Mamaroneck Review 2-6-2015

February 6, 2015 | Vol. 3, Number 5 | www.mamaroneckreview.com

Mamaroneck REVIEWTHE

ber but, to date, remains an un-finished product, according to county officials.

On Tuesday, Biederman,

when reached by phone, told the Review that his report’s writ-ten work is “mostly” completed and has been in the hands of the

Astorino administration “for a while.” He said, along the way,

cations electronically. Cur-rently, the Building Depart-ment handles applications from the Harbor and Coastal Zone Management Commis-sion, Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals through printed forms be-fore they’re even presented to the boards.

“The reasoning is to mod-ernize things; to make it more efficient and to really com-puterize things,” Slingerland told the Review about the web portal. “Whenever someone submits an application, we get a hard copy, which takes

up a lot of room.”The village manager said

the creation of a web portal, if approved by the Village Board of Trustees, would come at a cost, but would save time, effort and money in the long run. Slingerland said he wasn’t sure of spe-cific costs attached to the project because it was too early in the process, but that it would primarily be the job of the Arcadis consultants and their research of web portals currently being uti-lized by other municipalities to figure out a price.

The idea of a web portal is currently awaiting ap-proval from the Board of Trustees to allow Arcadis, a global consulting company, to review current procedures of the Building Department and research available op-tions in the marketplace. Slingerland first proposed the departmental revamping last summer, almost imme-diately following the indefi-nite suspension of former Building Inspector Bill Ge-rety in June 2014. Gerety

astorino continued on page 8

Village Building Department web app in talks

app continued on page 13

authority continued on page 11

Mayoral authority challenged

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By JaCKson ChEnStaff Writer

The Village of Mamaroneck Board of Trustees has been de-liberating over a proposed law on mayoral authority for sev-eral months, and is now await-ing further opinions from the New York State Department of State and New York Confer-ence of Mayors.

Receiving the opinions that have been requested would be the final hurdle in whether the village board decides to pass or vote down the proposed law that’s been open for public discussion since September of last year. The proposal aims to amend certain parts in the vil-lage code to clarify if the may-or or the board has the power to fill vacancies for unexpired terms on the village’s various boards, commissions, councils and committees.

The issue first arose when Mayor Norman Rosenblum, a Republican, appointed Nancy Wasserman to the Harbor and Coastal Zone Management Commission following Nick Allison’s resignation last year. Two of the three Democratic trustees, however, disagreed with the appointment of Was-serman, a commercial real estate broker, because village code required commission ap-pointments that were made by the mayor to be approved by the Board of Trustees, an ap-proval that never took place.

On the other hand, Rosen-blum and Village Attorney Charles Goldberger contend that state law allowed for mayoral appointment without

board approval if a member resigned mid-term and left a vacancy.

Alongside Democratic Trustee Ilissa Miller, Trustee Leon Potok, also a Democrat, disagreed and said the mayor didn’t comply with village code. Potok added that there’s an issue of whether or not the village code needs to be re-written, considering that it’s inconsistent with state law.

“If we’re told our village code is not inconsistent, all of the appointments that were made under this incorrect interpretation need to be re-done,” Potok said.

Besides Wasserman, other questioned appointments in-clude Jennifer Cohen to the Board of Architectural Re-view, John Verni to the Plan-ning Board and Len Violi to the Zoning Board of Appeals.

However, Rosenblum said the appointments in question were already officially sworn in and doesn’t think they can be removed from their positions.

With no resolution regard-ing the proposed law, Potok sought an informal opinion from the Department of the State to help add weight to his arguments. In August, Wil-liam Sharp, of the state depart-ment, said the Board of Trust-ees alone has the power to fill vacancies of the HCZMC due to resignation, according to email correspondences be-tween Sharp and Goldberger.

