THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR | 2,905,611 VISITORS VISIT 8,324,077 TIMES 3 TIMES EVERY DAY IN ONE YEAR. HIGHEST ACTIVITY IN WPCNR HISTORY.White PlainsCitizeNetReporter lifted its worldwide visits from unique visitors to wpcnr.com to 8,324,077,a 1,306,419 increase in visits in one year from 7,017,658 visits to the site last year which covers White Plains and Westchester County. The 8,324,077 visits were made by 2,005,611 unique visitors who visited wpcnr an average of 3 visits a day. ON JULY 20- -2026 visitors have accessed wpcnr and made 3,072 visits an average of 1.6 visits. In the last week 33,495 individual vistors made 54,458 visits, averaging 1.6 visits. In the last month, 152,940 visitors recorded 229,338 visits (1.5 visits)

5 Council, Finance Cmish Agree to Keep More Fund Balance; Boykin, Power Vow Cuts

Posted on May 8, 2009 by John Bailey

WPCNR COMMON COUNCIL CHRONICLE-EXAMINER. By John F. Bailey. May 8, 2009 UPDATED WITH CLARIFICATION (IN ITALICS) 3:10 P.M. E.D.T.: Under close questioning by Councilman Tom Roach, Commissioner of Finance Gina Cuneo-Harwood agreed with five of 7 members of the Council that undesignated fund balance should not be allowed to fall to $1 Million as proposed in the present city budget. Asked for how much fund balance she felt would be adequate she would not give a figure, admitting to Roach that operating in 2010-11 with only $1 Million in undesignated fund balance would be “difficult”. Councilmen Benjamin Boykin and Dennis Power said they would come up with “department-by-department” cuts over the weekend to trim $4 Million off the budget.

Paul Wood, Executive Officer for the Mayor, confirmed to WPCNR that the city had entered into a private conducted binding arbitration with the White Plains Professional Fire Fighters. Joe Carrier, President of the WPPFF, confirmed this and said he expect an agreement by late next fall or by early 2010, (just in time for the new Administration).

Mayor Joseph Delfino during one sharp exchange between Councilman Tom Roach and Executive Officer Paul Wood, said, “I am not going to participate anymore in these budget discussions. There’s the budget. Do what you want.”

The council reviewed the report of the Budget and Management Committee and appeared to heed their advice to only use $5.4 Million of fund balance, and counter the looming $10 Million deficit in the Mayor’s budget with $2 Million in new revenues and $4 Million in cuts someplace, though the council did not give any suggestions. Councilman Benjamin Boykin declared at the close of the two hour meeting that he would be going through the budget and coming up with cuts department-by-department. Councilman Dennis Power said he would be doing the same.

Harwood, the finance commissioner, gave a ray of sunshine, saying the county had sent the city $890,000 in mortgage tax receipts for the third quarter (through March). The new figure, Ms. Harwood told WPCNR Friday afternoon meant that she felt would bring $2.3 Million in mortgage taxes in 09, instead of the $3.9 in mortgage tax budgeted. (The figures were misheard during the meeting by this reporter because the meeting was not conducted with microphones.)She did caution however that $450,000 in sales tax in the last quarter of2007-2008 that balanced the last fiscal year budget came as an adjustment to the last year, and that kind of adjustment might not occur last year.

Harwood spent about one hour deflating Councilperson Rita Malmud’s questions as to why certain funds she found in budget line items could not be used to balance the budget. The didactic questions prompted a round of applause from the audience of interested White Plains police and firemen when Malmud passed the questioning torch to Mr. Roach.

Mayor Joseph Delfino sat with his desk empty, not even following the line-by-line questions, of Malmud or the other six councilpersons. The meeting was marked by Roach’s charges that the proposal to lease garages was smoke and mirrors and that he would have reviewed it if the city had presented details of the deal. Paul Wood and the Mayor both said, they were told by Council President Benjamin Boykin they were not interested in the deal, and that was why the figures were not hardened up and presented to the council.

The council did not address the union contracts at all.

City (at last) confirms private binding arbitration looms for fire fighters.

WPCNR was told by Paul Wood that the city has entered into a voluntary, private binding arbitration agreement with the fire fighters union and that the union and city had agreed upon an arbitrator, rather than petition for aribitration through the New York State Public Employers Relations Board.

Joe Carrier, the President of the White Plains Professional Fire Fighters told WPCNR the city Corporation Counsel has yet to approve the arbitrator. He expected, he said for arbitration proceedings to begin in August with a possible agreement announced in late fall or January, 2010. The agreement would give retroactive raises for 2008-09 and 09-10. Any contract would be for two years. It could not be determined whether the police union will follow the firefighter settlement, which is generally the case.

