Patients from Ronald McDonald House Enjoy a Great Day in Scarsdale
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Scarsdale Firefighter John Savarese outdid himself to make this year’s Ronald McDonald House event the best ever. This is the third year that the Scarsdale Fire Department has sponsored a day of fun for pediatric cancer patients from Ronald McDonald House in Manhattan and their families, The event was held on Thursday July 19 at the Crossway Firehouse in Scarsdale and Savarese planned an ambitious program to thrill the kids and their parents.
It started with a police escort to lead the bus from the Ronald McDonald House in Manhattan to Scarsdale. Kids arrived at the firehouse and found carnival games and rides to enjoy. Savarese arranged for some classic cars to be on display, as well as a monster truck called Monster Mayhem and two humvees.
But he didn’t stop there. He used his contacts in the military to bring a swat team, and k9 unit in for a demonstration, and in a most spectacular display had skydivers jump from a plane and land at the firehouse to greet the visitors. He had even planned for some skywriters to write “Ronal McDonald House” in the sky, but this 
had to be cancelled due to the clouds. The Westchester County Police Department landed a helicopter that kids could explore.
He invited a host of local officials to attend including County Executive Rob Astorino and Amy Paulin as well as wounded war veterans.
To fund the venture, Savarese raised $14,000 and purchased 34 trays of food from local restaurants and asked them to donate the drinks.
It was a great day for the kids and everyone involved.
Photos provided by Jon Thaler – see more at: www.JonThaler.com
Power Outage in Greenacres
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A portion of Greenacres went dark on Tuesday evening July 17th at 6:10 pm. With temperatures well into the 90’s and high humidity, most had their air conditioning running at the time of the blackout. After taking the report, Con Edison used their robo calling system to let residents know that they would have the power restored by 2 am and many anticipated a long hot night as they ate dinner in the dark.
But fortunately, just as the sun went down the power came back on at 8:35 pm. What a relief!
We contacted Sandra Miller at Con Edison to find out what had happened and how the strike may have impacted service in Scarsdale. Here is what she shared:
“There was an outage to 75 customers in Scarsdale last evening from about 6:15 to 8:25 pm. The cause was a blown fuse on a pole at Brook Lane and Walworth Avenue. Crews were dispatched and restored service. We will be monitoring the weather today as thunderstorms are predicted for later this afternoon. Our focus is to keep the power flowing and maintain reliable service as the company works to have the contract dispute with the union resolved. Talks resume today. “
Bronx River Parkway Lane Closures and Popham Road Bridge Demolition
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One southbound lane of the Bronx River Parkway between Crane Road (Exit 12) and Ardsley Road (Exit 11) will be closed from Monday July 16 through Friday July 20 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Crews will close either the southbound right or left lane to facilitate their work. Delays are expected and drivers are advised to take alternate routes. These closures are necessary for work to progress as part of the Crane Road Bridge Replacement Project on the Bronx River Parkway. The project began last month and will take three years to complete.
The demolition of the old Popham Road Bridge will continue at night until Friday July 20th. Crews are in the process of demolishing the concrete and asphalt bridge deck and will remove the steel on the night of July 20th when the bridge will be closed. After that, work will begin on the removal of the east and west abutments to be completed by the second week of August. The Village estimates that work on the Popham Raod Bridge will continue at night for the next four to five weeks and apologizes for the noise.
Metro North requires the work to be done at night when trains are out of service.
Residents and Retailers Voice Concerns About Crane Road Bridge Replacement Project
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The Scarsdale Board of Trustees held an open meeting with representatives from Westchester County on the night of July 11th to discuss the Crane Road Bridge Replacement Project. The three-year construction project is currently underway and planned for completion by February 2015. The meeting was well attended by residents who filled the third floor meeting room, some who live near the construction projection. Also in attendance were representatives from the business community including Rush Wilson as well as Carolyn Stevens and Lewis Arlt from the Scarsdale Chamber of Commerce who were concerned about the closure’s effect on local retailers.
The meeting provided an opportunity for residents and retailers to ask questions, voice concerns and get more information about how this massive construction project will affect them in the future. Numerous topics were discussed, including the length of the project, closure of the southbound exit of the BRP into the Village of Scarsdale, the left bound turn signal just before the bridge, the closure of the Pipeline entrance ramp onto the Bronx River Parkway and the noise that workmen will create during the night hours.
