If the Town Board is limiting the Form Based district to North Greeley, why will the FGEIS and SEQRA Findings Statement be completed for the entire study area?

Completion of the SEQRA process is a legally required step before any zoning changes can be enacted by the Town Board. For that reason alone, the SEQRA process that the Town Board started in January 2020 must continue and be completed. But there is another, broader reason for completing the SEQRA review on the entire study area.

The public hearing conducted on the DGEIS was hugely successful in eliciting public comments and input from residents and interested agencies such as the New Castle Planning Board and the Chappaqua Central School District. The Town Board received comments on many important issues and challenges facing our community, such as the need to create new housing opportunities and better respond to trends (post Covid-19 and otherwise) impacting the demand for retail goods and services. Those issues are relevant to the entire study area, not just the North Greeley corridor. The Town Board wants these questions answered!

It is perfectly appropriate for residents to have different opinions about changing our downtown. Some residents have advocated for building a Rec Center in the downtown, while others would like to have more housing options for empty nesters. Some residents want to see nothing changed at all. Regardless of your point of view, we all should be able to agree that objective, reliable data is essential to informed decision-making by our elected officials.

Completing the SEQRA process on the entire study area will provide the Town Board and residents with fact-based information and analyses that will be invaluable as we continue the dialogue over revitalizing our downtown. Our goal is to build a foundation for future planning and zoning decisions throughout the study area, without committing to any specific course of action at this time beyond the North Greeley corridor. By completing the SEQRA process on the entire study area, the community will have a solid understanding of the environmental, social and economic implications of encouraging redevelopment through rezoning.

We will keep the community updated on these efforts as we continue to move Chappaqua Forward.

Show All Answers

1. NEW - Will completing the SEQRA review for the FBC on the entire study area undermine the Town Board’s ability to limit the FBC to only a small area (the North Greeley corridor)...
2. NEW - Why is the Town Board considering revisions to the FBC legislation before receiving draft responses to the comments from the public and interested agencies on the Town's DGEIS? ...
3. What is a form-based code?
4. What is the purpose of Chappaqua’s comprehensive plan?
5. What is the goal of rezoning the Chappaqua Hamlet?
6. Will the rezoning change the history of Chappaqua?
7. Is the Chappaqua form-based code a construction project?
8. What is GEIS?
9. Didn’t the members of the Downtown Working Group who own commercial properties in the Chappaqua hamlet have conflicts of interest that precluded their participation?
10. Does the Form Based Code allow the entire Chappaqua Hamlet to be 5 stories in height?
11. Why does the DGEIS study a "full build out" or "buildout scenario" of the Chappaqua Hamlet under the Form Based Code?
12. Does the FBC mean development on Town-owned land?
13. If the Town Board determines in the future to sell or lease Town-owned land for a development project, will I have and opportunity to vote on whether that should occur? Will there be a referendum?
14. Has the Town been in contact with other public entities on this proposal (e.g. the school board)?
15. Once the Form Based Code is in place, what are the next steps for the Town to attract interest in potential opportunities for development?
16. Does the Town plan to use eminent domain to buy and consolidate privately owned, small contiguous parcels?
17. How does the public notification of a proposed development project change with the Form Based Code?
18. Why is this the appropriate time to adopt a Form Based Code for Chappaqua?
19. Does Chappaqua have the water and sewer infrastructure to handle future development?
20. What assumptions were the foundation of the Form Based Code?
21. Can the public vote on the Form Based Code?
22. Can the Town conduct a "public opinion poll" or an advisory (non-binding) referendum of the electorate with respect to the proposed Form-Based Code?
23. Do any members of the Town Board have a conflict of interest with respect to the Form Based Code because they own property in the Chappaqua business hamlet?
24. Did the members of the Town’s “Downtown Working Group” write the Form Based Code?
25. What is the “New Direction” announced by the Town Board for the Form Based Code? What does that mean and what happens next?
26. If the Town Board is limiting the Form Based district to North Greeley, why will the FGEIS and SEQRA Findings Statement be completed for the entire study area?
27. Can the Town lawfully regulate the number of bedrooms that would be permitted within new apartment units?
28. The Chappaqua Board of Education has asserted that the Town cannot control whether future developments in the Chappaqua hamlet will be subsidized through PILOT agreements. Is this accurate?