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WPCNR ROVING REPORTER. January 19, 2004: Six inches of fresh fallen snow blanketed White Plains Sunday afternoon as the best forecasts of weathercasters failed to define the snowline of a slow moving tropical low.
THE MORE IT SNOWS, TIDDLEY-POM. Photo by The White Plains Roving Reporter
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WPCNR Daily Mirror. By John F. Bailey.
George Washington stands for honesty.
Abraham Lincoln for freedom
Dr. King’s name stands for Opportunity.
When I think of Dr. King, I think of the Selma marches, I think of Birmingham, I think of Little Rock, Arkansas, where he lead the African-American community in demonstrations asking for the right of equal opportunity in America: a seat on a bus wherever they chose; a restaurant or hotel of their choice; the right to apply for a job without being turned down because you were black. Blatant in-your-face- discrimination was publicized by Dr. King and
Today, subtle discrimination denying equal opportunity, and guaranteeing less opportunity are the evils that Dr. King, had he lived would be attacking today.
When I write those sentences I just wrote, it seems incomprehensible to me that someone would deny another person that. When you think about it, it is an awful situation to think about. In the 36 years since Dr. King was murdered, the nation has come a long way in my opinion, in breaking down the visible barriers of racism based on creed and the color of one’s skin.
Today the barriers to Equal Opportunity are more subtle and just as effective.
Barriers still exist: in the classroom. There is reluctance to deliver quality education to the black and Hispanic populations in
There is the perception that because your name and skin color sound Spanish or Jamaican, or Dominican, or you look that way you automatically need help and are slow-tracked into remedial classes; the inclusion of the slower (read minority) children in one corner of a classroom so you can deal with the “problem children” all at once; the notion that it is all right to use millions of dollars meant for rebuilding poor performing schools with better buildings, better teachers, but is used to create educational bureaucracies for the politically connected instead.
In the last ten years the products of this subtle unequal educational opportunity have been well documented and given a name: The Achievement Gap. The educational establishment invests millions in studies to fine solutions to it and they have learned a lot about it. It takes more
The lagging behind of the African-American youth is blamed on the home and family breakdown. Well then you have to bring more attention to the family unit and those youngsters’ home environment, putting the education in there. It’s expensive but if you want to solve the Achievement Gap you have to do that.
The argument that you have to speak English in the schools and learn it is obvious racial superiority. Of course you have to learn to speak English, but really, Bilingual education is how we English-speakers learn another language….why not have teachers educate Hispanic background children in their own language with English simultaneously? It is proven to work. It is time to stop the subtle prejudice that we do not want Hispanic children in our towns and schools because they are too hard to educate and will cost us money to do that. They are children, you simply cannot throw them away because they are Hispanic.
That’s discrimination I think Dr. Martin Luther King would find hard to take. He would also bristle at lowering standards for minorities, because he would see right through that argument, saying well when are you going to raise the standards for my people because you don’t have to work any harder at educating them if you do not raise your expectations for them.
I think Dr. King would look around today and appreciate how Blacks and Whites, Hispanics and Jews, Catholics and Protestants, Muslims and other races mingle together in today’s
I think he would observe we are all becoming more appreciative and respectful of each other. But, I do not think he would like today’s buzz word :”diversity” and priding ourselves on diversity. He would say that’s nice, but let’s keep our eye on the prize, to borrow the wonderful motto of the White Plains Department of Public Safety, let us treat all with integrity, professionalism, respect, and to that add opportunity.
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WPCNR PRESS BOX. “VIEW FROM THE UPPER DECK,” By John Baseball Bailey.
VIEW FROM THE UPPER DECK.
Pete Rose batting in Wrigley Field, 1975.
Photo by WPCNR Sports
On ABC Television last week he admitted he bet on baseball four or five times a week. This raises the very legitimate question of how much Rose bet on baseball when he was a player. Obviously, Mr. Rose had a big-time gambling problem. The sportswriters and fans who believed Mr. Rose, and I myself was one, have been betrayed by a cheap hustler whose admission in cavalier fashion raises more questions than it answers.
Far from now making him eligible for the Hall of Fame, it is good reason for baseball to keep him out of it.
How many times as a player did Rose know things about the opposition and placed bets on games based on this insider knowledge, or perhaps threw meaningless, or maybe not-so-meaningless-games by his performance on the field at certain times? He will of course, deny this, but the box scores do not lie.
His admission on television casts a black cloud on the less-than-steller performances of the Cincinnati Reds in the 1970 and 1972 postseasons when Rose was a key member of that club.
