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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The Delfino Administration is proposing changes to the way monthly Common Council meetings are conducted “to prevent the Common Council from discussing and voting on public issues after midnight.”

In an official news release from City Hall, Mayor Delfino made this statement:

“The last Common Council meeting lasted until 3:45 A.M., long after
most people have gone to sleep. It is insane and prevents many of our
residents from participating in the public debate on some of the most
important issues facing our City in the last twenty years.”

There was a full house at City Hall on Monday August 5 at 8:10 PM for start of “The Mother of All Common Council Meetings,” or “The Meeting That Would Not End.” Meeting lasted 7 hours and 40 minutes, adjourning at approximately 3:45 AM Tuesday morning, prompting the Mayor’s initiative. Photo by WPCNR.

The Mayor proposes starting Common Council meetings at 7:30 PM, instead
of the current 8 P.M. start. He also wants the Council to agree to an
automatic curfew at midnight, with a mandatory “carry-over”
of the remaining agenda to the next night, Tuesday evening.

Says Delfino: “The Council should be prepared to meet every night
if it has to in order to get the people’s business done. This is what
we need to do in order to ensure that the public is included in the process.”

The Delfino Administration, by unofficial count, has staged more council
meetings than the previous Schulman Administration. In 1994, the Common
Council under Mayor Sy Schulman met 21 times. In 1999, Mayor Delfino doubled
the number of Council meetings “to reflect the flurry of proposals
created by what Delfino calls ‘the revitalization era of White Plains,'”
according to the City Hall statement.

In the year 2000 the Council met 61 times, tripling the number of Council
meetings from 1994.

The Common Council meeting of August 5 to 6, which ran from 8:10 PM to
3:45 PM with two 10 minute breaks, was the longest council meeting in
30 years, according to the city Registrar, Janice Minieri, who recalled
that in the 70s, Council meetings used to have an 11 o’clock curfew.

Last week’s council meeting featured 6 Public Hearings and discussion
of a resolution. Speakers were not limited to specific time limits. All
speakers who wanted to be heard were allowed to speak. Several persons
awaiting for their opportunity to present during their hearing were obliged
to wait 4 hours, 6 hours, and one, a full 7 hours before their hearing
came up.

What disturbed the news media personnel covering the meeting was that
the Beyer Blinder Belle presentation on the “height study” and
the City Center public hearing did not begin until 11 PM and midnight,
respectively. The zoning hearings were taken first.

Channel 12’s television crew, there to cover the Cappelli City Center
project (which was listed first on the agenda, but was delayed until after
the zoning hearings), walked out after discovering the City Center was
delayed indefinitely into the night. (Public dessemination of the Cappelli
Center models presented later that night, would have been very helpful
to the public if televised clips of the model had been presented on Channel
12.)

BODY DRAIN: The “Meeting That Would Not End” continues. By 3 A.M., only two Commissioners, a policeman, one spectator and this reporter watched the Common Council grill Public Works Commissioner Joseph Nicoletti relentlessly and repetitiously on the $1.2 Million Youth Bureau and new Public Works Garage cost overruns. This action took place at approximately 3 AM Tuesday morning. The council voted 7-0 to fund the overruns (See related story). Public Access Television Channel 72 will telecast the first third of the meeting on Mondays; the second third on Tuesdays, and the final segment on Wednesdays the rest of this month. Photo by WPCNR.

According to the official City Hall statement released Tuesday, Delfino
in his 1998 Inaugural Address, pledged to “swing the doors of City
government wide open.” In the statement, it credits him with initiating
a series of reforms “aimed at increasing public access and participation.”
Increasing the number of times the Common Council has met has been the
most visible evidence of this initiative.

Delfino is credited by the statement with providing full access to Council
meeting minutes and agendas through the city website at www.cityofwhiteplains.com,
which provides minutes of every Council meeting for the past six years.
The statement also reports: “Delfino has also restored work session
meetings, which allows the Common Council to be briefed in public on City
issues and to ask questions.”

