Greenstein, Alzapiedi Square Off in New Castle Super Election

The race for the immediate future direction of New Castle will hang in the balance next week as the town’s Democrats and Republicans have offered voters full tickets for when they head to the polls.

With Republican backing, incumbent Supervisor Robert Greenstein will lead Team New Castle 2.0, accompanied by running mates Eileen Gallagher and Seth Chodosh, against the Democrats’ supervisor’s candidate Victoria Alzapiedi and her running mates Hala Makowska and Jeremy Saland,

“I think what I like about this job is that there’s so much potential,” said Greenstein, 48, who is completing his first term. “We have so many exciting things right now.”

Alzapiedi was chair of the Coyote Awareness and Safety Advisory Committee and butted heads with Greenstein. Gallagher chaired what became the opposing Coyote Management Task Force.

While the town ultimately adopted a set of guidelines to use that was the result of recommendations from both committees, tensions had been frayed.

Alzapiedi, 49, said that her candidacy wasn’t a backlash against Greenstein after the coyote controversy broke, but it exposed deeper troubles with how the town was being led. She went to town board meetings and work sessions and noticed it wasn’t well-functioning body and many decisions were apparently being made by Greenstein on his own.

“I started imagining how I would do this and how I would lead a board that is much more cohesive and really welcome the input of all the other members,” she said.

One of the biggest issues of the past few years has been Chappaqua Crossing. Greenstein said that he wasn’t opposed to retail and wrote an online article about four years ago supporting Whole Foods coming to the hamlet. Furthermore, Greenstein indicated that he could support planning board member Thomas Curley’s plan, which was the traditional neighborhood design.

“I was never, ever against retail at Chappaqua Crossing,” Greenstein said. “I know that most people don’t think that but I was never against retail at Chappaqua Crossing.”

Rather Greenstein explained that when he and Team New Castle got into office, their objective was to get the best project they could get.

“We need to work with the developer to make this a win-win,” he said. That’s something that we did. We made this a win-win. Yes, he’s getting a great project. He getting a better project. It’s a much better project.”

Alzapiedi countered that Greenstein has not been truthful during this campaign on his position on Chappaqua Crossing.

“He has changed his opinion and his position so many times,” she said. “How anyone can take him at his word and actually trust where he stands at any given moment is a very risky proposition.”

Alzapiedi said that the current proposal before the planning board is too big with too much retail and she would have liked to have seen the square footing reduced because it will become a third hamlet and potentially jeopardize the existing business centers.

She also would have liked to have seen more of a housing component at Chappaqua Crossing.

Greenstein supports placing affordable housing into the cupola building. Currently, Wilder-Balter Partners is proposing 28 units of affordable housing, down from the original 32 that had been proposed by Summit/Greenfield. Most of the units are larger now, mainly one and two bedrooms and there are no more studios that are being proposed.

Both candidates have been against the Conifer affordable housinect at Hunts Lane. Greenstein mentioned that when it was apparent that the town board couldn’t, they went to plead the town’s case to the state Board of Review and Metro-North, raising safety concerns to the entities that could still deny Conifer.

He pledged that if he were supervisor when the Conifer opens he would make a special effort to welcome the residents to the community.

Alzapiedi and her and her running mates want to bring specific activities or venues to entice people to shop, eat and stay in the downtown. They have proposed a “destination playground,” that would appeal to families with younger children; moving the New Castle Art Center from Hardscrabble Road to downtown; and offering an “Evening Under the Stars,” where tables and food vendors could be set up downtown on Saturdays night in the warm weather.

Attracting restaurants to downtown is also a priority, she said.

Although Alzapiedi first moved to New Castle in 2008, but it is the first time the place where she has lived has felt special.

“This is the first place that feels like home,” she said. “I have the feeling of wanting to protect it and preserve this wonderful place.”

Greenstein said between the planned streetscape and the upcoming completion of the Comprehensive Plan, the revitalization of downtown Chappaqua will begin.

He also disputed criticisms that he’s too argumentative.

“I think you want somebody who will go to bat for you,” Greenstein said. “I’m not saying I’m perfect. I’m certainly not perfect, but you take the good and the bad. I’m getting things done and I’m putting the best interests of the town first.”