Education and Parenting Expert Alfie Kohn To Speak at Scarsdale Middle School
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Alfie Kohn will be the speaker at the Scarsdale PT Council’s Fall Meeting and Lecture Series on Tuesday, November 13 at 7:30pm. This event will take place at Scarsdale Middle School auditorium, 134 Mamaroneck Avenue in Scarsdale. Kohn will be speaking about “Unconditional Parenting: Beyond Bribes and Threats”. This talk is co-sponsored by the seven Scarsdale School PTA's. All members of the community are invited to attend this important evening.
Mr. Kohn is the author of 12 books and countless articles on human behavior, education, and parenting. His most recent publications include Feel Bad Education…and Other Contrarian Essays on Children and Schooling (2011), The Homework Myth: Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing (2006), and Unconditional Parenting: Moving from Rewards and Punishment to Love and Reason (2005). Time magazine called Mr. Kohn "perhaps the country's most outspoken critic of education's fixation on grades [and] test scores." In addition, his criticisms of competition and rewards are credited with shaping the thinking of educators, parents, and managers across the country and abroad.
Mr. Kohn argues that one basic need all children have is to be loved unconditionally. Yet conventional approaches to parenting such as punishments and rewards teach children that they are loved only when they please us or impress us. Kohn will share his ideas for working with our children rather than doing things to them, and for making sure that they know our care for them is unconditional.
A brief PT Council business meeting will precede Mr. Kohn’s talk at 7:30pm.
Sunday in Scarsdale - Free Taxi Service and the Gas Shortage
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(Updated Sunday afternoon at 2 PM) We’ve received good news from a few residents on Greenacres Avenue and Penn Boulevard to say that their power has been restored! Apparently power has been restored to about 1,100 customers in Scarsdale. There are now five Con Edison crews in town and the power outage map shows that more residents will have power back by 11 pm tonight. You can check the status of your house by clicking here – all you need is your phone number: https://apps1.coned.com/csol/reportoutage.asp
For those who need help, we received the following notice about how to get from the Village Manager’s office on Sunday morning:
For those residents without power and heat, the American Red Cross has established a regional emergency shelter for our area at the Albert Leonard Middle School, 25 Gerard Lane in New Rochelle. The shelter is equipped with cots for sleeping. The Red Cross can be contacted at 914 682-2299.
In addition, the Scarsdale Public Library on Olmstead Road is available as a comfort center with power, heat, free coffee and other amenities, including movies in the Scott Room. Residents may also charge their cell phones and other electronic devices. The Village has extended the Library hours from 9AM-9PM Monday-Friday and 11AM-9PM on Sunday.
Central Taxi is available to transport people to the market or doctor. The Village provides this service free of charge for Scarsdale seniors, others must pay the normal rate. The Senior Program is run through the Recreation Department. More information can be provided by Jason Marra, Deputy Superintendent of Recreation.
Gas: As all of you already know, gas is in short supply. Stations have run out - or have no power to pump. Now residents with home generators
Instructions from Scarsdale Village: The police sent us this notice about how to sign up for the Village notification system:
Scarsdale residents can sign up for the Village's notification system that provides phone, text and email updates of important information. During the recovery from Hurricane Sandy it is being used to provide informational updates to Scarsdale residents. The following link can be used to sign-up:
https://portal.blackboardconnectcty.com/welcome.aspx?eiid=1207B6088C3778A7687A
Since the Village's website and email systems are both down due to power and communications line failures, we have been unable to provide information on our website as we normally would. We are asking for the assistance of the media to post the information that is forwarded to you on your websites to keep residents informed on the recovery status. We would also request that you post the link above for the Village's notification system, and encourage people to sign up to receive information. The notification system messages can be long, and are best received by a voice call or email, as the size of some text messages can be limited.
If your power comes back on, please email [email protected] and we will let others know.
