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 WEATHER SCOOP. July 21, 2006, 11:30 P.M. E.D.T.: Though thunderstorms hampered Con Edison and White Plains Department of Public Works cruise earlier this evening, the city succeeded in opening up the Havilands Manor neighborhood and Con Edison has restored power to 65 more homes since 7 P.M. As of 11:30 Friday evening, D. Joy Faber, Con Edision Media Relations reports 935 White Plains residences remain without power. Faber said Con Edison will be working throughout the weekend to restore those homes. Faber said invididual house and yard connections where there are trees down in power lines to the houses constitute the vast majorty of homes still affected.

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WPCNR PRESS BOX. By John F. Bailey. July 21, 2006. UPDATED 6:40 P.M. E.D.T.: As reported by WPCNR last week, Geoffrey Thompson, spokesperson for Louis Cappelli, the Super Developer, announced today Mr. Cappelli has asked his Louis Cappelli Foundation board to donate $1 Million to the renovation of Loucks Field in White Plains. Thompson, at this point describes the gift as cash. To date, Mr. Cappelli is the only corporate citizen of White Plains who has stepped to aid the School District on the High School athletic field project. The city government has not indicated it will match the gift in any way at this time.

Paul Wood, City Executive Officer, contacted WPCNR at 5:30 to clarify that the $1 Million may be a contribution “in kind,” and the form of it had not been “finalized” yet. Wood also said that the city was responsible for the gift, because Mr. Cappelli had asked the city recently what he could do for the city, (in connection with his enthusiasm at building 221 Main beyond his site plan approval). Wood said the city suggested Cappelli contribute to the school district.

Mr. Cappelli contributed $1 Million to Grace Church last year for renovation of Samaritan House, the women’s shelter, whose residents have reportedly been housed elsewhere. When first announced,  the gift was reported to be cash, but WPCNR learned that it was in “in kind” services, design of renovations and construction of the renovation, which is under way. While Mr. Cappelli’s firm is renovating, his construction crews are using the Grace Church driveway for delivery of cement to the 221 Main project.

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Cappelli the man behind the Rennaissance in White Plains, the philanthropist who has contributed approximately $12 Million to White Plains in the last five years since he came to town, has stepped up to donate yet another gift.

The renovation of the White Plains High School Loucks Field will add a state-of-the-art-track, soccer, football, field hockey and lacrosse artificial turf playing surface, new spectator stands, press box, lights and dressing rooms to the site of the New York State Loucks Games was put last night by Triton Construction Corporation as $5,777, 742. The school district apprised of the gift by the city last week, had been hoping it would defray the escalating cost of the capital construction bond put last night at $70 Million, and calculated to go up 2% a quarter before construction begins.

Mike Graessle, chair of the Capital Projects Committee last night, held open the possibility that  the committee is leaning to eliminating the artificial turf and stands at the Middle School Highlands Parker Stadium (a cost of $3,672,717), and spending substantially less on redoing the stands at Parker in order to bring down the cost of the bond.

The Cappelli gift defrays $1 Million of the High School Field Cost, and should the district trim the Parker Stadium cost  below a million, the bond could be cut by $3.5 Million, and state aid of $2.5 Million could cut the bond back to under $65 Million. To date the Capital Projects Committee has not indicated what projects other than the two athletic fields they will recommend cutting, if any cuts are even being anticipated. A $66 Million Bond Issue, including Loucks Field renovation would cost $66 additional taxes to owners of a $15,000 Assessed house, beginning in 2007-2008

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WPCNR DOWNTOWN DAILY. July 21, 2006: Taste of Downtown White Plains Food Festival and Car Show has been postponed due to rain and scattered thunderstorms predicted for Saturday, July 22. A Taste of Downtown White Plains has been rescheduled for Saturday, September 9th, 2006. For more information, please contact the White Plains Downtown BID at 914-328-5166

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WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. July 21, 2006: Triton Construction Corporation presented new numbers based on their review of the projected costs of the School District proposed $66.7 Million Infrastructure and Capital Improvement program Thursday evening to the Capital Projects Committee at the White Plains High School Library because Education House was without power for the second straight day.

Chris Pearson of Triton Construction Corporation, the city’s construction manager on the as-yet-to-be-approved project, presented costs of the projects as approaching $69,366,748, up 3% from the previous $66.7 Million figure.

Pearson attributed the rising costs to a 3% increase in the cost of construction of the new Post Road School from $36 million to $39,359,008. He also warned that costs would escalate due to construction inflation at 2% a quarter. At that rat, considering construction could not start before July 2007, WPCNR estimates the bond amount may eventually have to be floated for $75 Million in either October or December. It is unlikely the Board of Education would put the bond referendum up for vote in November when there would be a high turnout of electorate. Russ Davidson of Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson, who said he had not seen Mr. Pearson’s figures before the evening, said he was pleased Triton’s figures on the project were only 3% higher than what KG & D had estimated.

The Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors stated that the school was expected a gift towards the Loucks Field construction from the Super Developer, Louis Cappelli, but that the amount and form of Mr. Cappelli’s generosity has yet to be announced by the city or Mr. Cappelli. Last week, WPCNR was told by Mr. Cappelli’s spokesperson, Geoffrey Thompson the terms and nature of the gift were being negotiated. (The cost of the renovation of Loucks Field at White Plains High School was estimated by Mr. Pearson last night as being $5,777,742.)

Mike Graessle, Chair of the committee set August 2, Wednesday, for the committee to reconvene and discuss its recommendations to the Board of Education.

The Committee dismissed accountant Richard Hecht’s recommendations to bond the infrastructure improvements separately, based on Assistant Superintendent of Business Terence Schruers bond projections showing no significant savings in tax payments if the district did that. Schruers noted that the cost of the bond in a tax increase would be  an additonal $66 to  $70 a year in taxes for the average assessed home in White Plains ($15,000) . For a home worth $700,000 in White Plains assessed at $18,000, that cost would be an additional $85 a year in additional to any  increases in the school budget any given year.

Peter Bassano speaking to WPCNR after the meeting said that Kaeyer Garment & Davidson’s contract with the district for supervising the project was still being negotiated and the percentage the architectural firm would receive based on the costs of the infrastructure was being vigorously negotiated. KG  & D according to the initial contract considered was to receive 8% of infrastructure costs under $5 Million, and 7% of new construction costs over $5 Million. Their contract was cost based.

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WPCNR Common Council Chronicle-Examiner. Special to The CitizeNetReporter. July 20, 2006: At a Special Meeting of the Common Council this evening, the Council approved a site plan amendment allowing Louis Cappelli to add 56,000 square feet to his Ritz-Carlton 221 Main project, including 15 feet to the hotel podium portion, and in the process approved adding a restaurant, pool and health club to the mechanical level of the first tower now rising on Main Street, according to Suburbanstreet.com’s Jim Benerofe who attended the meeting and briefed WPCNR on what transpired.

 He said the Council also nominated Dennis Power to serve in the Common Council seat that has been left vacant by the death of Councilman Robert Greer June 27. 

Mr. Power, never returned WPCNR’s call Tuesday to answer the question of whether he would recuse himself from council votes involving issues before the Common Council that Westchester County has a stake in, and how he would not have a conflict of interest between county development ideas for White Plains and the city’s best interest.

(Mr. Power works for the Office of Economic Development, reporting to Sal Carrera, and serves at the pleasure of Andy Spano, the County Executive. )

Power’s appointment became certain Tuesday when Alexis Greer, Mr. Greer’s daughter, withdrew her name from consideration for the interim seat.

Power is now a member of the Common Council through December 31, and should attend his first monthly meeting August 7.