Board of Legislators Vet 4 Playland Would-Be Operators at County Center

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WPCNR PLAYLAND PRESS. From the Westchester County Board of Legislators. February 14, 2013:


More than 200 people flocked to the Little Theater at the Westchester County Center last night for a public information session on the four proposals to revitalize Playland, the 280-acre County Park and National Historic landmark. The event was hosted by the Westchester County Board of Legislators and moderated by Legislator Catherine Borgia (D-Ossining), chair of the BOL’s Government Operations Committee



The info session began with trade show-style presentations from representatives of the four revitalization proposals—Sustainable Playland, Standard Amusements, Central Amusements and the Paidia Company / Legoland—and attendees spent over an hour perusing displays, talking with the various representatives and gathering flyers and other materials related to the different proposals. The BOL’s entire Democratic caucus and one Republican legislator also showed up for the event.



The four proposals were presented in detail to the public, and then Borgia led an hour-long Q & A period in which both broad and specific concerns were addressed to the representatives of the revitalization proposals.



“I’m very pleased that so many people turned out for this information session,” said Borgia. “It was important for our evaluation process to give members of the public an opportunity to see the four proposals side by side and discern the differences between them. That’s the level of openness and transparency to the decision-making process regarding the future of Playland rightfully deserves.”



The BOL moved forward last month with its evaluation of the top four proposals for the revitalization of Playland when the BOL Government Operations Committee outlined goals for the decision process and began in-depth discussions with the four Playland RFP respondents regarding proposed operations, financial viability and intended modifications to the park and infrastructure.



Many of the questions fielded by the representatives of the four proposals dealt with economic viability, maintaining Playland’s amusement offerings, environmental protections, public access and projected attendance figures.



“The Board of Legislators has made a lot of information is available on the decision process because the revitalization of Playland will impact residents throughout the county, as well as in Rye,” said Borgia, who added that the BOL Government Operations Committee will soon make its own recommendation about which Playland proposal is right for Westchester.



“After that, the Board of Legislators will look to collaborate with the Administration in working with the group entrusted with Playland’s future,” said Borgia.



In today’s meeting of the County’s Acquisition and Contract Board, BOL Chairman Jenkins (D-Yonkers) provided for the record prior legislation showing that in 1980 the BOL had approved the management agreement with Marriott to operate Playland.



Also, the BOL has retained the services of an outside auditor to review the financial aspects of all four Playland revitalization proposals.



Links to each of the Playland proposal presentation can be found on the Government Operations Committee page on the BOL website: http://westchesterlegislators.com/committees.html?id=2029

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Inside Information Hedger Gets Probation

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WPCNR FBI WIRE. From the Federal Bureau of Investigation. February 14, 2013:


Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that STEVEN FORTUNA, who co-founded the hedge fund S2 Capital LLC (S2), was sentenced Wednesday to two years of probation for his participation in an insider trading scheme in which he obtained and traded on material, non-public information (Inside Information) about various publicly traded companies from employees at other hedge funds.


 FORTUNA pled guilty in October 2009 to three counts of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and one count of securities fraud pursuant to a cooperation agreement with the government. He was sentenced  in Manhattan federal court by U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein.


As part of the conditions of his probation, FORTUNA, 50, of Westwood, Massachusetts, was ordered to serve six months of home confinement with electronic monitoring and 120 hours of community service during each of the years of his probation. He was also ordered to pay forfeiture in the amount of $200,000 and a $400 special assessment fee.


According to the information, statements made during FORTUNA’s guilty plea proceeding, and the government’s sentencing submission in his case:


From July 2008 through March 2009, while working as a portfolio manager at a hedge fund he co-founded, FORTUNA obtained Inside Information concerning various technology companies from employees at other hedge funds for the purpose of trading on that information. The Inside Information was disclosed by company insiders in breach of their duties to their respective employers.


For example, in July and August 2008, FORTUNA obtained Inside Information concerning Akamai, Inc. (Akamai) from Danielle Chiesi, a portfolio manager at New Castle Partners, a hedge fund. Chiesi told FORTUNA that Akamai planned to report that its revenue guidance for the following quarter would miss expectations and that, internally, the company believed that its stock price would fall following the quarterly earnings announcement. FORTUNA executed trades based on that Inside Information, and earned approximately $2.4 million in profits.

