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)

Marc Pollitzer, longtime Voice of White Plains, Is Silenced.

Posted on May 25, 2008 by John Bailey

WPCNR MILESTONES. May 24, 2008 UPDATED 1:30 PM EDT UPDATED 9:10 PM E.DT.: White Plains was saddened to learn Saturday evening of reports that Marc Pollitzer, the longtime respected, well-liked, and tireless community activist who championed and pioneered the Council of Neighborhood Associations, serving as its President, and speaking up faithfully, forthrightly and powerfully at public hearings on key White Plains development decisions affecting the outer neighborhoods of the city, died Saturday, after reportedly collapsing playing tennis at Ridgeway Country Club.

A Familiar and Imposing Advocate for White Plains: Marc Pollitzer

The Council of Neighborhood Associations posted an In Memoriam Message on its website announcing Mr. Pollitzer’s passing. The CNA, through its Co-President, Candyce Corcoran released this statement Sunday afternoon observing the loss of Mr. Pollitzer:

“Marc was one of the most prominent voices in the community. White Plains was very fortunate to have Marc for as long as we did. He was a tireless advocate, fighting to make White Plains the best it could be. White Plains has lost a model citizen and pillar of the community. I like many have lost a good friend.”

Common Council President Benjamin Boykin issued this statement about Mr. Pollitzer Sunday evening:

“My family and I wish to express our condolences to the Marc Politzer family. We are saddened to learn of the unexpected death of Marc. Marc loved White Plains. He was very involved in city affairs and passionate about planning, urban development, protection of neighborhoods, excellence in our schools, open space and quality of life issues affecting residents throughout our city. Marc was a champion fighting to make White Plains a better place for all of us. Marc has left a great impact on our city and he will be missed.”

Politzer was reportedly stricken Saturday afternoon. Police report responding to Ridgeway Country Club (where Mr. Pollitzer was a member), to the report of a possible heart attack.

Mr. Pollitzer was instrumental in leading the fight against the acceptance of parkland from New York Presbyterian Hospital in exchange for adding a retail component near the Bloomingdale’s store adjacent to the hospital property in the year 2000, that was denied by the Common Council.

Later in the year 2001, he also fought vigorously, but unsuccessfully, in leading opposition to the proton accelerator project proposed by New York Presbyterian Hospital, which was approved but never built. Pollitzer, longtime head of the North Broadway Civic Association, spearheaded a decade long opposition to the German School expansion of their enrollment in the North Street area.

His eloquent and erudite appeals before the Common Council in public hearings were always distinguished by his earnest, booming, James Whitmore-type voice, beginning, “Good evening Mayor, my name is Marc Pollitzer, President of the North Street Civic Association….”. His addresses were earnest, fact-based, passionately argued, and persuasive and you had to fasten your seat belt.

Pollitzer served on the Citizens Budget Advisory Committee for many years in advising the school district on the school budget year-to-year. He was also one of the few members of the Budget Advisory Committee to sound the alarm in recent years about the certiorari drain, the inability of the city to help the school district financially with its development policies, and the unexpectedly low amount of PILOTS and revenues from the new development in the city.

Pollitzer argued strongly, but always commanded respect from adversaries, and stood in high regard among his peers and other community leaders, and had the easy-going ability to maintain cordial, effective relations with political adversaries. He was a champion of preserving White Plains and its neighborhoods as they were in the past. He also was a leader in devising the White Plains Master Plan in the mid-90s, which was completed in 1997.

In 2007, he was briefly a candidate for Common Council and spearheaded the campaigns of at large council candidates Robert Levine and Robert Stackpole.

Pollitzer was a model community-conscious citizen and he epitomized the concern that a resident should show towards what was happening in his community. He was 61 years of age.

The Female Athlete: Knee Injuries and What Can Be Done to Prevent Them

Posted on May 25, 2008 by John Bailey

WPCNR TRAINER’S ROOM. Special to WPCNR from Brian Jay, ACSM, IFPA, ISCA CPT, CSN, of Strata Health Club, White Plains May 25, 2008: Recently in The New York Times Magazine, there was an extensive article on the soaring rate of women athletes’ knee injuries compared to male athletes at the high school level. WPCNR invited Brian Jay of White Plains to address this serious subject and growing concern. Here are Mr. Jay’s suggestions on how coaches can limit the risk of knee injuries in female sports. WPCNR introduces Mr. Jay:

Although some Women would disagree, Men are stronger then Women, at least from a physical standpoint. This is why the number of sports related knee injuries, (ACL injuries in particular), is much higher in Females then in Males.

