Saturday, April 25, 2009

Week of April 19th: Miscellaneous

The purpose of this Miscellaneous topic is to discuss any town related issues you feel are important that are not addressed in other topics. Please post any issues you wish to discuss in the comments section of this post. Thanks!

If you have any suggestions or comments regarding the blog, please contact me at 'mherman.gny@gmail.com'. Thank you for your input.

-Marc Herman

91 comments:

Anonymous said...

Why is the audio so low on the televised board meetings and work sessions?

take down the wall said...

since the wall in front of webb field is falling apart, i suggest we take it all down. it was a mistake. it is an eyesore. it is not a work or art - it is a ponderous mess. it ruined a lovely vista.

its shovel ready for removal.

Hartsdale Home Owner said...

As Paul's postings represent, unemployment is a growing concern and, for the employed, wages aren't increasing anyway. Many reports suggest that housing prices will continue to fall and take years to return to "bubble" prices. In any event, any such real estate "gains" will probably be eroded by inflation. In this environment, how can the Town Board continue to justify enormous tax increases? The Board shows no comprehension of the economic recession. Where do they expect homeowners to find this "extra" cash to support the Board's failure to make real budget cuts. How do Feiner et al. sleep at night? Do they all have trust funds?

Anonymous said...

As I am writing this comment the board at todays work session gave notice that Regula will be still working for the next few months.

Has he or has he not retired?
Are you allowing him to stay to complete the time he has left I think it's two years to complete his time of retirement age wise?

Paul something stinks with this decision. We will find out what is behind this madness.

fat pension said...

Yorktown supervisor talks of eliminating police department


Paul look into this

hal samis said...

Re Regula:Don't really see the need for him since the Snow Season, the Leaf Season are over. And we have Butch back at a substantial raise to ease the transition which starts in early May (about two weeks off).So why the return of Al?Could there be problems at the Library?  Yes, but Al had a hand in creating these problems and would the Town Board pay him more as a reward?  More likely is that someone goofed and allowed him to run up a tab (I understand that he is way under his $30,000 allotment) but having money left to burn, why not give it to Al.Even more likely is that someone goofed and allowed Al to "perform work" after the earlier Resolution's March 31 cut-off and that this is a measure to correct that mistake.

However, if Butch is now earning the pay of a Commissioner, there can be no justification that Al is also needed to ease the transition.But, hey, it's only the taxpayers that suffer so stop worrying, be happy.

Anonymous said...

How much is the Police Dept budget?
Paul follow the Lead od Yorktown supervisor and drop the PD and contract with The County PD and State PD for protection. we might even see a patrol car in the neighborhoods. Town of Corlandt does it why not Greenburgh?

Merge the rec dept and community center also.

why tdycc said...

4 million for tdycc
why?
sell it to the Y
and yes - tear down that stupid wall

Anonymous said...

Why keep Regula on if you gave Nanna a raise to stay on as deputy.
Is there another reason to keep Regula on the payroll.

Anonymous said...

The 9/11 wall has been such an embarrassment since day-one. It would actually be a greater tribute to those who died by having it removed, especially give its current neglect.

Anonymous said...

The Town DPW property on Sprain Road (outside the fence and along the stone wall area) needs to be cleaned up. The litter and accumulated debris is an ongoing eyesore for the neighborhood.

Also, the Town DPW started clean up of the NYC-owned property on Sprain Road near Heatherdell, but now it looks much worse than before because no one went back to finish.

Anonymous said...

"Merge the rec dept and community center also." YES! That would be very sensible!

klondike - wall should come down said...

a candidate for town board that would advocate taking the wall down would probably do very well

unfortunately the only candidate to propose this is klondike bar and he cannot leave his freezer case at the A & P to attend the town democratic meeting tomorrow night.

hal samis said...

Today's GREEN event at the Library.
The one that has pushed the Town Board meeting back to 8:15 or beyond.

Did the Supervisor forget to mention that Greenbugh paid a membership fee to join the organization. Depending on what the Town put down on the application, the fee could have been as low as $450 or as high as $1200.

They asked 10, got 9 and look at the peer group. Greenburgh is right up there with those other small towns. We also have in common with them:

1) we are energy producers,
2) we are a coastal flood prone area
3) a manufacturing dependent area

You can see that in a world of "confusion" where Greenburgh had been ranked #80 in a list of CITIES, that these folks also must have Greenburgh mixed up with some other place...

If you believe that rigorous standards were applied, then let me inform you that you may have won $1 million from the Publisher's Clearing House.


"Spotlights
In an effort to highlight several key National Conversation events and invest resources to boost the visibility, effectiveness and sophistication of those efforts, we have selected 9 Spotlight Conversations:

Greenburgh, New York
Hennepin County, Minnesota
Houston, Texas
Jackson, Wyoming
Lexington, Kentucky (Fayette County)
Los Angeles County, California
Sarasota County, Florida
Sumter, South Carolina
Tucson, Arizona

The selected Spotlight Conversation communities will work closely with the event partners in the coming months to plan and promote events that focus on civic engagement, solutions-oriented dialogue, and local climate action. Local governments across the country were invited to submit proposals to be a Spotlight Conversation; these 10 were selected from a pool of strong proposals.

The Spotlights reflect key geographic regions, include all levels of progress on the climate action and outreach spectrum, represent communities with diverse economic and demographic characteristics, and feature sites that will be impacted differently by climate action – and inaction – because they are energy producers; coastal, flood-prone areas; and/or manufacturing dependent economies."

97 persons signed up to attend. Probably as many as Houston or Los Angeles.

