Public Hearing That Is Not a Public Hearing Was Never to Be Telecast Live: City

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. October 26, 2010 UPDATED 6:15 P.M.:


Jim Kenny the Executive Director of the White Plains Public Service Commision told WPCNR late this afternoon that this evening’s scheduled by the Mayor’s Office as a Special Meeting was never scheduled to be televised.


Mr. Kenny has also announced that last night’s Candidate’s Forum thought to be ready to go tonight at 7:30, will not be aired until tomorrow at 7:30 P.M.


WPCNR was lead to believe Monday afternoon by an employee at the television station that it was their understanding it was going to be televised live. WPCNR reported that to keep the public informed.  WPCNR apologizes for any confusion this may have caused. 


Twenty-four hours later, at around 3 P.M. Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Kenny was informed by the Mayor’s office that the city did not want to televise the meeting live, but would tape it for viewing at a future date.


Asked by WPCNR “Why wouldn’t the city want to televise tonight’s meeting live?” Mr. Callahan issued this written statment:


This meeting was never scheduled to be broadcast live, so whoever told you that did not know what they were talking about. The meeting is not a public hearing. The meeting will be taped for later broadcast which, I understand, will give our cable people the ability to edit into the show any slides shown at tonight’s meeting. As you are probably aware, the only special meetings of the Common Council that have been broadcast live in the past have been the budget adoption meetings.


However, WPCNR checked back as to whether this was or is or could be a public hearing.


When the Special Meeting was called by the Mayor on Friday through a communication from the City Clerk, the meeting was described as both “a presentation on the proposed purchase of Ridgeway Country Club and for public comment.” So apparently this creates a new classification of Special Meeting: a “non-public public hearing.” Usually when the public is asked to comment on an issue the city is considering, the proceeding is a public hearing. The notices:




 

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Ridgeway Hearing Will Not be Televised Live Tonight. Candidates Forum Instead.

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WPCNR AIR WAVES. October 26,2010: 


WPCNR was advised moments ago by White Plains Government Access Channel that the Special Meeting of the Common Council scheduled for this evening at 7:30  which has a public hearing scheduled on city plans to purchase Ridgeway Country Club apparently will not be cablecast live on Government Access Channel /Cablevision Channel 75 and Verizon FIOS Channel 47 as originally announced by the government access channel Monday.


Instead, the Commission reports that the League of Women Voters Candidates Forum video-taped last night at the White Plains Public Library will be cablecast instead, time is tentatively set for 7:30 P.M.


The hearing tonight on Ridgeway will be videotaped and telecast at another date, according to the Cable Commission.


The decision was made by the Mayor’s Office. WPCNR has sent an e-mail to City Hall for an explanation of why the city cancelled the live broadcast.

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Street Sweeper Fire Smokes Up Hamilton/Main Garage. FD Vents Garage

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. October 25,2010:


The Mayor’s Office reports that a street sweeper caught fire in the Hamilton and Main Garage approximately 5 PM Monday afternoon. John Callahan, the Mayor’s Chief of Staff in a statement said:


As to the fire – a street sweeper being stored in a Parking Department storage room caught on fire. The sprinkler system activated and knocked the fire down. Heavy smoke conditions resulted and the Fire Department vented the garage. The entrances to the garage were closed for a period of time.

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Castelli-Roach, Cohen-Oppenheimer, Atayan-Paulin in LWV Fight Card at Libe

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2010. October 25, 2010:


In the final tune-up before Election Day next week, candidates in the three major state house races will clash on the League of Women Voters Candidates Forum this evening at the White Plains Public Library at 7 P.M.


In Senate District 37, Suzi Oppenheimer and Robert Cohen will square off in what promises to be a doozie considering the personal issues that have marked that bitter contest.


The candidates in Assembly  District 89, Robert Castelli and White Plains Council President Tom Roach will take their very similar campaigns before the voters.


Opponents in Assembly District 88, Amy Paulin and Renee Atayan will match up in the third bout.


 

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Red Ribbon Week October 25-30 Promotes Drug-Free Lifestyle

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. From White Plains Youth Bureau. October 24,2010:


The City of White Plains is joining with The Girl Scouts Heart of the Hudson, Boy Scouts of America, and POW’R Against Tobacco Coalition to promote healthy, drug-free lifestyles during Red Ribbon Week 2010 and recognize the many youth in the community who make positive choices every day.