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Sales Tax $$ for WP DOWN 3% thru 7 Months. Slightly Behind 11-12 Pace

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WPCNR QUILL & EYESHADE From the New York State Department of Taxation & Finance. February 13, 2013:


The White Plains economy is limping along with no sign of robust growth yet.


The January White Plains Sales Tax Receipts report from the NYS Department of Taxation & Finance position White Plains running 3% below last fiscal year pace in sales tax revenues collected in the first seven months of Fiscal  2012-13.


The city has collected $29.5 Million from July through January 2012-13. In fiscal 2011-12 the city collected $30.5 Million. That is approximately a 3% shortfall in expected revenue.


 If the city maintains last year’s pace of sales tax revenue growth the next five months ($20 Million), the city will top $49 Million, easily meeting the city budgeted $46.5 Million, but falling short of the $51 Million the city collected last year. Assuming 2% inflation the city should hit $50 Million in sales tax receipts by the end of fiscal 2012-13 in June.


This pace will supply just enough cash to replenish the  cash reserve they have anticipated adding to the fund balance  stabilization fund they are planning on using to pay any labor settlements with police and fire unions that are currently in the binding arbitration fact-finding process.


Westchester County collected 5% more sales tax receipts in January, the start of the county fiscal year, collecting $41 Million compared to $39 Million in January 2012.


The city collected $4.9 Million in sales tax receipts in January 2012 compared to $4.7 Million last January (a 4 % increase),

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2nd Best Month for Real Estate in 5 Years–CLERK SAYS

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WPCNR HOME FRONT. From Timothy Idoni, Westchester County Clerk. February 12, 2013:


A month-to-month review of land recordings in the Westchester County Clerk’s Office has revealed that the 9,756 documents recorded in January of 2013 was only surpassed over the last five years by an unusually high 10,597 in March of 2011.   


 


“January recording figures for items such as deeds and mortgages support reports of increased activity in the Westchester real estate market,” began Westchester County Clerk Timothy C. Idoni.  These recordings include deeds, mortgages, mortgage assignments and satisfactions of mortgage. 


 


“Real estate professionals in our area were rightfully encouraged by market activity in the last quarter of 2012,” continued Idoni, “and so we are pleased to share strong numbers for January of 2013, the second best month we’ve had in over five years.”  A month-by-month breakdown of land recordings in the Office of the Westchester County Clerk over the last five years follows:


 

























































































 

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

June

July

Aug

Sept

Oct

Nov

Dec


2008

8,108

5,723

7,216

8,700

7,435

7,910

7,115

7,066

5,784

7,892

4,256

5,272


2009

4,321

4,125

6,170

6,211

4,738

7,105

6,294

8,140

7,598

7,115

8,047

7,472


2010

8,331

6,222

6,856

6,116

6,147

6,043

5,615

6,602

7,051

6,535

6,506

6,555


2011

8,256

8,067

10,597

7,190

6,469

6,442

5,990

7,572

7,098

7,687

6,797

7,227


2012

7,015

7,531

8,000

8,616

8,164

8,298

7,769

9,071

7,532

8,290

8,079

7,918

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Looking at the Long Tall Illinoisan.

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WPCNR’s The Daily Bailey. By John F. Bailey. February 12, 2013 Retrieved from the WPCNR ARCHIVES.


Today marks the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, whose Presidential performance during the Civil War (1861-1865) was perhaps the most admirable of any American President. He had to create things as he went, dealing with a complex political issue: slavery, while deciding to fight a war to preserve a divided nation.



How did Abraham Lincoln handle pressure and political opportunists? He did not have press agents and spinmasters and talk show hosts and superior punditry critiquing his every move and loading him up with advice.


Though he did have the “crusading editors” and “editorial boards” of his day. Let’s take a look at the Big Guy from Illinois


In the days of Lincoln, media coverage was simply print media, however, the amount of reporting on the burning issues of the day was far more detailed than today with dozens of newspapers presenting the chronicles of burning issues. For Lincoln’s presidency was the presidency of the nation’s greatest crisis in its eighty-five year history:


The Civil War.


It is interesting to note how President Lincoln conducted himself in dealing with America’s interests, its factions, pulling him to free the slaves.