Power Outages Reported in Scarsdale
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As of 6:25 PM the wind is howling and many more of you have reported that you have lost power. Most recently we were notified that Marjory Lane is out along with Quaker Center at Brookby Road near the Middle School. Acccording to residents in Edgemont, the power is out on Thomas Lane, Barclay, Edgemot, Ferndale, Glendale and Sheridan Roads. The Greenburgh police are reporting the following outages in Edgemont:
-Clayton Road; from Sheridan Road to Underhill Avenue
-Edgewood Road; from Cross Way to Joyce Road
In Scarsdale Village, police have taped off a portion of Authreith Road where a tree may have fallen. In Greenacres, residents who live on Walworth Avenue between Berkeley and Claremont have no power and have been unable to report the outage as the Con Ed phone number is not working.
The area around George Field has also been hit. At 8 am a tree fell on Oxford Road and took out power to a few homes. The tree blocked the road until a crew came by to clear it. A few minutes ago, we got a report of three trees breaking on Windmill Circle. Nora Marino took this live action photo of one of the trees falling behind her home to share with you.
On Gorham Court a tree fell on the traffic island -- here is a photo from Randall Rainer of Brewster Road: 
Jon Leslie of Greenacres Avenue reported that a large tree fell at his neighbor's house and hit his home --take a look at these photos:
Please continue to send in storm reports and photos to [email protected].
Where to Warm Up and Charge Up
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Village officials announced Wednesday that only one Con Ed crew is in Scarsdale and they have provided no schedule about when power will be restored. This leaves 4,200 homes without heat – and as temperatures drop into the 40’s tonight, the situation is growing more difficult by the minute. If you are lucky enough to have power and heat, invite another family or two to share your home. Local hotels are fully booked and many have nowhere to go beyond their cold, dark houses.
Our readers have been sending in tips about where you can go to stay warm and stay connected – and here are a few ideas on how to pass the time while you wait for the heat and the lights to return:
Go to work: Metro North train service to Manhattan is back! They returned to the tracks on Wednesday night with hourly local service on the Harlem line. Check the schedule here: http://www.mta.info/mnr/html/planning/schedules/
Check out the library: The Scarsdale Library is open and warm. Though they do not have internet service they do have a charging station where you can juice up your laptops, iPads and phones. Hours are 9 am until 9 pm on Thursday and Friday. On Thursday night, ethicist Randy Cohen will visit the library at 7:30 pm to discuss his new book, “Be Good How to Navigate the Ethics of Everything.”
Stop in at the JCC: The JCC of Mid-Westchester on Wilmot Road welcomes members of the community who have lost power to use shower and locker facilities and enjoy light and warmth in the building. However, internet and phone service are unavailable. They are open until 9:45 pm. In addition, the gymnasium is open until 6:00pm for children to enjoy open gym.
Visit your temple or church: Several synagogues have sent out emails inviting their members to spend the day there. Check with your church or synagogue to see if they have heat and consider passing some time there.
Utilize a club: The Scarsdale Golf Club has power and invites their members to use the locker room for hot showers and to spend time at the club where wireless internet service is available. Lunch and dinner are also being served.
Have a nosh: In Hartsdale, the bagel store has more than delicious bagels, spreads and sandwiches. We noticed that some people were hard at work on their laptops there and found out that the shop has free Wifi. Whole Foods in White Plains is open and is fully stocked with prepared food that you can eat at the store - they also have Wifi. We heard that Panera on Central Avenue, who offers free internet, had to temporarily close their doors on Tuesday because they were overwhelmed with customers!
Relax: The Yoga Station in Hartsdale is open and invites yogis to charge your devices while you stretch out. Check their class schedule at: http://www.theyogastation.com/
Linda Roth of Coldwell Banker at 807 Scarsdale Avenue in the village invites you to stop by, charge your devices and enjoy a free cup of coffee.
If you have more ideas about where to stay warm, please share them in the comments section below:
Edgemont Residents Call For Feiner's Resignation
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- Written by Joanne Wallenstein
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In the wake of the Fortress Bible Church decision against the Town of Greenburgh, the Board of the Edgemont Community Council is calling for the resignation of Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner and Town Councilwoman Diana Juettner.