Carrier said the union had been told last summer that the money was available for the 3.5, 4% and 4% raises he had negotiated with the Delfino Administration. He felt it was in bad faith that the council rejected the agreed on settlement. He also expressed concern that Councilperson Rita Malmud had vowed to fight any arbitrated settlement as she said Monday evening

County Exec, WCA, Hospitals, Seek relief for hospitals from MTA Tax

Posted on May 7, 2009 by John Bailey

WPCNR QUILL & EYESHADE. By John F. Bailey. May 7, 2009: The Westchester County Association Executive Director, William Mooney, today told WPCNR that political leaders in the county and his organization would be working hard to get Albany representatives to relieve local hospitals from payment of the just-enacted MTA payroll tax. Once hospital relief from the tax is achieved, Mooney said, the group would continue to push for a rollback of the tax. No details were forthcoming on what form of relief for the area hospitals might take. They sharply criticised State Senators Suzi Oppenheimer, Andrea Stewart-Cousins and John Klein for not listening to the business community.

“Fed Up” with state legislators. County Executive Andrew Spano, left, Alfred Del Bello, Chair of the Westchester County Association, second from left, Robert Weisz, owner of 1133 Westchester Avenue, and William Mooney, Executive Director of the WCA, announcing effort to overturn MTA Payroll Tax Thursday.

Mooney said the payroll tax would cost local Westchester hospitals $3.5 Million, Dutchess hospitals, $1,819,000, Rockland hospitals, $597,000 and Putnam County $180,000. He began the news conference saying, “This is really outrageous stuff, another nail in the coffin of the Westchester business community.”

Mr. Mooney was joined by County Executive Andrew Spano, who in his first statement said, “I am so angry about this.” They were joined by three local hospital CEOs, Jon Schandler of White Plains Hospital Medical Center.

Mooney deplored the just-enacted MTA payroll tax, sharply criticizing Westchester and Rockland Democratic Senators Suzi Oppenheimer and Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Jeffrey Klein who voted for the tax, saying they do not listen to the business community and did not listen to the group’s extensive lobbying on the issue. Mooney mocked State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer’s quotation to the press describing this was “a silver lining for education.” “Any one of them could have stopped it,” Mooney said.

Mooney promised that hospital relief from the MTA tax was first priority on the group’s new lobbying effort, and after that, elimination of the tax. He told WPCNR the MTA should have been made to trim their labor agreements, benefits packages, pension programs and operations to eliminate their deficit before seeking relief from taxpayers.

The business and political leaders promised an all-out lobbying effort to rescind the tax, which Neil Abitabilo, President of Northern Metropolitan Hospital Association, told the news conference was effective retroactive to March 1 of this year.

Mooney delivered a stream of mocking scorn, criticizing legislators refusal to hear the business community. He charged Albany favoritism of New York City in that the legislature refusal to enact bridge tolls on Manhattan bridges, as well as the legislators refusing to go against the teachers’ union and exempting school districts from the tax.

However, the exclusion of school districts from paying the tax, does not mean they will not collect it from tax payers in property taxes. The White Plains City School Distritct already budgeted for the payroll tax in anticipation of its passing and will collect $330,000 of the 34 cents per $100 of payroll tax which they will include in their general fund in 2009-10.Exempting the districts in the final version of the MTA Payroll Tax which the districts do not have to pay, in ultimate effect, means any monies already budgeted by districts like White Plains has, amounts to more school aid, not MTA aid.

Mooney promised a news conference in about two weeks on the Westchester County Association independent Westchester “stimulus” effort he announced last fall. Mooney also said the state had to concern itself with funding the Tappan Zee Bridge rebuild (about $16 to $25 Billion).

Host of the conference, Robert Weisz owner of 1133 Weschester Avenue where the news conference was held, told the assembled media this was a tax on employment which would serve to create layoffs as companies would lower workforces to pay the tax. “It makes no sense to me. (Businesses) We’re going to reduce employment to make up what this is going to cost us.” This sentiment was also echoed by banker George Strayer who said that was what his bank would probably do.

Three heads of hospitals indicated that in order to continue services, job cuts might be necessary, the head of Westchester County Medical Center said $1.2 Million the tax would cost the MedicalCentersaid, “that’s13 jobs.”

Mooney pointed out the series of costs that the legislature has foisted on the hospitals in the new budget, producing a chart of legislature moves that have hurt hospitals, including use of stimulus money to close the state budget gap; 4 consecutive budget cuts over the past 13 months; loss of health care jobs; cuts to essential services; low medicare reimbursement rates, and now the MTA Tax.

Mooney accused the legislature of loading the burden of their spending on the taxpayers and business while not addressing pension reform of government workers, failure to cut state spending, and extracting no concessionsfrom unions of the MTA.

Police, Fire, City Have not Filed for Binding Arb as of Thurs. AM: State

Posted on May 7, 2009 by John Bailey

WPCNR QUILL & EYESHADE. By John F. Bailey. May 7, 2009: Anthony Zimbolow, Executive Director of the New York State Public Employee Relations Board (PERB), told WPCNR today his agency has no record of any petitions being docketed by the City of White Plains, and police and fire unions, submitting to voluntary binding arbitration in their wage dispute over a new contract. That does not rule out that the city is in secret, voluntary arbitration with the unions. However, the Mayor and councilpersons profess not to know if arbitration has been entered into, voluntary or officially-state-sanctioned.