Anonymous said...

In response to Hal: would you just please move out of Greenburgh. You obviously hate EVERYTHING, so get on your trike and go harass some other community. The vitriol you have spewn on other posts regarding "green" only serves to highlight your on-going need to bash vs. build. Do us all a favor and move on and out. You obviously have zero awareness on what this event is about and instead of sitting at work wasting your employer's time blogging all day, maybe you should have taken the day off and attended the session - you might even have learned something.

hal samis said...

Are you posting from the session or from work?

Anonymous said...

would like to know why the town board would ever interveiw a resident of GHA public housing for the postion of GHA Commissioner. When the state law states that all resident commissioners must be elected by the residents.Not appointed by the town
Is this someone special or does someone on the town board owe this person a favor. Also since this person was voted off the GHA board by the tenants why would the town board want to put this person back on the GHA board. What is this persons connection with a town board members?

Anonymous said...

I'm actually blogging on my way back from U-Haul, where I was trying to negotiate a discounted rate on your behalf.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Feiner: Is it true that you paid to have us chosen for this green conversation spotlight thing?! Also, why do you have two energy conservation employees and now two grant writing positions? As the CFO, you should be looking to cut such optional spending. Our taxes need to go towards things like roadways, sewers, traffic signs, code enforcement, trash pickup, etc. These are the things we pay you to supervise. All this other fluff can be cute in a more vibrant economy, but right now it's so annoying to see how you opt to misspend our money.

Anonymous said...

Hal -
Thank you for not blaming the Library for Greenburgh's signing up for the Green conversations. It does seem the only green in those conversations is the green (money) going from the municipalities to the organizers...

Anonymous said...

Dear 4;21 I did answer your comment by our dear supervisor deleted it.

As we all know he cannot read the truth about the way this town has hit bottom.
Sorry that you did not read my comment but I have previously been in politics for many years but I will never run for any office here in Greenburgh
I always stood by my word and that honesty was the best policy.
Thats something lacking here in our 80th best town to live in.

Anonymous said...

Dear Paul, please fix the outdoor lighting and the leaks at the Library. The front door ceiling is starting to fall down and are you waiting for an insurance claim by someone falling down in the dark in the parking lot to fix the problem? If you are broke, use the raise money that your are not giving to your employees.

Anonymous said...

SHAM, SHAM, SHAM!!!!....Hard to believe that members of the Town Board develop policy and then turn around and blatantly ignore the very policy that they have produced. This was witnessed at last night's town board meeting. How can you expect employees to follow rules when the governing board of our town behaves as though they are above rules, regulations and procedures that are in place. Where is it written that the advisory board of TDYCC have non-voting members. Why were the former voting members now deemed, non-voting members, not been rolled over with voting rights as the members of all other boards.....such as those on the recreation board. It seems there is something devious about the action taken when procedures are ignored and new rule are made up in an instant that targets a department that is the subject questionable over-sight and investigation.

Anonymous said...

Samis is correct when one deals with children there should be a resume in place.
How can the town attorney say that there is no resume for either the exposure teacher or the new commissioner.

Fingerprinting is not enough.

How can this town trust anyone with children without knowing from where he came from or any other information needed to protect our children.

Anonymous said...

By the way why is the PD hitting us the taxpayers with this crazy amount for dental and eyeglasses.

They all have insurance that will cover their expenses.

How many of these cops make deals to receive kick backs from anyone who is in the medical profession.

Now as far as the retirees they too have insurance ;;;ie medicare plus the supplement insurance .
Medicare covers eye exams and the rest if not paid is picked up by the second insurance.

Many of our police are married to spouses that have full coverage on both -eyes and teeth. This should be checked out also.
They put in one claim and go half with the provider on the other free coverage that the taxpayers fit the bill.
Before you make any attempt to pass this you should check out what other coverage the police person has.
One cannot collect from both but you can rest assured that this is being done by many.

Why must we pay for this coverage .
The PBA will ask for the world but only fools grant them their request.

About D'Allesio droping his law suit who is he to initiate one when we are paying his salary.
Tell me how many hours a day does he put in to policing.
He should be checked out.
Was he hired to protect the public or was he hired to sit at a desk to voice his oponion only on ploice matters.

Why do we have a chief.?????

hal samis said...

SHAM is right but not just in the way that you mentioned.

What you saw from Sheehan and Juettner was electioneering ahead of tonight's Democratic Party fall nominations.

Sheehan and Juettner were allowed to show independence from the Feiner apparatus over a minor issue. The voting result was already assured by the just three votes so the abstentions didn't matter. You did not hear any counter arguments from the three votes so it was brief grin and bear it time in front of the remaining 8 residents at Town Hall.

Now, as the result of their new interest in following rules which hasn't ever been an issue before, don't you think that Sheehan and Juettner are the candidates for you: fearless, on the side of truth, justice and the American way.

And, I'll wager that Juettner had more to say last night than she has in the last year of meetings --except when it came to answering what was wrong with the lights in the library parking lot -- a problem now starting its third week. Ms. Juettner is the liaison to the library but why should she know -- or the rest of the Town Board?

And, note too that Mr. Sheehan and Ms. Juettner were given the face time to introduce the night's two resolutions. Even if Ms. Juettner's resolution wasn't going to be introduced.

So, you think there isn't a agreed upon script for the Town Board meeting because they don't discuss it in work session?

