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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Brenda Starr visiting Playland last Sunday

WPCNR PLAYLAND-GO-ROUND. From Sustainable Playland. April 30, 2014:

Sustainable Playland  agreed Wednesday to return to the County Board of Legislators Playland Improvement Plan Review, under the understanding the county will represent Sustainable in any legal action arising from its (SPI) ultimate selection by the county to run the amusement park.

The development group withdrew from the Review  last month due to one litigation process initiated by County Legislator Ken Jenkins, and the City of Rye call for a complete environmental review as well as right of final approval of the project.

Since then the Board of Legislators has stated they have the final say in how the Playland Park will be “reinvented” that the City of Rye will be considered in the process, but the county board will make the ultimate decision.

In a letter sent Westchester County Executive Robert Astorino Wednesday afternoon, Kim Morque the President of Sustainable Playland, writes:

“After thorough deliberation by our board, we are prepared to resume the review.  We understand that going forward your administration will take a more active role with us in completing the operator agreements (including parking) and providing the relevant necessary information to the Board’s reviewing committees.  We further understand that the County will represent us in any current and future lawsuits relating the approval process and implementation of the PIP (Playland Improvement Plan) should SPI be named as a respondent.”

County Board of Legislators Chair Michael Kaplowitz had given Sustainable until May 1 to acknowledge they would rejoin the Review or not.

Mr. Morque’s letter committed to do executing theses tasks upon approval of SPI’S Playland Improvement Plan:

Once the PIP is approved and we can move forward in our role with Playland, SPI will:

• Set and implement goals set forth in the Vision Plan.
• Coordinate and manage the operators of the park’s zones.
• Advocate, oversee and fundraise for environmental projects, historic preservation and park restoration to supplement funds that will be invested by the operators and may otherwise be available from revenue generated from operator payments to SPI.

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WPCNR ALBANY ROUNDS. From the Governor’s Press Office. (EDITED) April 28, 2014:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that the 2014-2015 State Budget designates $20 million to support implementation of recommendations by the New NY Bridge Mass Transit Task Force (MTTF). The recommendations include a range of improvements to support a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system between Rockland and Westchester counties that is anticipated to increase transit ridership by 10,150 people per day in the region and cut commuter travel times by 20 to 25 percent.

Governor Cuomo also announced the state’s application for a $26.7 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) matching grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation to provide additional support for the BRT system and other MTTF recommendations.

The 31-member MTTF panel is made up of elected officials from Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties, along with transportation experts, professional planners, transit advocates and other regional stakeholders. It was co-chaired by New York State Thruway Authority Executive Director Thomas Madison and New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald.

The TIGER grant application includes the following short-term project elements:
· New Bus Stations with amenities and improved pedestrian connections,
· A “Smart Corridor” on Route 59 with technology-focused traffic improvements,
· A “transit boulevard” on Route 119 in White Plains that allows buses to run faster, and;
· Ramp Metering along I-287 to manage congestion and increase transit speed, reliability, and efficiency.
The MTTF, established at the request of Governor Cuomo in December 2012, was tasked with making recommendations that are fiscally viable and meet the transit needs of the region, targeting major residential, commercial and employment corridors. The group issued its final report on February 28, 2014 and included the following:

Short-term Recommendations for the coming five years
· New BRT Stations and Vehicles
· High-Tech Transit Signal Priority Systems
· Simple, Legible Routing
· Dedicated Transit Lanes
· I-287 Congestion Control: Ramp Metering
· Traffic Signal Improvements
· Route 59 “Smart Corridor”
· White Plains Access and Station Area Study
· Corridor Preservation Study
· Interchange 10 Reconstruction / South Nyack Study
· New I-287/87 Interchange 14X Study
· Transportation Demand Management Programs
· Transit-Oriented Development
· West-of-Hudson Rail Improvements
Mid-term Recommendations, for up to 15 years after The New NY Bridge opens
· White Plains Station Redevelopment
· Interchange 11 Reconstruction
· West-of-Hudson Rail Improvements
· In-Line BRT Station at the Palisades Center
· New BRT Stations Along the Proposed Routes
· Expanded Park and Ride Facilities in Rockland County
Long-term Recommendations, for 15 years or more after The New NY Bridge opens
· Passenger Service on the West Shore Line
· East-West Rail Options (Light Rail or Commuter Rail)
The MTTF met 12 times between late 2012 and early 2014 to develop its transit recommendations. In addition, 18 working sessions were held with local stakeholders to further refine the proposal.

The full Mass Transit Task Force report can be found here: http://www.newnybridge.com/documents/index.html.

More information on the USDOT TIGER Grant Program can be found here: http://www.dot.gov/tiger.

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Some Cherry Trees Were blossoming for the Cherrytree Festival Sunday afternoon in Turnure Park

At 4:15 PM, some 250 persons were enjoying ceremonial drums (below).

