WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE-EXAMINER. July 9, 2007 UPDATED JULY 10, 2007 (EDITED): Jim Benerofe informs WPCNR that the long-examined North Street Community project to build senior assisted living condominium complex on the former St. Agnes Hospital campus was approved by the Common Council after two and a half years of analysis, 6-1, with Dennis Power the lone councilman opposed. The council also approved the new subdivision fees in a resolution.

The North Street Community Plan for the St. Agnes Property Approved Monday Night.

A news release from North Street Community  reports  construction is expected to get underway this fall at the 23-acre, former St. Agnes Hospital property on North Street. The new community will offer independent living condominium units as well as an extensive array of facilities and services for residents 60 years of age and over. The plan had been under review by the Common Council for more than two years since C.J. Follini and Andrew Greene, Managing Members of the developer - North Street Community LLC -  targeted the 23-acre, former St. Agnes Hospital property on North Street  in a foreclosure proceeding by the NYS Dormitory Authority in June of 2004.

Alfred Caiola, also of North Street Community LLC, said:  “We are very happy to at last be able to begin the adaptive re-use development on these campus-like grounds. A great deal of time and effort have gone into developing what we believe is a genuinely creative and attractive plan.”

He added, “Clearly, there is a very strong need for this first senior living community in White Plains where the senior population is growing significantly. When we complete construction in about two years, it is estimated that about 15% of the city’s population will be over the age of 65, so the timing is perfect.”

Individuals who are interested in having their names placed on a priority waiting list for possible purchase of units should call 914-328-2800 or send e-mail to info@northstreetwp.com. Those on the list will be given first priority in being notified after an offering plan has been approved by the New York State Attorney General’s office. Based on unsolicited phone calls and e-mails received to date, developers expect a strong demand from the public. 

The community will consist of 335 condominium units located in four new structures (ranging from 4 to 6 stories), 92 assisted living units and about 20 Alzheimer’s units. Six percent of the units will be affordably priced based on the city’s affordable housing guidelines.

North Street Community will also feature a 2-story club building which will be the social center of the community and nestled in the center between the four residential buildings. The 28,000-square-foot facility will offer residents a range of social activities and amenities including a wellness center with whirlpool and lap pool designed to support water aerobics, a spa, an exercise fitness area and a variety of dining venues.

Residents will also have direct access to a wide array of medical practices at the 4-story, 72,000-square-foot Medical Building at 311 North Street that will remain on the property.

The 150,000-square-foot former hospital building at 305 North Street will be adapted to accommodate the assisted living and Alzheimer’s units.

Designed by the New York City-based architectural firm of Perkins Eastman Architects, P.C., North Street Community’s independent living facilities and the grounds have been designed with a wide range of features to meet the needs of active seniors:

Highlights include:

• The 2 bedroom apartments will be spacious (ranging in size from 1,000 square feet to 1,600 square feet)
• There will be extra wide doors and corridors, assistance devices in bathrooms,  emergency pull cords and call system and ADA compliant fixtures
• Terraces are planned for all first floor units
• The residential buildings and parking garage will be serviced with elevators
• Elevator lobbies in the parking garage will be equipped with access readers and security cameras monitored by the concierge
• An enclosed Atrium will connect the residential and Club buildings to facilitate access during inclement weather
• The two-level parking structure — with more than 50% below ground and adapted  to the existing site lines — will provide parking spaces for residents and their guests on the first level
• The grounds will include a variety of public spaces including plazas, terraces and outdoor common areas
• Shuttle service to and from downtown White Plains will be provided for residents

A valet parking service will be available for patients and visitors to the former hospital building housing the assistant living and Alzheimer’s Units as well as the Medical Building. An additional three-level parking structure, also partially underground, will provide parking for physicians and staff working at these two buildings.

There will also be extensive landscaping of the grounds including green walls along the sides of the parking structures and the planting of 675 trees to replace those that will be lost during construction. The developer hopes that its recent efforts to preserve 31 specimen trees on the property — some more than half a century old — will succeed so that they can be replanted and become part of the campus grounds when the senior community opens in 2009.

North Street Community will also incorporate “green” building technologies and practices including “green” roofs to achieve optimal energy efficiencies. The plan will start with the retrofitting of existing buildings and continue throughout all new structures.

A number of other initiatives will be undertaken to protect the environment including using sustainable materials; creating specialized water and retention features such as recycling rain water and grey water for onsite lawn sprinkler systems and recycling existing stone, masonry and structures by demolishing these materials into smaller fragments to be used as foundations for new roads throughout the site. 

The  Children’s Rehabilitation Center and John A. Coleman School — formerly the Carvel Children’s Rehabilitation Center that opened in 1996 — will remain on the property.