And the best bit of acting was the distress exhibited when called to answer for starting the meeting late. Town Board meetings are scheduled for 7:30. This one was scheduled for 8:15 to allow the Town Board to appear at the Green Day nonsense. When they arrived at Town Hall after 8:40, they went into an unscheduled Executive Session which caused the Town Board meeting to start at 9:10.
This starting late and still later affected the child being honored, the residents who came to the meeting to be appointed to various volunteer positions, the public who regularly attends meetings, the town employees who are expected to remain until after public comment.

Now, look at how the Town Board responds to this being cited for this display of contempt. Mr. Feiner says what was already known: they had to conduct an Executive Session -- but he doesn't allow that it could have held AFTER the already late start to the Town Board meeting.

Referring to my comments on the new Town Comptroller, Mr. Sheehan says it is disgusting for me to have besmirched him yet it was ok for the Town Board to have done it to the former Comptroller. It is also ok to keep the Department heads around to after 10:00 so the Town Board can go out and play.

And, why are the Department heads waiting around? Because the script is conceived to show that they are available to answer the questions that an open government is willing to answer.

Unless you happen to ask for the Department heads to answer the questions specific to their Department that the Town Board seeks not to have answered publicly.

Thus you have Kevin Morgan taking the Town Comptroller outside and telling him to disappear so that Tim Lewis can answer. Thus you have the Town Board answering for the head of the TDYCC -- or not answering as was the case.

So 8:50, your description of sham is accurate but limited just to your singular citation. The whole meeting is a sham.

hal samis said...

What everyone in the "know" knows is that the resumes for Ray Thomas, Xposure head honcho and Don Cannon, Xposure financial guru, will show that neither has the background qualifications that would normally be associated with these designations.

Of the two, the absence of a resume for Mr. Thomas is by far the more serious. He is heading a program -- after school, educational, day care, career guidance -- call it what you will that brings in nearly $375,000 to him (grant, Town match, $300 tuition) plus the opportunity to for him to use its existence to promote the program to other would-be buyers. Xposure, although technically an outside contractor, is conducted on Town property (TDYCC) at no cost to Xposure for the space, heat and light and ancillary personnel who work at the Center. Should there be problems resulting in litigation, the Town would assuredly be named as a co-defendant; especially since it is the deep pockets.

The Town has purposely not sought his resume so as to be able to respond to FOIL requests that the document does not exist.

That a Police Department background check confirms that he is a not a bank robber or pedophile is comforting but hardly addresses whether he is qualified to conduct such a program.

Mr. Thomas' resume will show that he has no college degree, no eudcational credits, no certifications to lead children or anything remotely connected to their needs, emotional, educational or safety.

As the Xposure contract is coming up for renewal, ask yourselves why is the Town so set on NOT requiring a resume(s). Even a secretary at Town Hall come to a job interview with a resume in hand.

Xposure promotes as one of its gimmicks that it teaches 8 year olds how to get jobs. One wonders whether they are told that in the real world, they need to produce a resume.

And why wouldn't the Town Board allow the new head of the TDYCC, Mr. Carter, to relate his experience with Mr. Thomas upon seeking such a resume?

Something stinks.
And the "sham" of last night's flap over the appointments of the TDYCC advisory Board, masks the reality that TDYCC Director, Advisory Board or not, the Town Board is calling the shots.

Anonymous said...

Now we know that there is $4,8 million dollars in parking fines going back many many years.
How did this go undetected all this time.
What happened??????
I guess when one retires and is getting ready to take on another job this find looks good on a resume.
Paul do you see how important a resume is.

hal samis said...

Attn: Lost and Found Department

Missing

Town of Greenburgh Proposed 2009-2010 Capital Budget.
Anyone with knowledge of its existence please bring it to this blog's attention.

go paul go said...

paul - good luck tomorrow
you are the true champion of the people

too bad some peeps in edgemont do not see it that way but the rest of us do.

Anonymous said...

So you decided to delete the comment concerning the comptroller and his knowledge of the Kolesar's report which should and must be made known to the public.
Must we make a court case or will he surrender quietly.

Take the money that is owed to the town which could have saved the taxpayers high taxes.
How come some of it was found at this time.
Yes it is good to clean house before one leaves.
One must make sure that there is nothing that is left behind.
The money owed the town so far that has recently surfaced are:
1-Housing authority
2-the swim team
3-the sewer problem
4-the court system
5-the parking fines.

Add all these up Paul and see how much money the taxpayers have been cheated all these years.
How could you sit back as the chief financial administrator and not see the damage that these few items could cause you and the board.

You fired Kolesar because he did come up with many monitary problems that were plaguing the town .
This was an OK thing for you to do right.
DiNapoli our NY state comptroller said [the exact thing that Kolesar said ]while being interviewed by our representative Cousins that what is need is a more careful method of internal control.
It is kind of odd that the chief would come foward with the amount owed for parking fines a few months before he retires.
Where has he been all these years to have this problem accumulate all this money $4.8 million dollars.
He also allowed the housing Authority to carry a debt of almost one half million dollars over three or four years.
Who's playing games with our money.
The sewer problem goes way back also .The sewer guy fought a strong fight .
The way the court was being run was repoted to you for some time but you just sat back and allowed the court system to be critsized over and over again without checking out a remedy.
The money owed the town by the swim team. It's not your money going into a failing center so why should you care.
You know Paul one can go on and on concerning the problems in this town because you do not have managerial skills.
Your problem is let sleeping dogs sleep. Tell me are you waiting for the day that you must retire to explain to the public how much money is out there that could have saved our sanity.

hal samis said...

We hold these truths to be self evident...

The following was sent to Captain DeCarlo with copies to Chief Kapica and the Town Board (Police Commissioners).

