The city of White Plains, N.Y., has denied a permit that would have cleared the way for the French-American School of New York to build a new campus on the site of a former country club.
The Journal News reports the city's Common Council rejected a request from the school to vacate a portion of a street. That denial blocks the school from pursuing its plan to build a $60 million campus on land that once was the Ridgeway Country Club.
After the council's vote, school officials indicated they would sue the city in an effort to overturn the decision.
The French-American School of New York was established 35 years ago and has 800 students across three campuses: in Scarsdale, Larchmont and Mamaroneck. It is seeking to consolidate its campuses at one site.
The city has been reviewing plans for a new campus for nearly five years. Many neighbors objected to the proposal; they said it was not a good fit with the residential character of the area and would cause unwanted traffic congestion. Council members who opposed the request to vacate a section of Hathaway Lane said they were concerned that closing access to the roadway would harm public safety.
