Westchester Guardian

PRESORTEDSTANDARD

PERMIT #3036WHITE PLAINS NY

Westchester’s Most Influential WeeklyVol. V No. VIII Thursday, February 24, 2011

westchesterguardian.com

AG to FEDSPg 6

Albany Correspondent

Pg 9

Sounds of BluePg 13

A Church BurnsPg 15

CompulsionPg 16

TelluridePg 17

Selwyn DaysPg 18

An Alternative Budget?

Pg 8

White Plains MayorAdam Bradley Resigns

At 5:00 P.M. on Friday, February 18th, Adam Bradley announced his resignation as Mayor of the City of White Plains.

See full story on page 7

Page 2 The WesTchesTer GuardIaN ThursdaY, FebruarY 24, 2011

westchesterguard ian .com

Westchester’s Most Influential Weekly

Guardian News Corp. P.O. Box 8

New Rochelle, New York 10801

Sam Zherka , Publisher & President [email protected]

Hezi Aris, Editor-in-Chief & Vice President [email protected]

Advertising: (914) 632-2540 News and Photos: (914) 632-2540

Fax: (914) 633-0806

Published online every Monday Print edition distributed Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday

Graphic Design: Watterson Studios, Inc. wattersonstudios.com

Of Significance

hezitorial .....................................................................................2business .......................................................................................3community .................................................................................4crime ...........................................................................................5environment ................................................................................6Government ................................................................................7Labor..........................................................................................11Letters ........................................................................................12Music .........................................................................................13Politics ........................................................................................14shifting Gears ...........................................................................15showprep ...................................................................................15spoof ..........................................................................................15Theatre .......................................................................................16Travel .........................................................................................17Truth and Justice .......................................................................18Legal Notices .............................................................................19

The Hezitorial by Hezi Aris

The honorable Joseph Nocca, chairman of the Yonkers board of ethics conducted the February 17, 2011 meeting via a telephone conference connection before a full board membership shy one. here is the link to the agenda: http://foilyonkers.blogspot.com/. Four members of the Yonkers corporation counsel, including Mssrs blanchard and dunphy where in attendance. The big guns were in attendance to weigh in upon Inspector General dan schorr’s referral to the Yonkers ethics board of the non-payment for services rendered by the Yonkers Parking authority for the benefit of Yonkers city council Majority Leader Patricia Mcdow’s parking of her bMW sedan without payment.

I.G. schorr stipulated the years over which non-payment for storage of the bMW sedan took place was for only three years. how Mr schorr could infer such a fact is absurd. The vehicle was parked at the buena Vista Parking Lot for over six years. This is deduced by the fact

that the car had an expired inspection sticker that was out of date for over six years. Further still, the vehicle had no license plates screwed into its body. any vehicle in such condition would have been ticketed, and eventually towed out of the facility at the owner’s expense. One must ask who advised the Yonkers Parking Violations bureau not to ticket her vehicle.

The honorable Nocca railed at the public notice the telling of Mcdow’s theft of service in the media. hon. Nocca spoke to its being divulged in newspaper and its mention on radio. The first telling was in virtual print in the Yonkers Tribune, and on radio on the On the Level with Narog and aris heard on WVOX-1460 aM. Judge Nocca was not as incensed by the theft of services. (Reference - The Hezitorial: The Price of Seduction by hezi aris, first printed september 25, 2010.)

When I.G schorr referred the issue to the Yonkers board of ethics on January 21, 2011, he offered that Ms Mcdow’s vehicle was parked

Yonkers Inspector General Schorr and the Yonkers Board of Ethics Aid and Abet in Theft of Services Rendered by Yonkers Parking Authority to Yonkers City Majority Leader McDow

Mea Culpa, By Hezi Arisan error was recognized to have been overlooked in the February 17, 2011, Op-ed column,

entitled Putnam County Term Limits Law by anthony s. Fusco. In the 7th paragraph, it was stated, “The Legislative chairman has also been known to dissuade freshman legislators for proposing new legislation by heaping criticisms and revisions on their intended laws, yet giving no assistance in the actual drafting as is the purpose of his position.” It was intended to read, “The Legislative counsel….”

I sincerely apologize for any confusion and / or misunderstanding this error may have caused. Hezi Aris is the editor of The Westchester Guardian.

RADIO

Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins On the Level with Narog and Aris

New rochelle, NY -- New York state senator andrea stewart-cousins is richard Narog’s and hezi aris’ guest this Tuesday, February 22nd, from 10 - 11 a.m., on WVOX-1460 aM on your radio dial and worldwide on www.WVOX.com.

New York state assemblyman steve Katz is our guest on March 1st, and assemblyman Mike spano is our guest on March 8th. bronxville Mayor Mary c. Marvin and bronxville Village Manager harold Porr III are our guests later in the month.

Listeners and readers are invited to send a question to [email protected] for possible use prior to any shows’ airing and even during the course of an interview.

Wednesday mornings at 8:37 am when he and bob Marrone discuss issues on the Good Morning Westchester radio program hosted by bob Marrone.

Page 3The WesTchesTer GuardIaN ThursdaY, FebruarY 24, 2011

THE HEZITORIAL

at the buena Vista Parking Facility for three years. Was IG schorr attempting to diminish the value of the theft of services stolen to a lower figure by the very nature of the length of time the automobile was “stored” so as to avoid a civil case against Majority leader Mcdow that would be based upon the theft of services tallying a greater sum? New York state Penal Law requires different elements of proof in a criminal case than in a civil case. The threshold for proving a criminal case may be too great to prove, but a civil case is a logical avenue to be pursued. The issue is evidently to great for Inspector General schorr to ascertain.

This reporter knows of those who use the YPa facility at the buena Vista Parking lot who pay approximately $75 per month on a yearly basis since the opening of the facility. using that figure, Ms Mcdow is liable to pay the YPa for services rendered for storing her bMW at the very least, that is for three years, the sum of $2,700.00. If the sum is totaled for 6 years, the value of the theft of wervices is equal to $5,400.00. I lawyer may best advise Yonkers Majority Leader Patricia Mcdow whether the penalties under NYs Penal Law are greater the higher the value of the theft of services rendered.

The hon. Nocca had the audacity to prejudice the case by pointing out that as far as he is concerned, ownership of the bMW is in question. he contends there is no proof to that end. he is mistaken on that count among others. The YPa contends the vehicle was removed from the buena Vista Parking Lot in december

at the behest of Ms Mcdow. The hon. Nocca will have to spin another tale.

This writer is offended the executive session predicted to take place behind closed doors to media, and at which the stenographer is also not present, “spin” was offered by the hon. Nocca. It may behoove the entire Yonkers board of ethics to quickly disband if a credible resolution to Majority Leader Patricia Mcdow’s conducted is not fully addressed. Further the Yonkers board of ethics must demand IG schorr delineate how he defined the theft of services to have lasted only for the duration of three years and not over six years.

This whole issue will be white-washed to save the vote controlled by the Majority Leader who is term-limited. For all the years she has represented the 1st district, the votes she cast on the Yonkers city council on issues before the Yonkers city council are suspect. Was there a quid pro quo?

The inference is as clear as the Florida sunshine; Yonkers Inspector General schorr and the Yonkers board of ethics are engaged in aiding and abetting Majority Leader Patricia Mcdow not to pay for services rendered for the storage of her bMW at the Yonkers Parking authority.

The People will judge, no matter the spin.

hezi aris is the publisher / editor of the Yonkers Tribune and The editor of The Westchester Guardian.

BUSINESS

bedford hills, NY -- assemblyman robert J. castelli (r, c – Golden’s bridge) was on hand for the ribbon cutting at the grand re-opening of the Mcdonald’s restaurant in bedford hills on February 10, 2011. he was joined by county Legislator Peter harckham, bedford Town supervisor Lee roberts, and bryan colley, the owner of the colley Group which operates the Mcdonald’s in bedford hills.

“I am always thrilled to see our citizens make a re-investment in our community,” castelli said. “The commitment

Continued on page 4

Grand Re-opening of McDonald’s in Bedford Hills

(L-R): Ronald McDonald, Bryan Colley of the Colley Group and Assemblyman Castelli during the presentation of the $5,000 check to Ronald

McDonald House on February 11th, 2011.


THE HEZITORIAL COMMUNITY

PAGE 20 THE WESTCHESTER GUARDIAN THURSDAY, APRIL 8, 2010

LEGAL NOTICES

Mission Statement� e Westchester Guardian is a weekly newspaper devot-

ed to the unbiased reporting of events and developments that are newsworthy and signi� cant to readers living in, and/or employed in, Westchester County. � e Guardian

will strive to report fairly, and objectively, reliable informa-tion without favor or compromise. Our � rst duty will be to the PEOPLE’S RIGHT TO KNOW, by the exposure of truth, without fear or hesitation, no matter where the pursuit may lead, in the � nest tradition of FREEDOM OF THE PRESS.

� e Guardian will cover news and events relevant to residents and businesses all over Westchester County. As a weekly, rather than focusing on the immediacy of delivery more associated with daily journals, we will instead seek to

provide the broader, more comprehensive, chronological step-by-step ac-counting of events, enlightened with analysis, where appropriate.

From amongst journalism’s classic key-words: who, what, when, where, why, and how, the why and how will drive our pursuit. We will use our more abundant time, and our resources, to get past the initial ‘spin’ and ‘damage control’ o en characteristic of immediate news releases, to reach the very heart of the matter: the truth. We will take our readers to a point of under-standing and insight which cannot be obtained elsewhere.

To succeed, we must recognize from the outset that bigger is not neces-sarily better. And, furthermore, we will acknowledge that we cannot be all things to all readers. We must carefully balance the presentation of relevant, hard-hitting, Westchester news and commentary, with features and columns useful in daily living and employment in, and around, the county. We must stay trim and � exible if we are to succeed.

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CLASSIFIED News & Notes from Northern WestchesterBy Mark Jeffers

Continued from page 3

to revitalize the Mcdonald’s on route 117 in bedford represents Mr. colley’s commitment to keep our community economically vital.”

during the re-opening ceremony, colley presented a $500 donation to the boy scouts of america Troop of the hudson Valley. Following a tour of the newly renovated restaurant with assemblyman castelli, he then presented a $5,000 check to ronald Mcdonald house by the Maria Fareri children’s hospital in Valhalla.

“The generous contribution to the ronald Mcdonald house represents Mr. colley’s and Mcdonald’s of bedford hills’ commitment to provide assistance to our Westchester families in times of crisis,” castelli said. “I applaud Mr. colley for his generous donation to the ronald Mcdonald house and to our local boy

scouts and wish him well in his commit-ment to continue the revitalization of our community.”

