Cortlandt Planners Approve Plan for Hudson Wellness Project
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The Cortlandt Planning Board earlier this month unanimously approved the site plan and a special permit for a proposed luxury drug and alcohol rehabilitation specialty hospital that has been reviewed for the last eight years.
Only two of the seven Planning Board members, Chairman Steven Kessler and Vice Chairman Thomas Bianchi, have served for the entire time Hudson Ridge Education and Wellness Center has sought to utilize a 48-acre site on Quaker Ridge Rd. to serve a maximum of 52 patients, down from 92 that was originally sought in 2015.
No members issued any remarks about the project during the June 6 meeting, but in the resolution, which contained 34 conditions, it states, “The Planning Board finds the granting of this special permit is in harmony with the general purpose and intent of the Zoning Ordinance and will not be injurious to the neighborhood and will not change the character thereof, or otherwise be detrimental to the public welfare.”
The property is near Teatown, a 1,000-acre nonprofit nature preserve and environmental education center with 15 miles of hiking trails and a two-acre island refuge. The project was closely watched by officials and residents in Ossining and New Castle. New Castle officials who were concerned about increased water and sewer use in the area, and Glendale Rd. being used by vehicles traveling to the site.
The former Hudson Institute site encompasses 20 acres in Cortlandt and 28 acres in New Castle,
In April 2022, the Planning Board voted 6-1 to issue a Negative Declaration under SEQRA stating the project should not have significant adverse environmental impacts. The decision allowed Hudson Wellness Center to avoid preparing a lengthy and costly Environmental Impact Statement.
On Sept. 27, 2022, the Zoning Board of Appeals granted a variance since Town Code requires hospitals in residential zones to be on state roads, and Quaker Ridge Rd. is not a state road.
The backers of Hudson Ridge Wellness Center have spent nearly $3 million to buy three parcels of land, paid attorneys and consultants hundreds of thousands, carried property taxes costing nearly $400,000 (although sometimes paying late) and renovated the existing buildings on the site to the tune of $1.5 million.
Hudson Ridge still has one hurdle to overcome before it can operate. It must receive a license from the New York State Office of Addiction Service and Supports (OASAS). That process involves the submission of extensive paperwork, a site visit and close scrutiny from several entities.
Rick has more than 40 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, running the gamut from politics and crime to sports and human interest. He has been an editor at Examiner Media since 2012. Read more from Rick’s editor-author bio here. Read Rick’s work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/pezzullo_rick-writer/
