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 WHITE PLAINS DOLLARS. By John F. Bailey. March 20, 2012:

The Westchester Business Council in conducting a “volunteered” survey executed by Kraft Foods Research announced a glowing series of positives that attract persons under 35 to Westchester County: commutability, nightlife, parks.

With Mayor Thomas Roach looking on (second from right), and County Executive Robert P. Astorino (far right), Marsha Gordon, President, CEO of the WBC announced the survey found its focus group participants selected White Plains as the County’s “Ideal Community,” for its balance of urban/suburban amenities, walkability, municipal parking, nightlife, family activities, recreation and professional networking, diversity and commutability to Manhattan. Photo by WPCNR

Mayor Roach was complimented by County Executive Robert P. Astorino, as having “picked up the torch” to continue White Plains growth, said in brief remarks, that the county is in a “fight to stop the flight of youth from the county.” Astorino said his leadership planned to do that is to tackle the high cost of living and the high taxes in the county.

Mayor Roach (above) in his remarks complimented Mayor Joseph Delfino as being “instrumental in turning around the fate of this city,” in his development of the White Plains downtown through the City Center development, the Ritz Carlton project, and the resurgence of restaurants and entertainment in the downtown. Roach said he wanted to continue this momentum which he felt was due to the “volunteerism” of White Plains citizens in their willingness to help.

Roach said that in May, as part of a new effort to improve White Plains amenities, the city would launch a Bicycle Lane beginning at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard north across the downtown to Water Street; from Water Street to the TransCenter (train station), and a reverse loop south on South Lexington Avenue to Post Road.

Roach said long term he would be working to gain city access to the Bronx River Reservation; that he has been in talks with General Motors, BMW to create a pioneering electrical car charging station with 10 charging outlets  at the train station.

The Survey, Gordon said found “young professionals strongly desire to stay in Westchester – provided employment opportunities and appropriately placed housing exist,” and that Westchester is “desirable place to live for young adults due to its high quality of life, particularly in the downtowns,” and that Westchester is competing against areas in New Jersey and Connecticut “with more affordable housing and lower taxes.”

The survey was conducted among young adults under 35: one/third were  students; one/third live here; and one/third live in Westchester and commute. The survey sample did not survey specifically persons under 35 living in their parents’ homes, Ms. Gordon told WPCNR. (College graduates employed, but living in their parents’ homes is a growing demographic in the county.”

The Business Council plans, based on survey results to launch a campaign to promote more mixed-use development in downtowns that mix retail,office space and residential development ( of which the White Plains City Center, the Ritz Carlton, and now the Metropolitan Plaza were forerunners.)

The Council wants to focus on “partnering” with Westchester County Department of Parks & Recreation and Friends of Westchester County Parks to create a program “to raise awareness among the young professionals of the County’s 18,000 acres of parkland.

An Internship Clearinghouse is being formed by the Workforce Investment Board to “connect local students with internship and job opportunities at Westchester businesses.”

Arts will be promoted to expand the ArtsWestchester website “to communicate additional activities for young adults in Westchester.”

Ossining was announced as a Pilot City, for a plan to “leverage best practices of other youth oriented communities and serve as a model to be potentially replicated and applied to other communities throughout the county.”

Communities determined by the survey as “Hot” are Katonah and Purchase for arts; Scarsdale and Rye for schools; Yonkers for waterfront and Port Chester for restaurant diversity.

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WPCNR THE HOUSING NEWS. From the Office of the County Executive, Robert P.Astorino. March 19, 2012:

Westchester County Executive Robert P. Astorino today called on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to immediately release the $7 million in affordable housing money that it has withheld in an attempt to force Westchester to take actions that go beyond the terms of the 2009 housing settlement.

            Astorino said that the U.S. magistrate’s ruling last week (See Friday’s story), clearly showed that Westchester County has been complying with the settlement and that it was time for HUD to start undoing the damage caused by its unilateral decision in May to withhold previously approved housing funds.

            The county was forced to lay off five workers, abolish 10 jobs and curtail funds for various community organizations and many local governments as a result of HUD’s action to withhold what are called Community Development Block Grants (CDBG).