(L-R) : Bryan Colley of the Colley Group, Ronald McDonald, Bedford Town Supervisor

Lee Roberts, Assemblyman Robert Castelli, County Legislator Peter Harckham and

Eugene Colley of the Colley Group cut the ribbon at the grand re-opening ceremony of

McDonald’s Restaurant on Route 117 in Bedford Hills on February 10th, 2011.

Grand Re-opening of Mcdonald’s in Bedford Hills

a big question swirling around the area lately is just where exactly does Governor andrew cuomo live? some say

Mount Kisco, officially he resides in New castle. does it really matter as long as he pays taxes to both governments... for that matter, he can live in bedford and help me pay my taxes…

The Katonah Pharmacy, along with other local businesses, are collecting much needed supplies in support of our troops stationed in afghanistan. They are looking for some of the following items: hand warmers, dry soup packets, soap, toothpaste, shampoo, gum, snacks and sunscreen. This is a wonderful project for the whole family to get involved in.

cool things (and I’m not referring to the snow) are happening at the Trailside Nature Museum (routes 121 and 35). They have trails for hiking. after your hike on February 26th, stop in and learn how american Indians developed the process of making maple syrup. “american Indians sugaring,” sounds sweet to me…

This story warmed my heart and my stomach…Panera bread in bedford hills recently donated gloves and hats for chil-dren during their annual hat drive. In exchange for a donation, patrons received a free cup of delicious hot soup. The event was held in conjunction with big brothers big sisters Family services of Westchester.

Our friends at the Junior League of Northern Westchester will be holding their 5th annual “around the World in 80 Wines Gala” on Friday april 8th at the brynwood Golf & country club in armonk. For more information give them a call at 914-234-4714, I think my wife is calling them now…

and speaking of wines, did you know that our buddy Pete costello at hilltop Wines & spirits in chappaqua has wine tasting almost every saturday? Give Pete a call, or better yet, stop by to find out when the next great wine event will be held, 914-238-8422.

The ancient Order of hibernians, division 16, have announced that the 21st annual st. Patrick’s day Parade

will be held on saturday, March 12, at 1:00 p.m., along Main street in Mount Kisco. The Jeffers family are big fans of the parade and my daughters have all marched in the past. This year’s Grand Marshall is Mount Kisco Village Trustee George Griffin.

In library notes…The bedford hills Free Library, (not to be confused with The bedford hills “expensive” Library) is holding its on-going book sale in the front entryway. Good books at great prices, stop by and check it out…

and good news, the Mount Kisco Public Library has reopened after a burst water pipe caused some water damage to some of their rooms.

as you can probably tell, simple to me is best…well, the children’s Learning center at the Katonah Museum of art has a very nice collection called “The dot and Ish,” which are simple illustrations; sounds like a great exhibit to visit over the winter break. call the museum for more information 914-232-9555.

While the ice and snow are still with us in the streets, spring has sprung at The Preppy Turtle in bedford hills 914 666-8500. This savvy consignment store for kids of all ages has set aside the drab grays and browns of winter for the sunny yellows, pinks and greens of spring for your wardrobe. With prices sky rocketing around us, fashion friendly bargains can be found at this environmentally conscience store. I suggest an eco friendly day… take the train to bedford hills; shop at the Preppy Turtle then walk around the corner to Table and grab a great cup of Fair Trade coffee while sampling some of the store’s delicious organic and locally grown treats.

When doing 3 sit-ups a day just isn’t enough, I recently stopped by this really neat place at radio circle in Mount Kisco… The Kombine sports Performance & Fitness center offers a variety of fitness & sports-specific programs for all ages, even someone as old as I… Their certified training staff did not laugh when I walked in and they had an ideal atmosphere for getting me into

Continued on page 5


COMMUNITY

MfA_WG(9.324x4.9375)020911.indd 1 2/9/11 11:18 AM


better shape. Now I just have to get back over there…

Grand Prix New York, a state-of-the-art indoor kart racing facility in Mount Kisco, and survive the drive, a national teen driver safety education program have teamed up to help improve teen driver safety through compelling presentations at area high schools. For more infor-mation on survive the drive program contact bob Green at 860-435-1054.

Three cheers for the byram hills cheerleading team for their second place finish at the Nca sunshine classic in Lakeland, Florida.

That will wrap it up for this edition of “News & Notes.”

Mark Jeffers’ “News & Notes” column takes a a look at the happenings in the northern part of the county…

News & Notes from Northern Westchester

CRIME

On February 15, 2011, the bethel baptist church in conjunction with the family of Larry Jamaal Warren held a memorial service to celebrate the life of their son. Larry was a 1999 graduate of White Plains high school where he was remembered as a standout basket-ball player who helped the team realize their dream of a state championship. at the time of his death, Mr. Warren was a Program director at the andrus children’s center in Yonkers, New York. This man clearly was on the way to making a difference in this world.

On February 15, 2003, Mr. Warren attended a dance party at Tino’s Villa and Italian steakhouse in hawthorne, New York. These dance parties were popular in the early 2000’s. They were a quick way for restaurants to make some fast dollars on the weekend. They were scheduled by the time the normal diners were long gone and nothing spells money more

than alcohol on the weekend. For Tino’s, a restaurant that is out of the way, even though it is just a half a mile north of an exit on the saw Mill Parkway, weekend dance parties often are the difference in whether you stay open or go out of busi-ness. This party was to be no different.

however, at approximately 2:30 on the morning of February 15, 2003, things at the party went terribly wrong. according to reports, there were verbal confrontations between two groups of partygoers going on inside the restau-rant. It was suggested that the dissenting parties “take it outside.” so they took it outside and things got exponentially worse in the ensuing minutes. No one can really explain what this argument was about but the end result involved a gunfight. It was in this gunfight, that Larry Jamaal Warren was shot and killed.

as tragic as this event may have been, what has been even more tragic in the

years since this killing has been the lack of cooperation by the witnesses in this case. according to the Mount Pleasant Police department, all of those who have been interviewed concerning this case have refused to cooperate with the inves-tigation. Not one single person has been forthright with the police; nor has anyone come forward with any tips concerning this case. and yet, when you ask around, everyone remembers this case.

In asking those who remember the case, what this was all about, everyone has a different theory. Of course drugs were mentioned, but Larry Warren wasn’t known to be even a casual drug user. he was an athlete who had made a career of helping children. Others speculated that it was a fight over a girl. Overwhelmingly however, most people The Westchester Guardian spoke to do not remember the incident,only the party itself. Overwhelmingly they all remember it as being a gay event. Is that the reason that no one has come forward or has cooper-ated with the investigation? Yes,

Continued on page 6

Unsolved Cold Case in Mount PleasantBy Nancy King


CRIME


that is probably the most logical reason. No one wants to admit that they were at a gay event.

so, what we are left with, is a family that may never get the closure needed to move forward. What if it were a gay event? Nobody cares. That’s right, nobody cares what your sexual preference is. What the public wants is for those in attendance that night to step up to the plate and tell the truth. What really happened? Why haven’t the “witnesses” been able to cooperate with the investiga-tions? Is it embarrassment or is it pride? bottom line, it is cowardly. The gift of truth that you will give to a family will far outweigh any embarrassment that you will ever experience. The Mount Pleasant Police department have promised that any information given will remain confi-dential and anonymous.

This time next year, we hope that we will be celebrating the life of Larry Jamaal Warren with the questions about his murder answered.

Unsolved Cold Case in Mount Pleasant

ENVIRONMENT

buchanan, New York -- 1500 tons of high-level radioactive waste stored at Indian Point could not only

pose a serious threat to the public, but may be there illegally. Last week New York state attorney General eric schneiderman filed a formal lawsuit challenging the Nuclear regulatory commission’s (Nrc) ruling that permits Indian Point, and 100 other nuclear power plants across the country, to store spent radioactive fuel next to their respective reactors 60 years after the plants closure. If the buchanan-based plant remains in operation for another 20 years, the waste could remain on site well into the 22nd century.

at last week’s press conference in White Plains, schneiderman attacked the Nrc for allowing nuclear waste to be stored without studying the environmental impacts.

“Our communities deserve a thorough review of the environmental, public health, and safety risks such a move would present. This is not just a safety and environmental issue, but also one that could affect prop-

erty values in Westchester.” The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington d.c., claims the Nrc violated federal laws requiring reviews of health, safety and environmental threats.

30 tons of enriched uranium radioactive waste is produced at Indian Point every 18 months. The spent fuel is stored in 40-foot deep pools that currently stores 1,000 tons at each of the two reactor pools. Older waste is stored in 15 dry storage casks that stand on an open tarmac surrounded by barbed wire and one surveil-lance tower.

In december, 2010, the Nrc changed their “Waste confident rule,” extending the 30 year limit for on-site storage of radioactive waste to 60 years. responding to schneiderman’s lawsuit the Nrc issued a state-ment that said the rule was legally sound and safety issues had been evaluated.

“The Nrc has carried out numerous studies on the safety of storing spent nuclear fuel at u.s. power reactor sites. These include a complete re-examination of spent fuel pool safety and security issues following the 9/11 attacks.”

In an interview prior to schneiderman’s announcement, Nrc spokesperson Neil sheehan said the commission was sure that a “geologic repository capacity will be available to dispose of the commercial high-level radioactive waste and spent fuel generated in any reactor when necessary.”

sheehan referenced an article in energy daily that said carlsbad, New Mexico, was interested in developing a repository. until a repository is devised, sheehan said a plan was also underway to allow high-level waste to be stored on site at all 100 plants for over 120 years.

david Lochbaum of the union of concerned scientists said the Nrc’s plan is flawed.

“The Nrc has confidence that a permanent disposal site will become avail-able and that spent fuel can be safely and securely stored on site until then. The fact that Nrc has had to re-affirm this deci-sion at least twice seems to erode, rather than reinforce, that confidence.”

since 2002, the department of energy (doe) has spent about $9 billion to open a permanent repository for spent fuel at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. The site was originally chosen by congress in 1987. environmental groups have for decades fought against the repository and

succeeded in stopping the project. In its 2012 budget, the Obama administration omitted funding for the Yucca Mountain repository. The doe has but yet to find a state willing to host the radioactive waste for the country’s nuclear plants.

“The doe’s inability to meet this chal-lenge despite hard effort would seem to thoroughly undermine Nrc’s basis for concluding that challenge might someday be met,” said Lochbaum.

Joining schneiderman in his lawsuit are aG’s from connecticut and Vermont. Local hudson Valley environmental groups are also supporting the move.

hudson riverkeeper executive director Paul Gallay said he applauded the aG’s efforts “for challenging a deci-sion by the Nrc that defies science, logic and common sense. We look forward to working together to ensure that Indian Point’s nuclear waste does not sit on the banks of the hudson river, wreaking further havoc on our environment for decades to come.”

Indian Point owner entergy Nuclear has applied to the Nrc to renew their operator’s licenses for unit 2 and 3 which respectively expire in 2013 and 2015. The application has drawn an unprecedented number of contentions. If the licenses are renewed, Indian Point will operate for an additional 20 years.

