2011 Budget Hearing: Update in Dysfunction

The annual preview of incompetence was in full swing Monday night (11/22/10) as Supervisor Feiner droned through four and a half pages of the 2011 Budget Message, which can be easily read by anyone looking to stay awake and much more quickly than he could do.

Here at ABetterGreenburgh.blogspot.com, we have yet to receive and review the Town's budget, but look forward to a few givens. Typically, we have found previous budgets to be lacking in specificity, clarity and detail. This evenings travesty continued with Town Attorney Tim Lewis doing most of the talking from the  dais. There were several interesting comments from the public. It is inherit upon all residents to participate and while we welcome the return of Tom Bock, a rational counter-voice,republican speaker and advocate, we missed Rob Bernstein and of course, our recently deceased friend and colleague, Lorrin Brown.

Stalwart Hal Sammis got up and accurately spoke on several topics topics in the budget, dressing down, or undressing Feiner and the Board. And "poor" Sonya Brown, who sat there appearing lost during most of the session. She's been ostracized every since her tirade against Feiner at March 5th, 2010 meeting. Click this link to watch it: http://www.greenburghny.com/Cit-e-Access/webpage.cfm?TID=10&TPID=4146
BTW, It's after about the two hour mark.

Newly returned Tom Bock spoke directly to Feiner about his calling Bock a racist during a meeting of the Greenburgh Democratic party meeting held at Town Hall. He also commented that he was saddened by the passing of Lorrin Brown but heartened because Lorrin had the backbone to get up at that same meeting and berate Feiner for calling Bock was a racist. He said he knew Bock and he was anything but a racist! Bock also commented that he wasn't surprised but extremely disappointed at the actions of the previous Board and parts of the current Board regarding the guilty verdict against them, and ultimately the Town in the Fortress Bible Church decision.

Beyond discussing the budget, the longest diatribe seemed to be the discussion of the creation of an updated animal licensing law. Evidently, as Hal Sammis rightly pointed out, Attorney Lewis, Councilman Sheehan and even Clerk Belville worked on this for six months and it was, to quote, "still a crappy law." At which point Town resident Ella Preiser stepped in and helped them rewrite the bill to a more acceptable piece of legislation. We seem to be paying for incompetence.

As the evening wound down, Feiner noted that the hearing had been a pleasant, civil one which hasn't happened for a while. Perhaps if he and the Board didn't violate the law, write sloppy bills they vote into law and disregard the residents for builders and contractors, maybe they could all be more civil.