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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WPCNR HOMESIDE. From the Westchester County Clerk Office. (EDITED). April  22, 2014 UPDATED 9:45 A.M.EDT April 23, 2014:

The Office of the Westchester County Clerk reported six hundred and eighty six (686) foreclosure actions started between January 1^st and March 31^th of 2014, equaling the first quarter of 2013.

WPCNR also has learned from the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors that the Westchester County home sales increase of 19% touted for the first quarter includes sales of foreclosed homes.

WPCNR contacted the County Clerk for a statement on the source of these continuing trend in new actions initiated against owners– which come on top of news of a 300%  increase in first quarter judgments settling foreclosure actions.

Mr. Idoni, as he did when he first put out the news of the spectacular rise in  foreclosure judgments in January,  told the Journal News yesterday, the same thing he said on White Plains Week on January 17 two months ago.

On the judgments, he is quoted by The Journal News: “Rather than a rash of all new filings, we are seeing a clean-up of situations where homeowners have been in trouble a long time.”

However, Mr. Idoni, though requested by WPCNR,  did not address the 686 new foreclosure filings that are essentially the same as the first quarter of 2013, though, and what they meant. Do increased filings mean the real estate market prices are being held down by the foreclosure bargains? (Just one thought that comes to mind.) 

The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors told WPCNR that the increase in Westchester home sales of 19% in the first quarter includes the sales of foreclosed homes put back on the market, after judgments,  but did not have a figure on the percentage of the lift in sales that those foreclosure sales provided. They are working to develop that figure. 

The County Clerk office did not respond to WPCNR’s request for the number of foreclosed homes that were sold in the county during the first quarter. Perhaps they are working on that.

The new fore closure filings for the first quarter are in addition to  the number of foreclosure judgments in the first quarter of 2014  being almost three times the number from the first quarter of 2013 reported Westchester County Clerk Timothy C. Idoni who serves as Clerk of the Westchester County Supreme Court where foreclosure actions are heard.

“These first quarter judgment numbers are the largest we’ve seen since historic highs in 2008 and 2009,” continued Idoni. . (in addition to the 686 new filings).

Foreclosure Judgments Filed

Westchester Residential Opportunities (WRO), a non-profit housing agency with offices in White Plains and Mount Vernon, conducts Mortgage Default Orientation sessions most Wednesday’s in their White Plains Office.  Trained counselors are available to help at (914) 428-4507 or by visiting www.wroinc.org.

For more information on the Office of the Westchester County Clerk, please visit WestchesterClerk.com or call (914)995-3081.

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JOHN BAILEY, BRIAN WALLACH AND JIM BENEROFE ON YOUR PEOPLE TO BE HEARD. SEE THEIR INTERVIEW TONIGHT 10 P.M.

Another Guest in our Legacies of White Plains Series

BRIAN WALLACH

(with Arthur)

Lifelong resident,

Tireless civic booster,

Pioneer in change in the city

Remembers White Plains the way it was, how and who changed it

Watch this inspiring program tonight at 10 PM Countywide on Verizon FIOS Channel 45

or in White Plains on Cablevision 76 or

download it at whiteplainsweek.com 

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WPCNR NEWS & COMMENT. By John F. Bailey. April 18, 2014:

He died 2,000 years ago. There was no CNN, no internet, no newspapers,radio or television. No Twitter or Facebook.

Nevertheless the message of the man who died on Calvary spread around the world without mass communication.

His followers, twelve of them were so devoted to His message of love and code of behavior they became the first pacifist activists who spread a message the man they called their Lord had preached to them.

He is Jesus of Nazareth.  He had no last name.

Today He is now known all over the world for the message he delivered.

Whether you believe He is the Son of God, or not, he ranks as one of the foremost influences on mankind.

His selfless acts of embracing lepers, the poor, those who sinned were unique.

Such compassion for the downtrodden was unheard during the time He lived.