“HUD’s preemptive move to try to punish the county before the court had ruled in the case was unconscionable,” said Astorino. “The primary purpose of the money was to advance the progress of the settlement, so HUD was only hurting the people it claims to help. HUD’s actions were purely an attempt to get the county to do things that were not in the settlement. I took a principled stand to say HUD was overreaching. The court agreed. Now it is time for HUD to release the money and put its energies toward actually helping to build affordable housing.”

On Friday, Westchester County won a major victory in court when the federal magistrate in the case ruled that the monitor selected by HUD “erred in concluding that the County Executive violated the settlement.”

            Astorino said he is sending a letter to HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan asking him to release the money immediately and he is also calling on the entire Westchester congressional delegation to intervene if the money is not released promptly.           

 “Going up against HUD has been like David against Goliath,” said Astorino. “But with the ruling by the magistrate, there is no good reason for HUD to withhold affordable housing money that it had promised to the county and our communities three years ago. It is  time for the Congressional delegation to step up and be counted on the side of Westchester’s residents.” 

            HUD and the monitor had argued that the 2009 settlement compelled Astorino to sign source of income legislation that would have required property owners to accept government vouchers as rental payments, as well as the regulatory obligations that go with them.

            Astorino challenged the federal government’s contention, saying that the settlement only called for the county executive to “promote” the source of income legislation “currently before the Board of Legislators” back in 2009 and that former County Executive Andrew Spano, who approved the settlement, met that obligation at that time.

            U.S. Magistrate Gabriel Gorenstein sided with Astorino, saying:  “We conclude that the parties did not intend the County’s duty to ‘promote’ obligated the County Executive to sign source-of-income legislation passed by the BOL.”  

            The magistrate also said that Astorino was within his rights to veto source of income legislation  in July 2010 and supported that decision with case law, stating: “Courts must abide by the express terms of a consent decree and may not impose supplementary obligations on the parties even to fulfill the purposes of the decree more effectively.”

            Gorenstein’s opinion then goes on to state: “Accordingly, we conclude that the able Monitor erred in concluding that the County Executive violated the Settlement by vetoing the source-of income legislation enacted by the BOL.”

            Astorino vetoed the source of income legislation that came before him 2010 calling it “hopelessly flawed.”

            “My decision was based on my belief that the legislation was a violation of basic property rights,” Astorino said. “Landlords who want to accept federal vouchers are free to do so, but it should not be compelled. This was a governmental intrusion that had the unintended consequence of actually working against the settlement because it would have made housing more expensive and less available.”

            With respect to the zoning portion of the case, the magistrate ruled that the monitor is entitled to information with respect to zoning practices. The county believes this requirement was met on Feb. 29 (after the court papers were filed) when it submitted to the monitor its extensive review of 43 municipal zoning ordinances covering 853 zoning districts.

            The county is awaiting HUD’s response and will continue to work cooperatively with the monitor and HUD going forth, Astorino said.

            Despite HUD’s legal challenges, the county is ahead of schedule with respect to the settlement’s fundamental requirement of developing 750 units of fair and affordable housing over seven years in 31 mainly white communities. The agreement includes benchmarks for financing and obtaining building permits that must be in place by the end of each year. It also requires the county to market the housing in a way to primarily reach African Americans and Hispanics not only in Westchester but also in New York City and surrounding counties. The county faces severe financial penalties if it fails to meet certain benchmarks.

            As of this month, the county has 206 housing units approved by the federal housing monitor, of which 196 have all financing in place and 108 units have building permits in place. Under the terms of the settlement with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the county was only required to have 100 units with financing and 50 units with building permits by the end of 2011. The settlement calls for 200 units with financing and 125 with building permits by the end of 2012. The county expects to meet these benchmarks this spring, almost a year ahead of schedule.

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WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. From Westchester County Department of Communicatiions. March 17, 2012 (Edited):

Westchester County won a major victory today in its fight with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development over the affordable housing settlement, when a federal magistrate ruled that the monitor in the case selected by HUD “erred in concluding that the County Executive violated the settlement.”

