COUNCIL OF GREENBURGH CIVIC ASSOCIATIONS
Minutes of Meeting - June 20, 2000
The Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations seeks to provide information and advance the common interests of member civic groups in important Town affairs. The following twenty-eight civic groups have paid dues for the year 2000:
Beaver Hill Association
Birchwood Civic Association
Broadview Civic Association
Downing Hill Civic Association
East Hartsdale Avenue Civic Association
East Irvington Civic Association
Edgemont Civic Association
Edgemont Community Council, Inc.
Fort Hill Association
Fulton Park Civic Association
Granada Condominium III Association
Hillcrest Park - Ardsley Civic Association
Juniper Hill Civic Association
Knollwood Manor Civic Association
Longview Civic Association
Lower Manor Woods Neighborhood Association
Mayfair-Knollwood Civic Association
North Elmsford Civic Association
Parkway Gardens Civic Association
Parkway Homes Civic Association
Secor Homes Civic Association, Inc.
Southern Greenville Civic Association
Stone Oaks Condominium
The Cotswold Association, Inc.
Washington Avenue Civic Association
Westchester Hills Condominium
Winding Road Farm Association
Woodhill Civic Association
Twenty-seven of the thirty-four civic groups who were members in 1999 have paid dues for the year 2000 and the Washington Avenue Civic Association has joined for the first time. There is $920.52 in the treasury. Minutes of the May 9, 2000 meeting were read and approved for circulation.
CGCA CABLE TV PROGRAM
Chairman Danny Gold noted that he was invited to tape a new CGCA program, last week but declined because of the audio/visual problems of some recently taped cable programs. Chairman Gold said he prefers to wait a month or two for staff to address any problems that might exist at the new cable studio before inviting a guest to tape the CGCA program.
CGCA members wished a "Happy Birthday" to Lorrin Brown, President of the North Elmsford Civic Association and Mary Tobias, Westchester Hills Condominium.
TAPPAN ZEE BRIDGE PROPOSAL
Ella Preiser and Francis Sheehan were among the approximately 150 people who attended the May 18 meeting at Marymount College in Tarrytown to learn more about the Governor's I-287 Task Force report which recommended replacing the Tappan Zee Bridge with a new structure. Supervisor Paul Feiner made a brief speech early in the meeting, demanding that local government leaders be given the opportunity to select an independent consultant to study the need for a new bridge. Mr. Feiner received applause several times during his speech and he then left the meeting.
At the May 10 and May 24 Town Board meetings, Mrs. Preiser asked Town Board members if they planned to prepare a written critique of the report. They do not. Board Members appeared surprised to learn that Allee King Rosen & Fleming (AKRF), the firm the Town Board hired to serve as the Town's Planning Commissioner, was one of the consultants on the Task Force report. Four of the Town Board members acknowledged that they had not read the report. Mr. Feiner indicated that he had read the report and was opposed to a new bridge being built. However, in a recent cable TV program, Mr. Feiner supported the idea of light rail service. To bring light rail to the 287 corridor, a new bridge would be necessary. Mr. Feiner also advanced the idea of turning Route 119 into a pedestrian mall.
GLENVILLE WOODS/WYLDWOOD
On May 10, the Town Board held a Public Hearing on developer Martin Ginsburg's request to rezone the property from a non-residential PD zone to a residential R-7.5 zone with a PUD overlay. Approximately 40 acres, two-thirds of the property, would be sold to the Town for parkland for $2.5 million. (The property was appraised at $3.5 million.) The Town has agreed to pay 1/3 of the cost and the Trust for Public Land will provide 1/3. Representatives from both the state and county governments attended the meeting and stated they will consider funding the additional one-third of the cost. In addition, the Town Board must ask State lawmakers for legislation to permit swapping a 4-acre parcel of dedicated parkland for another four acres of land abutting the 40-acre proposed park.
CGCA members urge that written approvals for this application be carefully crafted so that the rezoning does not occur unless and until the purchase of parkland is finalized.
