Author: Neil D

You now have one more week to provide comments on the 2023 Comprehensive Plan. The Village has extended the deadline to Tuesday, March 28. Please send your comments (or questions) to contact@planvom.org.

The latest draft of the Village of Mamaroneck’s 2023 Comprehensive Plan is now available for public review and feedback (click here to download). This draft updates the prior version that was published in November 2020.

Please submit comments (and/or questions) to contact@planvom.org by Tuesday, March 21. You may comment on a single chapter of interest or on multiple chapters.

Once the comment period is over, the next steps will be to review the comments and then prepare a final version of the 2023 Comprehensive Plan for adoption at a public hearing anticipated for the end of April.

The following is a brief, chapter-by-chapter explanation of what’s new and/or noteworthy in this latest draft:

(1) INTRODUCTION. The various trends (e.g., demographic, economic, technological, etc.) have been updated to reflect the pre- and post-pandemic worlds and significant Federal, State, and County policies, regulations, and funding streams that have been unveiled since the pandemic are identified. This chapter also includes a map of the Village’s latest Capital Plan that identifies physical infrastructure projects related to the priority topics. These include projects related to stormwater and drainage; culverts, bridges, and reservoirs; and pedestrian and sidewalk improvements.

(2) VILLAGE VOICES. This chapter has been updated with a brief summary of the results of the Community Survey (for a separate, detailed analysis of the survey results, click here). This chapter also showcases the 2023-2033 Statement of Goals & Objectives.

(3) DATA SNAPSHOTS. Most of the data in this chapter about the Village has been updated to reflect the 2020 U.S. Census.

(4A) LAND USE & DEVELOPMENT. This is the main land use and development chapter. It has been reorganized to better explain the “character districts” concept, which is a way to analyze the Village’s corridors (Mamaroneck Avenue, E Post Road, W Post Road, and Halstead Avenue) in distinct, smaller parts. The other significant change in this chapter are the recommendations, which include ones pertaining to a comprehensive zoning update and affordable housing.

(4B) LAND USE & DEVELOPMENT – RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS. The content in this chapter has been streamlined. Discussion has been added on trends such as short-term rentals.

(4C) LAND USE & DEVELOPMENT – HISTORIC PRESERVATION. The content in this chapter has not changed.

(5) ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, OPEN SPACE & RESILIENCE. The most significant changes to this chapter are in the recommendations pertaining to flood mitigation.

(6) TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS. The content of this chapter has been updated to reflect progress in improving pedestrian safety at specific locations in the Village over the past several years. The trends and recommendations have also been updated.

(7) ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY. The content in this chapter been updated to reflect progress in various environmental initiatives over the past several years. The recommendations have also been updated.

(8) MUNICIPAL, PARKS & RECREATION, AND CULTURAL FACILITIES. The table of all of the Village’s parks and recreation facilities, which includes a list of planned and desired improvements for each one, has been moved to the Appendix. The recommendations have also been updated.

Thank you to the 850 people who completed the Village of Mamaroneck’s Comprehensive Plan Community Survey! Click here to download a presentation summarizing the results.

The current Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 2012. The process to update the plan started in 2018 and included two public workshops and public review of two drafts of an updated Comprehensive Plan. Due to the major events and changes that have taken place since then, including the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Ida, the Community Survey was launched to reconnect with Village residents about their opinions about the Village today and into the future. The purpose of the survey is to learn how sentiments may have changed, whether any priorities have shifted, if any existing issues have improved or worsened, or if any new issues have emerged.

Many of the questions allowed for open-ended comments. More than 900 comments were submitted. To see all of the comments organized by question, click on the following links: English Survey | Spanish Survey

What is working well in the Village? What needs to be improved? What should be the highest priorities?

The Village is preparing an update of its Comprehensive Plan, a guidance document that sets the goals, policies, and priorities for investing in the physical, social, economic, and environmental future of the community.

Take this short, five-minute survey to share your opinions about the Village today and into the future.

The Village is pleased to announce that it is resuming the process of updating its Comprehensive Plan. The update process started several years ago and was nearly completed in 2020, the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Comprehensive Plan sets forth goals, priorities, policies, and recommendations for programmatic and physical investments in many aspects of the Village for the next five years and beyond. The Village’s existing Comprehensive Plan was adopted in 2012.

The latest draft of the Comprehensive Plan was produced in November 2020 (click link to open and download the PDF). The content in this draft incorporated two rounds of review and comment by Village Boards and Committees and the public. However, the draft was never posted for a final round of review and never adopted. The draft includes some emerging demographic trends and strategies for adapting to the pandemic, but at the time of writing it was still too early to see how things would play out.

Clearly, the pandemic has changed the way we live and work, has reshaped how governments and businesses operate, and has caused major demographic, economic, and social shifts. It has also aggravated ongoing challenges, one of the most difficult for many individuals and families across the country being the steep increase in housing costs. Of course, the pandemic hasn’t been the only agent of change:

• The death of George Floyd at the hands of police turned the country’s attention toward remedying the inequitable treatment of Black citizens, other people of color, and people with low incomes.
• For the region and, especially, the Village, the landfall of Hurricane Ida last year made very clear that flooding threatens the existence of Mamaroneck. Decades in the making, the Army Corps of Engineer’s plans for the Mamaroneck and Sheldrake Rivers are finally proceeding into design and engineering. However, these plans are not a panacea; the Village has to build on the work that takes place through this project to further protect the Village from floods.
• The U.S. Census Bureau undertook a nationwide census. Examining demographic, social, economic, and housing data trends is important for any community planning for its future, and so the figures in the November 2020 draft will be updated with the latest available data.
• The Russian invasion of Ukraine has contributed to major cost increases in gasoline and contributed to an already tight supply chain. The resulting price increases have hit home.

Clearly, the pandemic has changed the way we live and work, has reshaped how governments and businesses operate, and has caused major demographic, economic, and social shifts.

Over the next several months, working in conjunction with various Village Boards and Committees, the structure and content of the November 2020 draft will be updated. We anticipate that a revised draft will be produced in September or October and posted for public review and comment.

You are welcome to provide comments, suggestions, and opinions on any section of the November 2020 draft and to share ideas for the next draft by e-mailing contact@planvom.org. However, note that much of the content of this draft is outdated.

Click here to download and view a PDF of the November 2020 draft of the Village’s Comprehensive Plan Update. Note that the red typeface in the document represents content that was modified or added based on comments received from the public and/or Village Boards and Committees on a previous draft.

To view the Project Schedules, click here.