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 RIVER WATCHER. From the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. (Edited) July 22, 2011:

Millions of gallons of raw sewage continue to pump into the Hudson River from New York City Sewage Treatment Plant after a fire Wednesday knocked out power. The DEP reports power has been restored but cannot estimate when the deluge of effluent will be stopped.

The plant processes 125 Million gallons of raw sewage a day from New York City and a good portion of that is pumping semi-treated into the Hudson. The DEP says:

“Based on recommendations from NYC Health, — the Hudson River, the East River from the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge to Verrazano Bridge, the Harlem River and the Kill Van Kull (Staten Island)  to the Goethals Bridge will not be fit for recreational activities such as swimming, canoeing, kayaking, windsurfing or any other water activity that would entail possible direct contact now through at least Sunday.

Also, consuming fish caught from these areas is not recommended for anyone until the pollution advisory is resolved. It is recommended that individuals catch and release fish back into the water.

The Westchester County Health Department made this announcement Thursday afternoon:

The Westchester County Department of Health is notifying residents to avoid direct contact with the Hudson River along Westchester County now throughout the weekend.

At 4 P.M. Thursday, a County Health Department spokesperson told WPCNR there is no indication yet the effluent has reached Westchester Hudson River shores. She said the county department of Health expected to begin testing Hudson River waters for sewage levels but could not say when that would begin.

Here is what the DEP has done so far to treat and stop the massive leak:

Overview of Incident

The North River Wastewater Treatment Plant (at 135th Street and 12th Avenue) was taken offline Wednesday afternoon following a four-alarm fire in the engine room that started at approximately 11:45 am. At approximately 5:15 pm yesterday, untreated wastewater started to be directly discharged into the Hudson River and continues at this time as the plant remains offline.

The North River plant has been in operation since 1986 and treats on average 120 million gallons of wastewater a day from Manhattan’s west side above Bank Street and northern Manhattan.
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Status of Plant Operations–POWER BACK.

DEP is working as quickly as possible to get the plant operational. DEP staff and contractors are inside the facility repairing equipment, assessing damage, and performing cleanup activities.

The plant has been re-energized, which is the first step toward bringing it back online.

The estimated time to bring the plant back online is still undetermined.

DIVERSION TO WARDS ISLAND–CHLORINE TREATMENT ON OUTFLOW

In order to minimize the discharge of wastewater from the plant, DEP is performing some small “pump arounds”—pumping wastewater flow out of an 84-inch sewer at West 117th St. in Manhattan that normally flows to the plant and pumping into a 42-inch sewer at Frederick Douglass Boulevard and 117th, which flows to the Wards Island Wastewater Treatment Plant. DEP is also applying chlorine to some sewer outfalls near the plant to reduce the bacteria in the untreated wastewater discharges.

Environmental, Health and Community Impacts

The New York City Health Department has issued beach pollution advisories for the following locations to take effect Friday, July 22, at 10 am through Monday, July 25:

• South Beach in Staten Island
  
• Midland Beach in Staten Island
  
• Cedar Grove Beach in Staten Island
  
• Sea Gate in Brooklyn

Water quality modeling indicates that these beaches have been potentially impacted by the untreated sewer discharges from the North River Wastewater Treatment Plant. Though the beaches are not closed, the New York City Department of Health does not recommend swimming and bathing until this advisory is lifted, especially for people with underlying medical conditions, or young or elderly people who may be more likely to get sick if beach water is swallowed. Signs will be placed at the beach entrances to alert the public of the risk.

Alternative beaches, such as Coney Island Beach, Rockaway Beach, Orchard Beach, Manhattan Beach and Wolfe’s Pond Beach, remain open and unaffected based on current water quality modeling. Fifty four outdoor pools are open for swimming as well. Call 311 to find the pool nearest to you.

The New York City Police Department Harbor Unit will be patrolling near the plant to ensure boaters keep a proper distance. The city Parks Department is restricting access to the river at the 79th Street Boat Basin and placing signs prohibiting kayaking, canoeing and other recreational activities from all city boat launch sites along the Hudson River and other appropriate sites. The Hudson River Park Trust as well as the Battery Park City Authority are also installing similar signs at sites under their jurisdiction.

