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The first time Louis Cappelli realized the Common Council was against his firm’s designs was at the Council meeting Tuesday night. All Councilpersons received or were sent a fax that afternoon that could have triggered the Council dumping the designs.

It was just a helpful fax.

Local architect Robert H. Levine (whose name is on the fax as sender), faxed the 2-pager to Mayor Joseph Delfino, Councilpersons Rita Malmud, Benjamin Boykin II, Larry Delgado, Robert Greer, William King and Pauline Oliva. Our source said it arrived Tuesday prior to the evening Common Council hearing on a Special Permit hearing for Louis Cappelli. The hearing was to allow Louis Cappelli to build his two towers at the City Center to 34 stories.

Fax promotes Fred Bland as resource for Cappelli team.

The fax held out a very attractive carrot to a Council under pressure: the opportunity to get Fred Bland from Beyer Blinder Bell to advise on the project, or so they might have reasoned from the document.

Here is a quote from the secret fax obtained by WPCNR:

As you prepare for tonight’s Council meeting, we strongly urge you to review the enclosed Talking Points which conclude by recommending that the Developer augment his professional team by engaging a Design Architect to work with the Schuman Lichtenstein (SL) firm who would continue as Architect of Record.

This arrangement, recognizing specific strengths of various architects, is standard procedure in the field, a natural response to situations similar to ours. SL has often worked as the Architect of Record this way; in fact, several times with Beyer Blinder Belle (BBB). BBB, in turn, has often performed as the Design Architect with others.

Here’s the kicker, as it continues:

BBB’s Fred Bland has indicated today (Tuesday) his willingness to meet to further discuss the matter if the City and the Developer are interested in BBB’s participation in this project.”

The fax went on to raise more “Talking Points” for the council to raise in the Tuesday meeting. The complete text of this mysterious fax undisclosed Tuesday evening is available to read elsewhere on the site.

The fax is type-signed without signatures by “R. Levine” and his two co-signers of the fax, “R. Stackpole,” of the Planning Board and “W.Rose,” of the Urban Renewal Board.

(This raises the possibility that Mr. Rose and Mr. Stackpole did not know their names were on the fax.) Mr. Rose has acknowledged to WPCNR that he and Mr. Levine and Mr.Stackpole had been expressing their concerns to “all” Common Councilmembers for sometime.

Anatomy of a Set-up

Cappelli, meanwhile dismissed an early warning sign.

A source close to the Cappelli organization told WPCNR under condition of anonymity that Mr. Cappelli was contacted on an undisclosed golf course early Tuesday morning September 4 and informed of possible Council retreat on the issue of the tower designs.

It appears that no councilmember talked to Cappelli before the councilmeeting about what they were about to do for him and to him.

The project was going good.

Mr. Cappelli had reason to believe 6 days previously on Wednesday evening, August 29, that the council was on board. The Council indicated they liked the way the designs were going.

Five of the six councilpersons expressed enthusiasm with the designs (with the exception of Rita Malmud who made no public knowledge of how she felt about the project on Wednesday, the 29th).No one spoke up and said, “Lou, this is not working for us. We just don’t feel we’re there.”

Mr. King had even said “we’re getting close,” Mr. Delgado liked what he saw, just wanted to see a two-story glass treatment.

Cappelli thinks he has a consensus.

According to WPCNR’s source, the boss was not worried on the golf course call Tuesday morning. He was reported to react in his usual confident manner, saying he was not that married to the designs, that he would just hire Bland, without the expectation that he would ever have to. He had no idea what was about to hit him Tuesday evening.

The Tuesday Night Surprise

He got his approval for the height, but the Council to a man and woman with the exception of the Mayor, told him literally to go back to the drawing board. They expressed, no demanded, he use Fred Bland on the project.

The council told him this, as far as WPCNR can analyze, based on the fax. The fax had told them Mr. Bland was available.

However, Mr. Bland was not “on board.”

George Gretsas, according to the Beyer Blinder Belle offices Wednesday had been trying to reach Bland most of Tuesday afternoon unsuccessfully. Whether or not Mr. Bland has made a verbal commitment to Mr. Cappelli or Mr. Gretsas Tuesday is not known at this time.

Mr. Bland is very committed this week. He was judging an architectural exhibition in New York Wednesday, Thursday according to his office. Mr. Bland has not, at this time, returned WPCNR’s calls.

