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WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. February 28, 2007 UPDATED 1:01 PM EST. UPDATED 1:44 PM EST WITH BOARD OF EDUCATION AGENDA: The City School District has just issued the agenda for Thursday evening’s meeting, confirming that they will approve settlement of the Travelers Casualty suit Thursday evening, making the $2.8 Million payment March 2.

The $2.8 Million settlement the School District agreed to after losing their suit with Travelers Casualty and Surety Company, raises the anticipated tax levy on the 2007-2008 school budget to a projected 7.97%, not 9.67% as first believed. This misconception occurred because it was not made clear to the Board of Education or the media in attendance Monday evening in discussions of the budget that the projected tax levy of 7.97% included the cost of the Travelers Casualty settlement.

In that budget discussion, one member of the Board even referred to the possibility of paying the settlement as more reason to cut more costs. To date the cost of the settlement or the existence of the suit  has not been acknowledged publicly by the school district in any meetings open to the public that this reporter has attended. 

 Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors, speaking to WPCNR this afternoon said, “I believe this case is over,” indicating by inference, it would not be appealed.

Connors also said the Board of Education would meet Thursday night to authorize payment of the settlement. Connors said the cost of the settlement is included in the present projected tax levy of 7.97%. As far as other contractors being owed money that was denied in Judge Charles Brieant’s decision, Connors statement “I believe this case is over,” was how he answered that query.

The $2.8 Million is the maximum amount of money the district will have to pay to end finally the tortured 1999-2003 high school renovation project.

Two thirds of the settlement ($2 Million) will be paid with the surplus, resulting in an additional 1.5% increase in taxes said by the Superintendent to be included in the 7.97% increase currently projected by the district, (barring further cuts by the district).

The other $800,000 will come out of be paid out of available funds leftover from the high school project. The School District business office also reports preliminary indications from the City Assessor Office indicate the city Tax Roll is down from last year, which will further escalate the tax levy. Two months ago the tax roll was down approximately $2 Million, according to City of White Plains up-to-date Assessment roll at the time.

(Mr. Connors said the district would not know until tomorrow what the final Assessment Roll total would be. )

According to Assistant Superintendent for Business of the School District, Fred Seiler, the $2.8 Million will be paid from the $800,000 left in the high school renovation project fund, and the $2,005,000 surplus in this year’s school budget. It is interesting to note that in budget discussion Monday, the surplus appeared to be being counted as an asset for the 2007-2008 budget, because it was not made clear by Seiler that the surplus would not exist to augment 2007-2008 revenue. The surplus was put up in a chart indicating 2006-2007 as having a surplus of $2,008,000, with no mention that the school district was going to pay this out to pay their bill to Travelers Casulty and Surety Company.

Seiler said the surplus was accumulated through savings the district was able to make during the year, and is usually dedicated to soften the impact of the next year’s budget. It will soon be gone. Seiler said the surplus would be used to pay the settlement.

Judge Brieant, in his decision, denied White Plains claims for $7 Million in damages from Travelers, which would have been paid to two other contractors,

Seiler reports that to his knowledge the other contractors had agreed to abide by the results of the suit and not to demand payment in the event the damages were not awarded.

F. A Burchetta, the electrical contractor was owed $2,015,966.31, and Richards Conditioning was owed $2,015,966.31, according to the court papers, which was included in the $7,295,564.31 in damages sought by White Plains from Travelers, which Judge Brieant denied.

Asked if the district would owe any more as a result of losing the suit, in the decision handed down by Judge Charles Brieant of the United States District Court Southern Division January 25, Seiler said he believed Burchetta and Richards, and the architect on the high school project, Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson (currently the architects on the just begun $69.6 Million Capital Project, including new football stadia, a new Post Road School, a renovated Mamaroneck Avenue School, and infrastructure improvements) had agreed to eat the loss if White Plains lost the suit.

Judge Charles Brieant based his decision on the Kaeyer Garment  & Davidson role in the high school project, writing in his decision of January 25: The existence of the Architect’s October 9, 2002 agreement to support Defendant in any legal action or claim including this case, and its contingent fee interest in the outcome of this litigation bears heavily on the credibility of the Architect, and is certainly relevant circumstantial evidence of an incentive or possible bias in favor Defendant as early as October 2002, and of a constructive fraud in declining to earlier issue a certificate of substantial completion.

WPCNR attempted to confirm that the district had finally put the project to bed  ($2 Million over the $28 Million budget) and would not owe any more money yesterday with the Superintendent’s office, and await his call. The Superintendent indicates by his statement “I believe this case is over,” that there will be no more multi-million dollar surprises. 

Mr. Connors confirmed that the Board of Education would meet Thursday evening to authorize the settlement.  

The agenda just released to WPCNR reads:

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WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. By John F. Bailey. February 27, 2007 UPDATED 2:15 PM: In a Judgement handed down February 16, Judge Charles Brieant of U.S. District Court, Southern District has ordered the White Plains City School District to pay Travelers Casualty and Surety Company the sum of $2, 787,281.64 including interest. The payment is in settlement of Travelers claim against the district for expenses Travelers incurred in completing the 1999-2003 White Plains High School renovation. The court order was issued after Judge Brieant denied the district motion to reargue filed February 5.

