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- On The Record: Pulling the Plug
On The Record: Pulling the Plug
Harrison developer kills controversial apartments plan
Good morning subscribers. ☕This is your Wednesday, May 21, Rye Record newsletter, curating some of the latest headlines across the city of Rye.
Today’s Weather Channel local forecast calls for periods of rain with a high of 56 degrees 🌧 Check out the forecast for the rest of the week here.
Tapping out. A controversial proposal to build a 140-unit apartment building in a notoriously flood-plagued area of Harrison was withdrawn by the developer on Tuesday.
Albert Pirro, attorney for The Stagg Group, announced the news by calling the decision a “careful” one.
“After careful consideration of the need for further study, the Harrison Town Board and Planning Board has been advised that the application which has been filed for the multi-family building at 67 Grant Avenue is withdrawn,” he said.
The decision follows numerous displays of community opposition by residents of neighborhoods in Rye, Harrison, and Mamaroneck that have previously suffered flooding from the Beaver Swamp Brook, near where the project was slated for.
And comes just as the Harrison Town Board was set to open a public hearing on Thursday to potentially pass a six-month building moratorium that could have blocked the project.
To read David Hessekiel’s article in its entirety, click here
A rendering of the now defunct 67 Grant Ave. apartment complex that was being planned in Harrison.
-Today’s newsletter is curated by Christian Falcone
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IN OTHER NEWS
Landslide. Voters of the Rye City School District overwhelmingly approved the $113.2 million school budget Tuesday night by a more than 4-to-1 margin. In total, 765 voters approved it, while just 158 voted it down as backers cheered the results inside the Rye Middle School gymnasium. -Rosie Newmark
Sound the alarm. It has been more than 20 years since United Hospital closed at the end of 2004. The state Department of Environmental Conservation recently announced that remedial action to address contamination at the site would begin in April. -Paul Hicks
Blown away. Leaf blower summonses were doled by Rye police out at a much higher clip this April compared to last, continuing a trend that began in March. The recent uptick stems from the department assigning overtime to further enforce city code complaints. -Rosie Newmark
AROUND TOWN
-Playland will officially open for the season on Saturday, May 24. The opening ceremony will take place at 11 a.m., opening the park to the public immediately after. But the question remains what rides will be available to park patrons. -Journal News
-A couple who bought a newly-built $1.5 million house on Walker Avenue is suing the developer for allegedly refusing to fix a defective storm water system that has allowed flooding on their property. -Westfair Business Journal
Off the Record: The city is planning to rename Station Plaza — the MTA-owned roadway between Purchase Street and Peck Avenue — in honor of Orial and M. Paul Redd, civil rights leaders who called Rye home.
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NEWS
There’s much work to be done at Rye Town Park.
The Friends of Rye Town Park announced they had received a $200,000 grant on Monday, bringing a much-needed tower restoration project closer to reality.
The money was donated by the Sue and Edgar Wachenheim Foundation, pledging the hefty sum as long as the Friends group raises another $200,000 match by a June 30 deadline, according to Diana Page, president of the Friends of Rye Town Park.
Page’s “knees shook” a little bit, she said, when Ed Wachenheim approached her about the grant.
-by Record staff
Mittens was treated for a laceration on her head, and is now safe and “doing well.”
POLICE & FIRE
A Port Chester man has been charged with animal cruelty after grabbing and then hurling a young tuxedo cat named Mittens in Rye Brook last month.
Anthony Lopez was arrested by SPCA Westchester’s Humane Law Enforcement (HLE) on May 7 in a joint investigation with Rye Brook police after the SPCA received a tip on its confidential cruelty hotline that Lopez had gotten violent with the feline.
-by Mayra Kalaora
SPORTS
What started as casual lunchtime games has evolved into something more structured.
A group of Rye Middle School boys is bringing back simplicity and love of the game by creating the Rye Wiffleball League, now in its second full season.
With nearly 30 seventh-grade boys across six teams, the league is kid-run from top to bottom — no adults involved.
Micah Golub, Thomas Walsh, Chris Woods, Adler Boisseau, and Teddy Murphy manage everything from game logistics and standings to conflict resolution.
-by Erin McAward
Rye won five straight games by double digits before beating top-ranked Suffern 10-7 Friday.
SPORTS
Following another impressive showing in the regular season, the Rye girls lacrosse team can’t control who they face in the playoffs or those respective teams’ records.
With a 10-7 victory Friday over Suffern, the No. 1-ranked team in Section 1 Class A, the Garnets enter the postseason with eight straight wins. During that stretch of dominant team lacrosse, Rye has outscored its opponents by an average score of 15-5.
But these Garnets believe there is something they can control: a return to the New York state championship game.
-by Steven Kearney