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 COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. From the Westchester County Department of Communications. September 26, 2013:

As a result of a multi-department effort that led to the arrests of part-time employees for stealing the receipts of county parking operations, a new system of controls has been put in place to prevent this type of theft in the future.

The Parks Department assisted detectives from the Department of Public Safety in the year-long investigation that led to the indictment of three former hourly Parks employees and the arrests of 12 others.  The thefts occurred between 2009 and 2012 and involved employees pocketing money from patrons for monthly parking permits and MetroCards and then falsifying records to cover their crimes.

County Executive Robert P. Astorino said he was disgusted that employees would steal from Westchester County taxpayers. “This is a violation of the public’s trust,” he said. “As soon as allegations surfaced, I made sure the county moved quickly to find out the full extent of the problem and take the steps necessary to prevent it from happening again. Theft in any form cannot be tolerated and we must always be vigilant to prevent it.”

Parks Commissioner Kathleen O’Connor, whose department oversees the county’s parking operations, said the implementation of new controls began over a year ago, but were not disclosed publicly until now to prevent tipping off those involved in the scheme.

“Now that the criminal investigation has concluded, we can report that changes have already been made to strengthen our internal controls,” she said. “These individuals were able – at least for a while – to get around the checks and balances. We have revamped the system to address these weaknesses. We can’t prevent every theft, but we can make criminal acts more difficult to commit and easier to detect and that is what our new controls are designed to do.”

Public Safety Commissioner George N. Longworth thanked the Parks Department for its cooperation over the course of the investigation and praised the work of Detectives Edward Kelch and George Ruiz of the General Investigations Unit.

“These detectives reviewed thousands of documents and conducted a detailed investigation to identify the extent of this fraud,” Longworth said.  “We believe that all persons who were criminally responsible have been identified and formally charged.”

O’Connor said that all of the employees who were implicated in the fraud were terminated following their arrests.

O’Connor said that changes made by the Parks Department include:

• Appointing a new parking supervisor;
• Requiring the financial staff assigned to the County Center to report directly to the Administrative Division at Parks Department headquarters;
• Limiting the number of parking permits distributed at any one time to the parking office staff that handles sales to the public;
• Installing security cameras in parking offices and booths, and
• Installing a new point-of-sale system with increased controls and reporting.

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AnneMarie Encanarcao Candidate for Common Council

WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2013. From the AnneMarie Encarnacao Campaign. September 25, 2013:

AnneMarie is a lifelong resident of White Plains for 46 years and has lived in 5 different neighborhoods throughout the city: Prospect Park, Soundview, Battle Hill, Fisher Hill, and now The Highlands.  She and her husband Rui have been married for 26 years and have two adult children, Ashley and Rui, who attended White Plains Public Schools K-12.

AnneMarie is a licensed insurance and real estate broker in downtown White Plains.  Actually, her insurance company is in the Republican Headquarters, thus ultimately leading her to run for Common Council.

Her exact words were “I want to run for Common Council because instead of complaining, I want to get involved!”  So that is exactly what she did.

AnneMarie went out in her neighborhood/district and got signatures to get her name on the ballot for Common Council along with her fellow team members, Cass Cibelli who is running for Mayor and Claudia Murphy who is also running for Common Council.

The Encarnarcoas: Daughter Ashley, Son Rui, Anne-Marie Encanarcao, and husband Rui

As a middle class working family, Rui and AnneMarie have seen their real estate taxes double in the 13 years they have lived in their same home in the Highlands!  This is one of AnneMarie’s biggest concerns, taxes.  She realizes through her career as a Realtor that senior citizens in the city can’t afford to live in their homes any longer because of the ever increasing taxes.  She would like to see a City Senior STAR for them to help alleviate the high taxes to try and keep them in their homes!

Another concern of AnneMarie as a lifelong citizen was the two large Open Spaces that were made available to the city over the last decade that would have benefitted all White Plains residents, young and old!

Both were voted down by some of the present common council members and the mayor!  One was NY Hospital’s proposal to give the city an abundant amount of acres for a “Central Park” including playing fields!   The other was Ridgeway Country Club that the city passed on buying.  It should/could have been White Plains’ “Lake Isle” as in Eastchester that is a money making venue for that city and a club for its residents.

