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 STAGE DOOR. April 1, 2006: Today at the Westchester Arts Council Building, the producer’s dream came true: Westco Productions, the White Plains non-profit theatre company that is self-sustaining and has never had an operating deficit, in a 26 year run without interruption, opened its first executive office and box office in the downtown at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue. It’s in Suite 508, on the fifth floor.

“Look, Ma! I’ve finally got an office like a real Broadway Producer!” Susan Katz outside the Westchester Arts Council Building — New home to her company,  Westco Productions, Westchester’s most consistently entertaining not for profit theatre company that packs them in year-after-year with “Katz Magic”. Photo, Courtesy Westco.

“Hey, I know what we’ll do, let’s put on a show!” Ms. Katz welcomes the media hordes to the new epicenter of her thespian empire with as always, just the right touch on the door of her 5th floor office. Peter Katz Photo, Courtesy Westco Productions.

A luncheon get-together  featured The First Lady of White Plains Theatre, that local girl made good,  Susan Katz –Ms. Westco herself, theatrical producer, Creator of “Living Walls” that turn hospital wards into healing environments, believer in theatre for the disabled, indefatigable, seen-everywhere, known-everywhere, community-involved, children-committed, production-obsessed, bottomline watching, creative dynamo right out of the movies — you know, the kind of kid you could expect to see in any Judy Garland/Mickey Rooney movie saying, “Hey, I know what we’ll do, let’s put on a show,” hostessing the historic opening of her first office on the brightly painted white walls on the 5th floor overlooking the Great White Way of Mamaroneck Avenue.

Angels, well-wishers and members of the Westco Board of Directors who never have to worry about deficits, wish the Wizardess of Westco in Red well at the Executive Office and Box Office Opening. Rosemary Williams, to the right of Ms. Katz,  her Yoga Teacher explained Ms. Katz’s quarter century of showbiz hits, by comparing Ms. Katz’s personality to Yoga: “Yoga is about moving energy, how to identify it, how we can hold it, identify how we can access what’s out there and how we can move it. I thought Sue has been doing this way before she started Yoga. She’s built this incredible organization, which mind boggles me, how she gets all these people involved and creates this space and this joy and this love that she sends to the world.” Peter Katz Photo, Courtesy Westco Productions

Freeloading Broadway Flacks,  White Plains Week news anchors, Jim Benerofe, left,  The Dean of the White Plains Journalism, Editor of Suburbanstreet.com, and yours truly, John Bailey, The CitizeNetReporter mingled in the showbiz glamour and celebrity mix. Peter Katz Photo, Courtesy Westco Productions.

While the 5th floor event was underway, a cast of 40 was upstairs on the 9th floor rehearsing for Westco’s children’s workshop production of  Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat which takes place next Saturday at the Rochambeau School Theater, “The Roch” in White Plains,  Ms. Katz schmoozed with members of her Board of Directors and distinguished members of the press representing The White Plains Times, Suburbanstreet.com, and yours truly.

“The new office will serve as both box office point and a distribution center for information, ” Ms. Katz told the CitizeNetReporter. “People can come here to the 5th floor and buy tickets to our shows as well as stop in and pick up our literature. The presence in the downtown at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue, Office 508, (914-761-7463), makes it much easier for those who live in White Plains and working in White Plains during the day to buy tickets and pick up information.”

Katz said the office was needed because the company simply could not be run out of her home office any more because of the expansion in recent years. “It’s an administrative office that’s serving two functions. Our  Box Office Manager, from the New Orleans area after falling victim to Hurricane Katrina, will be here and our Production Manager will be here. So there will be a lot of stuff going on in the office concerning the productions, distribution of tickets and information. It’s a high energy building.”

She explained that for the past few weeks, Westco’s cast of 28 professional actors has been using the 9th floor space to rehearse for the upcoming production of the Broadway hit musical “Cats.” Ms. Katz emphasized that Westco shows performed for the public only use experienced actors, and differ from the workshops for children who aspire to become thespians, adding that many of Westco’s workshop graduates have gone on to professional careers at theatres around the country, such as Jason Summers who is directing “Cats.”

