Around Town

Details: Published: 02 March 2011; Created: 02 March 2011; Last Updated: 02 March 2011; Hits: 4740

letter To the Editor: Like a lot of people, my family and I moved to Scarsdale, not because it has good schools, but because it has GREAT schools. Just as important, it has lots of other families that value the schools the same way. It has a creative School Board that has focused on working with students to foster critical thinking and problem-solving instead of rote learning, as evidenced in the Singapore Math program and Capstone projects for 5th graders. And Scarsdale residents have passed the school budget with over 70% voting "yes" in the last two budget votes. This is not just an indication of how much we value the schools, but also an endorsement of all the work done by the Board of Education and Superintendent McGill.

While many school districts are facing difficult times, and the Board needs to weigh the needs of the Elementary schools in relation to the needs of the entire district, the current proposal being considered by the Board to raise class sizes at the elementary school level seems too drastic a measure. Larger classes for children in their formative years could have long-term implications for them as students and increased costs to the district. I would argue that the class sizes are in fact already too large, and Superintendent McGill would agree with me. He stated, back when the current class sizes were being proposed, that students in smaller classes are active learners, view themselves, their peers and their teacher more positively, and problems can be identified more quickly.

Even temporarily raising the class size limit is unacceptable. Today's "temporary" becomes tomorrow's "standard" on which more increases would be based. The Board needs to come to a consensus on creative solutions to budget problems without compromising on the values we hold as residents of Scarsdale. Leave elementary school class sizes alone. To learn more about the effort to maintain classes sizes, click here.

Regards,
Neil Pierson
Bradley Road
Scarsdale

Details: Published: 17 February 2011; Created: 17 February 2011; Last Updated: 17 February 2011; Hits: 6968

Here is a note from Lena Crandall, President of the Friends of Scarsdale Parks: The south entrance to the Red Maple Swamp, 5.4 acres of open space in Greenacres, is in the process of restoration. Mark Colbran, a Boy Scout in Troop 60, Scarsdale, has initiated the rejuvenation as part of his Eagle Scout Service Project. The goal is to remove invasive plants such as English ivy, multifloral rose and Norway maple trees from the freshwater wetlands, and replant with native trees and plants in the spring.

Last November, Colbran coordinated 33 volunteers, including donated manpower from Ridgecrest Landscaping; they cleared fallen leaves, tore up English ivy, which had migrated from surrounding backyards, and cut down Norway maple saplings. Concurrently, the Village refurbished the storm water drainage system at the South entrance to eliminate the forces of erosion on the main trail. With permission from the Village, in particular Suzanne Busby, Superintendent of Parks, Recreation and Conservation, and Eric Gerringer, Deputy Superintendant of Public Works, and the go-ahead from adjacent property owners, Bartlett Tree Company recently volunteered manpower to cut down seven Norway maples. The Swamp trail will benefit from their woodchips and their logs, which will define the path. The removal of the Norway maples is important because their shallow root systems, dense shade, and release of toxins into the soil inhibit other plant growth.

This exciting Eagle Scout project has had the support of the Greenacres Neighborhood Association, The Friends of the Scarsdale Parks, the Conservation Advisory Council and village staff. Colbran greatly appreciates the efforts of many volunteers, Ridgecrest Landscaping and Bartlett Tree Experts for helping to prepare the site in anticipation of spring planting. Landscape designer Eti Katoni will lend her expertise in the selection of appropriate wetland flowers, shrubs and trees; the native species will provide food and shelter to the many birds and small animals that inhabit and visit this preserve. A new split rail fence, signage and waste receptacles, funded by the Village of Scarsdale, will also be installed by Colbran to complete the restoration.

Details: Published: 01 February 2011; Created: 01 February 2011; Last Updated: 01 February 2011; Hits: 4311

neary

For most of us conversations about the county budget are about as interesting as watching paint dry. The $1.78 billion budget passed last month by the Board of Legislators demands attention if only because we are among the county taxpayers left picking up the tab when revenues fall short of expectations, as they almost certainly will this year. A look at this budget will tell you that the money is not there to begin with. That’s a very big problem because we can't run a deficit like the federal government.