“My decision was based on my belief that the legislation was a violation of basic property rights,” Astorino said. “Landlords who want to accept federal vouchers are free to do so, but they should not be required to do so. This was a governmental intrusion that would have had the unintended consequence of actually working against the settlement because it would have made housing more expensive and less available.”

County Executive Robert P. Astorino said the decision by the magistrate showed that HUD had clearly overreached in the demands it was trying to impose on the residents of Westchester.

“My position from the beginning has been that the county will fulfill its obligations under the settlement, but it will not be bullied by the federal government into doing things that were never agreed to,” said Astorino. “I have taken principled stands where I believe the government has overreached, and I am pleased and heartened that the magistrate’s decision vindicates my actions.”

    In the case before United States Magistrate Gabriel Gorenstein, HUD and the monitor had argued that the 2009 housing settlement compelled Astorino to sign source of income legislation that would have required property owners to accept government vouchers as rental payments.

            Astorino argued that the settlement only called for the county executive to “promote” source of income legislation “currently before the Board of Legislators” back in 2009 and that former County Executive Andrew Spano, who approved the settlement, met that obligation at that time.

             Siding with Astorino’s position, the magistrate wrote: “We conclude that the parties did not intend the County’s duty to ‘promote’ obligated the County Executive to sign source-of-income legislation passed by the BOL.”

The magistrate also said that Astorino was within his rights to veto source of income legislation that came before him in July 2010 and backed up his decision with case law stating: “Courts must abide by the express terms of a consent decree and may not impose supplementary obligations on the parties even to fulfill the purposes of the decree more effectively.”

Gorenstein’s opinion then goes on to state: “Accordingly, we conclude that the able Monitor erred in concluding that the County Executive violated the Settlement by vetoing the source-of income legislation enacted by the BOL.”

Astorino vetoed the source of income legislation that came before him in 2010 calling it “hopelessly flawed.”

With respect to the zoning portion of the case, the magistrate ruled that the monitor is entitled to information with respect to zoning practices. The county believes this requirement was met on Feb. 29 (after the court papers were filed) when it submitted to the monitor its review of 43 municipal zoning ordinances covering 853 zoning districts.

The housing settlement requires the county government to ensure the development of 750 units of fair and affordable housing over a seven-year period in 31 mainly white communities. The agreement includes benchmarks for financing and obtaining building permits that must be in place by the end of each year. It also requires the county to market the housing in a way to reach non-white populations, not only in Westchester but also in New York City and surrounding counties. The county faces severe financial penalties if it fails to meet certain benchmarks.

As of this month, the county has 206 housing units approved by the federal housing monitor, of which 196 have all financing in place and 108 units have building permits in place. Under the terms of the settlement with HUD, the county was only required to have 100 units with financing and 50 units with building permits by the end of 2011. The settlement calls for 200 units with financing and 125 with building permits by the end of 2012. The county expects to meet these benchmarks this spring, placing almost a year ahead of schedule.

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WPCNR TAPPAN ZEE BRIDGE NEWS. From the New York State Department of Transportation. March 16, 2012:

The Tappan Zee Bridge Replacement Project entered its next phase with the release of the final Request for Proposals (RFP) document. The four design and construction bidders have until July 27 to submit final proposals. A copy of the RFP can be found at www.thenewtzb.com .

Thruway Executive Director Tom Madison said, “This announcement brings New York one step closer to the Thruway Authority’s goal and Governor Cuomo’s vision of building a new Tappan Zee Bridge that will last 100 years and be ready on day one to accommodate future mass transit options. The hard work and cooperative efforts of the New York State Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, and the New York State Thruway Authority have created a set of specifications that will insure we maximize the public investment, provide important labor protections, and serve our customers as efficiently as possible.”

The RFP document is more than 1,000 pages and provides the four bidders with very specific requirements for their proposals to design and build the bridge.

Some highlights of the RFP requirements include the following:

Transit

In order to maximize the public investment, the contract will require that the new bridge be fully able to support transit, including allowing for Bus Rapid Transit and Commuter Rail if full systems are constructed on either side of the bridge in the future and provide immediate express bus service. This includes requirements for constructing additional lanes, structural reinforcement, and loading considerations to ensure the bridge can support both mass transit options.