The situation.

There is no indication in the fax that Mr. Bland had criticized Mr. Cappelli’s designs to Mr. Levine, and Mr. Levine, contacted by WPCNR has already told us he will not comment on any phase of this matter.

We have no way of telling what Mr. Bland actually told Mr. Levine, whether he saw the designs, and it would be irresponsible to speculate.

First sign of trouble

WPCNR first learned that Mr. Bland had apparently seen Cappelli’s tower designs when Robert Greer, a backer of the project, troubled and concerned, told us Tuesday morning that Mr. Bland had criticized the designs.

Greer revealed three architects were going to present their feelings about the quality of Cappelli’s Tower architecture to the Common Council. He did not say when or how the architects would make their feelings known.

WPCNR assumed Greer meant the meeting Tuesday night. But, did it actually occur Tuesday afternoon through the medium of the “Secret Fax,” no longer secret?

Common Councilmembers we have contacted and asked if they received any input from architects did not mention receiving any except Mrs. Malmud. She named Mr. Rose, Mr. Levine and a third architect, as three who had talked with her about the designs after the Council meeting on Tuesday evening. (The third architect was not Mr. Stackpole).

You know the rest.

Cappelli was into damage control at Tuesday’s Council hearing saying “he’d become aware” that there was council dissatisfaction with the designs and that he was willing to hire Fred Bland to bring him on board as the design architect with Schuman Lichtenstein as the drawings architectural firm.

We saw a composed Cappelli, numb after approval by a 6-1 vote of the height, brushing politely past congratulations, his eyes steely and searching, troubled, slightly uncertain, focused on an uncertain future.

This is not just WPCNR’s impression. Witnesses described Cappelli as being “floored” by the Council demand to redesign, “absolutely floored.”

The Mayor’s office had no statement to issue by the end of the day Wednesday on the search for Fred Bland. A somber Paul Wood reported that it was out of the Mayor’s Office control now because Bland would be working for Cappelli, not the Council, if Cappelli succeeds in hiring him.

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The Common Council voted 6-1 Tuesday night to permit Louis Cappelli to build his City Center towers to heights of 34 stories with a catch. It demanded Cappelli totally redesign his two towers in 16 days, dismissing the prototypes they’d been looking at for 2 weeks.

As reported by WPCNR Tuesday afternoon, the City Center was in trouble: the tower designs were not going to fly.

The Common Counci appears to have been swayed by private input from at least three prominent local architects told to at least one councilperson. The Council is disenchanted with Mr. Cappelli’s submitted designs for the two 34-story residential apartment buildings. The council voted 6-1 (with Pauline Oliva voting against the 34-story height), to approve the Towers of Cappelli, but the designs went out the window.

Council waffles on appearance of buildings

Pauline Oliva, Rita Malmud, Benjamin Boykin, Robert Greer, Larry Delgado and William King all strongly expressed desires for a grander set of towers, completely dismissing the two buildings that they, with the exception of Mrs. Malmud, had lead Mr. Cappelli to believe they liked a scant 6 days ago.

For once Mr. Cappelli had no answer. He appeared shaken. Though he expressed knowledge that he was aware of an undercurrent of concern about the design, he appeared to have been taken by surprise. Otherwise, why had not Fred Bland already been contacted earlier Tuesday, this reporter mused.

”Get Me Fred Bland and Make it Snappy!”

Cappelli says he needs site plan approval (which by definition includes an approved project design), by September 25 when he expects to close on his $375 million in financing with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. The beleaguered builder doggedly pledged round-the-clock designing.

He said he would immediately hire Fred Bland, Partner of Beyer, Blinder, Belle, the architectural firm that had convinced the Council that the 34-story height was acceptable, to work with his architects, to work 24 hours a day, if necessary for 16 days to get a design acceptable to the Council’s aesthetics. Cappelli said that since the Council had confidence in Bland, he felt he would be a good choice to start the design process over.

Cappelli told WPCNR he had no idea of Mr. Bland’s whereabouts, or whether he was even available to design personally. He had not yet been in touch with the architect, but he said wryly he’d send people out to find him, if Bland could not be reached Wednesday morning.