The Reds allowed themselves to be closed out in 1972 against the
Moreover the Reds were a powerful team in 1969, 1971, 1973 and 1974, losing the pennant in 1969 by 4 games in 1969; 11 games in 1972, and 4 games in 1974. A game here and there made a huge difference in whether
Now we know he did bet on baseball a lot.
The question is did he bet a lot when he was a player? Rose was no rookie in the early 1970s when the Reds were a strong contending team. This reporter finds it hard to believe that Rose did not gamble on baseball in his playing days, as he steadfastly maintains.
As baseball found out in 1919, it is very easy to throw a baseball game, by not hitting, by making a crucial error. Mr. Rose played the outfield in those games against
The Chicago and Cincinnati papers in 1919, even wrote columns saying “I’m forever blowing ball games, pretty balls games in the air…”
The video tapes of the 1972 World Series should be looked at very carefully to watch Rose’s efforts in the field and at the plate. Did he have good at-bats? Did he swing at bad pitches?
Rose was not the only Red who did not hit in those series. But, that’s the problem with a gambler in baseball, you never know. Does anyone really believe Rose when he says he just started gambling on baseball when he quit playing?
Are you kidding us, Pete?
The Reds lost the 1973 National League Championship Series to the Mets by primarily by being unable to get the Mets out due to lousy pitching. That was also the series where Rose got into a fight with Bud Harrelson the Mets Shortstop at second base, and was not suspended at all, or kicked out of the game. Did Pete have something riding on the Series? Was he trying to take himself out of the Series? How were his finances during the time he played?
What concerns you about a player with a gambling problem and Pete Rose has admitted that now, is whether or not Rose might have compromised his team on the field in those close pennant races in the years I mentioned. In the years the Reds lost pennants they were heavily favored to win them.
Think about this: The Reds lost the pennant in 1969 by 4 games; They lost it by 11 games in 1971, and 4 games in 1974. A game here and there made a huge difference in whether
Ironically, Ty Cobb, the player Rose passed by setting baseball’s all-time hit record, also performed terribly in the World Series he played in in three consecutive years. And Cobb was a known gambler.
It is an obvious, nasty question, which Rose will deny. But there is no way he can prove he did not. Hopefully, the ABC interviewer asked him that question, if they did not, shame on them.
Now that Bud Selig, the Baseball Commissioner, and his investigators have been vindicated, it is clear that Rose should not be in the Hall of Fame ever. Their decision was correct.
More pressing is whether Rose should be allowed to manage again. Clearly that answer has to be “No.”
“Say it Ain’t so, Ro?”
I cannot believe you. Baseball should never again trust you.
If Baseball puts Rose in the Hall of Fame, he should be given a Black Plaque that notes his gambling ban.
Ironically, Pete Rose idol of millions of fans for years for his abilities has delivered a valuable lesson to fans, youngsters and idealistic fans that once your integrity is compromised, you can never regain it.
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WPNCR WHITE PLAINS ROVING REPORTER. January 19, 2004: Here is a postcard from the new White Plains, created over the weekend. One hundred years from now perhaps the controversy will be saving the City Center from demolition.
DOWNTOWN WHITE PLAINS, 2004
Photo by The White Plains Roving Reporter.
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WPCNR ROVING REPORTER. January 18, 2004: Presenting the White Plains Photograph of the Day captured at White Plains High School, former J. C. Penny Estate.
5 Degrees, 7:15 A.M. Photo by The White Plains Roving Reporter
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WPCNR’S ADAM IN ALBANY. By District 89 Assemblyman Adam T. Bradley. January 17, 2004: The Assembly recently passed legislation to help New York level the playing field for women and minorities in the workplace. I supported this legislation which was designed to end wage discrimination, and help businesses owned by women and minorities succeed.
The difference in annual salaries between the average man and woman working in similar positions is more than substantial – women are making $13,087 less, according to the National Committee on Pay Equity. Not only does that mean reduced Social Security benefits and less money for bills, mortgages and savings, it also means a lack of independence, security, equality and opportunities for women.
To remedy discriminatory salary practices, the legislation (A.6252) seeks to amend the state Labor Law to provide pay equity for all people who perform work of comparable skill, effort and responsibility.