When Lincoln was running for the Presidency in 1860 at the Republican Convention in riproaring Chicago, he was up against James Seward, a powerful New York politician. However, the western states at the time were highly distrustful of the New York political machine. (Has anything really changed? They are still distrustful today!)


Lincoln won over support by taking a position of what was good for the nation as a whole.

Taking a Position and Working To it

Lincoln first gave notice of his potential for the Presidency when he impressed Horace Greeley, influential editor of the New York Tribune with a fiery speech at the Cooper Union in February, 1860, delivering a sharp criticism of the South, hard on the heels of South Carolina’s secession from the Union. The speech included these words,

You say you will not abide the election of a Republican President. In that supposed event, you say, you will destroy the Union; and then, you say, the great crime of having destroyed it will be upon us! (The northern states) That is cool. A highwayman holds a pistol to my ear, and mutters through his teeth, “Stand and deliver, or I shall kill you, and then you will be a murderer!”

Greeley printed the speech in his Tribune the next day, scooping the other New York papers, by simply asking Lincoln for a copy of the speech. The subsequent printing in the popular Trib, sent Mr. Lincoln on his way. As William Harlan Hale’s biography of Mr. Greeley (Horace Greeley: Voice of the People)describes the scene at “The original Trib’s” offices, as remembered by Amos Cummings, a young proofreader:

Amos Cummings, then a young proofreader, remembered the lanky westerner appearing over his shoulder amid the noise of the pressroom late at midnight, drawing up a chair, adjusting his spectacles, and in the glare of the gaslight reading each galley (of the Cooper Union speech) with scrupulous care and then rechecking his corrections, oblivious to his surroundings.

A Comeback President

Lincoln had been a highly successful politician from Illinois in the 1830s and 1840s. He was three times elected to the state legislature, and The Kunhardts’ The American Presidency reports he was “a recognized expert at forming coalitions…he learned how to keep secrets, how to trade favors, how to use the press to his advantage. And he cultivated his relationship with the party hierarchy.”

Graff’s book writes that Lincoln was described as “ruthless,” that he “handled men remotely like pieces on a chessboard.” Humor and frankness were character traits.

Lincoln was elected a congressman, only to serve just one term.

Lincoln had been practicing corporate law privately and had lost interest in politics by 1854, until the repeal of The Missouri Compromise, which had restricted slavery to the southern states. Lincoln felt stirred to come back. He spoke out against the spread of slavery, running for the senate in 1858 against William Douglas, unsuccessfully.

Saving the Union His Mantra

As the furor over slavery and the South’s threats to secede grew, a crisis of spirit and purpose in this nation which makes today’s concerns about terrorism as a threat to America, pale in comparison, Lincoln realized that the Union was the larger issue. He expressed this in response to Horace Greeley, editor of the New York Tribune, an influential figure at the Republican (Whig) Convention in Chicago in 1860. Greeley was the kingmaker at the 1860 Chicago convention who eventually swung the western states for Lincoln, giving the man from Illinois the nomination on the third ballot over William Seward, the candidate of the Thurlow Weed “New York Machine.”

Greeley then tried to influence the President-Elect to free the slaves. (Lincoln was being lobbied by the still-powerful Weed-Seward faction to compromise with the southern states on the issue of slavery).

Standing Tall Against Pressure.

Lincoln refused to free the slaves as one of the first acts of his presidency, standing firm to hold the union together, when he announced his attention not to do so, on his way to Washington after being elected. His words in this time of international tension, are worth remembering as America considers starting a war for the first time. Lincoln said:

I have often inquired of myself what great principle or idea it was that kept this Confederacy (the Union, he means), so long together. It was not the mere matter of separation of the colonies from the motherland, but that sentiment in the Declaration of Independence which gave liberty not alone to the single people of this country, but hope to all the world, for all future time. It was that which gave promise that in due time the weights would be lifted from the shoulders of all men, and that all should have an equal chance.

Seeing the Big Picture.

After Fort Sumter was fired upon, Lincoln was pressured harder to free the slaves. Still, Lincoln held firm. Mr. Greeley published a blistering open letter to the President, he called “The Letter of Twenty Millions,” meaning his readers (slightly exaggerated)in The New York Tribune. Greeley’s letter took the President to task for not freeing the slaves now that the Civil War was on, writing, “all attempts to put down the rebellion and at the same time uphold its inciting cause are preposterous and futile.”