ORCHARD HILL CHALLENGES THE BUILDING INSPECTOR
Residents of Orchard Hill are questioning whether Building Inspector John Lucido exceeded his authority in issuing building permits for the five houses under construction on Kathwood Road on land sold by the state DOT as "excess" Sprain Brook Parkway land. The residents have filed an appeal with the Town's Zoning Board of Appeals, as well as a lawsuit. in state Supreme Court. The ZBA scheduled a public hearing on the appeal for May 4, but the meeting had to be cancelled for lack of a quorum. The case was rescheduled for May 25.
Approximately 30 residents from the Orchard Hill area attended the May 10 Town Board meeting held at the Glenville Fire House to voice their concerns about the ZBA delay in hearing this case since the court will not make a decision until the ZBA rules. Meanwhile, construction continues on the houses. Town Board members and the Town Attorney, who usually make a production out of refusing to publicly discuss any issues involving litigation, made it very clear at the meeting that they had researched the issues and supported the Building Inspector's decision. Supervisor Feiner stated numerous times during the discussion that he was annoyed with ZBA procedures that allow applicants/opponents one as-of-right adjournment. ZBA member Francis Sheehan said all should act in good faith and was surprised at Mr. Feiner's emphasis on the adjournment issue. Since Orchard Hill residents would gain no benefit from an adjournment, Mr. Feiner's message obviously was meant to benefit the builder. Thus, it came as no surprise when the builder's attorney appeared at Town Hall on May 19 with a written request seeking an adjournment although he did not know where to find information about the right to an adjournment since Mr. Feiner had not provided that information at the meeting. On May 25, the ZBA granted the adjournment and rescheduled the case for the June 22 meeting.
PRINCEWOOD PROPERTIES - ALPINE TREE
On May 10, the Town Board referred to the Planning Board for review and recommendation this request to rezone the Alpine Tree property on Knollwood Road to a residential district to permit construction of 40 rental apartments. At the May 17 Planning Board meeting, the Town's planner, Anthony Russo (AKRF), noted that before any SEQR determination can be made, the applicant must present a more detailed site plan, an environmental audit on hazardous materials, and additional information on traffic, storm water management and emergency access.
CGCA members raised questions about the propriety of former Town Planning Commissioner Stephen Lopez presenting this application before the Town's boards within weeks of his departure. Unfortunately, the Town's Code of Ethics does not prohibit this activity. Nevertheless, CGCA members noted that things that are legal might still be inappropriate. It appears that some Planning Board members share these concerns.
ADULT USE LEGISLATION
At the May 17 Planning Board work session, Acting Planning Commissioner Mindy Hartstein presented a report (prepared by former Planning Department staff) on various methodologies that might be used for permitting adult-use establishments to locate in Greenburgh. One approach would require all adult-use establishments to be concentrated in one location - creating a red-light district. A second approach would disperse adult use establishments in industrial areas throughout the Town. A third purported "hybrid" approach would concentrate adult use establishments in one industrial area of Town but require a distance separation between the establishments. Planning Board members were asked to choose the best approach and make a recommendation to the Town Board. After a long discussion, Planning Board members realized that they were being asked to make a "political" decision and referred the matter back to the Town Board without recommendation.
At today's work session, Supervisor Feiner stated that the Town Board would take the initiative in the next few weeks to establish adult-use legislation. Town Attorney Susan Mancuso presented a map identifying the same three options for locating adult-use establishments. Interestingly, neither the Town Attorney nor the Board members were familiar with the locations highlighted on the map until Ella Preiser identified them. Mr. Feiner suggested that one concentrated adult-use zone be created on the Keren property. Ms. Mancuso said she would refine the documents.
SOLOMON SCHECHTER SCHOOL
On May 24, the Town Board held a public hearing on the Final Environmental Impact Statement for this 675-student school proposed for West Hartsdale Avenue. Appointed Deputy Town Supervisor, Cynthia Doyle, had reviewed the FEIS that was delivered to her home, but a few minutes into her presentation to the Board, she learned that she had been given the wrong document. Poets Corner Civic Association President Alan Hochberg had nothing but praise for Town Board members and referred to them as "heroes" of the 500 homeowners in the Poets Corner area. Other area residents made less favorable comments and remained concerned about the impact the school will have, particularly on traffic on West Hartsdale Avenue. Numerous pieces of correspondence were not included in the FEIS, but the Town Board voted to accept the document for filing„ based on Councilman Adler's list of missing documents to be included later. The Town's planner, AKRF traffic person Anthony Russo, stated that he will need time to review the document and to work on writing the Findings Statement. Supervisor Feiner stated that he wants to vote on the project at the next Town Board meeting on June 28.