Red Ribbon is a national event honoring Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, a Drug Enforcement Administration special agent who was killed in 1985 by drug traffickers. Soon after, “Camarena Clubs” were launched in high schools in California, and hundreds of students pledged to lead drug-free lives. Two club members presented the “Camarena Club Proclamation” to then first lady Nancy Reagan, bringing it national attention. Parent groups embraced the campaign, and in 1988, Congress proclaimed the first U.S. Red Ribbon Campaign. It can be a powerful educational tool during Red Ribbon Week in October and throughout the year.



 


The City of White Plains has many things to celebrate as we launch Red Ribbon Week. Youth in White Plains are busy and engaged in positive activities, largely due to the proactive and caring adults in the community who have supported the development of positive youth development over the years.


Although, the Red Ribbon Campaign celebrates the city’s many successes in safeguarding our youth and ensuring their positive development, but it also serves as a sobering reminder of the work that still needs to be done. Over the last year with budget cuts and cuts in resources for prevention services, the country has seen a slow rise in youth alcohol and drug use – especially marijuana. Complacency is the friend to illicit substance use, and this celebration of Red Ribbon Week attests to the fact that White Plains will not take a back seat on this important issue nor will it allow negative forces to rob our youth of the opportunity for a healthy and productive life.


Red Ribbon Week is a time to celebrate and recognize the efforts of the community to keep all youth healthy and drug free. The community wide celebration is October 25–30th, 2010. The official closing event will be held on Saturday, October 30th, at noon on the steps of City Hall. Youth from across White Plains will be involved in numerous prevention activities starting on Monday October 25th.


Girl and Boy Scouts Troops from across White Plains are joining forces with youth from the City of White Plains Youth Bureau. The youth will spend Sunday afternoon, October 24th , putting up large red ribbons all along the White Plains downtown corridor. The youth in the troops will work on prevention and education curriculum all month and will earn a certificate of completion as well as merit badges.


Children enrolled in the Youth Bureau’s after school programs will learn songs to commemorate the event and will be performing at the opening event on Monday. Girls Scouts will collect pledges in support of the City’s celebration of a drug free community all week long which will be displayed at the closing ceremonies to be held Saturday, October 30.


Once again this year the Youth Bureau will be planting red tulip bulbs at various locations in White Plains which will be visible when they bloom in the Spring in time to celebrate Alcohol Awareness Month. The week long activities will culminate in Youth Day event at the White Plains Youth Bureau on Saturday Oct. 30 from 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.


For more information about Red Ribbon Week contact the Youth Bureau Project Hope at (914) 422-1378.

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RIDGEWAY WATERSHED COMMITTEE Urges RCC Purchase by City in Letter to Council

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WPCNR SOUTH END TIMES. October 24, 2010:


A group calling itself the Ridgeway Watershed Preservation Committee has promulgated a letter which will be furnished to the Common Council Tuesday in a Special Meeting that Mayor Adam Bradley has called to discuss possible city purchase of the club.


Mayor Bradley, asked by WPCNR last Thursday evening if the city has made an offer to the club management, said, “the Common Council has to approve any purchase.” WPCNR also asked if the recent legislation introduced to the Council expanding the wetlands buffer by 50 feet to 100 feet across the city, was put together to put pressure on Ridgeway to sell the club to the city. (Expanding wetland barriers restricts development of the property). The Mayor said he has supported the protection of wetlands by expanding barriers during his tenure as an Assemblyman of the 89th District. Asked when the legislation was first introduced to the Common Council the Mayor said two to three months ago.


Here is the text of the Ridgeway Watershed Preservation Committee letter:


Ridgeway / Watershed Preservation Committee


3 Partridge Road


White Plains, New York 10605


 


24 October 2010


 


 Mayor Adam Bradley & Members of the White Plains Common Council


255 Main Street


White Plains, NY 10601


 


Subject:  Ridgeway Country Club


 


In the past few months great concern has arisen about the future of the property now known as Ridgeway Golf Course.  The undersigned citizens of White Plains have created this open letter in order to recount what seems to us the clear and established public purposes that will be served by assuring that this 128[1] acre property remains as open and natural as possible in perpetuity. 


 


We urge our elected representatives and our appointed public servants to review the facts recounted below, to inform us if their understanding of the facts differs from what we recount, and to act with all dispatch to devise practical, durable means to preserve these acres as a vital element in the public and private open space network of our city. 


