Carlson's Nursery on Dobbs Ferry Raod won't become a car dealership or warehouse---may become another nursery to delight of residents
On Tuesday September 22nd representatives of Cortlandt Farms (potential future owners) of Carlson’s Nursery, as well as representatives of Carlson’s met with the Town Board, Town staff and residents via Zoom video conference, as part of the Town Board’s work session. A presentation was made by Cortland Farms representatives highlighting their desire to purchase the Nursery, retain and improve the current offerings and staff, and enhance the business with an approximately 4,000-5,000 sq. ft. new farm stand building for the purposes of selling fruit, bread, vegetable and related products year round. Members of the public were present and made comments and asked questions. Those in attendance praised Carlson’s for being a great business in the community over the years and expressed well wishes regarding the prospect for the use to remain for years to come. Residents identified that traffic flow within the site could be improved with updates to the parking layout, and that review of the driveways would be important to ensure safety on a busy Dobbs Ferry Road. Cortland Farm’s Architect, Heike Schneider displayed renderings of the proposed farm-stand building highlighting that a major design component would be to have it blend in nicely with the residential feel of the existing site. Jack Ahearn, from Cortlandt Farms noted that his intent is to retain the greenhouses, residence on the site, and overall feel of the site, as it has existed for decades. The presentation included personal video testimonials from customers of Carlson’s noting how they love the business and hope that it can remain a part of Greenburgh. Commissioner Garrett Duquesne noted that process wise, the nursery use is an existing non-conforming use in the Town’s One Family Residence Districts, and that an expansion to include accessory food sales would require a Zoning Ordinance amendment, potentially via a special permit process, and including amended site plan approval.
I'm thrilled that the property will remain a nursery. In recent years we heard from car dealerships, warehouses. It's great that the character of the community will be maintained with a great use-- a nursery. It's also nice that during the pandemic, when so many businesses are closing down, that this property will continue to serve the community as a nursery. Great news for our town!
LINK TO DISCUSSION:
Here is the link to the Carlson's Nursery Presentation - https://youtu.be/-xrOT9xtCBQ
PAUL FEINER
Greenburgh Town Supervisor