WPCNR has placed a call to the Superintendent of Schools, Timothy Connors, to find whether or not the district is going to appeal Judge Brieant’s decision to the Federal Court of Appeals, and what funds will be used to pay the settlement. The district has not answered WPCNR’s questions in the past whether the district still owes other contractors connected with that project the $7,295,564.31 it had sought from the Travelers in damages  in the action, which Judge Brieant denied in January.

In denying the school district motion to reargue, Judge Brieant rejected White Plains request for a $142,265.95 credit for what White Plains thought was a final settlement of that claim previously, writing: The Court considered the evidence and arguments of the parties and adjudicated this matter on pages 15-16 of its January 2007 Memorandum and Order. Defendent’s contention was rejected for the reasons stated and the Court declines to reconsider this issue now.

In its motion, White Plains also asked for a credit of $808,446.44 for several contractual offets. The Judge disagrees, writing having already adjudicated the contract balance, legitimate extras, and proper back-charges, and having found by the Architect’s own testimony that the architect did not certify for payment work that was not actually done or that was done defectively.

In its final plea, White Plains asked the court to reconsider when pre-judgment interest would be charged because of White Plains “good faith belief that it could withhold all payment based on reasonable expectation that the upoaid balance might not adequately cover charges.” Judge Brieant rejects this: The Court found a breach of contract by Defendant and it declines to alter its assessment that interest should run from the date the action was filed, and in accordance with New York CPLR &&5001 and 5004.

The Judgement amplies: Good faith is not the test; rather the New York statute calls for pre-judgment interest to compensate the prevailing party for loss of use of the money. Under New York law, courts must apply the statutory rate of interest, except “in action of an equitable nature, interest and the rate and date from which it shall be computed shall be in the court’s discretion.”

The School District received one of its lawyers handling this case in Executive Session Monday evening, and has scheduled a Board of Education Special Meeting for Thursday evening, March 1 at 7:30 P.M. It could not be learned at presstime whether the Special Meeting was related to this matter.

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WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. February 27, 2007: The new  Post Road School design, finetuned by meetings with teachers, administration and parents of Post Road School with the architect, Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson was unveiled last night before the Board of Education by architect and 22 of his helpers and associates at Education House.  The architects,  accompanied by associated staffers, designers, estimators, landscape architects, mechanical engineers, estimators and other professionals also introduced the finished designs  of the two new football stadia, Parker and Loucks Field,  promising construction would begin this summer. 

They said designs for Post Road are anticipated to be sent to the State Education Department for approval in September, with construction  expected to take 18 months. They expect to begin construction one year from now, with occupancy of the new building anticipated for fall 2009, and project completion, including demolition of the old Post Road School and preparation of the playing fields complete by the end of 2009-10.

The $38.5 Million Post Road School ( rendering design shown last night) from the Sterling Avenue main entrance  is dazzling in its modern design, limestone exterior, exotic interior courtyard, and environmentally correct green roof. The main entrance features a school bus drop-off on Sterling Avenue and parking for 72 cars on the Soundview Avenue side. Note school bus rendered in photo. Photos WPCNR News

The detailed Post Road School Plan includes building a three floor school in the Northeast corner of the present Post Road School site, with one floor below grade, containing cafeteria and new auditorium; kindergarten, first and second grade on the second floor, and third, fourth and fifth grades on the third floor. A new library is located on the second floor.  The circle in the middle of the school represents a two story courtyard.

Computerized aerial view of the new Post Road School superimposed on a Google satellite photo of surrounding vicinity.  Post Road is the street on the left of the picture. Soundview Avenue is the crossing street. You are viewing the Soundview Avenue side.

The New Post Road School design, shown from the Soundview Avenue side of the site. Parking for 72 spaces is provided on the site on the Soundview Ave entrance. Architects said dropoff and pickup would be on this side of the building, with school bus staging on the Sterling Avenue side.

Direct Overhead view looking Southeast, showing how the New Post Road School fits between Soundview Avenue on the south and Sterling Avenue on the North. The new playing fields run along Post Road.  Entrance to the new school is on the Sterling Avenue side.

A closer view: Sterling Avenue is on the left. Soundview is on the right. Note the six school buses in the staging area in front of the entrance to the new school, the two story open air courtyard in the center of the structure, and the green roof on the top of the gymnasium.

Russell Davidson, left, Principal of Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson, presenting his progress report on the Capital Projects last night. Eric Kaeyer, the architect of the school design is standing at the right. An entourage of KG & D professionals involved in the project looks on. 

Davidson noted that the new Post Road School delivers an additional classroom for each grade level, provides classrooms meeting or exceeding State Education Department requirements, in-room bathrooms for grades K, 1,& 2, a new 2 story auditorium seating 340 on the first floor, and a new library, self-contained on the second floor that is twice the size of the present school.

$3 Million Parker Stadium Redesign.

