Legislator Margaret Cunzio (C) Mount Pleasant, announced that the Board of Legislators (BOL) has approved a Bond Act in the amount of $325,000 to redesign a section of Commerce Street, specifically the intersection of Commerce and Elwood Street which has been the site of numerous traffic accidents including a pedestrian fatality in February 2013.
This intersection has been of concern to local officials for many years. In 1999, the Mount Pleasant Police Chief wrote to the County Department of Public Works asking that a safety study be conducted at that intersection. At that time there were 13 crashes in one year and a pedestrian was hit. Following the 2013 pedestrian fatality the town of Mount Pleasant sent their own re-design plans to Westchester County with a request that the plans be considered as part of the County’s capital improvement plans for Commerce Street.

Legislator Cunzio who is serving in her first term as Legislator representing Mount Pleasant, North Castle and Pleasantville said, “I am very pleased to see this important redesign process begin. I drive daily in this community and this intersection has concerned for me a long time. I thank the Town of Mount Pleasant and my colleagues on the County level for prioritizing this project and for working together to improve this stretch of road.” Cunzio added, “Road work may seem like a pretty unexciting function of local governments but when it results a safer road it could mean saving a life and that is very exciting.”

Commerce Street which is a County road has an average daily traffic count of 8000 cars. Elwood which is a Mount Pleasant Road sees approximately 1700 cars daily. Following the redesign process, the County and the town are expected to enter into an inter municipal agreement (IMA) to fund the actual construction work.

In addition to redesigning the intersection, the current Bond Act will also include the design phase for the rehabilitation of 1.23 miles of Commerce Street. The rehab work will include milling, joint and crack repair, resurfacing, concrete curb replacement, installation of ADA compliant sidewalk ramps, new traffic loops, new pavement markings and related work.

The design phase of the rehab is expected to take approximately six months. The actual construction will last approximately 9 months.