GameOn 365 Postponed Again. Or, Drag It Out Until Nobody Remembers

Each time The Paul and his Stepford Board postpone voting on the GameOn 365 proposal, ABG staffers wonder two things. First, could The Paul and the Stepfords have heard the public outcry against this project and grown a conscience, trying to do the right thing? We quickly snap out of it and realize unequivocally, no! Second, what other perks have they thrown into the deal to sweeten the already cavity-producing sweetheart deal? ABG is pretty sure The Paul will say these changes were not deal breakers and only minor points; but still, the Town attorney felt obliged to convey these to GameOn 365 before moving forward with officially anointing the done-deal deal.

Many have said the issue is less about whether a bubble is appropriate at this residentially zoned seven acres, but rather the Town’s unrelenting push since 2005 to have this company get this deal at this location, even before the Town assumed ownership of the foreclosed property! The Paul had NYS Assemblyman Tom “Proclamation” Abinanti sponsor an amendment to the Finneran Law allowing the last vestiges of protection for the Unincorporated Town residents to finally removed, allowing The Paul bubble carte blanche.

Soon to open in Ardsley, House of Sports’ supporters claim the Town has provided numerous financial and operational advantages to GameOn 365 and have totally ignored working with House of Sports in any capacity. While ABG agrees with many of the assertions made, it’s a fact that the House of Sports is located in a commercial area in the Village of Ardsley, and the Town would have little interaction with them. However, the business of doing business for House of Sports will be costing them more than GameOn 365 because of the assorted concessions, reduced taxes and reduced rent GameOn 365 will be paying for the next 15 years. After the initial five years, rental increases are frozen to 1% per year. Since The Paul typically favors double-digit tax increases, this alone should be reviewed and changed before implementation!

Another bone of contention is that GameOn 365 gets to withdraw from this contract at any point the “deal” becomes undesirable to them, with reimbursement of any funds spent. The soil contamination cleanup on the property will ultimately be paid for by the Unincorporated Areas of the Town, not the Villages. Attorney Tim Lewis, the new Greenburgh Environmental Cleanup Czar says it will only cost about $100k to do the remediation. Are we paying Mr. Lewis enough for all his knowledge regarding environmental cleanup costs, hazardous materials and real estate prices? Shouldn’t we hire a remediation specialist instead of relying on the opinion of an unqualified sycophant?

Additionally, if The Paul and his previous Board and his current Stepford Board had done the necessary remediation when the Town took over the property, we would be offering prime real estate, as opposed to contaminated real estate, either for sale or rent, commanding much more money than it is currently worth or that GameOn 365 would want to pay! Greenburgh is becoming the laughing stock of Westchester with all the bad deals The Paul has gotten us into. ‘Contaminated’ seems to be the operative word with every deal and interaction The Paul has in Greenburgh.

It’s apparent to all but The Paul’s loyalist followers that The Paul will not do the right thing here. He told the Stepford Board how he wants them to vote and they will follow orders, lest he invoke the Sonya Treatment against them. They will comply. The Town needs leaders that will do the right thing. The Town needs leaders that will be able to recognize when the Town will benefit and when it will suffer, learning to gauge their actions toward benefiting the Town, not uninvested investors. We can only hope.

Saving A Few Nickels

Several weeks ago we posted that the Town Public Works Commissioner Victor Carosi highlighted a number of roads throughout the Town for repaving. Stating it was “that time of the year” when it is best to install blacktop, Mr. Carosi had told numerous residents that they were about to embark on a repaving project throughout the Town. Stating that the money was in the budget, they would be moving forward in July and August. It sounded like a solid plan.

One of the streets slated to be repaved is Old Kensico Speedway, between Rt 119 and Kent Road, which is just past the east-west I-287 overpass. ABG also learned that Mr. Carosi, the only Town leader trying to help these residents after they were decimated from Hurricane Irene, has planned to take a core sample of the road to see how deep the current layer(s) of blacktop might be. He claims that there may actually be concrete below the blacktop and if there is, the Town will remove however many layers of blacktop that’s there and repave about 2-3 inches onto the existing concrete road surface. This will return curbing to many of the driveways that either have none or very little, allowing storm water and debris to travel into their yards each time it rains. This sounds proactive and the residents we discussed this with were very pleased to hear of this upcoming action.

If the plan is to remove and repave the blacktop, why did the Town send a crew today down Old Kensico Road repainting the white side lines? The existing white lines were still visible. The double yellow lines down the center of the road were repainted about two weeks ago. ABG doesn’t see this as that big a deal. But if the Town is planning to redo the road anyway, why bother wasting our employees time and the expense of doing this work. Maybe the next time the person with the can of paint is going out to do some striping, he or she will see a list of street repaving projects somewhere in the Town offices and hold off, saving a few nickels for us taxpayers. God knows we need it the way The Paul is costing us money. We can only hope.

Greenburgh Residents Victorious!

There’s a lead story in the Saturday edition of the Journal News, by now anointed tax-watchdog David McKay Wilson, about the Valhalla school district and the settlement to pay $1.1 million to the Town of Greenburgh to settle the lawsuit they lost against the Town. That its on the front page above the fold, is significant as placement indicates its relevance as a major story. ABG has posted about this before. You may recall how the Paul worked out a payoff scam years ago for the Valhalla school district to accept the additional kids to be housed at the WestHelp facility on the Westchester Community College campus. Many in Greenburgh were appalled at this blatant move to buy the homeless a way into the Valhalla school system. The Paul pulled it off and it went well for The Paul for quite some time.

Greenburgh watchdogs regularly attend Town Board meetings and continue to question this move by the teflon supervisor. His response was always the same, “If you don’t like what I’m doing, you can sue me.” The Paul can be pretty cavalier about this as he (and his Stepfords) cannot personally be sued for his or their bad actions as the supervisor and/or Board. As you already know, several residents did sue him, won the lawsuit on behalf of the Town and finally worked out a payment schedule for the $1.1 million dollars. While ABG and others had hoped for more, at least we are getting some of our money back. Kudos to these two gentlemen and others that assisted them.

The issue of finances for the Town can be complicated to the uninitiated. There are two portions of the Greenburgh budget that comprise it in total, commonly referred to as the “A” & “B” budgets, relating to the villages and the Unincorporated portions of the Town. And while perplexing at times, what’s not so shielded is that the Unincorporated portion seems to wind up paying the bulk of the Town expenses.