It was a time of slavery. No human rights. No care for the sick. When cities were razed and populations slaughtered or enslaved.

Jesus of Nazareth introduced a new philosophy that spread throughout the world after His death by crucifixation because the community leaders of his own people thought him a threat to their power.

If you live by his philosophy of foregiveness you are a person at peace with yourself. If you accept those who are different from you without  fear or prejudice, you are a force for spreading His message of peace towards others and good will.

I f you help the poor and the sick because you sympathize with them, you are following His way.

If you stand up for truth, point out what is wrong as He did with the Pharisees. You are doing his will.

If you go about doing good for the sake of doing good, you are following His virtue of selflessness.

Jesus of Nazareth’s message whether divine or a code of how we conduct our lives resonated with millions and it spread.

There is no denying He is one of the great philosophers of the human experience, kin to Socrates, the other giant of antiquity thought.

The above print of “The Return from Calvary” painted by Herbert Schmalz shows the last hours of Jesus of Nazareth’s crucifixation around 33 A.D. on Calvary Hill, “the place of the Skull” outside of Jerusalem late in the day He was crucified.

The description on the print describes the somber scene:

The darkness which was on the earth (during His suffering) is clearing away.

One long, dark cloud is hanging over the city like a pall.

The Virgin Mother, weighted down by fatigue and grief, knowing not wither she goes, is being led up some steps, toward “his own” home, by St. John and Mary Magalene.

In the distance on the top of Cavalry, you can make out the three crosses.

The grief so eloquently captured by this print depicts the very personal loss all of us endure when someone we love passes away because of all they did for us. Jesus of Nazareth was a human being who affects us to this day.

One of the great gifts of this man, Jesus of Nazareth, is the celebration of humanity and capacity to care and feel for others that aids persons whether they believe He was the Son of God or not. Or that you will have eternal life if you believe in him.

His philosophies of care, courage, compassion and benevolent action serve their practioners well because they leave a great personal satisfaction in the heart, the mind, and the spirit.

You do not have to second guess yourself, when you do what is right, humane, merciful, and serves the less fortunate without superiority.

The peace of mind of action is the least of the  great gift of Jesus of Nazareth whose death on the cross is marked this day.

If you act as Jesus did, you will be remembered by all you meet fondly and lovingly, and be comforted that you will live in memories of those you have  touched with your love and kindness and caring  for eternity to the end of the age.

His simple teachings have great power.

They give meaning to our mystery of life.

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WPCNR ALBANY ROUNDS. from the Governor’s Press Office (Edited). April 17, 2014:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Chairman Tom Prendergast, and Transit Workers Union (TWU) Local 100 President John Samuelsen today announced a tentative labor agreement to settle a 2-year-old contract dispute between the MTA and TWU Local 100. The tentative agreement protects fare payers while providing a fair and reasonable five-year contract to TWU Local 100’s 34,000 transit workers.

The contract retroactively covers 2012 and 2013, and settles contracts for 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Under the terms of the agreement, TWU workers would receive increases within the 2% cap that Governor Cuomo has achieved with state labor contracts (1% increase in each of the first 2 years, beginning with 2012, and 2% increases in the last 3 years).

Employees would pay an increased share of health care costs – increasing from 1.5% to 2% percent of the employee’s salary – but would receive important new benefits including paid maternity/paternity leave, coverage of health care for surviving spouses of deceased TWU retirees, and improvements to dental and optical benefits. 

The contract will have no impact on MTA fares and will be accommodated within revisions to the MTA financial plan. 

The tentative agreement is subject to approval by the TWU Local 100 executive board and ratification by the membership, and subsequent approval by the MTA board. 

“The transit system is the lifeblood of New York City, and the MTA employees are the ones that make the system work,” Governor Cuomo said. “They showed their dedication time and time again during Superstorm Sandy and its aftermath, working in difficult conditions to get the system up and running in record time. The resolution of this contract dispute is fair to transit workers, fiscally responsible for the MTA, and will have no impact on fares. I thank President John Samuelsen, who fights tenaciously for his members but also cares deeply about the system and its ridership, and Tom Prendergast whose lifelong dedication to the transit system made him the ideal leader of the MTA.”

