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 SCHOOL DAYS. From the Governor’s Office. December 10, 2015:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the final report and recommendations of the Common Core Task Force.

The Task Force recommends overhauling the current Common Core system and adopting new, locally-driven New York State standards in a transparent and open process to make sure all students are prepared to succeed in an increasingly competitive 21^st century economy.

The new standards, curriculum and tests and must uniquely developed for New York students with sufficient local input. The Task Force also recommends that current Common Core aligned tests should not count for students or teachers until the start of 2019-2020 school year to ensure the system is implemented completely and properly to avoid the errors caused by the prior flawed implementation.

Governor Cuomo said: “After listening to thousands of parents, educators and students, the Task Force has made important recommendations that include overhauling the Common Core, adopting new locally-designed high quality New York standards, and greatly reducing testing and testing anxiety for our students. The Common Core was supposed to ensure all of our children had the education they needed to be college and career-ready – but it actually caused confusion and anxiety. That ends now. Today, we will begin to transform our system into one that empowers parents, teachers and local districts and ensures high standards for all students. I thank the Task Force members for their thorough work. Together we will ensure that New York’s schools provide the world-class education that our children deserve.”

The Task Force was chaired by Richard Parsons, Senior Advisor, Providence Equity Partners, LLC and former Chairman of Citigroup.

Richard Parsons said: “While adoption of the Common Core was extremely well intentioned, its implementation has caused confusion and upheaval in classrooms across New York State. We believe that these recommendations, once acted on, provide a means to put things back on the right track and ensure high quality standards that meet the needs of New York’s kids. The recommendations will provide the foundation to restore public trust in the education system in New York and build on the long history of excellence that preceded this period. On behalf of all the Task Force members, I thank everyone who submitted feedback during our review, as well as the Governor for providing us with this opportunity to improve the education system for students across New York State.”

The Task Force affirmed the importance of maintaining the highest quality standards and performance measures in education. However, the Task Force found that over the past decade there has been rapid change in education, including the 2009 federal Race to the Top and Common Core which has created confusion and disruption in states across the nation, including New York. Moreover, the original process to adopt and implement the Common Core standards, curriculum and tests in New York had implementation issues and failed to include sufficient input from educators, parents and local districts and was not open and transparent.

To ensure that the State moves forward with high quality education standards the Task Force made 21 recommendations including:
· Overhauling the Common Core and adopting locally-driven high quality New York education standards with input from local districts, educators, and parents through a transparent and open process that are age-appropriate and allow educators flexibility for Students with Disabilities and English Language Learners.

· Establishing a transparent and open process by which New York standards are periodically reviewed by educators and content area experts, since educators know their schools and students best.

· Providing educators and local school districts with the flexibility to develop and tailor curriculum to meet the needs of their individual students and requiring the State to create and release new and improved curriculum resources that educators can then adapt to meet the needs of their individual students.

· Engaging New York educators, not a private corporation, to drive the review and creation of State standards-aligned tests in an open and transparent manner.

· Minimizing student testing anxiety by reducing the number of test days and test questions and providing ongoing test transparency to parents, teachers and districts on test questions and student test scores.

· Ensuring that State tests account for different types of learners, including Students with Disabilities and English Language Learners.

The Task Force found that to implement the new system would require significant work including a comprehensive review of the current Common Core Standards in order to adopt new New York State Standards and create new curriculum and assessments in an open and transparent manner for the nearly 700 school districts, 5,000 schools, 200,000 plus teachers and 2.65 million students.

Therefore, the Task Force believes that in order to finally get the system right there must be adequate time to implement the system. Given all of the work and time required to review and adopt new standards, improve and adapt curriculum, and create new assessments, any current Common Core aligned tests should not count for students or teachers until the start of 2019-2020 school year when the new statewide standards developed through this process will be put into place.

New York State Board of Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch said: “The Task Force has adopted many if not most of the Board of Regents’ recommendations for improving the implementation of the higher standards we’ve set for our students. The most important message in the Task Force report is the renewed commitment to adopting and maintaining higher standards. We cannot turn our backs on our students at a time when the world is demanding more from them – more skills, more knowledge, more problem-solving.”

New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia said: “In my first few months as commissioner, I’ve traveled across the state and heard a large cross section of New Yorkers — our teachers, parents and educators –share their deep concern for improving the education of our children. And as a member of the Common Core Task Force, I’ve heard those same stakeholders express those same concerns. Likewise, the Department’s AimHighNY survey unfolded the same passionate call for clear learning standards to serve as guideposts to future success for our children. Now it’s time to move forward and deliver on the promise we’ve made to our students and give them the best schools possible.”