The Finneran Law, which The Paul recently got amended by his bosom buddy, Tom “Proclamation” Abinanti, had protected the Unincorporated residents from some of the more costly actions made by The Paul and others. The Paul had been trying to get this law amended since about 2005. His reasoning? Bubbles. We’ve been posting about the bubbles in the Town previously and you can easily find them throughout our site. 

It’s time to burst The Paul’s bubble. Two of the Town’s residents have done that with this decision. Hopefully, the residents will be able to do more. It’s time for The Paul to go. We can only hope. 

Bubble Vote Delayed

Apparently, in the 11th hour, the Town Board either got cold feet or Town Councilman Ken Jones really was feeling ill and the vote to approve the contract with GameOn 365 was postponed. We’re not saying that Councilman Jones isn’t really feeling well, but it is a bit coincidental that the vote many have referred to as a “done-deal” didn’t happen on time. One ABG staffer claimed Councilman Jones probably is ill now that he’s finding out how The Paul actually operates! Any self-respecting resident, let alone council members would see this deal for what it is and want a way out of it. This Board doesn’t have that kind of backbone, nor will they risk the rath of The Paul, to go against him and his sweetheart deal for GameOn 365.

The real question now is what is Councilman Jones and the rest of the Stepford Board willing to do to make this right? Numerous residents, some experts in real estate, law and other disciplines offered many valid points and arguments against proceeding with this proposal as things stood. Currently the town board is scheduled to vote on the proposed lease at 10AM. Tuesday in a “special meeting” within their normal work session, which begins at 9:30AM. Frankly, ABG had hoped that the Board would have the sense to gently cajole The Paul into rethinking this proposition. But they aren’t a strong individuals or an independent enough group for that.

The “right thing” is off in The Paul’s distant, distant radar, long ago buried in a sea of bad ideas, deals and setbacks for the Town. This property could be used for so many things if the contaminated soil is addressed and a plan put out on referendum for the residents to decide. The property on Dobbs Ferry Road has issues. The Paul also has his issues. Consequently, a few rookie investors from GameOn 365 are trying to exploit that. This debacle needs to stop and cooler heads, with professionals at the helm, need to step in for “the save”. It’s the only way Greenburgh can come out of this successfully. We can only hope.

There’s No Community, Only The Paul

All seats were taken and it was standing room only as the Town Board meeting was chocked with a full agenda.  Last evenings Town Board meeting was sold out! It’s also how most of the residents and participants felt-sold out! The G8 must have been in “watchdog heaven” as they are the stalwarts who question almost everything The Paul and his Stepford Board does at Town Board meetings with little fanfare and few outside participants. Most in the audience were there to either discuss or learn more about the GameOn 365, 15-year contract for a sports “bubble” at the former Frank’s Nursery site. After getting his campaigning out of the way (see previous post for an explanation), the early starting (6:30PM) meeting really got underway for Town business at about 7:45PM or so.

The GameOn 365 representatives spoke and made their case. And not to single out any one particular person, one Ardsley woman spoke and said the bubble is good for the area because “its for the children”. ABG has posted before how everything comes down to the children. Several other people also commented and directly or indirectly discussed how this would be “for the children”, a great catch-all phrase when no tangible argument comes to mind. Is it really “for the children” and are we really acting in our chirlden’s best interest?

People try to buy homes with several qualifiers in mind. Cost is certainly significant and probably paramount. One is to be near family members, the quality of the school systems and a very important point is the relationship and proximity to one’s employer. In general, Greenburgh is centrally located to all directions. Likewise, a sports bubble offering whatever games and activities they have will be easily accessible from any direction. It may wind up being a very busy area, regardless of the spin we heard from Mr Hewitt of GameOn 365 and The Paul or Mr. Lewis, on Thursday night.

Many residents spoke of the environmental issues and the soil remediation that the site requires, as well as the overhead high power transmission lines and their affect on “the children?” Another resident questioned why the site was left to languish after the Town acquired it through foreclosure? He also mentioned with the AAA Bond Rating The Paul is constantly touting, why didn’t we fix the property and then market it for sale? The Town would easily make that money back and then some. If the Town sold the property after fixing it up, they would receive the sale money and whomever the purchaser was, would probably build and generate tax revenue in perpetuity. Many people we spoke with said that would not be bad direction to go. But The Paul says he doesn’t want to sell the property because “someday”, after say fifteen years or so, we may want to do something with it. Will we even remember that sentiment?

When one woman got up and asked, “If it’s for the children, what are you doing to remove any contaminated soil? What of the high tension wires to the east of the property? There are all kinds of studies indicating illnesses that may be caused by them. If this is truly for the children, you shouldn’t be acting as quickly and haphazardly as you are!” If the property is good for GameOn 365, and they really want to be at this location, won’t they wait until the Town has solved these issues? Probably not. You see, The Paul, the Stepford’s and ultimately the Town has marketed and is trying to push through this deal for contaminated property and GameOn 365 knows it is undervalued as such! They know that the Town will be responsible for cleaning up the property after they’ve inked the deal, and they will be sitting on a veritable gold mine in what will be undervalued property. Besides, the GameOn 365  contract, which is weighted for them to have every possible advantage, allows them the opportunity to “walk” at any point there’s even a hint of something they don’t like. The Paul isn’t a shrewd businessman and this deal exemplifies it.

Here’s what ABG believes should happen. Put this entire process on hold. Bring in an environmental company to evaluate what is there, what needs to be done to rectify it and bid the cleanup out. Once the property is market ready, hire a real estate marketer, an appraiser, and see what the property is worth. Once the Town has a tangible value and real numbers, provide a referendum for the community to decide what happens to the property. At the Wednesday night Town Board meeting, one of the Recreation Commissioners said we need more parks in Greenburgh. Several suggestions are to keep the property and use it for a Town park where people can use it for free. Another idea would certainly be the sports bubble that GameOn 365 wants to install. The difference now is the property has a real value and we stand to make more in rent and taxes if The Paul doesn’t cut this deal. A third idea is to just sell the property. It is zoned residential and can be developed for whatever type of residential housing the new owner(s) would like to build, generating more money to the Town for fees and permits, as well as real estate taxes.

There are probably more ideas that will appropriately fit this property which ABG hasn’t listed. Until the decision is put back into the communities hands, there is no community, just The Paul and what he wants. These hurry up and deal, deals must stop. We can only hope.