Abby Luby is a Westchester based, freelance journalist who writes about current, local news, environmental issues, art entertain-ment and food.

Dry casks stored at Indian Point overlooking the Hudson River in Buchanan, New York.

AG to FEDS – Stop Toxic Nuke Dump at Indian PointBy Abby Luby


GOVERNMENT

at 5:00 P.M. on Friday, February 18th, adam bradley announced his resignation as Mayor of the city of White Plains. his declaration closed the chapter on bradley’s tumultuous tenure as mayor. endorsed by all major political parties, adam bradley was a rising political star until February 2010 when his wife alleged Mayor bradley had committed domestic violence upon her. The drama that played out for nearly a year culminated in december when bradley was indeed found guilty of some

of the domestic abuse charges. On top of that, Mayor bradley was facing charges by the White Plains ethics board for moving into an apartment owned by a developer who was seeking an opportu-nity to do business in White Plains.

To be sure, during a lengthy trial, Mr. bradley was taken away from the daily business of governing White Plains and had left the city in the hands of John callahan. Interestingly enough, despite the mayor being absent from city hall during the length of his trial, the city was

able to move forward with the Metroplex center being approved and tenants found for the empty Fortunoff space. Thank goodness for municipal infrastructure; if it were not for that, White Plains or any other municipality for that matter would forever get stuck in reverse.

so what happens next? common council President Tom roach, who was narrowly defeated by bob castelli in the 89th assembly district race, will take over as Mayor pf White Plains at Midnight, February 19th. This clears the way for a special elec-tion to be held within 60 days to fill the position of mayor. It does indeed seem as if Westchester county is becoming the capital of special elections! Will Tom roach become a more permanent mayor or is bill ryan waiting in the wings to make a run for it. Only time will tell. roach stated he received a call summoning him to city hall early this afternoon. upon his arrival he was apprised of Mayor bradley’s decision and his imminent thrust into office as mayor. Mr. roach was gracious in his acceptance of the task at hand and Mr. bradley stated that he would help with the transition.

The drama of the day could not still the many questions that linger concerning this case. It would be amazing to find out the definitive reasons for so many witnesses being suppressed from testi-fying in this case. That alone makes one wonder if the testimony, were it to have been allowed, would have changed the final outcome. One also must wonder who engineered this runaway train? We can all speculate as to whom but I doubt we will learn the truth of the entire story.

What makes this story so sensa-tional has been the sordid drama that has accompanied it from the beginning. even tonight, there were rumors circulating that there were a half a dozen phones that had been wiretapped in an effort to implicate Mr. bradley further. One of those phones is that of this reporter. Just imagine, after reading the transcripts of

the recordings from my telephone, the talk would center on whether to take the dog to the park for a walk to the park or to the suoermarket. If however these rumors are indeed true, they further cement the theory that the fix was indeed in and that he had to be “taken down” by any means necessary.

so what is in store for adam bradley now? according to Mr. bradley, he can now devote his time to clearing his name. Others feel that Mr. bradley stepped down from office because he may be sentenced to jail time at his sentencing on March 17th. all of this is pure specu-lation and will reveal itself soon enough.

I feel sincerely sorry for the citizens of White Plains. They have had their city thrust into the kind of spotlight that no one in their right mind seek. They’ve been denied a full time leader and have been the butt of some really bad wife-beater jokes. Their suffering isn’t even close to ending either. These poor folks will now have to live through an interim mayor, a special election and musical common council seats. Who will ulti-mately end up as the Mayor of White Plains is anybody’s guess at this point.

To the ultimate winner in this game of survivor, to outwit and outplay wont be the mantra of the players; it will be infrastructure.

The bronxville historical conservancy, with the Village’s encour-agement and gratitude, commissioned two

Landscape architect degree students from city college to undertake a study/review of the natural features of the Village and other municipal resources such as street trees and soil types found throughout our Village. The report they complied will aid in any future design and development decisions made by the Village. The students worked under the direction of Peter Gisolfi, a bronxville historical conservancy board member and principal of Peter Gisolfi associates, a Westchester county based architec-tural firm. The concept for the study at the conservancy board level was spearheaded by former Mayor Nancy hand, who knew firsthand the value of an up-to-date record of Village natural features and inventory. The Trustees and I are most appreciative of this collabora-tion and thank the conservancy for their continued vision as we work together to preserve and enhance our Village.

The report in its entirety may be viewed on the conservancy’s website (http:/www.bronxvillehistoricalconser-vancy.org). The following are examples of the type of information gleaned and how it will be useful to the Village going forward.

The report illustrates the soil types, elevation and drainage patterns throughout the Village. This information will aid in future flood mitigation initia-tives as well as assist both homeowners and municipal officials in the planting of proper vegetation throughout the Village, increasing the lifespan of trees and plants, adding lushness to the Village and ulti-mately saving money by planting the appropriate vegetation.

The Village has asked the conservancy to further expand on their report in the coming months to address certain additional needs of the Village. We would benefit from a comprehensive mapping of the municipal or street trees in the Village along our major thorough-fares. This data would aid in determining the location, age, health and specimen type and facilitate a more coordinated, pruning, fertilization and diseased tree removal program. In addition, a similar inventory of street light locations would aid in tracking the life of bulbs at different locations and provide a blueprint for the eventual conversion to a more energy effi-cient lighting plan. The Village has also requested that the volunteer graduate students help us produce a user friendly guide matching our different neighbor-hoods to a list of plants and trees that would grow best in the different soil types. This would be an invaluable tool for

Continued on page 8

Natural Study of Village FeaturesBy Mary C. Marvin

MAYOR MARVIN’S COLUMN GOVERNMENT

White Plains Mayor Adam Bradley ResignsBy Nancy King

Former Mayor of the City of White Plains, Adam Bradley


GOVERNMENT

Continued from page 7homeowners as they landscape property as well as the Village in choosing appropriate and long lasting vegetation.

On a parallel front, the Village has put together an internal committee, chaired by Village engineer, Vince Pici, to implement geographic information system (GIs) technology in Village hall to further assist in the pinpointing of our natural resources and managing our infrastructure.

One of our goals is to map the subter-ranean sewer network including all the manholes, catch basins and mains in both the storm drainage and sanitary sewer systems. This sub-surface mapping would aid in the repair and replacement of pipes

and pinpoint leaks and breaks much more efficiently. at present, there are almost no maps indicating the location of sanitary sewer lines running throughout the Village underground.

Our ultimate goal is to develop a customized GIs system that would incor-porate all the data that presently exists via the county GIs data with other Village specific information compiled through our on-going efforts. data available would include all GIs maps including Village surface and subterranean views as well as county and state GIs property mapping.

as a result of our recent revaluation work, we now have data on all real estate parcels in the Village. With GIs, residents

will be able to search by parcel identifier or street address and see property photos, property cards and sales data via an interactive map as well as tree, drain and hydrant locations. eventually we intend to provide a user friendly computer kiosk at Village hall and the Village library for easy access of this critical information by Village residents.

Of course, most of the above data collection and collation comes with a price. as a consequence, we plan on rolling out the system in stages while simultane-ously applying for grant monies available for these types of projects. We will also incorporate information currently avail-able from the county GIs database as we progress.

some communities have already

implemented this system providing resi-dents and staffers with vital information that has ultimately saved both time and money for everyone needing to access this type of information.

Last week, the board of Trustees approved Village participation in a 15 community grant that will digitally map all of the Village storm drains and catch basins. The only charge to the Village for this effort will be the time and expertise of our Public Works superintendent, rocco circosta, who helped secure the grant. We will continue to look for other grant opportunities to help supplement the Village investments in a full and open-ended GIs system.

Mary C. Marvin is the Mayor of the Village of Bronxville, New York.

Mayor Marvin: Natural Study of Village Features

For over a month, the concerns of the Mayor clinton Young, Jr., on the issue of the Mount Vernon city budget have

been placed on the front page of the city’s Website, and in the newspaper, Mount Vernon Today (which has been alleged to be his vehicle for information distribution).

under the guise of transparency, a picture has been painted that some might say is a mosaic rendering.

Mayor Young’s message contains a reading of the city charter which is not only inconsistent with the charter but is incon-sistent with the Mayor and corporation counsel’s previous reading and applica-tion of charter provisions. unfortunately, I believe the Mayor is not receiving accurate advice.

as early as November 22, 2010, the city’s comptroller advised the Mayor that his budget estimate, which had been deliv-ered in November rather than september, as called for in the city charter, significantly underestimated expenses and significantly overestimated revenue. That flawed esti-mate carried with it an increase in the tax rate of 5.54%.

The city’s board of estimate and contract held a public hearing on the Mayor’s estimate and made modifica-tions to correct those errors and reduce the amount of the tax increase. due to the fact that the Mayor’s estimate had been deliv-ered two months late, there was little time

to thoroughly review the board of estimate and contract’s changes, which later revealed some clerical errors.

after receiving the budget estimate from the board of estimate and contract, the city council held a public hearing on that budget estimate. during the course of this public hearing, it was brought to our attention that certain items, including several positions, had been left out of the budget estimate. as a result of this input from the public and our further review of the estimate it was clear that, in fact, certain positions had been inadvertently left out of the estimate as a result of additional clerical errors.

as has always been the practice of the city, and based upon previous advice of the corporation counsel’s office, it was our understanding that the city council could not add positions back into the estimate without action of the board of estimate and contract. as a result, the board of estimate and contract met and made these corrections.

The city council, then adopted the corrected estimate which reflected both the original intention of the board of estimate and contract in its revision of the Mayor’s estimate, the comments made by the public at our hearing, and the correction of the clerical errors.

Therefore, the statements that the budget approved by the city council was not the result of a public hearing process is erroneous and ignores the fact that the final

changes made were a result of the direct input of both the public and the Mayor.

I believe the adopted budget, inclusive of the override of the Mayor’s veto is consis-tent with both the letter and the spirit of the budget process as outlined by the city charter. It is also consistent with past prac-tice followed by this council, the current and past Mayors and past advice provided by the current and past members of the corporation counsel’s Office.

This budget adds back positions that the Mayor himself requested be added and which we all acknowledge were inadver-tently left out through a clerical error. We have been able to accomplish this without modifying the tax rate fixed by the board of estimate and contract in the estimate it originally issued after public hearing. This further demonstrates that this budget reflects the original intent of the board of estimate and contract and that the changes subsequently made to add back the positions inadvertently excluded, were in fact to correct clerical errors. The annual estimate is 4.49%

Further, I believe that the vote to reduce the Inspector General’s salary does not violate any prior directive of the courts. The charter, section 69, specifically provides that the board of estimate and contract shall fix the Inspector General’s annual salary. as part of the budget process it is wholly appropriate for the board of estimate and contract to fix the Inspector General’s annual salary in accordance with

the specific authority granted by the city charter. I understand that there is signifi-cant evidence that the current Inspector General neither works full time nor has produced any substantive reports in the last year. While I agree it is important to root out corruption and malfeasance in govern-ment, I also believe that public employees should receive salaries that are consistent with the level of work they perform. To pay someone in excess of $100,000 per year for what is essentially a part time job does as much to undermine the public’s faith in government as at least some of the other activities the Inspector General is supposed to be combating.