As a Realtor in White Plains, AnneMarie has seen the effect that the sale of the (Ridgeway) club to The French American School of New York has had on the real estate values of the homes in Gedney Farms.  They have lost anywhere upwards of $200,000 each, which is approximately a 20%+ decrease, whereas other areas in the city have only saw half that or less.

AnneMarie is a kind hearted person and would help anyone she meets.  She now wants to expand that by running for Common Council and helping her city and its residents.  She knows exactly how they feel because she has been one of those citizens and is ready to listen, act, and try to make changes to the way business is done in the city.

The city has been at a stalemate and some of the decisions that have been made were not really the most beneficial to the residents.  AnneMarie feels the residents have been cheated out of useful, family, green space that would have been used by all, young and old!

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French American School of New York proposed this Aligned Intersection at the entrance to White Plains High School to the right in the simulation above,  creating a North Street entrance to their proposed new 1,200 student campus to be built on the old Ridgeway Country Club property. A two lane access road would be built into former fairways (left of picture) leading into the club. Cars attempting to make a u-turn heading on North Street north, would be able to turn around in the new Ridgeway entrance drive. Student crosswalks would be built to cross the street to the bus stop and the YWCA

WPCNR SOUTH END TIMES. By John F. Bailey. September 23, 2013 UPDATED September 24, 2013 11:30 P.M. E.D.T.:

Seventy persons packed the Board of Education meeting Monday evening, most drawn to hear the French American School of New York explanation to the school board of what FASNY would request for entrance redesign and construction of  the Board to allow at the White Plains High School entrance, should a North Street entrance be accepted by the White Plains city Common Council.

The School Board saw an animation of the FASNY choice of North Street entrance to the Ridgeway property consisting of four lanes– 2 northbound with turn lanes into FASNY and the high school  and  2 south bound with turn lanes into FASNY and the high school. The new entrance drive continues deep into the nature conservancy area into the FASNY campus. There is a turnabout on the FASNY drive for vehicles heading out of the YWCA to make a u-turn and safely return north without making a u-turn in the intersection as they do now on a regular basis.

The FASNY presenter pointed out that the aligned standard intersection had been endorsed by the Westchester County Department of Public Works and the Westchester County Traffic Commissioner (North Street is a county-owned road). The presenter said FASNY feels the aligned intersection on North Street is the best option, and presently is not considering the roundabout suggestion at North Street or an entrance on Bryant Avenue as noted in the Final Environmental Impact Statement approved last week..

Common Councilman John Kirkpatrick in attendance, asked if the White Plains Planning Department and Public Works Department had approved the aligned intersection too, declined to answer the question, and said “There are still a lot of problems with the Final Environmental Impact Statement. And we are keeping an open mind.”

FASNY also presented a series of North South and East West walking trails that would allow students to walk from Bryant Avenue and Ridgeway to the high school through the former Ridgeway School. They said a mandatory busing program would cut the amount of vehicular traffic by 50% (correction from 80% that appeared previously in this report).

FASNY allowed there would be a service entrance on Ridgeway, too. FASNY also said they will stagger starting hours for their high school, middle school and elementary and nursery schools on the site to mitigate traffic impacts, showing how overlaps spread out the traffic flow.

Fourteen of 16 citizens speaking at the traditional public comment period (scheduled at every Board of Education meeting), were against the North Street entrance alternative presented and most declared there would be too much traffic impact no matter how staggered the hours were.

Interim Superintendent of Schools, Timothy Connors, above, said after the hour and twenty mintute presentation and comment period, the Board of Education would now gather more information from FASNY, and get answers to questions the Board might have. If a request is made for the Board to act on any construction taking high school property, Connors said he would make a recommendation to the Board.

WPCNR reached out to Common Council President Beth Smayda, asking what the timing of any Board of Education vote on approving or rejecting a North Street entrance to the school.

 The issues on  timing  of Board of Education action on the North Street entrance presented Monday night are, (as best as WPCNR can determine) are:

 1.)should the Board approve or reject the North Street proposal before the Council makes a Findings Statement,

2.  after the Council makes a positive finding on the FASNY project (and before the preparation of a site plan by FASNY), or

3. after a site plan is submitted by FASNY

or

4. Whether a vote would only come if a Common Council site plan approval of the project included the redesign of the White Plains High School entrance to accommodate an entrance and egress drive off North Street  leading into the now dormant fairways of the former Ridgeway Club into the new French American School of New York campus.

Council President Smayda has not yet responded.