Lifetime Fitness Coming in 2014

The turnout, the protests, most importantly the facts, won’t make a difference at tomorrow nights Town Board meeting to be held indoors at Greenburgh Town Hall on Hillside Avenue. Inside, with air conditioning and seating, a viable sound system, there will be the final venue to disappoint more town residents about the uncaring, unresponsive, calculating, manipulative and dishonesty their Town Board routinely operates with as they pass the motion to sign a contract with GameOn 365. And, to thoroughly discourage the residents who proudly believe they will be contributing in the very best of government with their participation and having their voices be heard, they'll be starting the festivities earlier than usual at 6:30PM. 


For the uninitiated, the earlier starting time will be to accommodate more of The Paul’s usual campaigning, aptly disguised as issuing awards, proclamations, musical performances, student films, special recognitions and accolades to various people who may have done something of note, or not, within the Town. It’s also his way of thinning the opposition as people begin to wander out at 8:30PM and then 9PM waiting to speak and ask questions that will not be answered by The Paul or his Stepford Board. They will sit at the dais doing their own impression of Mount Rushmore, but without the nobility of real statesmen. Residents will leave frustrated because they have lives and have to get ready for work or camp the following day. Quick, adjourn to executive session: Mission accomplished!


GameOn 365 will have their supporters there as well, espousing the benefits of their projected 94,000 square foot recreational dome and exterior fields and courts behind the “bubble”. They’ll have seemingly significant concessions they will offer the Town if only the Town will sign a contract with them. A public referendum as to what to do with this property would be unacceptable to The Paul, and ultimately his Stepford Board - because he told them its what they want. Once again, the will of the people will be ignored by our “leaders”. But wait, you say, both parties can withdraw from the “deal” if the Planning and Zoning Boards say no, and that must mean something. In any other Town or Village across America, it might, but not in Greenburgh. The Paul and the Stepford’s will do what they’ve done before with so many projects and simply change the zoning to what GameOn 365 wants. It will be a repeat of what happened several years ago with the Westhab property in Fulton Park when the Zoning Board voted against changing the zoning and The Paul and his Stepford’s changed it to the worst of the worst zoning ever to be used in Greenburgh!


Many of the GameOn 365 supporters complained at the Wednesday and Thursday night meetings held outdoors, “on-location” at the old Frank’s Nursery site with The Paul, several Town Commissioners and GameOn 365 representatives, that The House of Sports representatives, soon to be opening in Ardsley, in a commercial area no less, did not have a right to speak at this meeting because they were competitors of Game On 365! Wow! Here’s a bit of news for you: in America, even Greenburgh, everybody can speak their mind. If GameOn 365 supporters were concerned with competition, what of the latest news from Harrison?


The Harrison Town Board has approved the demolition of the Journal News building on 1 Gannett Drive, clearing the way for a 209,000 square foot Lifetime Fitness facility expected to be completed by 2014. Frank McCullough, an attorney representing Lifetime Fitness, announced that the company hopes to tear down the current Gannett building and begin construction by next year.

The much anticipated fitness center has received praise from the town board throughout the application process. It will include three swimming pools, two tennis courts and a full-service spa. There are also plans for a separate children's gym, more than 400 pieces of exercise equipment, squash and racquetball courts and a two-story rock-climbing wall.


GameOn 365 will indeed receive their sweetheart (done)deal tomorrow night! But if the competition from Ardsley is proving too much for them to handle, what happens once Lifetime Fitness opens? Will GameOn 365 pull out of their only-to-be-gotten-in-Greenburgh-deal? Will they forge on, or fold after a few short years, leaving the Town with the same unused property with unusable foundations for more years to come? Let’s hope there is a clause in the contract to write The Paul an exit strategy story from GameOn 365 if things get a little difficult for them? We’ll have to see. Game on.

A Shady Deal? Pull Out All The Stops

About one hundred or so people attended the “cancelled” Wednesday night meeting at the former Frank’s Nursery site on Dobbs Ferry Road. The officially rescheduled meeting on the following night, previously posted on ABG, found another one hundred or so participants. ABG didn’t attend the Wednesday night meeting because it was cancelled. After seeing the amount of people who showed up to learn more about the GameOn 365 proposal and realizing that canceling their Wednesday night meeting would not be good public relations, The Paul, his Town cohorts and the GameOn 365 decided to stay and answer questions “unofficially”.

On Thursday night, the official meeting got a bit lively. An added police presence ensured stability to a somewhat unstable crowd. There were two distinct sides in attendance and ready for answers and as we soon found, a shouting match. A professional politician, The Paul, with his nurtured schlub-like and confused looking “disheveled” persona in rare form, took the microphone, plugged into what could only be described as a mini-amplifier, about the size of a desktop printer, and officially started the second meeting. As he spoke, people complained they could not hear what was being said. He promised that he, the Town employees and the GameOn 365 people would answer everybody’s questions, no matter how long it took. ABG won’t rehash everything that took place but suffice to say, many people left with a foul taste of our Town leaders (as well as GameOn 365’s leadership) as impersonal, arrogant, condescending, uncooperative and most importantly not forthcoming with any answers. The G8 are well aware of The Paul’s modus operandi; and now 200 more residents know as The Paul’s facade gets chipped away.

Todays mail brought us two pieces. The first was a mailing from The Westchester Field House, which we presume in doing business as (DBA) GameOn 365. This piece’s mailing was intended on “Setting The Record Straight – Why the “Bubble” is Good for Greenburgh” with the corresponding web address: www.TheWestchesterFieldHouse.com. Going to that site yields artists’ renditions of what the site will look like once GameOn 365 develops it (below). We’ve posted their mailing and the images for you to determine what’s true or not below. Ironically, almost as if it were scripted for The Paul, the verbiage on the mailer sounds strikingly like what he’s been saying these last few weeks. Hey... wait a minute... you don’t think the GameOn 365 people told The Paul what to say, do you? Nah, couldn’t be...

There are 10 points on the flip side of the mailer. While there are no out and out lies, there are a number of convenient “gaps” of information with what is being foisted on the subject. BTW, GameOn 365 representatives and Town officials are all going around saying the mailer sent out by a Simon Cohen had incorrect information in it. After comparing the two, ABG’s staffers were unanimous in our belief that Simon’s was more accurate. You can decide as it was previously posted here.

