News from Village Hall: Marx Mansion to be Demolished
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The saga of the Marx mansion at 15 Gatehouse Road in Scarsdale has finally come to an end. At a Valentine’s Day Board of Trustees meeting Trustee Stacey Brodsky announced that the Board would grant Anthony Scarcella a permit to demolish the house which has become “detrimental to the community” and has “adversely affected property values and the marketability of neighboring properties.”
The 1903 brick mansion that was originally the home of toy magnate Louis Marx is 9,203 square feet and originally sat on 20.5 acres in Scarsdale. In 1985 Scarcella bought the house and the property and built 29 homes there, leaving the original house on 1.75 acres. In 1985 Scarcella sold the mansion to Alexander Radin for $550,000 and repurchased it from Radin’s estate for $2,500,000 in 2007.
Scarcella sought to preserve the house and build three additional homes on the property. In 2007 he was denied variances to subdivide the property and the Committee for Historic Preservation found that the mansion had historical importance and denied him the demolition permit.
The property has been in litigation ever since and in December 2011 Scarcella asked for a hardship hearing. He presented engineers reports, estimates for restoring the property, and reports from an accountant and two licensed real estate brokers. After reviewing this data, and hiring an independent structural engineering company to evaluate the home, the Board of Trustees determined the following:
- There is severe structural damage to the house
- In one section the floor has collapsed
- The mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems all need to be replaced
- It would cost $3 million to restore the house
- When that $3 million is added to the $2.5 million Scarcella spent on the purchase, it was determined that he could not expect to receive a reasonable return on his investment by restoring it.
- The house has been on the market since March 2011 and there have been no bids
- The building is detrimental to the community and adversely affects property values
- The likelihood of continued litigation is not in the best interest of the community and would not further the community’s interest in historic preservation.
Therefore, the Board granted Scarcella the permit to demolish the home.
Flooding Remediation
In other business at the Board of Trustees Meeting, Mayor Flisser announced that Westchester County will designate $8 million for seven capital projects to address chronic flooding along the Bronx River and Sound Shore. Five of the projects are located on County property and will be administered by the County. One of the Bronx River projects and another along the Hutchinson River should help mitigate flooding in Scarsdale.
The Bronx River project is located within the Bronx River Reservation in Yonkers and Eastchester and does not involve any Village funding. The work will entail the re-alignment of the river and bank stabilization at Garth Woods and Harney Road.
The other project involves work along the Hutchinson River and entails culvert improvements, bank stabilization and widening of the riverbed in Scarsdale, New Rochelle and Eastchester. The County has identified $2.5 million in County funds for this project, representing 50% of the estimated $5 million total project cost. Scarsdale, New Rochelle, and Eastchester will be responsible for funding the $2.5 million balance.
Over the next 6-8 months the Village will work with the County, New Rochelle and Eastchester officials to define the project scope and cost and to identify legal and funding issues in anticipation of bidding out the work and constructing the project.
Flisser said, “The Hutchinson River grant has the potential to correct serious water and sewer issues for our residents as well as residents in neighboring communities. Although we will be required to pay half of the costs, we will commit to finding the necessary funding, and we already have FEMA grant applications in place.”
Resident Petition about Building Department:
At the meeting it was announced that the Village has received a petition from Ruth Frankel of 17 Richbell Road requesting changes in the management of the building department.
The village also received a communication from Bonatura Lugrin of 63 Church Lane indicating that her signature was forged on the petition and that she disagreed with the content.
Coming Up: Sports Swap, Harlem Wizards and 15K and 4 Mile Runs
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The Sports Swap will be held on Saturday, *March 10, 2012 at the Heathcote Elementary School. The community is encouraged to clean out closets, attics, and garages. Gently used sports equipment such as basketball, baseball, lacrosse, soccer, football, field and ice hockey, fitness, golf, tennis, skating, roller blades, bicycles and more can be purchased or sold. We will also be selling used ski jackets, scout and karate uniforms, boys' blazers, girls' party dresses and musical instruments. Everyone is welcome to come and shop from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. Donors may bring their goods to Heathcote Elementary School Friday evening from 5:00 to 7:00 pm or from 8:30 to 9:30 am on Saturday morning.
