Dear Greenburgh,
My name is Eric Zinger and I am asking for your vote for Greenburgh Town Council at the 6/25 Greenburgh Democratic Party Primary Election. Let me introduce myself to those of you who may not know me. I was born in East Meadow (Long Island) and attended the University of Maryland where I graduated with a degree in Finance in 2006. I returned to New York, spending a few years in Manhattan, before moving to Hartsdale in 2013 with my wife Megan to purchase a home and start our family. We live there now with my son and daughter and you will see us walking our dog Pete around the neighborhood. I work for a Financial Technology company in our Treasury department and I hold the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
I have been an active member in my community since moving to Hartsdale. Some of you may know me from my role as President of the Hartsdale Neighbors Association (HNA). HNA has recently led initiatives that have included successfully advocating to close down illegal massage parlors in Hartsdale and leading the citizen’s movement to revitalize the Four Corners intersection. What I am most proud of in my time with HNA is our work to get people more involved in the community. HNA members have been appointed to several important local Town and Municipal Boards and we now have a Hartsdale that is more informed and engaged than at any point in recent memory. As we have seen in the past year of the Blue Wave, a new generation of political leadership is emerging in the Democratic Party and I want to bring that fresh energy to our Town.
I have been attending Town Board meetings for years and I know firsthand the problems that Greenburgh residents face in working with the Town. It is important that we have someone on the Town Council who has a financial background in order to help guide the Town in the new uncharted era of capped SALT deductions. Now more than ever, we depend on our local governments to respond to the needs of the community.
I have many specific ideas and policies that I think Greenburgh residents could benefit from. Here are some of the many ideas that I would work to implement in my time as Councilman:
1. Controlling property tax growth in the new, uncharted era of the SALT deduction cap; in my first two years I will only vote for budgets that hold the property tax rate flat. Greenburgh residents need tax relief while the town assesses the impact of the SALT deduction cap. This is possible with the right combination of fiscal discipline and planning.
2. Hiring a Business Development officer whose focus will be attracting business to Greenburgh, helping new and existing businesses navigate our regulatory landscape, and applying for grants to help bring jobs and development to our Town. We need to expand the property tax base by encouraging (not frustrating) responsible development;
3. Term limits are a vital reform that would encourage public participation in our town government. The lack of term limits gives rise to an insular culture that makes politicians complacent and reluctant to tackle tough issues. I am calling for 12-year Term limits for all elected Greenburgh officials.
4. Increasing Community Involvement- Our residents are our greatest asset. Greenburgh is a place filled with educated professionals in a wide variety of fields. We need to get people more involved in local government. We do that by respecting them and their time. Resolutions should be posted in detail online 24 hours prior to any vote and Public Comment should be prioritized at Town Board meetings to occur earlier in the agenda.
5. Edgemont Incorporation- As many people are aware, Edgemont is trying to become the 7th village in the Town of Greenburgh. I believe that Unincorporated Greenburgh is much stronger united, and hope that Edgemont does not incorporate into a village. Edgemont represents 17% of the population of Unincorporated Greenburgh and 27% of the tax revenues. If Edgemont were to incorporate, we would have to take a hard look at every aspect of Town Government to see what is most necessary to preserve. It is hard to see a future with an Incorporated Edgemont that does not result in some combination of service cuts and tax increases. I am running because I want to repair the relationship between the Town and the Edgemont community. I believe eventually, there will be a vote on incorporation and when that vote happens, I hope Edgemont residents choose not to incorporate.
I believe that civic engagement has never been more important than it is now.
If you have questions on these or any other topics, please email me at eric@ericzinger.com. You can also go to my website www.ericzinger.com or my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/EricZingerForGreenburghTownCouncil/. Thank you for your time and make sure to get out and vote!
Eric Zinger
Showing posts with label Unincorporated Greenburgh. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Unincorporated Greenburgh. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Monday, July 16, 2018
Movie Theater To Close in Unincorporated Greenburgh
Local officials were told that the theater has had a steady downturn in attendance and profits which has been experienced locally and follows regional trends. Critics of most of the movie theaters bemoan several causes for the decline, which include online movie availability services, cost of tickets, lack of good-content movies, rude and noisy patrons who spoil the movie experience for others.
Other retail businesses in the shopping center remain unaffected, at least for now, by this announcement and are not aware of any possible new tenants for the property. Zoning for the 10.5-acre property is currently for retail stores, fully enclosed commercial recreation, restaurants and cinemas.
Sunday, October 22, 2017
The Edgemont Kobayashi Maru Scenario
Star Trek fans will recognize the
Kobayashi Maru scenario reference instantly. For non-Star Trek fans, the
Kobayashi Maru scenario was an infamous no-win scenario that was part of the
curriculum for command-track cadets at Starfleet Academy in the 23rd century.
It was primarily used to assess a cadet’s discipline, character and command
capabilities when facing an impossible situation, as there is no (legitimate)
strategy that will result in a successful outcome. The protagonist of the show, Starship Enterprise Captain James T. Kirk,
played by actor William Shatner, was the only cadet in Starfleet history to
ever beat the Kobayashi Maru — by reprogramming the simulation so that it was
possible to win. This should sound familiar to Greenburgh residents.
While we never
would expect Mr Feiner to be torn between an ethical or moral dilemma, he has
repeatedly tried to bend, change, alter and scrap the rules. When the Edgemont
section of the Town began openly discussing the possibility of incorporating
into a village to pursue their goal of self destiny and better financial
control, Mr Feiner worked feverishly behind the scenes to thwart their
efforts. And, throughout it all they continued to post their thoughts, findings,
questions, points and counter-points online and express them at many assorted
meetings. At no point did it appear, at least to ABG staffers, that there was
ever anything “going on” or any ulterior motives.
Many of Mr
Feiner’s sycophants, committee appointees and supporters as well as Mr
Feiner himself claimed that the Edgemont Community Council and Robert Bernstein
were behind this move that would cripple the Town's budget and services. While
operational changes could certainly happen to Greenburgh, there were far too
many people stepping up, becoming involved and seeing Mr Feiner’s attacks as
hollow. His public reasoning for not being willing to meet with the
incorporation members was that the group was not an official entity and
could not enter into a binding contract with the Town. We believe the real
reasons are quite different.