One man asked why more prefab elements could not be used to speed the work, but the County replied that foundations 
have to be dug and the concrete supports for the bridge are so large that they need to be built on site. In addition, since the bridge is a historical landmark, these pillars need to be approved by the landmarks construction. A 54-inch water main at the site needs to be relocated. Mark Lewis asked if working seven days a week could shorten the length of the project. In response, the County representative said that they would have to pay workers time and a half or double time for nights and weekends, and they need to be fiscally prudent. They already plan to do the demolition work at night as required by the MTA and more overtime means even higher expenses. However, there are incentives in the contract for early completion, so the County is hopeful that the work can be done expeditiously.
The most discussed concern of the night seemed to be the southbound Pipeline entrance ramp onto the Bronx River Parkway, which will remain closed for a majority of the project to allow the construction crew access to the site. With the natural barriers, the Metro-North Railway and the current bridge, the area that the workmen have to build for this project is very limited, so they had little choice but to close down the Pipeline ramp, which is the least used in the area to access the Bronx River Parkway.
Another major concern with the construction project is the continued need for the closure of the southbound exit into the Village of Scarsdale and its left turn signal. Many merchants who work in the village are concerned with the current plan for an 18-month closure during the latter period of work, and the threat it poses to their businesses. The County had originally projected that the exit would be closed for two years but revised it to 18 months in response to concerns from the retail community who feared that it would prevent customers from coming to the village. However, many at the meeting were still unsatisfied. The County agreed to revisit the issue and attempt to further revise their plans.
Currently, on the southbound parkway at Crane Road there is a left turn signal at the exit and a traffic light that redirects traffic to allow cars in the southbound lane to exit into the village. That exit is now regulated by the left turn signal and a traffic light that redirects traffic and allows cars in the southbound lane to exit into the village. However, during the latter parts of the construction, the signal along with the southbound exit will be removed. There will be only one lane for northbound traffic and two lanes for southbound traffic. Halting northbound traffic to allow that left turn into the village would create a great deal of traffic congestion and a dramatic increase in potential accidents. The problem will intensify later on in the project when the second southbound lane is removed along with the light and the exit into the village.
When the subject of noise at night was brought up, the representatives said that there was little they could do, as many of the construction tools have noisy safety features required by law. Also the MTA requires that work be done at night as not to interrupt or endanger train service. Last, the bridge currently accommodates 36,000 vehicles a day and is unsafe. The County has to balance the current needs of a few local residents against potential safety issues on the bridge for generations to come. So there is little they can do to change the situation. “So, it’s basically suck it up and deal with it,” one frustrated resident remarked.
Article and photos by contributor Cara Nesi.
Bronx River Parkway Lane Closures This Week
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Westchester County has sent out notification that between 9 pm and 5 am on Monday night July 9 and Tuesday night July 10 the right lanes in both directions of the Bronx River Parkway between Crane Road (Exit 12) and Ardsley Road (Exit 11) in Scarsdale and Greenburgh will be closed.
There will also be periodic 5-minute closures of the parkway in one or both directions to accommodate tree work. Delays are expected and drivers are advised to seek alternate routes.
In addition, the northbound right lane of the Bronx River Parkway between Harney Road (Exit 10) and Crane Road (Exit 12) and the northbound Crane Road Exit 12 ramp will be closed starting Wednesday July 11 and continuing through Friday July 13 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Motorists should use Harney Road (Exit 10) as a detour. Delays are expected and drivers are advised to seek alternate routes.
The lane closures are necessary for tree removal operations as part of the Crane Road Bridge Replacement Project on the Bronx River Parkway. The project began last month and will take three years to complete.
The current bridge, built in 1924, will continue to be operational during most of the project while a new bridge is constructed alongside it. To improve traffic operations and safety, the new bridge will have wider lanes and shoulders and will include a northbound deceleration lane to Crane Road. There will also be sidewalks to enhance pedestrian access to the Bronx River Parkway reservation, and the southbound Metro-North platform will be reconstructed.
The $39.4 million project is being funded by a combination of federal, state and county money and will create approximately 400 construction jobs.
For additional information, contact Westchester County Department of Public Works and Transportation at 995-2555. Full details on this project are available at westchestergov.com/craneroadbridge.