It should be pointed out by this observer of City Hall that without scheduled
Work Sessions, all Common Council meetings would run much longer, and
projects, proposals, and resolutions would take even longer to go through
the presentation, hearing, and approval process than they do now, because
the Common Council would ask a lot more questions.

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In the longest Council meeting Town Clerk Janice Minieri can ever remember, (7 hours and 40 minutes and adjourning at 3:40 AM, Tuesday morning), the Common Council authorized an additional $1.2 million in bonding for additional expenditures in connection with constructing the new Department of Public Works garage on 75 Brockway Place and renovating Eastview School for the new Youth Bureau opening next month.

Approving the decision at approximately 3:15 AM in the morning, the Council
voted unanimously to provide $600 million in bonding to fund extensive
construction upgrades on the new Youth Bureau construction at Eastview
School. The construction consisted of disabled access ramping and automatic
doors mandated by the State Education Department, to the surprise of both
the City School District and Public Works Commissioner Joseph Nicoletti.

The Council reluctantly agreed to Department of Public Works Commissioner
Joseph Nicoletti’s specification for wood and concrete pilings for the
new Department of Public Works garage on Brockway Place, for another $600
million, which also included $200,000 for a separate Purchasing Building
at 202 Westchester Avenue. Total extra expenditure between the Youth Bureau
and the new DPW garage was $1.2 million.

When Commissioner Nicoletti was called to the podium at approximately
3 AM last Tuesday morning to explain the need for the extra funding on
the two endeavors, he was scolded by Councilmembers Pauline Oliva and
Rita Malmud for the unforeseen expenses.

Malmud and Oliva pointed out that Commissioner Nicoletti had told them
the value on the city deal with Bianco & Pep’e (of Scarsdale) that
provided Pep’e land on Brockway Place for the new garage in exchange for
the city’s existing Department of Public Works garage for a new Stop N
Shop Supermarket and Westchester One parking facility would not exceed
$6.4MM.

Commissioner Nicoletti explained that when piles were drilled to test
soil support abilities, it was discovered that the consistency of the
soil on Brockway Place would not support the steel pilings planned. Mr.
Nicoletti personally felt that wood concrete pilings would be the better
long term selection which would add 20 years of life to the new garage.

Selection of concrete pilings for the new garage foundation is expected to enable the city to get 30 more years usage out of the new garage. The decision will cost the city approximately $400,000 out of the $600,000 earmarked to cover extra cost of the sturdier construction. The other $200,00 is earmarked for a new Purchasing Department building at 202 Westchester Avenue. Photo by WPCNR.

Nicoletti said soil support samplings would usually have been taken before
the cost was determined, but in this case, when the deal was in process,
there was no time to make the soil samplings, and that the Bianco &
Pep’e firm was not prepared to invest more than the $6.4 million value
on the deal, anyway at the time.

Elsewhere on the Pep’e – Stop N Shop Project: On Saturday, workmen remove asbestos from roof of old Bank of New York Building on Westchester Avenue. View is from the Department of Public Works on 111 South Kensico. Commissioner Nicoletti reports the BONY building should be demolished within two weeks. Photo by WPCNR.

As followers of the Stop N Shop vs. Pep’e/Shoprite proposals in the year
2000 will remember, the Council had originally voted in favor of the Stop
N Shop proposal which proposed building a public works garage in back
of the Stop N Shop.

The Pep’e proposal suggested building the new public works garage on
its property on Brockway Place and proposing a Shoprite supermarket and
Westchester One parking garage behind the supermarket. The council opted
for the Stop N Shop proposal.

At the time there was much talk from the Common Council members about
Nicholas Pep’e and Stop N Shop combining their proposals. According to
WPCNR observations, Councilpersons Rita Malmud, Pauline Oliva and Robert
Greer suggested that Mr. Pep’e and Stop N Shop might explore how the two
organizations could marry their two proposals.

Mr. Pep’e and Stop N Shop did meet after Stop N Shop was selected and
came to a compromise plan which involved a swap of Stop N Shop land, the
City DPW, and a new garage in exchange for the Pep’e property on Brockway
Place for the new city DPW garage.

