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On The Record: Planning From the Past
Rye has Westchester's third-oldest comprehensive plan
Good morning subscribers. ☕This is your Thursday, Feb. 19, Rye Record newsletter, curating some of the latest headlines across the city of Rye.
Today’s Weather Channel local forecast is cloudy with a high of 38 degrees ☁️ Check out the forecast for the rest of the week here.
Left behind. The city of Rye's comprehensive plan hasn't been updated since it was first drafted in 1985, making it the third-oldest plan among Westchester's 41 communities.
"Especially (with) the growth in the New York metropolitan area, I'm surprised that they've gotten away with not having any (updated) plan," Elizabeth Marcello, an urban planning professor at Hunter College in Manhattan, told The Record in an interview. "I ... think it's strange."
More than just a zoning and regulatory document, a comprehensive plan guides a municipality's development – it's also a vision of the values residents want reflected in their community for years to come.
In Westchester, a county with an expanding population of more than 1 million, only Mount Vernon (updated in 1968) and Pelham Manor (updated in 1979) have older comprehensive plans.
Meanwhile, neighboring communities like Harrison, Mamaroneck, Rye Brook, and Port Chester have all updated their comprehensive plans within the past 15 years, The Record found. Larger Westchester cities, such as New Rochelle and White Plains, have revised their plans within the past 10 years.
During last year's Rye City mayoral race, then-Councilman Josh Nathan warned of the dangers of not having an updated plan, making it a focus of his campaign.
A four-decade-old comprehensive plan has left Rye without a long-term framework to guide development into the 2020s, said Nathan, who is now the mayor.
"There’s a problem, everybody jumps on it, we debate and do something," he said. "But it may not be the smartest thing or fit long-term needs."
Visit ryerecord.com Friday morning to read more of this special report by Camille Botello.
Concerns over development have been looming in the city of Rye recently. Photo/Alison Rodilosso
-Today’s newsletter is curated by Chris Marshall
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IN OTHER NEWS
BLOWN AWAY. The City Council unanimously voted to ban gas-powered leaf blowers year-round in Rye, capping off two impassioned public hearings and years of stop-and-start discussions around the issue. The law is set to go into effect May 1. -Lilienne Shore Kilgore-Brown
BACK-TO-BACK? Rye’s girls basketball team opens the postseason Saturday at home against Nyack. Despite losing their final two regular-season games, the Garnets have a good shot at defending their section title. -Ariana Ottrando
HISTORICAL VISIT. Following the passing of civil rights activist Jesse Jackson on Tuesday, locals recall the two-time presidential candidate’s visit to Rye High School in 1987. -David Hessekiel
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FROM OUR PARTNERS
POLICE & FIRE
A note instructed utility companies to contact Rye PD prior to working in the area. Photo courtesy city of Rye
Trees along Stuyvesant Avenue near Halls Lane were tagged with orange ribbons in early February, including one well-known tree that currently houses a nesting pair of great horned owls.
As it turned out, the ribbons were placed by Con Edison, which had every intention of cutting down the tree, even though authorization to do so had previously been denied.
City Manager Brian Shea said he first learned of the potential threat to the tree Friday, then quickly contacted his liaison at Con Edison to clarify that removal of the tree was not authorized.
Mayor Josh Nathan and city employees worked over the long weekend to protect the tree. By Saturday, the Rye Police Department had placed police tape and a sign on the tree declaring that “utilities must contact Rye PD prior to work in area.”
-by Lilienne Shore Kilgore-Brown
Henry Shoemaker and the Garnets dive into postseason play. Photo/MQS Media
SPORTS
The first round of the Section 1 tournament tips off Saturday, with fifth-seeded Rye (15-5) hosting No. 12 Nyack (8-12). All year long, the Garnets inched their way up the Class AA ladder, all the while looking up at the top four teams: No. 1 Suffern, No. 2 Yorktown, No. 3 Clarkstown North, and No. 4 Horace Greeley.
Were the Garnets to have one more week of regular-season games, there’s a good chance those rankings would be shuffled. Rye won six games in the first 11 days of February, including a 21-point victory over Clarkstown North, before a 68-64 overtime loss Friday against a talented Iona Prep squad (15-7).
The difference between the fourth and fifth seed could mean the Garnets play most of the section tournament away from home, but the hope is their run extends to the semifinals and championship in Westchester County Center.
-by Steven Kearney
BUSINESS & ORGS
The proposal for The Mariner shows two wings, one for food and one for alcohol. Rendering courtesy Mamariner Hospitality Group
A new beachside bar in Harbor Island Park got the green light to open this summer in Harbor Island Park, despite opposition from local leaders who claim the Village didn’t give the public enough opportunity to provide input.
The Mariner – which plans to offer table, bar, and walk-up service seven days per week – is set to open Memorial Day weekend. It will be the first establishment to sell alcohol in Harbor Island Park.
-by Kate Circelli