By refusing to meet with residents, taxpayers and constituents of the Town regardless of their philosophies, intent or goals, Mr Feiner was already taking a position against incorporation and intentionally alienating some who may have been on the fence about incorporation. His steadfast anti-incorporation position very definitely worked against him. Mr Feiner, who as Supervisor is supposed to remain neutral according to NYS law, continued to rail against incorporation going out of his way to make his anti-incorporation position well-known through other media outlets friendly to him. In fact, emails publicized by many residents and civic associations from Town Hall repeatedly proved this point out time and again.
Once the petitions were finally
accepted at Town Hall, another in a series of calculated missteps by Mr
Feiner's crew, probably under his orders, he waited until the end of the
allotted time period to render his incorporation decision, saying, “No!”
Undeterred, the incorporation members forged ahead. But next would be the
unauthorized expenditure of Town funds to hire a retired judge so he could
shift any ownership of decisions Edgemont incorporators found unfavorable away
from himself saying, “It was the judge’s decision, not mine.” Next were the
subsequent private investigators sent to homes to invalidate the petition
signatures that had been submitted even while NY State law says these
expenditures were illegal. Even though Mr Feiner’s illegal position and actions
were trying to win a no-win scenario, albeit Kobayashi Maru, he forged on –
continuing his alienation of others who may have been amenable to his view but
had now changed sides.
An Article 78 is a form of
objection for the public against a municipality's decision they believe unfair,
unjust or wrong. The Edgemont Incorporation Council (EIC) filed an Article 78
against Mr Feiner once he said no to their incorporation referendum request. On
October 31, 2017, New York Supreme Court Judge Susan Cacace rejected Mr Feiner
and the Town's motion to dismiss the suit. In the Dromore Road case it was also no surprise when Judge
Cathy Siebel referenced the Fortress Bible federal discrimination case, noting Mr Feiner and the Town’s
guilty verdict for federal discrimination, lying
under oath, destroying evidence and more!
With each apparently hapless
misstep, and we know each move was very calculated by Mr Feiner, both
sides seemed to dig their heels in deeper. Now Mr Feiner has a new ploy. He has
offered the Edgemont community the ability to control its own zoning and
planning without incorporation to thwart their movement. The argument from the
EIC has always been about having better control over their own destiny. Mr
Feiner has claimed incorporation will cause the Town budget to have a $17 million
shortfall. While that number is questionable, other residents in the
Unincorporated Town have pressed Mr Feiner and his Board to explain why they
are not doing everything possible to ensure minimal budget disruption? Their
answers are hollow as they follow Mr Feiner’s mantra that incorporation will
fail and there’s no need to plan ahead. This lack of planning, whether over
incorporation, sidewalks, infrastructure, or flooding, etc., is another on the list of hallmark
shortcomings of the 24-year tenure of the Feiner Administration.
Mr Feiner’s latest idea of
allowing only Edgemont to have control over its planning and zoning is not the
only issue at play. ABG believes this latest offering to placate the EIC is
just another desperate and illegal move to segregate Edgemont from the rest of
the Town by Mr Feiner. It smacks of spot-zoning – illegal, yet still practiced with impunity by Mr Feiner and his Board. This move harkens back to his other discriminatory
practices in the Fortress Bible Church discrimination case which we are all paying for to the tune of $6.5 million dollars (of
which $1 million was paid by the insurance company). Instead of trying to work
in good faith with everyone, Mr Feiner has chosen to alienate just about
everyone - the EIC, most of Edgemont, the Unincorporated taxpayers, and the
courts. This must end.
Whether you are for or against the incorporation, this
haphazard method of governance calls to mind of the same old political games that turn
people away from participating with their government. Maybe that’s what Mr
Feiner is hoping for. But, these kinds of shenanigans, back room deals,
subterfuge, lies, discriminatory efforts and Kobayashi Maru scenarios
have no place in our Town and must end. Only then will we see A Better
Greenburgh.
Friday, July 31, 2015
United Water Warns Customers About Phone Scams
The concern about scams is an important issue. Consequently, United Water has just issued an announcement about telephone scams being tried on their customers. Most of Unincorporated Greenburgh residents are not served by United Water. Typically, the residents of the Town's Villages are their customers, specifically Ardsley, Hastings and Dobbs Ferry. Information posted on their website indicates that their customers are found in New Rochelle, Rye, Rye Brook, Bronxville, Tuckahoe, North Pelham,
Pelham Manor, Ardsley, Hastings-on-Hudson, Port Chester, and Dobbs
Ferry.
The water company noted that several customers have received telephone calls requesting payment for overdue bills. As such, United Water is advising the recipients of suspicious or questionable calls to hang up and call customer service at either (877)-266-9109, or (877)-426-8969.
If someone comes to your house claiming to be from the company, be aware that United Water employees wear uniforms and ID badges with the company name and logo, it said. The badge shows the employee’s color photograph, name, job title and date the badge was issued. Customers should also look for the white United Water van with a prominent company logo. If customers have any doubts, they should have the person wait outside while they call United Water to verify that the company has sent someone to their home. If they suspect they’re involved in a scam, they can also contact local police, the company said.
The water company noted that several customers have received telephone calls requesting payment for overdue bills. As such, United Water is advising the recipients of suspicious or questionable calls to hang up and call customer service at either (877)-266-9109, or (877)-426-8969.
If someone comes to your house claiming to be from the company, be aware that United Water employees wear uniforms and ID badges with the company name and logo, it said. The badge shows the employee’s color photograph, name, job title and date the badge was issued. Customers should also look for the white United Water van with a prominent company logo. If customers have any doubts, they should have the person wait outside while they call United Water to verify that the company has sent someone to their home. If they suspect they’re involved in a scam, they can also contact local police, the company said.
