Plans Unveiled to Enhance Carlson’s Nursery in Greenburgh
Plans are in the works to enhance Carlson’s Nursery on Dobbs Ferry Road in Greenburgh and not utilize the land for any other commercial use.
On September 22, representatives of Cortlandt Farms, potential future owners of Carlson’s Nursery, as well as representatives of Carlson’s, met with the Greenburgh Town Board, town staff and residents via Zoom video conference.
A presentation was made by Cortlandt Farms representatives highlighting their desire to purchase the nursery, retain and improve the current offerings and staff, and enhance the business with an approximately 4,000 to 5,000 square feet new farm stand building for the purposes of selling fruit, bread, vegetable and related products year-round.
Cortlandt Farm’s architect, Heike Schneider, displayed renderings of the proposed farm stand building, highlighting that a major design component would be to have it blend in with the residential feel of the existing site.
Jack Ahearn, of Cortlandt Farms, explained his intent is to retain the greenhouses, residence on the site, and overall feel of the site, as it has existed for decades. The presentation included personal video testimonials from customers of Carlson’s, noting how they loved the business and hoped that it can remain a part of Greenburgh.
Residents identified that traffic flow within the site could be improved with updates to the parking layout, and that review of the driveways would be important to ensure safety on the busy roadway.
Commissioner Garrett Duquesne mentioned since the nursery use is an existing non-conforming use in the town’s One Family Residence Districts, an expansion to include accessory food sales would require a Zoning Ordinance amendment, potentially via a special permit process, and including amended site plan approval.
“I’m thrilled that the property will remain a nursery,” Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner said. “In recent years we heard from car dealerships, and warehouses. It’s great that the character of the community will be maintained with a great use– a nursery. It’s also nice that during the pandemic, when so many businesses are closing down, that this property will continue to serve the community as a nursery. Great news for our town!”
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