WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER SETS RECORD VISITS FOR YEAR 7,017,658 VISITS! 2,098,003 VISITORS MADE 6 VISITS A DAY EVERY DAY. 63,330 UNIQUE VISITORS MADE 133,730 VISITS IN DECEMBER. WPCNR AVERAGED 17,284 VISITORS A WEEK, VISITING 31,270 TIMES.

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WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. UPDATED 1:35 P.M. E.D.T. August 20, 2009 UPDATED from 11 P.M. E.D.T. Thursday evening.:  White Plains Department of Public Safety reports this morning that power was restored to 95 South Broadway, the Esplanade Senior Residence as of 11:30 P.M. Thursday night after police, fire and EMS personnel spent the evening checking on individual residents to see that they had water and were not suffering ill effects from the heat.

Bob McGee, spokesperson for Con Edison said this afternoon,  exact cause of what circumstances created the feeder cable outage are still under investigation: John, we ran the shunt to expedite repairs on the feeder in an effort to normalize the system as quickly as possible. We won’t know what caused the cable to fail till we do an autopsy at the Cable Center.

McGee confirmed at 10:50 A.M. Thursday morning that “the generator was brought in (by Con Ed) but not used. We managed to get a feeder repaired in the meantime. The generator remains on standby at the site, though. We did run a shunt. I am trying to confirm whether or not it was used. Ongoing work to repair the burnouts will last about a week.”

Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety Daniel Jackson gave WPCNR this update as of 8:30 this morning on traffic:

All lights functioning properly / power was restored to 95 S Broadway at approx 2330hrs (Con-Ed generator brought to location)

Mamk Av open for rush hour.  Work scheduled for later in the day may close a lane in each direction betwen Post and Maple. Hamilton Av (from Cottage to MLK) – One lane closed on west side

60 So. Broadway – Work scheduled for daytime /  currently road is open.

Lyon Pl (Con – Ed working in front of 95 S. Broadway) / Road open

Con Ed pays the O.T.

Later Thursday morning, Commissioner Jackson advised WPCNR that “about 10 police and 15 fire personnel were on scene at the busiest point.  Con Edison will be paying the cost of any overtime incurred, including the officers on traffic control needed during the continuing repairs.” He confirmed only one person transported to the hospital for difficulty breathing.

Bob McGee, spokesman for Consolidated Edison told WPCNR Thursday  morning that a feeder cable broke at 7:37 P.M. Wednesday night and Con Ed received calls from 55-75 South Broadway and the Esplanade shortly thereafter. He is checking at this time to confirm whether power has been restored by running wire to the Esplanade or whether a generator is being used.McGee said that the cause of such feeder cable outages is a build up of heat underground during a heat wave and they usually take place about three days into a heatwave. He said it makes no difference whether it is new feeder cable or old that the buildup of heat will result in cable fires the longer a heat wave continues. This was the first Consolidated Edison power outage of the summer in White Plains this summer.

Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety John Cullen reported that  police and fire personnel and EMS medical personnel were checking room to room at the Esplanade assisted living facility at 95 South Broadway, checking to see that residents are all right, and supplying water to them as needed. Cullen said fire personnel were attempting to ventilate the building while power was waiting to be restored. There were no plans to evacuate the residence where 130 senior residents live. One person having trouble breathing was removed to a hospital, he said.

Commissioner Cullen said Con Edison was on the scene at 11 P.M. attempting to hook up a temporary generator to restore power to the residence.

At the time the outage was being repaired, Elizabeth Clark, spokesperson for Con Ed said the company had crews on the scene and will either install a replacement generator or run in “shunts,” that she describes as temporary wires running power to the building. Ms. Clark said she did not know whether the Esplanade had an emergency generator on the premises. She had no estimate when power would be restored or the cause of the power failure at this time.

Cullen reported the city started having power problems at 5 P.M., as a result of a manhole fire at 164 Mamaroneck Avenue, which he said knocked out power to 75 South Broadway, 95 South Broadway (The Esplanade assisted living building), and 2 to 4 Lyons Place. He said power was restored to 75 Broadway, and Con Ed was working on the Esplanade at this time.

