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Written by Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 13 August 2014

Created: 13 August 2014

Last Updated: 13 August 2014

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To mulch or not to mulch – that was the central question at a lively meeting of the Scarsdale Board of Trustees on Tuesday night August 12th. Even though it was the dead of summer, a passionate group turned out to persuade the Board of Trustees to approve new Village code that would put an end to the curbside collection of loose leaves in Scarsdale. Under the new provision, residents would be encouraged to grind or mulch their leaves in place with a power mower or to pack them into bio-degradable bags for pick up by the village. Though at face value the move does not appear to be revolutionary it has excited much discussion for and against. Environmentalists believe that the current practice of toting away leaves is expensive and wastes valuable organic matter while cost-conscious residents fear that mulching will be an undue burden on landscapers and that the new code is really a cut in services.

Mayor Steves announced that the text of the new law had been drafted, but rather than vote on it at the August meeting the BOT would send it to committee for further consideration. Though the Board has received input from the Friends of the Scarsdale Parks, The Conservation Advisory Council and the Scarsdale Forum, Steves is looking for "broad discussion" and the "full community to weigh in" before trustees put the measure to a vote. He also hinted that this fall, when the Village will still vacuum up the leaves, the Village will be more aggressive about giving summons' to those who leave large piles of leaves in the streets rather than at the curb.

Speaking in favor of the measure were:

Dan Hochvert of Woods Lane who said, "It seems that we resist change." He explained that he has been mowing his lawn since his eldest son left for college and has found that grinding the leaves with a power mower works well. As for the flower beds, he leaves the leaves where they fall and they turn into mulch.

Michelle Sterling of Brayton Road also spoke in favor of leaf mulching and encouraged people to "have a few conversations with your landscaper." She said that "people are making more of this that it needs to be" and said that "it ought to cost less, not more" for landscapers to mulch in place rather than use gas blowers and haul them away. Referring to a letter in the Scarsdale Inquirer from a resident who claimed she did not have enough grassy area to absorb all her falling leaves, Sterling said, "just because 1% can't mulch is not a good enough reason not to pass this resolution. Do you want to stall an initiative that's good for most for the 1% for whom this doesn't work?"

Howard Nadel said that the Fiscal Affairs Committee of the Scarsdale Forum had come out in favor of the measure as well. He said, "I have been mulching for the past few years and it works well. People are slow to change.... Let's do this, and let's do this together."

Madelaine Eppenstein, speaking as a resident who, with full disclosure, is also a co-President of the Friends of the Scarsdale Parks and a Forum Sustainability Committee member, told the Board that since the Village already picks up organic yard material once a week, including bagged leaves prior to the fall season, the new collection program would just be extending that service to bagged fall leaf pick up instead of vacuuming fall leaves from the curb side.

Ron Schulhof, a resident and member of the Conservation Advisory Council spoke enthusiastically about the proposed new measure. He told trustees that he had an organic gardener and mulching had eliminated the need for pesticides. He said he was recently at a workshop for landscapers in New Rochelle who were won over when they saw the new equipment available to mulch. He said, "This is not a reduction in services but an opportunity for the staff to focus on other things."

Lena Crandall of Fox Meadow Road said she favored mulching and invited anyone with questions to call her. She helped her own landscaper and the landscaper at the Scarsdale Woman's Club to mulch.

Anne Jane Holmes and Braden Cohen from the Greenburgh Nature Center also attended. Holmes said that mulching "relieves the landscapers load" and is a triple win for the homeowner, the landscaper and the Village. She said "she had not seen this depth of community dialogue anywhere else," though many other Villages have adopted mulching. Braden said that "leaves are organic matter, a resource." Mulching will "help the entire community" and reduce flooding.

Last, David Fenigstein said, "I am proud that we don't use fertilizer or pesticides. Mulching has long-term benefits for our children. Let's get it done ...We should be leaders from a sustainability point of view."

Personnel:

In other Village news, the Mayor noted changes in the staff at the Village Managers Office. Rita Azrelyant, an Assistant to the Village Manager in Scarsdale was recently appointed as the Director of Parking Services in Greenwich at a salary of $105,000. She holds a master's degree in Public Administration from the Nelson A. Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and was chosen from 18 applicants.

John Goodwin, also an Assistant Village Manager has accepted a new position as Assistant City Manager in Canandaigua which is in the Finger Lakes Region in upstate New York. John is also a graduate of the Nelson A. Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and has worked in Scarsdale since March, 2010.

Steves said he was sorry to see both go, thanked them for their service and wished both Rita and John well in their new positions.

Deputy Village Manager Steve Pappalardo said that Goodwin had done "Yeoman's work for the Village of Scarsdale" and congratulated him on the move.

Road Closures:

Pappalardo then relayed information on a series of road closures on the Bronx River Parkway and in Scarsdale Village.

The BRP will be closed from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm on Thursday August 14 and Friday August 15 for paving and on August 18 and August 19 for painting of paving markers. In Scarsdale Village, four roads will be repaved during the week of August 18. A portion of Chase Road as well as Spencer Place, Harwood Court and Boniface Circle will be repaved from August 18 – August 20 and on August 20 and August 21 the parking lines will be painted. There will be no driving downtown during those days, though pedestrians can use the sidewalks.

Movies:

The Village of Scarsdale Pool will be the scene of an upcoming film from Bootleg Productions in Brooklyn who has asked for permission to use the diving pool to film an underwater scene. Trustees granted the production the right to use the diving pool beginning Monday August 18 for a maximum of four days.

The Board approved a host of additional resolutions. Of note were the following:

• A change order for the construction of four rain gardens at the Scarsdale Library that will absorb 450,000 gallons of water from the roofs of the library
• $49,197.50 in funding to support the Older Adult Services Program and $234,316 to support the Youth Services Project at Scarsdale/Edgemont Family Counseling Services.
• $87,500 to support the Scarsdale Teen Center
• Extension of the closing date on the sale of 3 Edgewood Road to February 21, 2015 to accommodate provisions regarding title insurance.
• Extension of the lease of Village owned land to John Ramsey of Ramsey Farms for farming purposes.
• Permission for the Scarsdale Concours d'Elegance to hold an antique car show in Scarsdale Village on October 5, 2014.
• Permission for the Peter C. Alderman Foundation to hold a charitable walk on Village walkways on Saturday September 13.

Appointments:

• Harold Porosoff of 22 Olmstead Road was appointed as an alternate member of the Planning Board to fill the unexpired terms of Marc Samwick.
• Josh Stampfli of 151 Rock Creek Lane was appointed to the Conservation Advisory Council.
• Robin Schiff of 12 Sage Terrace was appointed Chair of the Advisory Council on Youth.
• Lucas Meyer of 21 Autenrieth Road was re-appointed to serve as Associate Village Historian.
• John Cromwell of 269 Nelson Road was appointed as an alternate member of the Committee for Historic Preservation.