The comprehensive report provides the history and context of learning standards and specifically, a review of the Common Core Standards in New York; a summary of testimony and stakeholder feedback across several categories and specific Task Force responses; and a full description of Task Force Recommendations.

The Education Transformation Act of 2015 will remain in place, and no new legislation is required to implement the recommendations of the report, including recommendations regarding the transition period for consequences for students and teachers. During the transition, the 18 percent of teachers whose performance is measured, in part, by Common Core tests will use different local measures approved by the state, similar to the measures already being used by the majority of teachers.

The report builds on the Governor’s longstanding commitment to education reform, including the recent laws together with the Legislature banning standardized testing for students in pre-kindergarten through 2nd grade, capping test preparation to two percent of learning time, not counting the Common Core scores against students and requiring the State Education Department to help districts eliminate unnecessary standardized tests for all other students.

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WPCNR THE FEINER REPORT By Paul Feiner. Town of Greenburgh Supervisor. December 9, 2015:

The Town Board is close to an agreement to  sell Frank’s nursery to an assisted living facility for $3,525,000. We anticipate that the facility will be between 90-100 units. In recent years residents have encouraged the town to sell the property, which we took over by foreclosure, for residential purposes or for an assisted living facility. Our current code authorizes assisted living facilities to be built at this location so no zoning changes will be required. We hired a broker over a year ago to help us market the property and worked hard to market the property. This was the best offer we received.

(1) Valterra (Capital Senior Housing) will now assume responsibility for the environmental remediation of the property but will do so at the Town’s expense;

(2) upon execution of the contract, Valterra (Capital Senior Housing) will deposit $100,000 in escrow and then assist the Town in working with the DEC during the (90) day feasibility period to quantify the cost of remediation and determine necessary remediation measures;

(3) once the cost of remediation is quantified, both parties will agree upon an amount of money to be placed in escrow that Valterra can draw down from to complete remediation;

(4) remediation will take place after closing and money placed in escrow for remediation will be deducted from the Town’s $3.5 purchase price;

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WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL-CHRONICLE EXAMINER. By John F. Bailey. December 5, 2015:

Four persons representing some 90 signers of a letter to the Mayor from a new political action group they call ACT  White Plains, called upon Councilmembers Nadine Hunt-Robinson, Milagros Lecuona, and Dennis Krolian to “reconsider” their 3 negative votes that denied the closing of Hathaway Lane August 5, which killed the proposed plan for a new French American School of New York campus on the former Ridgeway Country Club.

The letter said the three councilpersons who voted “No” on Hathway Lane closure, as “The tail is wagging the dog.”

The vote that Monday night in August resulted in a suit filed by The French American School of New York to reverse the council ruling. That suit is now under consideration by Judge Joan Lefkowitz in New York Supreme Court.

The group in their letter to the Mayor and Common Council which was read to the council, did not specifiy what they wanted the Common Council to do.

WPCNR has learned that the French American School has financing in place with a “reputable” financial institution to start and complete the project if the Common Council should reverse its decision either before or after the Judge makes their decision.

WPCNR has also learned that the school’s present attitude is simply that they want to build the school, and the source told me the school deliberately did not file a damages suit, because any court decision in their favor would have the potential of amplifying the damages the school they could ask for.

The letter presented by ACT said they were acting before it was too late and the city lost the prospect of a park and a school that would benefit the neighborhood of Gedney Farms and city.

A knowlegeable source from the French American School told WPCNR, they had no idea the group was being formed or was going to present this evening before today.

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A rendering of the new Esplanade presented Monday evening at the Common Council Special Meeting. Esplanade Properties plans a complete interior and exterior “makeover” to create apartments. The construction will require the 150 assisted living residents currently living there to find other apartments or living arrangements. Rendering, Esplanade properties. Photo by Ayana Meade

WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE-EXAMINER. Special to WPCNR by Correspondent Ayana Meade. December 2, 2015:

A plan to completely re-develop and re-purpose the Esplanade Properties—two buildings located opposite the Pavilion Shopping Center in downtown White Plains—was presented to the White Plains Common Council Monday night, during a special meeting at the Mayor’s Office.

