Larchmont Gardens Civic Assoc.: May 27 Annual Meeting Continues Historic Tradition

by Judy Silberstein

From Larchmont Then and Now by Anne Marie Leone and Judith Doolin Spikes

(May 15, 2003) At the annual meeting of the Larchmont Gardens Civic Association on May 27, Town of Mamaroneck Administrator Steve Altieri will be discussing “Where Do Our Taxes Go,” always a source of interest, and the assembly will elect a new slate of officers.

The Larchmont Gardens Civic Association is not a garden club, advised President Betty Miller. Rather, it is one of Larchmont’s oldest neighborhood associations, serving a triangular area bounded by Weaver Street, Rockland Avenue and Harmon Drive.

According to Larchmont historian Judith Doolin Spikes: "Larchmont Gardens Lake - now called the Duck Pond -- was excavated on the site of a swampy area by the Larchmont Gardens real estate company, owned by aviation pioneer Clifford B. Harmon. Devlopment of the 140-acrea subdivision began in 1911, spurred by the proposed (but never built) Pelham-Port Chester Parkway and of the New York, Westchester and Boston Railway (finally built in the 1920's but bankrupted by the Depression.) Half of the lake was obliterated in the 1950s when the New England Thruway was built over the proposed route of the Parkway."*

In the past, the Association has been embroiled in major events. Long-time Larchmonter Lee Bloom remembers back in the 1950’s when he was President, and the New York Thruway was blasting its way through the neighborhood. The children rode their bikes through the construction rubble, families collected rocks for their landscaping and the Association was a hotbed of activity.

Only a few years ago, the Association revved up again in the fight against a proposed IKEA store in New Rochelle. The Association collaborated with other organizations to sponsor a large community gathering at Murray Avenue School.

Today, things are fairly quiet in the Gardens. “There are no big concerns, thank goodness,” said President Miller. “Just traffic safety for the children, services from the Town. We’re sort of a ‘watch dog’ now to be sure, particularly in our economic crunch, that services are maintained.”

“The heart of the community remains the brook that goes from top to bottom,” she said, “and the jewel is the Larchmont Gardens Lake, affectionately known as the Duck Pond.” A perennial concern is cleaning up after the Canada geese that have become year-round residents.

“We’re about 600 households, ranging from the modest to the magnificent,” she added. One of the “magnificent” might be the private home at the top of the falls that began life as a club house for the first “settlers” in the Larchmont Gardens development. The property’s tennis courts were another early perk, now part of the private home.

“We’re ‘Town Proud,’” concluded Miller. “We work with the Town to keep our community as good as it is.” She encouraged all Gardens’ residents to attend the meeting. “We’re always looking for more participation.”

*From: Larchmont Then and Now: A Photo History by Anne Marie Leone and Judith Doolin Spikes. Fountain Square Books, Larchmont, N.Y., 2002. Click here for information on purchasing a copy.