Complete This Survey: We Need Your Input
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The Acceleration Project (TAP), a local nonprofit, is conducting a Buy Local study on behalf of the Scarsdale Chamber of Commerce to promote the vibrancy of the community.
Scarsdale small businesses have never before faced so many challenges to their vitality. Vacant storefronts have an adverse impact on the community as a whole. Thriving retail centers make Scarsdale an attractive place to live, work, eat, and shop.
Over the next few weeks, TAP will survey consumers, businesses, and other stakeholders to understand perceptions, preferences, and behaviors. Using the input from these surveys, TAP will develop recommendations for a "Buy Local" awareness campaign and will provide suggestions for local businesses to better serve the needs of their customers. Please take advantage of this unique opportunity to express your views.
CONSUMERS: Please click here
BUSINESS OWNERS: Please click here
TAP deploys professional women to assist local small businesses with strategic and tactical advice. TAP's mission is to harness and develop the talents of professional women to help boost economic development. TAP empowers women to make a meaningful impact in their community while advancing their skills. To learn more, please visit their website.
(Pictured below) The TAP Buy Local Scarsdale team, pictured above (from left): Kim Meyers, Amanda Hack, Jane Veron (Co-Founder), Lisa Tretler (Co-Founder), Joan Hendell, and Tracy Jaffe. Not pictured: Carol Fitzgerald (Buzzback Market Research), Pam Rubin, Rhonda Schnipper, and Tracy Ullman.
The Buzz: Massa Closing, Earl Graves' House Hangs in the Balance and more...
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Massa, the Italian restaurant in the Heathcote Tavern Building is closing, or as they say, relocating as of January 25, 2014. The move coincides with the application of Frederick Fish to develop a condominium complex on the property that is now the parking lot of the Heathcote Tavern Building. According to the non-binding agreement between developer Frederick Fish and the Village of Scarsdale, the historic Tavern building would remain. It was assumed that Fish would continue to operate a restaurant on the site – but now that Massa is closing, it has fueled speculation that the developer could use the restaurant space to construct four additional condominiums. Meanwhile, we spotted a sign for Massa' Coastal Italian Cuisine opening at 599 East Boston Post Road, Mamaroneck in the space that once housed Neméa Greek Taverna.
Sweat It: Competition is heating up for exercise studios in Scarsdale. Just on the heels of the opening of Physique57, the Barre studio in the Golden Horseshoe, Flywheel and Flybarre studio will open their doors on 
Scarsdale Avenue this weekend. And for those wondering who will occupy in the new building at 1 Palmer, in front of Balducci's, rumor as it that SLT, Strength, Lengthen, Tone, will soon take occupancy. Their slogan is "if cardio, strength training and pilates had a baby,.. it would be SLT," and they are currently in operation in Soho, Midtown, the Hamptons, Rye Brook and Short Hills, with new locations in Roslyn and Scarsdale coming soon. Check them out here:
Also on our minds this week is the fate of Earl Graves' mansion at 8 Heathcote Road. An application to tear down the house, built in 1907, was rejected in a unanimous decision by the Committee for Historic Preservation. Graves was the founder of Black Enterprise Magazine and lived in the house 
from 1974 until September 2013 when it was sold for $7.5mm. The owners have the right to appeal that decision to the Board of Architectural Review who will meet at Village Hall on Monday night January 27 to hear their case.
Last, the School Budget Forum that was cancelled on Tuesday night due to the snow storm has been rescheduled for tonight, Thursday January 23 at 7:30 in rooms 170-172 of Scarsdale High School. Come out to hear the discussion and learn what your neighbors think is important to put in or take out of next year's school budget.
Shira Kobren in Concert at Congregation Kol Ami
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Shira & Friends are coming to Congregation Kol Ami for a concert on January 26, 2014 at 1:30 pm. The goup is led by performer and educator Shira Kobren, who believes that kids' entertainment should really rock! Shira learned to sing from her mom and dad when she was just a kid. Shira's dad always used to play songs on the guitar (like Johnny B. Goode and Beatles' songs), and Shira, her mom and her brother, Ari, would sing along. It was only a matter of time before Shira transitioned from singing in her living room to singing on stage.
A graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, Shira has performed on stage, on screen, in commercials, and she has sung on albums, all while teaching music and movement to young students throughout New York City. Shira & Friends was born when Shira decided to combine her loves of performing and of being silly and creative with her students. Shira enlisted some of the best musicians she knows to be her "Friends", and all together, they make music that both kids and grown-ups can appreciate and enjoy.
Shira & Friends concerts are always rockin' interactive extravaganzas! Combining its own original tunes with classics, Shira & Friends plays a mix of hand-clap-able, sing-along-able, danceable, always smile-inducing music that has audience members of all ages becoming part of the show. Shira & Friends has performed in all sorts of venues including at street fairs, in nursery and elementary schools, at children's activity centers, for private dinners, stand-alone concerts, and at other special events.
This event is open to the entire community! Tickets are available at the door at $5.00 for adults and children 2 & older.
Congregation Kol Ami
252 Soundview Avenue
White Plains, NY 10606
914.949.4717
Scarsdale Actors to Perform in The Music Man, Jr.
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Nine Scarsdale students will perform in the Random Farms Kids' Theater production of The Music Man, Jr., adapted for kids from the classic, award-winning Broadway musical, at The Tarrytown Music Hall on January 28 through February 2, 2014.
The Music Man tells the story of fast-talking conman Harold Hill, and his escapades in a small town in turn-of-the-century Iowa. Famous songs include "Trouble," "Goodnight My Someone" and "Seventy Six Trombones." The show is performed by 85 young people from throughout Westchester, Putnam, Connecticut and New Jersey ranging in age from 7-18.
The Music Man is a bombastic musical full of classic songs, timeless stories, and fun for the whole family.
Featured in the show are Scarsdale residents Molly Bochner, Craig Carroll, Chloe Faegenberg, Maya Katcher, Julia Kawai, Hannah Lewis, Lauren Fialkow, Laura Paternoster and Sophia Roth.
Molly Bochner is in the fifth grade at Quaker Ridge Elementary School. She is having fun playing a salesman and a River City townsperson in casts A and B of The Music Man. This is Molly's second mainstage production at Random Farms Kids Theater.
Craig Carroll has performed in many Random Farms productions, including The New Kid, an anti-bullying show, which is currently touring the tri-state area. Craig enjoys performing in musical theater and has from a very young age. His acting strengths are in his comedic timing on stage, and The Music Man is no exception as Mayor Shinn is a very funny role. Craig is in 6th grade at SMS, Cooper House.
Chloe Faegenburg is a 8th grader in Scarsdale Middle School and is is thrilled to be performing in a Random Farms production for the first time. She will play Maude Dunlop in cast C.
Lauren Fialkow SMS 8th grade. Lauren loves performing at Random Farms and will be playing Mrs. Squires.
Maya Katcher is a second grader at Quaker Ridge School, and is thrilled to be performing in a Random Farms Main Stage production. She is playing a River City Kid in casts A and B.
Julia Kawai is a student at Scarsdale Middle School and is thrilled to be performing in a Random Farms production for the first time. She will play a Rock Island Salesman and a River City Townsperson in casts C and D.
Hannah Lewis is excited to play Marian. She is in 8th grade at Scarsdale Middle School and she loves to perform along with her friends.
Laura Paternoster is thrilled to be in her fifth production at Random Farms. She plays a salesman and a townsperson in this presentation. Laura is in the fifth grade at Quaker Ridge Elementary School.
Sophia Roth, an 8th grader at Scarsdale Middle School, is playing the role of Zaneeta Shinn in Cast C. The Music Man is Sophia's sixth mainstage production at Random Farms Kids Theater
Performances are January 28, 29, 30, 31 and February 1 @ 7:00pm; January 31 @ 10am; and February 1 & 2 @ 2:00pm. The theater is located at 13 Main Street in Tarrytown. Directions can be found at www.tarrytownmusichall.org.
Tickets for The Music Man are $18 (adults), $16 (children under 12 and seniors), $14 (groups of 20+) and $10 (camps). Premium seating tickets (first four rows of center orchestra) are $23. To reserve tickets, go to www.tarrytownmusichall.org or call TicketForce at 877-840-0457. Tickets will also be available at the door. For more information, visit the theater's website at www.randomfarms.com.