Sunday, July 6, 2014
Town To Spend Over $12+ Million Tuesday Night
Tuesday night promises to be a bonanza of spending of taxpayers money beyond their control and worst nightmares. It promises to also be a gravy train to contractors based on the agenda that is posted on the Town's website.
First up under Decision heading, shown below, is the Town's increase in taxes through rate increases for Water and Sewers. Of course the Town budget promises another tax increase when they pass the budget. Mr Feiner will posture that the Board stayed under the 2% NYS tax cap at 3.4%. The mainstream media will validate whatever he says. We hope the Town Comptroller attends this meeting, but this time comes prepared to actually provide answers to the public’s questions and doesn’t say, ”I don’t know and will have to get back to you.”
DECISION
- To consider the Proposed 2014 Capital Budget and the 2015-2016 Capital Plan of the Town of Greenburgh. The capital budget was released to the public on May 28th.
- To consider a proposed increase and improvement of the facilities of the Town's Consolidated Water District
- To consider a proposed increase and improvement of the facilities of the Town's Consolidated Sewer District.
Next up under the heading of Supervisor is an ongoing and pending controversy coming from the Town Board, where the Town Board plans to condone anti-trust actions in Greenburgh by approving a request of the remaining three automotive dealerships left in Greenburgh on Central Avenue to block any competition from coming in through the adoption of this law(below). Many have fought to stop this debacle but since the attorneys for the three car dealerships have made the case, Mr Feiner wants this passed and so it will be. These attorneys also represent numerous developers friends of Mr Feiner in the Town. What passing this change does is keep any other auto dealer from gaining access or participating in selling or repairing automobiles on Central Avenue. Here's what it says on the agenda:
SUPERVISOR FEINER
Introduction of Local Law amending Section 285-29.1 of Chapter 285 of the Code of the Town of Greenburgh entitled “Zoning,” to allow owners of pre-existing motor vehicle sales uses, motor vehicle sales lots and accessory motor vehicle repair facilities in the Central Avenue Mixed-Use Impact District to apply for a special use permit from the Town Board to alter and/or expand existing facilities.
Of course, the "mother lode" on the agenda of what taxpayers will be forced to pay for is a plethora of bond issues that total 25 expenditures by our count. This doesn't include the three-quarters of a million dollars in certiorari refunds to also be voted upon Tuesday night. The certiorari refunds are due to (mostly) businesses challenging their tax assessments. Since revaluation has never been done for the 22 years Mr Feiner has been in office, the Town, schools, fire districts, sewer districts, etc., are compelled to refund the money. So when Mr Feiner complains about the high salaries of other employees, whether they are Town employees or not, he is disingenuously trying to deflect attention away from what he is costing the taxpayers.
First up under Decision heading, shown below, is the Town's increase in taxes through rate increases for Water and Sewers. Of course the Town budget promises another tax increase when they pass the budget. Mr Feiner will posture that the Board stayed under the 2% NYS tax cap at 3.4%. The mainstream media will validate whatever he says. We hope the Town Comptroller attends this meeting, but this time comes prepared to actually provide answers to the public’s questions and doesn’t say, ”I don’t know and will have to get back to you.”
DECISION
- To consider the Proposed 2014 Capital Budget and the 2015-2016 Capital Plan of the Town of Greenburgh. The capital budget was released to the public on May 28th.
- To consider a proposed increase and improvement of the facilities of the Town's Consolidated Water District
- To consider a proposed increase and improvement of the facilities of the Town's Consolidated Sewer District.
Next up under the heading of Supervisor is an ongoing and pending controversy coming from the Town Board, where the Town Board plans to condone anti-trust actions in Greenburgh by approving a request of the remaining three automotive dealerships left in Greenburgh on Central Avenue to block any competition from coming in through the adoption of this law(below). Many have fought to stop this debacle but since the attorneys for the three car dealerships have made the case, Mr Feiner wants this passed and so it will be. These attorneys also represent numerous developers friends of Mr Feiner in the Town. What passing this change does is keep any other auto dealer from gaining access or participating in selling or repairing automobiles on Central Avenue. Here's what it says on the agenda:
SUPERVISOR FEINER
Introduction of Local Law amending Section 285-29.1 of Chapter 285 of the Code of the Town of Greenburgh entitled “Zoning,” to allow owners of pre-existing motor vehicle sales uses, motor vehicle sales lots and accessory motor vehicle repair facilities in the Central Avenue Mixed-Use Impact District to apply for a special use permit from the Town Board to alter and/or expand existing facilities.
Of course, the "mother lode" on the agenda of what taxpayers will be forced to pay for is a plethora of bond issues that total 25 expenditures by our count. This doesn't include the three-quarters of a million dollars in certiorari refunds to also be voted upon Tuesday night. The certiorari refunds are due to (mostly) businesses challenging their tax assessments. Since revaluation has never been done for the 22 years Mr Feiner has been in office, the Town, schools, fire districts, sewer districts, etc., are compelled to refund the money. So when Mr Feiner complains about the high salaries of other employees, whether they are Town employees or not, he is disingenuously trying to deflect attention away from what he is costing the taxpayers.
Here's a list of what will be presented, ultimately voted upon and wonder what this is going to cost us:
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Thursday, January 23, 2014
Board Rules Feiner Guilty!
In a not-so-surprising ruling, the Town’s Ethics Board again ruled against Mr Feiner for an ethics violation for the same thing they found him guilty of twice before. Specifically, he made a post-primary fundraising letter campaign effort sent to certain residents of Irvington, Hastings and Hartsdale. This is not only a blatant violation of the Ethics Code because it was sent to residents appointed to serve on town boards, but also may have been sent to town employees. The Town’s Ethics Code specifically prohibits elected officials from soliciting campaign contributions from persons appointed to serve on town boards and to town employees. Perhaps Mr Feiner got confused with all the mailings (read: campaigning) he’s been doing lately. This is apparently different from the other Ethics Code rule of elected officials not receiving things of value from a Town employee. An example you ask? Okay, one example might be if the Town Attorney were to say, solicit campaign ballot signatures for Town Board candidates running for office, and then swearing to the signatures’ validity as a Notary Public. That is a thing of value and prohibited by the Ethics Code. Or is it?