But that wasn’t the end of the debate.

source: astorino, standard amusements in talks

According to a source, the Astorino administration has been in ongoing discussions with Standard Amusements about operating Rye Playland in the near future. Westchester County officials would niether confirm or deny that information to the Review. File Photo

By Chris EBErhartStaff Writer

The county executive’s office continues to keep a $100,000 Playland consultant report under wraps while it has been in talks with Standard Amusements as a potential op-erator of Playland, the Review has learned.

In June 2014, following the collapse of Sustainable Play-land, Inc.’s plan to renovate the Westchester County-owned amusement park, County Ex-ecutive Rob Astorino, a Repub-lican, turned to Dan Biederman for help. Biederman, a renowned developer who is best known for redeveloping Bryant Park in New York City, was hired as a consultant for five months by Astorino, at a cost of $20,000 per month, to review Playland in its current configurations and produce a report on how to best utilize the amusement park and its surrounding space.

That final report was expect-ed to be completed last Novem-

By JaCKson ChEnStaff Writer

The Village of Mama-roneck is looking into cre-ating a web portal for its Building Department to cre-ate a modernized approach to service residents and their land-use needs.

If created, the web por-tal would serve as a digital customer service counter, according to Village Man-ager Richard Slingerland. He added that it would allow residents to submit permit and land-use board appli-

2 • the MaMaroneck review • February 6, 2015

February 6, 2015 • thE MaMaronECK rEviEw • 3

A letter focusing on governmental transparency and reform is gaining traction in Albany after Speaker of the Assembly Sheldon Silver, left, a Manhattan Democrat, was forced to resign his leadership position due to federal charges of corruption. He has since been replaced by Assemblyman Carl Heastie, a Democrat from the Bronx. Photos/assembly.state.ny.us/

Post-Silver, Assembly calls for reformBy alina suriEl

Staff Writer

With Carl Heastie, a Bronx Democrat, having been elected as the new speaker of the New York

State Assembly this week, the question now remains whether he will learn from his predecessor’s mistakes.

Following a whirlwind two weeks which saw the swift downfall of longtime Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, a Man-hattan Democrat, on federal corruption charges, Democratic members of the state Assembly gathering in Albany on Feb. 2 added their names to a letter prioritizing the reform goals of applicants vying for the speaker position. The group calls itself the reform caucus, and the let-ter was sent as an initiative from members within the house’s Democratic circles. Out of the total 150 members in the As-sembly, 37 Democratic legisla-tors came forward to show their support and sign on to the letter, as of press time.

The letter was addressed to all interested candidates vying for the Assembly’s leadership seat, which had initially num-bered as many as five but then narrowed down to Heastie and Catherine Nolan, a Queens Democrat, by Feb. 2.

According to Assembly-woman Amy Paulin, a deciding vote was originally planned for Feb. 10 but moved up to Feb. 3 after a campaigning session in which it became apparent that Heastie would be the winner by a wide margin. Before be-ing elected into office in 2000, Heastie, 47, served as a budget analyst in the New York City Comptroller’s office. His elec-tion will mark the first African-American to hold the position of Speaker of the Assembly.

Assemblyman David Bu-chwald, a White Plains Demo-crat, publicly called for Silver’s resignation as speaker after his alleged crimes came to light, although he believes whether or not he keeps his legislative seat in the Assembly is ultimately the decision of Silver’s con-stituents. Silver does not face re-election until next year.

Buchwald was one of 23 Democrats to sign the pro-transparency letter during the first day of its circulation on Jan. 29. He is encouraged by reports that Assemblyman

Heastie has stated that he will meet with the reform group to discuss the various issues af-fecting the state Legislature.

“I definitely believe that he has the ability to bring changes to Albany,” Buchwald said.

Silver, who held his leader-ship post in the Assembly since 1994, was forced to resign as speaker after being arrested on Jan. 22 on charges of cor-ruption brought on by the U.S. District Attorney Preet Bharara and the FBI.

