THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR

Hits: 0

WPCNR MILESTONES. By John F. Bailey. December 13, 2009 UPDATED Midnight December 14, 2009: Paul Wood, the city’s Executive Officer died Saturday evening at Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, New Jersey where he was being treated from complications related to a long illness.  Mayor Joseph Delfino, in a statement released Sunday evening, said, “I can never thank him enough for the contribution he made to the Renaissance of the City of White Plains. He will be sorely missed.”

Paul Wood, City Executive Officer, December 2006.  

1959-2009

Mr. Wood, in a familiar pose at Common Council Meeting, December 2008

Wood, 50, worked for the city from 1999 up to his death, starting as an assistant to George Gretsas, the previous Executive Officer in the Delfino Administration. Mr. Wood began his career with the city as a press spokesperson handling media inquiries then moving  more deeply into city policy making with Mr. Gretsas.  When Gretsas left to take a position as City Manager with Fort Lauderdale in 2004, Wood was appointed Executive Officer by Mayor Joseph Delfino, replacing Gretsas in July 2004 and since that time Wood has been the man behind the scenes,  managing the day-to-day decision-making at city hall with the Mayor since the Gretsas departure.

Mr. Wood with  Melissa Lopez, (left) City Director of Economic Development, Coordinator of Public Information, and Yajaira Suarez, Graphics Technician, at his 50th birthday party, February, 2009. Photo, Courtesy, the Mayor’s Office.

Wood began his career as a reporter in New Jersey where he covered Mr. Gretsas when Gretsas ran for the school board in a local community (believed to be Park Ridge) and won at the age of 21. Gretsas brought Wood to White Plains when the Mayor appointed Gretsas Executive Officer when Mayor Delfino defeated Bill Brown in 1997 to win Delfino’s first term as Mayor in White Plains. Wood was responsible for the upgrading of city publications and public relations positioning of the city as Westchester’s “Renaissance City” when the City Center and the Ritz-Carlton were brought to White Plains in 2003 and 2006.

Mr. Wood, left, with John Ioris of the White Plains Performing Arts Center Foundation and Susan Garofalo, of the Mayor’s Office, celebrating Mr. Wood’s 50th birthday ten months ago. Photo, Courtesy, The Mayor’s Office.

In obituary information released Sunday evening by Melissa Lopez of the Mayor’s Office, Mr. Wood is described as the implementor of Mayor Delfino’s Smart Growth Program, which is credited with lowering the city’s building vacancy rate, from 34% to 10%  and helping to orchestrate the nuts and bolts of the development of Cappeli Enterprises City Center and the Ritz-Carlton Hotel complex.

This reporter can tell you he worked extremely hard, late into the evenings and articulated city positions on controversial matters very cleverly and delivered statements known for their bluntness in dealing with Common Council opposition to Mayor Delfino’s policies. He delighted in exposing Common Council public reversals of previously agreed-upon positions with the Mayor without mercy, and extreme irony.  He rarely took any vacations of excessive length.

This reporter often enjoyed Mr. Wood’s sense of humor about the adversarial relationship between the press and himself. He had the ability to laugh at himself, be mad as hell at you one moment then laugh at your joke the next. He could take a ribbing, and was not as sensitive as typical press officers have a tendency to be. He never took things personally and was the consummate aide-de-camp to Mr. Gretsas and the Mayor. You could not have a more loyal or dedicated and trusty sidekick than Paul Wood.

Most recently Mr. Wood negotiated the contracts for the police and fire unions which the Common Council rejected, only to have upheld just last week by the binding arbitration arbitrator, Alan Vianti.  Wood had predicted that the aribitration procedure would award the very amount the common council had rejected last December (2008,3.75% and 4%), which is exactly what happened.

Mr. Wood  was the son of Owen and Kathleen Wood of New Bedford, Massachusetts, born February 13, 1959. Mr. Wood graduated from The New School, and worked as a reporter for Community Life newspaper in Westwood, New Jersey, before becoming politically active.

In 1994, he was press secretary for Edward Hyne in his bid for Bergen County, New Jersey County Executive. He joined the City of White Plains in 1999 as Director of Economic Development and was appointed acting Executive Officer in 2004.

