Local Impacts Caused By Major Developments That Abut, Adjoin or are Adjacent to the Town (2000)
Topics: Traffic/Sprawl | Zoning Regulations
Mamaroneck, New York. This ordinance was drafted in response to a huge IKEA furniture store proposed for neighboring New Rochelle that was never approved. “Major development projects in areas that abut../.can result in substantial impacts to the streets and areas that surround them. The ordinance requires any retail project greater than 100,000 s.f. of gross floor area or that involves parking for more than 1,000 vehicles and abuts or is adjacent to a Mamaroneck street, must get a permit from the town Board. The Board shall consider the impact on natural resources, noise, traffic, cultural or aesthetic character,” and the Board must find that the impacts of the project “can be mitigated.” If not, the permit for a project in the abutting town can be denied. Some court cases have upheld right of a town to stop a rezoning for a shopping center on the grounds that it would have a harmful effect on areas outside of the town’s jurisdiction (see University of Wisconsin study.)