Cats will be performed April 28, 29, and 30 at the Irvington Town Hall Theater. For more information, call Westco at (914) 761-7463 or visit their web site, www.westcoproductions.org.   

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WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. From White Plains Department of Public Safety. April 1, 2006: White Plains Police reported Friday a third youth has been charged with Gang Assault in the First Degree in connection with the street stabbing of Jermaine Pelletier Monday, March 27. The teenager, who is 17 years of age, a resident of 11 Fisher Avenue, White Plains, turned himself into police. Police have also charged Chad Green, 19, also residing at 11 Fisher Avenue, and Ronnie Thomas, 20, 17 Cabot Avenue, Elmsford with Gang Assault in the First Degree.

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. By John F. Bailey. March 31, 2006: Commissioner of Finance Gina Cuneo-Harwood handed over the Railside Avenue Land Auction bid information WPCNR was denied this week this afternoon. Executive Director of the Committee on Open Government Robert Freeman advised WPCNR yesterday that if the sealed bids on the Railside Avenue property auction were opened in public, they were public information and WPCNR and any citizen was entitled to see them regardless of whether bidders had been notified. Today the City released the bid sheet to WPCNR.

The sheet shows that one bidder, Joseph S. Petrillo of White Plains purchased 5 of the 8 properties for a total of $1,815,000. HCG Drywall of Scarsdale purchased one property for $345,995. S & J & J Holding  of White Plains acquired another property for $351,188, and Ricardo Tedesco and Frank D’Ambrosio (no address given) puchased another lot for $400,000. There were 10 separate bidders who participated  and submitted bids.  A total of $2,912,183 in winning bids was generated by the sale.  (BOXED BIDS Mark the Winning Bids) DocuPhoto by WPCNR News

Rental Masters of The Bronx, NY. submitted a $3,000,000 bid for the entire original nine lots, but was disqualified for not conforming to the guidelines of the bidding which forbid a total bid. The bid, according to Councilperson Rita Malmud, was also rejected because the city hopes to sell Lot 1 which was withdrawn from the sale to have an easement placed on it, meaning, Malmud said that a $3,000,000 bid would have valued Lot 1 at only $87,817.

Commissioner of Finance, Gina Cuneo-Harwood said that Lots 10 and 11 on the Commerce Ave and Railside Avenue connection sold for $450,150 and $365,000 previous to the Wednesday auction of Lots 1 through 9 respectively bringing the total generated by the Railside-Commerce land sell-off to $3,727,333. If the city sells off Lot 1 after the easement is applied to it that could push the total of land sale money over the $4,100,000 mark Cuneo-Harwood said today.

Key to Lots and Where they Are on Railside Avenue. DocuPhoto by WPCNR News

So Long, Woods. Railside Avenue Lots 2 through 9 alongside the Greenway. At end of street, the mound in the distance is the City Dump.  Photo, WPCNR News Archive.

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. MARCH 31, 2006: City Hall is proposing a $137 Million budget for 2006-2007 which at this time increases city property taxes 9% according to The Journal News. The news confirms what WPCNR reported earlier this week when Councilman Arnold Bernstein said at the Rocky Dell/ Reynal Park Neighborhood Association the city was looking at a “double digit” tax increase for residents. Mayor Delfino’s wish budget still must undergo the withering scrutiny of the Common Council in a series of budget meetings coming up, which as of last week, were not scheduled.

Paul Wood, the Mayor’s Executive Officer, is reported as saying there are no cuts in city services or programs, though community development funds have been cut previously, and departments, city Commissioners have confirmed to WPCNR have been asked to cut spending 10 to 15% for the rest of this fiscal year. 

Keith Eddings article, in addition reports the city will take “an $8 Million Dip in reserves” on top of the $8.5 Million scooped out of the city fund balance for this year’s budget. The budget apparently in the hands of The Journal News before the Common Council has seen it, will be presented to the Council Monday. Mr. Eddings reports Rita Malmud, President of the Common Council as being unable to comment on the budget until “she has seen it Monday.” There was no report of how salaries of the Administration Cabinet will be increased which have ranged in the double digits as recently as last year.

