MONTVALE, N.J.—Mayor Michael Ghassali reached out to residents Dec. 4 to urge their awareness of a school project in Village of Chestnut Ridge across the borough’s northern border in New York State.
“This project, which would be constructed on property north of the Garden State Parkway between Red Schoolhouse Road and Summit Road, is the first major project of many proposed across the border, and could add several hundred buses on local roadways as they travel from the Parkway and ancillary roads to this proposed school property,” Ghassali said.
“Regrettably, the Village of Chestnut Ridge Planning Board and administration have not reached out to us or shared any information other than what is publicly available on their website,” Ghassali said.
“Typically, it is considered professional courtesy to share with neighboring towns information about major projects and events, especially when it is going to impact the neighboring towns,” he added.
Directing residents to the related public documents, Ghassali said he and the Borough Council, along with borough engineers and attorneys, “are committed to ensuring that there is minimal impact to our town and to our lifestyle.”
He promised, “We will have our own professionals review the relevant documents and raise any concerns, especially concerning traffic, with the Chestnut Ridge Planning Board. We have limited authority as to what is built outside of our town, but we do have authority, along with Bergen County, to regulate traffic flow on our roadways.”
Ghassali said, “We will have a public meeting for Montvale residents to discuss concerns and for the Borough to share its own analysis of the traffic studies and other relevant documents as soon as we have them.”
According to Village of Chestnut Ridge’s website, the construction of two new school facilities along Red Schoolhouse Road (Rockland County Route 41) and Summit Road in the Village of Chestnut Ridge, Town of Ramapo, Rockland County, New York is proposed as part of the Wellington Educational Initiative to provide a campus for the education of Jewish children.
- One school is a girls elementary day school (pre-K through 8th grade) consisting of a building footprint of approximately 31,668 square feet. The other school is a boys high school/college consisting of a building footprint of approximately 20,757 square feet and includes dormitories.
- The girls’ school could eventually have 1,000 students. The boys’ school will be a residential secondary school for up to 400 students.
- The elementary school is located along the northern side of Red Schoolhouse Road with its vehicle access across from the Promenade at Chestnut Ridge.
- The high school/college will have access along the southern side of Summit Road. There will be very limited interaction between the two schools although the schools will coordinate activities to insure that no conflicts arise.
According to an August 2019 traffic impact study that Provident Design Engineering of Hawthorne, New York conducted as part of the proposal, the initiative will yield more traffic.
“Based upon observations, the existing Elementary School consisting of 472 students generates approximately 82 entering vehicles and 56 exiting vehicles during the peak AM hour, and 49 entering vehicles and 71 exiting vehicles during the peak PM Hour,” it says.
“Using the same ratio, a proposed elementary school consisting of 1,000 students would conservatively generate approximately 174 entering vehicles and 119 exiting vehicles during the peak AM hour, and 104 entering vehicles and 150 exiting vehicles during the peak PM hour,” it adds.
“However, a higher percentage will likely utilize the buses, further reducing the amount of traffic,” it says.
“The proposed high school/college will not have daily student traffic as students will live … in the proposed dormitories. The only traffic would be the incoming and departing staff. The conservative estimated trips for the staff are approximately 30 entering vehicles and three exiting vehicles during the peak AM hour, and three entering vehicles and 30 exiting vehicles during the peak PM hour,” the study says.
The Rockland County Highway Department, in its review of the site plan, observed that the development “indicates than an essential component of success… is ensuring the relationship between land use and road/traffic improvements along Red Schoolhouse Road. The RCHD concurs that this relationship shall be integrated into long-range planning efforts in the area including this proposed development.”
It adds in part, “Red Schoolhouse Road is congested during peak hours, resulting in traveler delays. During the most heavily traveled times, traffic can back up from, entrance ramp to beyond Summit Road. To avoid congest, some travelers bypass the county road, causing a burden to the local road system.”
It says, “As the propsosed development is expected to have both project-specific and cumulative traffic impacts in the area, the need to provide road and traffic improvements will become an even higher priority. The applicant shall have to investigate the impact and implement potential road and traffic improvements in the area…”
Charles H. “Skip” Vezzetti, superintendent of highways for Rockland County, told Pascack Press on Dec. 7 that Red Schoolhouse Road is zoned for commercial use—“They’re looking at more sort of commercial development down there”—and his office had given input on issues related to widening it.
He said he was not aware Montvale had informed his office of any local developments that might affect the Village of Chestnut Ridge. “We certainly are open to any input that any of our neighbors would have.”
He directed inquiries related to the state of communications with Montvale officials to Douglas J. Schuetz, acting commissioner of the Rockland County Planning Department. We have left voicemail seeking comment.
Montvale on the grow too
A survey of our land use stories by staff writer Michael Olohan shows that Montvale recently approved a 185-unit apartment complex on seven acres of former Sony property; several hundred apartments and luxury units are planned for the North Market and TriBoro Square off Mercedes Drive; an 80-unit townhouse development is planned for 2 Paragon Drive; and another 157-unit “active-adult” senior complex off of Summit Avenue is seeking a green light at the Planning Board.
Earlier this year, Peter S. Hekemian, senior managing director of S. Hekemian Group, which developed the Shoppes at DePiero Farm, told a business forum that the planned North Market development on Mercedes Drive would add 71,500 square feet of retail to Montvale and bring the Shoppes to 302,500 square feet of retail.
Approximately 300 residential units and 91,000 square feet of office space are planned at North Market.