Airmont residents push back on new development propsal

Story By: Kathy Kahn

Har Shalom, a new orthodox cemetery for 10,000 gravesites and a mikvah for ritual bathing/gatherings being built on Hillside Avenue, may soon be joined by a three-story “house of worship” with an under- and above-ground parking garage, its flat roof slated for use as an outdoor gathering place for reli gious holidays and other festivities.

The 17,000 square foot edifi ce would have an elaborate façade that will tower over nearby homes along Hillside Avenueand its adjoining roadway, Saddle River Road—a two-way
street too narrow for on-street parking. Residents have raised concerns that the new construction could cause further large scale traffic jams on a residential road that has already seen long term gridlock during periods of heightened attendance at the cemetery.

In August of 2023 the Village of Chestnut Ridge filled a compliant against the Har Shalom after a burial service ceremony for Rachmastrivka Rabbi Harav Chai Yitzchok Twersky caused such congestion. Residents found themselves trapped in their driveways for hours or stuck in bumper to bumper traffic as thousands of mourners were estimated to be in attendance.

At its planning board meeting on Thursday evening, June 27, Airmont’s board members poured over the plans and specifi cations for the proposed “house of worship,” that could be added to the site. The property’s existing farmhouse, which has been used a gathering place for young Hasidic men, has been visited by the Ramapo police, as well as the Rockland County Board of Health and the village of Airmont building inspector, in response to complaints from neighbors and alleged code violations.

The property owner of record, Aaron Israel, is asking for a half-dozen variances from the Village of Airmont so the project can move forward, despite the Rockland County PlanningDepartment and its Highway Department raising objections to
the proposals.

Danielle Meehan, a member of Citizens United to Protect our Neighborhoods (CUPON), told planners the structure “is enormous and completely changes the look of the look of the
community…it is right next to the Saddle River, which is part of Bergen County’s aquifer. There have been numerous prob- lems with this property…I really think this project needs to be downsized when you consider how deep this project needs to
be built underground—right next to a river that is a drinking source… ‘forever chemicals’ that will be used to deal with run-off and pre- treatment. Once they get into the water, it’s gone.”

The property, once a farm that had a small petting zoo, is now a gathering place for troubled young men, who have been witnessed throwing garbage in the street along Saddle River Road and who have been found passed out on nearby properties. Chestnut Hill resident Bob Godwin, whose home on Saddle River Road is plagued by excessive noise and garbage created by the existing “house of worship” for wayward youth, brought a fistful of single use plastic shopping bags that end up littering his front yard on a regular basis.

“These bags are illegal in New York State, does anyone pay attention to any of our laws?” Godwin asked the Planning Board.

The lifelong resident has documented the issues, saying that despite contacting the Village’s building inspector and the Department of Health several times, “nothing has changed since 2017.”
The public outcry over the new yeshiva planned for Hillside Avenue is just one of the village’s woes. The NYS Comptrol ler’s offi ce recent audit found more than thirty claims paid by the Village of Airmont Board of Trustees in 2023 were never audited and noted a lack of compliance in general from the village.

Airmont planners will resume the public hearing on Two Hillside Avenue on Thursday evening, August 22, at 7:00pm.