 


This is what we understand:


 


1.       This property is one of very few remaining sizeable parcels of Open Space left in the City of White Plains.[2] 


 


2.       It has been established that preservation of Open Space significantly enhances the value of all properties in a community.[3]


 


3.       The standing Comprehensive Plan of the City of White Plains establishes the preservation of the Ridgeway and Westchester Hills Golf Courses as Open Space as a goal of the plan.[4]


 


4.       This property is part of one of the few continuous Open Space Corridors running through the watersheds of the Mamaroneck & Sheldrake Rivers, and its preservation as open space has been identified as an important element of regional water quality and flood control policy.[5] 


 


5.       White Plains has a responsibility to pursue our municipal planning and development processes so as to act consistently with Federal, State and County water quality and flood control plans.[6]


 


6.       Our City is obligated by law to consider the impact on other communities that also occupy the Bronx and Mamaroneck Watersheds with any potential land use changes to aspects of those watersheds under our jurisdiction.[7]


 


7.       Our Municipal Zoning has not yet been brought into conformance with the standing Comprehensive Plan.  The current Residential Zoning of this property creates pressure for the conversion of this open space to residential use, in contradiction of the goals of our Comprehensive Plan.  This same zoning fails to consider the interests of downstream communities, as well as water quality and flood control policies at a County, State and Federal Level.[8]


 


Given these facts, it seems clear to us that our municipal leaders must take prompt action to assure that our municipal regulations align with local, regional and national planning policy while fulfilling our obligations as stewards of the uplands of the Mamaroneck River.  The most likely solution to this situation appears to be a re-zoning of the property to a Recreational Use.


 


As you set about devising appropriate public policy and regulations, we encourage you to make sure that our actions in the current moment include provisions of an economic model for the use and upkeep of the property that is sustainable.  We also encourage a rapid and thorough review of any proposed policies under the State Environmental Quality Review ACT.


 


We look forward to your response to our letter, and we stand ready to assist you in your efforts on this matter.


 


Regards,


 


Bob Meyerson


Joel Rudikoff


Fran Jones


George Jones


Bice C. Wilson


Riena Kaplow


Lou Bruno


Alan Gassman


Dan Seidel







[1] Approximate number of acres



[2] Comprehensive Plan 1997; City maps of Open Space Inventory; Planning Dept documents



[3] http://le.uwpress.org/cgi/contents/refs/85/1/51 “Spatial and temporal Variation in the Housing market values of Lot Size and Open Space”, Land Economics 85(1):51-73 (2009) (4 pages of cites omitted); “Open Space, Residential Property values and Spatial Context”, Soren T. Anderon, University of Michigan, Dept. of Economics, Sarah E. West, Macalester College, Dept. of Economics – email: wests@macalester.edu ;



[4] Comprehensive Plan 1997;


 



[5] Westchester Co. Water Advisory Committee 4 (WAC 4 – see County website for WAC 4 studies, maps, data, analysis); see also US Army Corps of Engineers/NYS DEC/County of Westchester $6.1 million flood mitigation/risk study announced 5/3/10- which includes Ridgeway Golf Course and Westchester Hills Golf Course; see former Mayor of Mamaroneck Kathy Savolt Letter advising caution on any development of this watershed corridor);



[6] Westchester Co. Water Advisory Committee 4 (WAC 4 – see County website for WAC 4 studies, maps, data, analysis); see also US Army Corps of Engineers/NYS DEC/County of Westchester $6.1 million flood mitigation/risk study announced 5/3/10- which includes Ridgeway Golf Course and Westchester Hills Golf Course; see former Mayor of Mamaroneck Kathy Savolt Letter advising caution on any development of this watershed corridor);


 



[7] L.I.S.W.I.C.; see also 2005 NYS Session Law, Chapter 658, Section 1 – General Municpal Law – Planning and Zoning – Neighboring Municipalities – Rights and Duties, Approved 9/19/2005; Section 239-nn (1)  : “It is the intent and purpose of this section to encourage the coordination of land use development and regulation among adjacent municipalities in order that each municipality may recognize the goals and objectives of neighboring municipalities, and as a result development occurs in a manner which is supportive of the goals and objectives of the general area.”; see also http://www.lohud.com 5/24/09, by Christine Pizzuti, “Mamaroneck maps Stream Obstructions in Anticipation of Flood Study” and goals and purposes of The Town of Mamroneck, as outlined in “A History of Conservation in the Town of Mamaroneck, 1948-2006”, Complied and written by Phyllis Witner, 2001-2007, former Chair Westchester Co. Soil & Water Conservation Board, LISWIC, etc.); see also Westchester County Patterns; http://planning.westchestergov.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=856&Itemid=1491


 



[8] BONNIE BRIAR SYNDICATE, INC. v. TOWN OF MAMARONECK, 94 NY2d 96 (1999) – Court of Appeals holding the Town’s rezoning of single family zoned golf courses to recreational land use was NT a taking under the 5th Amendment and Due Process clauses, when the rezoning was accomplished pursuant to Comprehensive Plan and rational governmental objectives of preserving open space, flood control/mitigation, etc. – rezoning is acceptable as land use planning and environmental goals and standards (encouraged by Dwight H. Merriam, Esq., FAICP, CRE, keynote speaker at the April 26, 2010 Flooding and Land Use Planning: A Guidance Document for Municipal Officials and Planners Workshop sponsored by Westchester County).