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. By John F. Bailey. March 30, 2006 UPDATED 2:15 P.M.with Lot Identification Clarification Keyed to Map: Gina Cuneo-Harwood, Commissioner of Finance for the City of White Plains reports the auction of 8 Railside Avenue lots has generated total high bids on each property of  “a little more than $2.9 Million,” based on opening of bids Wednesday morning at City Hall The amount is a million dollars less than some common councilmembers told WPCNR they expected.

 Paul Wood, speaking with Ms. Harwood in a conference call with WPCNR noted that the $2.9 Million amounted to a 9% increase in the equivalent of city taxes needed to create the potential windfall. Wood objected to reporting the sale as below expectations,  saying a previous sale and an expected sale of a lot that was withdrawn could bring the Railside Avenue sell-off windfall to $4 Million.

WPCNR has also learned that one bidder bid for all the properties, but was rejected as being “non-conforming.”

Ms. Cuneo-Harwood said a total of 29 bids were received on the eight lots. Lot 1,  fronting Ridgeway Avenue, according to Councilman Benjamin Boykin (speaking at Ridgeway School Monday night), was withdrawn from the sale to be redrawn with a conservation easement, then reoffered for sale at a later date. She reports the number of bids as follows:

PARCEL  5 — 11 Railside Avenue – 7 BIDS

PARCEL 4 — 9 Railside Avenue – 5 BIDS

PARCEL  6–  15 Railside Avenue – 5 BIDS

PARCEL  3 — 7 Railside Avenue 4 Bids

PARCEL 7 – 17 Railside Avenue — 2 BIDS

PARCEL  8–19 Railside Ave.– 2 BIDS

PARCEL  9 — 21 Railside Ave.  2 BIDS

PARCEL  2  5 Railside Avenue– 2 BIDS

Parcels 3,4,5, 6 and 11  were the hot items in the two week bidding period that began March 16. Parcel 10 had previously sold for $450,150, Wood said. Wood pointed out that the approximately $3 Million the city stands to receive from the sales from these eight properties, did not count that $450,000 sale, and that $365,000 was expected from the eventual sale of Parcel 1, which could eventual reach the $4 Million mark, closer to what WPCNR has been told by councilpersons that they expected. Map, WPCNR News Archive

The Finance Department  has told WPCNR that one bid was made for all 9 properties, but was rejected as “nonforming.” Ms. Cuneo-Harwood said. 

The average bid of the eight properties was $362,000.

Take Out Bid Rejected.

The Commissioner said that one bidder bid for more than one property, but mentioned one high bidder bidding on multiple properties, did not get the high bid on all the properties they bid on.

Names of Bidders and Bid Amounts Delayed Pending Bidder notification.

WPCNR asked for the names of all bidders and the bids they made on the properties, but Mr. Wood and Ms. Cuneo-Harwood said that all high bidders had not been notified they were the successful bidders yet. WPCNR asked if some of the bidders were present at the bid opening, and Ms. Cuneo-Harwood said some were. WPCNR pointed out that if the high bidders were present  and the bids were announced, those “high bidders” knew they had the property. Cuneo-Harwood said that was not necessarily true, saying they could be disqualified, or something might go wrong with their bid check.

WPCNR suggested that by not revealing who all the bidders and their bids were at this time, before the sale, it allowed the city to select a lower bidder for some reason.

Wood said that it was not the City that decided on whom the property was sold to, that it was the Common Council decision to sell, and that the winners would be announced in the Common Council meeting agenda available perhaps Friday afternoon.

WPCNR has determined in a poll of Councilpersons that neither Rita Malmud, Tom Roach or Benjamin Boykin, or Glen Hockley or Arnold Bernstein  were present at the opening of the bids.  Robert Greer has not been contacted yet. Mayor Joseph Delfino has been reportedly on vacation this week , the location of which has not been publicly disclosed.

Wither the FOIA?

A FOIA request filed by WPCNR today for those lists of all bidders, WPCNR was told would be complied with  after the Common Council is scheduled to vote upon the sales Monday evening, April 3. Mr Wood, the Mayor’s Executive Officer has further said  he is compelled to respond to the request within “5 business days, so that would mean Wednesday.  But as I told you, we’ll be happy to provide you with the info three days early on Monday.”