FACT: WHY COMMON HOUSEHOLD BATTERIES ARE NOT RECYCLED...

I frequently receive calls regarding household batteries - why they are not recycled. According to the Public Works department "in 1992 an international standard was implemented requiring manufacturers to produce common household non rechargeable batteries with a significantly lower mercury content. According to the NYS Dept of Environmental Conservation, most household batteries can be disposed of safely in the trash."
Those wishing to learn more about recycling or about the disposal of other batteries as well as other chemical disposal information are invited to e mail me at pfeiner@greenburghny.com or dpw@greenburghny.com.
The recent sanitation schedule that the town sent out has some interesting info about recycling.

LEGISLATOR ABINANTI URGES COUNTY TO ASSIST TOWN PROTECT PROPERTY NEAR NATURE CENTER

County Legislator Tom Abinanti is calling on the county to assist the town and Greenburgh Nature Center in acquiring additional land near the Greenburgh Nature Center as open space. A developer is proposing to build on the property-which now links the nature center and Edgemont High School's northern playing fields. The protection of this property, according to Legislator Abinanti, is "essential to protecting the wildlife habitats in the area."
The acquisition of this property as open space depends on a partnership with the county & state governments and private donors. The support of Legislator Abinanti is significant. In the past we have worked cooperatively acquiring Hartsbrook Preserve off of Ridge Road, Hartsdale; Glenville Woods near Tarrytown and Taxter Ridge park in E Irvington.

LIVE STREAMING OF TOWN BOARD MEETINGS SUGGESTED

Governor Eliot Spitzer signed an order on DAY 1 requiring "all state agencies and public authorities to develop plans by July 1 to stream all meetings subject to the open meetings law on the internet."
I am renewing my request to the Town Board that meetings of the Town Board be streamed live on the internet. Currently, our meetings are streamed on the town web site: www.greenburghny.com. However, the meetings are not live. Only residents who have cable TV can watch our meetings live. Those who don't subscribe to cable or who are out of town are at a disadavantage. They can't call in during meetings, participate in Dial Democracy, express themselves at public hearings if they are out of town.
Streaming Town Board meetings live on the internet is an important open government initiative that will make it easier for people to participate in government.

ILLUMINATED ROAD SIGNS - does it make sense in Greenburgh?

My in laws reside in the Lake Worth section of Florida. Some of the road signs are lit up in the night -- making it easier for drivers (especially the elderly or those with poor vision) to see the road signage.
Do you think illuminated signs could increase safety on our roads? Drivers would be less likely to hesitate at intersections - trying to read a sign. Illuminated signs are also helpful to those not familiar with our roads. If the town decides to experiment with illuminated road signs where do you think they should be placed?

Senator Andrea Stewart Cousins to be sworn into office at first meeting of the Town Board- January 10th

Our newly elected State Senator, Andrea Stewart Cousins, will hold a ceremonial swearing in ceremony at the first Greenburgh Town Board meeting of the year -Wednesday, January 10th at 7 PM at Greenburgh Town Hall. A brief reception, sponsored by Westchester Federal Credit Union, will follow. The Senator will also highlight some of her goals for the year. Please give her a warm Greenburgh welcome and offer her the best of luck as she begins her term.

December: Miscellaneous

The purpose of this Miscellaneous topic is to discuss any town related issues you feel are important. Please post any issues you wish to discuss in the comments section of this post. Thanks!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2007 GOALS WANTED!

Have a happy and healthy 2007. I will be releasing my 2007 goals in early January--hopefully at the first meeting of the Town Board --a week from Wednesday. If you have some suggestions please post them on this blog or e mail me at pfeiner@greenburghny.com. At the beginning of the year I voluntarily put $5000 of my salary in an escrow account. Part of the $5000 is returned to the taxpayers at the end of the year -if goals are not met.
A partial list of possible goals is posted on the town web site: www.greenburghny.com.

LEAK OF DRAFT REPORT VIOLATES COMPTROLLERS REQUEST THAT DRAFT BE CONFIDENTIAL UNTIL INFORMATION CAN BE VERIFIED

The NY State Comptroller has been reviewing the WESTHELP partnership agreement. A draft report was presented to me and members of the Town Board. On each page of the report there was a sentence requesting that the draft report not be shared with the public. During meetings with the State Comptroller's office all the town officials present were told that the release of a draft report would be very damaging to the integrity of the process. The reason: The Comptroller's office indicated to the 5 members of the Town Board (Eddie Mae Barnes, Diana Juettner, Steve Bass, Francis Sheehan and myself) that there could be errors in the report. The State Comptroller's office did not want to release a document that contains errors in it.
The State Comptroller's office has given the Town Board and me until January 3rd, 2007 to respond to their draft. There are some errors in the draft report that need to be corrected.
Today, a newspaper reporter from the Journal News contacted me and advised me that the highly confidential report was leaked. I believe that the integrity of the comptroller's report (which contains inaccuracies) is at stake. I also believe that it was highly unethical and improper to release a confidential draft report that has errors in it to a reporter.
The proper response from the Town Board should have been to wait until a final report was prepared that is accurate. We anticipate that the final report will be released in early 2007. The public has the right to review the comptroller's opinion and findings.

