Developer, Whole Foods Reach Agreement for Chap Crossing Market
The developer of Chappaqua Crossing submitted a revised retail preliminary design concept plan last week for 120,000 square feet of retail space and identified Whole Foods as the supermarket operator that would move into the site.
Summit/Greenfield’s Nov. 12 filing came after Whole Foods representatives approved the location to operate a 40,000-square-foot supermarket in a new free-standing building on the portion of the property that would be rezoned to a special Office Park Retail Overlay District. The supermarket would be the anchor store for the retail project at the former Reader’s Digest property.
It also came one week after the three candidates opposing the retail concept–Rob Greenstein for supervisor and Lisa Katz and Adam Brodsky for town council–swept the election. They will take office on Jan. 1.
John Marwell, an attorney representing Summit/Greenfield, stated in his letter to the New Castle Town Board, which accompanied the submission, that Whole Foods representatives are eyeing an opening no later than the end of June 2015. With construction slated to take about a year, that would require all approvals to be in place by the middle of next year, the correspondence noted.
He requested that the town board reopen the public hearing on the preliminary design concept plan for Nov. 26. The matter is scheduled for discussion during Tuesday’s board work session.
Since Summit/Greenfield also needs to obtain site plan, subdivision and other approvals from the planning board in addition to the rezoning from the town board, timing is critical, Marwell noted.
“We request that your Board take these actions as expeditiously as possible in light of your board’s completion of the SEQRA process and the time constraints imposed by the proposed anchor tenant,” Marwell stated in his letter.
Town Attorney Clinton Smith said he didn’t know whether resumption of the hearing can be achieved for next week given the notification requirement. He said it also doesn’t take into effect any referrals that the town board might want to make to the New Castle or county planning boards regarding the revised plan.
Smith mentioned that current board members may need more time before making any decision about resuming the hearing.
“We have not fully reviewed what was submitted by the developer,” Smith said on Monday.
Time is critical because under a settlement agreement reached between the town and Summit/Greenfield stemming from the developer’s lawsuits against the municipality, a timeline for the town to make a decision on the project was established. Originally, a target date of Dec. 31 had been set.
Also hanging over the project is the pending arrival of the new board members. On Monday, Greenstein said that while some residents may look favorably toward Whole Foods, he and his colleagues remain committed to having the town update its Master Plan before any decisions are made about the future of the Chappaqua Crossing site.
“This isn’t about Whole Foods,” Greenstein said. “It’s also about the fact 120,000 square feet of retail space has been proposed and about a third retail district.”
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