 

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WHITE PLAINS WEEK LIGHTNING!

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WPCNR WHITE PLAINS WEEK NEWS. OCTOBER 22,2010:


White Plains Week show aired its 504th weekly news roundup on the scariest news program on the planet Friday night because it puts the truth out there. Now the Friday October 22 show is live on tape online — seeable instantaneously at www.whiteplainsweek.com.


 John Bailey, the CitizeNetReporter, Jim Benerofe, the eternal newsman, cover the real stories behind the spin at 7 P.M. Monday throughout Westchester County on Channel 45 on Verizon FIOS (Freedom 45) and in White Plains on Cablevision Channel 76 (The Spirit of 76). 



NO BLACKOUT! NO BLOCK OUT! ALWAYS A KNOCKOUT! 


BLOWING THROUGH THE MURK, THE SHAMBLES, THE OBFUSCATION, SPIN, AND WISHFUL THINKING BETWEEN WHITE PLAINSIANS AND THE TRUTH  — THE NEWS RIDERS OF THE PURPLE STAGE FIGHT FOR TRUTH, JUSTICE AND  THE AMERICAN WAY ON WHITE PLAINS WEEK


JOHN BAILEY, PETER KATZ AND JIM BENEROFE COVER– 


SUSTAINABILITY HOW’S GONNA WORK?


THE SCHOOL ASSESSMENT TEST SCANDAL.


 INSIDE  THE NEW CHARTER SCHOOL..


THE OUR LADY OF SORROWS BASEBALL FIELD COVER UP,


THE WHITE PLAINS HOUSING THING.


 THE MURDER-SUICIDE —


WHAT’S HAPPENING TO AGING PARENTS OF DISABLED CHILDREN LIVING AT HOME? AND MORE!


WARNING:CONTENT MAY BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS.


WHITE PLAINS WEEK is also cablecast on both channels 45 and 76 at 8:30 A.M. Sundays and 7 P.M. on Monday.


Viewers around the world can pick up our global network feed on the internet to freedom — www.whiteplainsweek.com with just a CLACK on their computer keyboards wherever you may be from Ann Arbor to Samarkand!


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Mayor Calls Special Meeting to Discuss Purchase of Ridgeway Country Club

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. By John F. Bailey October 22, 2010:


 Mayor Adam Bradley has called a special meeting of the Common Council for next Tuesday at 7:30 P.M. at City Hall. 


The notice from the City Clerk Office indicates there will be a “presentation” made to the council and the public on how the city could purchase the Ridgeway Golf Club in the posh Gedney Farms area, which is presently up for sale. The notice indicates there will a period for public comment.


Mayor Bradley told WPCNR in a brief interview Thursday evening Ridgeway Golf Club is still in play and “on the city’s radar” for acquisition. He said he could not disclose whether the city had made a firm offer on the club. WPCNR has learned from reliable sources that two other independent buyers are in play who were interested in operating the club as a private club. One buyer would scale back the operations of the club to make it more profitable, the source said.


Earlier in the week, prior to the notice of the Tuesday meeting, WPCNR learned the Council of Neighborhood Associations had formed an ad hoc Ridgeway Country Club Advisory Committee of 7 persons headed by Bob Meyerson, a professional mortgage broker.


The ad hoc committee was formed by CNA Co-President Lou Bruno who explained in his request for members of the ad hoc committee to present alternatives to the Common Council for preservation of the Club at the November 1 Common Council meeting.


The committee was suggested by Bob Meyerson, the mortgage broker, for the purpose of recommending whether or not the city should buy Ridgeway as well as the “highest and best use of the property as a whole.”


WPCNR asked John Callahan,the Mayor’s Chief of Staff, upon this development,if the city administration would take the Ad Hoc Committee’s recommendations and advice into account in their approach to acquiring the club. Callahan in a statement wrote WPCNR:”I’m sure the council will consider anything submitted to them.”

In a follow-up question to Mr. Callahan, WPCNR asked “Does that mean you, the Mayor, and Mr. Genito are not  going to call them  (the ad hoc committee) in and listen to what they have to say? Is that a correct interpretation of this statement?”