DEP and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene continue to take samples in the harbor and at permitted beaches that could potentially be impacted. For the most up-to-date information, go to the NYC Health website at www.nyc.gov/health, www.nyc.gov/dep, or call 311. Individuals can also receive proactive alerts by signing up through 311 for Notify NYC, the city’s official source for information about emergency events and important city services. Riverbank State Park, located atop the treatment plant, remains closed until further notice. Westchester County and New Jersey DEP are also performing water sampling and water flow modeling to determine any impacts on their rivers and beaches.

DEP will continue to provide routine updates on the status of the plant’s operations and public health impacts in collaboration with the Health Department.

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WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER from Westchester County Department of Communications. July 21, 2011:

White Plains’ Rosa Boone, Executive Director of the Westchester Coalition for the Hungry and Homeless was announced as County Executive Robert Astorino’s choice for Deputy Commissioner of Social Services for Westchester County today. Dr. Sherlita Amler was announced for Commissioner of Health and Natasha Caputo,Director of Tourism and Film.

Key appointees announced: L to R,, Dr. Serlita Amler, Commisioner of  Health; County Executive Robert Astorino, Rosa Boone of White Plains, Deputy Commissioner of Social Services, and Natasha Caputo, Director of Tourism and Film.

 

“Making government responsive to the needs of its citizens requires putting talented individuals into critical positions,” Astorino said. “The breadth of experience and enthusiasm that these three women bring to my administration will help us deliver on our agenda of providing essential services in the smartest and most cost-effective way possible. I am looking forward to working with all of them and will be relying on their insights and expertise.”

 

ROSA BOONE

 

The appointment of Rosa Boone as deputy commissioner of Social Services adds top-level management to the county’s most critical and largest department, which has a budget of about $575 million, approximately 33% of the gross operating budget for the county. The department administers a variety of state and federal programs designed to give temporary assistance to individuals and families in need in areas that include housing, food stamps, medical assistance, child support and job training. The department’s goal is to help these people become self-sufficient. Boone has been with the Westchester Coalition for the Hungry and Homeless in White Plains since 1993, including the last 16 as executive director. The coalition is made up of autonomous food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, services organizations  and individuals working to alleviate hunger and homelessness in the region.

 

            “Rosa Boone brings to this job knowledge, expertise and a track record of making sure every dollar spent does the maximum good,” said Astorino. “In addition – and equally as important – she brings compassion to this job.” 

 

            In her capacity as executive director, she has managed an annual budget of over $500,000 and supervised the daily operations of the agency. She also secured county and state grants for the agency and implemented numerous programs on behalf of the county’s needy population.

            In her new position, Boone will oversee temporary assistance field operations, responsible for the overall administration, development, management, organization and planning for the delivery of assistance to social service recipients.

            She said she was excited about the opportunity to be part of the DSS team, saying, “My 15 plus years as the executive director of Westchester Coalition for the Hungry and Homeless have given me a unique perspective of the needs of the county’s less fortunate population, as well as the needs of our taxpayers. While I am realistic about the mountain of work that I enthusiastically face, I am also optimistic about the future of the department.”

            Boone has numerous awards including most recently (2011) the New York Civil Liberties Stanley and Doris Schear Champion of Housing Rights Award and the Women’s Council of Realtors Recognition Award and (2009) Black Professional Women’s League Sojourner Truth Award.

            A resident of White Plains, Boone has been active in her community. She was vice chairman of the White Plains Juneteenth Committee for 2011, and served as commissioner of the White Plains Housing Authority and as an advisory committee member of the city’s Community Block Grant Program.  A graduate of the College of New Rochelle, she also holds a master’s degree from CNR in gerontology.     

 

Boone will be paid $127,125.

 

SHERLITA AMLER

            Dr. Sherlita Amler has been commissioner of health for Putnam County since 2004. In that capacity, she oversaw a department that dealt with the same issues she will focus on in her new job: public health, disease control, monitoring of restaurants and food vendors, and family health, among many other things.

            “We did a nationwide search for a new health commissioner, but found the best person almost in our backyard,” said Astorino. “This is a bonus because she knows the complexities of New York State law and most of the health services we provide are required by the state. In Dr. Amler, we will have a doctor-in-chief with a wide-range of expertise in public health issues and, in addition, is versed in emergency preparedness as it relates to Indian Point.”              Astorino noted that under Dr. Amler’s tenure, Putnam was rated first in “health outcomes” in New York in the 2011 survey from the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin.             