GREENBURGH CAMPAIGN FINANCE COMMISSION
After holding eight Commission meetings and a number of subcommittee meetings, the GCFC prepared draft recommendations and submitted them for a public hearing on June 5 at Town Hill. There was limited publicity and the meeting was not well attended. Most speakers at the public hearing applauded the GCFC recommendations as a good beginning but suggested that more work needs to be done.
On June 15, the Commission held another meeting to discuss input received at the public hearing and additional written comments received from Stephanie Bellino and Ella Preiser. Because of conflicts with scheduled vacations, members of the Commission agreed that there was no way they could complete their task by the end of June and issue a report to the Town Board. The Commissioners voted to issue a `progress report' to the Town Board by the end of June. The various subcommittees will continue to meet over the summer and the full Commission will reconvene on September 14.
The Commission sought ways to better inform the public. At the request of Commission Co-chair and LWV member, Harriet Leib, Grassroots for Greenburgh, a community group, has provided the Commission with website space (http://grassrootsforgreenburgh.home.att.net/CFC.htm.) Those with access to the Internet are invited to visit the website and read the minutes of all Commission meetings and the preliminary recommendations.
GROUP HOME PROPOSED IN FAIRVIEW FIRE DISTRICT
Another "group home" is being proposed in the Fairview Fire District. On June 6, neighborhood residents met with Town officials to express their concerns about quality of life issues and the negative impact that another tax-exempt property would have on the Fairview Fire District tax base. Fire Chief Mauro heard about the meeting from a neighbor. Chief Mauro attended the meeting and reminded Mr. Feiner that because of the burden on the fire district's tax base, a Community Residences Information Services Program (CRISP) representative on December 20, 1994 wrote a letter recommending that in the future anyone seeking to establish a group home; should look at places elsewhere than in the Fairview Fire District. Supervisor Feiner had no recollection of this letter or of a letter he had written in 1992 to the Fairview Fire Commissioners promising the courtesy of advance notice prior to taking any actions on proposals that impact the fire district.
ARDSLEY ROAD - GEL-SPRAIN REALTY
At its May 17 work session, the Planning Board permitted a preliminary informal presentation regarding this request for a rezoning to a PUD overlay. The consultants for Toll Brothers presented a drawing showing that a conventional subdivision of the R-20 zoned, 40+ acres, property would yield 62 single family homes. Area residents challenged that figure because of the steep slopes, and the consultants acknowledged that at most 58 houses could be built. A PUD overlay would allow the developer to build 68 townhouses. The consultants noted that a PUD rezoning would result in smaller housing units, less traffic, fewer children to the Ardsley School District and an ability to save more than two-thirds of the property as open space.
CGCA members discussed this proposal and find the applicant's arguments specious. Much of the land is unbuildable because of steep slopes and high-tension wires. A PUD overlay allows the unbuildable portion of land to be counted for density purposes, resulting in the applicant receiving a bonus on the number of housing units that can be built. A PUD overlay also allows the applicant to save money by clustering the housing units on a small portion of the property, thereby saving on infrastructure costs (roads, water fines, sewer lines, etc.)
CGCA members noted again that the Comprehensive Plan Committee included the Gel-sprain property in the parcels it was recommending for up-zoning (from R-20 to R-40) and/or excluding the areas of steep slopes when calculating allowable development.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
Phase II of the Comprehensive Plan was supposed to be finished in May 1999. The Town's planning consultants (AKRF) have met with Saratoga (the Town's Comprehensive Plan consultants). In recent months, Steve Whitehouse from Saratoga has been observed attending "executive session" Town Board Tuesday work sessions although no mention of the Comprehensive Plan appears on the agendas. Mr. Whitehouse indicated that he was discussing legal issues with the Town Board members.