This is the second time in three years that Mr Feiner has been found guilty of the same offense by the Ethics Board. However, being an impotent Board under the control of the Town Board, which is ultimately under the thumb of Mr Feiner, nothing will come of this latest guilty ethics verdict. Interestingly, the last time this happened the Town Board decided to not impose any fines against Mr Feiner for his illegal behavior. It seems that they are willing to condone this behavior that is so detrimental to our Town. Since his checks and balances are ultimately controlled by him, it’s no wonder he would discriminate against the Fortress Bible Church! There, however, he could not control the outcome and it is costing the Unincorporated Town taxpayers $6,500,000 ($1M by insurance).
This time it was the Ethics Board members who received the fund raising mailing from Mr Feiner. OMG - quite the conundrum. Knowing they should at least appear to be ethically motivated, they initiated an investigation into Mr Feiner’s actions. For most people, this would be a no-brainer. But for the Ethics Board, it crosses a fine line. All Ethics Board members are selected and ratified by Mr Feiner and his Board, pledging allegiance whether overtly, openly or otherwise. Unfortunately, the impotence of the Board requires it to capitulate with every decision in Mr Feiner or the Town Board’s favor – like it or not.
ABG staffers were in attendance when the Ethics Board adjourned to executive session at its December 2 meeting to discuss the matter and then privately interview Mr Feiner. Ironically, Mr Feiner’s violation wasn’t on the agenda for that night. When pushed as to why they were adjourning to executive session, the Board’s President Jack McLaughlin stated it was to discuss personnel issues. It seems that every agency, group or Board in Greenburgh is taking greater advantage of hiding information from the public with more frequent Executive sessions. This opinion, only recently publicized, found the board accepting Mr. Feiner’s excuse that he did not knowingly solicit contributions from residents serving on town boards or from town employees. His rationale was that he purchased the mailing list from a third party and used a different third party vendor to do the actual mailing. Sounds like a convenient excuse for this Board, but a genuine crock to us. How about the admission at the end of every ad that says this ad was approved by [candidates name].
This is the second time in three years that Mr Feiner has been found guilty of the same offense by the Ethics Board. However, being an impotent Board under the control of the Town Board, which is ultimately under the thumb of Mr Feiner, nothing will come of this latest guilty ethics verdict. Interestingly, the last time this happened the Town Board decided to not impose any fines against Mr Feiner for his illegal behavior. It seems that they are willing to condone this behavior that is so detrimental to our Town. Since his checks and balances are ultimately controlled by him, it’s no wonder he would discriminate against the Fortress Bible Church! There, however, he could not control the outcome and it is costing the Unincorporated Town taxpayers $6,500,000 ($1M by insurance).
This time it was the Ethics Board members who received the fund raising mailing from Mr Feiner. OMG - quite the conundrum. Knowing they should at least appear to be ethically motivated, they initiated an investigation into Mr Feiner’s actions. For most people, this would be a no-brainer. But for the Ethics Board, it crosses a fine line. All Ethics Board members are selected and ratified by Mr Feiner and his Board, pledging allegiance whether overtly, openly or otherwise. Unfortunately, the impotence of the Board requires it to capitulate with every decision in Mr Feiner or the Town Board’s favor – like it or not.
ABG staffers were in attendance when the Ethics Board adjourned to executive session at its December 2 meeting to discuss the matter and then privately interview Mr Feiner. Ironically, Mr Feiner’s violation wasn’t on the agenda for that night. When pushed as to why they were adjourning to executive session, the Board’s President Jack McLaughlin stated it was to discuss personnel issues. It seems that every agency, group or Board in Greenburgh is taking greater advantage of hiding information from the public with more frequent Executive sessions. This opinion, only recently publicized, found the board accepting Mr. Feiner’s excuse that he did not knowingly solicit contributions from residents serving on town boards or from town employees. His rationale was that he purchased the mailing list from a third party and used a different third party vendor to do the actual mailing. Sounds like a convenient excuse for this Board, but a genuine crock to us. How about the admission at the end of every ad that says this ad was approved by [candidates name].
It’s always sadly entertaining to find out what Mr Feiner is doing by way of lawsuits, guilty verdicts, Facebook posts and/or Blogs. It’s also quite pathetic. But his disheveled, shlub-like act has worn thin and is failing him more and more. Whatever he has done, legal or otherwise, will be excused by a Board he has appointed and made sure is comprised of friendly faces. On occasion, some may bluster a bit to appear impartial, but its just a ruse. Between rigged Boards, rigged referendums, rigged bids, rigged reports, rigged zoning, rigged meetings, rigged solutions and undisclosed information, Mr Feiner and his Board should be facing more court time than County DA Janet Difiore. But, as is typical, the usual suspects will be questioned and released without even a slap on the wrist. Carry on with business as usual. If and when this changes, we may begin to see A Better Greenburgh.
Below are copies of the opinion rendered and the solicitation letter from Mr Feiner:
Below are copies of the opinion rendered and the solicitation letter from Mr Feiner:
Monday, May 20, 2013
Semantics or Another Lie?
Last Friday ABG as well as others in the media fell for Mr Feiner’s classic use of words reporting that the Town Board voted in favor of selling the former Frank’s Nursery property at 715 Dobbs Ferry Road to GameOn 365. You’ll recall that Mr Feiner violated his much-touted open government policy as he secretly met with GameOn 365 principals to close a deal even before the Town acquired the property through foreclosure. The they met to work up a lease for the property since GameOn 365 could not afford to purchase it outright. As Mr Feiner craftily tried to slip the lease through the Town Board’s well-greased approval process, an alert and vigilant G10 slammed on the brakes!