The plan involves converting the two existing buildings at the intersection of South Broadway and Lyon Place into a mixed-use space offering 212 residential units, 9000 sq. ft. of medical office space, 6,750 sq. ft. of restaurants, and about 2,100 sq. ft. of retail.

One of the buildings slated for re-development (95 South Broadway) is currently being operated as a senior assisted living facility and is home to 150 senior residents who will need to be relocated during construction.  The other building (4 Lyon Place), currently operates as the Esplanade Hotel.  The two buildings are connected by an overhead, enclosed walkway that crosses Lyon Place.

The reimagining of The Esplanade Properties comes at a time when similar revitalization projects are slated for the East Post Road-South Broadway corridor on the hill above The Westchester mall—including the demolition and replacement of the nearly vacant Pavilion Mall with two residential towers as well as street level restaurants, and retail shops. That (The Pavilion) $275 million plan is currently under review by the White Plains Common Council.

Current Residents to Relocate

However, equally important and significant in the Esplanade re-development conversion is the careful transition and relocation of the 150 senior citizens currently residing at the Esplanade Senior Residences.

Esplanade Partners says they have yet to finalize the precise logistics regarding how the relocation will be handled but say,

“Management recognizes its responsibility to see that the transition is handled with a minimum of stress.”

Esplanade Partners estimates that the approval process will provide the time necessary for the residents and their families to explore suitable alternatives—stating that it is not expected for construction to begin in the main building requiring residents to move out, for at least six months.

NOTICE

A communication has gone out to residents—residents have received notice so they can begin planning for alternative living arrangements if necessary between now and commencement of construction. Esplanade Management and staff say they will also work closely with the residents and their families to find housing either at other Esplanade properties or non-Esplanade properties.

To house residents who require more time to find new residences Esplanade Partners is considering using the Annex (4 Lyon Place), saying they could have folks move over from the Esplanade to the Annex and still provide all the services necessary and begin renovation of the tower—however, the implementation of this plan has yet to be decided.

When asked by the Common Council whether Esplanade residents had the option of transitioning into the re-developed property, Esplanade responded that those truly independent residents may choose to stay after construction is complete, with the understanding that the new residence will not be a service provider.  

Kensington and The Bristol Suggested

Esplanade noted that the average age for independent living is 82; assisted living 87—saying that the folks that are currently residents at the Esplanade “Would probably seek a different location. This is not a senior assisted living facility—we can transition them to other nearby facilities such as the Kensington and the Bristol.”

The Project

The Esplanade plan entails extensive renovations, including replacement of the exterior of the 15-story main building (95 South Broadway) and the installation of energy efficient heating and air conditioning systems, windows and doors to bring the building’s outmoded mechanical infrastructure up to modern day standards.  However, nothing will be demolished.  The buildings are not proposed to come down in their entirety—there is no expansion of the footprint.

Other plans include improving the pedestrian streetscape and the skyline. On the back corner of the main building, three floors will be removed which will give the building an “L” shape.  “Maisonettes”—6 brownstone-like duplex units with sidewalk entrances will be built on Lyon Place providing a residential streetscape. An indoor pool, yoga studio, fitness center and other amenities will be available to residents.

The Mix

The following is the proposed rental unit mix, which is still subject to change:  62 studios, 107 one bedrooms, and 43 two bedrooms. The smallest studio is 400 sq. ft.—that’s 50 sq. ft. larger than the existing hotel rooms there today. The largest unit is 1,155 sq. ft. (2 bedroom apartments at the top corner units).  Esplanade properties has not established unit costs, but estimates they will be somewhere in the range of $35 per square foot.

The Market

When asked by the Council who their target demographic is, Esplanade responded that they weren’t at the point of marketing, but that the concept was to attract both ends of the spectrum—younger folks working in White Plains and empty nesters looking to downsize. Esplanade believes that these rental niches are underserved throughout Westchester.

Next

Esplanade Partners has already secured permission from the zoning board of appeals for a new roofline architectural feature, and during Monday’s meeting requested a zoning text amendment that will allow for the repurposing of the buildings and the elimination of a restriction that requires 500 sq. ft. per dwelling unit based upon lot area—elimination of this provision will allow Esplanade Properties to yield the desired 212 units.

Esplanade Partners requested to be placed on the Council’s next agenda to begin formal commencement of review, and to work cooperatively with the Council on the requested text amendment. It is expected that the Council will refer the plan for review by various City agencies.