In all other respects the budget that will be adopted through this override of the Mayor’s veto provides for levels of service consistent with the level of funding available to the city and without cutting essential services or overburdening our taxpayers in these difficult times. The estimate I am voting for, unlike the Mayor’s estimate, has been prepared with input from the city comptroller who, as the city’s chief finan-cial officer, is in the best position to fully evaluate the appropriate levels of revenues and expenses in developing the final budget estimate for the city.

There continues to be made state-ments that refer to a tax increase of 1.82%. Nothing outlining this estimate was ever presented to the city council or the public for a mandated hearing. Nothing – ever!

I remain hopeful we can move forward with our respective positions and work together to make Mount Vernon a better place for us all to live and work.

Karen Watts is Mount Vernon City Council President.

THE PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE

There is No Such Thing as an ‘Alternative Budget’! By Karen Watts


GOVERNMENT

It was a fun-filled week at the New York state capitol with no shortage of news, mixed with a little

bit of controversy, of course. First, Governor andrew cuomo

launched an effort to make nonpar-tisan redistricting reform a reality by announcing the redistricting reform act of 2011, a bill that would establish a nonpartisan commission to redraw state and congressional district lines and end gerrymandering tactics.

requirements for service on this commission include being at least four years removed from being a member of the Legislature or congress, a legislative or executive chamber employee, a political party official, or a registered lobbyist.

“redistricting in New York is a system that has prioritized incumbency and partisan interests over democratic representation,” said Governor cuomo. “This process needs to be about the people and not the politics. The bill ensures greater independence, transparency, and a commitment to fair representation and equality.”

The program bill is a major victory for New York uprising, a non-partisan and independent coalition of advocates formed by former NYc Mayor edward Koch , who spent the 2010 election-year collecting pledges from candidates for office committing themselves to support independent redistricting, responsible budgeting, and ethics reform.

Koch said, “I am pleased that Governor cuomo is upholding his promise to insti-tute comprehensive redistricting reform, and I expect every lawmaker who signed the NY uprising pledge to do the same.”

With the exception of the GOP-controlled senate, everyone

appears to be on board in support of the bill.

assembly speaker sheldon silver indicated, “We are reviewing Governor cuomo’s program bill and we remain committed to working with the governor and our colleagues in the senate to reform redistricting in time for the upcoming redistricting process.”

“The moment for change has arrived; and the time has come for pledges made to become promises kept,” said senate Minority Leader John sampson. “Governor cuomo has introduced legis-lation that keeps his commitment to reform, and I am calling on the senate to do the same by immediately passing his legislation when we return to albany.”

The republican response to Governor cuomo’s program bill, however, was a bit more problematic indicating they have no interest approaching the subject until the state budget is complete.

“cutting government spending, reducing taxes, providing property tax relief and creating private sector jobs are critically important issues that impact every family and business in this state, said senate Majority Leader dean skelos. “That’s why our focus right now must be on getting a fiscally responsible budget enacted by april 1st, which is just 43 days away.”

senate republican insiders indi-cated internal resistance toward honoring cuomo’s bill, and efforts are underway

to search for flaws. This is a serious situation because 32 members of the repulican majority signed Koch’s NY uprising pledge placing republicans in a vulnerable position. It also demonstrates a masterful and brilliant strategy by ed Koch who most likely has republican pledge signers boxed in.

In other news, senator Liz Krueger (d-Manhattan) released a scathing op-ed and introduced legislation (s2780) calling for an end of lawmaker stipends, known as “lulus.” stipends are given to legisla-tors who hold leadership positions, chair committees, or even serve as minority-party members of committees. senator Krueger believes stipends cause members to sell their power and votes to party leadership.

In one portion of the op-ed, senator Krueger suggested that four members of the newly formed Independent democratic conference (Idc) led by senator Jeff Klein (d-bronx, Westchester) were given lulus as high as $12,500 and immediately began voting in lockstep with republicans.

“The most egregious instance came

with a vote that allowed the republicans to change the rules of the senate and circumvent the state constitution to strip Lieutenant Governor robert duffy, a democrat, of his ability to cast a tie breaking vote in the event that the senate is tied,” wrote Krueger.

The Idc responded quickly through senator diane savino (d-staten Island) who stated, “I have the utmost respect for senator Krueger, but

her spiel against the Idc is intellectually dishonest. If more money was a moti-vating factor, we would have stayed quiet, ignored the dysfunction and stayed in the democratic conference, where most of us would have actually received bigger stipends from leadership posts.”

It should be noted that lulus cost state taxpayers a whopping $2.5 million a year, and senator Krueger has been the only senator not to accept a stipend. also, congress currently bans the payment of stipends for lawmakers.

When asked about the merits of senator Krueger’s bill, senator Jeff Klein responded through spokesperson rich azzopardi saying,”albany needs ethics reform and we don’t need a piecemeal approach, but we will review Krueger’s legislation in the wider context of compre-hensive and badly needed ethics reform.”

regardless of what our lawmakers positions are, I’m interested in your thoughts. Feel free to email me at [email protected].

carlos Gonzalez is The Westchester Guardian’s albany correspondent.

Redistricting, Lulus, and ReactionsBy Carlos Gonzalez

LETTERS TO THE EDITORPlease submit your Letter to the Editor electronically, that is by directing email to [email protected] Please confine your writing to between 350 and 500 words. Your name, address, and telephone contact is requested for verification purpose only. A Letter to the Editor will be accepted at the editor’s discretion when space permits. A maximum of one submission per month may be accepted.

Governor Andrew Cuomo


THE FEINER REPORT

Stop & Shop WelcomedThe Greenburgh

Town board approved an exciting new supermarket

at our Town board meeting on February 15th. a new stop & shop supermarket located on the border with Tarrytown, approximately 58,735 sq. ft. large will soon start being constructed. The super-market is expected to be open in 2012. The more competition—the better deals offered to consumers!

A & P and Pathmark to CloseThe a & P, which filed for bank-

ruptcy protection late last year, will close 32 stores, including four in the New York city area. among the stores to be closed is the Pathmark supermarket on central avenue, in hartsdale. Town officials will be working with the landlord of this

large space to attract a great new tenant. This closing is sad—PaThMarK has been around for many years (since my childhood) and the prices were great. It’s my hope that the landlord will replace Pathmark with another supermarket. however, the town has no control over what a landlord does with their prop-erty. The a & P on Tarrytown road rte 119 is also closing. I am concerned that the two supermarket closings will have a negative impact on stores in the shop-ping plazas since the supermarkets were the respective anchors. The town must be proactive and send a strong message to possible tenants that we’re a business friendly community.

New ShopRite on Ardsley Road a Big Success. A & P on Central Avenue Also Offering Bargains.

The new shoprite on ardsley road and central avenue is a big success. during the first few weeks the place was packed with people. Now, the shop-ping experience is calmer. People realize that the store is open from early in the morning to 2:00 a.m.. The store, which opened over a month ago, has some good buys. a positive impact from shoprite—more bargains at the scarsdale a & P, also located on central ave. Price wars can only help the consumer

Special Elections Should be Conducted by Mail Ballot

The recent special election for Westchester county Legislator in Greenburgh resulted in the election of Mary Jane shimsky. Over 4,000 people voted, yet there are about 60,000 residents who live in a county Legislative election district. The turnout was not great. I voted at 9 aM ---I was only the 8th person to vote in my district, three hours after the polls opened out of 907 eligible voters.

I suggest New York state law be amended to allow for elections by mail. Voting by mail would be easier, turnout should and would increase, and signifi-cant dollars would be saved because there would be no need for election day expenses. Voters can reflect on the ballot at home in a less stressful environment.

Voter turnout increased in the state of Oregon by as much as 40% because people can vote by paper ballot. We could save lots of money: no election inspec-tors and pollworkers, no extra paychecks, no rentals of voting locations, no early morning hours for election inspectors, no election day set up problems, no confu-sion where people have to go to vote. No need for absentee ballots.

My suggestion, New York should provide voters with a two week period to cast their ballot.

Paul Feiner is Greenburgh Town Supervisor.

Supermarkets in the News in GreenburghBy Paul Feiner

GOVERNMENT

Yonkers city council Majority Leader and real estate committee chair Patricia Mcdow (1st district) presided over the

February 15th meeting attended by real estate committee Members Wilson Terrero (2nd district), chuck Lesnick (Yonkers city council President), Minority Leader John Murtagh (5th district, John Larkin (6th district), as well as Joan Gronowski (3rd district) and dennis shepherd (4th district) . The

real estate committee was considering a General Ordinance which if approved, would permit amending section 43-15 of the Zoning code of the city of Yonkers (coY) with regard to an exception in lots in two or more districts or municipalities. specifically, the call for the adoption of the General Ordinance spoke to a prop-erty owned by Linda Louise, LLc, whose tenant Metro Green, engaged the services of Matthew smith, esq., of the firm of smith, buss & Jacobs, with which Mr Lesnick has been in the passed affiliated,

and may in some capacity still be associ-ated. The tenant advises that the property upon which he operates recycling opera-tion which turns construction debris into concrete, rock, and dirt for use as gravel. The tenant advises he has operated on this site for almost 2 years’ time and holds a 5 year lease with a first option to purchase.

The property in question straddles the border with the city of Mount Vernon. Ninety percent of the property is situ-ated in coY and ten percent in Mount Vernon. The city of Mount Vernon has designated the property for industrial use; the city of Yonkers has designated the property for commercial use. The tenant should like coY to approve use of the property for industrial purposes. Mr Lesnick did not admit to recognizing that such an action would amount to “ spot zoning.” Mr Murtagh recognized the issue and recoiled from entertaining the issue asserting the Yonkers city council was not the appropriate venue for remedy of this issue and that standards of protocol would need to be followed.

Wikipedia describes “spot zoning” as the application of zoning to a specific

parcel of land within a larger zoned area when the rezoning is usually at odds with a city’s master plan and current zoning restrictions. The rezoning may be for the benefit of a particular owner, and at odds with pre-existing adjacent prop-erty owners. The standard state Zoning enabling act states “all such regulations shall be uniform for each class or kind of building throughout each district.”[1] courts may rule certain instances of spot zoning as illegal.The specific lot numbers were not supplied.

a Mount Vernon map was afforded the committee but was not verified by a map authenticated by the city of Yonkers.