 

Putnam County Executive Paul Eldridge said of Dr. Amler’s Westchester appointment: “It is with mixed emotions that I received the news of Dr. Amler being selected as the Westchester County Commissioner of Health. On the one hand, I am extremely pleased and excited for her, but at the same time saddened that Putnam County will be losing such a talented, capable and caring individual as head of our Department of Health. Needless to say, she will be sorely missed, but it is also nice to know that she’s right next door when we need to call on her for help and guidance.”

           

Earlier in the day, Dr. Amler’s appointment was confirmed by the county Board of Health.

            “Rob Astorino and the Board of Health have given me the great privilege of leading the Department of Health,” said Amler. “I look forward to joining this team and working creatively to ensure the conditions that make Westchester a healthy place to live, work and play.

            Dr. Amler fills a position that has not had a permanent commissioner since Astorino took office. Dr. Cheryl Archbald,  a deputy commissioner of Health, Division of Community Health, has been serving as acting commissioner and now will resume her previous duties and job title.

            “I thank Dr. Archbald for the outstanding job she did running this important department,” Astorino said.

            Dr. Amler was first a registered nurse and then received her medical degree in 1996 from the University of  Arkansas for Medical Sciences. She did her residency in pediatrics at Louisiana State University in New Orleans. She has special training in field epidemiology from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (for whom she worked from 2000-2004), all-hazard bioterrorism, radiation emergencies and public health. She also holds a master’s degree in biology.   

            A resident of Brewster, she is a clinical associate professor of pediatrics at New York Medical College’s School of Medicine and a distinguished lecturer and senior fellow, Center for Disaster Medicine at New York Medical College’s Institute of Public Health.

            The Health Department works to promote public health, prevent the spread of disease and prolong healthy living for all Westchester residents. The department monitors health status to identify community health problems, diagnoses and investigates them and mobilizes community partnerships to find solutions. The department also enforces laws and regulations that protect health and ensure safety, including the state and county sanitary codes and surveys and regulates air and water quality in Westchester. In addition, it funds programs that provide services to children with disabilities, ages zero to 5.

            Its main office is located in New Rochelle, but it also has offices in White Plains, Yonkers, Port Chester and Mount Kisco. The department operates with a budget of $165.7 million, of which about half is funded through county tax dollars. For more information about the myriad of services, go to westchestergov.com/health. 

 

Dr. Amler will earn a salary of $172,295.

 

NATASHA CAPUTO

            In announcing the appointment of Natasha Caputo, Astorino said that the Mount Kisco resident’s established track record of success working for New York City official tourism marketing agency would now help take the county’s tourism efforts to the next level.

“Westchester has so much to offer in the way of things to do and see: hotels, attractions, world-class shopping, vistas, and restaurants,” Astorino said. “Going forward the key is to create more opportunities for tourism and film and build awareness. Natasha is an expert at strategic marketing, promotions and business development, things that will be main components of her new job.”

            Said Caputo:  “Westchester County has untapped potential and I am eager to bring my expertise and energy to build new partnerships and welcome visitors to our county. I also want to make sure our own residents know about the great things we have in our county. We have so much.” 

 

She is former vice president of strategic marketing and partnerships at NYC & Company, New York City official tourism organization, she developed and spearheaded signature tourism marketing campaigns, such as Restaurant Week, Paint the Town, Summer Breaks and Shop 4 Class. She was also part of the September 11 rebuilding efforts.

           

            In her position with NYC & Company, she led the marketing partnerships with companies such as American Express, American Airlines, The Coca-Cola Company, Target and Time Warner. In addition, she created and launched business building seminars that provided business-to- business forums for travel and hospitality related industries.  

 Most recently, Caputo worked as a consultant for American Express, Madison Square Garden Entertainment and City Harvest, among others. Previously, she was chief marketing officer for Nicholas and Lence Communications, a New York-based communications firm whose specialties include media relations, destination marketing government and community relations.

            Caputo is the recipient of two Adrian Awards from the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International for NYC Summer Breaks and the NYC Explore Chinatown campaign. In 2003, she was honored as one of Promo Magazine’s Marketers of the Year.

            Westchester County Tourism & Film is located on the first floor of the Michaelian County Office Building in White Plains. It is the county’s official tourism marketing agency. It is dedicated to promoting and advancing tourism within the county to attract visitors and promote economic growth. It is estimated that business and leisure travelers into the county help generate $1.4 billion annually into the local economy.