Allegations against him in-cluded claims that he had re-ceived nearly $4 million dol-lars in bribes

and business referral kick-backs in exchange for use of his powerful position and in-fluence in the

Legislature and charges that he intentionally misrepresent-ed the source of this income as being from his work as a per-sonal injuries lawyer.

“Politicians are supposed to be on the people’s payroll, not on secret retainer to wealthy spe-cial interests they do favors for,” Bharara said in a statement.

Bharara charged that a lack of transparency and overabun-dance of greed were deep prob-lems still left to be solved in Al-bany, and he has since launched an investigation into Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, a Long Island Republican.

In the meantime, some in the Assembly are looking forward to what they feel is a chance for greater partici-pation for all members with the beginning of a new era of leadership. Silver was widely reported to have exercised a firm control in the Assembly

which made his decisions dif-ficult to oppose during his time as speaker. To avoid having this issue resurface, the reform caucus dedicated a portion of its letter to the question of a fair and open debate of ideas in a system which has traditionally valued seniority over all else.

Amy Paulin, a Scarsdale Democrat who has been in the Assembly since 2000, signed the reform letter on Monday, Feb. 2, and said she expects Heastie to have a more inclu-sive approach than his belea-guered predecessor.

“In my mind, we have an opportunity to make some changes that people have want-ed to make for a long time,” Paulin said. “So I’m looking at it positively.”

State Sen. George Latimer, a Rye Democrat who served in the Assembly until be-ing elected into the Senate in 2012, said the creation of the reform caucus is the first time he can recall so many Assem-bly members being united with a common interest, regardless of geography. According to Latimer, the reform letter will likely continue to gain atten-tion and support due to the unique nature of such a wide cross section of legislators ask-ing for a structural change.

“The test is not what we say but what we do,” he said. “And now we’re seeing [how] can we do things that we talked about and actually accomplish them.”

Assemblyman Steve Otis, a Rye Democrat, could not be reached for comment as of press time.

ContaCt: [email protected]


What’s going on...

Larchmont Public Library

Teen DIY

Embroidery wrapped earbuds.Grades 6 to 8. Monday, Feb. 23 at 3:45 p.m. They sell them, but we’ll make our own embroidery-wrapped earphones. A fun and eye-catching way to listen to your music.

Stories for Mad Scientists: Make your own paint:

Ages 5 to 7. Tuesday, Feb. 24 at 4 p.m. See how a few ingredients can turn into fun as we concoct our own paint mixtures and have fun trying them out.

Lego ClubAges 8 to 11. Friday, Feb. 27 at 3:30 p.m.

Share your love of LEGO with other children and create your own project based on a differ-ent theme each month. Caregiver must be in the library.

Sheldrake spin-a-thon fundraiserOn Saturday, Feb. 28, Sheldrake is joining

forces with Larchmont’s L Train Cycling Stu-dio to host the first-ever Sheldrake Spin-a-thon fundraiser. Bikes are available throughout the day, starting at 11:30 a.m, for 30-minute spin classes. The event also features a complimen-tary juice bar and treats, available after each session. Exciting raffle prizes and Eco-friendly give-a-ways.

Reserve your bike today! Spots are limited. Session 1: 11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.Session 2: 12:15 p.m. to 12:45 p.m.Session 3: 1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.Session 4: 1:45 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.Session 5: 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.Register online at nycharities.org.

Cost is $40 per person per session; $75 per person for double back-to-back sessions. Raffle tickets are available for $5 a ticket. Proceeds support educational programming and activities at Sheldrake Environmental Center.

L Train Cycling Studio is located at 2005 Palmer Ave., in Larchmont.

Mamaroneck Artist Guild

The Mamaroneck Artists Guild exhibits the paintings and photographs of four local artists in “Perspectives from the Eyes of Four Art-ists,” opening Tuesday, Feb. 10, and continuing through Saturday, Feb. 28. These four artists join forces to present their perspectives of the world through their own individual and unique vision.