The board, led by Ken Jenkins (D Yonkers), produced this budget to one up County Executive Rob Astorino. After 12 years of skyrocketing taxes, the board, with most of the same players in place, would have you believe they underwent a collective conversion on the road to Damascus and have emerged as fiscal conservatives.

Astorino was elected a year ago with a mandate to cut the budget, and the final budget adopted by the board calls for a more than 2% tax cut. So even if the board’s motives were suspect, where’s the problem?

The problem is this: the 2011 budget adopted by our county legislators is very different from the one that Astorino proposed. He spent the better part of his first year in office peeling back layer after layer of Spano-era bureaucratic excess in an effort to determine essential programs and jettison the rest.

The board’s budget somehow performs the feat of adding back the programs Astorino cut from the budget, yet still promises a 2+% cut in taxes. How is that possible? By creating phony revenues and borrowing from the reserves — that’s how.

Many examples of this practice can be found in the 2011 county budget, but I've limited myself to three of the most egregious.

1. To cut $10 million from the budget, the board factored in NO raises for county employees in 2009, 2010, or 2011, even though six of the eight county unions are working with expired contracts and five of those six are subject to binding arbitration. When has an arbitrator ever awarded a union no raise over several years, let alone five unions? It won't happen — and the board knows this — yet they voted for it anyway. I call that dishonest.

2. The board predicted that revenue to the Labs & Research Department would increase by $1.5 million because of “enhancements” to the department’s business plan. The “business plan” hasn’t been written yet, let alone enhanced, and the board used the same story last year when it claimed the department would generate an additional $2.7 million in revenue. That money never materialized. What are the odds this year’s revenue will?

3. Astorino prudently canceled the county’s contract with the state to administer Section 8. It simply cost more to administer than we were reimbursed, leaving us short about $500,000 a year. In addition the county is responsible for the non-reimbursable retirement benefits, such as lifetime health care, for the county workers assigned to the program. Canceling the contract meant 38 layoffs. The board restored all 38 positions — with no contract. Go figure.

There are many other dubious calculations in the board’s budget but these alone should give you a sense of the integrity of the document.

In all fairness I contacted our legislator Judy Myers about the revenue projections in the budget. She got right back to me and pointed out a number of things in Rye and the surrounding communities funded by the money they put back in, which would be fine I suppose in a better economy. Myers, however, was unable to provide me with any facts to support her assurance that the revenue projections relied on real money.

This isn't a Democrat/Republican thing. Astorino called out the democratic majority on the board and he's right - they were responsible. However, fiscal chicanery favors no party as the newly elected Republican county executive in Nassau tried the same stunt — cutting taxes without cutting spending — and it blew up in his face, leaving Nassau with a bond rating in the cellar. Rockland’s credit rating was recently downgraded as well, primarily because its budget contained similar fantasy land assumptions. Clearly, as arcane as these details may seem, shoddy budgets have serious consequences long term.

When I say it’s not just an inter-party conflict, that’s not to say Ken Jenkins and his Democratic majority don't take particular delight in sticking it to the golden boy of the GOP, only that it’s clear from our 2010 State legislative session that even one-party rule doesn't necessarily mean civility, let alone accord, among politicians.

No, the Board of Legislators did this not because they're Democrats, but because they're politicians. The entire board is up for reelection this year and they're betting that you'll remember the tax cut and not the inevitable shortfall when the “projected revenues” don't materialize.

Will the elections in Westchester this year follow the statewide ones last year, where, even though there was political upheaval across the country, in New York we returned the same self-serving lifers to office? The outcome of this budget might be a factor — if we're paying attention.

Charmian Neary is a bored housewife and former political operative from Rye New York who is much better at politics than homemaking.

Details: Published: 06 February 2011; Created: 06 February 2011; Last Updated: 07 February 2011; Hits: 15229

letter What are qualities that are absolute requirements for a member of a volunteer board of directors? The ability to work in groups to accomplish tasks would be one such quality, I suppose. Perhaps a person of integrity, who would never twist facts or take them entirely out of context - a person like that would be a good choice. Maybe someone who is an active listener would be well qualified. You know, the type of person who asks a question and actually listens to and processes the response before rebutting. That would be a plus. Someone who places value on other peoples' time and can communicate without being redundant - we'd appreciate that, I would think.