President Lincoln responded with an open letter which Greeley published in The Tribune. President Lincoln’s letter is instructive as to how a President moves in crisis, when a nation is ripped apart to calm and state his position. He begins with a conciliatory tone, calming Greeley’s bombast:

…If there be perceptible in it (Greeley’s letter) an impatient and dictatorial tone, I waive it in deference to an old friend whose heart I have always supposed to be right.

As to the policy I “seem to be pursuing,” as you say, I have not meant to leave any one in doubt. I would save the Union. I would save it in the shortest way under the Constitution.

The sooner the national authority can be restored the nearer the Union will be – the Union as it was.

If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time save slavery, I do not agree with them.

If there be those who would not save the Union unless they could at the same time destroy slavery, I do not agree with them.

If I could save the Union without freeing any slaves, I would do it – if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it – and if I could do it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would also do that.

What I do about slavery and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save this Union, and what I forbear, I forbear because I do not believe it would help to save the Union.

I shall do less whenever I shall believe what I am doing hurts the cause, and I shall do more whenever I believe doing more will help the cause.

I shall try to correct errors when shown to be errors, and I shall adopt new views so fast as they shall appear to be new views.

I have here stated my purpose according to my views of official duty, and I intend no modification of my oft-expressed personal wish that all men everywhere could be free, Yours

A. Lincoln

Wearied by War

Horace Greeley described the toll the Civil War had taken on Mr. Lincoln, seeing him in person shortly beforeGeneral Lee surrendered. Greeley wrote:

Lincoln’s face had nothing in it of the sunny, gladsome countenance he first brought from Illinois. It is now a face haggard with care and seamed with thought and trouble…tempest-tossed and weatherbeaten, as if he were some tough old mariner who had for years been beating up against the wind and tide, unable to make his port or find safe anchorage…The sunset of life was plainly looking out of his kindly eyes.”


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William Joseph Delanoy — Commissioner Chong’s Eulogy

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WPCNR MILESTONES. The Eulogy of Deputy Chief Billy Delanoy delivered at Monday morning’s service by Commissioner of Public Safety, David Chong. Courtesy White Plains Department of Public Safety. February 11, 2013:



Commissioner of Public Safety David Chong, right. Fire Chief Richard Lyman, center, and Common Council President John Martin, left saluting the hearse baring Chief Delanoy to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel this morning.


Thank You Delanoy and Delvecchio Families, most specifically to Billy’s beloved high school sweetheart, his wife, Joanne, his sons, Christopher, Paul and Gregory, his Father, Joseph, His Father-in-Law, Former City Mayor Alfred Delvecchio, and the entire Delanoy and Delvecchio families. Thank you all, for the honor and privilege in allowing me to say a few words about the Department of Public Safety’s, Deputy Fire Chief William Delanoy and my friend Billy.


 


First of all, to Joanne, Christopher, Paul, Gregory, Billy’s dad Joseph, and the entire extended Delanoy and Delvecchio families, on behalf of our Mayor, Thomas Roach, all of our Common Council members, Fire Chief Richard Lyman, Police Chief James Bradley, and every Commissioner ,official in this City, elected and appointed, every employee in this city, and the many thousands of people who throughout the County and the region that have been lucky enough to be touched over the years by Billy, we extend to you, our deepest condolences and you have our heartfelt prayers.


 


Many words have been spoken in the last few days, all true and heartfelt about Deputy Chief William Delanoy.  To say that Billy will be missed seems such an understatement.  Those words just don’t seem to put it in the right perspective. 


 


Although Deputy Chief Delanoy was a legend in our Fire Department, a great Chief and leader, a man who was so dedicated to a profession he loved, to his fellow firefighters who he groomed, trained and protected, a man dedicated to this city, he always was just “our” Billy.  Never did I ever witness him having a bad day and never did I ever witness him without the constant smile and that confident attitude.  He’d light up a room by just walking in. He could speak to anyone, from Mayors and Commissioners to Kindergarteners, and if no one was listening, he could talk to himself. 


 



Deputy Chief William Delanoy.