Paintings by Jane Black, of Bedford, and Marion Schneider of Larchmont, will hang alongside the photographs of Ruth Raskin, of Scarsdale, and Rita Baunok, of South Salem, in this powerful four-woman exhibi-tion of new works.

Black, exhibits beautiful realistic works in oil. “Urban Perspectives,” paintings looking out, up and down on the urban landscape re-veal unique views of familiar places through the eyes of Schneider. Raskin’s “Enter/Exit” is an intimate study of the inner workings of mid-century Schlage doorknobs and “Flower Shadows,” is Baunok’s digital photographic series on vellum.

Meet and interact with the artists at an opening reception on Saturday, Feb. 21 be-tween 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Satur-day from noon to 5 p.m. Admission to the gal-lery is free. Established in 1953 by seven local artists, the Mamaroneck Artists Guild is the oldest artist cooperative maintaining its own gallery in Westchester County.

Kick-off party for Solarize

Sunday, Feb. 8, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Tequila SUNrise in Larchmont.

Learn about the NYSERDA-supported unique buying program which offers an expe-

dited permitting process and tiered discount rates significantly below market prices. Stop in and learn how much you can save money every year by installing solar panels in your home or business.

“Why Our Kids Need STEM Now”

The Larchmont-Mamaroneck Local Summit is hosting a meeting on STEM (Science/Tech-nology/Engineering/Math) on Feb. 10, 7:45 a.m. to 9 a.m. Two panelists, Dr. Robert Shaps, Superintendent of the Mamaroneck Schools and Margaret Käufer, chairperson of the STEM Al-liance of Larchmont-Mamaroneck, will explain what STEM is and why it is so important and will discuss the STEM initiatives taking place in our schools and community. All are welcome. The cost is $8 for breakfast.

Pelham Picture House

The Picture House is adding three, two-week long intensive courses to its adult edu-cation offerings for the winter/spring semes-ter. The Creative Workout Series classes are customized by seasoned film industry profes-sional and provide learning opportunities in screenwriting, acting and editing for the busy adult student.

Each adult education course takes place over two consecutive weeks; students can choose to enroll in any one or all three of the classes. All Creative Workout sessions take place at The Picture House’s beautiful-ly restored 1921 theater or the new Satellite Film Lab which serves as an education space for students of all ages. Members receive a 10 percent discount on all education classes. Enrollment is currently open online at thepic-turehouse.org or by calling 738-3161 or emailing [email protected].

“Acting”Two-week intensive, Wednesdays, March 18

and March 25; 10 a.m. to noon.Gain an understanding of how to create char-

acters and approach a script through method acting, improvisation and learning skills for stage and film. If you have always wanted to act, strengthen your public speaking skills or need to brush up on your audition skills, this class is for you. Come ready to move—this is a physi-cal and creative workout. This course is open to actors of all levels.

Since 1921, The Picture House has served as a cultural center and community hub and is the oldest, continuously running movie theater in Westchester County. Today, after an extensive renovation and the addition of state-of-the-art technology, the Picture House shows the best in new, independent and classic cinema and pro-vides students of all ages with the opportunity to

learn about the art, science and business of film. In a world where you can carry a movie screen in your pocket, the Picture House preserves the sense of community, wonder and engagement that has existed since the formation of the first theaters. The Picture House is located at 175 Wolfs Lane, thepicturehouse.org, [email protected], 738-3161. The Picture Hou- se is a community-based, mission-driven, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.

Blood supplies low

Since the beginning of the year, dozens of American Red Cross blood drives were can-celed due to inclement weather in parts of the country. In addition, widespread flu has kept some regular blood donors from donating. The Red Cross asks that healthy individuals help ensure a sufficient and diverse blood supply by giving blood.

Upcoming blood donation opportunities:

Harrison:Feb. 26, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Harrison High

School, 255 Union Ave.