It turns Supervisor Paul Feiner said Friday afternoon the town had “decided” to sell the property to Game On 365 for $3 million. Mea culpa – we should have known better. Mr Feiner added that the developer would pay for the site’s environmental remediation, a sticking point with residents who originally fought the proposed illegal lease with a lawsuit. At a press conference to be held at 2:15PM today (real start time is 2:45PM based on past experience), Mr Feiner and his Board plan to account for the supposed 3 to 2 standing with the Board in favor of selling to GameOn 365. It’s not always good to be correct, but ABG predicted this outcome for quite some time now. Still, there never was a public vote to sell to GameOn 365!
At the mid-afternoon press conference to be held at 715 Dobbs Ferry Road, Mr Feiner and crew intend to explain their rationale to accept a $3 million bid from Game On 365, bypassing a $3.5 million offer from Elm Street Sports Group, who operates a sports training facility in Ardsley. Here’s a sampling of what ABG predicts will be said to some degree or another, “The Town Board wrestled with which offer to accept for the property. Or, we did our due diligence and tried to get as much money as we possibly could for the land. Or, we had a fiduciary responsibility to the Town and were able to get more money from GameOn 365. Or, GameOn 365 has always be our company of choice because (and here is where excuses won’t matter) they offered to develop the land when no one else would; or, they have a terrific track record with their smaller facilities; or, I see this area being developed as a sports oriented area and as soon as we can drive out the other nurseries and driving range, we will spot zone the property for any developer who stays with a sports theme. Or, we, uh, I mean GameOn 365 will pay for all remediation and we haven’t decided if we’ll give them rental credits for doing so. Or, we have nothing against House of Sports; or, House of Sports is a fine company, but we needed to let someone else have a shot; or, we weren’t sure House of Sports was serious with their offer and Francis said that publicly numerous times; or, I made this decision years ago and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let anyone stop me!” Choose whatever line works the best for you.
It turns Supervisor Paul Feiner said Friday afternoon the town had “decided” to sell the property to Game On 365 for $3 million. Mea culpa – we should have known better. Mr Feiner added that the developer would pay for the site’s environmental remediation, a sticking point with residents who originally fought the proposed illegal lease with a lawsuit. At a press conference to be held at 2:15PM today (real start time is 2:45PM based on past experience), Mr Feiner and his Board plan to account for the supposed 3 to 2 standing with the Board in favor of selling to GameOn 365. It’s not always good to be correct, but ABG predicted this outcome for quite some time now. Still, there never was a public vote to sell to GameOn 365!
So at this afternoon’s meeting, ABG hopes that the press will truly question the motivations by those leaders in the Town, why they are ignoring the better offer, and what other elements of this deal will be costing the residents and for how much? Whatever it is, it will surely have a proctological outcome for the Unincorporated Greenburgh residents. Why is everyone ignoring them?.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Under The Circus’ Big Tent
The April 24th Town Board meeting took over two hours to get underway after those in attendance endured presentation after presentation by The Paul. No matter how self-serving these may be, ABG endorses starting the meetings on time and focusing on Town business, not campaigning by The Paul. Seeking cans of Red Bull or just needing a break, people were in and out of the hall repeatedly. If this continues, perhaps The Paul should install easy chair recliners with beverage holders.
Once the public hearings began, speaker after speaker hammered home the fact that The Paul and his Board are being asked the same questions again and again, meeting after meeting and still not sharing information with the public. ABG concurs. Apparently, The Paul’s “Open Government” is only open when it is convenient for him or he has information he wishes to get out. It appears his and the Board’s every move are secretly guarded. The sadder commentary here is that the media in Westchester could be doing their job by investigating his claims, uncovering his deceit and exposing it. Instead, they choose to be his lapdogs and reprint his press releases verbatim or put a positive spin on issues that would be crippling to any other politician.
During the Town Board meetings, the Board has a habit of waiting for a speaker to finish their comments or asking all of their questions and then take their seat before they will address any queries that were made. That is, if they choose to address them. Most times they will remain silent and offer the public no information! One speaker asked about numerous issues in the Town, with his final question being what was the information the Board was seeking regarding the RFP’s for the Frank’s Nursery property and the WestHelp property? As he was returning to his seat, The Paul commented, “I just want to say that somebody was interfering with the process. This is not a game. This is not entertainment. This is not a circus. This is a business. We have a fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayers of Greenburgh to get the best possible deal for the Town. And if people in the community are abusing it, we’re not going to stand for that.We’ll have to keep more things to ourselves if we are legally able to do. And that’s the reason we’re not giving people as much up to date information as the neg [sic]. I don’t want people making phone calls discouraging some of the better bidders not to deal with the Town.” This is a business? Really? The Paul and this Board have yet to run anything as if it were a business. More importantly, if one resident has a conversation with a bidder and the bidder chooses to withdraw, what does that say about the quality and strength of The Paul’s “business sense” and dealings? A deal shouldn’t be so weak as to collapse because of one conversation.
What The Paul failed to mention was that the resident spoke to a partner of the company biding on the project that was a school friend of The Paul! Ironically, the next person called to the podium to speak was in fact the same resident. He took about four of his five alloted minutes to counter what The Paul had said. It’s interesting that when it’s something The Paul or his Board wants, they will insult and denigrate whomever they please. Yet they state on each meeting’s agenda that personal attacks will not be tolerated. While their common place hypocritical behavior is disgusting, they do control the microphone and get away with the same bad behavior they so desperately try to keep away from themselves. It pathetic.
Other speakers asked about the amount of money the Ardsley Water Wheel property for affordable housing was going to “net” for the Village of Ardsley? Were the other Villages and most importantly the Unincorporated portion of the Town going to get any money as well? No answer. As usual, The Paul was playing with his phone during this speakers limited time. The speaker challenged him to pay attention to what she was saying. The Paul had the audacity to say he had posed her question to a Town forum he participates with and was reading their response. When she requested he read their response, he refused, claiming he wanted to discuss it with the Board privately before sharing it. So why even bring it up? She promised to fax a FOIL request for the information upon her return home.