Photo courtesy,White Plains Department of Public Safety


 


 


Deputy Chief William Delanoy was a “can do guy”.  Nothing seemed to faze him, no matter if it was a huge fire, a difficult rescue, a firefighter injured, a personal matter with a family member or a friend, Billy would be able to think it out and work it out, and most importantly be there to help out. He was the star quarterback for a championship team.


 


 I could stand here for days speaking about all the lives that Billy has touched, there are so many instances that Billy was just there for everyone.


 


 That’s how special Billy is to all of us packed into this church and standing outside.  It seemed to me like the entire City of White Plains came to his wake to pay their respects.


 


Here are some of the personal reflections I have of just some of the many conversations I had with Billy.


 


To Joanne, know that Billy loved you from the first day he saw you.  He told me that you were High School sweethearts, and he was so looking forward to the day you both retired.  That his love for you is everlasting.


 


To his sons, Christopher our Firefighter, Gregory, the business man and Paul, the NYPD Officer, He spoke of each and everyone one of you, and his pride in you, his boys, his sons,  you just glowed from his heart.  All fathers love their children, his love and pride in each of you just shined through with every passing year as you grew older and more successful.


 


To his Dad, Joe, thank you for Billy, he’s in heaven taking care of mom, thank you for your 35 years of service to this City as a firefighter and a fire lieutenant.  Billy learned from the very best, sir.


 


To his Brothers in the Fire Department, please know that he defended the fire service and the profession and each of you with passion. He loved the Fire Department he loved his fire brothers.  He wore that uniform and what it stood for with honor.


 


I will miss my Deputy Chief, my friend, my confidant.  Billy, you taught me so much about the Fire Service and its traditions and culture.  I am a better person because of you my friend.  I think we all agree that we are all better because we were touched by Billy. 


 


Heaven has gained another angel, although in our hearts and minds much too soon.  Knowing Billy, he’s already put together a Yankee and Giants fan club of Angels.  He is waiting for spring training and he is debating all the other angels in heaven about how best to run the team on earth. I also know that he is no longer angry at the Giants and the PSL.  He now has front row seats.


 


That’s our Billy, the man, the legend, the friend, the angel and a true son of the City of White Plains.  There will be no other like him, so today we retire your number Deputy Chief William Delanoy.  We will never forget you and the legacy you left us.  We are all better people because of you.  This City is a better place because of you.


 


So please, everyone in this church today, please rise and join me as we salute Deputy Chief William Delanoy, The Delanoy and Delvecchio families for all that they have done to make our lives better.  Let’s give our Billy and his family the standing ovation that he deserves.


 


We miss you Chief, I miss you Dear friend.  Rest in eternal peace.



 


 

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Photographs to Remember

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White Plains Firefighters and Police Officers Await Arrival of the Delanoy Funeral Procession.


WPCNR MILESTONES. By John F. Bailey. February 11, 2013:


White Plains said good-bye this morning to Deputy Chief William J. Delanoy, who died suddenly last Wednesday.


The funeral service this morning held at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church attracted approximately 700 persons. White Plains firefighters and police officers formed an honor cortege on South Lexington Avenue to salute the arrival of their beloved Deputy Chief. Delanoy was eulogized by Commissioner of Public Safety David Chong as “the man who was always there.” Chong called on the throng gathered to say a last fairwell to rise and give the departed Mr. Delanoy a standing ovation. Applause lasted for 40 seconds. It was an uplifting tribute that exulted Mr. Delanoy’s accomplishments in his 34 years with the White Plains Fire Department.


He was remembered by Deputy Chief Richard Houlihan for his personal good nature, work ethic, and ability to compromise and arrive at solutions. Delanoy was saluted as a wonderful father to his three children, his loyalty to his family and his dedication to the fire-fighting profession. The service lasted past 12 noon, as each speaker haltingly recalled what was special about this man who touched so many  in his ability to inspire, comfort, and lead. All were holding on to Chief Delanoy until the last moment. The recession was highlighted by Mr. Delanoy’s favorite singer, Frank Sinatra singing “Nancy of the laughing face,” which recalled Chief Delanoy’s ready smile, and “New York, New York.”



Mayor Emeritus Joseph Delfino, Common Council President John Martin, Fire Chief Richard Lyman, and Commissioner of Public Safety David Chong salute the arrival of Chief Delanoy.