            The office collaborates with other counties in the Hudson River Valley and with New York State and the I Love New York campaign. The work of the office is funded solely through the county’s 3 percent hotel occupancy tax. In accordance with the law enacting that tax, 15 percent of the revenues generated from the tax are allocated for tourism.

            The office also handles requests to use county properties for the site of films. For further information, see tourism.westchestergov.com.             

 

Caputo will be paid $118,965.                                       

 

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CITY SHOULD PUBLICIZE SERVICE CHANGES RE: TRANSCENTER GARAGE CLOSING.

JULY 15, 2011:

Council Members,

We just learned that the parking garage office at the TransCenter was closed effective 15 July (TODAY). 

While we understand the need for adjustments in these difficult economic times,
changes, such as this, which can have a significant impact on the public, need to be
publicized well in advance and in a fashion such that infrequent as well as daily users can find alternatives. In addition, it seems that for some services – such as purchasing an overnight permit to extend a regular daytime permit – there may not be any convienient alternatives. 

Making changes in this way, with little prior notice and no information, implies
a lack of concern and respect for the needs of the customers/residents.

Don Hughes
North Broadway Citizens Association

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2012.July 10, 2011.:

 

 As reported exclusively by WPCNR early Sunday morning in The Clacker report,  the Westchester County Republican Party has chosen Iris Pagan Moncrieffe to run for County Legislature against White Plains Bill Ryan.

 

Dr. Pagan-Moncrieffe, currently the Education Coordinator to the White Plains Youth Bureau since October, 2010, and prior to that with SUNY Purchase for 11 years with its STEP program, and prior, she had also worked for  15 years as Education Coorinator with the White Plains Youth Bureau. She holds a Masters and Ph.D. from Columbia Teachers College. She is currently Vice President of the Westchester County Womens Republican Club.

 

Dr. Pagan-Moncrieffe has until Friday to get in her petitions.

 

The Republican ticket locally is now complete with Terrence Guerriere, Richard Cirrilli and Michael Donnelley running for the three Common Council seats and James Arndt running for the seat left open when Tom Roach was elected Mayor, replacing Adam Bradley.

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WPCNR NEWS & COMMENT By John F. Bailey. July 10, 2011:

 

When County Legislator Bill Ryan of the recreation committee  is asked point blank what is going to go into the Westchester Childrens Museum proposed for the  Playland bathhouses, and he  can’t give you an answer as to what if anything really historic or significant is going to go there, I as a voter have a problem with that.

 

 

Tomorrow the local law giving the Westchester Childrens Museum group a 10-year, $1 a year lease of the bathouses at Playland, in return for their paying approximately $7 Million for the County renovation of the bathouses, still mired in a contractual dispute, will be on the agenda for a quiet enactment, unless some legislators act responsibly..

 

This has been a loaded project from the start. Touted as being able to bring in $4 Million a year to the county in admissions by attracting parents to an indoor museum during the winter months (when nothing is going on at Playland except a lot of  great ice-skating activity, you have to wonder what powerful professional do-gooders (and political contributors, perhaps) have a stake in this mystery boondoggle that is all for the kids.

 

The county legislators have not been asking the questions that really need answering. Why? Because they don’t want to think about it. But why am I not surprised, county legislators don’t think it is their job to think. It’s not their job.

 

They hear no evil. Speak no evil. See no evil. And ask no hard questions.

 

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Childrens museums usually thrive in a destination location like Baltimore’s Inner Harbor…but they are not even museums for the most part.They are glorified exhibits of involving amusement.

 

For a county that does not even have their own Westchester County Museum of History (where the Board of Legislators could establish the Ken Jenkins legislators’ Hall of Fame, an Andrew J. O’Rourke County Executive’s Hall of Fame (or Infamy). Gee, maybe I should not have written that.

 

But, I digress.

 

Last week the county approved  money for another park I have never heard of—yet the last two years we have been taking dead aim at killing a park – Playland – that is the largest employer of youth during the summer in the county – while killing attendance by raising fees that have resulted in a 40% drop in attendance this summer.

 

Excuse me, but I do not see the thinking here.

 

Now because some politically connected do-gooder types think a children’s museum would be a good idea, when they cannot tell us what is going in it? (They had every opportunity during the hearing on this issue last month, and did not.)