Prior to one of these recent executive sessions, Francis Sheehan questioned Steve Whitehouse about the five-month delay in crafting the wording of a moratorium on development. Mr. Whitehouse noted that he lacks sufficient information to put a moratorium in place since one needs to have a work plan of how to get out of a moratorium. This issue has never troubled the Town Board before when they enacted moratoria.
CGCA members noted that the value of having a Comprehensive Plan decreases as applications for development continue to be submitted. The approval process has already begun for several of the parcels being studied by the Comprehensive Plan Committee. And, the Comprehensive Plan Committee, chaired by Councilwoman Timmy Weinberg, has not met for several months.
ANTENNA REVIEW BOARD "SILENT" TV PROGRAM
On Tuesday, June 6, the ARB began what was to be the first of monthly meetings televised live on cable TV, featuring "Dial Democracy." The meeting was televised live, but without sound. The only purpose Dial Democracy served was when viewers called in to report there was no audio broadcast. Town cable staff could not find the problem. The next day service representatives from Cablevision reportedly found the problem - a jack was plugged into the wrong slot. It is a mystery how this could have occurred since there was audio feed just minutes before the ARB program aired. The ARB program then was scheduled to be re-broadcast on two dates but has not been shown.
Supervisor Feiner, who criticized the ARB for not keeping the public better informed about what it does in an April 18 letter, has also written a May 12 memo to Cable TV Coordinator George Malone and Town Clerk Alfreda Williams requesting that ARB meetings not be televised.
CGCA members question Mr. Feiner's commitment to "open government." Why is he opposed to an official independent Board of the Town televising its meetings? It is troubling to think that Mr. Feiner is employing censorship of what the residents of Greenburgh can watch on the local public access stations that they pay for in their cable bills.
VIOLATIONS OF OPEN MEETINGS LAW CONTINUE
Supervisor Feiner and Town Board members continue to violate the "Open Meetings" law and abuse the public. Residents who regularly attend Tuesday afternoon Town Board work sessions call the Town Clerk's office on the day of the meeting to find out what is on the agenda. On Tuesday, June 6, three residents were informed the Board would be in executive session until 4 p.m. However, a notice in the Journal News that day indicated that the Board would meet at 2:30 p.m, to discuss what to do with the position of tax receiver following Bernard Forrest's resignation. Calls to Mr. Feiner's office provided no confirmation to the fact that the meeting would start at 2:30 p.m.
When two members of the community arrived at 3:45 p.m., they found the door to the Conference Room closed and waited in the main meeting room. At 4:10 p.m. they were informed that a public meeting was taking place behind the closed doors. They entered and found two other members of the public present. All were then told that the Board was going into executive session and the public would have to leave.
MISCELLANEOUS
Springhill Suites Hotel. The Planning Board's scheduled May 17 and June 7 public discussions on this proposal to build a 145-room short-to-moderate stay hotel on Route 119 had to be adjourned because the ZBA has yet to hear the application for requested variances. In addition, the FEIS will not be available for another month. Unfortunately, Town staff failed to inform the applicant, and a representative from the hotel made the long trip from Syracuse to attend the June 7 meeting. A continuation of the public discussion will take place at the August 16 Planning Board meeting.
New Deputy Town Attorney for Planning. On May 10, Jan Ulman was appointed as the new Deputy Town Attorney to the Planning Board, replacing Mindy Hartstein who is resigning and moving to California. According to Town Attorney Susan. Mancuso, Ms. Ulman has been hired to work 3 and 1/2 days a week but, if necessary, additional hours will be added.
SHCA - Land Use Study. The Secor Homes Civic Association is considering hiring Ferrandino & Associates, Inc. to conduct the land-use study funded by a state grant from the Department of Environmental Conservation. SHCA President Carol Wielk wrote to Town Attorney Susan Mancuso seeking her opinion as to whether there would be any impediment to Ferrandino performing this study since the firm currently has a contract to serve as the Town's consultant on the Avalon Green II (Nob Hill) project. Ms. Mancuso wrote back that a request for an opinion on this issue should be directed to the Greenburgh Board of Ethics. CGCA members noted that according to the Town's Code of Ethics, civic groups or residents are not permitted to seek opinions from the Board of Ethics.