This year 100% of funds raised will go directly to the PTC to help support programming for the year. For further information please contact Maureen Hart at MMHart@optonline.net or Nancy Aresu at nancyaresu@gmail.com.
Harlem Wizards at SHS
The Junior Class at SHS (Class of 2013) will be hosting the annual Harlem Wizards game on Friday, March 16th at 7:00 PM in the SHS gyms. Players from the Wizards will play alongside faculty members and students. The Harlem Wizards are celebrating 50 years of Worldwide Wizardry. The Wizards will put the full-court press on fun as they take on a team made up of people from the Scarsdale community.
The annual event is historically sold out, and it provides a great opportunity to see teachers and high school students in a fun setting. You will see amazing basketball talent, world class tricks and ball-handling as well as wild dunks, audience participation and humor that is guaranteed to make you laugh!
For more information on the Wizards or to purchase tickets to the event, please visit www.harlemwizards.com .
43rd Annual Scarsdale 15K/4Mile Runs
The Scarsdale Parks and Recreation Department will hold the 43rd annual 15K/4-mile runs on Sunday, April 1st, at the Scarsdale High School at 9am. A 1 mile Fun Run is also available and will start between 11:00 - 11:30 am for children 12 years old and younger. In addition the Scarsdale Antiques Running Club will be co-sponsoring the Abe Simon Memorial Team race.
The races will begin on Brewster Road, and will continue through the Fox Meadow and Greenacres neighborhoods. The police will restrict traffic in the area, although local access will not be denied. A letter will be sent to all residents within the race route to bring their attention to the event. The Police Department will block access to the school at the Wayside Lane entrance at 6:00 AM. Race participants will be able to enter the school from Olmstead and Brewster Roads. The Police will do their best to open the roads as soon as it is safe for the runners.
15K and 4M entry fee is $16 by March 11th, after March 11th the fee is $30. Kids Fun Run entry fee is $15 by March 11th, after March 11th the fee is $25. Register by March 11th to receive a free race t-shirt. For more information and online registration options please visit www.scarsdale.com and go to the Parks and Recreation home page.
News from the Scarsdale and Edgemont School Board Nominating Committees
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The Scarsdale School Board Nominating Committee is seeking candidates for nomination to the Scarsdale Board of Education. In 2012, the SBNC will nominate two candidates to the board to fill the seats of Mary Beth Gose and Lewis Leone, Jr., both of whom will be completing their first terms and are eligible for re-nomination.
The SBNC invites all residents to propose candidates for the school board. A candidate must be at least 18 years old, a U.S. citizen, a Scarsdale resident and a qualified voter in the Scarsdale school district for at least one year prior to May 15, 2012, the date of the school board elections.
Candidates should complete a biographical information form and submit it via e-mail to sbncchair@gmail.com as soon as possible, but no later than 5:00 PM on February 27, 2012. Forms are available at www.scarsdalesbnc.com , Scarsdale Village Hall, the Scarsdale Library and the main offices of the seven schools.
For more information on the SBNC, including the governing Resolution, the non-partisan system, and current members, please visit the SBNC website.
Edgemont SBNC Announces Candidates for School Board:
At the public session of the Edgemont School Board Nominating Committee (SBNC) meeting on 1/25/12, the SBNC accepted letters of recommendation for three Edgemont residents to fill the two upcoming vacancies on the School Board: Jennifer Darger, Lisa Wexler and Brian Yarrington. Lisa Wexler of Barclay Road was recommended for a second term on the Board, and both Jennifer Darger of Sherwood Place and Brian Yarrington of Evandale Road were recommended for a first term. The SBNC accepted the letters with great appreciation of the willingness of all three candidates to serve Edgemont’s schools and community. The SBNC seeks comment from Edgemont residents concerning the candidates. All comments should be submitted by March 1st in writing to Marc Ackerman, SBNC Chair, 101 Moorland Drive, Scarsdale, NY 10583, mackerman@omm.com. Comments must be attributable (anonymous comments will not be accepted) and will be kept confidential within the SBNC.