Maybe someone with the strength of character to openly change their mind when confronted with new facts or information - we might want that.

I would think we'd want someone with the ability to recognize that the world is complex and that most issues have shades of gray that need to be thought through. Yeah, that would be good.

Hey, come to think of it, we also might want someone who knows how the role of a trustee might differ from the role of an operating, paid executive - that might be good. Or maybe someone with a fundamental sense of the limits of their own knowledge, and some respect for those who have knowledge that you might be lacking - that would be a nice trait.

Ability with numbers - yeah, we'd want that, though the math in these roles is pretty elementary.. Perhaps someone who recognizes that if taxes go down from 3 percent to 2 percent, that is a 33% reduction, not a 1% reduction. That would be fundamental, I would think.

So who are these people who gave us Bob Harrison? Do they know anything about how highly functioning boards actually accomplish great things? Do they understand that there are outstanding professionals who would sooner quit and find work elsewhere then work for bosses wholly lacking in grace, wit, and integrity.

Alas, I suspect we know these people who give us Bob - those who share Bob's agenda. And come to think of it, we know an organization whose members support men like Bob. Indeed, the TVCC can change it's name to the "Scarsdale Forum," but it cannot change its essential nature. It is by and large a political action committee whose main agenda is the minimization of taxes. It provides soapboxes for anyone in need of one, and allows those who stand upon them to cloak themselves in the legitimacy of a decades old Scarsdale institution. Yuck.

So let's go ahead and connect the dots. The CNC is over weighted with TVCC members, sympathizers, or cronies. And hey, there's a candidate out there that's for the same things these cronies are for, right? And what do you know: presto, alakazam, the "non-partisan system" that is supposed to choose open minded and non agenda-driven candidates has given us a pure partisan candidate. Boss Tweed couldn't have drawn it up any better himself.

There are of course, good people involved with the TVCC, and I know some of them. And membership is open to all, and thus, the power to change this organization is ultimately in the hands of the people. But let's be realistic - people like to join groups that share their personal sensibilities. It is unlikely that those of a different political orientation would en masse join a group for the purpose of changing it. Easier to start an alternative group or write for 10583.com (this reality, by the way, is occasionally upended by heroes such as those who recently wrote the TVCC minority report on school board finances. But such bravery requires an effort and energy that is very hard to sustain).

A few months ago, I received a call from someone on the CNC asking me if I would be interested in becoming a village trustee. I was flattered and said that perhaps next year, that I needed a year off from public service after six years on the Board of Ed.

Now however, that will never happen (those who find Blatt distasteful, your stand and cheer moment has arrived!). There is zero chance that I would work long hours in a volunteer capacity side by side with a man like Mr. Harrison. And sadly, I suspect others will feel the same way. This will be one of the costs of the Harrison nomination - a thinning of the already minimal ranks of those who will volunteer for office.

The larger question is whether the perversion of the Harrison nomination will lead to the downfall of the non-partisan system itself. I suspect that apathy, and the hope that this year's Harrison nomination is a one time mistake, will leave the flawed "non partisan" system intact. But it will remain flawed until people actually volunteer in strong numbers to serve on the CNC. That is the only way to turn those who would vote for a partisan candidate out of office. In the meantime, if I had the ability to serve, I would gather the required signatures and challenge the Harrison nomination. As I cannot, I pray that there is someone out there who will do exactly that. Anyone with a pulse who can do it has my vote.

Please. Someone. Anyone......

Submitted by Jeff Blatt, Greenacres Resident and Former Member of the Scarsdale School Board

Details: Published: 20 January 2011; Created: 20 January 2011; Last Updated: 20 January 2011; Hits: 3847

Lena Crandall read the following letter at the Scarsdale Schools Budget Forum on January 19 on behalf of the Friends of the Scarsdale Parks. Dear Members of the Scarsdale Board of Education: The Friends of the Scarsdale Parks is aware of the working relationship between the school district and the Weinberg Nature Center, which is a village-owned park adjacent to Saxon Woods, a Westchester County park. There is great potential for outdoor science programs and sustainability studies throughout this vast public preserve. Please continue to provide both staff time and budget resources for programs at Weinberg. It's an investment that will benefit not only our students, but also the community at large.