dobbs ferry hospital files lawsuit so they won't close down

The Community Hospital at Dobbs Ferry filed a lawsuit seeking to invalidate the closure recommendations of a state commission. There is an article in the Journal News today about the lawsuit (www.lohud.com).
The Greenburgh Town Board & river villages approved resolutions calling on the state to keep the hospital open. This hospital makes money. Why should the state close down a hospital that is successful?
I will be working very hard to do whatever we can to save this important hospital.
PAUL FEINER

Empire Blue Cross/Blude Shield Cutting Back Service

Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield has sent out important hospital termination notices to Greenburgh residents who are members of Empire Blue Cross advising that effective January 1, 2007 that they will no longer be a participating provider with Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield. As a result, area residents will no longer be able to obtain services from Lawrence Hospital, Northern Westchester Hospital, Phelps Memorial Hospital and White Plains Hospital Center.
I will be contacting the NY State Dept of Health and Insurance and others to object. This decision will create great inconveniences for residents who have health needs.

Tappan Zee bridge study approved...

If the Tappan Zee bridge is replaced Greenburgh (villages/287 corridor which includes unincorporated Greenburgh) will be impacted. The state is moving forward reviewing various options. Before plans are finalized by the state we want to make sure that our quality of life concerns are addressed. the Greenburgh Town Board voted yesterday to appropriate $30,000 in the 2007 budget to retain the services of a consultant to assist us in the review. The vote was unanimous.
Hopefully, since we are being proactive, some of our concerns could be addressed by the state before final plans are announced.

Fire in Edgemont..Board approves budget

A fire caused extensive damage to a home at 4 Seely Place in Edgemont. A captain suffered a leg injury...other firefighters suffered exhaustion and smoke inhalation.
The Greenburgh Town Board approved the 2007 budget unanimously. The budget includes tax cuts for unincorporated Greenburgh and the villages.

A possible E Hartsdale Ave goal: Summer jazz concert or jazz concert series

A possible E Hartsdale Ave goal: We should consider an East Hartsdale Ave summer jazz concert or jazz concert series -at Desanti Plaza, near Starbucks.
What's your thought? Would you be interested in helping me organize such an event? If yes, e mail me at pfeiner@greenburghny.com.

TOWN BD TO VOTE ON BUDGET TUESDAY AT 4

The Greenburgh Town Board will vote on the 2007 budget this coming Tuesday, December 19th at 4 PM at Town Hall. I submitted my proposed budget to the Town Board at the end of October. The members of the Board have been working hard - reviewing the proposed budget since early November. There are two budgets that I submitted: a B budget (unincorporated Greenburgh only) and an A budget (the villages and unincorporated Greenburgh. If you combine the A budget and the B budget the total budget is 72 million dollars. The Town Council members are recommending that expenditures in the proposed budget be reduced by only $37,000 out of a total of 72 million dollars.
In the B budget the Board reduced expenditures by $111,000 from a budget of $47,242,815. In the A budget the Board members are recommending an increase in expenditures by $76,000 from what I had proposed.
The Town Board members are able to reduce the taxes by cutting into the fund balance. In the B budget I had originally recommended a tax increase of about 1%. The Board is recommending that an additional $750,000 be deleted from the fund balance -which will enable taxes to go down by less than 1%.Taxes in the A budget will go down by more than 10%. The issue before the Board on Tuesday is this: Should we use up more of our fund balance now in the B budget and provide residents with a very slight tax cut? Or, would it be more prudent to use less of the fund balance now and keep tax increases lower during the next few years --rather than have fluctuations in tax rates, as we have seen at the county level (a few zero percent increases followed by substantial double digit hikes). I think people want stability and predictability.
The Town Council members made some good positive changes. I am enthusiastic about the community policing that will start in Mayfair Knollwood. I am very pleased about the $20,000 additional funds for leaf collection - this is good public policy and will enable the town to pick up leaves faster. I am grateful that the Town Board is open minded about the SAT/summer BizCamp. The Board members indicated that if the Community Center Advisory Board endorses the camp they can implement the initiative. I am pleased that the Board has agreed to fund the TZ bridge review and will support the comprehensive plan initiative.

proposed amendment to Town Board rules--meetings must end by 11:15 PM unless there is unanimous consent

I intend to propose a rules change to the rules of the Town Board in January that all Town Board meetings and work sessions end no later than 11:15 PM unless there is unanimous consent by the members of the Town Board. In 2006 many of our meetings ended after midnight. This is unfair to town staff. A tired Town Board is more likely to make mistakes. In addition, post midnight meetings is not real open government. How many residents will stay up to attend, speak at or watch Town Board meetings/work sessions after midnight?

