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“Truth Police” Call for Open Process to Answer Final Critical Questions Raised at Wednesday Night Hearings That Finally Ended. Chide Council for

Posted on December 4, 2014 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE LETTER TICKER. December 4, 2014:

The Common Council officially closed the French American School of New York hearings Wednesday evening with the critical issues of traffic volume in the peak hour; North Street backup, effect on fire response time of Hathaway Lane closure and penalty plan for limiting completion of the proposed project suggested by the Mayor up in the air.

The Gedney Association team of Ron and Marie Rhodes responded with their reactions on last night:

Dear Mayor and Common Council,

Our thanks to those Common Council members who challenged FASNY with difficult questions last night. . .however for those who couldn’t even come up with at least one good question to ask the FASNY Representatives. . .hopefully you’re addressing the key issues behind the scenes.

And if the Big Picture issues with FASNY are. . .Traffic, 10-year Construction, Water, Increases in Fire Response Times, Decreases in Property Values and our School Children’s Safety. . .those of you ignoring the key issues to focus on questions involving the positioning of tennis courts are way out of the mainstream and reality.

After almost 4 years we still have more questions than answers on this FASNY project.

For instance on Traffic how come FASNY still hasn’t disclosed:

How many Vehicle Trips will FASNY be making into our neighborhood each day in the AM and in the what % increase will this be over our existing Traffic levels w/o FASNY?

How their 530 cap number is calculated with their 950 students and 250 staff the majority of whom we learned last night will arrive within the 8AM to 9AM peak hour? We say at these FASNY student and staff levels the 530 number is mathematically impossible.

And how will their electronic Vehicle Counting System work for parent car drop-offs outside of the FASNY property? For instance how will students who will be dropped off by the Lee or Divney residences or other places outside the FASNY campus be counted?

Why hasn’t FASNY introduced any mitigation to address the Safety concerns raised by the Board of Education? We say because at volume of Traffic is planning no mitigation is feasible.

Will this Common Council show the same concern about the Safety of our own WP School Children?

Why would you close Hathaway Lane, a Public Street, only for the benefit of FASNY, a Private Developer?

And what Benefits do your constituents receive from the Closure of Hathaway Lane or from the overall FASNY project?

And there’s more questions on key issues besides Traffic that remain unanswered on this FASNY project.

With regard to the way the Common Council closed last night’s meeting:

For almost 4 years the Common Council has asked residents to send comments. . .which we did along with questions about the FASNY project. . .most of which this Common Council choose not to ask the FASNY Representatives while they were being questioned, including last night. How will all the FASNY responses promised to the City and all of the resident, never asked or answered FASNY questions get addressed? Will it be behind closed doors in secret by FASNY and City Staff personnel. . .who residents to be honest have little confidence in? Would you call this process transparent?

We would say that the FASNY review process the City established has been flawed and discriminates against your own residents and taxpayers. . .while the FASNY Representatives, who are trying to build a 53-acre campus in a residential neighborhood have been asked fewer questions over a 4-year period. . .than a small business owner who wants to open a bar on Mamaroneck Avenue and is applying for a cabaret license. . .would be asked by the City!

It’s a strange review process the City created. . .which allowed FASNY to get away with submitting thousands of pages of unimportant paper. . .with the City ignoring and not demanding accurate facts and responses on the key issues like Traffic. . .made more difficult by some Common Council members not reading all the materials and ignoring Big Picture questions.

Going forward to get back on track. . .our suggestion is instead of winding up the FASNY Review in secret behind closed doors, without resident involvement. . .have FASNY, not City consultants, answer all our resident questions. And when all the remaining FASNY information is finally submitted. . .give a final summary point by point of all of the key issues. . .about where the City stands with all of the FASNY information and requirements at another Public Meeting. This would be more transparent for residents.

Does it seem to anyone else that White Plains has. . .a Business Improvement Plan for the downtown area, that isn’t working. . .and a Residential Neighborhood Destruction Plan for the Southend, that the City Staff and FASNY are working their hardest together to implement?

