Greenburgh holds 4 Corners rezoning workshop; residents press parking, traffic and small‑business concerns

Town of Greenburgh planners and consultants presented preliminary zoning concepts for the 4 Corners area at a public workshop and Q&A, outlining an overlay-district approach, a summer schedule for draft zoning scenarios and a required State Environmental Quality Review with public scoping and comment periods.

Planning commissioner Garrett Duquesne opened the meeting and said the project is funded by a State Smart Growth Program grant. Frank Fish of BFJ Planning introduced the consultant team and said the work will produce zoning alternatives this summer, followed by a second public workshop in late September or early October and environmental review steps that will examine traffic, parking and school impacts.

The consultants described existing constraints in the Central Avenue Mixed-Use Impact District (CA): a 2‑acre minimum lot size for new multifamily uses, front-yard setbacks of roughly 40–80 feet, density measured at about 35–40 bedrooms per acre and a current four‑story height cap. Sylvia Delfava, who reviewed existing conditions, noted a recurring flood zone at the southeast corner and narrow sidewalks at the northeast corner; she said multifamily development is subject to the town code requirement that 10 percent of new units be affordable.

Jonathan Martin, BFJ’s urban designer, urged attendees to think of public-space options — pocket plazas or stepped building massing that “hold” the corners — but he emphasized the consultants’ role: “The last slide that I’ll talk about is, again, our job is not to design the corners. It’s to write zoning for the corners.”

On parking and traffic, BFJ said it will review existing off‑street parking standards and use comparative data from nearby municipalities and recently built buildings to recommend appropriate parking levels; the firm also cited access‑management ideas (fewer curb cuts) and prior AKRF recommendations for new right‑turn lanes to improve intersection flows. Frank Fish told the meeting that the town may declare lead agency for an environmental impact statement and that the EIS scoping process will include public input followed by a draft and final EIS.

Residents pressed several practical concerns during the town-hall portion. A nearby business owner, Antonio Moon, said small businesses had not been properly represented on the steering committee and warned of displacement if redevelopment proceeded without ways to protect merchants; Moon added that business owners and employees could be left without clear options if properties were redeveloped. Garrett Duquesne responded that town staff will meet with business owners, that the overlay approach is intended to be optional for property owners and that the team seeks transparent outreach.

A resident raised a conflict-of-interest concern, saying an owner of a Southeast Corner property sits on the steering committee and could benefit economically; consultants acknowledged the comment and repeated that the overlay structure preserves existing zoning unless property owners opt in. Several speakers asked for broader outreach beyond civic associations — suggestions included mailed postcards and more than the single follow-up public meeting shown on the timeline.

The consultants and town emphasized that stormwater, pedestrian safety and emergency-service impacts will be studied: BFJ said CSA Group is on the team to analyze stormwater and that some sidewalk and signal upgrades are already funded through other grants and will be considered in the zoning exercise. On timing, BFJ plans stakeholder interviews and modeling over the summer and a return workshop in late September or early October to test massing and zoning alternatives before drafting formal rezoning language for committee and town-board consideration.

The meeting closed after a short coffee break and an invitation for attendees to continue offering comments on the project website and in follow-up stakeholder meetings. The next public milestone will be the EIS scoping session and the second workshop to review zoning alternatives.