Westchester Disabled on Move expresses concern about Ardsley site for Bd of Elections

Last week I reported that the Ardsley School district expressed concerns about the proposed move of the Board of Elections from White Plains to 440 Saw Mill River Road, Ardsley. The major concern school officials had was the loss of taxes. When the county purchases a building the property becomes tax exempt. Frank Harrington, a school board member, also raised an interesting issue: the lack of accessibility of the site to people with disabilities. The building is set back from the street, has hilly topography and the path from the street to the entrance is too steep to be considered accessible.
I wrote to some organizations that advocate for the disabled. Mel Tanzman, Executive Director of Westchester Disabled on the Move, conducted a site visit. He determined that the objections were valid. I hope that the county looks elsewhere.

RESPONSE TO BLOGGERS- EDGEMONT MAY GET MORE OPEN SPACE

Some Edgemont bloggers have posted comments in recent weeks about the failure of the town to acquire more open space in Edgemont. They object to the open space acquisitions that have happened in other neighborhoods around the town.
The town has been asked by some members of the Board of the Greenburgh Nature Center to presrve a former single dwelling residence at 1 Dromore Road as open space. A house on this property has been demolished - the property is included in the Central Ave mixed use zoning area.
It's important to preserve the 3 parcels, totaling 2.34 acres, as open space. It would be an important addition to the Center's 33 acre preserve and would provide a direct link to the Greenburgh Nature Center's open space and the Edgemont Jr-Sr. High School open space. Continguious open space is crucial to preservation of wildlife habitats. If this property were developed for commercial or residential use it would have a very negative impact on the center's functioning as a sanctuary for wildlife in lower Westchester County. Preserving this property as open space is important on the local, county and regional level. I will be reaching out to Edgemont civic leaders, the school district and the Westchester Land Trust - as well as other public officials so we can preserve this precious parcel of land.

444 UNITS OF HOUSING TO BE BUILT IN E IRVINGTON

The Town Board took an important action step that will lead to the development of 444 units of housing in E Irvington when the Board adopted the findings statement pursuant to SEQR. OVer 10 years ago the property owners sought permission to build about 800 units of housing at the site. We worked cooperatively with the Village of Elmsford and E Irvington Civic Association reviewing this proposal. The Town Board adopted steep slope laws and an open space plan. We acquired 200 acres of open space in E IRvington (Taxter Ridge). Eventually, an agreement was reached. 444 units of housing will be built, 10% affordable housing.
Special thanks to Danny Gold, head of the E Irvington Civic Association for negotiating a compromise that we could live with. 444 units of housing is better than 800!
If the town had prohibited the developer from building on the property or if we had downsized the project by much more - the developer could have brought an action in court against the town - claiming that we were "taking his property". Local governments cannot prohibit development on property unless we purchase the land.

RETURNING $1,029.41 TO TAXPAYERS- PERFORMANCE BASE GOALS

Every year, since 1999, I have returned part of my salary to the taxpayers voluntarily. At the beginning of the year I announce goals. I place $5000 of my salary in escrow. At the last Town Board meeting of the year the Town Board reviews the goals and determines how much of the $5000 should be returned.
This past Tuesday, during the Board's work session, the Town Board members reviewed my goals and determined that I met 79.41% of the goals that were announced at the beginning of the year. At last nights Town Board meeting the Board voted that $1,029.41 should be given back. The status of each of the goals will be posted on our town web site: www.greenburghny.com.
I am currently working on goals 2007. Please continue to provide me with your suggestions.

leaf collection overtime to be increased

I am very pleased that the members of the Town Board will vote to increase the leaf collection overtime budget by $20,000. The overtime will go from $56,750 to $76,750. Hopefully, the additional overtime spent on leaf collection will enable the town to expedite the pick up of leaves. The Town Board will hold its final hearing on the budget on Wednesday (tomorrow). It's possible that the Board will approve a final budget for 2007 tomorrow. The budget must be approved by Dec 20th.
Bloggers who have visited this blog spot have been most helpful --a number of suggestions have been proposed that could result in better leaf collection in the future. Among the suggestions besides increased overtime:
* Paying landcapers to drop off piles of leaves at our dump site.
* Hiring additional seasonal employees.
* Issuing an RFP to private landscapers/contractors who would assist the town in collecting leaves.