"Today's preamble or pre-ramble for those who prefer. Following this new message are Wednesday's and Thursday's earlier notices of the problem. For those who may remember, getting an officer assigned to the Hartsdale Train station to control rush hour traffic (created by the conflux of vehicle traffic (car, bus, taxi, truck) caused by the Pipeline and East Hartsdale Avenue meeting at the "plaza" to discharge/pick-up passengers, make deliveries to the Starbuck's, enter and leave the parking garage, accessing East Hartsdale Avenue AND confronting pedestrians and cyclists in the rush to board rush hour trains. It took three years of badgering even to get someone assigned during the AM's critical three hours but since that concession by the Chief, there followed a lengthy email exchange to have the officer positioned where he would be of some use in alleviating conditions. This was effected, more or less, for a three week period and the officer who did direct traffic by standing in and around the flagpole managed to both move traffic along and provide for pedestrians a safe environment. Recently he has been replaced by someone else which is the reason for today's, Wednesday's and Thursday's (see below) notices. It is odd that the Police Department insists on departing from the oft proclaimed "what if someone were to die" while instead to foster posting a well-paid officer whose assignment (supervised or not) now is to entertain the newspaper vendor rather than attend to the traffic problems outside and provide relief to commuting taxpayers.

How many of these emails are necessary for the Police Department to take note and respond to this problem; a problem which appears to be in marked contrast to how short of manpower the Department is at annual budget review. Since the Department wants to ignore these "dunning" notices, I am prepared to escalate from this matter into a review of how much excess fire power is deployed at various "incidents" when four or more units are dispatched to the scene of even the most mundane matter. Does the Police Department function with any consistent productivity goals on a daily basis or does it operate only selectively for "show" when the media may be interested. When four units respond, who is minding the store around the rest of Greenburgh? Or is there really an excess of manpower while the Chief is habitually crying "wolf"?

Just to allow the Chief an opportunity to defend the Department's honor, I am referring to an incident that occurred about two weeks ago on Central Park Avenue across from the Dog Cemetery at the corner commercial building. Walking home, I saw police units still arriving AFTER a "perp" was handcuffed and being led into a police car. I can't be sure whether there was a total of four or five units (whether the fifth was an unmarked vehicle) that responded but let the Chief recap the incident for those interested. However, I can't rationalize that so many units were needed while this reminds me of the incident when four units were dispatched to investigate a complaint when I attempted to attend a meeting of the Library Foundation being held on Town property, the multipurpose center at Veteran Park. At the time I accepted the apologies and explanation that having four units was indeed a mistake but following that event I have witnessed similar response excesses -- one of which I reported privately to the Chief (at the McDonald's/TJ MAXX retail strip).

It would be interesting to see report summaries of how many units are summoned to every "scene" over the course of a determined period. Lacking "officer down", I suspect too many.

If this infuriates the Chief and Mr. Morgan, let it be so but I'm willing to entertain a more challenging look-see into how the Department really operates if I have to keep writing these emails to rectify even the most basic managerial cold shoulders.

And if the Chief feels it necessary to employ Police brutality to shut me up, hopefully the insurance settlement will include getting me on the Department's dental plan.

TODAY'S (FRIDAY) EMAIL REMINDER
***Once again I observed the assigned officer present at the far side of the station interior (no view of the plaza's traffic conditions) in conversation with the news vendor. Once again, during boarding the train, he remained inside. Once again his unattended vehicle was left running and consuming gasoline during Earth Week.

This type of personnel deployment doesn't bode well for year-to-year increases in the Police Department budget.

I hope that you reconsider your Edgemont statement regarding learning from the Chief and seek another mentor. The days of the power trip and red-faced ranting are drawing to an end.
With the nearing completion of the Library, my new interest is going to be the Police Department with an objective of focusing the spotlight on another Department which creates its own standards against the backdrop of the public be damned.

Sent Wednesday March 22 to Captain DeCarlo, copies to Chief Kapica and Town Board.

***There was nothing more discomforting at the meeting in Edgemont than to hear that you learned how to run the Department from Chief Kapica. This portends only more of the same old, same old.

For example, the police officer assigned to handle the morning rush hour traffic has now been replaced by a new officer. Whereas the former officer did not hesitate to stand in the traffic flow at its most congested point and direct vehicular traffic flow and enforce yielding to pedestrians, apparently he was doing it too well and was reassigned.

His replacement now serves the public and represents the Department by standing inside the station along the news vendor (vendor is located at the rear, trackside door and thus no visibility of the roads serving the station) and chatting. No officer present on Tuesday but on Monday he was with the news vendor reading a paper and inside this morning chatting as I was waiting to depart. He did come outside as the train arrived at the station and look around.
But surely the reason he has been assigned is not to protect the news vendor.

The point here is that: isn't the job explained when new men are sent out? Is there any supervision? One would wonder if the Police Department considers it a sellling point when seeking annual revenues at budget time that the public witnesses an on-duty officer hanging out -- inside -- while outside his empty vehicle is idling, consuming gasoline on Earth Day.

I hope that the Chief doesn't blow a gasket when reading this but it is high time that the Department exhibit some discipline and supervision. You are aware that having an officer assigned during rush hour and situated where the problems are the most acute has been a concern of mine.

Along these same lines is my year-to-year cirticism regarding the crosswalk kiosks that alert drivers that it is against state law not to stop. Something that is not coveyed by roadside signs which may or may not be noticed or understood. Certainly a stick figure walking make no mention of breaking the law.