To help achieve pay equity for all New Yorkers, I also sponsored legislation:
· Implementing a state policy of equal compensation for work of comparable worth for state and public employees (A.737);
· Making discriminatory salary practices unlawful — especially in traditionally female-dominated occupations (A.3998);
· Allowing groups of workers with similar complaints to file them together — helping individuals fighting discrimination to defray the costs associated with filing a complaint alone (A.148);
· Enacting the New York State Fair Pay Act — ensuring pay differentiation is not based on a person’s sex, race, or national origin (A.6701); and
· Making it a discriminatory practice for public employers to compensate employees of opposite sexes differently for work that is of comparable worth (A.6237).
I urge the Senate and the governor to join the Assembly by passing these initiatives to help end wage discrimination for all New Yorkers.
We also need to encourage the growth of businesses that provide economic opportunities for women and minorities. A measure I supported that attempts to achieve that goal was signed into law. The law extends for another 15 years a program to ensure a fair portion of state contracts are allotted to businesses owned by minorities and women. The law was also expanded to include contracts put out to bid by the Empire State Development Corporation (A.7233-A/Ch.628 of 2003). Another law is designed to help promote women- and minority-owned business participation in state contracts for construction and services (A.9057/Ch.636 of 2003).
These innovative measures will help make
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WPCNR ROVING REPORTER. January 17, 2004: Presenting the White Plains Photograph of the Day featuring Westchester’s art deco masterpiece that lacks only icemaking abilities to be a complete arena.
“SPHINX” Photo by the White Plains Roving Reporter
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WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE. By John F. Bailey. January 16, 2004: The Common Council learned for the first time that the Cappelli Hotel will be so exclusive, if built, that it will get its own sewer line that Louis Cappelli will pay for. The new Cappelli line will inject its effluent directly to the 27 inch trunk sewer line at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, ending the mystery over just how full the Main Street Sewer under Main Street between Mamaroneck Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard is at the present time, and how it will handle the hotel discharge. The Cappelli Hotel, in effect, will get a “direct connect” to the Yonkers Sewer treatment plant.
JOSEPH NICOLETTI TO THE RESCUE: Commissioner of Public Works and City Engineer, Joseph Nicoletti at the Common Council work session Thursday night, explains his “Nicoletti Bypass” that avoids the Cappelli Hotel project having to be connected to the Main Street sewer and gives the Hotel-Office project an exclusive new 400 foot line, (WPCNR estimate) shared with the New York Power Authority, directly to the 27-inch trunk line at the Galleria Main Street and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard intersection. Mayor Joseph Delfino looks on with the Draft Environmental Impact Statement on the Conference Table. Photo by WPCNR News
The new 15-inch line “Nicoletti Bypass,” so dubbed by WPCNR because it is Mr. Nicoletti’s personal solution that, in his opinion, takes the city out of the game of Sewer Roulette, where the city appeared until Thursday evening, to be betting how much effluent is running in the Main Street sewer now and that it can handle both the completed City Center and Cappelli Hotelplex simultaneously without failing.
The Nicoletti Bypass will not test the Main Street sewer at all.
NEW NICOLETTI BYPASS 15-INCH LINE WILL BEGIN HERE on Williams Street. Williams Street connects to the present parking lot behind the Bar Buiding. The Bypass replaces an existing 8-inch municipal main beneath William Street and will run in an “L-jog” out William Street to Main Street and be laid 100 feet east under Main Street to an immaculate direct connection to the 27-inch truck sewer main section in the middle of Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard. Photo by WPCNR News.
Building a “Night Line,” Lining Up Sewer Insurance for City Center, too. Main Line can’t handle 221: Nicoletti.
The Commissioner of Public Works said the work on 100 feet of Main street between Williams Street and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard (at The Galleria intersection), would take place at night. He did not say how long it would take to complete the 400 foot sewer run. WPCNR estimates on observations made Thursday evening that the little traveled “L-shaped” Williams Street is about 300 feet.
BYPASS CONTINUES DOWN HILL AROUND CORNER AND OUT TO MAIN STREET. The new 15-inch sewer line will run 19 feet underground. The existing 8-inch pipe running under Williams Street will be removed as part of the project. The New York Power Authority building is to the right. Photo by WPCNR News.
In order, to assure the Main Street Sewer will perform adequately, Mr. Nicoletti is requiring that Mr. Cappelli line the Main Street sewer from Mamaroneck Avenue to the 27 inch trunk sewer line at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to smooth the flow of effluent from the City Center.
Asked after explaining H-9, by Mrs. Malmud if the Main Street Sewer could handle the effluent from the Cappelli hotel, Mr. Nicoletti said, “In my opinion, it does not have the capacity to handle 221.”