TWU Local 100 President John Samuelsen said, “This is a fair and equitable contract for transit workers. The agreement secures raises in every year of the contract, with full retroactive pay and provides for historic paid maternity and paternity leave, as well as important improvements to our membership’s healthcare, dental, and eye benefit package. The MTA is a vital part of this City and I am pleased to present a contract to the membership that recognizes their hard work, dedication, and service. I commend the hand of partnership extended by Governor Cuomo and I appreciate his leadership in helping bridge the divide and bring us to this contract agreement.”

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WPCNR COUNTY CLARION-LEDGER. From the Westchester County Board of Legislators with WPCNR Supplemental ReportingApril 16, 2014:

The County Board of Legislators issued a news release today accused  Sustainable Playland of being disingenous by withdrawing from the Board Playland Improvement Plan Review until legal issues involving an individual lawsuit by Legislator Ken Jenkins challenging the County Executive signed management agreement with Sustainable Playland and the City of Rye claim that that city of Rye should have a full environmental review of the Sustainable Playland plan and final approval in the matter.

The Board also in their release appeared inadvertently to let the City of Rye know that the Board would decide on Playland and not the City of Rye.

Sustainable Playland declared in a letter three weeks ago they did not want to continue to spend limited dollars in preparing responses to board questions if the board was not going to have the final say in the Playland decision and that the City of Rye was going to have the decision. Sustainable said the ambiguity of what body — the Board or the City of Rye would  make the decision makes tweaking their plan very difficult.

Today, WPCNR asked the spokesman for the Chair of the Board of Legislators, Ken Jenkins, if the board of Legislators was going to give Sustainable an ultimatum to come back and answer questions. So far no response. I asked if the Board was going give Sustainable a deadline, come back or else. No response.

At the opening of the Boardwalk at Playland last week, County Executive Robert Astorino (right) told WPCNR that Sustainable Playland could not proceed with signing contracts with potential developers to implement its plan due to inaction by the Board of Legislators, Kenneth Jenkins lawsuit on the plan and the City of Rye demand a full environmental review and the right of final approval of any Playland development plan . Asked by WPCNR if Sustainable did not have financing to make a payment on Playland debt as promised in their previous plan, Astorino said that was in doubt and that Sustainable was having difficulty raising capital because of the delay in approval of the plan.

Yesterday Sustainable Playland issued this statememt on the situation:

“Sustainable Playland Inc. (SPI), which has been selected by Westchester County to manage the iconic Playland Park in Rye, has not withdrawn from the county’s approval process. Rather we have requested clarity from Westchester County leaders on their vision as it pertains to the size, scope and components of the park going forward. SPI believes our plan is the right approach for securing Playland’s future. Yet it is only prudent that certain legal issues involving the county and City of Rye are resolved, as are varying opinions on what a revitalized Playland should encompass.”

Legislator Kenneth Jenkins, longtime critic of the County Executive Robert Astorino’s signing a management agreement with Sustainable Playland, issued this statement yesterday:

Today’s letter from Sustainable Playland withdrawing from the Board of Legislators review process supports the need for legal action to invalidate the contract entered into by the Astorino administration.

Said Legislator Ken Jenkins (D-16), “It is clear from Sustainable Playland’s letter they now recognize that the Board of Legislators has to decide upon more than the improvements proposed for Playland.   Since 2010, the Board of Legislators has been clear that it has the final say over Playland.  To now, feign surprise and frustration over a process that has been clearly articulated is astounding.”

Jenkins’ attorney Evan Inlaw said the lawsuit against Sustainable Playland and Westchester County will continue in May.

Today, the Board appears to have hardened their stance this statement:

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