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The hearing will focus on amending Chapter 60 of the Town Code that would allow for retail uses in the current research and office business district. The idea to re-zone the property was announced by the board in March after hearing from residents about the lack of a supermarket in the hamlet.
“We initiated it because we felt it was a good thing for the town to be able to consider having both a space for a grocery store – which we don’t have any other space for – and also, for some ability to get some better tax revenue from that property,” said Town Supervisor Susan Carpenter.
The hamlet has been without a supermarket since D'Agostino's left in September 2011. Carpenter said the property received no interest from any supermarkets, saying it was too small.
Architect Albert Krull said supermarkets typically require between 50,000 and 70,000 square feet, which Chappaqua does not have available. He estimated the vacancy left by D'Agostino's was 24,000 square feet.
If the area is re-zoned, it would be up to Chappaqua Crossing’s owner, Summit/Greenfield, to decide whether it wanted to lease the space to a supermarket. While the proposal allows for retail zoning other than a supermarket, Carpenter said it must be included before other types of stores can be built.
“It requires basically a supermarket to be an anchor,” she said. “And there’s some ancillary retail use that goes along with a supermarket.”
While the town’s 1989 master plan is scheduled to be updated beginning in the winter, Carpenter said she is pushing the Chappaqua Crossing proposal forward because she believes there is only a small window of opportunity.
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