The Youth Bureau would have to move as a result of the demolition of
the old Department of Public Works garage, where it is presently housed.
After negotiations with the school district, the city received permission
to use the ground floor of Eastview School for the new Youth Bureau. The
city also understood that the State Education Department would have to
approve any redesigns of the school building.

Originally, $400,000 had been earmarked for the Youth Bureau Eastview
renovation. However, Mr. Nicoletti told the Common Council that neither
he nor the school district ever expected the construction specifications
that the State Education Department would demand the city build into the
new Youth Bureau wing at Eastview. New York state-mandated changes and
other possibilities for the Youth Bureau such as including a 1500 square
foot computer room, access to a gymnasium and new rest rooms are approaching
$600,000, according to Nicoletti.

The original Pep’e-Stop N Shop proposal executing the three-way swap
and build program was approved by the Common Council with the understanding
that its value to the city would be $6.4 million, with no costs out of
pocket for the city, with Pep’e building the new Department of Public
Works garage on Brockway Place and Stop N Shop and the Pep’e firm building
the Stop N Shop parking and new Westchester One parking on Stop N Shop
land consisting of the Bank of New York Property, the bowling alley and
the old City DPW garage.

Two weeks ago, in a work session, Mr. Nicoletti discussed that the city
had run into unforeseen out-of-pocket costs on both the Youth Bureau and
the new Department of Public Works garage which exceeded the $6.4 million
dollar figure by $1.2MM. The Tuesday morning 3 AM vote was to approve
bonding for that $1.2MM.

Nicoletti explained that the Department of Education wanted the ground
floor to be made completely accessible by the disabled, which required
building concrete ramps, special access doors and ramps, replacing internal
stairways and accessible bathrooms. Cost of the concrete alone for ramps
was an additional $100,000, Nicoletti said. As part of the Youth Bureau
renovations, a new computer room was added, and additional wiring and
special computer furniture ran this cost up another $150,000. Access doors
to a ground floor gymnasium were another expense, he said, that the city
felt would enhance the Youth Bureau program significantly.

Pauline Oliva said “I’m not as disturbed about the fact these things
are going to be costing more. It’s just the way I feel we went about approving
the contracts with the Pep’e and Stop N Shop people without a clause specifying
either they would pay or we would share in the costs if an overrun occurs.
We did a bad job there. All members of the council were under the impression
it was an even exchange.”

Mayor Joseph Delfino questioned this logic: “It was always an understanding
(with Pep’e) that we were getting equal value, the value was $6.4 million.
Anything we added on, we would pay for. What would you have them do, give
us a blank check? Would you do this (agree to pay cost overruns if you
were the contractor)?”

Oliva rejoined: “To end up taking it out of the pockets of the people
of the City of White Plains…well when a reporter called me about it
(the cost overrun) and I heard your discussion, it was a big surprise
to me. It just shocked me.”

Rita Malmud weighed in: “What Mrs. Oliva is saying is the expectation
was that we were going to replicate the existing facilities…We were
told there was a generous contingency fund. When the question of cost
overruns came up, and it was we were told not to worry about it. ‘Trust
me.’ ‘Don’t worry about it.’ ‘Don’t worry about it.'”

Mayor Delfino asked, “What’s the difference between a cost overrun
and the amenities we added on to the project?”

Malmud said, “that shouldn’t have been a surprise to us. We hardly
know that this is the end of the cost overruns.”

Malmud, the Common Council President, also raised the issue that the
new Department of Public Works Garage was planned to house the Purchasing
Department, and that was no longer the case, and that that was a surprise
to the Common Council. Pauline Oliva agreed that she could not recall
that moving the Purchasing Department out of the new garage was ever discussed
in work session or any meeting.

However, Mr. Nicoletti produced a memorandum addressed to the Council
dated September 5, 2000, advising the Council that the Purchasing Department
was going to be moved to a new building at 202 Westchester Avenue. Nicoletti
said $200,000 was to be spent on the new building as part of the $600,000,
but said most of the $600,000 for the new DPW garage was to pay for the
more expensive concrete pilings he selected.