Thus, when the "season" (something defined by the Chief) was tolerant of acknowledging their need, I find that the kiosk sign has not been returned to the raised crosswalk by the train station but that the sign on Rockledge Circle has (as it has in other parts of Town). Is danger less of a priority at the train station than it has been in previous years? And when you assume office I hope that your view of the seasonal hiatus for these signs will be something that will not survive in the new administration. If the signs serve as purpose (I believe they do) then winter (with an earlier onset of darkness) is certainly a time when they are needed more, not to be removed. With all of the tutelage of "what if someone were to die", saving the potential loss of the uselful life of traffic signage seems to be the lesser of the evils yet that is what Chief Kapica offers (they could be hit by snow plows; thus they are taken out of service for five months for 5-10 snow days).

On the other hand, if the Police want to make a case that these signs don't serve any practical value, then their random disbursement makes little sense. And, I would be delighted to witness the reaction were you to remove these signs from, say, Hillside Avenue at the Bailey School.

If fresh blood is the opportunity to make some sense out of a Department that has operated as a clubhouse in the past, then the present is the time to start laying the groundwork for changes

Sent Thursday Morning April 23 to the same group.
This follows a conversation with the Captain at the Town Board meeting Wednesday night

***This morning's rush hour found the Police officer assigned to the train station again inside chatting with the news vendor.
I guess this is what you call building "Community Relations" but my guess is that taxpayers can ill afford to support this use of a unit.

What is different between today and yesterday's email is that today the officer was dressed in a short sleeve uniform and he did not go onto to the platform as the train was boarded.

What is common between today and yesterday is that vehicular traffic (never a consistent minute by minute environment) outside the station had built up by a back-up of cars from the Pipeline seeking to enter East Hartsdale in the direction of the Bronx River Parkway and this made the result for all other traffic and pedestrians at the station difficult and dangerous.

A situation that could neither be seen nor dealt with by an officer chatting with the newpaper vendor.

The overhanging question is what does the Police Department expect of new officers who receive new assignments? Are they expected to know the assignment or are they instructed in how to perform this assignment. In the current situation, it looks like all the officer was told to do was appear in the area and that nothing more was expected of him. Is this how the Police Department operates? If this is how the upper echelons of the Department make use of their resources, then certainly the Department needs further down-sizing.

And less time spent by Department management on new needs to spend the public's money and more time spent on deciding how to use their existing budget wisely"

Anonymous said...

Does anyone actually read this drivel from Samis?

Anonymous said...

What the heck is going on Paul. Why in God's name would you have Al Regula come back. For that matter, why have Nanna come back too. Its ridiculous. Those two retired and that's where they should have stayed. First you have them come back as consultants and pay them added thousands of dollars then Nanna comes back at a higher salary than he was making before he left. A new Commissioner is hired and then you have Al back for a few more months on top of it. Is the new Commissioner working for free while you are paying Al?

The CSEA members have been working for almost a year and a half without a new contract. The money you're paying these two guys could have gone toward the workers salaries. They are the heartbeat of the town. They are what makes the Town of Greenburgh flow each day. Don't you have any consideration for the men and women who have to work with their backs to make this town function. In the old days, you use to be for the worker. What happened to you. Al and Nanna have made enough money from this town. "Share the Wealth" Paul, "Share the Wealth."

Anonymous said...

When you raised our taxes, Paul, I thought that the raise for the CSEA workers (Recreation, Water/Sewer, Maintenance, Community Center workers) was figured into this. Where is it? The workers sure haven't seen it yet. If you aren't intending to give the the workers their raise, than the money should be credited back to the taxpayers.

fat pension said...

you all need to stick together and do less work!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Do you Know Me?

Tommy Flanagan, the Pathological Liar
The Pathological Liar is a character created and portrayed by Jon Lovitz, often appearing on Weekend Update segments - and other sketches - to share his farcical views. The character's name was actually Tommy Flanagan (pronounced [flə-'nā-gən], not to be confused with the jazz pianist), and he would tell outrageous whoppers in an effort to make himself seem important (such as his claim that he invented Rock and Roll). One recurring lie was claiming he was married to Morgan Fairchild. His devious look, hand rubbing and nervous speech made it clear he was making up lies, one after the other, on the spot. And if he came up with a particularly good lie he would add the catchphrase: "Yeahhh! That's the ticket!"

Anonymous said...

What happened to the hiring freeze? You hired employees in the Water dept, assessor's, sanitation, comptroller's etc.,etc.,etc.

feiner fan said...

feiner rocks
edgemont and his other critics cant lay a glove on this selfless public servant

feiner has no challengers
must be doing something right
feiner was against the library - how right he was

feiner fan said...

feiner rocks
edgemont and his other critics cant lay a glove on this selfless public servant

feiner has no challengers
must be doing something right
feiner was against the library - how right he was

Anonymous said...

To the CSEA and Teamsters:

On last Wednesday's Town Board agenda, there was a resolution to accept a partial settlement of some litigation involving the Police Association and the Town. What the Town Board hasn't told you is that this proposed settlement may cost the Town something in excess of $800,000 over the next 10 years compared with expected inflation. More than $1,000,000 excluding inflation.

Way to go Town Board, while you guys and gals get nothing, nada, zilch.

I hope that you have informed your leadership.

Anonymous said...

Is it possible that if the town did not settle the contract that the costs would be more?

Anonymous said...

Is Fulton Park in Edgemont?

Anonymous said...

the only person who has sued feiner is from edgemont and he lost big time

some in edgemont are so unhappy with feiner they want to form their own village

1:25 said...

