Road Repaving, Water Main Breaks, Tax Prepayments and More from Village Hall

The Scarsdale Board of Trustees opened their January 9 meeting with a moment of silence for the five members of the Steinberg family who died in a plane crash in Costa Rica on December 31, 2017. Mayor Dan Hochvert noted that the song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" was played at the memorial service for the family at Westchester Reform Temple, and said, "For our moment of silence, we don't have music, but let's think of the Steinberg's being over the rainbow but their spirit never leaving our Village."

Both the Mayor and the Trustees praised Village Treasurer Mary Lou McClure and the staff for their efforts to interpret the new tax law and allow prepayment of Village taxes in the week between Christmas and New Years. The Mayor said he was "dazzled" by the staff's efforts as they went above and beyond to make this possible.

Roads:

The Mayor also announced the NYS Department of Transportation has allocated $2.8 mm to repave the White Plains Post Road that runs through Scarsdale. He praised State Senator Andrea Stewart Cousins and State Assemblywoman Amy Paulin who "went to bat for us" and were influential in securing the funds for our roads.

Tax Prepayments:

Village Manager Steve Pappalardo announced that the Village had collected roughly1,800 checks for prepayment of village, school and county taxes. He said that those who provided a single check for all three taxes should come to Village Hall and rewrite a check for their Village taxes only. For those who submitted three checks, the Village will return school and county checks via the mail. He said the Treasurers office is calling residents to ask them to come down and swap checks.

Study of the Assessor's Office:

Pappalardo said a study of the Assessor's Department done by consultants "Management Partners" is being finalized and will be completed in early February. A meeting will be scheduled for late February to review the report.

Water Main Breaks:

Pappalardo said due to the cold weather and age of the water distribution lines, there were nine water main breaks over the past six weeks. This past weekend there was a large water main break on Crossway and the water department and public works department were on site from Saturday to Monday replacing valves in the leaking system. Crews worked overnight in very cold, difficult conditions. Pappalardo said that many residents had no water all weekend but "showed some love," delivering food, coffee and even pizza to the men who were outside fixing the pipes. He thanked David Raizen and SVAC for bringing hot coffee and food to the crews throughout the long weekend, saying "Morale was bolstered by these acts of kindness."

Library Campaign:

Library Director Beth Bermel announced that the Campaign Committee who is raising money for the renovation and expansion of Scarsdale Library has reached 88.9% of their goal of $7.5 million and has now raised $6,669,415.56. The casino night at Fenway Golf Club in December brought in $56,000 for the campaign.

Donations from the Scarsdale Concours:

Ken Schneider and members of the Board of Directors of the Scarsdale Concours were on hand to deliver contribution checks to three local charities. The funds were raised at the automotive show in October which brought more than 140 classic, collector, exotic and special interest vehicles to the Village. The event raised $22,500.00 that was shared among three local charities; Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling, Warrior & Family Assistance Fund created by the Scarsdale PBA and PaulieStrong Foundation created by a local family to raise awareness and funding for pediatric cancer research at the Scarsdale Village Board Meeting on January 9, 2018.

The Scarsdale Concours d'Elegance Board of Directors includes; Andy Albert, Alex Forschner, Kevin Higgins, Richard Hubell, Peter and Stefan Malinchoc, Sandy and Ethan Miller, David and Jonah Rosett, Lawrence Sachs, Ken and Jonah Schneider, Leif and Sidney Waller. Learn more here: 

Cable Service:

Trustee Seth Ross announced that the Village will soon be negotiating their service contracts with cable providers and asked residents to complete a survey about cable service here:

During public comments, Lena Crandall invited residents to attend Scarsdale Forum's Winterfest party to be held on February 3 at from 7- 11 pm at the Scarsdale Woman's Club. Click here to sign up. 

Lynne Clarke spoke about a proposed change to sanitation pickup that was originally scheduled to be voted on at the January 9 meeting, but was deferred to allow time for a public hearing on January 30 at 7 pm. The proposal calls for weekly curbside pick-up of recyclables, including paper and bottles and cans. The village would also pick-up furniture left at the curb and donate it to Furniture Sharehouse. There would be no change in back of driveway trash pick-up. Currently, paper recyclables are only picked up once every two weeks.

Clarke said she had concerns about carrying her bottles and cans to curb for pickup. She said, "This is not the time to cut back on services to residents and seniors. Everyone is worried about the value of their homes .... these are unsettling times. Backyard pick-up is valued and appreciated and it's a nice perk of living here. Having big garbage cans on front yards is not a pretty sight for our Village in a Park. I collect food scraps and take fun trips to the recycling center."

Michelle Sterling came to the mic and said that the study does not recommend the elimination of back of driveway pick (for trash.) She said, "there will be no change." But bottles and cans would need to be brought to the curb. The CAC sees this as a net benefit to residents and an increase in services. Over 120 letters in support of this change have been received by Village Hall."

Bob Harrison objected to a resolution to renovate the tennis court at Wynmor Park. After calling for bids, the Village selected Sport Tech to renovate the court at a cost of $110,361. He said the bid was 36% above the $75,000 budget and urged the rejection of the bid. He asked the Village to consider an all weather court rather than a Har-Tru court and said this was too much to spend on one court when there are 26 other courts in the Village.

Bob Berg added, "I don't think it makes sense to renovate that tennis court. Build a playground instead."

The trustees voted unanimously in favor of the referendum, saying they had discussed this at length with the East Heathcote Neighborhood Association and that "the facility is valued, used and needs to be maintained."

Village Election:

The Village election will be held on Tuesday March 20 from 6 am to 9 am and 12 noon to 9 pm at Scarsdale Library.

Candidates for Acting Village Justice:

The Judicial Qualifications Advisory Committee (Committee) is seeking candidates for Scarsdale's Acting Village Justice. The Acting Village Justice serves in the absence or incapacity of the Village Justice. Scarsdale's nonpartisan system provides for screening of candidates for this position by the Committee, which then reports their assessment of the candidates' qualifications to the Mayor. The Mayor makes this appointment with conformation by the Village Board of Trustees. The Acting Village Justice serves a one-year term which commences in April 2018.

The Committee welcomes all qualified applicants who live in the Village and are members in good standing of the New York State Bar with courtroom experience. Interested persons should send a letter of interest and resume to Angela Martin by email to [email protected] or by United States Postal Mail to 1001 Post Road, Scarsdale, New York 10583. The deadline for receipt of materials is Friday, January 19, 2017 at 5 p.m. If the Committee wishes to interview a candidate, they will contact the candidate directly after the deadline for submissions has passed.