Village a study in culture, adapting to the times

It's not often that a shopping mall is anchored by a hospital, a youth ornization and an intergenerational day-care center.

And not every mail is roofless.

With its array of big-name stores generally found in traditional malls Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Victoria's Secret, Chico's, Gap,

Bill Harden, president of' the Mount Kisco Chamber of Commerce and owner of Accel Printing and Graphics Corp., said another unique aspect of the village, is the "interesting anchors:" Northern Westchester Hospital, Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester and My Second Home.

Harden credits Joel Seligman, president and chief executive officer, for his vision and practicality in growing the hospital and introducing new technology and treatment centers as well as serving all aspects of the community from longtime residents to today's immigrants. The Boys and Girls Club offers a variety of programs for children and young adults, Harden said, and My Second Home offers a unique spin on day care centers. Harden said the center, by mixing youngsters and seniors, fosters an environment of mutual respect along with programs on nutrition and wellness. He said not to be forgotten in the economic equation is Mount Kisco Medical Group, which has grown tremendously over the last few years and now has some 600 employees and 100 doctors.

As commercial space prices creep higher and some retail tenants leave - a deli, a toy store and a cafe among others - Harden is confident about the future of the smaller, non-national brand of stores.

"My observation is the boutiques are going to reap the benefits of all the trade traffic being generated by the major stores." he said.

"The big-box stores plan what they're going to sell a year in advance; they think they're trend-setters, particularly clothing stores." But predicting hot-selling items is tricky.

"The little boutiques have tomorrow's trends."

Basing it more on the few parking spaces available and the foot traffic on South Moger, Main and Lexington avenues, Harden said the number of people drawn into the village to shop is "way up." fie said individuals might be coming in to shop at one of "the names," but are discovering the smaller places to not only shop but to eat and do banking at any one of the 14 banks that have set up shop in the small village.

Harden still scratches his head as to why the village with a population hovering around 10,000 has been chosen as a veritable financial center. "Marketers apparently feel there's wealth here."

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the median household income was $67,167, about $10.000 less than the county's numbers.

Outside of the retail community, Harden is equally proud of the strides the village has made in addressing the needs of the growing immigrant population. Instead of righting the stream of immigrants, Mount Kisco has chosen to create programs and organizations such as Neighbors Link on Columbus Avenue, which was founded seven years ago to meet the needs of 3,000 Latino immigrants who represent about 26 percent of Mount Kisco's population. It offers adult education, arranges for the hiring of workers, computer training and entrepreneurial development in addition to other programs either offered at the center or through other community groups.

Another organization aimed at helping immigrants is Open Door Family Medical Center, which also has offices in Ossining, Port Chester, and Sleepy Hollow. Its mission is to provide health care to the disadvantaged. It bad originally been located at the hospital but moved to make it easier for non-English speaking people who had trouble navigating the hallways of the hospital, Harden said.

The so-called "immigration problem" of today is not unlike the hurdles the immigratits of the previous century had to endure when they arrived from Europe, Harden said.

To be mindful of his past so as to not repeat mistakes society had made, Harden's father gave him two signs; one reads, "Help Wanted - Irish Need Not Apply" and the other, "Sailors and Dog Keep Off the Grass."

It's a human story; not political or ideological," he said. No child should go without education or medical care. "We didn't make this problem, but we're sitting in the middle of it and trying to make it work."