Find Out About Summer Camps In Our Community!

The 2016-17 Village of Larchmont budget was discussed last week at the Board of Trustees meeting. Currently, there is a $460.000 budget gap. According to Village Clerk, Justin Datino, the main expenditure increases include salary, operating and supply lines, transfers to the capital budget debt service, health insurance and workers compensation insurance. Library and sanitation services are also factors in the budget shortfall. There is a proposed law that states that a property tax increase of 3.5 % will be necessary to balance the budget for homeowners, increasing the average tax bill by $177. A public hearing was set for March 28th to discuss the 2016-17 budget as well as the proposed local law to increase the tax levy.

The Town of Mamaroneck Board passed the law to increase the tax levy but only if necessary. However, the 2016-17 budget passed without the need to increase the tax levy according to Town Clerk, Christina Battalia.

There is a proposal to make an amendment to the Village of Larchmont Code, Chapter 229 that will create a set of taxes, or more specifically, a sewer rental fee. The fee will cover sanitary sewer costs based on water consumption by property. The proposal is part of a New York State law that allows municipalities to impose a sewer rent which will provide local governments to raise funding for maintenance of the sewers in the area. The Village is in an agreement with Westchester County to conduct a Sanitary Sewer Evaluation Study, also known as the SSES by May of 2018. The study will help determine what needs to be done by conducting an inspection of the sewer system. The study costs about $20,000. Currently the Town of Mamaroneck, Scarsdale, Port Chester and White Plains have sewer rental fees in effect while New Rochelle and Pelham Manor are considering a similar fee.

On March 15th, the Larchmont Mamaroneck Local Summit hosted Rye Neck School Superintendent, Dr. Peter Mustick and Mamaroneck Public School Superintendent Dr. Robert Shaps. The discussion included the state of the districts, challenges and initiatives facing the ever-changing needs of the students in the area. Dr. Shaps talked about the proposed school-based health center model at Mamaroneck Avenue School, the future of Co-Op Camp and challenges to the budget. Dr. Mustick also discussed budget challenges. He also spoke about the Pre-K Week-Long Pilot Program that would enable children to acclimate with public schools before entering kindergarten and how AP Language students are working with elementary school students and parents to communicate on school matters. Both superintendents emphasised the upcoming budget hearings and votes, and how difficult it is to stay within budget every year when the state requires new additions but do not offer any aid. Dr. Mustich added that on a recent trip to Albany for Lobby Day to discuss the expense cap and state aid. Superintendents from all over the county told that “the governor had no appetite to talk about this and things were as is”. He stressed that the state aid and expense cap would help both districts to consider how expensive it is to live in Westchester but also how important it is for parents to be involved and to make their voices heard. You can watch the full Summit Meeting, as well as other local meetings on our website, http://www.lmctv.org.

In our Round Table discussion, Mike Witsch spoke with Sandy Korkatzis, Superintendent of Recreation, Village of Mamaroneck and Jamie Weisinger, Owner of MADE: My Art + Design Experience about summer camps in the community.

Bradley, an adorable Pekinese mix, is our Pet of the Week. He is about 10 years old and weighs about 15 pounds. He has been living in a foster home with one other dog. He is blind and needs time to adjust to new people and environments. He is easily scared by loud noises and as a defense mechanism, will growl and bark. Bradley prefers an adult-only home and could benefit from another dog who is calm to follow. He is waiting to start a new live in a forever home.

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MHS Boys Hockey-State Champs

 

As we have reported before, Community Choice Aggregation is a New York State pilot program created by the non-profit organization, Sustainable Westchester. The program would allow local municipalities in the county to negotiate the lowest electricity and natural gas prices for their residents. At present, the Village of Larchmont, the Town of Mamaroneck, the Village of Mamaroneck, and 20 other municipalities around the county have passed local laws that enable them to participate in the pilot program. At the latest Village of Mamaroneck meeting, the Board discussed which Community Choice Aggregation suppliers should be chosen. The first supplier option, which is referred to as “green”, comes from the idea of renewable energy and the second option, “brown” refers to fossil fuel. The green option would reduce Con Edison bills by 5% of their current levels and the brown option would reduce Con Edison bills by 8%. David Styler, the Chair of the Environmental Committee, stated that the recommendation from his board was to adopt the green option. The Village voted unanimously in favor of the green option. Con Edison Solutions would provide this service. If you are not a Con Edison customer, you won’t be able to get the reduced price on your energy bill, a fact that was pointed out by Trustee Leon Potok. Con Edison would be in charge of notifying residents of the automatic changes to their electric bills. Residents can opt out of the program by contacting Con Edison.