The Town Board meetings go along like this meeting after meeting. The Town is run more poorly day after day. Undeserving politicians seeking reelection unopposed is not good for the public or the Town. Alluding to the old saying about how power corrupts, it has absolutely corrupted our Town leadership. Morale of our employees is at its lowest of all time. Salaries for the top level of our Town are disproportionately high. The Town is keeling and going to capsize soon. We need a change in Town leadership and fast! We can only hope.
Once the public hearings began, speaker after speaker hammered home the fact that The Paul and his Board are being asked the same questions again and again, meeting after meeting and still not sharing information with the public. ABG concurs. Apparently, The Paul’s “Open Government” is only open when it is convenient for him or he has information he wishes to get out. It appears his and the Board’s every move are secretly guarded. The sadder commentary here is that the media in Westchester could be doing their job by investigating his claims, uncovering his deceit and exposing it. Instead, they choose to be his lapdogs and reprint his press releases verbatim or put a positive spin on issues that would be crippling to any other politician.
During the Town Board meetings, the Board has a habit of waiting for a speaker to finish their comments or asking all of their questions and then take their seat before they will address any queries that were made. That is, if they choose to address them. Most times they will remain silent and offer the public no information! One speaker asked about numerous issues in the Town, with his final question being what was the information the Board was seeking regarding the RFP’s for the Frank’s Nursery property and the WestHelp property? As he was returning to his seat, The Paul commented, “I just want to say that somebody was interfering with the process. This is not a game. This is not entertainment. This is not a circus. This is a business. We have a fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayers of Greenburgh to get the best possible deal for the Town. And if people in the community are abusing it, we’re not going to stand for that.We’ll have to keep more things to ourselves if we are legally able to do. And that’s the reason we’re not giving people as much up to date information as the neg [sic]. I don’t want people making phone calls discouraging some of the better bidders not to deal with the Town.” This is a business? Really? The Paul and this Board have yet to run anything as if it were a business. More importantly, if one resident has a conversation with a bidder and the bidder chooses to withdraw, what does that say about the quality and strength of The Paul’s “business sense” and dealings? A deal shouldn’t be so weak as to collapse because of one conversation.
What The Paul failed to mention was that the resident spoke to a partner of the company biding on the project that was a school friend of The Paul! Ironically, the next person called to the podium to speak was in fact the same resident. He took about four of his five alloted minutes to counter what The Paul had said. It’s interesting that when it’s something The Paul or his Board wants, they will insult and denigrate whomever they please. Yet they state on each meeting’s agenda that personal attacks will not be tolerated. While their common place hypocritical behavior is disgusting, they do control the microphone and get away with the same bad behavior they so desperately try to keep away from themselves. It pathetic.
Other speakers asked about the amount of money the Ardsley Water Wheel property for affordable housing was going to “net” for the Village of Ardsley? Were the other Villages and most importantly the Unincorporated portion of the Town going to get any money as well? No answer. As usual, The Paul was playing with his phone during this speakers limited time. The speaker challenged him to pay attention to what she was saying. The Paul had the audacity to say he had posed her question to a Town forum he participates with and was reading their response. When she requested he read their response, he refused, claiming he wanted to discuss it with the Board privately before sharing it. So why even bring it up? She promised to fax a FOIL request for the information upon her return home.
The Town Board meetings go along like this meeting after meeting. The Town is run more poorly day after day. Undeserving politicians seeking reelection unopposed is not good for the public or the Town. Alluding to the old saying about how power corrupts, it has absolutely corrupted our Town leadership. Morale of our employees is at its lowest of all time. Salaries for the top level of our Town are disproportionately high. The Town is keeling and going to capsize soon. We need a change in Town leadership and fast! We can only hope.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Et Tu?
As the saying goes, everything that goes around, comes around. It’s finally come around to The Paul. After abusing the trust placed with him by the electorate, he continually, routinely and cavalierly tossed their concerns aside and has done what he wanted. He spot-zoned numerous properties throughout the Unincorporated Town without regard to input and concerns voiced by the neighborhoods. He granted whatever any developer asked for and continues to do this today. As part of the 1%-ers, he was able to nestle his family quite comfortably in the gated community of Boulder Ridge at the edge of the Hastings-on-Hudson border near Costco, Home Depot and Stew Leonard’s.
There are discussions underway for a proposed commercial and residential development in Yonkers on the back side or northern cap of the Stew Leonard’s, Home Depot and Costco property. This property abuts the gated wonderland that The Paul lives in and would ultimately stunt the view of the Boulder Ridge homes. How? The proposal is to build a multiple use retail building encompassing 255,000 square feet of space by the retail giant Target and 400 residential apartments. This is exactly the right place for this type of combined project for Yonkers. Unless you are The Paul. It’s a bit complicated and yet so very simple. The Paul and his neighbors cannot complain that this will hurt their cherished view, or that these apartments may become low-income or even Section 8 housing (well practiced in Yonkers), and supposedly lower the value of their million dollar homes. So, they are saying that the increase in traffic will be a big issue for the area.
Really? Traffic as a problem? Nah! Every project that has been proposed in Greenburgh and come in front of the Town Board where the issue of increased traffic was a concern has been ignored by The Paul and his “go-along” Board. Add to the woes of increased local traffic due to the never-ending and over-budgeted I-287, 15-year debacle and you have significant traffic issues. This 15-year project has caused an upheaval in traffic on local roads as well as created massive traffic jams on the highway. But every traffic study supplied for every project, regardless of the scope or results were ignored by The Paul and his Stepford Board. Several projects where these results were ignored were the super Stop and Shop on Rt 119, the Greenburgh Health Center on Knollwood Road, WestHab in Fulton Park, Brightview Assisted Living Center at Rt 119 and Benedict Avenue and Dromore Road. All neighborhood pleas were ignored.
