Open Space and Recreation
Healthy Community:
Open Space and Recreation
A large component of a healthy community is the provision of open space and recreation. In New Castle, the open space and recreational amenities are highly utilized and valued by Town residents. Of the Town’s 4,418 acres accounted for by open space and recreational uses, publicly owned parks and open space account for 1,570 acres, providing almost 0.1 acre per resident. Including school properties, publicly owned open space accounts for 1,762 acres. With the exception of the Hudson Hills Golf Course, which is managed by Westchester County, the community’s publicly owned, active use parklands are maintained either by the Town of New Castle or the Chappaqua Central School District. Publicly owned, passive use parks and preserves are open to the public for hiking, walking and nature observation, and are managed by a variety of stewards including the Town, adjacent municipalities, Westchester County and New York State. A complete list of these parks and their uses can be found below in Figure 1.
Privately held camping and hiking grounds, nature preserves and recreational clubs provide residents additional recreational opportunities and access to the Town’s natural assets. Campgrounds include the Wagon Road Camp (51.84 acres), the Girl Scout Reservation (71.35 acres in New Castle). The 230 acre Campfire Club of America (151.33 acres in New Castle) is used for retreats and hunting. Within the Town there are two privately-owned golf courses along with four swim and tennis clubs. A list of privately owned recreational lands and their uses are listed in Figure 2.
In addition to an abundance of parkland and trailways, the Town has a variety of recreational facilities and civic spaces. Town-owned recreational facilities include the Community Center and the Art Center, while the library and other school facilities owned by the Chappaqua Central School District provide residents with open access to playgrounds and various entertainment and recreational opportunities. The Town recently acquired the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center (formerly known as the Wallace Auditorium), located on the multi-use Chappaqua Crossing campus which will be used for civic purposes.
The Chappaqua Central School District has long been an essential partner to the Town in providing recreational opportunities to residents. This Plan acknowledges the long-standing cooperation between the New Castle Recreation and Park’s Department and the School District and supports the continuation and strengthening of this cooperation.
As can be seen in Figure 1, publicly owned recreational lands provide both passive and active recreational opportunities, which are highly utilized and valued by Town residents. In 1989, active recreational amenities were provided for by both publicly owned parklands and privately owned recreational clubs. However, the amenities provided at public parks were different from those provided at private clubs. The TDP suggested that because of the uneven distribution of amenities and projected population growth, the Town would soon have to consider providing facilities typically provided by privately owned clubs to meet the community’s future recreation needs.
A recreational needs assessment was conducted in 1996 and again in 2006, both of which resulted in new Recreation and Parks Master Plans. The 2007 Recreation and Parks Master Plan reported an 80% satisfaction rate among residents with New Castle’s recreational offerings and recommended maintenance and expansion of services based upon demographics and resident feedback. As it has been almost ten years since the completion of the 2007 Recreation and Parks Plan, this Comprehensive Plan has established goals to reassess the community’s recreational needs and expand, enhance and maintain parks and recreational open space, facilities, and programming as necessary. This Plan also establishes goals to ensure equitable access to recreational services, schools and arts and cultural facilities for all residents.