Development in Pleasantville Has Gone Out of Control

As a lifelong resident of Pleasantville, I am very concerned about current and future development in Pleasantville. Pleasantville used to be a small village with many colonial and historic homes. The new development in Pleasantville already contains more apartments than the infrastructure of Pleasantville can handle. Do we really need more apartments, specifically the proposed development at the former Chase Bank building?

With the existing development, the village infrastructure could be stressed beyond its limits, requiring additional police, fire and emergency and school personnel. Consideration should be given to the fact that Pleasantville has all-volunteer fire and ambulance departments. Additional infrastructure costs money and will increase our property taxes.

Traffic congestion in the village currently is a nightmare. It will only be worse with hundreds of new residents. The new residents might not be two-car families, but it is naive to think the present development won’t bring at least one car per unit. Sitting at a traffic light for several cycles is currently common as the traffic just can’t move.

Why does the village change zoning laws to accommodate the few when the zoning was designed to protect the town from overdevelopment? The builders/owners don’t care about the impact to the village; they care about the amount of money they can make.

The Village of Pleasantville has out-of-control development. Any further development at this point would be imprudent. A building moratorium should be considered. We should take time to assess the impact of existing development.

The village is holding a meeting on Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in the Pleasantville High school auditorium to discuss future development in the village. Please plan to attend and stay informed.

Thomas Rooney
Pleasantville

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