This reporter remembers Mr. Wood talking about his coaching his sons in basketball as late as last summer and how enthusiastic he was in talking about the experience to me. He was very active in Allendale’s Department of Recreation, volunteering as a basketball coach.

He is survived by his wife, the former Valerie Pannullo of Allendale, N.J., and his  four sons, Ryan, 28 of Plymouth, Massachussetts, and Jerry, Michael and Matthew of Allendale, New Jersey. Mr. Wood’s brother, Peter Wood resides in Florida. Ryan Wood was at his father’s bedside when he passed away, and is beloved by his three younger brothers, according to a family friend.

  White Plains Commissioner of Public Works, Joseph Nicoletti, described Mr. Wood, as running the day-to-day operations of the city since 2005. He said Wood was “always very level-headed.  Any time emergencies or crises came up he was always calm and very analytical in approaching the problem. He was a gentleman to work with, and I enjoyed working on problems with him.”

The family asks, to please send tributes, memories and condolences to www.VanEmburghSneider.com.

Hits: 0

WPCNR County Clarion-Ledger. From The County Executive-Elect Rob Astorino Transition Team. December 10, 2009: Westchester County Executive-elect Rob Astorino (R-I)  announced Thursday that he has appointed corporate communications specialist and former Gannett and New York Times journalist Edwin J. (Ned) McCormack of Greenburgh to serve as his Communications Director. 



Mr. McCormack is currently a communications executive at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where he is responsible for communications involving Global Banking, Markets and Wealth Management Technology & Operations. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch in 2006, Mr. McCormack held a series of communications positions at JPMorgan Chase starting in 1993. He began his career as a reporter with Gannett Westchester Newspapers, now known as the Journal News, and moved from there to the Bergen Record in New Jersey and then to The New York Times.

 As the Westchester County Communications Director, Mr. McCormack will oversee multichannel communications for the Office of the County Executive and all the agencies under its direction. 

“Ned McCormack has been a trusted friend and advisor for many years, and I am thrilled that he has agreed to serve as the county’s top communications professional,” County Executive-elect Astorino said. “There is a great deal of work to be done in turning Westchester  County government around and I am confident that Ned will be able to communicate both our overall vision and our day-to-day progress to  the myriad Westchester constituencies.  The job of a communications director is a critical one, and I am fortunate to have Ned McCormack aboard.” 

“I am honored and excited to be part of the team,” Mr. McCormack said. “Our goal will be to connect Westchester residents to their government, communities and each other by providing them with information that is accurate, clear, timely, accessible and useful.”

Mr. McCormack lives in Greenburgh, where he and his wife, Evelyn, raised their two children. He is a graduate of Georgetown University, where he majored in Government, and he has a Master’s degree in Business Administration from New York University.

Hits: 0

Out of the Sun

The Arizona engulfed December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor

Out of the sun on the quiet Sunday they came

Steel birds of death blazened with red suns raining fiery havoc on Battleship Row.

One by one, ruthless planes dove, destroyed to their nation’s shame

Thunderous explosions scattered fiery death on Sunday dawn’s glow.

Flames belched from bowels of stricken Arizona, America’s pride,

On Hicham Field pilots raced to planes to defend

As their birds were crippled on ground by Zeros’ glide

Gunners in turrets on ships floundering filled skies with flack’s din.

In search of carriers the marauders could not find

They ruthlessly strafed and bombed leaving Pearl

In smoking ruin, ships sunk, burning as raiders flew into the Sun

The day of infamy had been ignited in the Zeros’ swirl.

The Attack Begins 8 AM December 7, 1941

As America listened a world away, a somber FDR

Spoke of December 7 as ever a day that will live in infamy.

America must never forget that  Pearl Harbor Scar

When an unsuspecting America slept in complacency.

To the 2,403 who perished that day under merciless bombs

Hails of bullets,  terror of torpedos out of nowhere

America must remember forces against our freedoms

Relentlessly work always to surprise us with deadly bombs’ glare.

Vigilence is the price of freedom that must always be defended

Against those who would destroy our republic from within

As well as the dark forces in far off places we have offended.

But the answer is not curtailing freedom at home rather it to champion.