Budget Discussions Continue at Scarsdale BOE - Tax Cap Could Be Above 3%
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Assistant Schools Superintendent Linda Purvis shared some interesting news about the estimated tax cap, the health reserve and elementary school expenses at the December 9th meeting of the Scarsdale School Board.
Tax Cap:
Recently released numbers from the NYS Office of Real Property Services shows that the total assessed value of Scarsdale real estate has gone up more than anticipated last month. The new estimate is an increase of 1.66%. When added to the state cap, this would make Scarsdale's cap around 3.25%, and would make it easier for the Board to propose a 2014-15 school budget that complies with the cap while including funds for building maintenance and improvements, staffing and programming.
Health Reserve
However, Purivs also reported that the district will need to dismantle the $1.6 million dollar health reserve that the district's external auditors have now ruled to be out of compliance. She gave the Board three options for liquidating the reserve:
1) Dismantle it over four years in equal increments
2) Take the entire reserve into income for 2014-15
3) Transfer $750,000 of the health reserve to the undesignated reserve to bring that fund up to4%, which is permissible by state law.
The Board will discuss these three options at a later date.
Elementary School Program Costs
Last, as part of a presentation about the elementary school program, the Board distributed a page of "Financial Facts and Figures" about the elementary schools and here are a few observations.
The five elementary schools vary in enrollment from a low of 383 students in Greenacres to a high of 492 students in Fox Meadow. Building square footage reflects enrollment varying from a low of 55,791 square feet at Greenacres to 81,577 to a high of 81,577 square feet at Fox Meadow.
Here are the statistics about the number of square feet per student at all five of the schools:
School Enrollment Square Footage Sq ft./Student
Therefore, Edgewood and Greenacres are the most densely populated.
Another interesting fact to note: for the elementary school program, salaries and benefits account for $34,726,781 in costs out of a total budget of $36,006,707, or 96% of the elementary school budget. This includes texts, supplies, extracurricular stipends, professional development grants, technology hardware purchase, student accident insurance and building utilities, but does not include special education costs or an allocation for Central Office expenses.
Public Comments
The news that the cap could be above 3% was not music to everyone's ears. During the public comments portion of the meeting, four men, who have frequently spoken out against tax increases, asked the Board to contain costs and minimize budget increases.
Here is what they said:
Former Board member Michael Otten urged the Board to use "zero based budgeting," to compare district costs with other comparable districts, to eliminate programs that are not working as expected and to undertake "a major review of the 2014-15 school budget." He told the Board, "We don't need reams of extra paper or more meetings. Reserves, professional development, and travel are areas that need more clarity. The tax cap is not the principal driver for a balanced budget."
Robert Berg, who led the movement to turn down the first school budget in May, 2013 warned the Board to "heed the message from last year's budget defeat." He said the defeat was "the voice of the silent majority who said, "I can't take it anymore." He claimed the vote was not just about the fitness center and read a letter from a 78 year-old retiree thanking Berg for his "profound analysis of the bloated proposed $144 mm school budget -- adding, "I do pray that the powers that be have heard the message "enough is enough."
Mitch Gross, another frequent critic of the Board said, "Scarsdale has passed the tipping point where there are decreased returns from increased taxes." He said, "The housing stock is static," yet the student population has grown. He continued, "Scarsdale has the lowest student teacher ratio and teachers are the highest paid ...
The more you tax, the faster people without children move out. They vote with their feet. We can debate if they are shirking their responsibility." Quoting Margaret Thatcher he said, "Educational experimentation is great until you run out of money." He argued that Scarsdale taxes were increasing at an "unsustainable rate" and asked the Board to reduce the total spend, to examine teacher compensation, course load, and capital expenditures.
Jim Labick of Brookline Road said "a rollover budget is a flawed way to come up with a budget." He told the Board that in his years in business, "We never started with the existing budget. We use zero-based budgets and determined what needed to be done differently." He asked the Board to "eliminate programs and scrutinize all programs for their true value added."
Though it is early in the budget process, many are already engaged in airing their views. The days in which the approval of the Scarsdale Schools budget was a forgone conclusion appear to be history. It could be another season of late nights for the administration, the Board of Education and the community.