The sewer guy is from Edgemont. His address has nothing to do with his issues. If you take the time to read the State Comptroller's report you will see that he was correct in his beliefs. Also, his issue is not an Edgemont issue. It is a town wide issue. I suggest you read his website www.sewerdistricttruth.com.

Anonymous said...

The sewer guy is from Edgemont but this makes no difference because he has been working real hard not only for his sewer district but for the entire town.

He should be hired to do some invesitgation of the other areas in this town.

The problem exists throughout the whole town of Greenburgh.
You should read his web site which is self explanatory as to how we are being overcharged with our sewer tax.

Too bad there are not more people as the serwer guy,Hal Samis ,Bernstein,and Preiser who
Are good investigators who set many of us straight as to what is being done illegaly.
Thanks to all of you.

fat pension said...

there is alot of wrong things that go on in this town,look at the P.D. dept, but the workers dont care and will collect a fat pension the town can do nothing about this

Anonymous said...

As far as the PD goes there was no one watching the ship.

The overtime money was asked for and delivered with every budget.
Guys if we don't use it up we can't ask for it when we really need it.

This is what raises their pensio. All the overtime.

Each man looks at the job as the best retirement program in New york.
No questions asked either by the chief and one better that being the supervisor.
with the money that is granted within the budget we should have one of the best departments.
Why can't we have a department as efficient as White Plains.
Have you noticed how fast they can clear the traffic at peak hours.
Somrthing has to be done here to clear up the backups.

Kapica should have some of the White Plains patrol person show him how to dir=ect traffic.
I do think Kapica forgot how to do this one chore and above all place it in service where and when it is needed.
He was one of the best traffic mover years ago. how about bringing that job back the way it used to be.
Get rid of the bottle necks throughout the town.
Get the guys away from the desks and put them outside where they are desparetly needed.

Anonymous said...

Per State law, the Supervisor is, first and foremost, the Chief Financial Officer of the Town. Our next Supervisor needs to be someone with a strong finance background.

Jim Lasser said...

The problem with being an effective chief financial officer in the current climate is that one must be able to say "No" and make it stick.
By definition, politicians cannot say "No". They must compromise their principles and say "Yes" to special interests and folks who will come out to vote. Witness please the continued funding of TDYCC's parallel programs.
Strong financial discipline - even the discussion of it - makes politicians so nervous they run and hide. As elected officials they try to place the blame for their profligacy on others - Mike Kolesar made the fatal mistake of telling the truth whenever he was asked a question. Now the Town's Capital Budget seems to have been classified "Top Secret". None of this should surprise anyone, this is what happens when being re-elected has a higher priority than doing the right thing.
Perhaps we need a new Supervisor - or perhaps what we really need is to abandon a corrupt political process and move into the twentyfirst century with a new charter and a professional Town manager.

feiner is the answer said...

if feiner is for retiring spano and his apparatchik tolchin. go paul go

paul should hold a summit of the 43different governments/school districts in westchester and see what can be done to consolidate and share services.

thats truly where tax savings may come from as local taxes - village, town, school taxes make up 82% of your tax bill

spano keeps defending the status quo. feiner is shaking things up.

thats why feiner is going to be re-elected in 2009 for another two year term.

Jim Lasser said...

Dear 10:50 -
Sharing and consolidation are exactly what is called for - but if you think you can have sharing and consolidation for 43 "independent" taxing authorities, I think you are mistaken.
The way to save money is to reduce the number of governments involved, not by one [the County] but by consolidating, for example, the six villages in Greenburgh into a single government at the Town level. One government is more cost effective than seven - and would you like to discuss how likely that is to happen?

dear mr jim said...

dear mr jim
curious, where do you stand on edgemont incorporation?

more importantly, where do you think edgemonters stand on it?

question for mr K said...

dear mr krauss

why would only unincorporated vote on it? isnt the A budget paid for in part by the villages??

Anonymous said...

Mr. Krauss.

What is a passive referendum? Do you mean a permissive referendum, which is obtained by the requisite number of signatures on a petition? If so, how would it be limited to the voters in unincorporated Greenburgh and not the whole town? Do you have law on this?

edgemont's mr k said...

clearly mr k is wrong on both counts.

forgive him father for he lives in edgemont and knows only to bash the supervisor.

Anonymous said...

Dear 10:50,
Mr. Feiner could not organize a summit of the various municipalities in westhchester.

shadow of hartsdale said...

feiner has always been underestimated. just ask mr edelman who predicted his demise when spano backed suzanne berger.

feiner went on to trounce the lady from dobbs ferry. word is she has still not recovered.

Anonymous said...

The only elected office Feiner could win is Supervisor of Greenburgh.

the shadow knows said...

im sure feiner is ok with that. he loves the job and apparently the voters agree.

Anonymous said...

So why'ld he raise all that $$$ to run for Congress.

Anonymous said...

FRIENDLY REMINDER: county, town, fire district taxes due Thursday, April 30th. You can pay on line (www.greenburghny.com).

Anonymous said...

Why does Feiner keep deleting stuff written by Krauss even if it doesn't trash people as much or at all compared to what others write?

Anonymous said...

krauss is a spent force
feiner should just ignore him
or perhaps have pity for him as he has spent 30 years trolling in the fields of greenburgh politics with little to show for all his efforts.

He tried. He failed.

Anonymous said...

One can see that the democrates have lost their minds.

Working in Manhattan and experiencing what looked like another 911 was enough to give anyone a heart attack.

What are these people in Washingron thinking.

Have all democrates lost their brains.