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WPCNR QUILL & EYESHADE. By John F. Bailey. August 18, 2009: White Plains retail sales subject to state sales tax collections continued their decline, down 12.5% year to year in the first month of the city fiscal year in July, the second straight month sales tax had declined from the previous year. This latest number continues the trend first reported by WPCNR six months ago indicating White Plains retail is running 12% behind 2007-2008 collections.

Though there are 11 months to in the fiscal year, unless the city economy picks up and vacant big retail properties are filled (former Fortunoff, Circuit City, Filene’s Basement, just three), the city now faces the prospect of being $6 Million off in projected sales tax revenues they are counting on for 2009-2010. Official figures for July 2009 were provided WPCNR by The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

If sales tax does not recover significantly (and holds at the present level),  to make up that shortfall, the city would have to enact an 18% property tax increase.

The County of Westchester sales tax receipts are down 12.9% over the first six months of the county 2009 fiscal year.

Common Council President Benjamin Boykin told WPCNR in July, when the final quarter of 2008-09 fiscal year failed to meet projections of the City Finance Commissioner by $1 Million , that he is going to call for a budget review in September.

Westchester County sales tax collections in the first six months of 2009 have declined  too. The county “handle” on sales tax receipts is down 13%. The county collected $33.8 Million less in fiscal 2009 at the halfway point than the county did in 2008, according to statistics from the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance Office of Tax Policy Analysis.

The pace of retail sales projected by White Plains Week and WPCNR in the spring of this year continues to indicate key sales tax collection in the city are consistently 12 to 13% off.

On the county level the county as of midway is running $3.8 Million behind in sales tax receipts, 12.5% below the collection pace of last year after half of the 2009 fiscal year. If the retail trend continues, the county would face a $3.8 Million deficit in sales tax receipts for the year.  The county budgeted to collect $478,235,000 in sales tax for the year.

In the first six months of 2008, Westchester County collected $271,096,156.95  in sales tax. In the first six months of 2009, they collected only $237,221,726.61, a decline in receipts of 12.5%.

This combined with obvious deficits in mortgage and hotel tax collections is not a positive trend.

In White Plains if the 12.9% fall-off in retail sales  tax collections continues it means the city faces a $6 Million budget shortfall. It already has a $1 Million deficit left over from 2008-09. The city budget calls for collecting  $47,250,000 in sales tax in 2009-2010. If the 12.9% decline continues, the city will only raise $41 Million in sales tax.

However, August is the second most lucrative retail sales month of the year next to the holiday season in the second quarter, so there is hope this is just a sluggish start. To correct the nearly 13% decline in July, the city would need to generate a half million dollars more in August sales tax receipts to get back on track with sales tax pace. In August, 2008, the city collected $3.9 Million in sales tax (however that was inflated by the additional ¼% sales tax added last year. The cumulative effect of a soft retail market is not easily erased.

DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION & FINANCE

OFFICE OF TAX POLICY ANALYSIS

SALES TAX MONTHLY CASH/COLLECTIONS REPORT

MONTH OF JULY 2009

                                  CASH JULY 09          CASH JULY 08    CUMULATIVE          CUMULATIVE

                                                                                                               CASH  09                 CASH   08

 White Plains City       $3,431,350.08           $3,938,113.71          $25,379,226.67      $26,641,410.77

Westchester Cty         $31,249,530.49         $35,646,779.50        $237,221,726.61   $271,096,156.95

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WPCNR DOLLAR DAILY. From Reader’s Digest News Release. (EDITED)  August 18, 2009: The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc. (RDA), a global multi-brand media and marketing company, based in Chappaqua, New York, announced Monday it has reached an agreement in principle with a majority of its senior secured lenders on the terms of a restructuring plan to significantly reduce its debt burden and strengthen the company financially for the future. The restructuring agreement provides that the company’s senior secured lenders will exchange a substantial portion of the company’s $1.6 billion in senior secured debt for equity and provides for a transfer of ownership of the company to the lender group.

Mary Berner, RDA’s President and Chief Executive Officer, said the company will continue to operate normally throughout the restructuring process. “This agreement in principle with our lenders follows months of intensive strategic review of our balance-sheet issues to financially strengthen the company,” she said. “We are gratified to have this support from our secured lender group. The company has strong brands and products, a leadership position in many markets around the world and a solid plan for the future. Restructuring our debt will enable us to have the financial flexibility to move ahead with our growth and transformational initiatives.”