Mr Lesnick feigned an aloof stance in arguing the merit of the tenant’s inter-ests but maintained a steady argument in attempting to arrive at a majority consensus to move the request to next week’s city council Meeting.

Mr Murtagh, studying the map distributed as back-up material with the proposed item noted that the property seemed to be situated within 500 feet of a green trail which would thereby demand

Continued on page 11

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approval by both coY and Westchester county government.

Mr. Lesnick was found out by Mr Murtagh omitting information which whether he knew prior to its being revealed or not in the back and forth discourse should have known the issue. Mr Lesnick is a lawyer with claimed expertise in easement and other such modalities related to real estate law,

No matter how removed Mr Lesnick’s body language was in expressing disin-terest in the preceding, Mr Lesnick mentioned he had gotten verbal agree-ment from the city of Mount Vernon that they were indeed amenable to rezoning the property.

The language presented before the real estate committee did not stipulate the lot number over which one must infer

the meeting was called. The inexacti-tude of the papers before the real estate committee could, if adopted, have lead to an inadvertent rezoning of other property not specified in this General Ordinance.

Not giving up attempting to shep-herd the request through, Mr Lesnick suggested it may be prudent to refer the issue to Westchester county for advise-ment. Ms Gronowski was adamant in promoting that Yonkers should define its own interests and concerns before asking for an opinion from the county.

Mr Lesnick was undeterred. Mr Murtagh suggested the tenant bring his request for a variance from the Yonkers Zoning board.

Ms Gronowski advised the tenant it would be prudent for the property owner to petition Yonkers and not him.

What became evident is that Mr

Lesnick conduct was an attempt to dupe the real estate committee to agree to real estate and zoning issues they may have not been knowledgeable. Were Ms Gronowski’s dead on questions and Mr Murtagh legal expertise not shared with the real estate committee, Mr Lesnick could have hoodwinked to real estate committee to adopt a General Ordinance that could have potentially hurt the city of Yonkers.

Just as appalling is that Yonkers city council democrat counsel christian diPalermo was deficient in compre-hending the ploy or complicit with Mr Lesnick’s conduct. One must ask what the Yonkers taxpayer is paying for when the Yonkers city council democrat counsel is inept in protecting Yonkersites in his role as counsel to the Yonkers city council, or if he was in n the ploy?

Mr Lesnick’s passive / aggressive attempt to hood-wink the real estate committee is potentially deleterious to Yonkersites. It brings to question Mr Lesnick ever being considered trust-worthy to be maintained for present office, much less considered for higher office. Mr Lesnick’s conduct yesterday evening has proven his susceptibility to prosti-tute himself for the client of an associate without concern as to its possible negative ramification to The People of Yonkers.

a call to council President Lesnick’s communication aide adam brill requesting Mr Lesnick’s telephone contact led to him defining his job was to field calls for Mr Lesnick. Mr brill has proven himself incapable to responding to this reporter in a forthright manner. Further inquiry of Mr brill was terminated with the advisement that this article would be sadly written without any further input from Mr Lesnick.

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Lesnick Politically Ambushes Fellow Yonkers Real Estate Committee Attendees

recent statements from politicians across the country indicate that tenure and seniority in education are under

serious attack. This attack is part of a battle in the coordinated war against public education with reform being used as a code word to gut the progress that has

been achieved in taking teacher appoint-ments out of the political arena. It is a battle waged for ideological purposes and has at its heart a thinly disguised attack on unions. students First, an advocacy group run by the former school chancellor of Washington d.c. Michelle rhee, has made abolishing tenure a primary goal and has advised the governors of Florida,

Nevada and New Jersey. here is what the Governors of those states have to say, as reported in the New York Times.• ‘It’s practically impossible to remove

an underperforming teacher under the system we have now,” Gov. brian sandoval, republican, Nevada.

• Governor chris christie, republican, New Jersey, has been in a running battle

with the teachers union and plans to introduce a bill “reshaping” tenure.

• Governor rick scott, republican, Florida: “Good teachers know they don’t need tenure. There is no reason to have it except to protect those that don’t perform as they should.”

• Governor c. L. Otter, republican, Idaho, flatly states, “The state will phase out tenure.”

I invite readers who think of tenure and seniority as unwarranted job security and an unnecessary hindrance to good business management to read on for a closer look and examine the implications for eliminating tenure.

First of all, new teachers work from two to three years, depending on the


LABOR

Connections—Two Sides of the Coin: Tenure and Seniority Part 2 of 3By Marilyn Elie


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Continued from page 11district, with no protection of any kind. They serve at the pleasure of the building administrator who has multiple opportu-nities to observe them, conference with them and evaluate their professional worth. during this probationary period a principal can dismiss a teacher, no questions asked, no union protection, no recourse. at the end of the probationary period a principal can let a teacher go, or recommend to the school board that a teacher be granted tenure. This would seem to be an adequate amount of time to assess new people coming into the profes-sion. Once granted tenure, a teacher is covered by a set of rules that are designed to make loss of employment fair and equitable, that is, not subject to the whims and caprice of administration, the school board or the public. (some may recall the legal efforts of a group in Westchester some years back against Fox Lane high Lane high school because they objected

to the celebration of earth day.)Tenure is not a lifetime guarantee of

employment. rules for dismissal in New York have recently been streamlined so that charges against tenured teachers deemed incompetent can be processed much faster and those deemed guilty removed from the profession. While the union is responsible for making sure this process works fairly, no one in any profession wants problematic workers as colleagues. It is puzzling that those in the private sector would like to take this basic protection away from other professionals rather than working to have it in their own office. In education, tenure is also is a protection for intellectual freedom - something that still plays out in certain regions of the country when the unit on evolution comes up in biology text books.”

Tenure and its companion, seniority, work in any field. If you want to see what happens when they disappear look at the profession of journalism. Newspapers

are in the midst of a meltdown. staff in newsrooms across the country has been cut to the bone and experienced reporters have been fired. If you think that this has improved news coverage, take another look at your regional newspaper. You no longer find investigative reporting, coverage of state and local government or reporters who can take the time to understand the many issues they have to cover. everything is reported as if it happened for the first time with little or no context. This is not good for our democratic process.

While you’re at it, take a look at the 22 “right to work” states, or as some call them “right to fire states.” These states have laws that limit unionization and give management free rein to fire workers with no explanation and no recourse. You can see the list at http://jobs.lovetoknow.com/right_to_Work_states. Few of these states are known for their outstanding educational systems. Most rank well below the medium. You need

an experienced body of professionals with institutional memory to keep any well run school on tract. The system needs teachers who are not afraid to speak out because they might get fired. Teachers who know what works and what doesn’t; who know what the research says, how to implement it and how to pass that knowledge on to younger teachers in daily interactions and mentoring. You also need an enlightened principal with an overview of their school, a determination to help every teacher be the best they can be and a willingness to do the work necessary to challenge anyone who doesn’t measure up within a fair and equitable system of tenure.

If you want to save money in educa-tion how about consolidating some school districts and eliminating some high priced superintendent salaries. Now that’s a horse of a different color…

Next Week: Paying for education.Connections, an occasional column on how everything is connected and how few things are as simple as they might first appear… is penned by Marilyn Elie.

Connections—Two Sides of the Coin: Tenure and Seniority Part 2 of 3

Open Letter to NYS

Commissioner of Education Dr. David M. Steinerby Maryann Mccarra-Fitzpatrickdr. david M. steinercommissioner of educationNew York state education department89 Washington avenuealbany, NY 12234

dear dr. steiner:

I am writing today to share with you the experience we recently had at the IeP meeting held for our profoundly autistic (non-verbal/still in diapers/functioning at a one-to-two-year-old level) ten-year-old son.

back in december 2010, the Mount Vernon city school district (MVcsd) held a “dinner” for all parents of special education students currently in out-of-district placements. The main thrust of

this meeting was that out-of-district placements were meant to be temporary and that there would be a movement to shift children back to the district. They are doing this under the guise of stressing Lre (least restrictive environment) and that, if these children have less supports, they will “pull themselves up” by their bootstraps. It was clear to most that the district is motivated, in this regard, not by the best interests of the children in ques-tion but by financial imperatives.

Our son, aidan, has been a student at the hawthorne country day school in hawthorne, NY since the age of five. We visited the two “programs” they had for autistic children within the district but it was our feeling, and the opinion of his teachers at the Fred s. Keller school (Yonkers, NY) that aidan was far too low-functioning to progress in such settings. Therefore, he was, at age five, admitted to the hawthorne country day school.

Our son’s IeP meeting was held yesterday. While we arrived early, we were

kept waiting over seventy minutes, with nary an apology or an explanation for the delay from Ms. Kim smith. This is typical of MVcsd personnel….you are kept waiting months for evaluations to be done, they do not answer the telephone when you call, you leave messages and they do not possess the basic courtesy to return telephone calls, respond to emails, or respond to letters. I do not know whether this is due to poor upbringing or not, but I find it patently unacceptable.

It has, in the past, taken, on average,

six or seven emails, followed by four or five faxes, followed by two or three letters, followed by multiple telephone calls to get one thing accomplished. We have put up with this obnoxious bureaucracy and the lack of courtesy exhibited by MVcsd personnel patiently for the five years our son’s services have been under the aegis of the Mount Vernon csd special education department.

almost immediately, Ms. smith started in on how we should consider a


LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

To the Editor:


LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


placement within the district, that our son’s current placement was meant to be temporary, and that there were two programs (at Traphagen elementary school and at the Lincoln annex) that would be appropriate for our son. I explained that I had visited these programs and that they were not appropriate place-ments for our son. My husband enquired as regards whether or not there was any information available, either in printed form or on the MVcsd website, on these programs, and she said, in a quite abrupt and rude manner, that, no, there was not, and that we would have to visit them in order to find out about them. Ms. smith also persisted in calling our son a “fifth-grader” even though he has always been in an ungraded classroom. In addi-tion, it was made apparent that his need

for an extended-year program would be questioned.

her manner towards us was extremely rude and belligerent. When we protested, in a reasonable and measured manner, that these were not appropriate place-ments for our son, since he is non-verbal, still in diapers, and bites (himself and others) she kept referring, as she said, to the “law” that it was the “law” that he be in what she considered to be the Lre (least restrictive environment), namely, an in-district program which would be more cost-effective for the district.

Placement in a mainstream elemen-tary school, even in a classroom designated for special education students, would be a disaster for our son. he is a bolter, has no sense of danger, and needs constant one-to-one supervision. he is not toilet trained and cannot independently execute any “self-care” such as washing or dressing and undressing himself. This has been borne out in our day to day experience

of him these past ten years and has been documented thoroughly in count-less evaluations and reports, including those of his paediatric neurologist, dr. Yitzchak Frank (our son takes abilify in order to reduce the number and extremity of his violent outbursts), at Mount sinai hospital in New York city.

