WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER SETS RECORD VISITS FOR YEAR 7,017,658 VISITS! 2,098,003 VISITORS MADE 6 VISITS A DAY EVERY DAY. 63,330 UNIQUE VISITORS MADE 133,730 VISITS IN DECEMBER. WPCNR AVERAGED 17,284 VISITORS A WEEK, VISITING 31,270 TIMES.

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WPCNR PRESS BOX. September 28, 2006: Burke’s annual Wheelchair Games will take place on Saturday, Sept. 30, on the Burke campus in White Plains.  The Games start at 8:30 a.m. with opening ceremonies and an appearance by Autumn Grant, Miss Wheelchair America.  Field events, slalom and table tennis are held in the morning and track events begin at 1 p.m.

This year we are raffling a 2007 Ford Mustang Convertible.  The drawing takes place immediately after the award ceremonies end (by 5 p.m.).  Only 500 tickets will be sold at $100 each.  (A ticket order form is attached for your convenience.) 

There also will be appearances by Skerry Jones of WZ100 FM radio, Jay Michaels of WFAS FM, and Ronald McDonald.

It promises to be a day of fun and excitement for all. 

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WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. September 27, 2006: Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety, Daniel Jackson has issued this statement to WPCNR, announcing the police have arrested an individual in the Tuesday afternoon shooting incident in the Winbrook area, in which a series of gunshots was reported approximately 4:30 P.M. The Commissioner issued this statement Wednesday evening to WPCNR:

There were no persons shot in the incident yesterday (Tuesday, September 26).
We have arrested 23 year old Chaz Thomas from Manhattan Ave., White Plains for reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a weapon.  The fight was originally a street encounter between two other subjects.

Thomas and another suspect exchanged gunfire(5-9) rounds. without hitting anyone. (This incident) is not believed to be gang related at this time.

As for police presence in Winbrook, we have always maintained patrols there and will continue to do so. An officer there on an unrelated call called the incident in as it was happening.  We have an ongoing investigation, a number of  community people have come forward with information but we are always looking for more witnesses.

WPCNR notes that persons can contact the White Plains Police with information on this incident, with full confidentiality by contacting 422-6111.

Third Shooting in 4 Months.

The incident is the third shooting episode in the Ferris Avenue-Winbrook area in 4 months, and the fourth violent sequence in 7 months in the Ferris-South Lexington Avenue strip.

Louighy D’Haiti, 26, of Ferris Avenue was shot in the abodomen at 1:15 P.M. in the afternoon  September 11, and survived the attack after being shot and left in the gutter at Richard and Ferris Avenues. That investigation is ongoing and there have been no arrests.

Kevin Chambliss, 33, Captain of the 1993 White Plains High School Championship Football squad, and employee of the White Plains Youth Bureau, was shot and killed May 22 in front of the apartment building in which he lived on Ferris Avenue in broad daylight.

Jermaine Pelletier, a homeless youth, 20, who lived at the Court Street homeless shelter, was stabbed to death March 27, for disrespecting two other youths who were arrested and charged with his murder. Pelletier’s wearing of a red bandana when he encountered his assailants was cited by police as one reason he was stabbed.

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. September 27, 2006: County Executive Andy Spano has released the comments he will make at Thursday morning’s scheduled hearing where Kevin Burk, the CEO of Con Edison is expected to testify. Mr. Burk will speak at 11 A.M. Thursday at the Westchester County Center.

Here are the County Executives’ remarks: 

Thank you for this opportunity to speak to you about the recent major power outages in Con Edison’s service territory in Westchester County.

I am here to advocate for the thousands of Westchester residents and businesses who lost power – many on several occasions – over the past few months.  These major interruptions in service, each lasting several days and in some cases a week, were more than just an inconvenience.  Many families and businesses lost hundreds of dollars in spoiled food and were displaced from their homes as well.  Today, I am asking on their behalf, for the Con Ed system to change. Simply placing blame does not accomplish anything. Change is the remedy we need.  We need solutions to Con Edison’s service delivery problems and Con Ed’s communication problems, and those solutions need to be identified and implemented immediately.

On September 5, I wrote to Governor Pataki to request an independent performance assessment of Con Edison’s preparedness and response to the three major storms that hit Westchester this summer, especially Tropical Storm Ernesto.  As you know, Ernesto caused widespread damage throughout the Con Edison service territory, affecting over 90,000 residential and business customers in Westchester County alone.  On September 12, I reiterated my request for an independent audit in a letter to Public Service Commission Chairman William Flynn. 

Specifically, I requested that the audit include an assessment of 1) How Con Edison’s infrastructure,  specifically in Westchester, compares to that of other utilities that have overhead wiring and poles when it comes to redundancy and strength,  2) The “best practices” utilized by utilities throughout the nation a) to prevent weather-related power outages, b) to restore power in a more timely manner and c) whether Con Edison is  incorporating any of them  into their own operating and management systems, and 3) The “best practices” used by utilities to communicate with customers before, during and after power outages, and once again, which, if any, of these practices are being used by Con Edison.
                                                                        

Additionally, as part of the scope of work, I requested 1) that provisions be made for the consultant to meet directly with me and my staff in order to learn first hand what the County experienced during the extensive outage, and 2) that the consultant conduct a public meeting in Westchester to listen to the concerns of our residents as they pertain to Con Ed’s emergency preparedness, response and restoration of power.