Interestingly, when the traffic study for Fulton Park was released and discussed, the report stated that the traffic in the area was already at an “F” rating. This should not be misconstrued as an “F” that a student would receive on a test. It is part of an alphabetical rating system that has a different meaning, and yet in this case had the same result! We all know that any report and its figures can be presented to deliver the results the presenter desires. Westhab’s traffic “expert” stated that the forty or fifty car increase in traffic at rush hour and during the course of the day in an already overburdened roadway system would be “negligible”. The Planning Board ignore these findings but the Zoning Board voted against the Westhab project and actually validated the neighborhood’s complaint and voted to recommend against a zoning change and halt the project. ABG believes The Paul told his Board, in a closed-door Executive session, to ignore this recommendation and vote for the massive zoning change. Ignore the traffic report details, the nay vote from Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations, the neighborhood’s collective voices, and push his pet project through – which they did!
When the Worthington-Woodlands Civic Association complained to The Paul and the Town Board against the sports bubble that GameOn 365 wanted to build at the old Frank’s Nursery property at 715 Dobbs Ferry Road, they soon found that The Paul not only supported the 83 foot, 8-story tall sports bubble, The Paul brokered the deal! Since when does a public official get involved with pushing a private sector deal through the governmental maze for developers? Since they came to Greenburgh. ABG cannot prove collusion but indeed wonders why The Paul and his minions would do this?
The shoe now appears to be on the other foot. The Paul’s position as Supervisor, already in double-overtime and in rapid decline, cannot stop the City of Yonkers from moving forward with developing their industrial area by the Yonkers toll booth/Stew Leonard’s/Home Depot/Costco’s. Like Fulton Park, the industrial area is right next to a residential area and Greenburgh’s forefathers intent was to allow a buffer from light commercial to residential and preserve the integrity of the residential neighborhood. But not The Paul. Rather than leave a buffer for the transition into Fulton Park, a much less affluent neighborhood than Boulder Ridge, The Paul decided to build and build big.
Yonkers and their developers have decided to do what is good for them, within their city and unfortunately, ignore the surrounding neighborhood. We recognize that Yonkers is in dire straights. The Paul has created the same environment in Greenburgh as we’ve experienced a decline in our quality of life throughout the Town. Perhaps the Boulder Ridge residents will not only view these stores and apartment buildings from their back windows, but will recognize this same decline other residents throughout Greenburgh have endured for years at the hands of The Paul. Et Tu? We can only hope.
There are discussions underway for a proposed commercial and residential development in Yonkers on the back side or northern cap of the Stew Leonard’s, Home Depot and Costco property. This property abuts the gated wonderland that The Paul lives in and would ultimately stunt the view of the Boulder Ridge homes. How? The proposal is to build a multiple use retail building encompassing 255,000 square feet of space by the retail giant Target and 400 residential apartments. This is exactly the right place for this type of combined project for Yonkers. Unless you are The Paul. It’s a bit complicated and yet so very simple. The Paul and his neighbors cannot complain that this will hurt their cherished view, or that these apartments may become low-income or even Section 8 housing (well practiced in Yonkers), and supposedly lower the value of their million dollar homes. So, they are saying that the increase in traffic will be a big issue for the area.
Really? Traffic as a problem? Nah! Every project that has been proposed in Greenburgh and come in front of the Town Board where the issue of increased traffic was a concern has been ignored by The Paul and his “go-along” Board. Add to the woes of increased local traffic due to the never-ending and over-budgeted I-287, 15-year debacle and you have significant traffic issues. This 15-year project has caused an upheaval in traffic on local roads as well as created massive traffic jams on the highway. But every traffic study supplied for every project, regardless of the scope or results were ignored by The Paul and his Stepford Board. Several projects where these results were ignored were the super Stop and Shop on Rt 119, the Greenburgh Health Center on Knollwood Road, WestHab in Fulton Park, Brightview Assisted Living Center at Rt 119 and Benedict Avenue and Dromore Road. All neighborhood pleas were ignored.
Interestingly, when the traffic study for Fulton Park was released and discussed, the report stated that the traffic in the area was already at an “F” rating. This should not be misconstrued as an “F” that a student would receive on a test. It is part of an alphabetical rating system that has a different meaning, and yet in this case had the same result! We all know that any report and its figures can be presented to deliver the results the presenter desires. Westhab’s traffic “expert” stated that the forty or fifty car increase in traffic at rush hour and during the course of the day in an already overburdened roadway system would be “negligible”. The Planning Board ignore these findings but the Zoning Board voted against the Westhab project and actually validated the neighborhood’s complaint and voted to recommend against a zoning change and halt the project. ABG believes The Paul told his Board, in a closed-door Executive session, to ignore this recommendation and vote for the massive zoning change. Ignore the traffic report details, the nay vote from Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations, the neighborhood’s collective voices, and push his pet project through – which they did!
When the Worthington-Woodlands Civic Association complained to The Paul and the Town Board against the sports bubble that GameOn 365 wanted to build at the old Frank’s Nursery property at 715 Dobbs Ferry Road, they soon found that The Paul not only supported the 83 foot, 8-story tall sports bubble, The Paul brokered the deal! Since when does a public official get involved with pushing a private sector deal through the governmental maze for developers? Since they came to Greenburgh. ABG cannot prove collusion but indeed wonders why The Paul and his minions would do this?
The shoe now appears to be on the other foot. The Paul’s position as Supervisor, already in double-overtime and in rapid decline, cannot stop the City of Yonkers from moving forward with developing their industrial area by the Yonkers toll booth/Stew Leonard’s/Home Depot/Costco’s. Like Fulton Park, the industrial area is right next to a residential area and Greenburgh’s forefathers intent was to allow a buffer from light commercial to residential and preserve the integrity of the residential neighborhood. But not The Paul. Rather than leave a buffer for the transition into Fulton Park, a much less affluent neighborhood than Boulder Ridge, The Paul decided to build and build big.