All was not well as late as the end of last week

WPCNR first learned of the architectural reservations about the buildings Tuesday morning after Robert Greer’s Campaign for Mayor Kickoff News Conference. Greer told WPCNR the council was having major problems with the design,even indicated that Fred Bland himself, had expressed “disappointment” with Cappelli Enterprises design effort on the building. In fairness to Mr. Bland, this is what Mr. Greer said, and we have not gotten Mr. Bland’s version.

After the Common Council voted the approval of the height issue, Greer confirmed again late Tuesday evening that some architects had been in conversation with some councilpersons about the design issue, and he knew the designs were “in trouble” at the end of last week. He would not say what councilpersons were in touch with carping architects. So WPCNR asked.

Larry Delgado and Benjamin Boykin both said they had not heard or been influenced by any architects regarding the design. We did not have the opportunity to ask Mr. King and Ms. Oliva.

“Attackchitects” catch Malmud’s ear.

Mrs. Malmud, who in casting her vote for the 34-story height, called the two Cappelli designs “towers of mediocrity,” told us she had heard from three architects on the design of the project. She named two architects and a third prominent name architect, extremely well-known in White Plains project circles.

WPCNR feels would be inappropriate to identify all three at this time, though we do know their names and they were named by Ms. Malmud “on the record.” The high profile architect had talked with her about the merits of the Cappelli designs at the Stop N Shop groundbreaking last week. Mrs. Malmud would not say what he actually did say, but indicated he was not enthusiastic.

Mediocrity defined

We asked Mrs. Malmud why she felt the Cappelli designs were “towers of mediocrity.” She said they were “nothing, they were generic, undistinguished. (They) had nothing to recommend them as architecture.”

Asked if Mr. Bland accepted the Cappelli commission to make a last minute save, what her recommendations would be to him, the Council President said “I want to see great architecture. I’d want it to be so special. If he (Bland) were here I would say I want a building that would be distinguished, elegant. It should be soaring. I’m not trying to turn words into architecture, but Mr. Cappelli is an engineer, he’s not an architect. I don’t mean that against Mr. Cappelli personally.”

WPCNR asked why Mrs. Malmud had not expressed her reservations at the final three Cappelli designs at last Wednesday’s work session when Cappelli had presented the very same buildings that were dismissed last night, Ms. Malmud said, “At that point I had given up. (The designs) seemed acceptable to them (the rest of the council).”

Asked when Mrs. Malmud had first known she did not like designs, she told WPCNR, “As soon as I saw them.”

Asked what she was looking for in building increments, Ms. Malmud said “I’ll know it when I see it.”

National Amusements is “in.”

The hearing preceding the approval of the 34 story tower heights, featured an announcement by Mr. Cappelli that he had received a signed contract from National Amusements for a 20-year lease for 15 theaters in the City Center project at 6:30 PM Tuesday evening.
Mr. Cappelli celebrated this by giving a wrapped gift to the Mayor, which when the Mayor opened it on television, was discovered to contain popcorn. Cappelli joked that the gift was a reference to the Mayor’s saying he hoped to be enjoying popcorn at the City Center downtown at the movies in two years.

Then a procession of persons from businesses, neighborhoods, apartments in the downtown, and just every day citizens came up to the Common Council Pulpit to support strongly and eloquently the City Center project. Only one speaker recommended rejection of the height. Only one person speaking expressed criticism of the designs.

Council Sends Cappelli Back to the Drawing Board

Louis Cappelli after receiving his 6-1 approval vote from the council in favor of the height, looked like a man who had been kicked in the stomach after he left the Council Chambers at 11:30 PM, the hour when the council approved the endlessly debated height question.

When another warrior in the approval wars, William Null said “congratulations” to Mr. Cappelli, he appeared not even to hear it. It was a Pyrrhic Victory.

His work was just beginning and it was no longer “his” project. It was Fred Bland’s — if Mr. Bland wants it.

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During the Common Council Work Session last week, Louis Cappelli, the Super Developer presented two newly developed designs for his “Twin Towers of Cappelli” he plans for his City Center project at Mamaroneck and Main.
At the session, Cappelli shared some new facts about the two residential apartment towers. They would all be rentals. Each tower would actually rise to a height of 38 stories, not 34, when the cupolas of the buildings were taken into account. Each cupola would house boilers, elevator machinery, and air-conditioning units, and automatically goes as of right with the zoning the Council is considering for the site. That 340 feet height privilege for Cappelli’s 7-acre site is being considered Tuesday evening.