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Janet DiFiore, Westchester County District Attorney. Nominated for Chief Justice of the NY Court of Appeals today. Photo, The District Attorney’s Office

WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. From the Governor’s Office. December 1, 2015:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today nominated Westchester District Attorney Janet DiFiore to serve as the next Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals – New York State’s highest court – and head of the judiciary branch. In addition to her nearly 10-year tenure as District Attorney, DiFiore has years of experience as both a prosecutor and judge, with an extensive background in judicial and legal reform. As District Attorney she also manages an office of more than 230 people.

“Janet DiFiore is tremendously qualified to serve as Chief Judge of the State Court of Appeals,” said Governor Cuomo. “She has served as both judge and prosecutor, and has spent her career working to ensure justice and fairness for New Yorkers. She has led crucial reform efforts to make our judicial system both more effective and more efficient, and I am confident that she would continue this leadership on the Court of Appeals. I am proud to nominate Janet for this position, because she has the strong, balanced experience that New York needs.”

Governor Cuomo continued: “I also wish to thank Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman for his years of dedicated service on the Court of Appeals, as well as former Chief Judge Judith Kaye and the members of the Commission on Judicial Nomination for their work in recommending a number of qualified and experienced potential nominees. This was a truly exceptional list of candidates.”

District Attorney DiFiore said: “I am humbled by the incredible honor of being nominated to serve as Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals. My professional life has been devoted to the fair administration of justice, and I would gladly continue my service to the people of New York on our state’s highest court. I am grateful to Governor Cuomo for this nomination.”

Westchester County Executive Robert P. Astorino commented: “I congratulate my friend Janet DiFiore on this prestigious appointment.  I have known Janet for many years and have worked closely with her on many issues and I know she’ll be an excellent judge and administrator for the New York court system.  I applaud the governor for choosing such a highly qualified individual as Janet DiFiore. New Yorkers will be well served.”

If confirmed by the State Senate, DiFiore would be only the second female chief judge in New York State history. The first – Chief Judge Judith Kaye – was nominated by Governor Mario Cuomo.

DiFiore has held her current position as District Attorney of Westchester County since January 2006, and is now serving her third term as the county’s chief law enforcement officer. Over the course of her tenure as District Attorney, she has targeted a broad array of crimes involving everything from gang-related violence to identity theft and environmental pollution. She also has considerable experience with domestic violence issues, and has spearheaded efforts to improve the investigation and handling of child abuse cases. Early in her first term, DiFiore also designed and launched the Westchester Intelligence Center, which helps coordinate resources and information sharing among local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.

Prior to beginning her first term in 2006, DiFiore spent more than six years on the bench of state and local courts. She first served as a Westchester County Court Judge from January 1999 to December 2002, and was later elected to serve as a Supreme Court Justice for the New York State Criminal Courts, 9^th Judicial District from January 2003 to May 2005. In her time on the bench, DiFiore presided over hundreds of civil and criminal cases on a broad array of issues. As a Supervising Judge on the state’s criminal court, she oversaw a restructuring of the case assignment system in order to increase efficiency and achieve the first elimination of all backlogged cases in any of the state’s judicial districts. Furthermore, during her time on the bench DiFiore was directly involved in the creation of Mental Health and Sex Offenders Courts, as well as the implementation of the newly established Domestic Violence and Drug Treatment Courts.

In addition to her responsibilities as District Attorney, DiFiore has co-chaired the New York State Justice Task Force since 2009, leading investigations of cases involving wrongful convictions and identifying reforms that will prevent such cases from occurring in the future. She was appointed to this position by the current Chief Judge, Jonathan Lippman. Additionally, during her first term as District Attorney, she personally led an investigation into the case of Jeffrey Deskovic, who had been wrongly convicted and sentenced as a teenager in 1990 for rape and murder. In addition to proving Deskovic’s innocence and securing his release from prison, DiFiore’s investigation resulted in the confession and sentencing of the actual killer.

DiFiore is a past president of the New York State District Attorneys Association, and has served on the New York State Commission on Youth, Safety and Justice, which recommended both statutory and administrative reforms pertaining to the prosecution and imprisonment of youthful offenders, as well as the New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics as its Chair. She received her B.A. from C.W. Post College, Long Island University and a J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law.

This is Governor Cuomo’s fifth nomination to the New York State Court of Appeals. Governor Cuomo previously appointed Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam and Judge Jenny Rivera, who were confirmed in 2013, and Judge Leslie Stein and Judge Eugene Fahey, who were confirmed in 2015.

DiFiore has been nominated to replace Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, who will be retiring at the end of the year.