Previously, the Mayor of White Plains and several Councilman have said they did not know whether binding arbitration had been filed for. So far it has not, according to Mr. Zimbolow. Zimbolow told WPCNR that unions and public employers, in order to go into binding arbitration had to do so through the PERB agency.

PERB, according to Zimbolow, then supervises a panel of three aribrators, one representing the employer (City of White Plains), one representating the aggrieved party (police and fire unions), and a third independent arbitrator. The independent arbitrator may be chosen from a list supplied by PERB. How long the actual arbitration would take, Zimbolow said was hard to say.

Zumbolow said the city and the fire and police unions could enter into private voluntary arbitration, but he said that is “extremely rare.”

This leaves open the question of whether voluntary binding aribitration on a private schedule is going on. No one in the city, including the Mayor and the Common Council seems to know. Previously the head of the White Plains Professional Fire Fighters had told WPCNR, the city had presented an arbitrator for the union approval, which might indicate that “secret” voluntary arbitration is under way, but the Mayor’s Office has not confirmed such aribitration proceedings have been going on.

Ridgeway Pres Invites Gedneys to Save Club. 4 Month Timetable for Sale.

Posted on May 7, 2009 by John Bailey

WPCNR SOUTH END TIMES. By John F. Bailey. May 7, 2009: Henry Shyer, President of Ridgeway Country Club invited an audience of 175 persons at Ridgeway School, many from the adjacent Gedney Farms neighborhood,to join the country club for just $15,000 a piece and join the “Ridgeway Country Club Family,” that he described as “a camp for 50 year olds.” He and his membership director invited persons on tours of the club, giving out phone numbers in an gracious attempt to woo new members. He said that bids received on the club would be presented to his Board of Directors May 21.

President of Ridgeway Country Club fields questions from crowd of 175 packing Ridgeway School Auditorium. He discussed the timetable for a decision on sale of the club and invited the audience to apply for membership in the club, (pictured below)

Shyer was invited by the Gedney Farms Neighborhood Association to attend the meeting, and clear the air on the sale of the club that was first reported by the WPCNR website three weeks ago. Shyer said the club had a $1.5 Million deficit due to membership loss, and needed 50 new members at $15,000 apiece to withdraw the club from the market. He said the club had had five bids, (the property of 120 acres is being offered for sale at $20 Million).

The first of these bids would be submitted to his Board of Directors May 21. After their approval, should they give it, the entire membership would have to approve any such sale.

In response to questions on reopening negotiations with the developer Louis Cappelli, Shyer said the club would not, and explained that the club had negotiated with Cappelli 18 months ago, but “so many lawyers got involved,” that Cappelli walked away from the deal. Shyer added that Cappelli was willing to pay $24 Million for memberships, but he had to bring the actual prospective members to the club for their approval, which lead to Cappelli walking on the deal.

The President of the Gedney Farms Neighborhood Association, opened the meeting assuring the throng that any development of the club was at least five years away, due to the environmental process any application would have to go through. Robert Stackpole has been appointed to head a sub-committee to explore ways to save the club or acquire it. Mr.Stackpole told WPCNR after the meeting that the committee’s first effort would be to galvanize Common Council support and political support to block any such sale and preserve the private club for use as a golf course and open space in the neighborhood.

Thomas Anderson, Acting President of the Westchester Land Trust told the audience there were four ways the Trust suggested that the club might be saved from a sale:

1. The City of White Plains could rezone the club into a recreational zone. He pointed out the Town of Mamaroneck prevented Bonnie Briar Country Club from developing its property by this device, and it was upheld in court due to the Town of Mamaroneck’s extensive environment review.

2. The City of White Plains or the County of Westchester or in consort could buy the club and run it as a municipal golf course. The President of the Gedney Farms Association, Terrence Guerriere said he had spoken with County Commissioner of Planning Jerry Mulligan who had told Guerriere the county “was not interestedin operating another golf course.”

The Mayor’s Office spokesperson, Melissa Lopez, told WPCR two weeks ago the city was not interested in the course.

3. Negotiate to Purchase the Development Rights.

4.The City of White Plains could negotiate with the developer who purchases the property to build a conservation development erecting a limited number of homes on the site.

Anderson said the Westchester Land Trust has been successful in the past in raising money and funding to purchase land.

Bill Ryan, the County Legislator from District 5, expressed his skepticism of the WPCNR report that the county was not interested in the golf course acquisition. However, WPCNR assured Mr. Ryan that the Westchester County Department of Communications spokesperson Donna Greene, when asked if the County Executive would consider acquiring the course, said “No.” Ryan offered to involve the Board of Legislators in exploring ways the County could help save the club.

Rita Malmud, (standing, far left)the White Plains Councilperson, asked Mr. Ryan (standing, upper right), would White Plains need do to engage the county’s help in the effort to preserve Ridgeway as a club. Dennis Power, the White Plains Councilperson, endorsed that effort.