SHARE

Forty-Four Housing Units Proposed For Pound Ridge Site

 

Anthony Sblendorio, a principal with Ridge 29, LLC.

Anthony Sblendorio, a principal with Ridge 29, LLC.

Photo Credit: Tom Auchterlonie
A photo of the Ridge 29 layout.

A photo of the Ridge 29 layout.

Photo Credit: Tom Auchterlonie
The Pound Ridge Town Board at its Aug. 7 meeting.

The Pound Ridge Town Board at its Aug. 7 meeting.

Photo Credit: Tom Auchterlonie

POUND RIDGE, N.Y. -- Information on Ridge 29, a proposal for 44 housing units on a site in Pound Ridge that makes up 29.1 acres, was provided at a Town Board meeting.

The proposal for the site, near Pine Drive, includes 132 parking spaces, with a request to allow land banking of 22 of them, Giris disclosed to the board. Thirty-nine of the units would be market rate while five would be affordable.

It was disclosed that the units would have three bedrooms and be in the 2,400’s range for square footage.

Anthony Sblendorio, a principal with the applicant, gave an overview of the project. He mentioned that most of the site would be preserved as open space and talked about the use of a bio filtration for storm water management. Under this approach, what would be created is like a natural wetland and can include plants, swales and rock outcroppings as a way to slow down and treat water.

One notable part of the proposal involves using an alternative waste water treatment system instead of of conventional septic.

Sblendorio noted the use of a tank where solids are before going into a leech field. In contrast, the alternative approach involves a constructed wetland, one that has about three feet of gravel and rubber liner. Plants in the gravel would grow hydroponically and rely on the effluent and sunlight. From there, the effluent would go into a sand filter and be recirculated. Once it is treat, it goes into a disposal field, which in this case would be a drip system and let water to go onto the forest floor.

Sblendorio discussed the lack of being able to detect the effluent.

“You don’t see it, you don’t smell it,” he said at the Aug. 7 meeting.

Sblendorio has a regulatory challenge, as the alternative system, which has not been used Westchester County, will need approval from the county’s Department of Health. He mentioned dialogue with the department and said they are “encouraging us to continue with our applications.”

The proposal will require special permit approval from the Town Board, which was a topic at the meeting, and site plan approval from the Planning Board, it was mentioned. In May, the Town Board voted to change the framework that allows for senior housing and have it apply more broadly to multifamily housing, according to board members.

The most of the site’s underlying zoning includes R-1A, which allows for construction of single-family homes. A portion of the site that will not be developed, according to Giris, is R-2A, which also allows for single-family homes.

The applicant is also seeking to abide by a 50-foot buffer for part of the perimeter instead of the 100-foot requirement, it was disclosed.

The project – the early nature of its review process came up at the meeting - will be revisited by the Town Board at its Sept. 4 meeting. A referral to the Planning Board for advisory comment is being sought by the applicant.

An application for the special permit has been submitted, according to Janet Giris, an attorney for Ridge 29, LLC, which is the project’s applicant and backed by several investors. Informal discussion with the Town Board previously took place, according to Sblendorio.

to follow Daily Voice Pound Ridge and receive free news updates.

SCROLL TO NEXT ARTICLE