The two stadium projects were presented and have changed significantly. Parker Stadium which was originally planned to gut the “Roman Colisseum” concrete grandstand will now have the new 1,300 seat bleachers built atop the concrete storage catacombs below the present concrete stands. The concrete stands will be removed, the catacombs repaired and renovated and new stands with a press box built on top. Grasy knolls will be created from the 20s to the endzones, replacing the present delipidated stands.

The new $6 Million (approximate) Loucks Field viewed Looking North from the White Plains High School. There would be no stands built on the  northern side in this new design. Stands for 3,500 are included on the south side, nearest the high school (bottom of view). Davidson justified the jumping pits, by noting that by eliminating the bleachers on the north side of the field, and putting the pits there, that the field could be made wider.

 The new Loucks would feature with a press box and stadium lights for night events.  Davidson said the field house will remain as is. There will be no concession stands. He said temporary bleachers could be erected over the jumping pits to add to the capacity.

Davidson reported that design for both stadia have been sent to the State Education Department for review. Cost estimates are being updated by the architect and construction manager, Triton Construction. Construction for both stadiums is expected to begin this summer with Parker ready for Turkey Day kickoff next fall and Loucks complete by the end of the year, perhaps in time for Loucks Games next year.

Asked if the project was still on budget, the cost estimator for Triton said “the numbers were holding.”  Mr. Davidson also said that design consulting with staff and parents at Mamaroneck Avenue School — the other major renovation part of the $69.6 Million capital project — would begin next month. 

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 WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. From Michele Schoenfeld, Clerk to the Board of Education, February 26, 2007, EDITED: The Annual White Plains Board of Education Budget Vote and Election will take place on Tuesday, May 15th, 2007, Noon to 9 P.M., at six voting districts.  Two Board seats — will be up for election, each with a three-year term of office, beginning July 1, 2007.

Candidates must be United States citizens, 18 years of age or more and residents of White Plains for at least one year.  Petitions are available from Michele Schoenfeld, District Clerk, at 5 Homeside Lane.  They must be signed by 100 qualified voters and returned by April 25th.

Registration, for qualified voters new to the City, or those who are not registered to vote in general elections, will take place on Saturday, April 28th, Noon to 5 P.M., at Mamaroneck Avenue School, Nosband Avenue.  A resident who has moved within White Plains during the last year may also change his/her voting address at that time.

Absentee ballots are available by application to the District Clerk, for any voter who will not be in White Plains during the time of the election.

 For further information, please call 422-2071.

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WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE-EXAMINER. Written by John F. Bailel, Special to WPCNR from Don Hughes. February 23, 2007: The Common Council, despite Rita Malmud’s objections that they had not gotten the paperwork on the agreements in time, voted to purchase the Greico property Thursday evening in the third Special meeting of the Council called in the last two months.

The Mayor bluntly informed the Council  in a shouting barrage, when Council President Malmud complained about the short notice given the Council to review the arrangements with Greico and that there was no exact purchase price established, or how the city was going to pay for it, that the council responsibility was representative, and the Mayor’s office was “administrative” and he wasn’t going to change that and they would just have to deal with it.

The Mayor pointed out that the 45 day agreement the Trust for Public Land had negotiated with the Greico family in which the city would have the opportunity to purchase the proberty was due to expire in 15 days and that was why the urgency of acting last night was required. The Mayor did not explain why it has taken the city approximately a month to draw up the paperwork.

The Super Developer Explains it All

The Council received a visit from the Louis Cappelli who presented his analysis of his announcement last week that he wanted to build 23 units of apartments on the existing retail floor of the City Center Garage. Cappelli said it was unlikely that the affordable housing at the Pinnacle would be built at this time and that he (Cappelli) was protecting himself by moving to build the 23 units now. He said he could build them within 9 months.

The Super Developer said that if The Pinnacle should go ahead and build the affordables they plan for 260 Main, that he would sell the new City Center Garage units at market rates. Should the Pinnacle be unable to build the affordables at 260 Main, Cappelli would turn the new 23 City Center Garage units into affordable housing, enabling him to meet the affordable housing quota he is required to build as part of his approval for the Ritz Carlton project. Cappelli added that since he was approved for 600 units at the city center, and has only built 500, that he did not need Common Council approval to build the 23 units in the City Center Garage, because he already had that right. Our reporter, advised the Council was in agreement with Mr. Cappelli’s analysis.

The County Planning Department it was learned from remarks by Susan Habel, White Plains Commissioner of Planning, is checking into Ginsburg Development (builders of The Pinnacle) request for $2 Million towards their $17 Million it would take to build the 42 units of affordable housing, and according to Habel, found that the County Attorney has said this is not legal.

Cappelli added that to meet the requirement he build the other 19 units, he would build those at the buildings he as acquired on Main Street across Court Street and across from Macy’s.

Police OT

The council also approved $50,000 in additional Police overtime for patrol of The Galleria garage, and approximately $200,000 in other police overtime, which our reporter says is included in the budget.

Boot for Scofflaws Parked OT

The council also approved a new ordinance allowing the city to immobolize (or boot) scofflaw cars found to be parking overtime. Previously the law only allowed scofflaw cars to be booted if they were illegally parked.

The subject matter of the executive session was not revealed.