SEWER BYPASS WILL THEN WRAP AROUND WILLIAMS STREET CORNER (foreground), and continue down Main Street to the intersection at the end of Macy’s left, and the beginning of The Galleria (background). The new 15-inch Bypass will parallel the 16-inch Main Street Sewer side-by-side, but not connect. Instead the 15-inch hits a home run to the 27″ inch trunk line at the intersection and speeds the effluent to the Yonkers sewage treatment plant. Mr. Nicoletti said the county has assured White Plains there is adequate capacity at the Yonkers plant. Photo by WPCNR News.
Commissioner Nicoletti Explains H-9 Plan to Persistent Bernstein, and Relentless Malmud Request.
The DFEIS page “H9” contents were discussed for the first time publicly, and the Common Council appeared to be hearing about and seeing the “H9” document for the first time as Commissioner Nicoletti, nervous and precise in what he was saying explained his plan.
The Common Council got Commissioner Nicoletti to testify on the sewage mystery by Rita Malmud’s demanding it twice on December 19 and again, during the Common Council meeting January 5.
NEW YORK POWER AUTHORITY WILL SHARE THE NEW 15-INCH PIPELINE the city will embed in William Street. The city has a public utility easement located within William Street and the front entrance plaza of the Power Authority Building shown in background. Photo by WPCNR News.
A Bernstein Push
Tonight, Councilman Arnold Bernstein joined Ms. Malmud in pressing the issue, though facing the Mayor’s scolding that people would think the city would not make the right sewer decision . Nevertheless, Mr. Berstein quietly and firm asked the Mayor, “What am I to say to constituents when questioned as to whether the Main Street sewer line had the capacity to handle the effluent from the proposed Cappelli Hotel at 221 Main and future development. Mayor Delfino was very defensive, muttering, “to think people would think we would allow a project to be built knowingly that the sewer couldn’t handle it,” and rolling his eyes.
Rita Malmud raised her voice raising her eyebrows, and said with her trademark dignity, she wanted to hear from “our Commissioner of Public Works” about the capacity of the sewer line. The Mayor testily said, gesturing to Mr. Nicoletti, who, with hands folded below his waist was waiting to speak. The Mayor signed and, with a wave of his right hand, said “well he’s here waiting, let him talk.”
And talk Mr. Nicoletti did, a little tentative at first, but gaining strength of voice and conviction as he got under the street and into the effluent.
After going over the “Bypass Plan,” Mr. Nicoletti was asked by Mr. Bernstein if the Main Street 16-inch sewer line could handle further development now that the Cappelli Hotel is no longer going to be using it. Mr. Nicoletti said “that depends on the project,” then elaborated saying any other project at the eastern end of Main Street would connect to the Broadway sewer, which might, he thought need replacing.
Mr. Cappelli signs off on paying for the Nicoletti Bypass.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Commissioner of Planning, Susan Habel showed a cryptic freshly signed original letter from Cappelli Enterprises, signed by Bruce Berg, stating that Cappelli Enterprises would pay for the new sewer line and construction. “This letter will be added to the DFEIS she said.
Mr. Cappelli told WPCNR in the post-work session defbriefing interview, he expected to pay between $500,000 and $1,000,000 for the construction of the new sewer line and the lining of the Main 16-inch Street Sewer line with teflon from Mamaroneck Avenue to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard.
The appearance of the freshly signed letter guaranteeing payment, at the end of the meeting, may have been the explanation for the 30-minute delay in starting the meeting, (called for 6 P.M.) which got underway when Mr. Cappelli, Mr. Berg, Mark Weingarten (Mr. Cappelli’s attorney) the Mayor, Ms. Habel, Rod Johnson, Ms. Habel’s Deputy Commissioner and the Mayor’s associates, Mr. Wood and Mr. Ammirato emerged from the Mayor’s inner sanctum adjacent to the Mayor’s Conference Room, and the meeting began.
“Defusing a Time Bomb”
Mr. Cappelli told WPCNR, he had agreed to go along with Mr. Nicoletti’s “Bypass Plan” which will connect the 221 Main Cappelli Hotel & Office Complex to the Main Street Sewer at Williams Street, bypassing the block on Main Street between Mamaroneck Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
WPCNR Asked whether his sewer and effluent analysts, Divney Tung Schwalbe, (whose statistics, based on average flows per minute, insisted the Main Street sewer could handle the Cappelli Hotelplex load along with the City Center), agreed with the “Nicoletti Bypass Sewer Solution?”
