A new real estate report authored by RM Friedland reveals the explosive growth of housing in Westchester County since 2021, with about 12,500 new residential units delivered and another 15,000 units under construction.
Representatives from RM Friedland delivered their findings on January 14 in White Plains at the Business Council of Westchester’s and the Fordham Real Estate Institute’s annual real estate development conference.
“The amount of residential development that has occurred in Westchester County in recent years is unprecedented,” said BCW president and CEO Marsha Gordon. “The report explores the impact of this development on the local economy and the countywide school system.”
RM Friedland president Sarah Jones-Maturo said that Westchester County is responding to the national housing shortage head-on.
“We believe Westchester serves as a microcosm for the nation, demonstrating how strategic planning, innovative policies and balanced development can create thriving communities,” said Jones-Maturo.
One of the report’s surprising findings is that Westchester County’s new construction has not overcrowded schools. Westchester cities experiencing the most substantial new development activity, such as New Rochelle and Yonkers, have seen a notable decline in their overall student populations between 2018 and 2023. This trend challenges the commonly held assumption that increased residential development leads directly to overcrowded schools.
“The impact of these developments on the schools is minimal at this point,” said David Cortez, CEO of Foretold Predictive Analytics, one of the keynote speakers. “I often hear from other people in the community, particularly homeowners, saying our schools are going to become overcrowded. That’s not the case at all.”
The report noted that New Rochelle has emerged as the clear leader in development within Westchester County, with more than 6,145 residential units currently under construction. This rapid growth is due to the city’s strategic investments, its emphasis on transit-oriented projects, and the transformative impact of its Master Development Plan.
The report also pointed to Yonkers, whose key strength is the scale of its development potential, particularly as its downtown area expands further into Getty Square. This expansion is expected to unlock massive opportunities for mixed-use and residential projects.
John Barrett, co-managing director at RM Friedland, explained that the report does not include proposed housing units that are still under review for approval.
“As a company, we are tracking another 10,000 units that are not under construction yet, but they are appearing before boards, or the ideas have been floated with local municipalities. This is unprecedented for Westchester County,” said Barrett.
The BCW-Fordham event featured two dynamic panels with members of the community that brought a tremendous diversity of perspective. The panels were moderated by Dr. Joshua Harris, executive director of the Fordham Real Estate Institute, addressing RM Friedland’s findings.
The first panel: A Reality Check: The Impact of New Development included luxury and affordable housing developers and government officials with opposing views.
Kenneth Morrison, managing member of Lemor Development, an affordable housing developer with proposed projects in Yonkers, reflected upon the challenges of building affordable housing. “Our 80-20 is 80 percent affordable and 20 percent market rate, so the uniqueness about that is that it is extremely expensive to build that kind of housing. This project that we’re working on in Yonkers would be 166 units…. Interest rates went up over the last 12 months, turning a project that was feasible into a project that has a tremendous gap…. The issue that we have is trying to plug that gap without having to raise the rents.”
Peter Chavkin, managing partner of Biddle Real Estate Ventures, a luxury housing developer that is best known in Westchester as one of the developers of Edge on Hudson in Sleepy Hollow, spoke of his success at the project. “In our condominium product called the Daymark, the first waterfront condominium project in the Edge on Hudson community (Sleepy Hollow), we have about eight months left on construction. We’ve sold 70 of the 100 units already. That’s about two and a half times faster than we would have expected.”
Mayor Yadira Ramos-Herbert provided further details on the status of new development in New Rochelle. “The model that my predecessors on the City Council experimented with is working. We have 11,000 units approved within a nine-year period, which is remarkable…. It’s the opportunity to really reimagine your city, and so we’re entering phase two of New Rochelle’s renaissance, which is investment in that downtown and activating the first floors.”
Mayor Mary Marvin expressed some concern about the impact of new development on the Village of Bronxville: “We’re an outlier on the school issue…. We have 35 children that joined the last week of August. (The superintendent) had to add a sixth second grade, which took away the art room at the Bronxville schools, so now they have what they call ‘art on a cart.’ The current taxpayers are not thrilled about what happened to the art room.”
The second panel featured representatives that support the infrastructure of our county. Leaders from the sectors of early childcare, energy/sustainability, healthcare and education were all represented. The panel was titled: The Development Surge: Community Opportunities and Challenges Faced.
Noam Bramson, acting in his role as Executive Director of Sustainable Westchester, urged consideration of the environment when discussing new development and touted Westchester’s success. “A zero-growth philosophy is completely unrealistic and undesirable from a wide spectrum of considerations. The better way to look at it is to say we are going to grow. We should grow, but how do we want to grow? The sort of development that we’re all talking about is entirely consistent environmental values and climate action because it’s concentrated in areas that are walkable and that have access to mass transit.”
Dr. Joseph Ricca, superintendent of the White Plains public schools, asked that developers work collaboratively with school administrators to ensure a healthy community. “With all the challenges, one of the things that we benefit from is a strong community. Even what we’re doing right now, collaborating, and talking about how we can work together. I’ve had the privilege of working with Mayor (Tom) Roach for the last eight years in partnership with the Common Council and talking about smart choices that we can collaborate on for the benefit of the city and the children. That’s what’s attractive, the commitment to community throughout Westchester County.”
Mark Mathias, Lightbridge Academy/The Barley House, expressed further concern about the environment and how that may affect his clients with young children. “I love the idea of emboldening the downtown areas of our Westchester communities…. I’m a big proponent of it, but I do share the concerns about impervious surface areas, the flooding issues that we’ve had in Westchester. Traffic is always an issue in every town we’re in.”
Tina Macica, AVP of design and construction, Department of Facilities & Real Estate at Montefiore Health System, provided insight into how her health system is addressing Westchester’s growing population. “From a broader picture, how do we serve the growing need? A lot of it is going to be staff. As everybody knows, we have a huge doctor and nursing shortage right now, so really being able to deliver facilities and providers to meet these growing communities is very important.”
Marsha Gordon said in closing: “As the report mentions, the collective efforts of all parties involved in Westchester County’s development projects offer valuable lessons for regions grappling with housing shortages. By harmonizing development with community needs, the county has created a sustainable model for growth that fosters economic resilience, preserves quality of life, and positions itself as a beacon for modern urban and suburban planning.”