I have already contacted the united states secretary of education, arne duncan, to express my extreme displea-sure at what seems to be going on here in the city of Mount Vernon school district. While I understand that they have budgetary concerns, I would suggest that they do not try to balance their budget on the backs of special needs students such as my son.

as far as “the law” goes, we are more than prepared to secure the services of any number of lawyers and advocacy organizations to fight the city of Mount Vernon school district on this issue. Ms. smith may parrot “the law, the law” and

stab her finger, in a belligerent manner, at a photocopy as often as she wishes, but what is best for the child is paramount. It may mean that, in the end, the super-intendent’s pension is not quite as large, but I think most parents of special needs children would not find that highly problematic.

Yours sincerely,Maryann Mccarra-Fitzpatrickcc: robert astorino, Westchester county executive Governor andrew M. cuomo rep. eliot engel sen. Kristin Gillibrand sen. charles e. schumer sen. Jeffrey d. Klein assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow u.s. secretary for education, arne duncanMaryAnn McCarra-Fitzpatrick and her family reside in the City of Mount Vernon, New York.

Letters to the Editor

MUSIC

The bear Family records folks must be huge Freddie King fans. Why do I say that? Just about one year ago they released a seven-disc box, Taking Care of Business 1956-1973, that was previously reviewed by yours truly for BluesWax. so this Texas Flyer 1974-1976 chrono-logically picks up where that previous release ended with four cds of live performances and one cd of studio tracks and alternates.

disc One contains all in-studio tracks mostly produced by Mike Vernon offering a solid lineup of stellar studio musicians recorded in the u.K. Just about all these tunes are sonically crisp and clear and definitely stand the test of time even though they were recorded more than thirty-five years ago. standouts include “Pack It up,” “Only Getting second best” (with keyboard wizard Brian Auger), and the rousing instrumental “Pulp Wood.” The great Tom Dowd also produced five tunes with Eric Clapton and his band from 1974 recorded at the legendary criteria studios in Miami. The most memorable is Freddie’s “boogie Funk” where Clapton and King feverishly tear it up. The remaining four discs are recorded live and in concert, some of which are strong, others not.

disc Two contains five tracks recorded in austin,

Texas, at armadillo World headquarters from 1975 and features a fairly large band with a three-piece horn section that smolders, especially when the late great David “Fathead” Newman is given room to wail. Paul Butterfield’s “You can run, but You can’t hide” kicks off this run, smartly followed by a wonderful reading of B.B. King’s “Woke up This Morning” that burns.

The remaining nine live songs emanate from ultrasonic recording studios in Long Island, New York, that was also simulcast on WLIr-FM late in 1974. back in the day, WLIr broadcast a ton of live recordings, some from these studios and others from the now defunct My Father’s Place club in roslyn, Long Island. I used to listen to many of these broadcasts, but I don’t recall this one. For me this live session is the pinnacle of this box set. It is here we find Freddie fronting a smaller six-piece ensemble, no horns. King and the band are on fire throughout, especially on the opening “big Leg Woman (With a short short Mini skirt),” Elmore James’ “Look On Yonder Wall,” and a blistering “boogie Funk” instrumental.

disc Three fades in to a short, boiling jam that becomes yet another rendering of “big Leg Woman.” Weird! This edition of King’s 1975 band is similar in size

to the WLIr broadcast with minor changes in personal, but the quality of this performance is not as strong. standing out is King’s classic instrumental “hideaway,” which also tips its hat at the “Peter Gunn Theme.” sweet! but the only other song that attracted my attention was


THE SOUNDS OFBLUE By Bob Putignano

Freddie King TEXAS FLYERBear Family 5-CD box set“80 % Live Tracks, 20 % Studio Performances = 50% of Solid Entertainment”


MUSIC


on Earl King’s “come On (Let the Good Times roll).”

disc Four is not as well recorded as the previous discs. The band shrinks in size and the songs become longer, the musi-cian credits, recording date, and venue location liner notes are now a foregone conclusion. The songs have that mid ‘70’s drug culture feel, especially on an uncred-ited instrumental, “Funk Instrumental” that segues into a lengthy “Going down,” authored by Don Nix, a song King took and made his own. Nine minutes of “You’re the One” is mostly King rambling through it talking to the crowd, segueing “stormy Monday” into Isaac Hayes and David Porter’s “Little bluebird,” which had me yawning.

disc Five, for the most part just plods, especially on Jimmy Reed’s “signals of

Love” and “Woman across the Water.” rock covers like Bob Dylan’s “Meet Me In the Morning” are also in slow motion. Dave Mason’s “Feeling alright” is pretty okay, but it’s becoming a little obvious that Mr. King was having to change his song selections to retain an appropriate audience.

“hideaway” does bounce along nicely and segues into B. Lenoir’s “The Mojo.” There must have been a venue change because on another take of “Little bluebird” the sound quality dramatically improves as does King and his bands performance.

Last, but not least, Don Robey and Joe Veasey’s “Farther On up the road” closes this recording, and it’s a great version. recorded on the King Biscuit Flower Hour show in dallas just about one month prior to King’s passing, Freddie is sitting in with clapton and his

band consisting of Carl Radle on bass, George Terry on second guitar, Jamie Oldaker drums, Dick Sims keyboards, and Sergio Pastora on percussion. It’s a burning rendition where clapton and King fire off each other, with clapton taking the final solo at breakneck speed and power, giving me the opinion that ec did not want to be overshadowed by his hero’s dynamite playing.

In summary, about half of the music on this five-cd set is of high quality. The other half left me with the feeling that the label was searching for good reasons to make this a sizeable offering at a fat retail price. In fairness, the construction of this box set is solid and also includes an eighty-page hardcover book filled with good amounts of meaningful information from reissue producer bill dahl. Other contrib-uting writers like david Maxwell add to this classy book. There are also quotes from Johnny Jones, producer Mike Vernon, Darrell Leonard, and Jimmie Vaughan.

clapton’s also quoted as saying that Freddie King was the most stimulating musician he played with. Two obits from Melody Maker and Rolling Stone maga-zines are also tasteful additions.

One major complaint is with the five individual jewel boxes, other than the disc number, and track listings, there’s virtually no difference between them, no liner notes are offered, making it necessary to contin-ually refer to the far clumsier eighty-page book. Plus, there’s only a one-page front tray sheet. This is odd when you consider all of the good research work that went into making this box. One would have thought that a little more detail could have been thrown at each individual jewel box for some needed reference factoids. unfortunately this is not the case!

Bob Putignano is at www.SoundsofBlue.com. He’s also a senior contributing editor to www.blueswax.com & blues revue Magazine. You can reach Bob at: [email protected]

Freddie King TEXAS FLYER Bear Family 5-CD box set

POLITICS

Tuesday, February 15th, 2011, saw the Westchester county board of Legislators maintain their 12-5 super-majority with Mary Jane shimsky’s win over republican challenger Nick decicco. The democrat from hastings had 2,261 votes to decicco’s1,876 votes. This insures Ken Jenkins and the gang to continue moving their agenda forward while the astorino administration and the long suffering taxpayers will more than likely be opening their wallets one more time. Mrs. shimsky has stated that she will keep an eye on the budget while maintaining child care for low income families, promoting environmental issues and preserving a woman’s repro-ductive rights: a tall order for a county Legislator. I think the good taxpayers of Westchester are less worried about roe v.Wade and more worried about their tax bills.

Losing to Mrs. shimsky, was polit-ical newcomer Nick decicco. decicco who hails from hartsdale is a prosecutor assigned to the Yonkers Family court.

he is also a member of the Greenburgh Zoning board of appeals. It is this volunteer position that may have cost Mr. decicco the election. about a week before the election, a democrat district Leader filed a complaint against decicco

asking him to recuse himself from the Zoning board of appeals. It seems that Mr. decicco’s campaign may have taken a contribution from the proprietor of deli delicious, a local business in the area. deli delicious at the time had had a case being heard by the Zoning board of appeals. although Mr. decicco had contacted the board chairman early last month relaying that he had planned to abstain from the deli delicious vote, he was beaten to the punch in the form of a complaint to the ethics board. ahh … politics in Greenburgh.

complaints like these are as common as crabgrass in that town but Mr. decicco’s treasurer and campaign manager should have known better than to take that contribution. They were inexperienced in the intracasies of campaign management and you can be their bottom dollar that they won’t make that mistake twice. still Mr. decicco ended this special election with capturing 46% of the vote in ultra democratic-Liberal Greenburgh.

Mrs. shimsky has about four months to prove her worth to the residents of Westchester county. because this was a special election, she gets to do this again for the November ballot. It won’t be too long before June and that all too important petition drive for November rolls around. Those of us, no matter what party we are affiliated with hope that Nick decicco will take another run because we believe in the system of checks and balances. We believe in fair representation and in having a legislator who will work for all of us, not just the supermajority.

The March 15th village elections are nearly here. The school board budget hearings and elections are looming in the not so far distance in May. by the time June rolls around, we all will be able to see if Mrs. shimsky is serving us or her own (and those of Ken Jenkins) aspirations.

Westchester County Board of Legislators Maintains It’s SupermajorityBy Nancy King

Mary Jane Shimsky


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after the February 13 Grammy awards show, some think the answer is, “Yes!,” arguing, “Is there any doubt? she arrived in

an egg, for Pete’s sake.”Others disagree. One Lady Gaga fan

was heard to comment, “It’s her right to choose an egg as a means of transporta-tion. Who cares? It’s a free country, and at least she isn’t polluting the environment with a gas guzzler.”

Lady Gaga had no comment about the rumor. she was too busy planning a special barbecue at which her meat dress will be the main course.

The talk about the possibility of Lady Gaga’s being an alien has started the ball rolling. speculation is now rampant about others who may also be aliens. here are two possibilities

-- spider-Man. he can’t seem to get his act together and run a broadway show without glitches. could it be he doesn’t know how to, because he’s from another world? um, maybe they don’t have broadway shows in outer space.

-- Mickey Mouse, a very unusual

rodent. Is he a homegrown one? “absolutely,” claims one of his avid followers, who added, “sure he has large ears and wears big geeky shoes and white gloves, but he’s as american as apple pie.”

Well, the jury is still out on whether there are aliens from outer space hanging out here on earth. but comedienne ellen deGeneres may have the best take on the topic, saying, “The only thing that scares me more than space aliens is the idea that there aren’t any space aliens. We can’t be the best that creation has to offer. I pray we’re not all there is. If so, we’re in big trouble.”

exactly.

Gail Farrelly (www.FarrellySistersOnline.com) writes mystery novels and short stories as well as Op-Eds. She also publishes satire pieces (Gail Farrelly’s satire and parody stories) on TheSpoof.com, a British website. Her latest mystery novel is Creamed at Commencement: A Graduation Mystery. The first chapter is available on her website. Gail is working on a fourth mystery, The Virtual Heiress.

