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 Press Box. March 31, 2008: On Monday, the Bronx Bombers return to Yankee Stadium. In their honor, WPCNR brings back this original celebration of the best day of the year.

                         WRIGLEY fIELD CHICAGO 1975 PHOTO WPCNR SPORTS

In decades past, Opening Day was for fanatics starved,
Eager for the sharp crack of ash on horsehide carved;
The flutter of pennants snapping in northwest winds
Atop ramparts of inviting arches of walls, and sculpted friezes wistfully escarped.

Fans lucky to get away with ducats
Marveled at grown men in boys’ flannels and sharp whites pristeen,
Back to play in April’s warm zephers in NY blazened caps,
Dashing specks of white warming up on the sprawl of the greenest green.

Motor cars panting in good-natured traffic jams on Major Deegan,
Or down Yawkey Way, on 35th and Shields or Waveland’s jam.
Through your windows you see the first glimpse of the storied Park,
The place where ball is played, where ghosts of Ted, Babe, Duke
Mel, Spahnie, Whitey, Mickey, Willie, Yaz, Minnie and Sandy lark.

Paying a White Plains fine to park, passing stogie smoking old men
at the same gates for a hundred years,

Now out into the street
You go, aroma of roasting chestnuts, pungent cigars sweet,
Cries of “scorecard heah” “programs,heah”  shout out, neath light towers to heaven.

Fans in cap and uniform, little boys and girls gawk in awe hoping to make the Anthem
Never seeing such sheer walls, topped with the legend “GameToday 1:30 PM.”
Clutching slim cardboard tix to Section 14 Upper Deck up to the turnstiles
Festooned with souvenirs more dear as diamonds, beyond, the lure  of endless aisles.

Into the press of crowd, the grizzled usher, RIPS YOUR TICKET.
Turnstile turns, clicks,  and into the castle of ball you go
Into the rotunda greeted with magic signs dazzling the senses —
UPPER LEVELS SECTIONS 1 to 39, 2 to 40

Hawkers shout –Voices of Flatbush — colorful books in hand

“Yearbook heah,” “Dodger Yearbook here,” “Hot dog, heah,” 
Assail your ears up the ramps you walk to the sign “NEXT HOMESTAND”
Out the suspended catwalk where sliver of blue is  your first glimpse of the magic sphere
Into the sunlight splaying the vast rake down of the mighty suspended grand stand.

Spread out below are knights of the diamond in white hues
Cavorting, snapping throws across immaculate red clay
As majestic fungo bats CRACK!  sending spheres soaring towards filling bleachers a mile away,
Bunting flutters from the deck’s rails red, white and true blues.

Old glory unfurls on the highest pole in center field
Colorful signs deliver the manly flavor of the only real game,
GILLETTE To Look Sharp, The Red Sox use Lifeboy, Schaefer It’s A Hit
Hey, Neighbor Have a Gansett, White Owl Cigars, Hit Sign Win Suit

From old familiar walls, to Gladys Gooding on the organ
Friendly old green scoreboard displaying
Today’s games around the big leagues BETTER THAN CNN
CHI CLE BOS DET, CHI STL, NY WAS make you king for a day.
Two Bits for a scorecard, usher wipes your seat, ballpark fills your heart.

Penciling in the lineup 42 2B, 1 SS, 14 1B, 4 CF, 39 C, 6 RF, 23 LF 19 3B 36 P
Smell of beer, peanuts and warm salty pretzels entice
The air is nippy, warm rays sink into your face feels nice,
starting pitchers wheel and deal, kicking high on sidelines fueling expectancy

Men in blue, arms folded solemnly conduct the home plate regimen
Casey, Ralph , Walter, Joe and Sparky exchange lineup cards and knowing
Ground rules by heart they go over them for ritual’s sake.
Announcer entones “Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Welcome to Yankee Stadium.”

“Please rise for the playing of our national anthem,”
The stadium organ note by note  peels  baseball’s theme
Rising on the breeze, uniting do-rag and ball cap,
Fedora, ponytail and bouffant  in the spirit of the great game.

