Developer Presses on With Application for a Subdivision on Garden Road

Undeterred by years of pushback from the village and neighbors, Steven Kessner renewed attempts to win approval for a subdivision on Garden Road at a special meeting of the Scarsdale Planning Board on Thursday night September 11, 2025.

The proceedings were eerliy resemblant to an earlier meeting of the Planning Board on September 19, 2024 when the applicant proposed to build eight new homes and a private roadway on the site by subdividing the property and trucking in landfill to raise the grade of the property.

What’s different in this iteration is that they have reduced the number of new homes from eight to five, reducing the number of tree removals from 437 to 246, and the amount of landfill from an estimated 2000 truckloads to 666.

However one exasperated resident pointed out, “This project has been cooking since 2006 despite the repeated reference to 2018. (I have the documents). For nearly 20 years this developer has been trying to develop this site. What makes this iteration any better? There are fewer houses but:

-still clear-cutting 200+ trees;
-still trucking in fill from other construction sites to raise the terrain by 4 feet;
-despite the raised terrain, homes will have basements and pools that will hit the high groundwater table; Q: Where will this displaced water go? A: Laterally, into neighboring properties;
-swales to handle runoff will ultimately drain into the too small pipe that feeds into the stream behind homes on Willow;
-the Village has not done any remediation of the stormwater runoff problem at Cushman/Willow/Garden, and it remains, admittedly, inadequate to handle the current level of runoff.

I feel like Bill Murray in "Ground Hog Day."

Developers brought back their same team of experts to plead their case. Attorney Lucia Chiocchio from Cuddy and Feder explained that they proposed to reconfigure the three tax lots on the 7.6 acre site into 6 tax lots, demolish the two existing homes and build five more homes.

She contended that the project “Will not create any significant adverse impacts” and in fact will “improve conditions” in this area which many call a sensitive drainage area. She said, “The design exceeds Village Code standards.”

Also on their team is engineer Eliot Senor who said the lots will range in size from 30,000 to 69,000 square feet, larger than is required by the Village.

He explained that the southeast corner of the lot is wetlands which are contiguous with a stream that runs out into Cushman Road. He said, there will be “no construction or fill in the wetlands.”

He defended the project saying, “The town consultant says this drainage basin is 118 acres – we’re only a small percentage of that runoff.” He said he had designed, “A detention area that empties into the wetlands…All of the drainage meets code.” He later added, “We will install three rows of silt fence around the wetlands.’

About the 8,000 cubic yards of fill he said, “we will only truck it in between 9 am and 3 pm.” He also shows plans for swales along the back property line.

Richard Baldwin of Hydrologic Solutions said, “There is a low probability of causing flooding in neighboring properties. When trees mature, the situation will improve.”

Tree expert Aaron Schmidt said, “The applicant is proposing an extensive tree planting scheme. The removal of 246 trees will be offset by the planting of 388 trees for a net increase of 137 trees. The total number of trees on the property will be 543.”

Of the 246 trees to be removed, he said 76 are in poor condition and 41 are dead. He claimed, that after the planting, “More water will be absorbed than presently.”

During questioning from the Board, Chairman Clapp asked for a detailed tree plan. He also asked the applicant if they had considered his suggestion to build cluster housing on the dry portion of the lot. He said, “Cluster subdivision is allowed by NY code – you figure out how many could be built and then cluster them into one area. “The applicant replied that this was not in keeping with the neighborhood.

Board member Mark Seiden said, “They say this is a sensitive drainage area, subject to low permeability and infiltration rates. The existing municipal stormwater system is already overburdened.”

Senor replied, “The existing system may be overburdened but we are reducing the runoff. We are not adding any more to it.”

About how much fill would need to be imported, Senor said it 8,000 cubic feet (which represents about 666 dump trucks.) And he added, “We are not using it (the landfill) for stormwater management.”

Questioned about the underground stormwater retention basin that would be installed, Senor explained, “Homeowners will be responsible for maintaining the drainage system,” as well as the private road.

Public Comments

David Salzman of 12 Varian Lane circulated photos of his cul de sac after a heavy rain. He said, “It becomes a lake and floods one of the houses on our street. About 15 years ago we put in a pool. We had to put in an enormous detention system – as large as the pool underneath our driveway. From what I see that detention system that you designed is nowhere near the size of the one we have. I don’t think it’s going to work. If it doesn’t work, it will be awful for the people on Cushman and downstream. Years ago there were houses in that area whose basements collapsed. We are going to band together and have our own engineering firm look at this. The idea that the homeowners are going to take care of the system is nonsense.”

Attorney David Steinmetz who is representing Bob Falk who lives on the 3 Willow Lane said, “We have been talking about this for 18 years. Here we are again. The SWPPP (Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan) does not contain the correct analysis and does not meet DEC code.”

He continued, “Mr. Senor said that fill will not be used for stormwater retention or mitigation. In the application it says stormwater will be retained by fill. The outcome is only as good as the data that goes into the system. The assumptions are not accurate. The municipal system is overburdened. The system is at capacity. All the water gets discharged into a stream into Mr. Falk’s backyard.”

An environmental consultant also retained by Falk said, “The plan is deficient. It is a sensitive drainage area. Inaccurate baseline conditions go into the model. About the fill, importing fill is not a stormwater management practice. Misusing fill to reduce runoff will not work post construction.”

Steinmetz added, “It is our position that this application should not even be before the board. The Woodland Road de-mapping was approved to prevent development of the more sensitive area. The de-mapping was approved by the DOT. And now the applicant is trying to rebuild the road that de-mapped.”

Helen Maccarino said, “We’ve been arguing about this for 18 years. It’s not better, it’s just a bad assault on our neighborhood and our well-being. Noise pollution and air pollution will result from building it. The site has no road, no sewer, no electrical and the drainage problem is immense. It’s scary to think that we will have a storm and wonder if this drainage system will protect neighbors downstream.”

Elaine Weir of 138 Brewster Road said, “I am concerned about the flooding in an intense rainfall. We can expect this change to continue and we need to prepare for it. The presence of this water may be the reason this area was not developed in the past. Raising the land will increase flooding of older homes. An environmental impact statement is needed.

Andrew Rodman read a letter from Shari Beckiman of 75 Garden Road. It said, ‘How many more years will all of us need to devote our time and energy to argue against this preposterous project plan? Our family has lived on Garden Road for almost 25 years. We have had four major floods in the finished lower level of our home. We have lived through continuous re-grading and re-plumbing our our entire outdoor property. We pay enormous tax dollars to this Village every year in exchange for living in this charming, beautiful community, despite it challenges……
(read the balance here)

Rodman of Cushman Road said, “I am adjacent to lot 2. I have lived here for 32 years and water has been flowing onto my property for 32 years. Many different proposals have been brought to this board. The pipe at the bottom of Cushman Road is bathtub size. Don’t divide this up.I don’t understand the swales – how high will the one be behind my house? …. Will sump pumps be required? …. Where will they drain? ….Many trees don’t survive in wet soil. It will be hard for 300 trees to survive. …. Are we going to add a stoplight for school buses and garbage trucks at the entrance to this private road? I don’t want to get flooded out from this development.”

Richard Canter read a letter that is posted here:

Barry Abramson of 98 Garden Road said, “My backyard has been flooding for 27 years…This is not an ordinary project. This is untouched land. The developers have look at it and determined that they cannot build there. It will create an environmental impact and downstream damage.”

Jake Levitt of Stonewall Lane said, “New trees will not mature. This is ecological bankruptcy. Projects that change the character of the neighborhood. Dead trees are important….This will contribute to the collapse of our environment.