Public Hearing on Reckson Ice Rink Tuesday

  Members of the public are invited to voice their opinions on the Reckson ice rink proposal at a Rye Brook Village public hearing on May 28. Reckson Operating Partnership, L.P.’s proposal is to build a 140,000 square-foot four-rink ice facility at its location at 1100 King Street.

Rye Brook and Greenwich residents opposed to the proposal have spent hours speaking against it at the first two public hearings this year and have sent letters and emails to public officials and Patch to voice their opinions. The biggest concern, which is shared by village officials, is that the rink will bring a traffic nightmare to King Street and the surrounding areas. Other concerns are that the rink will affect the quality of life in the village, bring noisy patrons to a quiet residential area, cause problems with air traffic control at the Westchester County airport and other safety issues. Supporters say those fears are overblown and that the rink would bring an economic benefit to the area and provide children with a positive activity.

The Home Owners Associations of Doral Greens, Belle Fair and three Greenwich housing developments that surround the site are all opposed, according to a speaker at the last public hearing. 

Since the last hearing in April, the village has received an updated traffic study from Reckson that their consultants are analyzing, according to an article in the Westmore News. Rye Brook Mayor Paul Rosenberg confirmed that the original traffic study was conducted on days when two schools in Greenwich were on vacation, which would have skewed the true numbers, as residents have complained, according to Jannane Abel’s article. Since then, the new traffic study has been submitted.

Another concern that residents have expressed is that the Village has started to create a comprehensive plan. Some say that any consideration of such a large proposal should be delayed until the plan is complete. Rosenberg told Abel that they are legally obligated to hear the proposal and the comprehensive plan is a 16- month process that started after Reckson submitted its proposal. The board will not be voting on the proposal next Tuesday, but continuing to hear concerns and comments from the public.

 During the April hearing, Rosenberg reiterated a point made by former Mayor Joan Feinstein that Reckson would not be under a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) agreement. During the first hearing, Feinstein and Null clarified that Reckson would be paying about $241,000 in taxes per year, based on a vacant land assessment of $12.5 million; about 65 % of that, $160,000, would go to the Blind Brook school district.

Also at that meeting, the village attorney explained that the village board is the lead agency in the SEQRA (State Environmental Quality Review Act) process. This means the board will consider the project and decide if it would have a potential positive or negative impact on the environment. Read more about the last public hearing here.

The third public hearing will be held at 7:30 p.m. at Rye Brook Village Hall, 938 King Street, Rye Brook.