Home Depot. It was noted that the court has not yet rendered a decision in the lawsuit Home Depot brought against Mount Pleasant's Planning Board members who denied the necessary permits to build a new store at the Mount Pleasant/Greenburgh border. CGCA members raised questions about the need for another store since Home Depot already has opened stores in Yonkers, New Rochelle, and Port Chester. It may be that Home Depot's national practice is to saturate an area, put competitors out of business and then retrench and close the less profitable stores in an area.
WestHELP Transition Committee. It was noted that when the ten-year contract expires next year, the WestHELP shelter for the homeless (off Knollwood Road) is supposed to be turned over to the Town to convert to apartments for senior citizens or town employees. On March 25, 1998, Supervisor Feiner appointed three residents to serve on a committee to study this transition. To date, there appears to be no report from the committee and there are questions about whether the committee has ever met.
Supervisor Likens CGCA to His Crying Baby. Supervisor Paul Feiner and his baby daughter Julia appear on the cable TV show, "Community Concerns with Mark Tenzer," currently airing. With no toys or other means to distract her, baby Julia grows increasingly restless during the taping. She begins to cry and cannot be consoled. Mr. Feiner states that her crying reminds him of the "CGCA because they analyze everything I do."
Water Thieves. Bernice Skipwith reported that she returned home one day to find that workers had attached a hose to her outdoor water spigot and were filling a boiler on a neighboring piece of property. CGCA members suggested that she should call the police if this kind of incidence occurs again.
Valimar (Laurel Ridge, Alfredo's). Throughout the approval process, the applicants stated repeatedly that the proposed housing units would be marketed to "empty-nesters" and would have minimal impact on the Valhalla School District which was experiencing problems with limited space. It was noted that advertisements for the project feature young children and prominently display the school district name.
Lack of Enforcement - Incidental Dining. Concerns were raised about the apparent lack of enforcement of the Incidental Dining law that the Town Board passed on March 8, 2000. The law requires business establishments to obtain a "special permit" from the Planning Board. No special permits have been granted, but a number of establishments, especially those on East Hartsdale Avenue, have installed tables and chairs, either inside or outside. Chairman Gold will send a letter to Supervisor Feiner asking that this law, which he championed, be enforced.
Shopping Cart Law. It is expected that the Town Board will vote at tomorrow night's meeting to adopt a Shopping Cart law. A few copies of the proposal, obtained from the Town Attorney today, were distributed and discussed. The law will require stores to tag each shopping cart and post signs stating that removal or abandonment of carts is illegal. Within three years, all stores will be required to provide either coin-operated handle locks or wheel locks to prevent removal of the carts from the premises. Abandoned carts will be impounded at Police Headquarters and the Police Department will notify storeowners. Proceeds from redemption ($35 per cart) or public auction will go into the general fund. The Police Department will also purchase, store and distribute free collapsible shopping carts to qualifying senior citizens or disabled individuals, based on an application process proposed by the Police Advisory Commission.
Annual Request to Limit Controversial Issues during Summer Months. Chairman Danny Gold will send a letter to members of the Town Board, Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals that repeats the CGCA annual request that these boards not schedule public hearings/discussions on controversial cases during the summer months when many people are away on vacations.
Town Hall Heating/Air-conditioning Problems. The Conference Room was so cold this evening that all of the windows were opened to let warmer air in and several CGCA members went to their cars to get coats or sweaters. Tonight's problems with temperature are not unusual. Frequently, Planning Board or Zoning Board members find the temperatures in Town Hall rooms uncomfortable. In the winter months the rooms at Town Hall are often too hot and windows are opened or too cold and employees use electric space heaters to keep warm. Failure to repair the heating and air-conditioning systems at Town Hall not only causes discomfort but also wastes taxpayer dollars and depletes natural resources.