GENERAL ORDINANCE -2026
A GENERAL ORDINANCE AMENDING GENERAL ORDINANCE 4-2000, ALSO KNOWN AS CHAPTER 43 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF YONKERS, COMMONLY KNOWN AS THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF YONKERS AND THE ACCOMPANYING ZONING MAP: A) TO RECLASSIFY AND REZONE CERTAIN PROPERTIES TO D-MX DISTRICT OR UR-HD; B) TO AMEND 43 ATTACHMENT 13 OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE ENTITLED “MAP A: KEY STREETS” TO INCLUDE THE INCLUDE THE REZONED PROPERTIES; C) TO AMEND 43 ATTACHMENT 14 OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE ENTITLED “MAP B: HEIGHT DISTRICT MAP” TO INCLUDE THE INCLUDE THE REZONED PROPERTIES; D) TO AMEND 43 ATTACHMENT 15 OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE ENTITLED “MAP C: ADDITIONAL SIDEWALK WIDTH REQUIREMENT MAP” TO INCLUDE THE INCLUDE THE REZONED PROPERTIES; AND E) TO AMEND 43 ATTACHMENT 16 OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE ENTITLED “MAP D: DISTRICTS” TO INCLUDE THE INCLUDE THE REZONED PROPERTIES.
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The City of Yonkers, in City Council convened, does hereby ordain and enact:
Section 1. Recitals.
(a) The City of Yonkers has long been committed to revitalizing its downtown and surrounding corridors through strategic planning, zoning policy, and targeted infrastructure investment. As the downtown core adjacent to the Metro-North Railroad through Getty Square has experienced continued redevelopment and growth, the City has sought to ensure that adjacent corridors are positioned to support residential development, mixed-use activity, and improved connectivity between neighborhoods and the central business district.
(b) The expansion into five main areas: Fernbrook Park, Buena Vista, St. Casimir, Locust Hill, and Yonkers Avenue Corridor will expand D-MX into areas that already function like downtown and share the physical and market conditions already present in the D-MX. Together, these expansion areas will create a more cohesive downtown by extending D-MX into contiguous areas with compatible transit access, density, land-use mix, and redevelopment potential.
i. Fernbrook Park: This extends the recent expansion to include properties south of the former Domino Sugar Factory and west of the Metro-North to capture additional industrial properties along the waterfront anchored by the future Fernbrook Park.
ii. Buena Vista: This extends the D-MX south along the Buena Vista Avenue Corridor to the beginning of the L-MX district that begins at O’Boyle Park. It includes properties west of Hawthorne Avenue. These properties are currently mapped as downtown districts, split between the UR-LD and UR-MD zones. This rezoning is being made to bring the zoning more in line with the development patterns of the downtown and in recognition of the corridors proximity as a transit hub within walking distance of retail and services.
iii. St. Casimir: This area will fill the gap between the current D-MX zone and the Yonkers Ave. corridor. It is currently zoned A and Industrial, which does not reflect the existing residential conditions in the surrounding areas.
iv. Locust Hill: This area fills the gap between the current D-MX zone and the redevelopment occurring on North Broadway, and unifies the zoning of the blocks south of Baldwin Place and west of Locust Hill under the D-MX which are presently zoned D-MX on the western portion of the block and zoned A on the eastern portion of the block
v. Yonkers Ave. Corridor: This area is comprised of Yonkers Ave between Ashburton and Nepperhan Avenues. Rezoning to D-MX will reposition this older commercial corridor for reinvestment. This corridor already shares characteristics with parts of the existing D-MX zone and already permits the heights and mixed-uses allowed in the D-MX. However, the D-MX district emphasizes architectural design excellence through design guidelines to enhance the pedestrian experience, while simultaneously providing the flexibility needed to develop in an urban mixed-use corridor.
(c) In addition to expanding D-MX, additional properties in the downtown would benefit from rezoning. Specifically, portions of properties on the east side of Hawthorne, from Prospect Avenue south to the northern side of Vark Street, will be rezoned from UR-MD to UR-HD in order to eliminate the current condition of split-zoned parcels.
(d) On _________________, 2026, herewith, the City Council adopted a Negative Declaration under SEQRA that the zone change will not result in any significant adverse impact on the environment, and that the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement is not required, thereby concluding the review process under SEQRA.
Section 2. Amendments.
(a) The Zoning Map of the City of Yonkers is amended by designating the properties in Schedule 1 as D-MX zoned.
(b) The Zoning Map of the City of Yonkers is amended by designating the properties in Schedule 2 as UR-HD zoned.
(c) 43 Attachment 13 of the Zoning Ordinance (entitled, “Map A: Key Streets””)(“Map A”) is hereby amended to include the blocks and lots listed in Schedule 1. A copy of the amended Map A to be included in the Zoning Ordinance is attached hereto as Exhibit “A”.
(d) 43 Attachment 14 of the Zoning Ordinance (entitled, “Map B: Height District Map”)(“Map B”) is hereby amended to include the blocks and lots listed in Schedule 1 and to allow a maximum permitted building heights as provided in Map B. A copy of the amended Map B to be included in the Zoning Ordinance is attached hereto as Exhibit “B”.
(e) 43 Attachment 15 of the Zoning Ordinance (entitled, “Map C: Additional Sidewalk Width Requirement Map”)( Map C”) is hereby amended to include the blocks and lots listed in Schedule 1 and establish sidewalk widths as provided therein. A copy of the amended Map C to be included in the Zoning Ordinance is attached hereto as Exhibit “C”.
(f) 43 Attachment 16 of the Zoning Ordinance (entitled, “Map D: Districts”)(“Map D”) and the Zoning Map are hereby amended to reclassify and rezone the blocks and lots listed in Schedule 1 from their current zoning designation to D-MX District. A copy of the amended Map D to be included in the Zoning Ordinance is attached hereto as Exhibit “D”.
Section 3. The attached maps are incorporated into this General Ordinance.
Section 4. If any section, subdivision, sentence, clause, phrase or other portion of this Ordinance is, for any reason, declared unconstitutional or invalid, in whole or in part, by ay court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed several and such constitutionality or invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance, which remaining portions shall remain in full force and effect.
Section 5. This Ordinance shall take effect immediately.