The USS Arizona lies in Pearl’s waters, bleeding the lives

Of her men through the eerie eternal slick marking the rusting hulk.

Beneath Pearl’s waters, the blood of free people oozes from the shadowy bulk,

Bleeding forever, freedom’s spirit living forever in lost lives remembered.

She never rests.

Hits: 0

Hits: 0

WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. By John F. Bailey. December 2, 2009: Mayor-Elect Adam Bradley has confirmed to the CitizeNetReporter that David Chong, the Commissioner of Public Safety in Mount Vernon, and former Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety in White Plains will return as Mr. Bradley’s Commissioner of Public Safety beginning January 1.

Early today, the Mayor of Mount Vernon, Clinton Young, announced Mr. Chong had resigned his position with Mount Vernon, obviously clearing the way for him to take the job Mr. Bradley has offered him, and according to Mr. Bradley Mr. Chong has accepted the challenge of becoming Commissioner of Public Safety in White Plains.

Bradley said he was pleased to be bringing back Mr. Chong, who had previously served three and a half years with White Plains, leaving in mid-2005. Chong  has served in Mount Vernon as Commissioner of Public Safety since May, 2006. Bradley described Chong as a person who loves White Plains and is a really skilled Public Safety Commissioner.

Asked if  he, Bradley had talked to present Public Safety Deputy Commissioners Daniel Jackson and John Cullen, who have been rumored to be leaving the department, Bradley said he had not  talked to them.

Bradley observed that  as incoming Mayor, he faced approximately a 15% deficit, at least  $18 to $20 Million in the current budget, and all departments would have to face streamlining.

Deputy Commissioner Daniel Jackson, asked by WPCNR if he was leaving the department yesterday said “No comment.” Deputy Commissioner Cullen, who is also rumored to be resigning his position has not returned a call for comment.

Mr. Chong brings an impressive set of credentials to White Plains.

Chong brings to Mount Vernon a reputation for streamlining the operations of the White Plains police during his three years with the WPPD, and  street savvy gained from years of undercover work with the NYPD. Chong was known for spearheading public security operations in uniform with his men serving side by side, blending into a crowd and observing proceedings with a hawk-like eye. You never knew he was there until he would come up behind you and say “hello.” When I asked him about this, he once said, “In White Plains we lead from the front, Mr. Bailey.”

 David E. Chong is 51 years of age and served as a Professor of Criminal Justice at Monroe College for a year after leaving his White Plains Deputy Commissioner post, before accepting the Mount Vernon Commissionership.

He served in the Law Enforcement community for approximately 26 years.  Mr. Chong retired as a Lieutenant Commander of Detectives from the New York City Police Department in November of 2002, after over 22 years. 

During Mr. Chong’s career with the New York City Police Department he served in many high profile assignments.  His assignments included the Tactical Patrol Unit as an undercover Detective infiltrating Asian Organized Crime and Gangs, and as a Sergeant, Lieutenant, and Lieutenant Detective Commander in units such as The Mayor’s Social Club Inspectional Task Force, Public Moral Division, Narcotics Division, Organized Crime Investigations Division, Organized Crime Control Bureau, High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, and the Homicide Squad. When he retired he was the Commanding Officer of the Counter-Terrorism Bureau’s, Global Intelligence Unit, formed shortly after 9-11-01.

He earned over 119 NYPD awards and medals, and he has been the recipient of over 50 awards from various Federal, State, and Law Enforcement Agencies, and Civic and Fraternal Organizations over his law enforcement career. His honors include the Society of Asian Federal Officer’s “Man of the Year”, The NYPD Asian Jade Society’s “Lifetime Achievement Award”, and the Organization of Chinese Americans‘ “Dynamic Achiever Award”.

He holds an Associates Degree in Business Marketing and Finance from Queensborough Community College, a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from John Jay College, a Graduate Degree in Public Administration from Marist College, is a graduate of the 204th session of the FBI National Academy, and has attended training in Israel on terrorism and suicide bombers.

Mr. Chong was known during his time in White Plains for being front and center when high security was being maintained at public events. He was reported “beloved” by his fellow officers for his willingness and insistence on working patrols with his men.

He once told this reporter, “In White Plains, we lead from the front.”