Grass is never greener than on opening days
 Strikes are louder, the long drives electrify in the alleys
The beers with THICK hig creamy heads, taste crisp cold and mellow the best all year
 Smashes laser through short and in the gap in raucous rallies

Magicians without wands start 6-4-3s,

Backhand sure hits losing their caps

“Oh what a play’s” crackle on WGN with  “CUBS WIN’S”

Jack and Mel, Vince, Red, Curt and Murph are back at the mike to turn mundane days Into joy with a ninth inning elixir and “happy recaps”

Thunderous ROARS accolades the 2-out winner again creating big kids’ grins.

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WPCNR MR. & MRS. & MS. White Plains Poll. March 29, 2008: In a humanitarian gesture, apparently quietly done because of the prolonged March “cold snap,”  the Mayor and the White Plains Common Council have scheduled an early morning vote on Monday to keep the extra capacity of the Open Arms Shelter and Samaritan House  in effect through April, to house the 25 or so “independent” homeless. City officials were not available Friday afternoon to indicate whether this “open arms humanitarian” attitude would be continued indefinitely. How do Mr. and Mrs. and Ms. White Plains feel? Should the extra capacity be maintained indefinitely  at the two shelters in White Plains to provide overnight shelter for the “independent homeless” who refuse to register with the Westchester County Department of Social Services?

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         WPCNR County Clarion-Ledger. From Westchester County Department of Communications. (EDITED) March 29, 2008: County Executive Andy Spano Friday joined county executives across the state in denouncing the state’s latest budget proposal. He said that the decisions now on the table as the State hastens to adopt an on-time budget will cause local property taxes to rise. 

           During a press conference call in which more than 100 people participated, including 11 county executives and their representatives, county leaders from Albany to Westchester today spoke about how the state’s latest budget would force them to raise local property taxes. Under the plan proposed by Gov. Patterson, counties across the state would suffer a 2 percent across the board cut in funding and at the same time be expected to pick up more of the cost of state-mandated programs like child welfare and caring for juvenile delinquents.                                                     

“Governor Spitzer’s proposed budget was bad enough causing Westchester to pay $6 million more for various state-mandated services,” said Spano.  “Now on top of this, Governor Paterson’s budget calls for a 2 percent decrease in state funding across the board. For us, that means an additional hit of over $2.8 million. Taken together, the state is imposing a property tax increase of almost 2 percent on our residents. It is unconscionable.”

Spano continued, “I know that the state has severe problems in this economy. But no one is hurting more than our local property taxpayers. Breakfast, lunch and dinner conversations are all about the price of gas, the cost to heat our homes, and worry over dwindling retirement funds. Our residents must not be asked to take on this additional burden. In crisis times like these, belts have to be tightened everywhere, not shifted. The State must reduce its own spending. There must be no more mandates, no expansion of current mandates and no cuts in state aid.”

            Spano said he and the other county executives are ready to stand with the governor and state legislature if they make hard choices to reduce spending.

“In times like this, Westchester County government makes it own hard choices and finds ways to reduce costs, and trim expenses,” he said.  “But what we don’t do is shift county costs down to our localities.  On the other hand, if the answer is state cost shifts and funding cuts, our residents will need to know that  future property tax increases are the result of the decisions Albany makes now.”

No cuts made, though.

Despite Mr. Spano’s statement issued today, to the contrary, Mr. Spano, did not lower the County Budget when county sales taxes totaled higher than expected at the end of 2007.  Instead, he raised it. Spano increased the budget to cover an expected $6 Million sales tax shortfall. However when the actual shortfall was just $1 Million no budget cuts were made by the county.

 It would appear the county could cover the expected $2.8 Million Governor Patterson’s budget now demands of the county with the unexpected sales tax money.

 The demands on the county budget made by Governor Patterson’s cuts  may, though,  hamper the county ability to increase salaries of County Legislators who have been lobbying hard for increased remuneration, which is now being studied by a citizen committee, appointed by Chairman Bill Ryan of the County Board of Legislators. That committee expects to deliver a report April 30 on the worthiness of the county legislators’ requests for pay increases and committee chair stipends.

