelopment/development of the Rye Country Day School campus
- Demolition and reconstruction of single- and two-family homes
- Multi-family buildings involving six or more units
The goal is to provide the city with sufficient time to continue several major planning and policy initiatives currently underway, including improving flood mitigation and shaping the future of development and land use in Rye.
These efforts include the FEMA-funded Codes and Ordinances Review focused on flood resiliency, the development of Central Business District design standards called for by the 2025 Central Business District Report, and the U.S. EPA/Long Island Sound Partnership-funded update to Rye’s Natural Resources Inventory.
“The city is currently engaged in several significant planning initiatives critical to flood mitigation and advancing Rye’s commitment to preservation and progress,” said Mayor Josh Nathan. “This temporary moratorium will provide the city with the time necessary to properly work through these immediate initiatives, provide development applicants with forward-looking guidance, and ensure that future development aligns with the community’s vision for protecting neighborhood character and furthering essential resiliency goals.”
Central Business District
In June 2025, the Central Business District Design Review Committee delivered a report to the city council, and one of its recommendations was to retain a design consultant that could develop guidelines for what architectural and design elements are preferred and discouraged in the CBD. The city council issued a request for proposals on April 15, 2026.
“This selection, development and approval of design review standards is anticipated to take approximately six months,” the proposed law states, which is one explanation for the moratorium’s six-month timeframe.
Rye Country Day School
Rye Country Day owns property in the B-1 and B-2 districts, as well as three other zoning districts, and has a pending application in front of the City Planning Commission that would allow for significant reuse of the current campus area and the development of a new athletic complex on vacant land at one of the gateways to the city.
Housing
“The City Council has heard concerns about both allowances for, and restrictions on, development and redevelopment of single-family and multi-family development and wants an opportunity to review the existing zoning regulations,” the proposed law states.
City Councilmember Jamie Jensen floated the idea of temporary limitations on residential construction at the May 5 city council meeting.
“Maybe we need to talk about limiting new construction to the prevailing height or the prevailing setbacks of existing homes on the same block until comprehensive planning is completed,” she said in the meeting. “I don’t know if we can do it, I’d have to talk. I’m saying it out loud, and I could get in trouble, but I’m thinking we need to say until comprehensive planning is done … I want to figure out if we can carve out a way to say that.”
Preserving the character of Rye has been a recurring talking point as the city works to update its comprehensive plan for the first time since 1985. Based on the initial 18-month timeline given by AKRF Planning, the plan would be completed in Fall 2027.
“The City is embarking on a comprehensive plan review process,” the draft of the proposed law states, “but the City Council acknowledges that there are some community concerns that merit more immediate attention and potential action and which the City is in the process of reviewing.”
The proposed local law includes certain exemptions, including for projects that already have final discretionary approvals, ordinary maintenance and interior renovations, emergency repairs, and certain accessory residential structures and discreet home buildouts. Additionally, the law establishes a waiver process through which applicants may petition for relief from the moratorium where appropriate.