Bikeway & Pedestrian Walkway

The contract includes a requirement for a 12-foot- wide shared-use path across the entire bridge that will include seating, bike lanes, and public artwork.

Disadvantaged Business Enterprises

Disadvantaged Business Enterprises will have approximately $400 million of contracting opportunities which are expected to generate more than 4,000 jobs.

Bridge Aesthetics

The bidders are required to collaborate with stakeholders to ensure visual quality and aesthetics on the bridge. The selected bidder’s bridge renderings will be available for viewing by the public.

Intelligent Transportation Systems

Intelligent Transportation Systems are included to monitor traffic patterns, improve safety, and enable more accurate real-time measurement of travel times. In addition, an Active Traffic Management System will employ an array of sensors and dynamic color messaging signs to improve operations and safety by enabling a smoother flow of traffic. This will be accomplished by alerting travelers to upcoming congestion points, varying speed limits, and notification of real-time environmental conditions via embedded weather and visibility sensors

Project Video Documentation

The selected bidder will be required to thoroughly document the construction of the new Bridge, including providing the Thruway Authority with up-to-date graphics, live video and simulations that chronicle the entire process on www.thenewtzb.com .

Highway Speed E-ZPass

The addition of three new Highway Speed E-Z Pass lanes is required to enhance traffic flow and provide environmental benefits by reducing greenhouse gas emissions caused by driver cueing and congestion at conventional toll booths.

The July deadline for submissions represents a five-week extension that will enable bidders to benefit from ongoing geotechnical analyses and refine their proposals accordingly. “Smart early geotechnical work” being conducted during this time will help minimize project risk and protect against large contingencies and cost overruns.

Distribution of the RFP is the next critical step in the accelerated schedule for building a new bridge, and the four selected internationally renowned teams will now develop design and construction plans and cost proposals. Before the project was re-scoped last fall, deliberations about a bridge and corridor project had languished for a decade, including more than 430 public meetings and at least $88 million spent on planning and environmental studies.

Since securing approval for the project to be fast tracked by the federal government, the Thruway Authority’s accelerated schedule for building a new Tappan Zee Bridge, consistent with Governor Cuomo’s vision, has resulted in the completion of several milestones that would typically take months or years being accomplished in a span of weeks or months.

In less than five months, state and federal agencies have come together to meet an aggressive schedule in pursuit of the Thruway Authority’s goal and the Governor’s vision to break ground on the historic project this year, including issuing a draft environmental impact statement and selecting a short list of bidders for the project.

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WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. Special to WPCNR from McCullough, Goldberger & Staudt. March 9, 2012:

Charles Goldberger, pictured above, a partner in the White Plains-based law firm McCullough Goldberger & Staudt, LLP, has been appointed Village Attorney for the Village of Mamaroneck, NY. The Village Board of Trustees unanimously approved the nomination that was effective immediately.  Mayor Norman Rosenblum selected Goldberger for nomination after reviewing the credentials of four other law firms that had expressed interest in the position.

“Key to making this selection was not only the expertise of Charlie Goldberger but that of the entire firm,” Mayor Ronsenblum said.He added that Goldberger had successfully represented the Village in several court matters, including an ongoing case involving a failed development project that is near resolution.  The Mayor also recalled that when he served as a Trustee for the Village of Larchmont about three decades ago, he had been impressed with Staudt’s work as Village Attorney of Larchmont.

“McCullough Goldberger & Staudt gives us the background and advantage of their research in specific areas, such as drafting local laws, court time and trials and so on,” the Mayor said. “The bottom line is I am confident that Charlie Goldberger and the firm itself will be the best lawyer the Village can have.”

The appointment enhances the already impressive municipal practice of McCullough Goldberger & Staudt. James Staudt, a partner, is currently the Village Attorney for the Village of Larchmont. The firm also serves as Village Attorney to the Villages of Croton-on-Hudson and Bronxville.  Additionally the firm has been Special Counsel to the City of Yonkers in connection with its complete Zoning Code revision, the Village of Ossining in connection with its Comprehensive Plan/Zoning Code, and the Village of Scarsdale regarding its downtown mixed-use zoning.