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’S POWER NEWS. June 28,-29 2007 UPDATED:  Mike Clendenen of Con Edison reports to WPCNR as of 8:45 AM, all of White Plains had been restored to power except for 2 homes that had just come in as off at 7 A.M.  Con Edison spokesman Chris Olert said as of 1:45 PM Thursday, 750 White Plains homes remained without power, 450 in the Parkview Circle and Church Street area on 300 in the Haviland Manor, North Street area, and they have been restored.  Olert said 3,200 homes remained powerless throughout Westchester County as of Thursday afternoon.

Clendenen advises WPCNR this morning that about 100 homes are without power throughout the county.

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. June 27, 2007: Joseph Petta, a spokesperson for Consolidated Edison reported that as of 11 P.M., 1,300 homes in White Plains had no power. Petta said the company had crews out who would be working through the night, however they were being hampered by active lightning in the area at this hour. Petta had no estimated time when he felt White Plains power would be restored.

Petta, attributed the electrical damage to winds, lightning strikes, trees downing power lines. Asked if the outages were caused by transformers overloading due to high demand, Petta denied this, saying the outages were weather-caused. The electrical storm that struck White Plains arrived in the city limits at 3:45 P.M.

Downed tree on North Broadway. Photos by Don Hughes

WPCNR received word that there was four feet of water in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, after this afternoon’s event, traffic lights were hanging low over North Broadway. There was flooding in Woodcrest Heights. Manhole covers blew off their moorings on Chatterton Parkway and along Westchester Avenue by the Crowne Plaza, among other events.

Fireman Responding to a burning transformer on Park Circle which knocked out power to that Church Street neighborhood. Closeup below

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WPCNR THE WOOD REPORT. By Paul Wood, City of White Plains Executive Officer. Exclusive to WPCNR June 28, 2007: In response to “White Plains Citizen,” I’d have to say that he/she sure leaves out a lot.  First of all, he/she only considers the property tax revenues that have been generated by Cappelli originated projects.  But City Center also had a revitalizing effect. Don’t forget Bank Street, JPI, Clayton Park, the new Avalon project and others. 

What were the original assessments? And what are they today?  Let’s take a look:

Paul Wood, City of White Plains Executive Officer

Old Macy’s vacant site plus marginal businesses along Main Street and Martine Avenue– Assessed Value prior to development $1,680,950, producing VERY LITTLE SALES TAX REVENUE.

Today the assessed value for the site which includes City Center including (residential – 1 City Place – $2,200,000, Trump Tower – $2,375,100 and the Lofts – $261,500) plus the retail component (City Center, Target and the Air Rights Building  – $4,055,000)  = for a total assessed value of  $8,891,600.

Bank Street Common vacant lot – Assessed Value prior to development – $475,000 producing NO SALES TAX REVENUE.  Today the assessed value equates to $3,513,000.

Clayton Park prior to development was assessed at $127,600 today it’s $843,750. 

The vacant lot’s assessed value that became JPI was $275,000, with NO SALES TAX REVENUE, today its total assessed value is $ 2,300,000.

The other benefits from the developments are even clearer.  City Sales Tax revenues have gone from $34.4 million, when City Center opened to a projected $43.7 million this year.  Mortgage Recording Tax has gone from $1.3 million in 2000 to more than $5.5 million today. 

It’s true that the City financed $23 of the $39 million for the garage at City Center and the debt payments are approximately $1.5 million a year.  The City replaced a 40-year old, 1,160-space lot that,at the time was losing $180,000 a year with a modern 2,370 space lot that generates a PROFIT of approximately $2.4 million annually.  All of the profit goes toward paying off the bonds and the garage reverts to City ownership as soon as the bonds are paid.  No question that the additional spaces are needed. 

It’s also not an unprecedented element to encourage development.  In 1981, the City financed ALL of the
$29 million (imagine the net present value of those dollars!) needed to construct the parking garage at the Galleria which helped suck the life out of downtown retailers.

