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WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. From The County Board of Legislators Press Office. December 30, 2004:  Unanimously elected in January to serve as chairman of the Westchester County Board of Legislators (BOL), William Ryan, a Democrat from White Plains, pledged that he would make the BOL a fully coequal and independent branch of county government.

 “We’re not elected to be rubber stamps,” Ryan said.  “We’re elected to think independently, to come up with cost effective solutions to problems and to make sure our residents are getting the services they need to enjoy the quality of life they expect in Westchester.” 

County Legislator Bill Ryan. Photo, WPCNR News Archive.

 

 But, before Ryan even had a chance to settle into his Chairman’s seat, his leadership was tested in a big way.  “It was the perfect fiscal storm,” Ryan said about the daunting financial messes that converged during his first months in office that required his immediate, undivided attention.  These included, a $75 million hole in the 2004 county’s budget; $51 million in cost overruns at the Courthouse; and, two straight years of deficits totaling nearly $140 million for the Westchester Medical Center.

In his usual no-nonsense, straightforward style, Ryan dug in and looked for solutions. As he led the BOL to think outside the box, he did what he set out to do– he refashioned the BOL into an “activist” legislature with its own unique identity and voice.  

·         To plug the $75 million deficit, Ryan led the BOL to stay firm in demanding an increase in the county sales tax from the state, averting a contingency budget that would have drastically cut services.

·         The County was getting socked by the State with a bill for $51 million in construction cost overruns at the County Courthouse, a project being managed by the NYS Dormitory Authority. Asserting that the County should not be held responsible for the cost overruns, Ryan insisted on a mediation. It was a risk that paid off with good news for county taxpayers— renovations were trimmed by $17 million; new state aid of $9 million was added and the Dormitory Authority had to kick in $4 million.   In addition, the County wrested control of the remainder of the project from the Dormitory Authority.

·         Ryan insisted on treating the Westchester Medical Center and its two straight years of deficits nearing $140 million as the emergency case it was.  He demanded that hospital officials set up an oversight committee or risk losing county financing. In addition, he successfully forged through the political maze of typical party politics and pushed the Legislature to fill the expired Board of Directors seats— with candidates who offered the expertise and experience needed to turn the institution around.  Ryan wanted the hospital board to be as strong as possible going into the difficult year ahead.      

When asked about his most satisfying initiative, Ryan didn’t hesitate.  “Saving Samaritan House from bureaucratic bulldozing,” he said.   “It’s why I went into government in the first place—to serve the public. But in my mind, those with the fewest resources to fight for themselves need even more of my attention.”

The Samaritan House is a homeless shelter for women at Grace Church in downtown White Plains across from the City Center. Its closure was imminent because the County’s Department of Social Services and the Grace Church Community Center, the non-profit agency that ran the shelter for Grace Church, were unable to come to an agreement on the terms of a new contract. Ryan stepped in. He brought the parties together to iron out their differences. They ultimately settled on a new contract and the homeless shelter will remain open in ’05.

“As I said before, this shelter has been a big success story for twenty-five years and should be the last shelter to close, not the first,” Ryan said. He continued, “White Plains is my home, it also happens to be the County seat, and my feeling is that all the change that’s happening in White Plains can’t be at the expense of losing our soul as a community. White Plains is big enough and good enough to lend a helping hand to its less fortunate.” 

Ryan is hopeful the dialog between the community and local officials about the future of downtown White Plains, started by the imminent closure of Samaritan House, will continue.

Highlights of additional 2004 BOL initiatives

1)      Affordable Housing

Approved and completed or under construction:

§   14 units on Division Street in Hastings-on-Hudson

§   102 units for Seniors at Jacob’s Hill Village in Cortlandt

§   42 Units on South Kensico Avenue in White Plains; 17 units on Lake Street in White Plains

§   195 units in New Rochelle

§   20 units in Bedford; 50 units in Ossining

§   115 units in Mt. Vernon

§   9 units in Port Chester, 10 units in Mamaroneck, 24 units in Pleasantville 

3)      Budget

§   Passed ’05 Budget plan with zero property tax increase and no loss of services or programs. Set up a contingency, or “rainy day” fund, to reinforce Westchester’s position as the best fiscally-managed county in New York State. 

§   Held summit to address the problem of unfunded state and federal mandates that account for $1 billion out of the $1.4 billion county budget.

§   Restructured the BOL staff, including introducing a system of job performance evaluations and merit pay.

§   Brought the BOL 11% under budget for 2004.

§   Maintained continuation of County’s AAA rating from Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s, a rating that no other county in the state has.

4)      Education, Libraries and Museums

§   Restored 75% of the funding cuts made two years ago to museums and libraries and other cultural programs. The Hudson River Museum and the Westchester Library System benefited most from this funding.

§   Contributed to the funding for the “Gateway Center” at Westchester Community College. This new institution is for workforce development and the education of the thousands of immigrants residing in Westchester County.

§   Established the Rangers Recycling Program, an innovative education initiative that teaches third graders about government, the environment and conservation.  Students receive hands on legislative experience as part of their school social science curriculum.

5)      Emergency Services, Health and Safety

§    Authorized Westchester County to distribute to “local first responders” personal protective gear, monitoring equipment and funds for homeland security purposes.

§    Authorized Westchester County to enter into an agreement with the City of New York, Nassau and Suffolk Counties for participation in the Regional Emergency Medical Services Mutual Aid Agreement. Purpose of the law is to establish procedures and protocols for the provision of ambulance and pre-hospital emergency medical mutual aid assistance in the event of a catastrophic event or mass casualty incident.

§   Mandated that all cars for hire until now only licensed by local municipalities also be registered as a taxi under NYS law.

§   Passed a resolution urging revision of the national Patriot Act in such a way that it established a “delicate balance between providing greater security and safety . . . and insuring the civil rights and civil liberties of the population…”   

§   Banned the sale of nicotine water to minors.

6)      Parks

§   Added three more athletic fields in Yonkers at the northern end of Tibbets Brook Park for use by all county residents.

§   Established the Cities Committee to concentrate efforts to rebuild the county’s cities to make them sustainable and livable urban centers. Focus is to put some green back in the County’s cities by identifying urban open space restoration opportunities.      

§   Approved the issuance of $150,000 in bonds to construct a memorial to the 109 County residents who perished in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.  Entitled “The Rising,” the memorial will be constructed at the Kensico Dam Plaza in Valhalla.  

§   Approved funds for the construction of athletic fields in Port Chester, Mt. Pleasant and at Saxon Woods in White Plains/Scarsdale.  

6)      Environment

§   Established permanent restrictions to safeguard no-expansion policy at the airport.  Fortified existing arrangements on the number of commercial flights, number of passengers every half hour, allocation of limited terminal and ramp space and controls having to do with the arrival and departure of commercial passenger airlines.

§   Voted unanimously to adopt the “Agricultural & Farmland Protection Plan,” an initiative that will enable the County to take advantage of certain grants and funding opportunities earmarked for preserving farmland and protect the County’s pastoral landscapes threatened by the sale of farms for development.

7)      Social Services

§   Restored 75% of the funding cuts made two years ago to non-profit agencies responsible for the much needed social service and Quality Of Life County programs.

§   Reduced parent’s co-payment for county subsidized day care from 33% to 25%.

§   Saved the County’s clinic for foster children on Post Road in White Plains.

8)      Court Administration

§    Fought to keep the New Rochelle Family Court open and approved funding for its operation.