The second mailing was a two page letter from The Paul, interesting also written to espouse the benefits of “the bubble” on the former Frank’s property extremely similar to the GameOn 365 mailing. Hmmm, coincidence? The Paul’s mailing also conveniently leaves out critical information while painting the lease as Greenburgh’s answer to the Town’s financial prayers. While ABG believes this is not the case, we’ve never heard why the Town so readily agreed to a low rent for such a long period of time? Or why site contamination was never addressed prior to having a possible tenant? In fact, what marketing was ever performed for this parcel? What numbers were offered for purchasing the property? The constant harping that this is a depressed market, yet Westchester real estate is the most sought after in the state and perhaps even the country and this is the best we can do? Why wasn’t an independent assessor hired and tasked with a market value property valuation and plan to market it by a realtor? How can we expect the Town Assessor, appointed to her position by The Paul, as well as told to begrudging participate in this charade, to give an honest assessment? She, along with The Paul continually compare “comparable” bubbles in other communities that are easily half the size of the GameOn 365 bubble and don’t have the basketball courts behind it to the GameOn 365 project. It’s simply not an apples to apples comparison.

The Paul claims he sent out RFPs to newspapers, and sought interest by going on blogs (any others than his own?), social media, etc. ETCETERA??? Really? Do most real estate developers, with whom The Paul will give away the keys to the Town as well as change zoning and planning laws at the drop of a hat, follow the real estate business on blogs and social media sites? Pul-ease. He then states traffic will not be an issue because all of the other entities in the area will not be busy during the winter months, when GameOn 365 plans to be the busiest. Again, The Paul’s lack of business acumen (see above schlub-like and confused looking) not only highlights why he shouldn’t be negotiating or even signing deals with real companies, with practicing attorneys and management he can only read about. But when did he become a traffic study expert? The Paul and GameOn 365 say that our seniors and residents will have access to the track for jogging and walking FOR A FEE. Don’t we pay taxes for this?

Here’s the mailing information we received so you can study it. There are many other sides to what is being presented in these two most recent mailings. ABG hopes more residents will come to the special meeting which is scheduled for 6:30 on July 25th at Town Hall. There are too many things about this “great deal” for Greenburgh that don’t add up. ABG hopes the constituency will come out and help stop this travesty from happening for the next fifteen years, before it is too late!

GameOn 365 Mailer, front and back:

ABG added this photo taken from one of the displays being shown at the meeting Thursday night:

GameOn 365’s photo presented at the Frank’s Nursery site meeting on Thursday night. Note how the bubble is intentionally obscured behind the facade they claim will replace the “dilapidated” Frank’s Nursery building (it isn’t dilapidated, just boarded up). Compare this image to the first one in their mailing (above). A convenient distortion? You decide. Below is Page 2 of the GameOn 365 mailer.

The Paul’s Mailing front and back:

Aerial View Comparison of the Westchester County Center (top) and the proposed GameOn 365 bubble (bottom):

 

Respect For The People Who Pay Your Salary

A resident submitted this letter to ABG asking if we might post it. After reading it, one ABG staffer stated it seemed to sum up the feelings of many she spoke with or overheard during and after the meeting at the former Frank’s Nursery site held by GameOn 365. Here it is unedited:

“What a poorly run meeting! I arrived, with mosquito repellent, shortly after the meeting began. All seats were taken and the rest of the audience fanned out around those chairs in a semi-circle. If you expect to be inclusive of the aged and physically challenged, then either have enough chairs or hold your meeting at Town Hall.

Next, the audience had to yell out “speak into the mic” to the meeting moderators. No procedure was in place to ensure that the audience could speak into a microphone.  Unless someone shouted or was near to me, I couldn't hear the questions. It was a kind of an inductive reasoning exercise for me: I would hear the moderators answer a question and then try to figure out what the question was. It was like being on “Jeopardy”. Is that any way to run a meeting?

Regarding the manners of our Town Officials: when our Tax Accessor, in her annoyance, commented that she had been up since 7:30 am and she could just leave, I thought to myself, "Who does this woman think she is?" How many of us also had a long and arduous day? How many in the audience found a way to come even fighting physical ailments? I for one have an iron deficiency, so hush up Edie and show some empathy and respect for the people who pay your salary.

In general, there seemed to be a pervasive attitude of impatience with the Greenburgh electorate. While the Officials whined about “not calling out”, I saw people desperate to have a say in this very important matter before the window of opportunity to do so is over. I saw and spoke to people who were frustrated when their questions were cleverly side-stepped or completely ignored.

Where was the sensitivity to the needs of the Community? Concern was expressed over the height of the project, the financial payback to Greenburgh, and the impact on the  quality of life. These are valid and important concerns that need to be addressed.

The response of our Town Officials and the project representative was not satisfactory. Tim Lewis tried to persuade the audience that since we don't have any other offers we should be happy. Happy? This is Westchester, New York, one of the most desirable locations in the Nation and we had better start acting like it. It is an honor and a privilege to do business in the Town of Greenburgh. We need to make a good business deal, because when our economy gets on track this will be one of the first places which will rebound. Instead of acting like beggars we need to do this deal from a position of strength, lest the community again end up on the losing end of a deal.

We must hold our elected Officials and their appointees responsible. If they won't listen we need to elect new representatives: it is that simple. Too much is at stake.

Your fellow resident,

D.D.”

Residents Lose Playing By The Rules!

There was a meeting held by The Paul on Thursday night at the old Frank’s Nursery sight on Dobbs Ferry Road at 7PM. A dozen or so children wearing “Build The Bubble” t-shirts were playing soccer in the north west corner of the lot. Cars were parked in the formerly over-grown and recently cleared parking lot. Now that The Paul is anxious to ink a deal with GameOn 365, he decided the Town should spend some money and make the lot presentable for this meeting. Otherwise, it has sat untouched and ignored by the Town since they received it through foreclosure for non-payment of taxes by Frank’s Nursery. Why hasn’t the Town given any attention or remediation to make this property viable for sale?

About a hundred or so people were in attendance on and off throughout the evening at a meeting hosted by The Paul or possibly GameOn 365, to discuss and answer questions about the deal between GameOn 365 and the Town. The Paul had originally arranged for this meeting to be held on Wednesday night but cancelled it without notice, upsetting many people. ABG was told there were about 100 or so people who showed up on Wednesday night only to find the “official” meeting had been cancelled! According to what ABG was told, The Paul, the Town employees, and the GameOn 365 people said they would stay anyway and answer questions even though the meeting had been cancelled.


The Town Board is already “on board” with this project because The Paul told them to be or risk losing their next election. Yet they weren’t there. It was The Paul, Town Attorney Tim Lewis, Town Planning Commissioner Tom Madden, Town Assessor Edie McCarthy and late to the party was Town Clerk Judith Beville, as well as about half a dozen GameOn 365 employees. Also in attendance were employees and owners from the newly created Ardsley-based family business, House of Sports. In fact, one protestor, Simon, had his hand up throughout the entire two hours and was only recognized to speak once. Greenburgh resident and Feiner-foe Hal Samis made a number of salient points but was mostly ignored by those holding the microphone. ABG assumed that since The Paul and the other Town employees already knew who were sympathetic toward this project and who were not, they only focused on hearing from sympathetic attendees.