As children grow into young adults, Boys’ levels of the Testosterone rise significantly. Since Testosterone is the most important factor in muscle growth, boys will generally have more muscle then Girls, therefore protecting the bones, and to some extent, the tissue, and ligaments of the body more effectively then the Female counterparts.

To take a more scientific look at this problem, and why Girls are more prone to injury, one simply needs to look at biomechanics of a Girl.

Because Women have a wider pelvis, the angle at which the top bone of the leg (from the hip to the knee, the Femur), connects to the lower bone of the leg (from the Knee to Ankle, the Tibia) is a sharper angle. Imagine a horizontal beam, now connect two support beams straight down at the end of the horizontal beam. That is closer to the biomechanical make of a Male body.

Now, if you angle the bottom of the two side support beams in approximately 5% degrees towards center, you are closer to the Female biomechanical make up.

As the angle increases, so does the pressure and stress on the joint at which those beams meet. Just like on a human Female body and its knees, hence, the increase in injuries.

There is hope however for Girls of all ages: Weight training, plain and simple.

By adding muscle to a Girl’s frame, like concrete is added to a building frame, she can pad, and insulate her bones from the impact and force of sports, as well as daily life.

The four primary muscles of the front of the leg (Femur) are the Quads (Quadriceps). The most important of these to strengthen, in order to prevent ACL injuries, may be the Vastus Medialis, or outermost lateral muscle of the leg.

Stretching, which is the most overlooked vital part of health and fitness, is immensely important to the Female athlete in her quest to reduce the likelihood of injury. The muscles most often associated with knee injuries, and those which are most often tight, as the Quads (Quadriceps), Hamstrings, Iliotibial (I.T band), Calf (Gastrocnemius).

At Strata Health Club (White Plains / West Harrison, NY) I am constantly using Foam Rollers, massage, and stretching, as a great way help to keep the bodies of my clients (particularly Female clients) limber, and relaxed.

It is especially important to warn up before exercise. I usually advise my clients to do a 10 min. warm up, as it is usually sufficient to warn up cold muscles, and lubricate stiff joints. When we complete a session, we stretch thoroughly to elongate the muscle since we have shortened it (concentric contraction) during our exercise session.

Following these simple steps can be thought of as PRE-hab, as opposed to RE-hab, which is the most likely stop for those that do not heed this simple advice.

Cracks in City Center Garage Seams. Repairs Underway. Garage Open. 2 Ramps Close

Posted on May 24, 2008 by John Bailey

WPCNR THE PARKING NEWS. By John F. Bailey. May 23, 2008: Separations, cracks in the caulks or welds connecting and supporting two concrete ramps in the City Center garage on City Place were discovered by a Department of Parking employee Wednesday, according to Commissioner of Parking, Albert Moroni. Moroni said the city closed off two ramps in the garage to vehicular traffic. However, all six levels of the garage remain open for parking, and are safe Moroni said.

Moroni reported the Department of Parking was consulting with the firm that constructed the garage (and manufactured the precast concrete and did the installation), Unistress, to determine the proper procedure to fix the welds. The cause of the separation between the welds has not been determined at this time, Moroni reported. He said once that recommendation is determined it will be cleared by the Commissioner of Public Works.

Moroni told WPCNR all joints and welds are now being inspected throughout the garage. “We happened to notice the caulking which is placed between the butting and concrete tees had come loose…and the material that holds the two tees together had been compromised. As a total precautionary measure, we closed off two of the ramps, the interior helix ramps to traffic Thursday. We’re looking into it to see what the fix is. I don’t anticipate it being anything of a structural issue. It’s just a fix of these few minor spots before they get worse.”

Moroni said there were literally thousands of these welds: “A very small percentage of them may have not been bonded properly or whatever and we’re doing an assessment of it now to see how widespread it (the condition) is. People can still traverse throughout the entire garage. One side of it is not fully open to them.”

The actual distance between the buttings or tees,he said was less than two inches between the two joints, Moroni said. ‘The first thing we’re going to do repairs to what we see, what is obvious to us. It should take a couple of days. Once that’s done our evaluations should take another week. I do not see that it is going to be widespread at all.”

Asked if this would affect construction of 23 apartments under construction on the upper floors of the garage, Moroni said “Absolutely not.”