In September 2012 the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a decision that found that the Town of Greenburgh violated the constitutional rights of the Fortress Bible Church in its effort to build a new sanctuary and school off Dobbs Ferry Road in Hartsdale. The Church purchased the property in 1998 and the Town blocked its effort to move ahead for years with zoning and traffic safety challenges and illegal demands for a fire truck or a cash payment to gain approval. The court found that the Town destroyed evidence and acted in bad faith. They also said that Feiner’s testimony during the trial was “not credible.”
The Church is seeking $5 to $6 million in damages and the Town’s insurance carrier informed them that it would not cover damages arising out of willful legal violations.
Feiner has served as Town Supervisor for 21 years and this court decision is not the first to raise the ire of Edgemont residents who have been sparring with him for years over a wide range of issues.
Here are a few of these additional issues:
Edgemont residents have charged that they are paying unnecessarily high real estate taxes to finance duplicate services within the unincorporated areas of the Town of Greenburgh.
Residents also contend that Feiner has failed to rent out 108 apartments at Westhelp, losing the Town of Greenburgh at least $1 million a year.
In another recently filed lawsuit, a group of Greenburgh residents are objecting to Feiner’s proposal to lease the former site of Frank’s Nursery to Game On to build a 94,000 square foot indoor sports facility. They argue that the lease violates County law that states that property acquired through foreclosure must be sold and they are also calling for a full environmental review of the property which may be contaminated due to pesticide use by the nursery. Feiner has announced a Town-wide referendum on the lease despite the questionable legality of renting the property.
Below is a copy of the letter from the Board of the Directors of the Edgemont Community Council calling for the resignations of Feiner and Juettner. Learn more about issues concerning Edgemont here.
October 23, 2012
Town Supervisor Paul Feiner and Town Councilwoman Diana Juettner
From: The Board of Directors, ECC
Re: Your Resignations due to your actions regarding Fortress Bible Mr. Feiner and Ms. Juettner,
On October 1st, the ECC's Board of Directors met and unanimously voted to ask for your resignations due to your actions regarding the Fortress Bible Church. As the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit wrote in unanimously affirming the district court's decision against the Town:
The district court found that Town staff, including at least one Board member, had intentionally destroyed discoverable evidence despite specific instructions not to do so.
The district court's comprehensive findings demonstrate that the Town disingenuously used SEQRA to obstruct and ultimately deny the Church's project.
We find sufficient evidence . . . to support the district court's finding . . . that the Town was acting in bad faith and in hostility to the project such that it would not have allowed the Church to build any worship facility and school.
The Town attempted to extort from the Church a payment in lieu of taxes, it ignored and then replaced its Planning Commissioner when he advocated on the Church's behalf, and Town staff intentionally destroyed relevant evidence.
… we conclude that on the record before us there was no rational basis for the Town's actions.
The original judgment of the district court followed a 26-day trial, during which Mr. Feiner testified and the judge found Mr. Feiner's testimony, particularly with regard to his supposed concerns about "traffic safety" to be "not credible." The district court also found that Town officials, including Mr. Feiner and Ms. Juettner had, through their actions over a period of years intentionally violated the constitutional rights of the church, in violation of the church's rights to religious freedom under the First Amendment and to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and that, as a direct, immediate, and reasonably foreseeable consequence, their actions will cost Greenburgh taxpayers millions of dollars in damages, none of which, because their actions involved intentional violations of federal law, will be covered by insurance.
As you may know, New York State Public Officers Law Section 36 provides for the removal by a court of elected town officials "for any misconduct, maladministration, malfeasance or malversation in office." The cases in New York that have interpreted this statute state that removal from office under this statute requires a showing of either "self-dealing, corrupt activities, conflict of interest, moral turpitude, intentional wrongdoing or violation of a public trust." See Salvadaor v. Ross, 61
A.D.23d 1163 (3d Dep't 2009). In the Fortress Bible case, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed findings that Mr. Feiner and Ms. Juettner engaged in intentional wrongdoing in violation of the constitutional rights of a church, resulting in millions of dollars in damages. Such conduct clearly meets the requirements for removal from office under Public Officers Law Section 36.
Please do Greenburgh the ultimate service and resign from your posts.
This continued, willful misuse of the power of your positions is a terrible detriment to the community and should not continue.
For the Board of Directors,
Geoff LoftusPresident,
Edgemont Community Council