We report. . .you decide. Your Truth Police, Team Rhodes

Marie and Ron Rhodes

Hearing that Never Ends Ends. Mayor and Council Close Hearings on FASNY Site Plan and Hathaway Lane Closure with Issues to Resolve With FASNY

Posted on December 3, 2014 by John Bailey

WPCNR SOUTH END TIMES. By John F.Bailey. December 3, 2014:

Mayor Tom Roach raised the most serious question of all Wednesday night at what turned out to be the last combined public hearing on the French American School of New York Project:

The Mayor in his comments said he felt the French American School of New York would have to assume some liability if the traffic count of 530 vehicles in the peak hour of 8 AM to 9 AM approached the area of 470 after the first phase of school construction was opened, the inference being that Phase II (building of the lower school might not be builet). You could have heard a pin drop.

The Mayor’s inference that FASNY may have to drop the Phase II costruction of the lower school, set to be begin after the upper and middle schools are complete) if traffic pushed the preset limit of 530 was the first time the issue had been raised. The Mayor also spoke at length on stormwater management, a plan for which is being devised with Commissioner of Public Works, Joseph Nicoletti, but is not yet approved.

At the outset of the meeting, Michael Zarin, the French American School of New York attorney, introduced a letter from the Army Corps of Engineers that had arrived late Wednesday afternoon at his offices, saying that there were three areas on the former golf course property they had jurisdiction over, but were not concerned over FASNY plans because no construction was being planned for them.

Zarin also noted a letter from Commissioner of Public Safety David Chong just received had indicated concern of lane widths of Hathaway Lane to be used by fire vehicles, but that has not been confirmed explicitly.

The combined hearing that never ends (The French American School of New York site plan and Hathaway Lane closure) was closed by unanimous vote of the Common Council at 8:51 P.M. with major issues on fire response time raised by Councilman John Martin, who said strongly that the comments of Fire Pro’s report ( commissioned and supplied by the Gedney Association) on response time had to be addressed; landscaping, the storm water pollution prevention plan, traffic issues on north street are still being strongly questioned by the Mayor Tom Roach, Councilman Dennis Krolian, Martin, Coucilwoman Milagros Lecuona, and Councilwoman Beth Smayda.Councilwoman Nadine Robinson did not make any comment according to an observer who filled WPCNR in on the first 10 minutes of audio-less telecast.

Audio for the first 15 minutes of the meeting was not available, so the comments of Ms. Smayda was not heard by the home audience enjoying “Dinner with FASNY” on their television sets.

For three hours and 51 minutes, the last of the FASNY public hearings played out with the public being admonished four times by the Mayor to resist vocal pleasure or disagreement with what was said.

Councilman Krolian when Mayor Roach called to close the hearings at about 8:45 P.M. asked the Mayor when the council would have time to question requested information from FASNY asked for in this evening’s hearing. Mayor Roach said he would extend the comment period to 15 days from this evening for the public to render comment. The Mayor indicated that the French American School of New York would present their answers to Council questions and resolve the issues with the staff and the council.

It is unclear whether FASNY comments in response to council questions raised tonight would be discussed in a public Common Council work session or in private behind closed doors at city hall, and how those FASNY answers would be promulgated to the public before a vote was taken.

Councilwoman Milagros Lecuona ascertained that the Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan was submitted in May by FASNY to the Commissioner of Public Works Joseph Nicoletti. Lecuona read a city ordinance that requires a storm water plan to be submitted before any site plan can be considered.

The FASNY attorney, Michael Zarin said a SWWPP plan had been submitted in May of this year and it was “accepted” but not approved. Zarin said the elements of the SWPPP were still being discussed and considered on an “ongoing, daily basis” with the Commissioner.

Until that plan is “approved” by Mr. Nicoletti, the site plan cannot be voted upon by the Common Council.

Army Corps of Engineers Asserts Jurisdiction over Three Parcels of Wetlands BUT no construction is planned there FASNY Reports

Posted on December 3, 2014 by John Bailey

WPCNR SOUTH END TIMES. Observation of FASNY Hearing by John F. Bailey. December 3, 2014:

In the first 10 minutes of tonight’s hearing, representatives of The French American School of New York made public that the Army Corps of Engineers has informed the school that they have jurisdiction over three portions of the property, however no school construction is planned for those areas.