We have been following the Village of Mamaroneck’s initiate to protect puppies and kittens from puppy mills, also known as “the Dog Law”. As was reported before, there were two proposed local laws “A” and “D”. Proposed Law “D” passed, which fully forbids the sale of commercially bred puppies and kittens and only allowing the sale of pets from rescue organizations. But what would happen with Proposed Law “A” which regulates pet store owners and only allows them to sell animals from licensed USDA breeders? The Board has withdrawn this proposal and is currently rewriting it since was declared inconsistent with Local Law D, which was passed on February 22nd.

Dredging, the act of excavation done underwater in shallow sears or freshwater areas in order to gather bottom sediments and disposing of them at a different location, was recommended by the Harbor Coastal Zone Management Commission. The process is allowed by the Board of Trustees in Mamaroneck Harbor. The vote was 4-1 supporting the HCZM Commission’s recommendation. Trustee Lou Santoro voted against it.

At the same meeting, the Village of Mamaroneck Board of Trustees approved a resolution that moves LMC-TV closer to moving into the Hook and Ladder Firehouse at 147 Mamaroneck Avenue. In an unanimous vote, the trustees directed its representative on the Tri-Municipal Board of Control to vote in favor with the leasing of the firehouse, which the Village currently owns, to LMC-TV. The Tri-Municipal Board of Control, which consists of representatives of the Village of Mamaroneck, the Town of Mamaroneck, and the Village of Larchmont, must approve the resolution in order for it to take effect. LMC-TV, the Village of Mamaroneck and the Board of Control have been examining the lease and renovation options of the Hook and Ladder Firehouse for the past five years.

The Harbor Coastal Zone Management Commission received a notice from the State Department regarding recommendations on whether the Army Corps of Engineers Flood Mitigation Plan is consistent with the Local Waterfront Rehabilitation Plan, also known as LWRP. The notice explained that the $70 million Army Corps of Engineers Mitigation Plan is a federally-financed project. The LWRP has a total of 44 policies. The HCZM discovered that the plan has inconsistencies on several policies. However, the final decision will be determined by the State Department.

The Village of Larchmont has a new mayor. Elections were held this past Tuesday. Lorraine Walsh, who ran unopposed was named the new mayor. Trustees Peter Fanelli and Carol Miller won with 150 votes and 140 votes respectively. They also ran unopposed.

The Larchmont Police Department will be conducting active shooter drills during Spring Break next week. The drills will run from March 21st through the 23rd at Chatsworth Avenue School. There will be a large police presence around the school for the drills, but there is no need to be alarmed.

Con Edison and the Larchmont Police Department have reported that residents and businesses have received suspicious calls from people claiming to be Con Edison representatives, who threaten to shut down service. Con Edison is warning customers not to fall for these scams. The false representatives ask for pre-purchased card transfers and money grams. Con Edison also warns of imposters dressed as Con Edison employees who try to gain access to homes or businesses. To report any suspicious activity, please call Con Edison at 1-800-75-CONED or call the Larchmont Police Department at 914-834-1000.

Our pet of the week, Shelby, is an orphaned kitten who was rescued at 2 weeks old. Bottle-fed and very spoiled with love, she gets along great with other cats and her foster person’s Pomeranian. She’s very active and curious and needs to be placed in a home with a younger cat or kitten. She loves climbing into bed at night and purrs until she falls asleep. Shelby is about 10 months old and is up to date on her shots. For more information, and to meet other adorable pets, go to http://www.ny-petrescue.org.

Remember, if you’d like to keep this show on the air, please support our program by checking out our website at www.lmctv.org. We appreciate any contribution.

 

We always welcome new interns and volunteers, so please send your emails to thelocallive@lmctv.org and join us.

The Pet Adoption Show

On March 1st, the Superintendent of the Mamaroneck School District, Dr. Robert Shaps presented his recommended budget for the school year of 2016-17. The recommended budget falls under the state’s allowable tax levy cap and draws attention to expend Mamaroneck’s Core program and district education goals. The new school year’s challenge is that will be a decrease of nearly $740,000, 0.55% less than the current year’s budget. Dr. Shaps explained that the factors influencing the budget are enrollment trends, tax levy limit cap, class size, staff contract obligations and shifts in expenditures. In a press release, Dr. Shaps said, “As students’ enrollment continues to grow and operational costs increase, we will undoubtedly need to consider a budget override in order to continue to maintain the quality education we are accustomed to.” However, with the budget decrease, parents are concerned about the future of the Co-Op Camp, a program that has existed in the district since 1968. The program offers educational as well recreational activities during the summer. Seventy-five percent of the students that are benefited from this program come from low-income families. We want to remind the community that the Co-Op Camp costs the district $175,000 and the proposed budget for this program for the upcoming school year is only $20,000. We will continue to follow the development of this story. For now, we encourage parents to watch the School Board meeting budget presentation that is available on our website, www.lmctv.org. Please note that as of this date, March 10th, the budget has not been adopted. The budget will be reviewed and will be adopted on April 19th. The final budget vote from parents is on May 17th.