The Commissioner said it had become clear over the summer of 2000 that
purchasing would not fit in the new garage. He maintained that he had
always said that purchasing was going to be in a separate building, and
that it was in the ordinance the Common Council had voted on to approve
the Pep’e-Stop N Shop project.

Mr. Nicoletti patiently took great pains to explain why the more expensive
pilings were selected, pointing out that the new garage was a project
that had been treated as a “design concept” where construction
was to begin, and could not be cost out over six months, taking soil structure
samples in the normal Department procedure before it began (as they had
with the Youth Bureau move), because there was a city urgency to lock
in the project, while the developers were in agreement.

The foundation for the new Department of Public Works garage on Brockway Place is using concrete pilings (shown on the site) selected by Public Works Commissioner Joseph Nicoletti after test pile drivings indicated the soil on the site would not support spread pilings originally considered. Photo by WPCNR.

Mrs. Malmud did not accept this: “You’re focusing on the nitty
gritty, and we’re looking at the big picture. Where you’re entering into
a financial agreement with another party who is theoretically going to
pay for all this, you have to have an agreement not just involving the
Department of Public Works, but all the departments in the city. We shouldn’t
be entering contracts unless we have a thorough understanding that it
is a good agreement to enter into. There are millions of dollars involved
here…We still don’t know if there are any more millions that we may
end up paying.”

Mayor Delfino supported his Commissioner: ” I disagree. I think
we went through this process. We added amenities, spoke to the Youth Bureau
and the needs of our children that we had to fulfill. I think it is the
greatest decision this council ever made for the youth of this city. We
could have put up a free-standing building for $400,000, but the council
was opposed to that. We spoke to the Youth Board, and all agreed it was
better to move the Bureau to Eastview.”

Councilperson Oliva scoffed that the free-standing building would never
have passed. She pointed out that the old Department of Public Works building
was a fine building (“It was perfectly fine), and that members of
the community, a former Mayor, (Michael Keating) had warned that it was
a fine structure and that the Common Council had to be “careful”
about losing it. Mayor Delfino pointed out that the old garage required
millions in renovation to remain appropriate for the city.

Larry Delgado, Councilman, quietly pointed out that “111 South Kensico
(site of the old Youth Bureau, the existing DPW garage) was not an ideal
location (for the Youth Bureau).” Delgado said the Common Council
in a work session agreed that the Eastview location was better suited
than a free-standing building.

Councilman Greer, pressing Nicoletti on the $700,000 worth of design
attributed to Pep’e within the original $6.4 million, remarked that “Had
we not been so concerned with rushing this through, and had designed it
properly, we could have anticipated this ($600,000 expenditure).”

Nicoletti was hesitant: “But, they said that $6.4 million was it.
We would have said $700 million, but I don’t know if the project would
have gone through.”

Nick Pep’e, principal of Biano & Pep’e, interviewed by WPCNR last
week, told us that his firm had only been paid $300,000 for the design
portion of the project, and had included some design costs of the project
amounting to up to 15% of the total cost of the project without being
compensated for them, including them as a good will gesture. Pep’e also
said that Nicoletti had made a good decision on the pilings.

Ms. Malmud concluded discussion by appearing to fix with glee the overrun
at 24%, laughing at her inability to do the math, including both the Youth
Bureau and new garage added costs.

She had one parting comment to Mr. Nicoletti: “You have to look
at this as a package. The Council is not looking at whether 2 foot or
4 foot pilings are needed. We have to look at the big picture. And the
big picture was that this was an exchange, it is not just your department,
not that I’m zeroing in on you, I don’t want to make you feel bad..”

At which point Mr. Nicoletti softly said, “I do feel bad. I’m sorry.”

Within minutes the resolution was called at the council voted unanimously
to bond for the cost overruns.

But, the Council still had a half-hour to go.

Janice Minieri, the City Registrar, Bureau of Vital Statistics, told
WPCNR she remembered some Council meetings going to about 3 o’clock in
the morning, but never as late as 20 minutes to 4 in the morning. She
remarked that it was the longest Council meeting in thirty years. Before
that she said the Council had met twice a month, and limited meetings
to an 11 o’clock curfew, after a councilmember had had a heart attack
at a late meeting.