Waterfront Land Uses The Hudson River stretches the length of the Village’s western perimeter. Although historically used for mostly industrial and railrelated purposes, the land along the riverfront today is primarily characterized as residential, recreational, and vacant. The major land uses are described as follows: Croton Point Park, at the south end of the waterfront, is a 504-acre Westchester County park, located on a peninsula that juts out into the Hudson River. Road access is provided by Croton Point Avenue, which connects to Routes 9 and 9A. The park offers a range of amenities including camping, fishing, hiking, picnicking and play areas (see parks and recreation section). Southeast of the park, at the mouth of the Croton River, is the Croton Bay Boat Launch, which is used primarily for canoes and kayaks and other small boats, as well as fishing and passive recreation. North of Croton Point Park is the Half Moon Bay condominium complex, which consists of 120 residential units in 18 buildings, plus a clubhouse, a common building, and pedestrian trails. A public walkway, restricted to Croton-on-Hudson residents, stretches the length of the development along the riverfront. Completion of Half Moon Bay over the next two years will add 156 new units on 14 acres on the eastern portion of the site. Additional pedestrian trails, open to the general public, are planned for the final phases of the project, to connect Croton Point Park to Senasqua Park to the north. Adjoining Half Moon Bay are Senasqua Park, the Croton Sailing School and the Croton Yacht Club. Senasqua Park is a 4.5-acre Village-owned park providing on-land recreational facilities, boat storage and mooring slips. Croton Sailing School and the Yacht Club are privately-owned businesses on Village-owned land. The Croton Yacht Club includes a modular building, a parking area, and several floating docks with slips for boats. These three sites make up the active recreational core of Croton’s Hudson riverfront. Vehicular access to the sites is provided by either an at-grade crossing over the railroad tracks at Brook Street or through the onelane tunnel at the western end of Municipal Place. Pedestrians can access the park through the tunnel or via a pedestrian overpass at Brook Street. PAGE 68 CROTON COMPREHENSIVE PLAN Village Parcel (Seprieo Property). The Village purchased this property in 1996 with funding from the Open Space Institute and the Lila Acheson and DeWitt Wallace Fund. Of the property’s 30 acres, 14.3 are on land, the remaining acres are under water. The property is a narrow strip of land between the Hudson River and the Metro-North railroad tracks, beginning just north of the Croton Yacht Club. The 13.4 acres (both land and water) at the south end of the site have been the focus of recent planning studies for recreational options. The north end of the Village Parcel, known as the Beaverkill Parcel, is a much narrower, 16.6-acre land parcel (both land and water) consisting of a breakwater, a small protected cove, and a beach area used for passive recreation and to launch small boats. The existing breakwater within this area creates the cove. An agreement between the Village and the Beaverkill Conservancy mandates that the Village must maintain the Beaverkill Parcel as a natural area for passive recreational uses that enhance waterfront access. Recent Planning Efforts Greenway Vision Plan In 1996, the Village appointed a Greenway Committee to evaluate Croton-on-Hudson’s role in the development of the Hudson River Valley Greenway. The Hudson River Greenway Act, passed in 1991, established a program for municipalities to develop a network of trails, parks, historic and cultural sites along the Hudson River. Croton-on-Hudson and Ossining submitted a joint application as Model Greenway Communities to receive financial assistance in the planning process. This planning process began in early 1996 with an inventory of existing conditions along the entire Croton-on-Hudson waterfront and the identification of possible waterfront development scenarios. The Village’s consultants, the firm of Imbiano Quigley Landscape Architects, and Allee King Rosen & Fleming (AKRF), prepared the inventory in close consultation with the Greenway Committee as well as with the Recreation Advisory Board, the Conservation Advisory Council, and the Waterfront Advisory Committee. The result of this study was the Greenway Vision Plan, completed in 1997, which reviewed potential uses and improvements to waterfront lands, and made recommendations concerning land use strategies for specific waterfront areas. Land use and design recommendations for the waterfront included such elements as: designing the entrance to Half Moon Bay as a two-lane road with an adjacent sidewalk, signage, a boulevard PAGE 69 CROTON COMPREHENSIVE PLAN treatment and trees; buffering adjacent railroad facilities with solid screen and plantings; rehabilitating the “picture tunnel” for pedestrian access; creating a ferry dock and terminal; and restoring Senasqua Park as an active recreational facility. Several development schemes for the Village Parcel were reviewed,