Many have complained that holding a meeting at the Frank’s Nursery location was pointless and nothing more than another of The Paul’s gimmicks to appear to care about what the residents feel and wanting to provide answers – without actually doing so. It turns out those people were correct! In fact, The Paul, Tim Lewis and Thomas Madden all stated separately when they had the microphone, that they would stay there and answer any and all questions for as long as it took. Contrary to what they promised, the Thursday evening meeting was officially ended at about 9PM when darkness set in, with many questions still unanswered! Several Town employees remained a short time to speak to individuals one-on-one.  Most of the residents who had their hands up to either ask questions or make statements left with the bitter taste of frustration that many of us are used to from this administration. But these were the uninitiated, new people if you will, who haven’t dealt with The Paul and his minions from Town Hall, finally feeling the cold shoulder of government.

An interesting twist to the evening was the police presence. Apparently things got a bit heated the night before and the hosts of the “non-meeting” meeting felt threatened enough to request a few more officers. Things did get heated this evening as well and several officers walked closer to the crowd when this happened, temporarily calming tensions. Those in opposition with proceeding at the breakneck speed this project is traveling were mostly residents armed with questions, searching for information. Others in favor of proceeding with building the 80 foot high bubble, wearing tee shirts that said “Build The Bubble” were quite vociferous. Few people seemed to ride the fence on this issue.

According to several speakers, the property is zoned for residential and should be maintained as such. Bubble supporters kept shouting over the residents saying they should shut up or that they had no right speaking. The residents let them speak, why wouldn’t they allow them the same right? Every time a resident spoke, many of the GameOn 365 supporters would yell at them, some yelling obscenities, continuing to try to over-shout them and insist they not be allowed to speak. When residents asked the GameOn 365 supporters where they lived and they would simply say, “Here.” This was a very sad turn and a poor example of the representative crowd for GameOn 365. To add insult to injury, the GameOn 365 senior representative by the name of Hewitt talked down to the crowd, insisting he had two rules to proceed. You’re coming into our Town, want us to accept you and you have rules for us to participate? His arrogance and condescension did not endear him with the crowd. In fact, several people booed him!

The Paul took to the microphone numerous times and said that this was a great deal for the Town because GameOn 365 would be paying taxes on the now vacant property, but stumbled and stammered when pushed for a dollar amount. Town Attorney Lewis stated the taxes would be included in their $260k per year rent. That was, until Mr. Samis shouted out the numbers and exposed what was really going to be happening with the various dollar amounts. According to Town Assessor Edie McCarthy, the current cost of the property in taxes is about $60k a year.

Apparently, GameOn 365 will be paying $260,000 per year, increasing slightly each year, in rent for a fifteen year lease, combined with the taxes. They get rent credits if they have to pay more than $125k in environmental cleanup costs. So while they are paying $260k on paper in rent the first year, they really aren’t. After the $60k in taxes and the $125k soil remediation fee is deducted from their yearly rent, their rent will be preposterously low. If the cleanup costs go beyond $125k, to say, $1 million, the Unincorporated residents get to pick up that expense and GameOn 365 gets to just pick up and leave. They maintain the opportunity at every step to walk away and get reimbursed by the Town for any money they’ve spent. The Paul is certainly a top negotiator. As the TV ads say, “But wait, there’s more.”

The Town wants to quickly vote at the upcoming Board meeting to enter into the recently rewritten 15 year lease that no one has yet seen with GameOn 365. The Paul is insisting the Town move quickly on this before a SECR study is done, which is illegal. His being anxious to hastily initiate this contract is typical of a deal that is not a good one for the Town. Those familiar with The Paul knows that if he doesn’t like a law, he simply ignores it/them. The SECR study is the environmental study that is required for any project to move forward, before it goes to the Zoning and Planning committees for review and a determination.

In one breath, The Paul, Tim Lewis and others from the Town claim this is prime real estate. In the next, they say how depressed the market is and we’re lucky to have someone willing to invest in a business here. Since the Town acquired the property through foreclosure, they a) have done nothing to remediate the soil contamination they insist is there due to the pesticides from both Frank’s Nursery and the previous Flower Time Nursery; b) never sought to market and sell the property which would have yielded more income for the Town and easily covered the taxes owed by Frank’s Nursery and then some; c) offered this property to any other company and in particular, the Ferncliff Manor residential school for the developmentally disabled, that according to The Paul must only be located at the former WestHelp facility on the Westchester Community Campus. Had The Paul chosen to renew the now-expired contract with Westchester County with then County Executive Andy Spano, for $1.2 million dollars a year, his desperation to abandon all rules and regulations with the Frank’s Nursery property wouldn’t be as seemingly necessary or blatantly obvious. The Paul and his Stepford Board have created this financial, ethical and managerial nightmare!

The House of Sports, still under final construction at 1 Elm St., in Ardsley, is in a commercial area next to a small hotel just off of Rt 9A west of the thruway where the old Selecto warehouse building used to be. They appear to be in the finishing stages with the construction of their facility, which they own, have paid all the requisite fees, insurances, bonds, taxes and created jobs in construction for building the facility. As they install gear, equipment and operational necessities and soon move toward opening their facility, they will employ many people. ABG learned they will also be holding a job fair in the near future for staffing. They have played by the rules. Isn’t that what sports is supposed to teach? It’s evident in Greenburgh, if you play by the rules and The Paul doesn’t favor your needs, you lose.

The GameOn 365 project requires a major zoning change to change from its current residential zoning to be used as commercial property. The Planning and Zoning Committees will need to look at GameOn 365’s site plan submission. GameOn 365 has the unconditional option to walk away and incur no cost if the Planning and/or Zoning committees vote ‘no’ to their plans. All of this must be done after the SEQR study. And again, the residents will be on the hook for the cleanup and still have the property that The Paul refuses to sell. GameOn 365 will also employ construction people to install their bubble. They should also be paying the requisite fees, insurances, bonds and taxes. Regardless, if the Planning and Zoning committees vote separately or in unison to not allow the project’s requests, The Paul and the Stepford Board will simply vote to make the changes GameOn 365 requires to proceed. It’s the same thing they did in other locations thoughout the Town, such as for Westhab in Fulton Park. Ignoring their rulings, The Paul and the Stepfords voted to change the zoning from M-22 (22 units per acre) to M-174 (similar to the apartment buildings in Hartsdale on Hartsdale Ave.) for a .7 acre parcel. Shameful!