The company has elected not to make a $27 million interest payment due today on its 9 percent Senior Subordinated Notes due 2017. Instead, the company is using the 30-day grace period available on the interest payment to continue discussions with its lender group and other stakeholders regarding the terms of final documentation and to gain additional support for the consensual de-leveraging transaction. Use of the 30-day grace period does not constitute a default that permits acceleration of the Senior Subordinated Notes or any other indebtedness. In addition, RDA continues to be in compliance with its financial covenants. The company’s business operations remain strong, with anticipated Fiscal 2009 revenue declines (not yet reported) in the low single digits, currency neutral, despite the global recession.

As part of the agreement in principle, RDA anticipates implementing the restructuring under court supervision through a voluntary pre-arranged filing under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code, which it expects to complete on an expedited basis while operating business as usual. During the 30-day grace period, the company will seek further consensus among its lenders and other stakeholders in advance of such a filing to facilitate the completion of RDA’s restructuring objectives.

The agreement in principle includes a commitment from certain members of the senior lender group to provide $150 million in new money Debtor-in-Possession (DIP) financing, convertible into exit financing upon emergence, which the company expects will ensure sufficient liquidity during the reorganization process and beyond. In addition to providing RDA with the necessary capital to emerge from Chapter 11, the arrangement also establishes the substantive terms of the $550 million in debt that will remain on RDA’s balance sheet upon emergence, a 75 percent reduction from the current $2.2 billion in debt.

As a result of the agreement reached with a majority of the senior lenders, the company expects that, subject to court approval, the vast majority of its suppliers and vendors will recover in full under a Chapter 11 plan. The Chapter 11 filing will apply only to the company’s U.S. businesses — its operations in Canada, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia-New Zealand will not be affected. RDA’s International operations are expected to have adequate funding based on continuing operations and access to proceeds from the DIP financing.

“We thank our sponsor Ripplewood Holdings, who has provided inspired vision and stewardship over the last two and a half years, including during this process,” added Chairperson Berner. In March 2007, Ripplewood led a consortium of investors in a transaction that resulted in the company’s acquisition. All of the members of the company’s Board of Directors who have served since the March 2007 acquisition, with the exception of Berner, have resigned from the company’s Board. The two recently appointed directors also continue to serve on the Board.

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN2009. August 17, 2009: Councilman Glen Hockley who has been seen gathering signatures on petitions around the city by himself extensively the last few weeks told WPCNR Monday he is planning on filing petitions to run as an independent candidate for Mayor of White Plains on Tuesday. Mr. Hockley declined to say whether he had an “excess” of signatures (1,000 are needed from registered voters), that he was planning on filing with the Board of Elections in White Plains.

Glen Hockley, Councilman, announcing his candidacy for Mayor  (opposing Adam Bradley) in June as an independent candidate.

Meanwhile, (on another side of town) the frontrunner in the campaign for Mayor, Adam Bradley, continues to fundraise. An invitation to a so-called “Insiders Briefing from Assemblyman Adam Bradley” is being circulated to e-mail on his behalf by the former resident of White Plains, Jeffrey Binder and Paul Noto of  “The Strategic Politic Group for the Bradley Campaign.” The briefing costs $150 per person and will be held September 23 at the home of Karen and Ted Sewitch on Hillair Circle.

Bradley has all five lines on the November ballot: Democrat, Republican, Working Families, Conservative, Independence, but apparently is taking nothing for granted. Mr. Bradley’s Friends of Adam Bradley campaign fund related to his assembly office has  90,223 in its coffers as of July 31, and his other campaign fund, Adam Bradley for White Plains has $149,420.67 in it as of July 31, for a grand total of $239,643.67.

Jeffrey Binder, who runs the Strategic Planning Group for the Bradley Campaign, voting in 2003, when he ran for Common Council on the Republican line.

Binder also represented Councilman Larry Delgado in opposing Glen Hockley’s election to the Common Council (enabled, in part, due to a jammed voting machine in the 2001 election. In that lengthy progression of legal meaneuvers that led to the New York State Court of Appeals which ruled in favor of Mr. Hockley, Mr. Binder’s opposing counsel representing Hockley was Adam Bradley. Now Mr. Binder is supporting Mr. Bradley in his run for Mayor.

