Task Force for North Castle Town Hall
Urges New Highway Facilities, Police, Court
ARMONK, NY—The Town of North Castle in Westchester heard an ad hoc advisory committee recommend in June that elected officials pursue a new one-story municipal building that would house nearly all town departments and functions under one roof at the current 10.5-acre Bedford Road campus.
The committee presented on June 22 at a special Town Board meeting where it told the board and residents that action was urgent because of the deteriorating conditions and safety concerns not only at the existing Town Hall at 15 Bedford Rd. in Armonk but at a landmarked Birdsall building in the rear of the property that is also used by the town.
One town official quipped, “The only thing keeping up that Birdsall building are termites holding hands.”
Major revisions were also called for the Highway Department, which for years has had no interior storage for its vehicles, that has likely shortened the life of the equipment and forced workers to repair vehicles outside, often in bad weather.
In addition, the Water Department has operated out of a trailer for about 30 years and the Police Department and the town justice court have had inadequate space that could jeopardize operations, staff and public safety. Standards for space and operations are established by the state and the town falls short of complying with those standards.
North Castle resident and volunteer committee chair Allen Blum said that over the past three months advisory committee members spoke with the leaders and staff of every town department to better understand their needs and challenges. They devised a rough conceptual plan that calls for an estimated 46,000/sf Town Hall on a portion of the campus between the back of the current municipal building, he said.
A separate 33,000/sf would be built for the Highway Department, which would include space for indoor truck and equipment storage. The square footage totals include about 25 percent extra space in both facilities, Mr. Blum said.
“What we heard as feedback from our employees was how they were really happy that we spoke to them,” Mr. Blum said. “Number two, the biggest concern they had was safety – their safety and your safety – and in the crazy world we live in, that’s an important factor.”
According to The Examiner News, the estimates based primarily on square footage and other needs identified in the committee’s work peg the cost of the project at about $80 million, Mr. Blum said, although he cautioned that is currently their most educated guess.
Town officials plan on eventually asking for authorization to bond the project in a public referendum. The town would also have to retain a design team, which includes an architect and engineers.
From combined dispatches, including The Examiner News.
Published: July 8, 2026.