Overall, ABG was disappointed with this faux-meeting. The microphone’s amplifier was too small for the venue, not projecting the sound into the crowd. There was no order for asking questions and more importantly receiving answers. Many people asked questions and the microphone was handed off to the “appropriate” responder, only to have their questions not be answered or deflected to another subject. The property has been under-assessed by the Town for the benefit of a private corporation who will probably seek a certiorari refund upon the start of their business. A 15-year lease has been proposed for the Stepford Board to sign before the SECR study is done. Why isn’t there a 5-year lease with a preference to GameOn 365 to renew for another 5 years or have the right of first refusal? There hasn’t been a traffic study performed. If a traffic study yields an unfavorable finding, and the Town has signed a contract, what is the Towns recourse? If the environmental remediation is too costly for GameOn 365's liking, why should the Town have to reimburse them for money spent toward it? Why has there not been a public hearing about this project? Why is the Town entering into a landlord-tenant relationship? What will happen with increased traffic when the Fortress Bible Church, who sued and won against The Paul and the Town for discrimination among other issues, builds their church and school right down the street? And to the point, why has The Paul and the Town openly partnered with GameOn 365?

The Paul, vis-à-vis the Town, repeatedly acts like a beggar when it comes to dealing with developers instead of dealing from a position of strength. This needs to change. A new portion of the public got a taste this evening with The Paul’s shenanigans of how the Town’s business is being “run” and didn’t like what they saw! It needs to change. We can only hope.

HelpBurstTheBubble.com

ABG reached out to Simon and for his cause of "bursting the bubble". We agree that there are many illegal aspects of The Paul’s latest deal with a private enterprise, similar to what he does with developers. We hope many will attend the ill-conceived, intentionally limiting meeting he has scheduled at the old Frank’s Nursery. We know he wants few to turn out, utilizing excessive heat, bugs and inconvenience to discourage opposition. 

We learned this morning there was a meeting last evening of the Greenburgh Council of Civic Associations at the Theodore Young Center. Councilman Ken Jones was in attendance representing what was believed to be the Parkway Homes Civic Association. When he asked to speak about the bubble issue as was discussed by others, we were told the President only allowed him three minutes, following the public speaking policy of the Town Board at their meetings. We’re told when the flyer from Simon was held up and commented on, he stated there were many mis-truths in it but didn’t elaborate. Ultimately, all that was learned from Councilman Jones was that the environmental testing would be done after a contract with Game On was signed with the Town. He also stated if the Planning or Zoning Boards denied the bubble, it would end there. Apparently, Mr. Jones wasn't watching when the Zoning Board said NO to Westhab’s zoning change request and the Board went ahead and changed the zoning just for them, knowingly acknowledged as spot zoning, which is illegal. 

So, without further comment by ABG, here is an unedited letter from Simon, of HelpBurstTheBubble.com:

simon@helpburstthebubble.com

Ladies and Gentlemen

Some of you have been sceptical about my writing and some have seen it for what it is, informative and true details about the proposed lease for 715 Dobbs Ferry Road in White Plains, the former Franks Nursery Property.

I believe that today, Paul Feiner, the Greenburgh Town Supervisor has done himself proud today.

Today, the property was completely cleared of the dense weeds and vegetation that has been growing for months in preparation for tomorrows meeting. In addition a sign was erected, a sign that can barely be seen until right upon it, to announce a meeting one day later, great job Paul.

My bigger point is really a question, who paid for this? Who paid for the clean up? Who paid for the sign? Who paid for the sign that gives people that pass it "ONE" days notice.

Why was a single dime spent on this when there is a perfect town hall to meet in? A comfortable Hall. An air-conditioned room. A room that is available whatever the weather.

And if this all wasn't bad enough, Paul Feiner, our Town Supervisor, sent out an email, after office hours today, he mentions many things but leaves out even more.

He tells you the Taxpayer and the community what he wants you to hear.

The following are direct quotes from today's email from Paul Feiner.

     "they have agreed to pay $100,000 for the cleanup".

      Fact - the lease states that Game On will pay $75,000 towards the clean up. They get that back if they pull out.

      "Game On 365 has agreed to pay for the Phase II environmental study.  If any remediation is required, Game On 365 will spend up to              $250,000 to clean up the site without the Town incurring any out of pocket expense.

        Fact - The $250,00 includes the first $75,000.

        Fact - From the additional $175,000, Game On will be "reimbursed" in rent credits.

I have raised just a couple of points here, everything I have written is either a direct quote from Paul's email today or directly from the lease that is available to everyone on line.

So please, tell me who you think is lying? Who is trying to hide the information?

Do I have to go on? There is so much more to tell.

COME OUT TOMORROW AND BE HEARD

COME OUT TOMORROW AND SHOW YOUR SUPPORT TO THIS OUTRAGEOUS MISCARRIAGE OF TOWN BOARD AND THE SUPERVISORS BEHAVIOR.

Please feel free to share you comments with me but more importantly, to Supervisor Feiner. Do copy me though !!

 Thank you for reading

Simon Cohen

Greenburgh Resident

Game On!

ABG has posted before about the “questionable?” dealings of The Paul and his Stepford Board with relation to forcing the amendment change to the Finneran Law to benefit a private company who tried over five years ago to take over Town recreation facilities for its own profit. When they found out they would not be able to charge Unincorporated residents, they backed out of the deal. But, as The Paul knows, he doesn’t have to scrap a bad deal, just let it wallow a bit until everyone forgets about it and then pounce again. That’s what happened here.


With many Town-wide watchdogs protesting and advertising this bad deal to the public, The Paul struck a deal with New York State Assemblyman Tom “Proclamation” Abinanti and New York State Senator Andrea “Patronage” Stewart-Cousins, to amend the Finneran Law from protecting the residents of Unincorporated Greenburgh to totally disregarding their well-being for politics. The Paul wanted it and they need Greenburgh support as neither has done much for Greenburgh to date.


But ABG has learned of another player fighting the injustices perpetrated by The Paul. They appear to be behind a mailing that showed up at our office yesterday. Below are three images comprising the document we received. Please read it and follow their requests if you agree with their perspective. ABG does - game on!

