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Posted on March 13, 2019 by John Bailey

WPCNR SOUTHEND TIMES. By John F. Bailey. March 13, 2019:

Promising his audience at the Council of Neighborhood Associations he would “give you all the answers,” Robert Weisz did just that last night

As he began his presentation on his “The Flats” apartments now in public hearings before the White  Plains Common Council, before he’d even spoken two sentences, murmurs and raised voices from the circle of CNA representatives rose in clamor, before they were admonished by CNA President telling them to hold their questions until after Mr. Weisz had finished, calming the crowd for the duration of the meeting.

MR. WEISS EXPLAINING HOW HE WILL HANDLE ACCESS TO RIDGEWAY CONCERNS. WPCNR VIDEO

By meeting’s end,  Mr. Weisz had won them over.

His patient, clear, unruffled answers and refreshing sincerity of style had  appeared to have given most of the concerned satisfactory answers to their concerns and support of the project from most of the delegates. His passion as an owner was contagious to the crowd. He showed the audience he  cared about being a good neighbor, saying,

“We have micromanaged this project. We don’t want to be a nuisance to anyone. We have tried very hard to do the right thing.”

Concerns of those at the Council raised centered on the heights of the 5-story apartments; whether  paths leading into the Ridgeway neighborhood would be closed off from the 1133 complex to prevent access by pedestrian/trespassers; lighting from the complex and ability of the redesigned parking lot at 1133 would handle all the cars of 303 apartment dwellers and 1133 business tenants. Significantly, no traffic concerns or situations appeared an issue.

 Saying he intended to build 250 additional parking slots for a total of 1,250 and redesigning the parking configuration with narrower parking slots, a traffic circle, landscaping, he eased parking capacity fear. He announced a daily shuttle service to take residents and workers to and from the White Plains Metro North Station and the the 1133 complex at various times during the day. He said he is working on designing an evergreen copse of trees to shield the Ridgeway and North Street areas from the compled during the winter when existing trees were devoid of leaves. 

He assured them the 5-story apartments (to be erected on the Westchester Avenue/Maple Moor Golf Course side of the property) would be built on a 10-foot lower grade slope than the existing 1133 building assuring the tops of the solar-paneled rooftops would not be visible over the top of the 1133 office roof.

Weisz disclosed that his outreach to firms  who were tenants at 1133 and looking for office space, had indicated, that they were interested in renting apartments as corporate suites for use by their companies, and apartments for their workers if they were to take space at the 1133 office complex, which currently is 90% rented, Weisz said.

He said the complex already is a natural gas customer of Con Edision, so it was not affected by the Con Edision moratorium on new natural gas connections after March 15. He also said that his existing building already had interrupted service installed, allowing them to use oil fuel in event of an excessive demand for natural gas.,

The new apartments with the name “The Flats” is to contain 170 one-bedroom apartments, 120 two bedroom apartments, and 10 three-bedroom apartments.

He anticipated getting approval by mid-summer, starting the project before winter (“We’re ready to go,” he said, and opening the project sometime in 2021.

Weiss commented his meeting Monday evening with the Ridgeway Association went well, too. He described a meeting where most of the participants were positive to the project at the close.

Weisz, answering a question of the CNA President about why White Plains appealed to him and the future of city zoning proposal allowing residential apartments in White Plains office parks in the city Here was his answer:

WEISZ ON IMPACT OF RESIDENCES IN WP OFFICE PARKSS