Mamaroneck:Feb. 26, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., Mamaro Engine

and Hose, 146 Palmer Ave.

New Rochelle:Feb. 17, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Iona College, 715

North Ave.

Rye:Feb. 28, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Rye YMCA, 21 Lo-

cust Ave.

Scarsdale:Feb. 26, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., American Legion

Hall, 40 Bell Road.

White Plains:Feb. 20, 11:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., White Plains

Presbyterian Church, 39 North BroadwayFeb. 20, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Fusion Academy,

701 Westchester Ave, Suite 200E

Deadline for our What’s Going On section is every Wednesday at noon.Though space is not guaranteed, we will do our best to accommodate your listing. Please send

all items to [email protected].

have a news tip?ContaCt yourloCal reporters

alina suriel [email protected]

jackson chen [email protected]

marissa penn [email protected]


About Letters to the EditorPublication is not guaranteed. We reserve

the right to edit letters for content or space, at our discretion, without notification from the company. We reserve the right to reject sub-missions at our discretion without notice to the author. Sorry, but we are unable to notify authors in advance if and when a letter will be printed.

Deadline for submission is Friday before publication. The maximum length of letters that appear in our pages is 625 words, but letters are usually significantly shorter to ac-commodate space needs.

The letter should be signed and include the writer’s address and phone number for verifica-tion purposes. We will not publish letters that cannot be verified. Publication by frequent letter writers will be limited to one per month. The opinions of letter writers do not reflect those of this newspaper.

Please submit via fax to (914) 653-5000 or email to [email protected] or via post to Home Town Media Group, C/O Letters to the Editor, 200 William Street, Port Chester, NY 10573.

We do not accept unsolicited Op-Ed submis-sions, film reviews, or food reviews.

Radon is a killerTo the Editor,January was National Radon Action Month and the American Lung Association of the

Northeast is reminding New Yorkers that radon can affect their lung health. Many may not be aware of what exactly radon is; radon is a colorless, tasteless and odorless gas that is found in soil and forms radioactive by-products which eventually can damage tissue inside your lungs and cause lung cancer. Radon enters your home, school or office building through cracks in the foundation or even through pipes and/or the water supply. People who have private wells are more at risk than people with community water supply.

Prolonged radon exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. Radon-related lung cancers are responsible for an estimated 21,000 deaths in the United States each year. There are countless health risks to those living inside a home with high levels of radon. According to the EPA, smoking combined with radon exposure is considered a severe health risk.

Testing your home is the best way to find out whether you are being exposed to high levels of radon. The Lung Association sells radon kits for only $12. They are available at LungNE.org/products or by calling 1-800-LUNG-USA. For more information about Radon Action Month and how you can protect yourself from the dangers of radon gas, visit the EPA’s website at RadonMonth.org.

Jeff Seyler President, CEO American Lung Association of the Northeast

Letters to the Editor


Publisher | Howard Sturmanext. 21, [email protected]

Editor-in-Chief | Christian Falconeext. 19, [email protected]

Sports Editor | Mike Smithext. 22, [email protected]

Reporter | Jackson Chenext. 23, [email protected]

Reporter | Alina Surielext. 20, [email protected]

Reporter | Marissa Pennext. 17, [email protected]

Editorial Assistant | Laura Romeroext. 25, [email protected]

Graphic Designer | Arthur Gedin

Graphic Designer | Jim Grasso

Advertising | John Oleynickext. 29, [email protected]

Advertising Coordinator | Marcia Schultzext. 27, [email protected]

Staff WritersJohn Brandi, Chris Eberhart

Staff PhotographerBobby Begun

ContributorsPeter Lane, Rich Monetti,

Christopher Petrowski

ColumnistsPaul Bookbinder

MamaroneckTHE

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By alina suriElStaff writer

Sustainability efforts in Town of Mamaroneck will soon be an even higher priority, as the town passes a law on the creation of an officially appointed team to push forward the municipality’s green agenda.