The Town of Mamaroneck recently passed a new local law that would ban large trucks from East Hickory Grove Drive, Rockland Avenue and the section of Myrtle Boulevard between Weaver Street and Lakeside Drive. It will not, however, prevent delivery or pickup trucks from using the streets. The local law will become effective upon filing with the Secretary of the State, which could take a few days. You can expect to see signs in the area within the next few weeks.

On March 3rd, the Village of Larchmont Board of Trustees held a follow-up meeting to discuss the appeal to remove the moratorium on the property at 40 Ocean Avenue. The moratorium was made so that the Board would have more time to review and study the impact of the construction, and the effect it would have on the Village. The Board decided to deny the appeal on the application, which leaves four months left on the moratorium.

Also happening recently in the Village of Larchmont, the Larchmont Playhouse has been sold. At this time, there are no immediate plans to close down the movie theatre. We will continue to follow this story.

On a sad note, Pastor Frank Stagno passed away on March 6th. Along with his wife, Nancy, he hosted “Hope in the Bible” on LMC-TV for nearly ten years. He conveyed stories of the Bible with humor, kindness and grace. He was also the pastor of the Trinity Assembly of God Church, which is located on Ward Avenue in Mamaroneck. Pastor Frank will be deeply missed by all of his friends at LMC-TV and the entire community.

In our Round Table discussion, Mike and Maura spoke with Paula Krenkel, Co-President of NY-Pet Rescue and Andrea Ramos, Adoption Coordinator of SNARR to talk about the recently adopted Village law that bans the sale of commercially bred dogs and cats and targets puppy and kitten mills, allowing only the sale of dogs and cats who come from pet rescue organizations and shelters. Paula and Andrea will also show us some dogs and puppies who available for adoption.

The Mamaroneck Ice Hockey is one step closer to achieving its state championship dream. The New York State Quarterfinal game against Massena High School are highlighted in our Play of the Week.

The New York Rangers recently teamed with the Hommocks Ice in their Rink Partnership Program to help promote hockey and ice skating in the tri-state area.

Kenise Barnes Fine Art, located in Larchmont is highlighted in our community section with a preview of her latest collection.

If you like this show and want to keep it on the air, please support our program by checking out our website at www.lmctv.org. We really appreciate any contribution.

 

We are always looking for new interns and volunteers, so please send your emails to thelocallive@lmctv-org and join us! We love hearing from you.

Industrial Area Redevelopment Committee

As the fight for the next president narrows down, Super Tuesday declared Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump as the frontrunners for their prospective parties. What are the political views of the residents in our community. National Political Correspondent, Jack Wells filed a report on how the community is reacting to the developing electoral landscape. With Ben Carson’s impending end to his campaign, Super Tuesday had a decline in the number of candidates contesting for their party’s nomination. Jack spoke with local residents. Despite having lots of different views on who should win the nomination, the most important thing is that residents cast their votes on November 8th to have their voice heard. A reminder to residents have not yet registered to vote is that the last day to register is April 19th.

OnFebruary 22nd, the Village of Mamaroneck became the first municipality in New York State to pass a law requiring Village pet shop owners to obtain dogs and cats from rescue shelters or humane societies in Westchester County or ones that are registered with the New York State Department of Agriculture. The Proposed Local Law “D” of 2016 passed with four of the five members of the Board of Trustees in favor of the legislation that targeted puppy and kitten mills. The law imposes a Village ban on the sale of commercially bred dogs and cats. Trustee Leon Potok abstained because of concerns of an appeal. He spoke to Lo-Hud  about his thoughts on the new law. He said, “I am pleased we sent the message that our community abhors the inhumane treatment of animals of puppy mills, but I would have preferred following our counsel’s advice to first consult with the New York Attorney General’s office. I expect that the new law will prove legally defective”. The Local Live spoke to an employee at National Breeders Pet Store on Mamaroneck. They stated that ten people will be losing their jobs because the future of the pet store is not bright. As for the puppies, there are still twelve left and the owner is offering reduced prices to ensure that the puppies will find loving homes as soon as possible. Village Manager, Richard Slingerland told the Local Live that Law D has been sent to the Department of State and once it’s been officially filed, it will go into the effect. We will be all the latest developments of the Dog Law when it goes into effect.