While I am aware that an independent assessment will be performed, I have not yet received a response from Chairman Flynn, and I ask these honorable committees to assist us in seeing that our requests are addressed.

Let me say again, I am looking for a culture of change at Con Edison and the Public Service Commission.  This new mindset must also be supported at the highest levels of state government.  Let me cite just one example.  In this testimony, I have referred to the need to improve customer communications by examining the “best practices” of other utilities throughout the nation. 

I have learned that both Florida Power and Light and Georgia Power have in place comprehensive customer service systems that have done much to ease the stress and anxiety associated with a power failure.  This largely automated system walks customers through the process of reporting an outage in a customer-friendly and easy to follow manner.  After reporting an outage to the automated system, the customer immediately learns if their problem is part of a larger area outage and if so, learns the extent and cause of the problem and is given an estimated time of restoration. All in one phone call.  This is followed by another message stating that the customer will receive follow up calls periodically to advise them of the progress of the work order.  It then confirms the customer’s phone number.  Finally, the system calls the customer with updates when the work crew arrives at the site and to advise that power has been restored.  It also gives the customer an opportunity to speak to a representative if his or her power has not in fact been restored. 

I see no reason why Con Ed’s customer relations/communications system cannot be changed to a system that is being used in Atlanta, Georgia or Broward County, Florida by two totally different utilities. It should be the first change they make.

This is just one example of the kinds of practices that I believe Con Edison and the PSC should be implementing here in New York. This is not rocket science—it is simply modern technology.  I am sure, that with minimal effort, other “best practices” could be found which address emergency response planning and preparation, redundancy in infrastructure, refund processes and practices, resource allocation, etc.

Similarly, I would like to understand why when the Long Island Power Authority experienced more extensive outages on Long Island during the same Labor Day Weekend storm that hit Westchester, that utility managed to restore their customers in approximately 24 hours. Again, what practices is LIPA using in emergency response preparation that Con Ed is not?

The major interruptions in power service experienced by Con Edison customers this year have made the need for change abundantly clear.  I am hopeful that this hearing will help us down that path.

Thank you, again for this opportunity to address these honorable committees.

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WPCNR PRESS BOX. September 27, 2006:  Each Year the Jospeh R Riverso Mmorial Fund & Stepinac HS have a great community event for all. Stepinac will host it’s yearly Night game in honor of their coach Joe Riverso who died on 9/11. This year the White Plains Bernies will also put on  a half time exhibition for the crowd. Joe coached at Stepinac for 16 years. He played football for Stepinac & captained the 1985 Division Championship team. In his early years he played football with the Bernies.

Joe was an avid sports enthusiast who devoted a great deal of his time to working with young athletes. he taught his players the rules of the game andideals of sportsmanship so they could develop as yung men and women of integrity and character. the Foundationis proud to further the activities and principles Joe espoused during his lifetime.

 Stepinac expects a big crowd so please come & enjoy this great community event, Saturday at 7 P.M.

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WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. September 26, 2006: Joe Torre, the Manager of the New York Yankees, and a man who grew up in a home marked by domestic violence announced his  Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation is contributing a approximately $350,000 to open four “Safe Rooms,” he calls Margaret’s Place counseling rooms to Westchester County for the first time. The safe rooms,  named in memory of Mr. Torre’s mother, are known as Margaret’s Place (s). One of the Margaret’s Places will be opened in the White Plains High School adjacent to the high school cafeteria and will be staffed by the Westchester Jewish Community Services organization.

Joe Torre, with Allan Trager, of Westchester Jewish Community Services introduces four Margaret’s Place locations in Westchester County, expanding his program of education and counseling young persons concerned and are victims of domestic violence,  to Westchester for the first time. Photo,WPCNR News

At a news conference, Mr. Torre, County Executive Andy Spano  and Alan Trager, Executive Director/CEO of Westchester Jewish Community Services, introduced Mr. Torre’s initiative in Westchester establishing Margaret’s Place(s) in WPHS, the Pelham Middle School, Emerson Middle School in Yonkers and the Louis M. Klein Middle School in Harrison. 

Ivan Toper, Principal of WPHS, told WPCNR that the White Plains Margaret’s Place will be open in a couple of weeks. He said there will be a private number for students to call to speak to a counselor, and that anonymity will be preserved. Protocols, he said are still being established at this time. Photo, WPCNR News

Mr. Torre, drawing candidly on his own experience, in response to a question by Victor Brady, (a WPHS student attending the public part of the progarm) , asking what were the goals of Margaret’s Place, said the purpose is to allow children living in a domestic violence, or violent boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, to talk about it,  to feel they are not alone and know they have a place they can go where they are comfortable. He said he felt Middle School was a key place to reach out to children living with domestic violence because the situation in his household, growing up in Brooklyn made him feel it was his fault that his father was being violent to his mother, and that it affected his own self-esteem growing up and does, he said,  to this day.

County Executive Andy Spano left, said “No child should have to live in a world of domestic violence, and being able to go to a safe room at school will help ensure that they don’t. Margaret’s Place has been incredibly successful in New York City (Mr. Torre’s Safe at Home Foundation has established six centers in the city), and we are so pleased that the Torre Foundation is bringing the program to Westchester. Photo, WPCNR News