The town already has an un-official sustainability committee of about 10 people, which has been in existence for roughly one year, and this legislation will formalize the municipal role of its members.

“It’s an exciting change in the status of the collaborative and what they’ll be doing in the town,” said Town Administrator Steve Altieri.

The resolution which will officially codify the role of the

Green groupfor town

committee was adopted by the Town Council on Jan. 21, and a public hearing will be held after press time, on Feb. 4. The council will then pass the cre-ation of the official Sustainabil-ity Collaborative by board vote. The law will serve to establish the committee, and to set up the goals and organizational struc-ture which will guide its work.

According to the provisions of the law, members appointed after this time must all be resi-dents of the town. The group will have several tasks, which range from preserving the town’s natural resources, reduc-ing pollution and energy con-sumption, and developing pro-grams to deal with the aftermath of natural disasters. Altieri said there are a diverse spectrum of experiences which could quali-

fy ideal candidates, and that the group currently contains pro-fessional architects who review building codes and an engineer who works on issues pertaining to carbon emissions.

While the collaborative will serve as advisors to the town board and other boards and de-partments in Mamaroneck, it will not have the power to com-pel any elected official or em-ployee of the town to follow its direction.

The number of committee members will not change from the unofficial 10 participants already involved, and term lim-its of the appointed group were established to be three years. Members appointed in 2015 are exempt from this provision, as three from this group will have their terms expire this De-

Recent renovations at the Hommock’s Ice Rink were part of an energy savings plan contracted out by the town at the suggestion of its unofficial sustainability committee. The volunteer group is currently in the process of being established in the town code as an officially-appointed board. File Photo

cember, with another three members reaching their term limits in 2016 and 2017, respectively.

The existing sustainabil-

ity collaborative is report-edly working on the finish-ing touches on a sustainabil-ity plan. The document will serve as a guideline to ensure environmental sustainability in future legislation and can be used to amend existing code for the same purpose.

The collaborative was also the initial entity push-ing for the town to invest in a draft of an energy per-formance contract meant to increase cost efficiency and re-evaluate energy usage in public facilities. Projects in the energy performance con-tract include the recent reno-vation of the Hommocks Ice Rink, the replacement of old street lighting with more ef-ficient LED lightbulbs and the institution of a sewer rent law which charges for sewer usage based on water consumption.

In her State of the Town address, Town Supervisor Nancy Seligson, a Demo-crat, said these combined initiatives have reduced the town’s energy costs by a to-tal of $190,000 annually.

Seligson could not be reached for comment as of press time. Andrea Grena-dier, coordinator of the cur-rent sustainability commit-tee, declined to comment.


Sustainability was listed as a priority in the State of the Town address by Mamaroneck Town Supervisor Nancy Seligson. Recent townwide efforts include renovations at the Hommock’s Ice Rink and the creation of an official Sustainability Collaborative. Photo courtesy Hommock’s Ice Rink



Linnet Tse

Kim Christiansen

New year for education centerThe Center for Continuing

Education in Mamaroneck is pleased to announce that Kim Christiansen, Amy Gid-don, Simon Marlow, Leslie Newman and Linnet Tse have joined its Board of Directors.

“The Center is a very im-portant educational asset to the community,” said Blythe Hamer, The Center’s executive director. “I am delighted to have these long-time commu-nity members and leaders in their fields bring their wealth of experience to the board.”

Kim Christiansen is a fi-nance professional who spent eight years as a legis-lative assistant in the U.S. Senate working on business and economic related issues. While at the Senate, he be-gan preparing “for a differ-ent course” by completing his MBA in International Business and Finance. In the mid-80’s, he began a ca-reer at JP Morgan.