Callahan dismissed that interpretation in a followup statement, writing  “I would not characterize it that way. If the committee has materials or information/report they would like to share with us we will certainly review it.”


 

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WP Home Sales UP. High End Prices Erode. Low Stable. Condos $$ Plummet

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WPCNR TOWN & COUNTRY. October 21, 2010:


 


The White Plains housing market bucked the trend in Westchester County in the third quarter, with 67 homes changing hands,  up 28.8% in the third quarter.


 


Westchester County sales grew 1.7% by contrast.  However, while Westchester County sales prices advanced mainly due to high end luxury sales, the average city home price advanced 5.4%, indicating a buyer’s market.


 


Mike Graessle, soon-to-be President of the Westchester-Putnam Multiple Listing Service, said “Now is the time to negotiate if you are a buyer, if you’re a seller, you have to be prepared to negotiate.”


 


The third quarter sales were driven, according to the Multiple Listing Service Press Release issued today (having gone into contract in the spring)on the push for sales to get in under the wire for the first home buyer tax credit.


 


The average selling price of single family homes in White Plains continued to drop, according to White Plains market activities statistics supplied by  Rand Realty.


 





Erosion in the Top End.


Stabilization in the Starter Market.


 


The average selling price of White Plains homes is $671,501 (inflated by 25 sales of luxury homes ranging from $700,000 to $1,500,000. No homes in White Plains sold for over $1.5 Million). On the other side other side of the price tag, there were 4 homes sold for $300,000 to$400,000; 12 homes sold within $400,000 to $500,000; 15 between $500,000 and $600,000, and 12 homes sold priced between $600,000 and $700,000.


 


Most of the low-end “starter home” sales, according to the Westchester Putnam Multiple Listing Service were the result of first homeowner tax credit stimulus credits the Obama Administration introduced in the beginning of 2010.  The median price for White Plains homes sold in the third quarter is $610,000 up $10,000 over the third quarter of 2009, meaning prices are not going up substantially at this time.


 


Over the last year, October to October White Plains home sales rose 49.% from 144 to 249, while the average selling price this year dropped $16,000 in a year, and the median price ($575,000) fell $15,000. Real estate prices appear to be stable with sellers in the third quarter lowering prices an average of 3.7% from what they put their homes on the market. The city had 146 homes on the market as of October 1.


 


Coops Sales Swoon. Condos Steady as She Goes,Posh Condos Decline in Price.


 


On the Cooperative housing market, White Plains  faired even worse than the Westchester Putnam trend which sustained a 30.5% drop in cooperative sales. In contrast to the region where co-operative sales declined 30.5% and 20 White Plains cooperatives sold from July through September, 14 fewer than last year’s third quarter. The average coop price fell 7.2% to $166,775, $3,000 less than the median selling price ($169,750). White Plains cooperatives trailed the county average selling price by $42,000 in the third quarter.


 


Over in condominium land, White Plains condos sold at virtually the same rate as they did in last year’s third quarter, 33 units to32 with the average selling price stabilized at $467,858, although the median selling price dropped $27,500 to $385,000, reflecting erosion of higher end condo prices.

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Unemployed Rose in September in the Hud Valley

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WPCNR MARKETPLACE. From Jonny Nelson, New York State Department of Labor. October 21, 2010:

 


 

 

Change in private sector jobs since September 2009

                          Hudson Valley

        Net change                -5,900

        Percent change    -0.8%

 

Unemployment Rates (not seasonally adjusted)

                      Hudson Valley

 

September 2010     August 2010     September 2009

                    

                                                      7.1%                       7.2%                         7.6%

    

 

 Private sector employment in the Hudson Valley decreased by 5,900, or 0.8 percent, to 716,300 for the 12-month period ending September 2010.  Employment gains were centered in leisure and hospitality (+1,100), other services (+1,000), and educational and health services (+600). 

 

Losses were greatest in natural resources, mining and construction (-3,400), trade, transportation and utilities (-2,200), financial activities (-900), manufacturing (-900), and professional and business services (-700). 

 

The government sector shed 3,100 jobs over the year.

 


 

Analyst’s observation:

 

The region lost 0.8 percent of its private sector jobs for the 12-month period ending September 2010.  This was a marked improvement from the 4.1 percent decline recorded in September 2009. 

 

More industries are starting to report over-the-year growth.  Newly-announced expansions this month offer hope to local area jobseekers.  However, the region’s over-the-year rate of private sector job change (-0.8 percent) continued to lag the state (+0.5 percent) and the nation (+0.5 percent) in September.

 


 

 

 

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