Cappelli said, “I’ve been assured by my consulting engineers that I don’t have to do this. I had too. They (the Mayor and the Commissioner of Public Works) wanted it. I wanted to defuse a time bomb,” as his reasons for agreeing to pay for replacing the sewer.
The city will perform the work and Mr.Cappelli will pay for it.
Delfino: He’s My Commissioner.
Mayor Joseph Delfino emerging from a noisy conference with his aids, Paul Wood and Rick Ammirato, was asked by WPCNR if he had come around to agreeing with Mr. Nicoletti. “I never knew from Day One there was a problem about the sewers. Usually we work things out. He’s my commissioner. I don’t know. My people bring things up. Usually we work them out. I want the building to be built and adequate.”
Asked if Mr. Nicoletti could appear in an interview on White Plains Week, to elaborate on the sewer solution, permission was denied by the Mayor, according to Mr. Wood.
Commissioner of Planning Susan Habel concluded a brief interview with WPCNR saying with gravity, “The sewer issue has been resolved.”
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WPCNR WHITE PLAINS ROVING REPORTER. January 16, 2004: Presenting the White Plains Photo of the Day, capturing snowbirds at White Plains High School, the best sledding hill in the city, despite the 8 degree temperature, and the minus-30 windchill. “SNOW DAY CLASSES” Photo by the White Plains Roving Reporter
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WPCNR D.A.’S REPORT. From the Office of the Westchester County District Attorney, Jeanine Pirro. (EDITED) January 14, 2004–Westchester County District Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced Wednesday Nine Warning Signs Exhibited by Abused Children. The D.A. urges citizens to familiarize themselves with these conditions in light of the recent incidents in Westchester County. She urges everyone to report incidents of suspected child abuse immediately.
In light of two significant cases of child abuse in the county in the last three months, Ms. Pirro, As part of her continuing law enforcement training in the field of child abuse and neglect has scheduled a conference entitled, Child Abuse: Multi-Disciplinary Approach to the Investigations of the Family Abduction of Children: Investigation and Reunification on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Pepsico, Inc. 700 Anderson Hill Road, Purchase, New York.
District Attorney Pirro issued this statement in announcing the conference: “Every day three children are killed as a result of child abuse in this country. Child abuse is everybody’s business. As adults it’s our responsibility to ensure that all children receive the love, care and enrichment they deserve. If a parent is unable to deal appropriately with their child, there are resources available.”
Pirro’s office noted that nationwide studies show that child abuse occurs in all segments of society. The District Attorney urges law enforcement officers, parents, teachers, and citizens to familarize themselves with these behaviors.
Nine Warning Signs Exhibited by Abused Children:
• Nervousness around or withdrawal from adults
• Aggression towards adults or other children
• Frequent or unexplained bruises or injuries
• Sudden, dramatic changes in personality or activities
• Inability to stay awake or to concentrate for extended periods
• Acting out sexually, sexual knowledge or showing interest in sex that is not appropriate for his or her age
• Poor hygiene
• Low self-esteem
• Extremely poor school attendance or a lack of medical care
How to Handle Suspected Cases:
If you notice these signs or suspect a child abuse emergency, for example, young children currently left alone or being beaten, the District Attorney urges you to call your local police department (911) for an immediate response.
If you suspect child abuse or neglect call the New York State Child Abuse and Maltreatment Registry Hotline at 1-800-342-3720 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week).
For additional guidance contact the Westchester Child Protective Services Program Office at 914-995-5333. For more information and support call the Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-CHILD, the HOPE Foundation at 1-877-796-HOPE (4673) or the Westchester County District Attorney’s Child Abuse Bureau at (914) 995-3000.
Recent Cases Underline Need for Vigilence
Two recent cases have prompted Ms. Pirro to step up awareness of possible child abuse.
Last month, 20 year old Uniqua Smith of Yonkers was arrested for allegedly beating her two-year old daughter to death.
In November 2003, the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office obtained the maximum sentence of one and one-third to four years in state prison for Sharell Rose Johnson of Mount Vernon in connection with the beating death of her 2 ½ year old son. Her boyfriend, Dyego Foddrell, also of Mount Vernon has been charged with Second Degree Murder, Manslaughter in the First Degree and Endangering the Welfare of a Child in connection with the child’s death.
The conference next Tuesday is designed to provide law enforcement officers and child welfare professionals with invaluable information to properly recognize, investigate and resolve missing children cases. Conference attendees will develop skills and strategies to assist them in the investigation of family abductions, investigative case management, victim impact, reunification/recovery and investigative resources.