Here in Greenburgh they all need a vacation but in Washington we are looking at four years of craziness.

Boy have we made a mistake in our choices but it is not too late to make a change here in our town.

Anonymous said...

dont forget to take Paul and Danny with you

Anonymous said...

One has to remember if the board does not like what the person foiled for it will be thrown aside.

WHY DO THE HAVE THE FOIL lAW.

How many times do they think that the public will sit back and allow the town board to keep silent as to
what is being requested.

I do think that the person who has full knlowledge of this law will be holding a meeting sometime soon.
We should all attend this session and explain to this guy that what he has been saying about the law does not apply here in this town.
These guys do what they want.

Anonymous said...

What has happened to the work session that was to be televised via Verizon on channel 35.

Will we be going through many weeks without this service?

CLOSED GOV'T STRIKES AGAIN said...

Feiner today deleted the following message which was posted under the heading "CLOSED GOV'T AGAIN":

The Town Board really pulled another whopper yesterday when it refused to allow public release of a police investigative report of alleged wrongdoing at the Theodore Young Community Center.

Clueless doesn't begin to describe what the Town Board did.

The Town Code says that when a Freedom of Information Law request is denied, the person requesting has the right to file an appeal and the Town Board "shall hear appeals from denial of access to Town Records."

"Shall hear appeals" means the Town Board must notify the person filing the appeal and then "hear" what the person has to say.

Can you imagine any other way to "hear" an appeal?

But the Town Board didn't get it. They decided today that they didn't need to "hear" from the person who filed the appeal -- in order to decide it.

So, even if the person who filed the appeal had good legal and factual arguments to show that the Town was wrong in refusing to release the report of the criminal investigation into wrongdoing at the Theodore Young Community Center or that David Fried, the deputy town attorney, didn't know what he was talking about when he argued that the appeal should be dismissed, the Town Board decided that they have the legal right, when "hearing" the appeal, not to "hear" from the very person who filed the appeal -- or from anyone else for that matter except themselves.

Only in Greenburgh would its town board members display such a fundamental disregard for basic due process -- and not even know it!

Nothing demonstrates the lack of open government more than a Town Board that doesn't understand what it means to "hear" an appeal.

And what's also clear is that Feiner himself was opposed to a hearing because, on this issue, he couldn't be bothered.

Nothing demonstrates a desire on the part of the Town Board to keep things confidential than what the Town board did today.

Let's see how long it takes before Feiner deletes this post. Doesn't Feiner realize that his deleting comments like these only serves to underscore just how embarrassingly wrongheaded and incompetent he is?

edgemont incorporation? said...

rumor has it that incorporation for edgemont is back on the table with alot of interest and discussion

does anyone outside of edgemont have a view on this?

what about the supervisor?

seems a town that has 6 villages would be hard pressed to deny the creation of another one if thats what edgemonters want.

Anonymous said...

Yes Paul you deleted the comment which stated that one of your best buddies Garfunkel has come back to life.
It was also noted that elections are right arround the corner.

Anonymous said...

We all have to keep asking about Kolesars report which demonstrated all the wrong doings within this town.

Yes we are in deep trouble but Paul thinks by deleting certain comments the problems will go away.
Paul you are wrong .By you taking off the comments make us go to the right authorities to get answers even if it means your job.
You cannot change what has already been done but you could have taken the first step to correct what was done so it would not happen again.

Kolesar was going to demonstrate this to you but it did not happen so I do think that the comptroller has the obligation to tell us the taxpayers of Kolesars findings.

Do we have to take this matter to court?
.

Anonymous said...

By the way folks Garfunkel has resurected .
Seems that he came up with a Madden proposition concerning an investment in South Carolina.

Will Paul fall for this madness?????

Anonymous said...

last i checked feiner was the supervisor and just two years ago won a devastating victory over his opponent despite her being backed by the 9th floor of the county office building (thats spano folks).

feiner is so far running unopposed in 2009 and will probably coast to victory in september (primary) and november.

he must be doing something right.

Anonymous said...

What he does best is fire people who dare stand up to him and his costly policies. Rule, not govern, by intimidation. That's the "finer" way.

one man one vote said...

feiner is just one vote
so he cannot fire anyone.

Anonymous said...

The Stipend Seven

The following staff are paid extra money. Note; these extra tasks are within their normal work schedule, are non-competitive,no standard nor criteria by which the extra money was allocated exists,and no one else was considered or even interviewed for these stipends.

Bell,Marcia Town Clerk 750. Acting Deputy Town Clerk Real title;Senior Office Asst.
Cioce,Ken Engineering 3,775 Deputy Town Engineer, Real Title Sr. Civil Engineer
Gordon,Winsome Philanthropy 1,200 Minority Business Officer, Real Title Staff Asst.
Lee, Judith Community Center, 3,862 Registrar Coordinator, Real Title Staff Asst.
Sia,Cecile Justice Court 8,000. Court Administration, Real Title Court Clerk
Zacarolli,Anthony Building Dept, 9,570. Acting Deputy Real title Maintance Supervisor
Valerie Whitehead Community Center, Real Title; Staff Asst. Stipend; 30,000 for the temporary assignment

Anonymous said...

