"The Village Board has long observed that Addyman Square underperforms economically, lacks diverse housing opportunities, and is underutilized as a community gathering place."

That sentence comes from a resolution the Ardsley Board of Trustees passed unanimously on September 8, 2026. The resolution moves along a plan to rebuild the square's sidewalks, parking lot and lighting. By then, though, the square had already gotten a head start. Two new food businesses opened side by side on Ashford Avenue between April and July, months before the plan cleared its environmental review. In Addyman Square, the tenants arrived ahead of the infrastructure, and the newest one built its identity out of the square's own past.

Four Addresses, One Short Block

The cluster sits on Ashford Avenue in Addyman Square, just off Saw Mill Parkway Exit 17.

Mes Amis came first. The Journal News reported that Mickael Phirmis runs the cafe with his wife, Andrea. Crepes are the specialty, and the motto is "French flavors, friendly vibes." The cafe's own site lists crepes, sandwiches, baked goods and coffee for dine-in, takeout or delivery, plus sweet-crepe catering for parties.

Liebman's was already across the street. In 2023, The Riverdale Press reported that the last remaining Jewish deli in the Bronx was expanding to Ardsley, with owner Yuval Dekel partnering with Craig Weitz to open a location in Addyman Square. The deli lists dine-in and takeout from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

The pizzeria opened last, and its name points across the street to Liebman's address.

The New Pizzeria's Name Comes From Across the Street

Chris Weisman, who also owns Pizzeria Baci in Montrose, got his first job at 15 at Sicilian Pizza in the Square. Gaetano Nardi ran the place for about 30 years. The Journal News told the story in May. Weisman told the paper what pulled him in, beyond the pizza. "I'd see my parents' friends getting off the train miserable after work," he said. Then on Friday nights he'd see the staff laughing and watching the Yankees game. "I remember thinking, 'I want to do this. I want this life.'"

He said he was a little scared of Nardi back then. Nardi had come to the United States from Calabria as a young man. "He was the real deal," Weisman said.

Decades later, Weisman named his Ardsley shop "in the Square" as a tribute. Nardi's family saw an Instagram post about it and reached out. On May 20, 2026, at 93, Nardi made the first pie to come out of the new oven. In that same Journal News piece, Weisman placed the old pizzeria across the street, in the space that is now Liebman's Deli, and said Nardi later ran Gaetano's, a sit-down restaurant next door. "This guy made the best pizza in Westchester 40 years ago," Weisman said. "There were lines out the door."

Weisman's lease explains why the timing worked. He had long wanted a pizzeria in Ardsley but assumed the rent would be too high. Then a friend pointed him to an open spot, and he signed what he called "the deal of the century" about two years before the opening. So the Board calls the square economically underperforming, and the same conditions made it affordable to an operator with a decades-old connection to the block.

The menu at Baci in the Square runs from New York-style sourdough pies to Detroit and pan pies. The regular dough is 74% hydration, fermented at least 48 hours and baked at 650 degrees. The list includes Soppressata Hot Honey, Mushroom Truffle, Avenue J, Grandma, Tomato Focaccia and a twice-baked Square pie. The banner on the shop's site says "OPEN FROM NOON TILL THE DOUGH RUNS OUT" and "CLOSED ON TUESDAYS," while its hours section still says to check back. Calling ahead before a weekday dinner run saves a wasted trip.

The Square Has Been Rebuilt Around Before

Turnover in Addyman Square is nothing new. According to the Village, the square has carried its name for decades in honor of Mayor Frank Addyman. The Ardsley Historical Society has posted 1940s photos of the square showing buildings that were soon torn down or moved for the New York State Thruway, which opened in 1955. Some businesses relocated. Others closed.

466 Ashford shows how long an address can hold a block's social life. The Pascone family ran The Choc there as a luncheonette and confectionery. A banana split made with local Carpenter's Ice Cream cost 25 cents. In the mid-1950s, teenagers came to "Club Choc" after basketball games to dance to the jukebox. The family sold the business in 1961. The building later housed a teen spot called "No Proof Required" in the mid-1980s and then a pet groomer called Bow Meow before becoming the nail salon the Historical Society described in March 2025.

In 2026 the turnover came first from new tenants, and the Village's plan for the public spaces around them followed.

What the $977,827 Is Paying For

The money is a federal Community Project Funding grant administered by HUD. The Village reported receiving the grant paperwork in September 2024. Rivertowns Dispatch reported that then-Congressman Jamaal Bowman secured the $977,827. James J. Hahn Engineering presented the plans for Addyman Square and Legion Park to the Board on February 17, 2026. The site is split into three sections: the square itself, the northern sidewalk toward Center Street, and Saw Mill River Road.

The September 8 resolution describes the work:

• A redesigned Addyman Square parking lot meant to improve vehicle movement and pedestrian safety
• New curbs throughout, visually tying the square to the rest of the central business district
• Stamped concrete sidewalks replacing the current brick pavers
• Street trees, tree pits and a large living wall
• A public level-three EV charging station
• New benches, decorative lighting, wayfinding elements and signs

The signs are tied to a separate Village effort. On September 22, the Board awarded the first phase of identity and collateral design for its Community Branding Campaign to Second Language Design for $13,500. Any new wayfinding in the square will come out of that branding work, which means the square's signs are still being designed while the rest of the plan has already cleared environmental review.

The Parking Count Is Still Undecided

The largest open question is how many cars the square will hold when the work is done. In a February 26, 2026 comment included in the Board's March packet, a business owner counted 24 spaces in the square today, one of them designated for disability parking, and said the proposal would cut that to 15.

At the March 16 meeting, a representative for Cutting Edge Hair Salon, which has been in the square for 20 years, said the businesses depend on customer parking and that losing any of it would hurt. Former Mayor Nancy Kaboolian spoke in support. She said she hasn't had trouble finding parking there, and she suggested the square could close on certain weekends for dining, music and other gatherings. Both views came from people who use the square regularly. The materials published so far do not include a final parking count, so the drop to 15 is a figure from a public comment, not a settled number.

That figure matters more now than it did a year ago. A crepe cafe and a pizzeria that closes when the dough runs out both rely on quick stop-in visits, and those visits depend on finding a space.

When the Work Starts

The schedule has slipped once already. In his December 11, 2025 message, the Mayor expected the streetscape project to start that spring. The Village's 2026-27 tentative capital plan now lists the timeline as "Fall 2026" and puts the cost at $977,827. Neither document gives a bid date, start date or completion date. The September 8 vote declared the Board lead agency and found no significant environmental impact, which is a review step rather than a construction contract, and the resolution and related documents are available at the Village Clerk's office in Village Hall, 507 Ashford Avenue.

Until work begins, the square stays as it is: brick pavers, 24 spaces by that business owner's count, and three places to eat within a few steps of one another, including a pizzeria named after the shop that once stood across the street.

Following a project like the Addyman Square overhaul is part of how we track what's changing on the blocks our clients live on. If you're wondering how changes along Ashford Avenue could affect your home's value, The TurnKey Team can walk you through it. Get your free home valuation.