Cortlandt greenlights development projects

Courtyard by Marriott, Aldi’s Grocer and Ashley Furniture coming to busy Route 6 corridor

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Site of a Courtyard by Marriott on Main Street in Cortlandt

By Steve Pavlopoulos

A massive influx of new people in 2021 amounted to ten percent of residences turning over to first time homeowners with young families in Cortlandt. “It’s exciting to have them in the community,” said Supervisor Dr. Richard Becker who has good reason to be optimistic about the current state of development in the Town.  

“Cortlandt is exploding. It’s one of the largest towns in Westchester County at 50 square miles and a population of almost 50,000. We have an educated and diverse workforce and we’re one of the few communities considered semi-rural, yet many of our residents commute.”

At the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce Networking Breakfast at Cortlandt Town Hall on April 6th, the town’s economic development department unveiled a video presentation they commissioned to highlight the developments in the works throughout the town of Cortlandt.

The former Big Lots soon to be an Aldi’s grocery store.  (Photos by Regina Clarkin)

There are currently four areas of development that are considered the economic base of Cortlandt. They are defined as, the medical oriented district (MOD) that is located across from from NY Presbyterian on Crompond Road, the transit area by the Cortlandt train station and the Town of Cortlandt Youth & Recreation Center, the Quarry riverfront area in Verplank, and Cortlandt Crossing on Route 6. By rezoning areas and eliminating the “change of use” language on business permitting, the town is making a concerted effort to court new businesses.  

Several developments have been already announced and proposals from interested parties have been rolling in for other projects. With an Aldi coming into the former Big Lots location on Route 6, Ashley Furniture taking over the Modell’s space in Cortlandt Town Center, locals can look forward to new shopping and eating options as the Town continues to land incoming establishments. And Jersey Mike’s is slated for the space between Verizon and Buff City in Cortlandt Crossing. All three establishments are moving forward with permits and leases and are expected to occupy sometime this year according to Becker. 

The former Modell’s Sporting Goods in the Cortlandt Town Center will be an Ashley Furniture store.

A Courtyard by Marriott has received the green light for the property along Jacob’s Hill Road and should reak ground in the next couple of months. Construction will most likely take two years.  A Gasland is under construction across the street. Gasland has been footing the bill for  new traffic signals at that intersection. This is another upgrade to the Route 6 corridor which is preparing for a major repaving with new modernized sidewalks, crosswalks, and adaptive traffic lights from Conklin Avenue on the Peekskill border to the Yorktown border at Lexington. This DOT project will help alleviate traffic issues along that stretch in the Cortlandt Crossing, Cortlandt Town Center shopping district.

Gasland under construction on East Main Street at the Bear Mt. Parkway entrance on Rt. 6.

“Dr. Becker and the town planners are working on infrastructure to support all the development and all four strategic areas have so much potential,” said George Oros, the town’s economic development consultant. “Once infrastructure is in place (with sewer lines being the biggest issue in terms of cost and scope of work) over the next two to three years, things will start to open up.” 

The Quarry section in Verplanck has three interested businesses and the goal is to create something that would support all of them under one roof. One proposal is for apartments, another for a public arts center, and the other would host a food hall with assorted restaurants. Currently, an indoor and outdoor soccer and lacrosse facility is in the works with certain hours being made available for the town to use free of charge. There are also plans to create an entrance way so the traffic in Verplanck wouldn’t be impacted.

The MOD was adopted at a town board meeting in March and the goal is to create a critical mass around the hospital with state of art medical offices. The town is working with a couple of interested parties and this development would ultimately include installing a traffic signal on 202 at Dayton Lane to improve the flow in that area. With each development comes the potential for improvements to the surrounding roadways which all work toward creating a better quality of life.

Through the pandemic, while many municipalities lost businesses that struggled to stay open, Cortlandt maintained about 90 percent occupancy and brick and mortar establishments stayed occupied, weathering the slowdown. 

Oros has been working with the town to attract new, quality merchants to the community. The town planning board is fast-tracking development and maintaining a pro-business approach in an effort to keep the town vibrant. Dr. Becker appreciates the need for something new in the face of the inevitable changes to the town’s economy caused by the loss of Indian Point and the tax abatement it provided for so long. 

“We like to use the tagline, ‘Cortlandt where life works,’” he said referring to the branding the Town adopted about 18 months ago. ”Whether you work from home, or in the community, you have the opportunity to thrive,” said Becker.