Hostile Takeover

A staffer brought a book to our attention and it started the ABG water cooler conversation that so often spills into a spirited “war room” type of debate. This time it took a twist. Christina said it sounded like Greenburgh to a “T” and insisted we post it. Bill thought it a lazy exercise as it merited recognition but was hardly worthy to post, as we hadn’t penned it. As so often happens, it came down to a coin toss. Christina called tails while the coin was in mid-air. Tails won.

This post is a small portion adaptation from a free excerpt from Matt Kibbe’s book, “Hostile Takeover”. While there was certainly more to it, and it leans too heavily in one direction, we’ve truncated it, utilizing a small portion of it. If interested in reading more or even purchasing the book, you can find the entire prologue at www.freedomworks.org. We are not endorsing this site or book and have not been offered anything to mention it here. We’ve added Town-appropriate inserts in orange where we felt it applicable.

Prologue: The Hostile Takeover

Imagine a once successful Greenburgh, long ago built on the principles of hard work, growth, and innovation, that has grown arrogant, fat, and happy from earlier successes. Achievement, once sought out, strived for, rewarded, is now assumed as given. But there are telltale signs of trouble: Expenditures are skyrocketing even in the face of declining revenues. Debt servicing now dominates the Town’s balance sheet. Leadership has been replaced with a stultifying bureaucracy Paul Feiner and the Board, and hard work has given way to cynicism and complacency among the rank and file. Taxpayers no longer want to buy what senior management Paul Feiner is selling. There was a time when things were good. “The customer is always right,” was the mantra that drove the Town’s culture, and Paul Feiner and the Board vigilantly guarded against unnecessary spending, any hint of waste, or any deviation from the core mission of the Town. But now continued success is treated as a birthright, and innovation has been replaced with an aggressive sales pitch for tired ideas and bad decisions that taxpayers don’t want. It is a story that plays out time and again in the life cycle of a Town. Over time, innovators are replaced by bureaucrats, Paul Feiner, and future managers, Commissioners, lose sight of the values and principles that made the venture strong in the first place…

  

Paul Feiner and his Board at Greenburgh was a smart, eloquent, fantastic politician, but he didn’t know anything about management. The same thing happened at Xerox. When the sales guys run the company, the product guys don’t matter so much, and a lot of them just turn off. It happened at Apple when [John] Sculley came in … and it happened when [Steve] Ballmer took over at Microsoft.

Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? In Greenburgh, our political management has failed taxpayers, attempting to replace founding principles with a slick sales pitch for tired, bad ideas. The Town enterprise grew exceptional based on the bedrock foundations of individual freedom, decentralized knowledge, and accountable, constitutionally limited government. But our “Paul Feiner and the Board” in Greenburgh, have systematically replaced the dispersed genius of Greenburgh with top down dictates and expensive schemes designed to expand the power of insiders  and protect the privileged positions of Paul Feiner and the Board. Paul Feiner has failed us, and it’s time to clean house.

The Greenburgh people know that it’s time to shake up Paul Feiner and the Board, and as taxpayers we are acting swiftly to protect our interests and those of our children. But entrenched Paul Feiner and the Board— everywhere inside the Town, but particularly in the communities of Greenburgh—is circling the wagons. They don’t want change. Solutions are being ignored, and residents and taxpayers rebuffed. We know where our problems begin, and they begin in Town Hall, with a Town Board that has neither the will nor the inclination to do what must be done. But we do. And so our taxpayers needs to take over the Town. Blithely ignoring our entreaties, Paul Feiner and the Board in Town Hall say: “no thanks, we got this.” Our taxpayers multiple and repeated proposals have been roundly rejected by Paul Feiner and the Town Board, the microphone has been shut off, name placards removed, conference tables broken down, and naysayers herded out the front doors. In effect, Greenburgh has been thrown out of its own shareholders meeting. Things are getting, in the parlance of corporate governance, “hostile.”

It’s only “hostile” because the interests in Greenburgh—the political class, the rent-seekers, the power-hoarders, the government-employees-for-life, the moochers and looters—like things just the way they are. Paul Feiner and the Town Board bemoan the mere presence of citizens with better ideas and the will to implement them is viewed as a hostile act.

The only way we will ever reduce the debt, balance the budget, and restore constitutionally limited government is if the Town’s resident first beats Town Hall.

In the private sector, a “hostile takeover” seeks a controlling interest in a publicly traded company against the wishes of the current management. When you think about it this way, it seems like a perfect description of what needs to be done to take back control of our government. In our democratic republic, the people need to get involved again… We need to pry it from the hands of well-heeled career politicians that would block the unwashed nouveau from getting riche, through higher tax rates and government imposed barriers to success.

Know that “We the People” will not consent to this fiscal mismanagement by Paul Feiner and the Town Board, just like the citizen activists who did not consent to Crown-protected monopoly tea, choosing, instead, to spill it into Boston Harbor. We will not subjugate our voices to the whims of a Paul Feiner and the Town Board. We will not be silenced.

The taxpayers need to take Greenburgh back. We need to break up the privileged collusion of Greenburgh insiders and return power from self-appointed “experts,” back to the people.

We can only hope.

While Nobody Was Looking...

Tennis anyone? It seems at the last session of the state legislative meetings, NYS Assemblyman Tom “Proclamation” Abinanti slipped the Finneran Law amendment onto a legislative agenda chock full of bills, some worthwhile and some not, hoping it would be passed as a matter of routine, rather than need. And so it was. The flawed Finneran Law amendment succeeded in being passed either under the cover of darkness or the wanton desire to leave this part-time job behind for the summer and the farewell frat party off-campus!  As much as ABG would like to list what other bills than the Finneran Law amendment were passed into law, it is practically impossible to find a complete list we could post. 3,809 new bills were introduced in 2012. Of the 571 bills which passed both houses in 2012, 150 were holdovers from the previous year, and 421 were first introduced in the second year of the session. ABG wonders if this amendment would stand on it’s merit if it weren’t buried under stacks of other bills? Probably not. But it’s of no matter now, payback is payback, and it’s on the governor’s desk.

Now that the Finneran Law amendment has been passed, what will that mean to the Town? According to The Paul, “This is very significant. Getting this approved is very helpful for the town. It’s going to provide more recreation to people who enjoy tennis at no cost to the taxpayers. It’s a win-win, a real no-brainer.” The only “no-brainer” here is The Paul. If he had chosen to enter into a contract with the County under then County Executive Andy Spano to run WestHelp at the Westchester Community campus in Valhalla, the Town would be making at least $100k a month! But since his payoff to the Valhalla School District was proven illegal in court, and he and his Stepford Board found guilty of illegal financial transactions to the Valhalla School District, and the Valhalla School District ordered to pay restitution, he decided to do what he does best: a deflection campaign! He started selling a Finneran Law amendment for bubbles. It’s true, bad ideas don’t go away, they just get rewrapped and resold.