“Sail Dancing” on Long Island Sound off Port Washington and Oyster Bay

Playland Mirage

Your new improved Boardwalk and Bathhouses (right) awaiting the Children’s Museum

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WE’RE NETWORKED!

TIME FOR THE

WHITE PLAINS LOCAL NEWS ROUNDUP 

 WHITE PLAINS WEEK

RIDE WITH THE NEWS COWBOYS

PETER KATZ, JOHN BAILEY, JIM BENEROFE

THEY KNOW THE BADLANDS

ROUNDING UP THE BIG STORIES,

HERDING THE DARK CLOUDS OUT OF THE SKY KEEPING THE HEAVENS BLUE

FOR 13 YEARS

ON

www.whiteplainsweek.com

TALKING ABOUT

THE SOFTBALL BUDGET REVIEW: NO CUTS NO WINS NO HOPE

THE MYTH OF THE PROPERTY TAX REFUND

 LOVE AFFAIR WITH A ONE-ARM GARBAGE TRUCK 

 SALES TAX RECEIPTS BOUNCE BACK!

THE HOUSE FORECLOSURE FACTOR

THE PLAYLAND MESS

THE CITY BUDGET VIDEO — NEW YOUTUBE SENSATION?

AND MORE!

EXCLUSIVE!

ON PEOPLE TO BE HEARD

TONIGHT  ONLY AVAILABLE ON

www.whiteplainsweek.com

YOU’VE GOT

JON SCHANDLER

Jon Schandler, President, CEO, White Plains Hospital

ON OBAMA CARE WHAT’S WORKING, WHAT’S NOT?

THE STATE OF HEALTH CARE IN WESTCHESTER COUNTY

WHITE PLAINS HOSPITAL’S NEW RELATIONSHIP WITH MONTEFIORE HOSPITAL HOW THEY WILL WORK TOGETHER

THE HOSPITAL AND URGENT CARE PROVIDERS

THE TROUBLE WITH THE NEW HEALTH INSURANCE POLICIES

WHO’S DECIDING WHAT ON FUTURE MEDICAL FACILITIES.

HEALTH CARE BY THE NUMBERS

AND MORE

ON PEOPLE TO BE HEARD

WHERE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY

HAVE THEIR SAY.

John Bailey, Peter Katz, Jon Schandler, Jim Benerofe. White Plains TV Photos by Jake Frisbee

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WPCNR HOMESIDE. From the Westchester County Clerk Office. (EDITED). April  22, 2014 UPDATED 9:45 A.M.EDT April 23, 2014:

The Office of the Westchester County Clerk reported six hundred and eighty six (686) foreclosure actions started between January 1^st and March 31^th of 2014, equaling the first quarter of 2013.

WPCNR also has learned from the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors that the Westchester County home sales increase of 19% touted for the first quarter includes sales of foreclosed homes.

WPCNR contacted the County Clerk for a statement on the source of these continuing trend in new actions initiated against owners– which come on top of news of a 300%  increase in first quarter judgments settling foreclosure actions.

Mr. Idoni, as he did when he first put out the news of the spectacular rise in  foreclosure judgments in January,  told the Journal News yesterday, the same thing he said on White Plains Week on January 17 two months ago.

On the judgments, he is quoted by The Journal News: “Rather than a rash of all new filings, we are seeing a clean-up of situations where homeowners have been in trouble a long time.”

However, Mr. Idoni, though requested by WPCNR,  did not address the 686 new foreclosure filings that are essentially the same as the first quarter of 2013, though, and what they meant. Do increased filings mean the real estate market prices are being held down by the foreclosure bargains? (Just one thought that comes to mind.) 

The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors told WPCNR that the increase in Westchester home sales of 19% in the first quarter includes the sales of foreclosed homes put back on the market, after judgments,  but did not have a figure on the percentage of the lift in sales that those foreclosure sales provided. They are working to develop that figure. 

The County Clerk office did not respond to WPCNR’s request for the number of foreclosed homes that were sold in the county during the first quarter. Perhaps they are working on that.

The new fore closure filings for the first quarter are in addition to  the number of foreclosure judgments in the first quarter of 2014  being almost three times the number from the first quarter of 2013 reported Westchester County Clerk Timothy C. Idoni who serves as Clerk of the Westchester County Supreme Court where foreclosure actions are heard.

“These first quarter judgment numbers are the largest we’ve seen since historic highs in 2008 and 2009,” continued Idoni. . (in addition to the 686 new filings).

Foreclosure Judgments Filed

Westchester Residential Opportunities (WRO), a non-profit housing agency with offices in White Plains and Mount Vernon, conducts Mortgage Default Orientation sessions most Wednesday’s in their White Plains Office.  Trained counselors are available to help at (914) 428-4507 or by visiting www.wroinc.org.

For more information on the Office of the Westchester County Clerk, please visit WestchesterClerk.com or call (914)995-3081.