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WPCNR Quill & Eyeshade. By John F. Bailey March 27, 2008: The  White Plains Commissioner of Finance reported to WPNCR Wednesday that the city 2008-2009 Budget will be delivered to the Common Council April 7. However, the budget has not been prepared with any input from the Budget & Management Committee, the group of citizens and councilpersons who in previous years used to suggest areas of concern and constructive criticism and warnings on city spending. That committee is chaired by  Councilman Benjamin Boykin. Mr. Boykin told WPCNR yesterday:

In previous years,  Boykin recalled, prior to the departure of former Budget Director Eileen Earl, the Budget & Management Committee received detailed forecasts of the budget, making the Budget committee aware of the changing complexion of the city finances. This year the Budget committee did not receive any information on wage increases which they had requested, but were told could not be put together before mid-February. Boykin said he was given no reasons why the Budget Committee could not be convened.

 Capital spending for 08-09 was gone over with Common Council observers, and the Council was informed of certain spending plans that were postponed and those that were kept in the capital plan.

The 2007-2008 budget stands at $154.5 Million with the city tax rate at $141.93 per $1,000 of assessed value.

Last year the city raised the budget 5.1%, resulting in a 7% property tax increase. The median White Plains home valued at $700,000 on the market, paid $2,622 in city property taxes in 2007-2008.

The city expects a quarter per cent increase in the sales tax expected to bring in approximately $5.5 Million. The quarter per cent is expected to be approved by the State Legislature.  On the strength of the quarter per cent tax increase alone the city can fund most likely a 4% to 5% increase in the police, fire, teamsters, and CSEA contracts. A raise of 4% across the board was granted three years ago, and to solidify union happiness with elected officials, and to make union leaders look very good, a 5% increase (in a time of approximately 3% plus inflation), is attractive to a politically sensitive labor-appreciative Common Council. But, you never can tell perhaps the union heads will be conservative, show restraint and in the best interest of the city, accept a 4% raise.

Escalating electric rates will raise the budget. Rising health benefits of 5%, possible further demands from the state in pension fund contributions, and pay back of previous pension fund bonds, and pension fund shortfalls  due to Wall Street woes, and a steady but not overwhelming increase in the present sales tax would seem to indicate budget pressures not present last year.

What could the budget be? According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics the inflation rate from February of 2007 to February of 2008 was 3.5%. That would take the budget increase automatically to $159 Million. Add to that a 5% increase in salaries ($3.5 Millon added to current $70.7 Million) and a 5% increase in health care benefits (the increase projected by the White Plains Schools) $1.7 Million added to $33,312,043  and that takes the budget to $167 Million.  If the city grants 4%-ters across the board, it will be about $166 Million.

The present Sales Tax surplus should deliver a $3 Million surplus to feed into the budget, and add this to the $6 Million quarter per cent tax increase, and the city will have an additional $9 Million in revenue to defray effects of inflation and the salary increases. There is the mortgage tax that could put the city over the top to a balanced budget, barring substantial softening of the condominium market, allowing the possibility that White Plains could keep the property tax where it is – if it were not for certiorari settlements that continue to plague the city to the tune of $200,000 to $500,000 a month in tax refunds.

A third payment from LCOR for the Bank Street property  could be set aside for the certiorari refunds –  and the city keep the property tax increase to only a few pennies.

But this is contingent on the city’s commitments coming up for infrastructure, capital improvements, and open space acquisition.

Last year the city increased the property tax 7%  ($9.28 – to $141.93) without any wage increases or the inflationary pressures now affecting the area.  

Will the city keep property tax increase flat – no increase, which seems possible – based on just rough numbers? Or will they raise it as insurance – against more certiorari refunds?