All of the mayors for the Villages protested this amendment. They unanimously felt it was not written well enough to protect everyone in the Town, both the Unincorporated residents and the Villages. This unevenly written amendment was doing the Town a disservice. It didn’t matter. The Paul said it was okay and he will have “Proclamation Tom” push it in the state assembly. Residents, or as The Paul prefers to label them, “the complainers”, cited numerous reasons to not move forward with this. Again, it didn’t matter. According to The Paul, the Town stands to make a couple of million dollars over the course of the fifteen year contract so we’re doing this! His flawed argument can easily be rebuked. If someone makes $50k a year, in the course of twenty years they will have earned a million dollars. Hence, they’d be millionaires. What’s that you say? You wouldn’t be a millionaire because you had expenses and other expenditures? Of course, you’d be right. That’s why when you factor all of the contingencies into Bubble-Boy’s argument, you can easily see why this won’t work out the way he says it will.

Every time a discussion about The Paul’s actions comes to light, which is happening more often, the accompanying question is usually, “ Follow the money,” or “Who gains from this?” In this case, Sportime, who operates an arcade business in the north section of the Unincorporated portion of Greenburgh, known as North Elmsford. After Sportime closes it’s cash register draw, it will be GameOn’s turn on the Veteran Park tennis courts. Sportime backed out of the deal back in 2005 when they learned Unincorporated residents would not be able to be charged by Sportime if they used the tennis courts. The new agreement doesn’t have that provision. Finally, the new agreement must still be autographed by the Governor to take effect. Let’s hope it’s not another “done-deal.”


The public hungers for pellucid and honest representation with Greenburgh’s leaders. Instead we get more back-room deals, developer concessions, bureaucratic runarounds and more shady deals than one community should have to deal with in a lifetime. Bubbles are not going to cure the financial ills created by The Paul’s administration. It’s been so long since we’ve had any real accountability in Greenburgh that undoing the quagmire he’s created throughout the Town will be a daunting task for anyone gutsy enough up to the challenge. We hope there is that someone out there. We can only hope.

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY 2012!

As we celebrate our great nation’s birthday, let us remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms and those others away from their families protecting them. God Bless America!

Enjoy some quotes from a very impressive group of patriots here:
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/july4quotes.html#ixzz1zeqYwCHB

Reassessments, Revaluations or Reality?

The Paul is at again. Those gullible enough to believe him or wanting to believe him, think he is serious about reassessment and revaluation for the Town. ABG knows better. When his deflections seems to be waning with one subject, he will change tactics and throw a morsel to the crowd with another. That’s what happening with revaluations in Greenburgh. He is against it simply because it will cost him votes and popularity. It will cost him votes and bring him to the forefront at election time, costing him the votes of one third of those who will receive a tax increase. His Stepford Board has probably suggested the need for revaluations as the Town is losing close to half a million dollars a month in certiorari adjustments (refunds) faster than he can lose a lawsuit. He’s resisted revaluations, as he’s always done, by deflecting talk of reassessments and discussing the Tappan Zee Bridge or giving certificates of appreciation to some group or another at a Town Board meeting.


His latest deflection with reassessment is about the cost to the Town and other communities to provide this labor intensive effort. As such, he reached out to the city of Yonkers to split the cost of revaluations in the Town. But this isn't really an effort to split the cost of doing the revaluation, rather it’s an expense to assess if revaluations will be cost effective for the Town to do. This effort is simply a tactic by The Paul to delay what is necessary for the Town. This Request for Information, known as an RFI, is the initial process that is free and makes no commitment to actually do the reassessments. Of course revaluations are needed. Greenburgh hasn’t had a reval in years! 


His latest “stall” is to invite the city of Peekskill to participate and then to ask other Towns and Villages to do the same. Why? To keep putting off this unpopular and costly expense as long as possible and have a scapegoat if and when the The Paul and his Stepfords decide to pull the trigger and proceed with revaluations throughout the Town. We imagine he’ll say that there was a study done in Westchester and Greenburgh was but one community where the study showed the revaluations must be done; or, he didn’t want to do it, but is bound by this study to proceed; and/or he didn’t want to raise anybody’s taxes but it can’t be helped. If he really thinks he needs a scapegoat, he’ll throw his Board under the bus and say they voted to do it! ABG is sure there are more excuses but you get the idea.


Mary Foster, Mayor of Peekskill, says, “This is a huge issue and a huge process for the county, but the county is not leading here.” ABG strongly disagrees with this comment noting its convenient but simply not true for two reasons. First, in 2009, the County did a “flyover” photography of the entire county to provide a “before” analysis of the current state of commercial buildings and residential homes for a cost of $275,000. Then a second aerial photo was later taken to provide the “after” information to proceed with a county-wide revaluation. Second, while this may have been a laudable initiative, the County overstepped it’s authority under New York State’s home rule, where higher level of governments cannot simply supersede local law and local authority, which this would do. While the idea still holds some viability, it’s doubtful to see the light of day at this point, even though a county-wide revaluation hasn’t been performed in over fifty years. 


For those who want to see an abolishment of County government, this will just bolster the argument to keep it. Reassessments are and should be the purview of the localities. When he was a county legislator, Tom “Proclamation” Abinanti failed as a sponsor of this effort. Now that he’s a NYS assemblyman in Albany, he is trying to get this to happen at a state level. ABG believes he should look to raise our taxes some other way and let this idea die a natural death.


While Yonkers and Greenburgh represent about 20% of the county in Westchester, ABG feels that getting more communities on board will take more time and put off actually doing the revaluation. The Paul has openly admitted at a Town Board meeting that the Town doesn’t have the money to do this study nor has it “banked” and money toward it. Spending money we don’t have has never stopped The Paul before. It’s why we typically see double-digit tax increases every year for the Unincorporated areas of the Town.


Yonkers has put about $5 million toward revaluations and seems poised to move forward with this. By The Paul’s own admission, Greenburgh has not. A study may be the first step in the process. But, like most things done in government, it is an unnecessary one that few Westchester communities have done. ABG believes The Paul is just stringing us along. Reassessments in Greenburgh need to be done to stop the financial hemorrhaging caused through the ever-increasing tax grievances filed almost daily against the Town. The Paul and his Stepfords must stop stalling! We can only hope.