THE SPOOF

Is Lady Gaga an Alien from Outer Space? By Gail Farrelly

What a wonderful disappointment. here I was digesting green bile for a week so I could vomit out a screed on how our

culture of selfishness threatens to slowly turn our country into an historic also ran. Well, I guess my treatise on america’s slide will have to wait. I may even have to reevaluate my premise.

What changed? a church burned down in New rochelle.

There is scarcely a more contradic-tory place than this city hard by the sound. One of the great upper class suburbs of New York shares real estate with a genuine inner city, that itself sits next to older middle class havens where

the descendants of immigrants from another time still hold sway. This diver-sity is matched by the resident’s robust debates. They argue over everything from school budgets to garbage pick-ups. Who are “they?” They are a rich multicultural and multiracial microcosm of america itself. We have whites, blacks, Latinos, christians and Jews.

It’s not perfect. It’s not utopia. sometimes this town ties itself in knots of disagreement. It has taken them fifty years to go absolutely nowhere on the precious parcel of real estate known as david’s Island. and they are still hacking a decision to build the avalon One apart-ment high rise. The place is already fifteen years old. so trust me, this is not a

Pollyanna piece about how New rochelle is the world’s best city. I will leave that to the politicians.

What New rochelle is the real deal; real people with different opinions and different backgrounds. Let’s look at some of the town’s icons: The mayor is a local Jewish intellectual whose family survived the holocaust. he may well be the most cerebral politician in New York state. The fire commissioner’s nick name is doc, after his father who apparently delivered half of the town’s babies in his day, and whose father before him was a fireman in the city. The police commissioner is an Irish cop from New York city straight out of central casting. Perhaps his most multitalented police officer is an african american who on any given day, you are as likely to find on a motorcycle, as you are rising out of beechmont Lake in scuba equipment, or leading a special

squad during a fire. The superintendent of schools is an over educated kid from brooklyn with a polish last name easier to spell than pronounce.

We have one county’s toughest blog-gers; a radio station and a chapter of the NaacP. We have churches…lots of churches, and almost as many synagogues. We’ve got the armory and the rotary, the funny looking post office and an old newspaper building. Thomas Paine lived here and Lou Gerhig died here. It goes on and on. There are street gangs and songcatchers, mailmen and dogcatchers, veterans and partisans.

and a church burned down in New rochelle.

That’s when they all came out... when the ninety nine year old union baptist church, burned down. Jim Killoran from habitat for humanity had an


A Church Burns Down - The People Rise UpBy Bob Marrone

SHOW PREP


Compulsion By John Simon

almost everyone knows the tragic story of anne Frank, and many have read the young victim of the Nazis’ extraordinary diary. some people may

even have read Meyer Levin’s, the well-known Jewish-american writer’s memoir about his obsession with adapting that diary for the stage.

Levin’s glowing front-page review of the book in the New York Times book review greatly helped the sales in america, but his stage version did not impress doubleday, the american publishers, or their adviser Lillian hellman. Instead, an adaptation commis-sioned from the husband and wife team of screenwriters Frances Goodrich and albert hackett became a broadway and international hit.

Now there is no denying that this version from non-Jewish hollywood prettifiers could and did enrage Levin, furious that his version was rejected for allegedly being “too Jewish.” Otto Frank, anne’s father, had broken his promise to grant Levin the rights to adaptation, and Levin sued, winning $50,000 in damages which the judge set aside until further proof that some of his play was used by the hackett’s could be obtained. but he was also sweet-talked or bullied into abro-gating any future rights to a production of his version, lest neither be mounted.

We get scenes of sid silver (though named after an autobiographical char-acter in a Levin novel) with various doubleday staffers and lawyers, with his charming French writer wife Tereska Torres—always referred to as Mrs. silver—and, finally, scenes in Israel where the silver’s immigrated. There an Israeli theatre director got silver a production of his version by the army Theater, which he announced in a letter to the New York Times, causing further trouble.

Intermittently anne Frank herself appears, played by a puppet, getting variously involved and once even insin-uating her way into the silver marital bed between the spouses. anne’s lines

are sometimes spoken by silver, which I found disturbing; at others, by Miss Mermin, a doubleday editor, and played in a blond wig by the same actress who plays Mrs. silver in a red one.

To keep the human cast down to three, several male roles are played by the same actor; two further puppets make interesting appearances, one as anne’s boyfriend, the other as a lawyer, Mr. Ferris, with a killer knife in his back. The presence of puppets can be partly explained by Meyer Levin having been briefly a puppeteer in his youth. They are very convincing puppets expertly made by Matt acheson.

Oskar eustis, the artistic director of the Public Theater, has directed effi-ciently. There is apt scenery by eugene Lee, good video and projection design by Jeff sugg, authentic costuming by susan hilferty, and able lighting by Michael chybowski. but the ace card of the production is Mandy Patinkin in the lead.

Now Patinkin is a maximalist actor, who throws himself into every role with reckless abandon, shouts, weeps, or whines, lunges like a fencer, gesticulates like a perfervid traffic cop, and, toward the end, stares fixedly with an expression midway between pathos and dementia. seated in the second row, I was not without concern that he might charge me like a rogue elephant or land in my lap like a ventriloquist’s dummy, neither of which I would have relished. Personally, I have always preferred less flamboyance—especially perhaps the sort of inspired underacting ralph richardson excelled

at—but if you go in for heaven-storming histrionics, Patinkin is surely your man.

hannah cabell is delightful in her dual role, with or without a lightsome French accent, and manages two anti-thetic personalities with exemplary ease, her cool Miss Mermin metamorphosing seamlessly into the mostly warm Mrs. silver. Matte Osian handles the four or five male roles (one loses count) with similar dexterity, and the puppets, too, perform irreproachably.

rinne Groff ’s writing is entirely idiomatic for american, French and Israeli characters, and the story she tells is an unflaggingly gripping one. her silver may propound Judaism and excoriate anti-semitism a mite more shrilly and frequently than would seem necessary, but I dare say Meyer Levin was not a bit less emphatic.

Levin used the title, compulsion, for his novel—and subsequent stage and screen versions—about the Loeb and Leopold murder case, one of his chief successes. as for the Levin stage version of the anne Frank story, it has been mounted in a student production at brandeis university in 1972 without legal hassle. I can see no reason why the two versions should not more or less peace-fully coexist.

The Public Theater(co-production with berkeley repertory Theater and Yale repertory Theater)425 Lafayette streetTickets: (212) 967-7555 orwww.publictheater.org

EYE ON THEATRE

Continued from page 15address for donations before the fire was extinguished. I am sure he already had nails in his teeth waiting for the embers to cool so he could start work. There was doc Kiernan, up all night, still at it in mid-afternoon trying to save the church he used to walk past when he was a little boy. The Jewish temples offered their buildings for sunday service, and Monroe college offered its basketball court. st. Paul episcopal church is, no doubt, proud that the first sunday offsite service of the union baptist church will be there on sunday. right after that, the interreligious council, started by rabi amiel Wohl, all those years ago, will conduct a memorial service. These people in this town, from different religions, often worship together. It is not to be believed. The tears in the eyes of people of all background over the loss of the largely black congregation are genuinely moving.

This place, this Queen city, is such a wonderfully peculiar and beautiful place. It may not be perfect but it is a true community. Listen to Good Morning Westchester with Bob Marrone from 6-9 a.m., from Monday through Friday. Direct email to Bob Marrone at [email protected], and visiting the BobMarrone.com website.

Hannah Cabell and Mandy Patinkin Photo Credit Joan Marcus.

A Church Burns Down - The People Rise Up


snowflakes are one of nature’s most fragile things, but just look what they do when they stick

together. In Telluride,Colorado, their sticking together has produced a magnifi-cent, world-class resort for all manner of winter sports.

The destination is nestled in the southwest corner of colorado where geology did some of its best work. Peaks of 14,000 feet melt into red-rock mesas and lush stands of evergreen and aspen silently forest the hills. Telluride, once a booming silver mining town, is now an historic gem with much of its original Victorian architecture preserved.

The Telluride Ski Resort offers something for everyone, whether it’s gentle, open, rolling slopes or challenging black diamond bumps, some of the most challenging skiing in North america. Lovely. however, as I do not indulge in winter sports (read: absolutely no ability), an inviting road less traveled beckoned furiously to me. I had to take it.

The Peaks Resort & Golden Door Spa, hovering high above the town, is where I chose to hang for the couple of days I spent in Telluride, and it had everything that a non-skier, non-boarder, non-skater like me could possibly wish for. It was divine, a haven for we who do not define r&r by flying down a vertical mountain slope, wind lacerating our faces, and the threat of imminent catas-trophe looming over our heads. Instead, proponents of soft adventure (accent on soft) will find this full-service resort one’s perfect cup of tea or hot toddy, whatever the preference.

This resort is home to the famed Golden door spa, and, in keeping with its original property in california, it is dedi-cated to creating a balance of body, mind and spirit through personal programs and treatments. Feeling a slight pang of guilt as I watched fit individuals zooming down mountains, faces glowing from the icy wind and frozen into masks of sheer concentration lest they crash and burn, I felt compelled to choose the Healthy Lifestyle Package. It promised that my body would “thank me for taking the time

to respect and nourish it.” I am certain my body was really thanking me for not attempting to ski. The 3-hour session included a private body composition anal-ysis and fitness assessment (oh-oh) and a

personal training session (okaaay) and then the good stuff: a 50-minute, custom-ized swedish massage (puuurfect).

I dined that evening at the resort’s Palmyra restaurant under the guidance of chef stuart redhead (really) who works his culinary wonders with the freshest local ingredients and explains that he “focuses on clean, simple flavors

and seasonal, artisanal ingredients.” My dinner was lovely, the view spectacular, a perfect “Ten-day” overall.

The next day I ventured out of my cocoon and wandered the town which looks much as it did in the 1880s with brick hotels and clapboard storefronts. I enjoyed checking out the shops, art galleries, and the best part: tricked out

(literally)in cool ski clothing, no one could tell I wasn’t a winter-sports gal. I felt like an insider, a true Telluridian in my shiny red Obermeyer jacket and slim black ski pants . Not wanting to lose this heady feeling of fitting in, for dinner I changed into my cute columbia thermal-insulated Prism Ice Parka. On my walk back to the hotel I didn’t hurry along – I strolled, warm and snug in hip ski duds.

The Peaks offers a bounty of activi-ties. It is a ski-in/ski-out resort with

access to Telluride’s miles of trails, snow-boarding, tubing and ice skating. Guest rooms are comfortable, the suites ultra-luxurious, and cabins and penthouses have custom décor, vaulted ceilings, and stone fireplaces. The resort is a 10-minute ride from Telluride regional airport and a scenic hour and 15 minutes from Montrose airport.