The representatives from the school said they, if greenlighted by the White Plains Common Council would open in 2015 with construction expected complete by 2019.

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2013. By John F. Bailey. September 23, 2013:

A local paper had the Zuber Riders Open Letter to Noam Bramson advertisement for three days before telling the Zuber Riders for Justice two words were not acceptable, WPCNR has learned. At no time prior to 6 PM Thursday was Zuber Riders told of a legal problem with the copy.

A spokesperson for the Lincoln Zuber Riders told WPCNR Sunday that a Journal News advertising executive told him  two words appearing in an advertisement “open letter” demanding an apology from New Rochelle Noam Bramson for alleged “long history of hositility towards the black community,” were objectionable and the ad could not be run with the words  “conspired” and “stopped” appearing in the submitted context.

 Mark McLean, the spokesperson for Lincoln Zuber said Loren Peterson, representing The Journal News told him about 6 PM  last Thursday evening the two words, “conspired” and “stopped”  had to be removed from the ad because, (McLean told WPCNR), the paper “was concerned about being sued.”

McLean told WPCNR he had submitted the advertisement Tuesday to run in the Journal News Friday.

McLean was frankly puzzed he said to WPCNR:

“The paper had the ad for three days, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. I gave them a check on Wednesday.  I asked ‘Is it going to run Friday? Is it going to run Friday?’  Thursday they called me  at 6 P..M. and said  it’s not going to run.”

Why an ad that was accepted for two days (almost three) then pulled out of the blue  with no time to change it is a mystery to McLean.

McLean mused that  the Bramson administration was holding a large festival and ribbon cutting for the reopening of the Heritage House affordable housing complex, a short distance away from Lincoln Park. But he said that was just speculation on his part .

McLean told WPCNR the following was the  context of the first objectionable word flagged by the Journal News, “conspired.”

“Conspired and voted twice to intentionally destroy the one single Black majority Council in New Rochelle,violating the Voting Rights Act and a Federal Judge’s Court Order.”

The context of second flagged word, “Stopped.”

“Stopped a historic opportunity to elect the first black County Executive, Ken Jenkins, the highest elected black official in Westchester.”

McLean said he told Peterson– Lincoln Zuber was willing to  change the ad, but he wanted the advertisement to run Friday, prior to the Saturday ribbon-cutting event being held in Lincoln Park Saturday. He said Peterson told him “the paper would not run the ad.”

“They were adamant about that,” McLean added.

Asked if the Robert P. Astorino campaign for County Executive had written the rejected advertisement, McLean said, “Of course not.”

Asked if the Astorino campaign had paid for the ad, McLean said “They had nothing to do with it.”

Asked if Lincoln Zuber  would change the ad and attempt to run it in the future, McLean  did not say they would, but the organization would “continue to focus on Noam Bramson’s record.”  (with the Black Community).

Janet Hasson, President and Publisher of The Journal News was sent an E-Mail by WPCNR Sunday afternoon requesting an explanation for the rejection of the original copy. WPCNR asked:

“1. Could you please give me a statement as to why the Journal News found the ad objectionable? (Any specific violations of election law, for example?)

2. Could you explain the words you wanted them, according to the Zuber press release, you wanted them to put in the ad?

3. Would you have run the ad if Zuber had made the changes?”

So far there has been no response from Ms. Hasson, or The Journal News. WPCNR placed a call to the newsroom this morning, again giving the opportunity for Ms. Hasson to give The Journal News side of why the ad was rejected.

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2013. September 21, 2013:

A black civil rights organization, The New Rochelle Lincoln Zuber Riders for Justice, based in New Rochelle,  paid for an advertisement to run in the Journal News  only the paper did not run it, yet. 

According to a  press release from the Riders organization, announcing a news conference Saturday afternoon to publicize the rejection, the paper declined to run the advertisement.  And the paper has not indicated why they refused it according to the Riders.  Here is the ad copy that as of this writing, has not be accepted for publication by the newspaper.

The Riders organization  issued this news release acusing the newspaper of declining to run the ad:

September 20, 2013 — NEW ROCHELLE, NY—

New Rochelle Lincoln Zuber Riders for Justice, a local New Rochelle organization made up of several prominent African-American leaders, will hold a press conference Saturday at 1:00 p.m. in New Rochelle to demand the Journal News run a print advertisement accepted and paid for earlier this week, scheduled to run today (Saturday) but spiked last night by Gannett corporate.

