Mamaroneck REVIEW THE
December 2, 2016 | Vol. 4, Number 49 | www.mamaroneckreview.com
Barnes & Noble, at the corner of the Vernon Hills Shopping Center in Eastchester, is the first of the bookseller’s locations to serve beer, wine and entrees, complete with tableside service. For story, see page 6 Photo courtesy Barnes & Noble
Rye Brook considers law to regulate gun stores By COREY STOCKTON Staff Writer The village of Rye Brook plans to propose a local law that would regulate where gun retailers would be allowed to open stores within the village. The pending legislation comes in the wake of the recent opening of a gun store in a contentious area in
Harrison last month. According to Rye Brook Mayor Paul Rosenberg, a Democrat, that legislation “will seek to, on a local level, dictate where gun shops may be located within the village of Rye Brook.” Rosenberg told the Review that legislation could be proposed as early as the Dec. 13 village board meeting, and added
that a first draft of that legislation had already been written. Both Rosenberg and Chris Bradbury, the Rye Brook village administrator, said the specifics are still being investigated by the village attorneys to prevent potential legal backlash of an overreaching law. Meanwhile, village officials have asked for collaboration
from members of the Harrison town board in proposing the law. In a letter addressed to Harrison officials, Rosenberg asked them to join Rye Brook—and potentially other neighboring communities—in considering the adoption of legislation that would restrict the location of LAW continued on page 9
Residents skeptical of new village zoning laws By JAMES PERO Staff Writer Even in the wake of a slew of newly passed zoning laws meant to curb what village board members and Larchmont residents have characterized as unfettered development, some residents continue to lobby for more stringent regulation. Eleven laws adopted by the village of Larchmont Board of Trustees on Nov. 21 include new or amended provisions altering the village’s regulations on setback, floor-area ratio, site planning and subdivision among other development-related guidelines. Some residents, however, worry that changes to those laws, which were originally introduced in October, may mitigate their effectiveness in curbing what has been characterized by some as overdevelopment. “We’re generally happy with the laws that were passed,” said Kelly Brock, a Larchmont resident and member of the grassroots anti-development group Preserve Larchmont. “But some changes may have diluted the laws.” A major complaint addressed during the board’s last meeting on Nov. 21 regarded proposed changes to the role of the Planning Board during site plan approval; specifically the notion that board members may now
have too much influence. “These laws leave enormous amounts of discretion to the village’s Planning Board who as we know can be wild cards depending on who occupies the seat at the time,” said Carla Porter, also a member of Preserve Larchmont. Brock said that because of the potentially central role of the Planning Board, board members—who are volunteers— could end up being overmatched when it comes to large-scale developers and their legal teams. “It’s a hard position to put a Planning Board member in,” she said. Some concern has also been voiced from Preserve Larchmont over the definition of “reasonable cause” in one law, which would allow the Planning Board to skirt some regulations if substantial evidence is presented by a property owner to the board. However, Mayor Lorraine Walsh, a Democrat, said that any changes made to the laws have not been substantial. “Some of the rhetoric that came out regarding the changes that were made made it seem like we were seriously stripping [the laws’] protective value,” Walsh said, “when really we were just making some small changes.” In regard to the new role of the Planning Board in granting ZONING continued on page 7