WPCNR News learned Tuesday, that some prominent architects familiar with these designs plan to speak out against these designs as not being rich enough looking or classy enough for the city. They plan to do this at tonight’s Common Council meeting.

However, initial reaction from the Common Council was good last week. It is reported from Common Council sources that Fred Bland, the consultant from Beyer, Blinder, Belle whom the Council is relying on for guidance in the appropriateness of these towers, is dissappointed in the design, yet this could not be immediately confirmed.

CAPPELLI TOWER ONE

City Center Tower One is a predominant white brick and green glass design, with horizontal bricking pattern promoting a more grounded, solid feel to it, topped by a traditional slant roof cupola. This design gives a “lower” look to the building that Pauline Oliva, Councilperson most opposed to the height, liked. Mr. Cappelli advised the council that the first ten floors at the base of the building, being backed onto the City Center retail and theater complex cannot rent for substantial money, and can only command about $2 per square foot.

Consequently, he feels he needs the top six floors which move the building beyond the 28-story residential limit the Council is considering for the rest of the downtown “core” area. The top 6 stories, Cappelli says can command rentals of $3/square foot ($3,000 a month and up). According to Cappelli, that is “where the money is,” and is a make-or-break factor in the future success of the building.

CAPPELLI TOWER TWO WITH GOLD CROWN

City Center Tower Two is a white brick, white limestone and clear glass building with a vertical scheme that presents a “soaring to the heavens” look. On Tower Two, Cappelli’s architects have incorporated a slant gold roof pyramid design to the pinnacle portion at the top, reminiscent of the famous Metropolitan Life building in New York City.

CAPPELLI TOWER TWO AT NIGHT

City Center Tower Three was the design that appeared to impress Councilpersons the most. It combines vertical drama with horizontal “grounding” in a rich red brick pattern and clear glass pattern, topped by a substantial gold-plated mansard cupola.

Cappelli spoke in warm, seductive tones, describing the buildings as being “beacons,” “landmark, signature buildings,” that would be visible on the skyline at night for miles while lending an aura of hope, drama and success to the city.

CAPPELLI TOWER THREE WITH GOLD MANSARD ROOF

The landmark height decision is expected to made this week by the Common Council, either Tuesday evening or later this week. But, this does not mean the City Center is cleared for takeoff. The Special Permit approving the site plan will be taken up September 20, at which time the design of the building will be either approved or turned down by the Common Council.

CAPPELLI TOWER THREE AT NIGHT

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Achilles Heel of architectural taste is apparently going to be the vulnerable point of the project, and it appears that beginning Tuesday evening, architects opposed to these designs will be speaking out loudly and long right up until the September 20 day of decision.

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Tuesday evening, beginning at 8:00 PM, (previous edition reported a 7:30 start time), the Common Council will decide high impact matters affecting the city for decades: the City Center, zoning in the city core, restricted development in the neighborhoods, and whether or not to adapt an aggressive city environmental policy created by the Mayor with community groups.

The regular September Common Council meeting will be the first of the 21st century operating under a mandatory midnight curfew in place. Previously, WPCNR had been told the meeting would start at 7:30 PM, but The Mayor’s Office has confirmed that the normal 8 PM start is still in place.

Meetings, if still going on at midnight, will automatically “rollover” to continue on Wednesday evening (or Thursday evening at 7:30 PM.) As of this morning there was no agreement on exactly what date the meeting would continue on. The Mayor’s Office reported Friday that the Common Council has a “hand-shake” agreement to abide by the new curfew rule.

Greer, Mayor Clash on Speaker Time Limits.

Despite heavy pressure from Robert Greer at a work session where the marathon August 6 Common Council meeting lasting 7 hours, 40 minutes, was discussed, the Mayor refused to enforce any time limits on speakers. He said that people had a right to speak. Greer was unhappy with the Mayor’s position on time limits, saying the Mayor had the tools at his disposal to limit speakers. (The City Charter states speakers should be limited to 5 minutes.) Greer strongly suggested that speakers be limited to 5 minutes only. However, the rest of the Common Council in attendance, was silent on the 5-minute time limit. All were in agreement to the new 4-1/2 hour time limit on future council meetings with continuation to next available night.

Time Limit to be Tested Tuesday evening.

