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)
WPCNR COUNTY CLARION LEDGER. From the Westchester County Board of Legislators. December 11, 2021. (Edited):
On Monday, the Board of Legislators voted unanimously to approve operating, capital and special district budgets for 2022 of $2,200,000 that strengthen the County’s finances, provide historic levels of support for human services in Westchester County, and expand the County’s investment in infrastructure improvements for the 21st century. The new budget is 190 Million dollars more than the $2,009,999,999 budget this year.
Among the highlights are:
· $7 million cut in County property tax levy
· No one-shot revenues for continuing operations
· No borrowing to fund pension obligations or operating expenses
· No use of reserve funds,( using covid aid to replace funds taken from the reserve to make up 2021 budget shortfall.)
· $10.2 million increase in funding for childcare
· $10 million from American Rescue Plan funds for Small Landlord Rehabilitation Assistance Program
· More than $1 million to address food insecurity
· Increases of as much as 16% for not-for-profit service partners
· $600K in new funding for Youth Bureaus
· Addition of Health Department personnel
· Funding to support new telemedicine programs
· Funding for new public safety initiatives
· $50 million for land acquisition and infrastructure improvements to support affordable housing, largest single-year commitment in County history
· Funding for flood mitigation, including $11 million added by Board of Legislators for flooding along Mamaroneck Avenue from the Sheldrake and Mamaroneck Rivers
· $35 million to continue process of converting bus fleet from fossil fuel to hybrid and electric vehicles and install EV charging capacity at County’s bus garages
· More than $57 million to modernize waste water treatment facilities including more than $22 million in additional odor control at the Yonkers facility
Board Chair Ben Boykin (D-White Plains, Scarsdale, West Harrison), said, “We have brought this County a long way from where it was four years ago. Then we faced low and dwindling general reserve funds, a string of budgets that relied on unsustainable one-shot revenues, decaying infrastructure whose repair had been deferred, a County government whose ability to respond to residents’ needs had been crippled by cuts, and that was before the challenges of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, we’ve restored the County’s financial health and we are expanding our investment in Westchester’s future — not just by investing in our roads, bridges, parks, and transportation, but most importantly by investing in our people. These budgets put people first.”
WPCNR THE SUNDAY BAILEY .By John F. Bailey. December 12, 2021:
On the week when the “Winter Surge” or “The Fourth Wave” hit the New York Metropolitan area we all need that Old Christmas Magic more than ever this year.
The Waitresses sang in the song back in the 1980s, and this is just part of “Christmas Magic”—it all has to do with you.
I admit I have not been looking forward to this Christmas Season, but Brenda Starr who lives with me, being a redhead, well Christmas is her favorite holiday and works very hard at creating Christmas magic.
The magic starts by pushing me to go out and get a Christmas Tree every year. This year she pushed me early out in the 30 degrees last weekend. Years ago I took my son and tried to get him to pick out the tree. I would tell him what to look for: A tree which looks good on all sides no matter from which way you look at it. Know the height of tree that fits comfortably with scant inches of the ceiling of the room you’ll display it in.
The top of the tree shape is key: it needs a symmetrical ascension of branches extending higher and arched more to a single high trunk extension. This kind of top delivers the look to put small delicate bulbs, and decorations in ascending steps to the highest part of the tree where you place a star or spire on the top single trunk.
Well I set out to Amodio’s last week, and the courteous lads serving the Christma Tree selection showed me the six footers priced at $99. The first one was too wide at the bottom. The next too thin in a triangle with not good wide, slender shape.
Then the lad spun out THE TREE. In 50 years of selecting Christmas Trees, I know THE TREE I will get the moment I see it. It just introduces itself!
The process of tree selection starts the Christmas Magic
So I tote it home in the trunk of the car. And convey it to the porch. Put it in water and wait to the time when Brenda Starr says it is the day to put it up.
