Work Session, Planning Board Meetings Held in Bronxville Village Hall

By Stephen E. Lipken

Bronxville Mayor Mary C. Marvin held a Work Session on January 11, 2023. First item on the Agenda was safety crosswalks on Route 22.  “We are sending a letter to the community about the crosswalk issue, a survey, one per household,” Marvin stated.  Village Administrator James Palmer noted that the questions will be linked by email to a Facebook page; name of the participant is not required.

One crossing being considered is Pondfield and NY 22; another, Tanglewylde and NY 22.  

There is already a pedestrian crossing on White Plains Road, outside the Bronxville Iona University Campus. Palmer added that White Plains Road is owned by New York State and has a non-conforming blinking light signal from the main campus.

Other crossings addressed were Northway across NY 22, upgrading the intersection of Midland Avenue and Pondfield Road by narrowing crosswalks, brightening paint and improving signalization, as well as tweaking Westside Circle improvements for safe passage of pedestrians and cars.  

Marvin also mentioned that a Resolution is being considered to lower the speed limit on all streets to 25 mph; Route 22, a State Road remains at 30 mph.

The next topic concerned trees and landscaping, including the issue of hedges on Village Property.  Trustee William Fredericks remarked that although there are plenty of existing sidewalks, projecting shrubbery sometimes forces people onto the street.  Any tree overhanging a sidewalk shall be eight feet above it and trees overhanging the street, 13 feet.  

Palmer went on to say that a dying infected tree with branches over a sidewalk shall be taken down and the owner charged.  Marvin averred that a neighbor cutting down unauthorized trees could cause flooding and wind tunnels on the adjacent property.

Addressing outdoor dining, Marvin averred that a consulting firm, Street Plans has been engaged to review outdoor dining issues including the amount of garbage generated, noise, adherence to fire codes, traffic safety and loss of parking spaces for customers of non-restaurant establishments. Sidewalk dining is available on Park Place, making it one-way. Outdoor dining will be allowed from April 15th until November 20th.

The Work Session was followed by a Planning Board meeting, in which Alloy Design Studio Principal Chris Tramutola, architect discussed re-grading the Crescent Road leading to the Bronxville Iona University Campus entrance.  

The site is currently a flat drive with 4 steps to enter the building.  The proposed plan will gently slope the drive and sidewalks, eliminate the steps and allow flush access into the building. 

Along with the minor change in elevation, the existing plaza will be repaved with a decorative paver and a short seat wall will be added at the end of the plaza. The seat will have bronze lettering signage displaying “Iona University” on the side facing Route 22.

Coffin signs are located at the north and south ends of the campus along route 22 and have Iona lettering on them.  They are referred to as coffin signs as they are low and have similar shape and length of a coffin.