The Strategic Political Group for the Bradley Campaign has not filed any campaign reports that WPCNR could find on the Board of Elections website. Jeffrey Binder, White Plains political observers may recall ran for Common Council on the Republican Ticket in 2003 with Timothy Sheehan, and since then Mr. Binder has changed his political affiliation to Democratic, to the extent he is now co-chairing a political action committee for Mr. Bradley, apparently. Binder is associated with Jeffrey M. Binder & Associates, P.C. in White Plains.

Mayor Joseph Delfino, the current Mayor of  White Plains who announced he was not running for a fourth term in the spring of this year, still maintains a Friends of Joe Delfino campaign fund that contains $106,644.96 as of July 31, 2009. The Mayor by Board of Elections rules, may  keep this money and not return it to contributors as long as it is used for political or charitable purposes, and not diverted to personal use. The Mayor has to date, not indicated he plans to use the money to fund Republican candidates for Common Council or Mr. Hockley, should Mr. Hockley get on the November ballot.

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WPCNR NEWS & COMMENT. By U.S.Congresswoman Nita Lowey, 18th Congressional District. August 14, 2009: In recent months, over 13,000 residents in New York’s 18^th Congressional district have contacted my office, participated in telephone town halls, or shared thoughts via my website regarding health care reform. I hope that through continued public dialogue on this incredibly sensitive issue in the coming weeks, all Americans will gain confidence that reform will improve the health, well-being, and financial security of families, businesses, and our economy.  

Supporters and opponents of the House proposal are united in one notable way – concern about the serious impact of Congress’ action on cost, quality, and choice in our health care system.

 Consider for a moment the price we are already paying for health care that is failing millions of Americans.

·       Personal premiums doubled since 2000, consuming 17% of median family incomes. 

·       Care for 47 million uninsured greatly increases costs for taxpayers and the insured. 

·       In 2007, 60% of U.S. bankruptcies resulted from medical costs.

 Without reform, over the next 10 years:

·        the U.S. is expected to spend nearly $33 trillion on health care; 

·        a family health insurance plan will cost an estimated $24,000 per year, nearly half of household income;

·        The number of uninsured will swell to 66 million, 11 million of whom will lose employer-sponsored health care; and

·        Insurance companies will continue to deny coverage or charge higher premiums for those who need catastrophic care, have pre-existing conditions or are simply more likely to need health care based on gender or age.

 The centerpiece of the House health reform proposal is an insurance Exchange in which uninsured individuals — and ultimately businesses – could purchase insurance from private insurers or a public plan.  These plans are designed to provide competitive rates, benefits similar to those of Members of Congress and federal employees, and protections from denials of coverage or care when patients need it most. Low-income individuals and small businesses would receive tax credits or subsidies to buy into the Exchange.

 In Westchester and Rockland Counties, 22,100 small businesses could receive tax credits to provide coverage to their employees; 8,800 seniors would avoid high out-of-pocket drug costs in the Medicare Part D ‘donut hole;’ 460 families could escape health care-related bankruptcies; 53,000 uninsured individuals would gain access to care; and health care providers would be paid fairly for the services they deliver.

 Unfortunately these and other benefits in this bill have been overshadowed by escalating rhetoric in this debate, particularly regarding misconceptions about the proposal.

·        For example, employers and those with insurance will not be forced to change plans but could find better, more affordable plans over time through the Exchange.

·        Medicare benefits would remain unchanged, except for elimination of the Medicare Part D ‘donut hole.’

·        Older Americans will not be required to receive counseling about end-of-life care, but Medicare would cover the service for the first time. 

·        Reform would actually stop “rationing” by insurance companies, giving patients and doctors control of the care patients receive and protecting patients from denials for coverage.

·        Finally, the government would not “socialize” medicine. In fact, private insurance would be offered through the Exchange to give consumers more affordable choices that include coverage standards to protect patients.

 An open and respectful dialogue is essential for Americans to learn about health care proposals and for my office to address your concerns. Until Congress votes in September, I will continue this discussion through meetings with constituents; roundtables with various groups like seniors, doctors, businesses, and disability advocates; telephone town halls; and updated information and polls on my website so that you can voice your opinion and get the facts on reform.

 The status quo is simply unacceptable for our economy and for the financial security of families and businesses held hostage by insurance companies. I look forward to working constructively with residents of the 18^th district and my colleagues in Congress to pass reform that contains costs, preserves choices, and improves health care for every American.