 

What will the themes will be, what will be the reason people will go there except general platitudes that this will be a wonderful thing for the county. I do not buy it.

 

Besides, as County Executive Robert Astorino points out – it is compromising the Playland proposals – and saddles any future developer with the albatross of the children’s museum.

 

But as I wrote last week – the hard questions are not being asked.

Will Playland even be open next year(depriving Westchester, The Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Connecticut a wholesome attraction)?

 

Will the Playland beach be open next year?

Will it be accessible to the public if some developer gets the prize parcel?

Will the splendid Playland pool  (above) be open next year?

What is going into the “Mystery” Children’s Museum (maybe they’ll have a how government and private partnership works exhibit)?  Beware the private partnership – another euphemism for deal remember finding the home for Westchester County Election Machines that resulted in a windfall for a political contributor to a previous county emperor?

When will the county ever finish redoing the art deco facade on the bathhouses? The bond company is in the process of finding another contractor, as of last week.

If a developer comes in, how much of the old Playland—the rides, boardwalk access, the docks will be preserved (what’s the commitment of this committee on this issue)?

More to the point, who will determine what rides, attractions are of enough historical significance to be saved, preserved improved?  

Why has the county executive and the county legislature put in an admissions policy apparently calculated to lower attendance, not raise attendance? (Because that is what their policy is resulting in,)

When will details of all the proposals be divulged in detail?

When I wrote a column on this last week, it was out of the blue. I did not know the actual committee on Playland was holding a meeting on their preliminary report which they did not make public that day. And surprise! They did not make the preliminary report public! Come on. Who’s going to be making big money on this project? Is the committee already committed to the chldren’s museum? You bet it is.

My questions continue:

How long will the selected developer and the Chidren’s Museum be given to develop the property? The Children Museum has two years from the lease agreement to develop the property. Lots of luck.

They have not raised the extra cash to build the interior of the museum yet. If they do not have it in hand right now? (They have money for their share of the renovation, and say they can raise the museum construction …trust us.)

Well, maybe the tightwad banks of choice in Westchester will lend them the money? Fundraising is getting killed this year. Where are the contributions going to come from?

Another issue:

Will Playland remain open next season if it continues its dismal attendance trend?  Will it be functioning while the developer the county chooses, develops?

How long will Playland be closed, if it is closed while the developer develops?

How much county money will given the developer picked to do the property over? And how much money will the county lend or grant outright to the children’s museum people if they can’t raise the bucks to furnish the exhibits?

Will the county have an approval in the theme of the exhibits in the museum?

Will County dollars put into redevelopment cost of Playland, if any county dollars are planned, amount to far more than it costs to run the park now as it is? This Board of Legislators has to be the most short-sighted, naïve group of legislators – but wait – I think the White Plains Common Council is in a tie. 

How is the Playland developer and the Children’s Museum going to get the financing if needed, in this market?  Connections maybe? With the banks?

Will the developer selected  be allowed to clear the old Playland structures before they get financing? This is very key. Will they be forced to operate it while developing? Can that be done given dangers of construction?

How expensive will be the admission price of the new facility be whatever it is going to be to get into?

If the cost of admission is less than the present policy, then you know the county wanted to kill this wonderful magic place all along.

Why aren’t our County Legislators asking these questions? Can they think more than one veto in advance?

Playland is priceless.

Everybody has fun there of all races, ages, and creeds.

All that will be left after the Museum deal and the developer deal is done will be the memories.

Just because the white elite in this county don’t like hispanic, black, asian people from The Bronx, Manhattan and Queens coming to Playland, does not mean we should shut them out by raising the admissions bar. Come on, Robert Moses, the father of parks built parks with all the people in mind.

County Executive Astorino will have the ignominious distinction of being the man who made the deal that resulted in the destruction of the last amusement park of old-time vintage in the country.

Because unless the developer is forced to keep Playland open while they construct — something no developer wants to do — Playland will be just a memory for the years it will take to redo a park.

Can’t our team of blind mice see that?

Go and enjoy this park the rest of  this summer, folks because it may not be there at all next year to enjoy.

It will go the way of Palisades Park, Luna Park, FreedomLand.

Go out and ride the Kiddyland train once more, and the original carousel. That’s what they’re going to kill.

Joy.