Submitted by Marc Ackerman, SBNC Chair.
A Plea for Peace from Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish
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Called a Palestinian Martin Luther King, Dr. Izzeldin Abue- laish was the first Palestinian doctor to complete a formal residency and receive a staff position at an Israeli hospital. Now known simply as “the Gaza doctor” he captured hearts and headlines around the world in the aftermath of horrific tragedy: on January 16, 2009, Israeli shells hit his home in the Gaza Strip, killing three of his daughters and a niece. Instead of seeking revenge or sinking into hatred, his deepest hope is that his daughters will be the last sacrifice on the road to peace between Palestinians and Israelis. Dr. Abuelaish is the author of the best- selling book I Shall Not Hate, which chronicles his life growing up in Gaza and the development of his outlook on life and peace in Israel and Palestine.
Friday, February 10, 2012
8:15 pm
Congregation Kol Ami
252 Soundview Avenue
White Plains, NY
914.949.4717
Admission is free and open to the community
New District Lines Muddy the State Legislative Waters
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If the New York State Senate Republicans (under the guise of the “New York State Legislative Taskforce on Demographic Research --”LATFOR”) gets their way, most of Scarsdale will be represented in the State Senate by Democratic, Yonkers based Andrea Stewart-Cousins.
LATFOR is theoretically bi-partisan -- but in fact the Democrats control the pen for district lines for the State Assembly and the GOP holds the pen for the State Senate lines. In fact LATFOR has proposed actually adding a seat to the State Senate – going from 62 to 63 (notwithstanding questions about the necessity for two legislative houses in the first place). The Senate Republicans are furiously trying to engineer the preservation and possible expansion of its slim, 2-seat majority over the Democrats in the State Senate. That’s why they’ve proposed adding a Senate district -- not in areas that have grown in population --like the Hudson Valley, New York City, or Long Island -- but in population -drained upstate New York -- where the GOP would have a much better chance of adding to their caucus.
For the local Westchester districts, Amy Paulin’s has only minor proposed variations from the current outline. Most of the Democratic assembly gerrymandering occurred 10 year ago but the 37th State Senate district is slated for major changes under the LATFOR plan. Currently held by retiring Senator Suzi Oppenheimer, the proposed new 37th district would lose most of Scarsdale, all of Ossining, gain Republican strongholds in East Yonkers, Tuckahoe, and Eastchester, and gain Bedford.
In 2010 Bob Cohen came within 700 votes of dethroning Suzi Oppenheimer from her 26-year hold on the 37th District senate seat. Among the tasks of the
state Republican party was to reconfigure the district to give Cohen a better chance to win the seat in 2012. Although Cohen has moved his residence from the Village of Scarsdale to New Rochelle the proposed new lines conveniently include Cohen’s new domicile. In the meantime, however, Oppenheimer has announced her intent to not seek another term in the Senate. The likely candidates for the seat are Cohen and Sound Shore Democratic Assemblyman George Latimer. Latimer is conducting his due diligence on the viability of the race -- particularly the composition of the new senate district -- and then will decide whether to run for the open senate or bid for re-election to his assembly seat.
All of this is in a state of flux. Governor Cuomo has threatened to veto the lines, and just today, the Democrats in the State Senate sued LATFOR to throw out the lines. And to put all of this in context, the map at top, courtesy of the New York Observer – describes that the outline of the proposed new line looks like a man urinating on a miniature turkey. As always stay tuned.
Columnist David A. Singer is a former political consultant/campaign professional and political junkie currently toiling as a lawyer in Westchester and managing real estate and media investments.