This development would seem to indicate to this observer that the Army Corps of Engineers has no problem with the construction of buildings affecting other parts of the property, and the hope of adversaries to the plan that the Army Corps would find the project objectionable appear to not be a factor in whether or not the project site plan under review would be stopped.

Presently the French American School of New York representative Michael Zarin is being quizzed by Councilman Dennis Krolian in a somewhat heated discussion over FASNY supplying traffic accident information involving the Bryant and North Street area still not being supplied, the elimination of median space on North Street. proposed by the turn lane into FASNY, and a new development in which Department of Public Safety Commissioner David Chong’s concern over emergency vehicles being able to get through the proposed alternative routes from Fire Station 7. Krolian is currently reading the School Board Letter rejecting the project.

The hearing can be seen in progress on Cablevision Channel 76 in White Plains and on Verizon FIOS Channel 44.

DRUG DRAGNET ENSNARES 80 INVOLVED IN STREET NARCOTICS IN WHITE PLAINS AND NEW ROCHELLE. 20 STILL AT LARGE.

Posted on December 3, 2014 by John Bailey

WPCNR MS. DISTRICT ATTORNEY. From the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office. December 3, 2014:

Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore announced that “City Sweeper 2” a multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional street level narcotics investigation resulted in the arrests of approximately 33 individuals in the City of White Plains and 50 individuals in the City of New Rochelle.

White Plains Commissioner of Public Safety, David Chong gave this statement to WPCNR this afternoon:

“The arrests were the result of a collaborative effort by our Narcotics Squad and New Rochelle’s Narcotics squad. We were responding to community complaints of street level

Drug dealing and the uptick in heroin related overdoses all over the tri-state region. Agencies that assisted us included the FBI, the DEA, Westchester County Department of Public Safety, the NYPD and Parole. The cases will be prosecuted by the Westchester County District Attorney.

Sweeps like this are not commonplace in White Plains as we have a good handle on illegal narcotics sales and enforcement of such crimes. In this case we wanted to utilize the resources made available to us through the other agencies and we made our resources available to New Rochelle.

I think this sends a clear message that law enforcement has no borders in this County and that drug dealing will not be tolerated in the streets of White Plains,” Chong wrote WPCNR.

There are arrest warrants outstanding for approximately 20 additional individuals.

The seven-month long investigation by the White Plains Police Department, New Rochelle Police Department, Westchester County Police Department, DEA, FBI and the District Attorney’s office resulted in the charging of a total of 100 individuals for narcotics trafficking.

Each of the 100 subjects has, or will be charged upon their arrest with the street-level sales of controlled substances.

The majority of the sales involved crack-cocaine, although there were a number of heroin sales made throughout the investigation. There were also several sales of hydrocodone, PCP, morphine and fentanyl.

The purchases ranged in price from $20 to $100.

Indictments were obtained on 39 of the approximately 100 subjects of the investigation, and approximately 29 indictments have been unsealed to date in Westchester County Court, charging those 29 with:

two counts of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, class “B” Felonies,
two counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, class “B” Felonies.

“All levels of law enforcement, federal, county and local, collaboratively working together, coalesced, allowing this multi-faceted investigation to neutralize dozens of street level narcotics dealers. Of those who have been indicted, we intend to vigorously prosecute the individuals among them who have violent criminal histories or are significant dealers without drug problems. However, we will certainly consider our judicial diversion drug treatment program as an alternative for those who have made these drug sales to support a serious drug problem of their own,” said District Attorney Janet DiFiore.

Since November 19^th, 2014, in the City of White Plains, the White Plains Police Department has arrested approximately 33 individuals for drug sales. Arrests of at least six more individuals are expected.

On December 3^rd in the City of New Rochelle, the New Rochelle Police Department has arrested approximately 50 individuals and expects to arrest approximately 14 more.

Bail was set at various amounts for those charged in Westchester County Court. The other individuals have been in arraigned in the City Courts of New Rochelle and White Plains.

Defendants who have prior felony convictions face a maximum of twelve years in prison. Those without prior convictions face a maximum of nine years in prison.

Assistant District Attorney Tom Luzio, Chief of the Narcotics Bureau, and Assistant District Attorney Kevin Kennedy of the Narcotics Bureau supervised the investigation.