Dear 4/29 7:32 PM:

Re the various "stipends" you are not even close. Here are some additional compensation that you missed:

Web Master (Joe Lucasey) $4,456
Data Processing in Assessor's Department (D. Pandya) $6,180

Asst Comptroller Personnel (P. Kirkland) $7,416

F Asst Comp Personnel $1,291

SS Asst Compt Personnel $ 464



Town Clerk - records Access Officer (J. Beville) $ 4,000

Town Clerk - Custodian of Elections
(J. Beville) $5,500

Town Clerk - Custodian of Elections (M. Bell) $3,500

Total of the above 2 = $9,000 budget line A.1450.100.1

First Deputy Town Attorney (D.Fried) $8,742 budget line A.1420.101.1

The Court Clerk's stipend is actually $8,488 not $8,000

In addition, Mr. Lucasey receives "subsidized" housing in the form of 50% of estimated FMV for performing certain caretaker tasks at Hartsbrook Park in the amount of approximately $11,000 annually.

I know I've missed one or two, but close enough.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the update Mr. K.

Anonymous said...

Paul I would like to know what your answer is to the list with all the extra compensations you are giving to the employees.

But above all with all these give aways you refuse to give the union members their money.

You are the most dispicable person alive. These people that receive these so called bonuses make a dam good salary but these union workers need every penny to make ends meet.

I would like for you to explain to us the taxpayers why the extra compensation.
This is another factor that should be repoted to the state since you have so much money to give away why do you accept grants that have to be repaid by us.
You are taking away grants that are needed in some other part of the state.
How low can one get.

Anonymous said...

Release the report regarding the investigation of the TDYCC. What was the result of the investigation and what action has been taken as the result of the investigation. What was the cost to tax payers to have this investigation and who called for it. The public has a right to know. Who and what is being protected from the truth that should be revealed. There were many charges and allegations made and reputations put on the line. Release the information so that the shadow over people and a department can be lifted. Paul, you and the Chief of police need only to give the word and we can move and remove the cloud of suspicion.

Anonymous said...

The district atty has decided not to prosecute. Why should anyone be tried in the press and at a town bd meeting?

Anonymous said...

feiner bashing is pretty silly.
feiner is just one vote.
feiner is greenburgh and greenburgh is feiner. if you dont like it, try finding a better candidate. good luck. you will need it.

Anonymous said...

12;36----The DA investigated the center and found nothing wrong.

If there was something to report I'm sure it will have been on the front page of the Journal News.

Concentrate on the present problems ie.
The firing of Kolesar who was about to let us know what we were up against with the way the town has been operating.
The Police Department
The court system
The programs at the center that are free of charge.
Exposure
The new small dump trucks that are hidden at the town garage which were purchased by our on again off again DPW retired commissioner.
The elimination of certain services -garbage and police
The sewer problem
The bonuses received by those employed by the town and by the way are paid top dollar whereas the union workers still have not gotten their raise which was included in our tax hike.

The list can go on and on. The center as far as the law goes nothing was found to deserve a followup.
Leave the issue alone .

wall must go said...

lets clean up greenburgh
take that hideous wall down in front of presser park/webb field

its a disgrace esp now that its falling down

Anonymous said...

I have Verizon for my cble co.Hat happened to the work session.
Was there a problem with the telecast.

Anonymous said...

feiner for supervisor
20 years - yeah!

let the truth be known said...

If in fact there was nothing found regarding the investigation of the Center, then the DA should state that; or the Town should acknowledge that. Paul and the chief are very silent about the investigation. They should state that nothing was found so that the department and personnel are vindicated. Paul, You had spread an air of suspicion, calling for an investigation, blemishing the reputation of staff and questioning practices of a department. And the cloud of suspicion remains. The public has a right to know. A department and staff were publicly subjected to inquiry and if nothing was found, then there should be acknowledgement that nothing was found and a public statement should be forthcoming.Why do you continue to sweep the truth under the rug.

Anonymous said...

Feiner Favoritism

Paul will never answer questions about these stipends. Never ever never. No way! He creates loyal staff by giving the most incompetent people big bucks. If you get one of these stipends, better stay in Greenburgh because no else will hire you.

Anonymous said...

After more than 18 years the public should have detected a pattern. Feiner has amassed a huge campaign fund over 18 years. He uses it as leverage against other board members who don't vote with him. He brought in Weinberg, Bass and Barnes by paying for their campaigns. When they started voicing their opinions which were not in line with his, he payed for the campaigns of Morgan and Brown who are his new rubber stamps. Notice too that Juettner and Sheehan all of sudden either vote yes or abstain as they are up for election this year along with Feiner. They're afraid he'll bring in 2 new candidates to challenge them. Politics as usual. As to the special meetings, holding meetings in the afternoon eliminates most of his critics as they work during the day. The Town should not be voting on any Town matters at special meetings. What happened to open government? Our Town is being run by a master politician and his rubber stamps. Hopefully someone qualified will challenge him if they can raise the funds to counter his 18 year war chest (which consists of contributions from developers & attorneys who do business with the Town not to mention members of boards and commissions). For those who say he must be doing something right because he keeps getting voted in, I beg to differ. He gets voted in because he can buy the election.

hal samis said...

What I find most troubling about this blog is how there is no operational consistency, not unlike how the Town Board runs its meetings.

Here it is May 1 and I am posting on "Week of April 19th". When is this week going to disappear? Is it going to be replaced by a new week? How difficult is it to add new weeks as new weeks occur? More difficult than posting a help wanted post?

If it IS such an onerous imposition, then how about making it a biweekly topic, say May 3-16 and posters will have the assurance that their posting will stay in sight for a fixed period. If the original idea was to create an outlet for input, why leave the impression that postings after a presumed weekly expiration date can disappear with the uncertain substitution of a new week at will while, on this point, I'm not discussing censorship but blog hari-kari.

Let us know the rules and then abide by them.