Amy Giddon is the direc-tor of leadership develop-ment at the Athena Center for Leadership at Barnard College. She partners with corporations and non-prof-its to support and develop their women leaders. Amy is excited to bring her many years of experience in strate-gic planning and marketing to the board. She has taken classes at The Center and ap-preciates the role it can play in people’s lives.

Simon Marlow is an interna-tional marketing communica-tions expert with more than 40 years of experience in launch-ing well-known brands around the world. As managing direc-tor of BBDO Worldwide he helped create “The Best a Man Can Get” campaign for Gil-lette and campaigns for Pepsi, Bayer, Venus and Duracell. In 2008, he founded Alpha Ac-celerators LLC, a company engaged with transformative not-for-profit and commercial enterprises focused on making the world and our community a better place. He is a found-ing member of At Home on the Sound.

Amy Giddeon

Simon Marlow

Leslie Newman

Leslie Newman is a Cana-dian-educated lawyer who has spent much of her career in the telecom industry at Motorola. Leslie took a different course

about 10 years ago when she requested to work from home on a full-time basis so that she could be more actively involved in her children’s lives and the community. She was one of the first corporate counsels in a Fortune 500 company to do so.

Linnet Tse has been a lead-er both in the corporate world and the Mamaroneck com-munity. She was a senior di-rector, business planning at Pepsi Cola. When she left the paid workforce she became an active volunteer, includ-ing serving nine years on the Mamaroneck School Board as a trustee and president. She is currently involved in starting The Charter High School for Law and Social Justice in the Bronx, slated to open in Sep-tember 2015.

The Center’s spring classes start March 2.

“We have something for everyone,” Hamer said. “For high school students, we of-fer college essay writing and preparation for the SAT in Biology and Advanced Placement U.S. history tests. Our music apprecia-tion classes, ‘The History of Jazz’ and ‘Sonatas Fugues, and Romance,’ combine live performances with lec-tures and discussion. Our ever-popular food and drink classes include ‘Beer Brew-ing 101,’ ‘The History of Gin’ and an opportunity for a cooking demonstration at Palomino restaurant. For those with diet and exercise resolutions we have ‘Fast, Fresh and Healthy Cooking,’ along with Barreless Barre, Zumba and Yoga classes. Our classes offer communi-ty members the opportunity to learn from ‘best in class’ instructors from institutions including the New York Bo-tanical Garden, the Jacob Burns Film Center, the Met-ropolitan Museum of Art and New York University with-out having to travel.”

For further information on classes or to register, please visit LMCCE.org or call 698-9126. (Submitted)

have a news tip?ContaCt yourloCal reporters

alina suriel [email protected]

jackson chen [email protected]

astorino from page 1

Astorino’s office raised ques-tions that required dialogue between the two sides, so the administration withheld the report.

Ned McCormack, spokes-man for Astorino, said one question has been added to another, and the administra-tion has asked Biederman to explore more things.

“We’ve been wrestling with this thing, and we’ve been actively engaged,” Mc-Cormack said. “But we want to be careful and do it right.”

While the Astorino admin-istration and Biederman have been in contact, a source says, so to have the coun-ty executive and Standard Amusements, a special pur-pose entity that is backed by the New York-based invest-ment firm Standard General that was founded by Nicho-las Singer and Soo Kim.

According to the source, the Astorino administration has already chosen Standard Amusements to operate and renovate the park and has been in ongoing discussions with the company.

When reached on Wednes-day, Singer declined comment and said he could not confirm or deny that he was in talks with the administration. Mc-Cormack didn’t deny that the administration has been in talks with Standard but did say the county is “talking to a lot of people.”

Apparently, Central Amuse-ments is not one of them.

Valerio Ferrari, president of Central Amusements In-ternational which has been in competition with Standard Amusements to run Play-

land, said he hasn’t heard from the county in months but said on two separate oc-casions—once before Christ-mas and once as recently as this week—he was told the administration is speaking with Standard Amusements.