The Real Deal: Rehearsal Dinners Do Not Have to Be Second Weddings

Posted on May 23, 2008 by John Bailey

WPCNR’S The Real Deal — Weddings by The Wedding Jeannie, Jeannie Uyanik, Cap and Gown Weddings. May 24 , 2008: Often in this column, we refer to the “olden” days of weddings – when things were relatively easier, the guest list was shorter and the costs much lower. Rehearsal dinner planning is the quintessential example of how things have changed from then to now.

The Weddding Jeannie

Jeannie Uyanik

Wedding Planner to the World

In the good old days, when few guests could or did travel for weddings, the rehearsal dinner was not only a time for everyone to gather after practicing the run through for the wedding the following day, it was also a way to reward the guests who were participating in the bridal party for their dedication to the wedding and to thank those who had traveled from so far away. Generally, the rule of thumb for who to invite was clear; bridal party, immediate family and out of town guests.

These days however, out of town guests can mean the entire wedding list. More people travel father every year for a wedding and to consider using the original guidelines often means having a dinner that resembles and costs as much as a second wedding. In that respect, take comfort in changing the rules a bit. And even if you don’t, we have included a few tips to make the planning slightly easier!

When considering the rehearsal dinner guest list, it’s totally appropriate to limit it to immediate family and bridal party only. This ensures the intimacy of the event (read small) unless your bridal party is 30 people and also helps to mitigate explanations as to how the guest list was created. Having a hard and fast rule like the one suggested above allows you to limit the invitation pool, but also allows you to explain how you arrived at a decision.

One caveat; if you hope to use this rule, but then invite 4 or 5 guests for which it does not apply, be prepared for backlash! The beauty of this strategy is that it is self explanatory and trying to deviate just a little does not work when you are dealing with two sets of families and a brides’ cousin who does not understand why the groom’s side got to invite their cousin. If you use a rule, stick to it.

In the past, rehearsal dinners often included no more than 30 people and were treated informally; held at the groom’s home or a location of the groom’s family’s choosing. And yes, the rehearsal dinner, according to traditional etiquette, is the responsibility of the groom’s family both in planning and paying for it. That often is not followed today though for a host of reasons, but we find that 50% of the time, this tradition still stands. Ironically, the primary reason for the rehearsal dinner has lost its significance in modern day – congregating just after the rehearsal itself, usually at a house of worship, to thank everyone for participating.

For most weddings these days, because bridal party schedules are tougher to coordinate, and because more and more couples feel that their participants are able to handle the processional and recessional, rehearsals themselves take place on the day of the wedding just before the ceremony. We find this is a good idea given that many people remember and feel more comfortable, doing a quick walk only hours before they have to perform!

But even without the backdrop of a rehearsal, dinners the night before the wedding are still very common place. 90% of the time, regardless of who is paying and organizing it and regardless of why, a rehearsal dinner will happen. We think that they are a great outlet to allow for a small group of key players to gather, meet before the wedding and celebrate the couple more privately. A good rule of thumb is that the rehearsal dinner should not in theory exceed 50% of your guest list EVER, but a more comfortable number to work with that we find makes both brides and grooms more excited about the event is a threshold of no more than 30% of your guest list at most.

We have executed a number of rehearsal dinners for larger and more extravagant affairs where the rehearsal dinner guest list mirrors or comes close to that of the wedding, but we have found time and again that the bride and groom are often exhausted the next day and that the intimacy of the event and the ability of guests to really get to know each other is lost.

Regardless of the numbers, once you have a list, try and make the vision of the rehearsal dinner totally different from that of the wedding – i.e. if you are doing a ballroom event, go for something more casual in nature (barbeque) or something with a view and or outdoor/open space for the night before. Give guests a change both in menu and atmosphere and DON’T think that guests need to be wowed by extravagance. Some of the most successful rehearsal dinners have been those on lower budgets but with a lot of heart. Be creative; this is the time to have fun with décor, food choices, service method and execution.

Whimsical for the rehearsal dinner is always a success, especially if anchored by thoughtful planning (i.e. a family style dinner is great, but make sure you have enough food on each table and multiple dishes of the same thing). Try and have the event, even if extravagant, have a more relaxed overtone so that guests don’t come away feeling there was no outlet for fun the entire weekend. And plan to start on the earlier side; guests and the couple drinking until wee hours the night before a wedding don’t always have enough stamina to party two nights in a row! Next week’s column will provide specific ideas for the prenuptial dinner.

And finally, when you send out rehearsal dinner invitations, don’t include them in the invitation for the wedding. These are two separate events and whatever postage you might save in only having one envelope, you will loose in the significance of creating a separate night for you to celebrate with guests. That’s one rule that has not changed from the good old days of simpler planning and smaller guest lists.