A proposal to construct nearly 100 new homes in Hawthorne is stirring debate among the community. The property, which is owned by the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services, sits on top of a hill at 226-228 Linda Ave. Because of its location, residents have a variety of issues, ranging from worsened flooding conditions to added traffic in the community. "I don't think it's going to be beneficial. I think the infrastructure can't handle it right now. The road access can't handle it right now. The residents can't handle it right now," said former Town Board and Planning Board member, Denis McCarthy. Mount Pleasant Town Supervisor Carl Fulgenzi addressed flooding concerns on Monday.

He says that the town requires all developments to have zero runoff. This means that residents cannot have water running off their property to a neighboring property. He added he only wants access to the property off of Summit Lake Drive, where there is a traffic light present. He says he hopes that by doing so, it will avoid adding traffic to the Linda Avenue area. "There's no approvals for it at this point. This is the infancy stages of this process. There's a long way to go. There's a lot of things they have to look at," said Fulgenzi. "People move to Hawthorne, Thornwood, Valhalla, Mount Pleasant, because they like it to be quiet...I'm sure it's going to bring jobs, but we like our peace," said Lucia Bishkoff, a resident of 23 years. The Jewish Board's website says that, for now, the Hawthorne Cedar Knolls School will continue to run as usual.