Tuesday evening will be a solid test of the midnight cutoff because it will be the night resuming three controversial public hearings and three resolutions on the Mayor’s Environmental Protection Initiative.

The Louis Cappelli City Center where the “Twin Towers of Cappelli” are planned will face its first test before the Common Council. As that public hearing resumes, the Council will decide on whether to permit a maximum height for residential buildings of 350 feet for development sites of “lots” greater than 200,000 square feet on the Cappelli site. If they approve this, they will schedule one more hearing on the City Center project for September 20, when they are scheduled to vote the Special Permit, and the financing for the project. If they refuse to approve the 34-story height, the City Center project may be dead in the water.

28 story apartments with 25 foot setbacks along Mamaroneck Avenue to be considered.

The council will also reopen the hearing on zoning changes proposed for the critical Main Street, down Mamaroneck Avenue to Post Road downtown. This hearing will consider amending the permitted height of residential buildings in the White Plains Downtown area to 280 feet, if they are set back 25 feet above the first floor retail.

The third “biggie” is a resumed hearing on residential zoning changes in the outlying residential neighborhoods, which was held over from the August meeting due to concern about what affect the new Floor Area Ratios proposed by the Planning Department would have on existing nonconforming homes. Commissioner of Planning Michael Graessle told WPCNR in August that the Planning Department has been looking at the ramifications of this issue and we expect some clarification of this issue Tuesday evening.

Environmental Protection Initiative Policy, Open Space Acquisition and D’Elia property deal at mercy of the Common Council

The council will be asked to approve a resolution formally establishing the Open Space Acquisition Advisory Committee and establishing a $5 million acquisition funding mechanism tapping pension funds with ample reserves.

As part of the Environmental Protection Initiative parlay, the council will be asked to pass a resolution approving acquisition of the D’Elia property for $1.75 million, and agreeing to bond for the money.

This deal came under fire last week by Councilpersons Robert Greer, Rita Malmud, William King (a member of the Open Space Acquisition Advisory Committee), and Benjamin Boykin II, because the Councilpersons wanted the Mayor to ask the county to defray the expense of the property with an Open Space contribution. Greer and his four fellow councilpersons asked Andy Spano for aid in a letter Wednesday afternoon, despite the Mayor’s assurance to them last Tuesday afternoon that he had a scheduled meeting with Spano to discuss financial aid.

The Mayor made clear to the Capital Projects Board, he intended to seek county, state and federal aid for this acquisition, but in order for the city to meet the New York Trust for Public Land 90-day deadline the Council needed to approve going to contract for the land with Arnold Orlando, the contractor who has agreed to sell the D’Elia property. It remains to be seen whether the Council will approve the resolution to acquire the property, pending possible aid in the future, or turn it down outright.

In other matters, the council is scheduled to set in motion a lowering of the tax delinquency interest charge from 25% to 12%.

They will consider granting Kelly’s Pub and Grill and Thirsty Turtle establishments a Special Permit for an outdoor dining area.

They will hold a public hearing permitting six-story apartments on behalf of former Councilman Bill Brown’s proposed senior housing apartments on South Kensico Avenue.

The complete agenda may be viewed onThe City of White Plains website

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Here is the text of the letter Councilpersons Robert Greer, William King, Rita Malmud, Pauline Oliva, and Benjamin Boykin wrote to County Executive Spano Wednesday.
August 28, 2001

Dear County Executive Spano:

The City of White Plains is currently negotiating for the purchase of approximately six acres of open space andits eventual dedication as parkland. the property, commonly known as the D’Elia property, is situated in the Reynal Park/Rocky Dell section of White Plains and abuts The Greenway — dedicated City parkland.

The Trust for Public land has been involved in negotiations with the present owners on the City’s behalf and has arrived at a purchase price of $1.75 million. White Plains is very interested in owning this property as permanent open space and dedicating it as parkland. However, an unaided purchase of this magnitude would strain the City’s ability to buy other desirable parcels of open space for use as parkland.

We know of the County’s interest in open space preservation and wish to respectfully request that the County provide the City with financial assistance in order to make this important acquisition.

Sincerely,

Rita Z. Malmud, Council President

Robert Greer,Councilman

Pauline C. Oliva, Councilman

Benjamin Boykin II, Councilman

William M. King,Councilman