Pallbearers and comrades salute on departure.



 


 


 


 

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9 to 13 inches of snow blanket WP-City handles it with ease.

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WPCNR SNOW NEWS. February 9, 2013:


The snow job of the winter arrived and delivered the bulk of the snow to White Plains from midnight on. Four inches fell by dusk Friday night giving shovelers a head start on driveways. Winds across the city were not as devastating as predicted, and blew snow around to varying depths of 9 inches to 13 inches.


The Nicolettimen had roads passable by morning, and by late afternoon Saturday you could depart most neighborhoods normally. A solid job once again by the White Plains Department of Public Works.

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Deputy Fire Chief Dies. Arrangements Announced.

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William Delanoy


1955-2013


WPCNR MILESTONES. February 6, 2013. UPDATED February 7, 8:15 P.M. :


White Plains Deputy Fire Chief Bill Delanoy passed away Wednesday morning of an apparent heart attack. Chief Delanoy was with the department 34 years. He comes from a fire-fighting tradition He was the son of a firefighter and Chief Delanoy’s son Christopher is also presently a member of the department.


Fire Chief Richard Lyman issued this statement Thursday detailing the arrangements for Deputy Chief Delanoy:


“It is with great regret that the White Plains Fire Bureau announces the passing of Deputy Chief William Delanoy on February 6, 2013. On Behalf of the Mayor of The City of White Plains, Thomas M. Roach, and the Commissioner of Public Safety, David Chong, I would like to thank Chief Delanoy for his years of loyal service and excellent performance. Please hold Bill and his family in your thoughts and prayers. He will be greatly missed.”


 


The Mayor’s Office issued this statement from Mayor Roach on Chief Delanoy’s service:


 


“The unexpected passing of Deputy Chief Delanoy is a great loss for the City of White Plains. He was someone that everyone liked and respected and he will be missed.”


 


 

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The Usual Suspects–The Loyal Acquiescence

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WPCNR NEWS & COMMENT. By John F. Bailey. February 6, 2013:


Mayor Thomas Roach is most likely going to run for a full term as Mayor in his own right this fall. But, with the Democrat voter registration more than 2 to 1 than Republicans, you could run Richard Parker for Mayor as a Democrat and he would win. All he would have to do is roar.


The view from Dem-Heavy White Plains is whom would the Republican Party put up to run for Mayor against Roach? Would he or she have a chance?



I spoke with one of the few Republican personalities who has dared to criticize the Roach administration, Mike Amodio Monday evening


If you recall. Amodio criticized the all-Democrat Common Council for selecting a councilman to replace David Buchwald without making it public that the council was looking for a few good men or women to take the position. Amodio also questioned the need for the council to make the Buchwald replacement appointment immediately. The council excuse was they needed unanimous consent to pass ordinances on the first time they are introduced.


Amodio told me that a group of Republicans were going to hold meetings and approach possible candidates to run for Mayor and Council. There are three council running for reelection.  Brian Maloney the chairman of the Republican Party did not return a call I  made to him  Monday afternoon. Perhaps he’ll get back to me today. 


Maybe, just maybe they won’t run anyone against Mayor Roach or even the Common Council. In recent years, the White Plains Republican party under its profoundly puzzling leadership has run candidates unfamiliar to the populace – the only exception being Bob Hyland who made a valiant run at Bill Ryan for County Legislator and also at Mayor Roach in the Special Election to complete Adam Bradley’s Mayoral Term. Tim Sheehan and Jeffrey Binder ran for Common Council back in 2007 but fell short.000


The situation in White Plains where a party has deteriorated to the standpoint that they automatically concede elections by not running candidates is disturbing. In 2009, the Republicans did not run a candidate against Adam Bradley, cross-endorsing him .  They bypassed possible candidates like Glen Hockley and Timothy Sheehan and just threw their weight behind Bradley.


In the three years since then, have the White Plains Republicans been out there developing new personalities; pushing new young turks out to the people and speaking out in the Common Council meetings on key issues?


That is a rhetorical question.


Of course not.


The White Plains Republican party has played patsy to the Democratic Party, much like the Washington Generals continue to play patsy to the Harlem Globetrotters.