Yonkers and their developers have decided to do what is good for them, within their city and unfortunately, ignore the surrounding neighborhood. We recognize that Yonkers is in dire straights. The Paul has created the same environment in Greenburgh as we’ve experienced a decline in our quality of life throughout the Town. Perhaps the Boulder Ridge residents will not only view these stores and apartment buildings from their back windows, but will recognize this same decline other residents throughout Greenburgh have endured for years at the hands of The Paul. Et Tu? We can only hope.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Pleasantville Follows Greenburgh’s Wrong Course
In an article ABG found online from the White Plains Examiner, entitled, “Changes to P’ville Assisted Living Plan; Zoning Request Submitted” (http://www.theexaminernews.com/changes-to-pville-assisted-living-plan-zoning-request-submitted/), we found an eery and disappointing similarity to the zoning law change The Paul trumpeted through the Town Board’s phony approval process, aka “rubber stamp” for Brightview Assisted Living. In a move to to create an assisted living community behind Pleasantville’s United Methodist Church, a senior housing developer has proposed to officially request a zoning text amendment and map change as of last week.
The Wellesley, Massachusetts based Benchmark Senior Living representatives explained their plan at Monday’s Pleasantville Village Board meeting. They’ve proposed a plan for a 3.5-acre parcel of land from the church if their proposal receives approvals from the village. Benchmark is seeking approval for a new “floating zone” called the Eldercare Community District. This is the first in a series of steps necessary for the applicant to eventually build on the land. The “floating zone” would allow the village board the ability to approve assisted living facilities in areas that meet certain criteria, such as the requirement to develop the project on at least three acres with frontage on a state or county road. Sounds familiar.
Benchmark’s plan includes a four-story, 87-unit building in a residential area. Similarly, the Brightview Assisted Living Center facility is proposing to build a 90-unit four story building on a 4 acre parcel of land. They wrote the zoning law change and gave it to The Paul to rubber stamp to have their proposal move forward. Interestingly, Pleasantville Mayor Peter Scherer said the board has yet to receive the text of the amendment because Benchmark is still “tinkering” with it. Wow! Does anyone else see a problem with a developer drafting the zoning change they need to proceed with a for-profit proposal? Sounds familiar.
ABG has previously posted that our Town Board, Planning Board, Legal and Building Departments should be capable of writing an amendment to Greenburgh’s existing Zoning Law for Assisted Living Facilities within the Town. We would certainly hope for all the money Greenburgh taxpayers are losing under The Paul’s tenure that our own people could capably handle this and not the applicant! Although, when questioned before about another building proposal in Fairview, Councilman Francis “Back Pocket” Sheehan stated it was not unusual for contractors and developers to write zoning changes for their projects in the Town where one does not exist.
“The idea is to make it possible to allow certain kinds of uses, in this case assisted living, in various other zones without changing the underlying zoning,” Scherer said. “When we get it, we’ll have the option to accept it, reject it or to say we want to change it some way.” While we certainly appreciate the intent of what is being crafted to address Assisted Living facilities, it should be taken out of the hands of the developer. In fact, in Greenburgh, we have a Comprehensive Steering Committee that has been trying to develop and introduce a comprehensive plan for the Town. They should be writing the zoning amendment for the Town. The Paul has stalled their movement by adding more tasks for them to perform before the Comprehensive Plan can be introduced and even adopted. Once the Comprehensive Plan is adopted by the Town, The Paul’s wholesaling of the Unincorporated Greenburgh will be severely stunted. It’s probably why he won’t allow their mission to reach consummation!
Whether or not a good, usable, zoning change is offered or another developer gets to take advantage of this Village remains to be seen. We hope their elected officials are less yielding than Greenburgh’s and will focus on what is right for the Village and it’s residents, not the developer. We can only hope.
The Wellesley, Massachusetts based Benchmark Senior Living representatives explained their plan at Monday’s Pleasantville Village Board meeting. They’ve proposed a plan for a 3.5-acre parcel of land from the church if their proposal receives approvals from the village. Benchmark is seeking approval for a new “floating zone” called the Eldercare Community District. This is the first in a series of steps necessary for the applicant to eventually build on the land. The “floating zone” would allow the village board the ability to approve assisted living facilities in areas that meet certain criteria, such as the requirement to develop the project on at least three acres with frontage on a state or county road. Sounds familiar.
Benchmark’s plan includes a four-story, 87-unit building in a residential area. Similarly, the Brightview Assisted Living Center facility is proposing to build a 90-unit four story building on a 4 acre parcel of land. They wrote the zoning law change and gave it to The Paul to rubber stamp to have their proposal move forward. Interestingly, Pleasantville Mayor Peter Scherer said the board has yet to receive the text of the amendment because Benchmark is still “tinkering” with it. Wow! Does anyone else see a problem with a developer drafting the zoning change they need to proceed with a for-profit proposal? Sounds familiar.
ABG has previously posted that our Town Board, Planning Board, Legal and Building Departments should be capable of writing an amendment to Greenburgh’s existing Zoning Law for Assisted Living Facilities within the Town. We would certainly hope for all the money Greenburgh taxpayers are losing under The Paul’s tenure that our own people could capably handle this and not the applicant! Although, when questioned before about another building proposal in Fairview, Councilman Francis “Back Pocket” Sheehan stated it was not unusual for contractors and developers to write zoning changes for their projects in the Town where one does not exist.
“The idea is to make it possible to allow certain kinds of uses, in this case assisted living, in various other zones without changing the underlying zoning,” Scherer said. “When we get it, we’ll have the option to accept it, reject it or to say we want to change it some way.” While we certainly appreciate the intent of what is being crafted to address Assisted Living facilities, it should be taken out of the hands of the developer. In fact, in Greenburgh, we have a Comprehensive Steering Committee that has been trying to develop and introduce a comprehensive plan for the Town. They should be writing the zoning amendment for the Town. The Paul has stalled their movement by adding more tasks for them to perform before the Comprehensive Plan can be introduced and even adopted. Once the Comprehensive Plan is adopted by the Town, The Paul’s wholesaling of the Unincorporated Greenburgh will be severely stunted. It’s probably why he won’t allow their mission to reach consummation!
Whether or not a good, usable, zoning change is offered or another developer gets to take advantage of this Village remains to be seen. We hope their elected officials are less yielding than Greenburgh’s and will focus on what is right for the Village and it’s residents, not the developer. We can only hope.
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