On February 25th, the Larchmont Board of Trustees met to continue their discussion on a moratorium application placed on the property at 40 Ocean Avenue. The Board received an increase in applications to subdivide existing lots in the residential zoning district as well as additional development on single family homes on the lot. This moratorium was put into effect so that the Board could have more time to review and study the impact of this construction. Additionally, the Board is investigating major concerns like environmental damage and drainage problems. They have working closely with an engineering and planning consultant to conduct the studies and identify what’s best for the community. The Board recently received an application to appeal the moratorium but they did not make an immediate decision. The Board will meet on March 3rd to make a decision. The full meeting will be available online at http://www.lmctv.org

Since May of 2014, the Mamaroneck Board of Education has been considering the possibility of letting Open Door, a non-profit medical provided, operate a school-based health center at Mamaroneck Avenue Elementary School. The school-based health center will be a primary care pediatric clinic located within the school. Currently, there are more than 200 of these centers operating in New York State. Open Door has five school-based health centers in Port Chester and one in Ossining. They provide preventive care, sick visits, Asthma management, as well as free programs to reduce obesity. There is no cost to the school district other than utilities and custodial services. The success of the school-based health center in Port Chester drew the attention to the Community Resource Center, formerly known as the Hispanic Resource Center. The local non-profit serves a similar low income population as Open Door and has been long concerned with the lack of health services in Mamaroneck for families without private health insurance. Mamaroneck Avenue Elementary School was chosen by Open Door because it has a high concentration of low income families. The Mamaroneck School District assigned a task force consisting of board members and parents to study Open Door’s proposal and to come up with recommendations to help the Board of Education come to a decision. On January 20, 2015, the Task Force presented their recommendations causing different reactions from the community. In November of 2015, the Board concluded that there was a need to hire a third party professional to conduct an objective assessment to study un-met health care requirements for children at Mamaroneck Avenue Elementary School. On February 23rd, School Board President, Ann Lobue, said that they had reached out to Paul Savage, CEO of Healthcare Intelligence, which is part of Iona College to come on board to conduct the third party objective assessment. Savage presented a couple of proposals to two Board committees who asked questions about how he would do the assessment. Mamaroneck Superintendent, Dr. Shaps, explained that the purpose of getting an assessment is to answer whether a school-based health center is appropriate for our community. By the end of the meeting, the Board voted to take Paul Savage’s second proposal which will cost the district $5000. We will continue to follow this story and will let you know when the assessment starts.

Sixteen new pay stations have been activated in the Village of Mamaroneck lots. The new parking meters, that were activated this past Thursday, can be found at the Emelin lot, Prospect Lot, Phillips Park Road, Spencer Lot, Hunter Parking Deck and Mamaroneck Avenue. Residents will now have more options available to them when paying. You can either use a credit card or pay using an app called “way to park” on your smartphone. It can be downloaded for free on Apple App Store or Google Play.  We want to remind residents that you don’t need to display your receipt in your car, but you should keep it in case you need to add time. Time can be added at any of the pay stations or by using the app. There is a 25 cent surcharge for each transaction on the app. If you want to find out the latest changes in parking, the Village of Mamaroneck recommends that you subscribe to the Village updates at www.village.mamaroneck.ny.us/subscriber.

Also happening last Thursday, the Army Corps of Engineers did a full presentation about their flood mitigation study for the Village of Mamaroneck. A reminder to residents who want to provide input to the Army Corps of Engineers, the deadline is March 14th. Send concerns and comments to matthew.voisine@usace.army.mil

In our Round Table discussion, Mike Witsch spoke with Andrew Spatz, Chairman of the Mamaroneck Village Industrial Advisory Committee and Peter Syrette, Consultant, rePlace Urban Studio about industrial development in our village.

The Mamaroneck Ice Hockey beat rival Scarsdale in a playoff game which made our game of the week.

Our pet of the week is Matt, a handsome boy, who is about 10-12 months old and weighs 41 pounds. He looks like a Carolina Dog mix but isn’t. He is very sweet but can be shy at times and should be in a home with another dog. Matt is enjoying his new foster home where has foster siblings and can run around the yard with his friends. He is housebroken if kept on a schedule. He sleeps through the night on his foster mom’s bed. He is ready for his forever home. For more information and to browse other adorable pets, go to www.ny-petrescue.org.

If you’d like to keep us on the air, support our program by checking out our website at www.lmctv.org. We really appreciate any contribution.

 

We’re always looking for new interns and volunteers, so send your emails to thelocallive@lmctv.org and join us. We love hearing from you.