Mayor: National Big Box Retailer Sizing Up Peekskill
A nationally known, big box-type retailer has expressed strong interest in setting up shop on a large tract of land on Lower South Street in Peekskill once occupied by a recycling plant and a former scrapyard.
While Mayor Frank Catalina said he wasn’t able to reveal the name of the business, he mentioned they were “like a BJ’s or Costco.”
“I would classify their interest as a 7.5 to 8 on a 1-10 scale with 1 being no interest and 10 being ready to sign on the dotted line,” Catalina responded when asked about the seriousness of the negotiations. “I don’t think they need everything the city owns but it’s all available. I’m not aware of their hurdles, just two preliminary, but very exciting, meetings, so far. As I push them, I’m sure their concerns will be shared.”
Another project that hasn’t been formally announced but is in the planning stages, according to Catalina, is a residential building that will replace the former White Plains Linen structure on Highland Avenue.
“This will transform the entire area,” said Catalina.
Other residential projects in the works include The Gateway, 22 to 24 brownstone-type homes directly across the street from Bolhman Towers; a senior living facility at the longtime Christopher Columbus Society building on Route 202; and the $40 million Alma development, which will be located across from the Crossroads Shopping Center, covering the entire block of Brown, Broad and Park Streets.
The largest residential construction project in more than 55 years will feature150 rental apartments and 400 underground parking spaces. However, Catalina said when construction started last fall developers “ran into some engineering issues” which require them to return to the Planning Board for some amendments.
“It should be under construction by this spring or summer and will completely transform the depressed area of the Crossroads Shopping Center,” he said.
The Alma will be nine stories high with a penthouse facing Park Street and eight stories high will a penthouse facing Brown Street. The apartments will be one and two bedrooms and a portion of the parking spaces in the three-level garage will be available for public use.
Catalina, who is in the second year of his second term and is expected to seek reelection in November, said development projects in the city represent half a billion dollars that will provide “finally, a solid financial tax base to relieve the burden on existing homeowners and businesses.”
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/
