Is It Time to Re-Open the Discussion About Downtown Development?

The Avalon, A Transit Oriented Development in HarrisonIt has been six years since the Village Board closed discussions on the development of the Freightway site after opposition from a faction of vocal residents. From 2017- 2020 the Village engaged in an intensive three-year process to develop the Freightway site, holding workshops, forums, surveys, walking tours and conducting research. Ultimately they solicited RFP’s from six developers to build parking, multi-unit housing, retail space and other community assets on the site. But after considerable dissent broke out in the community the discussion was tabled in January 2020.

At the time, the group feared that new development would snarl traffic and swell the school population, resulting in over-enrollment at Fox Meadow Elementary School. Though school enrollment figures have been declining, opponents were able to persuade the Village Board to put the development on hold.

Perhaps they were prescient because in January 2020 no one could envision that the COVID crisis would change our way of life and throw many of the underlying assumptions about future development into question. At the time, the Village assumed that commuters would continue to require the 700 parking spaces on the three lots; Freightway plus two outdoor facilities. Before COVID these parking space were prized and the Village ran a lottery to allocate them fairly.

But shortly thereafter the COVID crisis hit in late March 2020, shuttering offices and ushering in the era of remote work. Rather than commute, Scarsdale residents were huddled over their computers at home conducting Zoom rather than in person meetings.

Demand for the parking spaces fell precipitously and so did revenue for the Village.

In the intervening years, the Village has spent millions to shore up the unsightly structure and maintain the elevator in order to keep it safe for current customers. Recognizing that the site offers opportunities to revitalize downtown and provide additional housing, the Scarsdale Forum’s Downtown Revitalization and Municipal Service Committee has been studying the site and is asking the Board of Trustees to re-open the discussion.

At a work session of the Village Trustees on Tuesday September 30, 2025, Mayor Justin Arest raised the matter. He said, “Is it the right time to discuss what redevelopment could look like and examine what has changed? The school administration is willing to collaborate. They are willing to be a partner to understand the differences could mean for the school population.”

Seth Ross
Former Village Trustee Seth Ross, who is a member of the Scarsdale Forum committee said, “It is obvious that the site should be developed. It is under-utilized, it is unattractive and we could create housing for a better functioning downtown.”

He explained the work of the committee. “After the pandemic I thought it was important that we take the temperature of the community. We don’t need as much commuter parking as we did before COVID. There are 700 parkin g spaces – and the assumption was that they all needed to be replaced. The developers proposed large projects to accommodate this much parking. A smaller, less objectionable development might be possible.”

Trustee Ken Mazer asked, “Do you think this change in the need for parking is permanent?” Ross replied, “This needs to be studied.”

Rob Lawson said, “We are talking about three parking lots, each with different owners and circumstances. Don’t look at the site as one spot with 700 spots.”

Trustee David Goldschmidt asked, “Were there traffic studies done to assess the impact of the development?” Ross said, “There was never a specific development proposal to evaluate.”

Mayor Arest said, “The SQRA process would need to be done – and that would include parking. We should take advantage of the information we gathered in the past. We are not going back to 2020 – it would be a re-start. There would be a new process.”

He explained that the site had been under review since 1984 and said, “I think it way past time to act on this. Additional retail and restaurants are needed. I don’t think the garage is a good use of Village land or priorities. Many generations have wanted the Village to do something with that site. We should approach this with enthusiasm and excitement. Parking and traffic flow will need to be discussed but I think we should move forward with this.”

Commenting from the public Phyllis Perkins, a 52-year resident of Scarsdale and wife of architect Brad Perkins said, “Freightway was hated even when we moved here. In 1979 the first proposal came to paint it. Countless hours and great expertise went into every one of these iterations – which were each allowed to die and not built upon.”

Perkins warned, “Until you can figure out how to design a rational process that is not going to be hijacked by self-interest groups, you will not get anything done either…. You need people who have worked on this kind of project. You’re going to have to sell yourself. You need a plan on how to manage this project. Spend some time coming up with a process and then talk to people. “

Trustee Jeremy Gans said, “It is a community asset. We need to hear from the community and then move forward.”

Rachel Arenstein of 1 Rectory Lane said, “I also grew up here. In the last iteration the commentary became unhinged from those who did not understand the process. A small vocal minority was making things up and hijacked a sensible process.”

Arenstein continued, “I work in preservation. At this point we are preserving an unsightly garage. Sensible urban planning and project management can make Scarsdale better. What we are preserving at the moment does not serve us.”

At the conclusion of the meeting, Mayor Arest said, “There is consensus to have additional conversations.”