If Mayor Joseph Delfino can persuade Assemblyman Adam Bradley to increase the sales tax another quarter per cent, bringing in another $6 Million, as Delfino had originally requested this would deliver insurance against more city budget surprises. The $10 Million a full ½% sales tax increase would have brought in would have easily stopped any need for a property tax increase this year.

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White Plains remembered and grieved the loss of Sonny Katz this morning at the revered City Marshal’s funeral at the Hebrew Institute that drew over three hundred persons paying their final respects. Judges, lawyers, former city officials, and many who knew him gathered to absorb and contemplate just how much they – and White Plains had lost with Mr. Katz’s passing.

City Hall flew its flag at half-mast today in respect for Sonny Katz, its City Marshal forever.

His family of four children, his grandchildren shared remembrances and sense of loss – which you could feel — recounting personal memories, his gentle mentoring, his support of their endeavors, and humor, and how much they loved him. The sense of loss was so eloquent.

The Rabbi officiating the service compared Mr. Katz to Mordecai, the hero of the Old Testament Book of Esther as  “popular with the multitude of his brethren, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people.”

Good Times: The beloved Mr. Katz,  far right, helped so many people in his life in White Plains,  is shown on the eve of his 86^th birthday one year ago in one of his last public appearances, presentation of the first WESTCO Sonny Katz Scholarships to Helen Hess and Kirsten Smayda. A big band singer and entertainer in the 30s, and an actor himself,  he reminisced about his own days on the stage and encouraged the audience “to get the autographs of these young ladies today (Helen Hess and Kirsten Smayda) because they’re going to go far.”  

Mr. Katz had a way of making all around him feel good. It was the way he was — always with just the right words — a natural raconteur.  

 Mr. Katz is shown at the podium with his daughter, Susan Katz, who reminisced this morning that she used to introduce herself when she was a child as, “I’m the daughter of the City Marshal.” In recent years, she said, her father touchingly returned the favor,  in a very special way introducing himself as “I’m the father of Susan Katz of Westco Productions.”

The Rabbi described Mr. Katz as standing for the good like Mordecai, (who, the scriptures recount,  took in Esther and raised her as his own daughter).

Whether it was Mr. Katz easing the pain of persons being evicted from their apartment;seeing that those at the ends of hope got a few extra weeks to pay their rents, and the services they needed or Mr. Katz doing that little something extra that turned life’s most stressful moments into a positive outcome in the long run,  Mr. Katz did not just do his duty. He went beyond the call of duty to see that in doing his duty, he did not do harm.

The good that Sonny Katz had done all through his life was celebrated in tears and admiration, and warmth.  Silent tears and sniffs were prevalent through the ceremony which lasted over an hour.

What came through was Mr. Katz’s ablity to make everyone feel they mattered. He genuinely cared about them, and his willingness to take a personal interest far beyond your typical bureaucrat or official.

In the business of law and court decisions, often impersonal and brusque,  where procedures  are served on persons because it is ordered and it is the law, Mr. Katz was the exception.

He put a human constructive touch into the harshness of law.  In his hundreds of eviction proceedings over 37 years as City Marshal, Mr. Katz carried out his duties with compassion, creativity, poise and common sense. Going into countless situations involving all walks of life, Mr. Katz handled personalities at the end of their ropes with a tact and constructive approach that never resulted in violence, but positive outcomes. 

Mayor Alfred  Del Vecchio, next to last to speak, delivered a glowing and uplifting portrait of Mr. Katz, who spent many Sundays with the Mayor over the years over bagels. The Mayor’s description of Mr. Katz’s genuine liking for people, his sense of wisdom, and sound advice – echoed previously by his daughter Susan Katz, his granddaughter Melanie, his grandson, an uncle –  what the Mayor recalled as Mr. Katz’s  appreciation for life lifted the melancholy and sent all out into the sunshine with Sonny Katz in their hearts and minds.

Perhaps no public servant ever touched and helped more persons more effectively, more warmly, and without guile than Sonny Katz.

The “Mordecai of White Plains”  is an appropriate epitaph:

 “popular with the multitude of his brethren, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people.”