Yorktown Looking to Secure Smart Growth Funds for Rt. 202
By Alex Weisler
More than 100 government officials, developers and citizens crowded into Yorktown Town Hall Thursday to debate a redevelopment plan for the stretch of Route 202 between the Taconic State Parkway and Lexington Avenue.
Yorktown Supervisor Michael Grace said the meeting was convened in an effort to address the Route 202 corridor’s three main challenges: traffic congestion, drainage issues and a lack of high-end commercial development.
Grace said New York State government has the chance to move quickly to secure funds for the project under the Smart Growth Commercial Policy Act.
“Now is the window of opportunity for them to save some money … and to spur on and redevelop Route 202 to high-end, aesthetically pleasing commercial development,” he said. “We have the chance to blow the dust off of three decades of studies … and finally get something done here.”
The plan, presented to the stakeholders Thursday, called for adding big-box anchor stores, like Costco, and reshaping Route 202 to include central islands and a boulevard-like design.
At the meeting, several speakers addressed the crowd before the microphone was turned over to public comment from stakeholders like residents and commercial developers.
The discussion was also attended by State Senator Greg Ball, Assemblyman Steve Katz and Westchester County legislators Mike Kaplowitz and John Testa. Representatives from Rep. Nan Hayworth and Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino also attended.
Yorktown Planning Director John Tegeder told the crowd that further developing the Route 202 corridor would, at a minimum, result in 500 new jobs, about $143,000 in general tax revenue and about $409,000 in school tax revenue.
Though most who spoke expressed their support for the plan and for quick and sustained commercial development, others worried they were getting lost in the shuffle.
Yorkown resident Nick DiTomaso told the crowd he was concerned that homeowners affected by the Route 202 corridor were the piece of the puzzle being ignored.
“Let’s not leave out the citizen, the average taxpayer, the small homeowner,” DiTomaso said. “I feel like I’m the needle in the haystack, surrounded by this illustrious group.”
And some citizens said they were worried that the arrival of a store like Costco would put Yorktown’s mom-and-pop shops out of business.
But Willing Biddle, president and chief operating officer of Urstadt Biddle Properties, which owns the Staples shopping center and several others in the Yorktown area, said the addition of more businesses is always a good thing.
“The whole question of whether Costco is good or bad is irrelevant,” he said. “The big picture is that what retailers want is other retailers.”
Joseph Visconti, president of the Yorktown Chamber of Commerce, said the town must act quickly on the Route 202 corridor issue to avoid falling behind neighboring municipalities like Cortlandt, Mahopac and Peekskill.
“We don’t want to see one organization against another organization. We all want to work together for the betterment of the community,” Visconti said. “We’ve got to get Yorktown up and moving, and the only way we’re going to really get it done is through a cooperative effort.”
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.