Short-List Set for Echo Bay Waterfront
The City has narrowed down the list of potential developers for the Echo Bay waterfront from a dozen to five, including both national and regional applicants. Each remaining competitor will now receive a Request for Proposals (RFP) asking that they describe in greater detail their vision for a revitalized Echo Bay. Final plans are likely to include residential and commercial components, linkages to the central business district, a public waterfront promenade, and view corridors to the shoreline from East Main Street.
Parcel 1A Construction Begins As Trump Joins Project
Construction fences have been erected on Huguenot Street to permit the first stages of work on Parcel 1A. Vacant for forty-six years, this site will soon be the location of a 390 foot tower with165 condominium apartments and 140,000 square feet of retail on the ground levels. Announcements about retail tenants are expected shortly. The Trump Organization has joined developer Louis Cappelli on this project, which will be called Trump Plaza at New Rochelle. The tower is expected to be completed in approximately eighteen months.
Preliminary Agreement Reached for LeCount-Anderson Block
Across the street from New Roc City and Parcel 1A is a large block bounded by LeCount Place, Anderson Street, Huguenot Street, and North Avenue. This block is currently home to a variety of low-scale uses, including a small retail strip, a modest-sized apartment building, and a Planned Parenthood clinic, as well as the U.S. Post Office. Urban planners have long identified this site as suitable for higher-intensity use, particularly retail and office space, and successful revitalization of this block could greatly advance the fortunes of our central business district. In order to further this goal, the City recently concluded a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with New Rochelle Revitalization, LLC. We envision a mixed-use development of some 800,000 square feet with at least 20% retail and 40% class A office or hotel space, with the remainder to be residential. Very preliminary concepts call for the realignment of Anderson Street, with shops and restaurants placed on a new pedestrian-friendly road cutting through the block, and other uses in adjacent towers. It is our intent that all property transactions occur through private consensual agreement, with the City employing condemnation only as a last resort. Of course, no development will proceed prior to completion of a land disposition agreement, environmental review, and related public hearings.
Transit Center Receives Award
The recently completed New Rochelle Transit Center has received the Planning Achievement Award from the Westchester Municipal Planning Federation (WMPF.) This is highest honor conferred by the WMPF and is the local planning equivalent of winning the Academy Award for Best Picture. It is an impressive accomplishment for the City and a tribute to the efforts of our development team. The Transit Center was funded primarily through federal grants obtained by Congresswoman Nita Lowey.