The advertisement documents New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson’s long-standing hostility and discrimination toward Blacks in New Rochelle.

It was only after the paper was put to bed last night that New Rochelle Lincoln ZuberRiders for Justice was notified that the newspaper wanted two words changed in the advertisement. After further discussion, a Journal News advertising executive admitted that even if the words were changed Gannett corporate had directed the Journal News not to run the ad. No explanation for corporate’s decision was provided.

“As long as I have been reading newspapers, I have never heard of a newspaper refusing to run an ad like this.” said McLean, Spokesman for the Zuber Riders. “This is the kind of underhanded tactics we have seen for years from Bramson and his allies.”

The Zuber Riders print ad banned by the Journal News lists the ways Noam Bramson has locked Blacks out of contracts, out of jobs, out of elected representation, even Lincoln Park, the site of one of the most important Civil Rights cases in U.S. history.

McLean said many in the New Rochelle black community have long felt bitterness and distrust for Mayor Bramson but said what galvanized the group to speak out was when the President of the NAACP, New Rochelle Chapter, was thrown out of historic Lincoln Park on September 5th.

“When they threw Ron out of Lincoln Park, that was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” said McLean. “We knew we couldn’t remain silent anymore. People need to know what we know about Noam Bramson’s attitude towards Blacks.”

“For too long the Black community in New Rochelle has been taken for granted, violated and silenced,” said McLean. “We will not stand for it anymore. We deserve better!”

New Rochelle Lincoln Zuber Riders for Justice will hold a press conference in Lincoln Park, across from 95 Lincoln Avenue in New Rochelle, NY on Saturday afternoon, September 21, 2013 at 1:00 p.m.

On hand will be members of New Rochelle’s African-American community including Ron Williams, President of the NAACP New Rochelle Branch, Pearl Quarles, former Westchester County Legislator and former President of New Rochelle School Board. Mark McLean, Community Activist and Angelo Williams, small business owner with more being added throughout the day.

The Zuber Riders is inviting all those who believe in Free Speech and Civil Rights to be on hand as the media covers this important press conference to expose yet another example of Noam Bramson’s attempts to suppress Black voices in New Rochelle and highlight the facts contained in the ad that the Journal News refused to run.

New Rochelle Lincoln Zuber Riders for Justice is an organization of committed community leaders who are dedicated to honoring the memory of Paul Zuber and ensuring that all Westchester County residents are aware that the struggle for Civil Rights in New Rochelle are always persistent and never forgotten. Paul Zuber was an attorney for the Lincoln school children in New Rochelle. Mr. Zuber successfully fought for integration of New Rochelle’s school district.

The Noam Bramson campaign issued a newsletter by e-mail crying foul, calling out the advertisement for its racist accusations,  to wit:

Rob Astorino has hit a new low. His campaign just issued one of the most despicable, racially-divisive attacks ever made in Westchester, accusing Noam directly of discrimination and bigotry.
I want you to read their attacks, so you can see for yourself how outrageous they are: this press release sets the stage, and this website puffs up the charges. It’s really dirty stuff.
African-American leaders throughout the county have joined together to denounce this attack, issuing the following challenge to Astorino:

Mr. Astorino:
Today your campaign launched a racially-charged political attack on Mayor Noam Bramson, spearheaded by an individual whom you appointed to a County Commission. This kind of ugly racial appeal has no place in the politics of Westchester County, and we call upon you to disavow it immediately.
Sincerely,
Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Democratic Caucus Leader, New York State Senate Ruth Hassell-Thompson, New York State Senator J. Gary Pretlow, New York State Assemblymember Ken Jenkins, Chair, Westchester County Board of Legislators Lyndon Williams, Vice-Chair, Westchester County Board of Legislators Alfreda Williams, Westchester County Legislator Gregory Adams, Port Chester Village Board J.Yuhanna Edwards, Mt. Vernon City Council President Marcus Griffith, Mt. Vernon City Council Duane Jackson, Buchanan Village Trustee Christopher Johnson, Yonkers City Council Jared Rice, New Rochelle City Council Karen Watts-Yehudah, Mt. Vernon City Council

We already knew Rob Astorino was running a negative campaign of false attacks on Noam’s record, but this garbage just takes my breath away.

 Jeremy Sherber Campaign Manager