It is a shame the Republican leadership, and I use the word kindly, has not been stumping and thumping against the Schulmanesque administration that Mayor Roach appears to be running. This administration, were it not for Republican “do-anything-but-run,” could be toppled. Why? It moves at a leisurely pace. Does not move with a sense of urgency and it decides matters in secret, more so than the Delfino administration that preceded it.


The Republicans are facing an administration that  has strung out approval or denial the French American School of New York proposal  for the Ridgeway Golf Club property for two years because a neighborhood is mounting strong opposition to it. The administration even concocted a new ordinance that would prohibit the development that FASNY wants to execute (strictly coincidence), spending a half million in city money to pay lawyers to create it. 


The council did not even take up the controversial  Open Space Recreation Ordinance for golf courses Monday night at the Common Council meeting the administration appears to be playing to the gallery in the south end of town to preserve  Ridgeway Country club as a derelict property for as long as possible – at least until after Mr. Roach is elected again.


Mr. Roach supports green initiatives but that does not mean putting more green back in taxpayer’s pockets. The city continues to pad fund balance with sales tax to pay off labor contracts expected to be foisted upon them and they do not cut live personnel, though they have eliminated jobs that were budgeted and not filled. There is no financial sense of reality.


The Winbrook Revitalization plan continues to be shrouded in fog, with no massive funding from HUD in sight, in fact until HUD settles its court cases over housing with the Astorino administration, White Plains probably is not going to get millions from HUD to rebuild that complex. That deal actually happened in the Republican administration under Mr. Delfino. But Mr. Roach has not moved to address where that Winbrook project is going to our knowledge, except to discuss Section VIII and IX rents.


Meantime, city property taxes appear ready to go up in the new budget  to settle union contracts and no one is even talking about cutting the budget. Instead new lawyer consultants  continue to be hired, three so far on the FASNY issue alone, one on labor  The city is very secretive in its operations and does not discuss new proposals for development or policy in work sessions virtually at all. They are making the former Delfino Administration look like open government.


But other than Mr. Amodio, no Republican political figure has issued statements, come to the Common Council meetings or criticized the Democratic administration. Even though you have a city that is essentially standing still on development.  And has been just keeping the lid on a pot without the gas on.


I have just named some of the issues the Republicans might run on.  Amodio figures that a good candidate for Mayor would need about $50,000 to run a campaign. That brings up another thing. The White Plains Republican Party needs to fundraise. To my knowledge they have not done that.


The local loyal opposition has to find some new champions who pay attention to what is going on. You cannot just come to a common citizen or local business man and say “we like you. Do you want to run for Common Council? Or you have a great reputation in the community? Want to run for Mayor?”


Where are the Marc Pollitzers of yesteryear who spoke out, watched the action or lack of it and spoke truth to power?


There is only one person I can think of with the experience to run for Mayor against Mr. Roach. That is Rita Malmud who retired from the Common Council in 2007.  Her twelve years on the council, her thoughtfulness on issues, her sense of reason immenently qualify her to run for Mayor. Whether the Republicans would have the shrewdness to draft her and run her as an independent on the Republican ticket, remains to be seen. Of course, Ms. Malmud may not be at all interested.  But she would be able to raise funds. She could craft policy. She has respect of both parties, and is well-known.


More to the point, Ms. Malmud could attract strong council candidates to surround herself, because she has credibility as a mayoral candidate.


Perhaps you could run Hyland for Council; and two Malmud selectees against the present incumbents who are vulnerable on their stands on the issues.


But that perhaps is too creative for the Republican Party in White Plains.


Ms. Malmud also probably is too nice to run against her Democrat friends. But, you never know. All she can do to the Republicans is say “No.”


In White Plains Republicans are not the insane Republicans we see on the national stage. They are just lazy and seem to find it very easy to just allow Democrats to run against inexperienced candidates.


Of course, the Republicans could always draft Joseph Delfino, the former Renaissance Mayor to bring them back. I think Delfino would decimate the Roach administration. But “America’s Favorite Mayor” may not want to run. He certainly could fund-raise, and he could count on heavy union support considering the Bradley-Roach administration war on the police and fire unions. (There has not been a Bradley-Roach Administration War on Commissioners and Appointees, I might note).


Mr. Amodio’s efforts may be too late.

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