Speaking of parking revenues, they have increased from $13.1 in 2004 to more than $15.6 in 2006.  And for all those who criticize the dissolution of the old Parking Authority and its incorporation into a City Department, what do they say about Governor Spitzer’s effort toabolish such authorities state-wide.  White Plains was 3 years ahead of
its time.

You say that you don’t care about the portion of your taxes that goes to the County???  I say you should.  First of all, what are you receiving for the nearly equal amount of taxes that goes to them?  Or for the assessed values for new developments that are taken off our role because the City hasn’t obtained an IDA, something the Mayor has
advocated for since 1999. 

Speaking of which, Assemblywoman Amy Paulin was good enough to support a bill to get one for the City this year.

Regarding your story  (WPCNR account of Mr. Bradley’s remarks about the city on White Plains Week) about (Assemblyman) Adam Bradley,

I don’t know what Adam Bradley means when he says he wants to review the budget.  He’s right, the City is facing what other cities in the State are facing.  He doesn’t know how they are handling it?  Ask the Mayor, who as the President of NYCOM can tell you.  Layoffs, higher property taxes, huge budget deficits and reduced services are what most other cities are doing.

We’d lose our competitive advantage?  What competitive advantage?  Does he really believe that people will leave White Plains to pay the SAME amount of sales tax in Yonkers, New Rochelle or Mount Vernon? The sales tax were asking for is equal to what those cities already charge.  Not more.  Furthermore, if he’d check the city’s website for the analysis of the quarter of a cent increase, he’d see the 97% of the projected revenues would come from people who live OUTSIDE the City.

Who does he work for? The 97% who live outside the City or the property taxpayers who would benefit and who live here. 

Has he become so jaded and ineffective that he refuses to carry the message up to Albany unless he knows for sure it will pass both houses?

I hope the remarks you printed were not true or taken out of context,

John. 

WPCNR Notes: The remarks of Mr.Bradley were a transcript of the actually cablecast tape, in sequence.

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WPCNR THE STORM NEWS. June 27, 2007: Deputy Police Commissioner Daniel Jackson reports the present conditions in White Plains as of 5:17 PM:

North Broadway at Lennox is closed northbound due to a tree and traffic light down. We have a number of flooded streets and popped manhole covers. Now that the rain has stopped, we’re waiting for the water to subside. A transformer is burning on Park Circle. The Bronx River Parkway and I-287 are at a standstill.

Our police and fire crews are handling numerous incidents.  We are opening some streets at this time as the water subsides.

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 WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. June 27, 2007: In return for a one year 3% hike in wages across all salary levels, White Plains teachers agreed to pay about $200 more as their share of health insurance in 2007-2008. According to Assistant Superintendent for Business Fred Seiler,  the 3% wage increase approved by the White Plains Board of Education Monday evening, would cost the school district $1.8 Million in the next budget year beginning July 1. The teachers, he said, agreed to pay more of their share of their health insurance provided by the district which would have the teachers paying $150,000 more a year.

Seiler reports that Health insurance for a single employee would increase from $450 to  $635 a year; for two person plans, from $800 to $1,075; and, for family coverage the portion teachers pay would rise from $900 to $1,220.

Seiler said the teacher increase covers salary only and goes across all step levels, but remuneration for additional degrees was not affected by the one year settlement. Seiler said it has not been discussed when the district would begin to negotiation next year’s contract with the teacher’s union. The new contract only covers July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008.

The Board of Education by a 3-2 margin, with Peter Bassano obstaining rejected the Civil Service Employees contract increase which, Seiler said called for a straight salary increase of 3% a year, beginning one month after the start of the year. Seiler said because of the one-month delay in the injection of the pay increase, the raise actually amounted to 2.73%.

Seiler when asked what happened said, WPCNR should talk to the Board of Education, but ventured the opinion that the Board objected that there was no change in anything related to health.

Asked if he was going to follow Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors into retirement in June 2009, Seiler, said “Oh no…no…I hope to be here for a long time. I love working in White Plains.  Great district. Great people. I don’t plan to go anywhere.”