We use the same Christmas tree stand we have used for fifty years. Always trouble screwing in the bolts that hold our tree. I guide the tree into the stand while Brenda Starr ducks under the spread boughs of the tree to tighten or loosen the screws of the stand as need be and tells me from under the tree which direction to slant it to get it straight. She looks at the tree determines if it is straight then turns it to the best side.
Then the lights go on. The tree seems to wait expectantly.
This year, Ms. Starr in one of her few mistakes this year, could not find the Christmas Tree lights. So instead of criticizing her I said, “We must have thrown out the candle lights and the candy cane lights from last year, I’ll go to the True Value and get mew ones. Let me call.”
I call and I drive on down to the store that has everything. I’ve been going there since 1976 when a bif friendly man I believe his name was Al ran the store. The new owner said we only have a few lights left. I drive on down, picked up two sets. Returned home and Ms. Starr affixed the lights with me holding the lights. As she strung them from top of the tree to about midway., we both realized there were not enough lights to cover the tree.
But there was another problem, Ms. Starr did not like the second set of lights because the colors were wrong, orange and piurple, “not Christmas colors.” I did something most uncharacteristic, “I said you’re right. I like them because they were flashing and but purple is not a Christmas color, let me go back and exchange them for another set of the ones on the tree.”
She was stunned. You see what I mean by Christmas Magic? The tree the atmosphere, the decorating was altering my behavior. So back to True Value, I make the exchange and even saved money.
When I returned, Ms. Starr, said “Look.”
She had opened a box of what she thought were decorations for the tree and found the electric lights from last year. “I’m sorry.”
I did something even rarer in the face of the discovery, I laughed, “I knew this would happen, but I can string those other lights on the pine trees off the porch.”
On with the new second set of lights she liked!
Together, we put bulbs collected over 50 years. The pictures of my daughter the skater 25 years ago, reindeer, train bulbs, glass icicles, glass stars. The tree seemed to give off vibes of warmth even seemed to be preening and the fresh sap got on our fingers. After an hour the tree is filled.
I then went out and decorated the pinetrees outside the house, not much but it just made the trees seem so much taller standing proud and seemed to enjoy the lights being looped on to the branches. When I plugged in the long extension chord the house did not catch fire or bulbs cause a short circuit.
The finding of the lights after I had gotten new ones, was I felt another mysterious arrival of that old Christmas Magic.
What is the Christmas Magic?
It is the magic we cast ourselves, continuing the same traditions and doing the things together that bring us close, when we decorated trees with our parents or helped Mom bake and the mellowness and teary sentimentality we feel towards family who have drifted apart, for each other frayed by the strains of any relationship.
Those Christmas visits at Grandma’s house on Sunnyside Avenue, playing in freezing temperations at the Manville Road Circle in Old Pleasantville.
It all comes back. That’s Christmas Magic.
We need it more than ever this year.
Back in the 1980s, The Waitresses put out a perfect song that expresses Christmas Magic, called “Christmas Wrappings” that you can hear by doing a search on the internet. Here are the lyrics
Christmas Wrappings
Bah, humbug!” No, that’s too strong
‘Cause it is my favorite holiday
But all this year’s been a busy blur
Don’t think I have the energy
To add to my already mad rush
Just ’cause it’s ’tis the season.
The perfect gift for me would be
Completions and connections left from
Last year, ski shop,
Encounter, most interesting.
Had his number but never the time
Most of ’81 passed along those lines.
So deck those halls, trim those trees
Raise up cups of Christmas cheer,
I just need to catch my breath,
Christmas by myself this year.
Calendar picture, frozen landscape,
Chilled this room for twenty-four days,
Evergreens, sparkling snow
Get this winter over with!
Flashback to springtime, saw him again,
Would’ve been good to go for lunch,
Couldn’t agree when we were both free,
We tried, we said we’d keep in touch.
Didn’t, of course, ’til summertime,
Out to the beach to his boat could I join him?
No, this time it was me,
Sunburn in the third degree.
Now the calendar’s just one page
And, of course, I am excited
Tonight’s the night, but I’ve set my mind
Not to do too much about it.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I’ll miss this one this year.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I’ll miss this one this year.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I’ll miss this one this year.
Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!
But I think I’ll miss this one this year.
Hardly dashing through the snow
Cause I bundled up too tight
Last minute have-to-do’s
A few cards a few calls
‘Cause it’s r-s-v-p
No thanks, no party lights
It’s Christmas Eve, gonna relax
Turned down all of my invites.
Last fall I had a night to myself,
Same guy called, halloween party,
Waited all night for him to show,
This time his car wouldn’t go,
Forget it, it’s cold, it’s getting late,
Trudge on home to celebrate
In a quiet way, unwind
Doing Christmas right this time.
A&P has provided me
With the world’s smallest turkey
Already in the oven, nice and hot
Oh damn! Guess what I forgot?
So on with the boots, back out in the snow
To the only all-night grocery,
When what to my wondering eyes should appear
In the line is that guy I’ve been chasing all year!
WPCNR FBI WIRE. From The Federal Bureau of Investigation. December 11, 2021:
Richard “Rob” Walker, the former Chief Deputy County Executive under former Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano, was sentenced by United States District Judge Joan M. Azrack to 18 months in prison for obstruction of justice December 7. The Court also ordered Walker to pay $5,000 in forfeiture, imposed a $5,500 fine and perform 2,000 hours of community service as part of his sentence. Walker pleaded guilty to the charge in May 2019.
Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the sentence.
“While occupying an important position of public trust, Walker accepted illicit payments from a contractor, encouraged the contractor to commit perjury before a federal grand jury, and lied to the FBI to cover up his crimes,” stated United States Attorney Peace. “This Office will prosecute corrupt officials like Walker who seek to obstruct justice and abuse the public trust.” Mr. Peace also expressed his thanks to Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation for its help during the investigation.
“Public officials have a great responsibility to uphold the public’s trust and make legal and ethical decisions that serve to benefit their communities. Rob Walker did just the opposite when he accepted illicit payments from a contractor working for Nassau County and later attempted to cover his tracks and change his story once he realized the FBI was onto him. As we’ve said in the past, there’s no way to undo what’s already been done—a lesson that’s surely been reinforced today,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Driscoll.
In 2014, Walker, who was then the Chief Deputy Nassau County Executive, accepted a $5,000 cash payment from a contractor who was performing work pursuant to a contract for Nassau County. In 2017, Walker learned that the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and the FBI had opened a grand jury investigation of potential corruption in Nassau County government, including the circumstances surrounding the $5,000 payment made by the contractor to the defendant.
Walker spoke to the contractor on several occasions and attempted to persuade him to conceal the existence of the $5,000 payment from the grand jury, or to provide a false explanation to the grand jury concerning the transaction, for example, saying it was repayment of a loan.
Walker arranged to meet the contractor in a park in Hicksville, New York, and at that meeting, gave the contractor an envelope containing $5,000 in an effort to make it appear as if the payment Walker accepted “never happened.” Later, when he was interviewed by the FBI concerning the payment, Walker denied ever having received any cash payments from the contractor.
As recounted in consensually recorded conversations, Walker repeatedly claimed that the payment did not have to be disclosed to the grand jury if he returned it to the contractor. On one occasion, Walker said, “you [the contractor] only borrowed it and I gave it back to you…there was never a quid pro quo,” and if he returned the money, “it doesn’t exist…wouldn’t you rather it not existing?”
In another recorded conversation, Walker untruthfully stated, “[j]ust be honest. I borrowed the money from you. I gave it back to you…My mother-in-law was sick…it’s over.” During the exchange, which was recorded by law enforcement, Walker stated, “it [the money] doesn’t exist. That’s it.” When the contractor asked if he is “not saying a word [to the grand jury]?” Walker confirmed, “[n]ope, doesn’t exist.”
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Long Island Criminal Division. Assistant United States Attorneys Artie McConnell and Catherine M. Mirabile are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendant:
RICHARD WALKER (also known as “Rob Walker”) Age: 43 Hicksville, New York