There’s an anonymous quote that says “Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories.” Next winter should be a piece of cake because I left Telluride with a wealth of very warm memories.

Travel Editor, Barbara Barton Sloane is constantly globe-hopping to share her unique experiences with our readers; from the exotic to the sublime. As Beauty / Fashion Editor she keeps us informed on the capricious and engaging fashion scene.

Things To Know Before You GoTelluride Visitors Center www.visittelluride.com

Hotels The Peaks Resort & Spa www.thepeaksresort.comLumiere Telluride www.lumierehotels.comCamels Garden www.camelsgarden.com

SkiwearObermeyer – www.obermeyer.comColumbia – www.columbia.com

Summer FestivitiesMay 27-30 – Mountainfilm, a distinctive blend of films, speakers, gallery exhibits, and seminars June 16-19 – Bluegrass Festival features four days of bluegrass music on the stage in Town ParkAugust 5-7 – Telluride Jazz Celebration, with Rita Coolidge, Paquito D’Rivera and many others

Telluride_Family Fun

TRAVEL

Telluride—Taking the Road Less TraveledBy Barbara Barton Sloane

Telluride_The Peaks Resort in the Fall

The Golden Door Spa at The Peaks Resort


Last Wednesday morning saw the presen-tation of some startling

testimony by now retired eastchester Police detective astorita upon cross-examination by defense attorney roberto Finzi in the selwyn days alleged double-homicide. under intense questioning by attorney Finzi on cross-examination, astorita acknowledged that following an initial five hour round of interroga-tion during which there was no video or audio recording nor any written notes taken, there then followed a second round of interrogation that was videotaped but was however preceded by a period which, he initially claimed, was fifteen to twenty minutes, again with no audio or video recording nor handwritten notes. however,

immediately confronted by Finzi with his prior testimony, the witness was compelled to withdraw his estimate and acknowledge that it was not twenty mintues but closer to an hour. Following that concession, astorita laughed, and said off-handedly, “You got me counselor,” followed by the suggestion “It was a long time ago.”

Pursuing the fact that there had been five hours and then another hour of unre-corded interrogation, Finzi queried, “You wanted to hear how he’d answer before you memorialized it?” astorita curtly responded, “Yes.”

having raised some serious issues with respect to interrogation tactics, Finzi now turned to another line of questions intended to demonstrate the numerous known inaccuracies in selwyn days’

statement, in an effort to demonstrate that astorita and his partners should have recognized that the confession was false. astorita conceded the following: days said he used the side door to access the house, when in fact there was no side door; days said he, “popped open the door,” yet, there were no signs of forcible entry; days said he kicked the dog, yet post mortem exami-nation revealed no such injury; days said he washed the blood from his hands in the sink, but there was no evidence of blood residue in the sink; days stated he had driven his car to delaware and “lost it,” yet, despite a police search, no car ever turned up, nor were they able to confirm his pres-ence in delaware.

sensing that he had astorita on the ropes, and wishing to demonstrate that he and his fellow officers had failed to do a fundamental aspect of interrogation, namely establishment of a claim within a confession that could be independently corroborated, Finzi now asked, “What did he tell you that you didn’t already know that you verified?” astorita, appearing a little taken aback by the question, now paused before feebly citing a number of locations that days claimed to have visited, none of which proved any previously unknown element of the crime, nor were they able to prove days had been there. In an attempt to bolster his faltering testimony, astorita now volunteered what he called other details that days supplied: that harris’ home health aid had been killed second; and that harris had been sitting up when days came into contact with him; that harris used profanity upon seeing days which astorita claimed was consistent with harris’ personality; that days had not previously cased the house prior to entry; and that the home health-aid had surprised him, “coming out of nowhere.” Finzi, immediately recognizing that each of the “revelations” were unverifiable and therefore did not constitute unknown details despite astorita’s attempt to pass them off as such, now lowered the boom one item at a time, establishing that it was impossible to confirm any of those details, and they were virtually meaningless by way of establishing a genuine confession.

On redirect examination, ada christine O’connor, attempting to obfus-cate the exposed lack of corroborative effort by eastchester Police while at the same time rehabilitating her witness’ credibility, now inquired of astorita as to whether Mr. days had mentioned a knife and a rope. receiving an affirmative response, she then proceeded in a different direction.

apparently concerned that Finzi had made a convincing argument for the fact that selwyn days had been fed informa-tion in the six hours of interrogation prior to the video-taping, she now asked, “When Mr. days mentioned entering the house through the side door, you didn’t stop and correct him, did you?” Of course, astorita quickly responded, “No.” she then asked similar questions regarding a number of other mistakes made by days in his state-ment which were not corrected, to which astorita repeatedly responded, “No.”

Analysisconducting an interrogation prior to

turning on recording equipment defeats the whole point of recording: to make a complete and accurate record of who said what and when. It is obvious that detective astorita and his colleagues did not want their preparation of this defen-dant for videotaping to be memorialized, out of concern that it would reveal both coercive and instructional tactics. The one moment in this cross-examination that was startlingly candid was astorita’s admission that, in fact, they wanted to be certain of exactly what he would say before they rolled the camera.

astorita’s deliberate failure to take any notes during a total of six hours of prior interrogation, represents a deviation from good police practices.

In this reporter’s opinion, former detective astorita’s testimony was not credible.

ada O’connor’s attempt on redi-rect with respect to the knife and the rope was surely blunted by the fact, firstly, that astorita and company had been inter-rogating him without recording it for six hours prior to his ‘statement’, and further, the exposure of the details by the media nearly five years earlier.

similarly, O’connor’s trying to suggest that there were no police suggestions to days, by pointing out that the police didn’t correct him when he got details wrong is disingenuous given the fact that it was then video-taped.

days’ numerous errors were proof positive that his statement did not consti-tute a truthful confession.

This testimony demonstrates that even well-intentioned legislation mandating video recording of all police interroga-tions is not adequate unless it specifically requires start to finish recording in real time.

Jeffrey M. Deskovic is a Criminal Justice Advocate and Exoneree. To learn more, wist his website: www.JeffreyDeskovicSpeaks.org.

TRUTH AND JUSTICE

Selwyn Days Round 3 - Week 2 By Jeff DeskovicQuestionable Police Interrogation Tactics Surface

399 Huguenot St.New Rochelle, NY 10801915-636-7235


Treat Dog Hotels, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 1/19/2011. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to Melis-sa Horowitz C/O: ESCC 84 Business Park Dr Ste 115 Armonk, NY 10504. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of Formation of a Limited Liability Company (LLC): Name: AP-PLESTAR HOME INSPECTIONS LLC, Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 12/16/2010 Office Loca-tion: Westchester County, SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to: C/O APPLESTAR HOME INSPECTIONS LLC, 38 Douglas Av-enue, Yonkers, NY 10703. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose. Latest date upon Which LLC is to dissolve: No specific date.

2HB Holdings LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 9/29/2010. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC 59 Calton Rd. New Rochelle, NY, 10804. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Bookkeeping Performance, LLC Ar-ticles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 11/8/2010. Office in West-chester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC 17 Warren Ave Tuckahoe, NY 10707. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

LEGAL NOTICESR Patisserie LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 01/27/2011. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC 52 Webster Avenue #17 New Rochelle, NY 10801. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Westchester Jewelers & Pawn-brokers, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 7/6/2006. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY design. Agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to Barbara Buoninfante 685 Esplanade Pelham Manor, NY 10803. Purpose: Any law-ful activity.

Icartridge LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 2/7/2011. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY de-sign. Agent of LLC upon whom pro-cess may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to The LLC P.O. Box 333 Hartsdale, NY 10530. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONSIndex No.: 4189-10Date of Filing: July 13, 2010SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORKCOUNTY OF Westchester Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Trustee under Pooling and Ser-vicing Agreement dated as of February 1, 2003 Merrill Lynch Mortgage In-vestors Trust Mortgage Loan Asset-Backed Certificates, Series 2003-WMC1,Plaintiff,-against-EILEEN MYERS A/K/A EILEEN MEYERS A/K/A EILEEN LIERMAN; CONSOLI-DATED EDISON COMPANY OF NEW YORK, INC.; DELIA LOPEZ, if living, or if either or all be dead, their wives, husbands, heirs-at-law, next of kin, distributees, executors, administrators, assignees, lienors and generally all persons having or claiming under, by or through said DELIA LOPEZ, by purchase, inheritance, lien or otherwise, of any right, title or interest in and to the premises described in the complaint herein, and the respective hus-bands, wives, widow or widowers of them, if any, all of whose names are unknown to plaintiff; ERIC M. FAYER; JEMAB FAMILY LIMITED PARTNER-SHIP A/K/A JEMAE FAMILY LIMITED PARTNERSHIP; LEHRMAN, KRONIC AND LEHRMAN, LLP; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; PETERBUILT ELECTRIC, INC.; SAIDEL AND SAIDEL, P.C. C/O TRAUB LIEBERMAN, STRAUSS AND SHREWSBERR; TONY FELICIO; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA; “JOHN DOES” and “JANE DOES”, said names being fictitious, parties intended being possible tenants or occupants of premises, and corporations, other entities or persons who claim, or may claim, a lien against the premises, Defendants.TO THE ABOVE-NAMED DEFENDANTS:YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the complaint is not served with this sum-mons, to serve a Notice of Appearance on the Plaintiff’s attorney(s) within twenty (20) days after the service of this summons, exclusive of the day of service, where service is made by delivery upon you personally within the State, or within thirty (30) days after completion of service where service is made in any other manner, and in case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint.NOTICEYOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME

If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judg-ment may be entered and you can lose your home.Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property.Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action.YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE AT-TORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE AN-SWER WITH THE COURT.YOU ARE HEREBY PUT ON NOTICE THAT WE ARE ATTEMPTING TO COL-LECT A DEBT, AND ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE.TO THE ABOVE-NAMED DEFENDANTS:The foregoing summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an Order of the Honorable Orazio R. Bellantoni of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, signed on January 25, 2011, and filed with supporting papers in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Westchester, State of New York.The object of this action is to foreclose a mortgage upon the premises de-scribed below, executed by EILEEN MYERS A/K/A EILEEN MEYERS A/K/A EI-LEEN LIERMAN to Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. as Nomi-nee for WMC Mortgage Corporation in the principal amount of $138,400.00, which mortgage was recorded in Westchester County, State of New York, on December 26, 2002, as Control No. 423430737. Said mortgage was thereafter assigned to the Plaintiff by assignment of mortgage recorded October 8, 2009 as Control No. 49266057.Said premises being known as and by 1430 MAIN ST, PEEKSKILL, NY 10566.Date: April 22, 2010Batavia, New York Laura Strauss, Esq.ROSICKI, ROSICKI & ASSOCIATES, P.C.Attorneys for PlaintiffBatavia Office 26 Harvester AvenueBatavia, NY 14020585.815.0288


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