“They went for the mon-ey,” Ferrari said. “I think we could’ve done a good job, but at this point, I’m losing my faith...It’s been a roller coaster ride over the past few years.”

Standard Amusements, alo-ng with Central Amusements, which is backed by the international company Zamperla that is largely known for its rejuvenation of Co-ney Island, were the runners-up to Rye-based SPI in a 2010 re-quest for proposals that was is-sued by Astorino in seeking an operator to potentially run and renovate historic Rye Playland.

In 2012, Astorino tapped SPI, a nonprofit, to take over the iconic amusement park, but SPI pulled its proposal in June of last year amidst con-flict with the City of Rye over land use jurisdiction, backlash from the neighborhood abut-ting the amusement park, criti-cism from the Democratic-led Westchester County Board of Legislators and a pending lawsuit from one legislator challenging the validity of the asset management agreement between Astorino and SPI that turned day-to-day stew-ardship of the park over to the nonprofit.

Following SPI’s withdraw-al, the Board of Legislators re-engaged Standard Amuse-ments and Central Amuse-ments in September 2014. Central Amusements’ pro-posal revolved around add-ing new rides, while Stan-dard Amusements’ proposal

focused more on investing money into capital projects such as painting, wood re-placement, pavement work and landscaping.

Standard earmarked a $25 million commitment to the county—$6 million upfront and another $19 million for capital projects. Of the $19 million, approximately $15 million would be spent on capital improvements be-fore the second season. As part of the proposal, Play-land’s older, iconic rides such as the carousel and Dragon Coaster, would be refurbished and three new rides—a $1.5 million double loop water slide to enhance the pool area, a $2.2 million interactive children’s wa-ter play element and a $1.2 million “unicoaster,” which simulates a looping roller coaster but with a smaller footprint—would be added.

According to Standard’s proposal, revenue created from the park would first go toward paying its operating costs, which has historically hovered around $14.5 mil-lion per year, then toward annual capital improvements for the upcoming season, which is estimated by the company to be a need be-tween $1.5 million and $2.5 million per year. Standard would also recoup a $5 mil-lion managing fee if annual revenues allow for it. And any additional surplus out-side of those associate costs would then go to the county.

Board of Legislators Chairman Mike Kaplow-itz, a Yorktown Democrat, declined comment.




The world’s most famous ogre/hero Shrek, together with his trusty wise-cracking Donkey, the sassy Princess Fiona, evil Lord Farquaad and a host of fairytale crea-tures will light up the stage when The Hommocks Play-ers present “Shrek The Musi-cal,” Feb. 5 to Feb. 7.

Based on the 2001 block-buster DreamWorks ani-mated film series, “Shrek

The Musical” originally ran on Broadway from 2008 to 2010, with Brian D’Arcy James and Sutton Foster earning Tony nominations as Shrek and Princess Fio-na. The show was adapted for the stage with music by Jeanine Tesori and book and lyrics by David Lind-say-Abaire, and will include more than 120 students from the sixth, seventh and eighth

grades, under the direction of Tom Jordan, produced by Jill Karliner, with the assistance of Hommocks staff Amanda Gundling, Jim Mullen, Pedro Johnson and Stacie Moye.

The musical tells the story of a green ogre named Shrek who discovers his swamp has been “swamped” with all sorts of fairytale creatures by the scheming Lord Far-quaad. Shrek sets out with a

“Shrek the Musical” comes to Hommocks very loud donkey by his side to “persuade” Farquaad to give Shrek his swamp back. Instead, a deal is made. Far-quaad, who wants to become the king, sends Shrek to res-cue Princess Fiona, who is awaiting her true love in a tower guarded by a fire-breathing dragon. But once they head back with Fiona, it starts to become apparent

that not only does Shrek, an ugly ogre, begin to fall in love with the lovely princess, but Fiona is also hiding a huge secret.

Come sing along with Shrek, Fiona, Donkey and a wide cast of characters as they learn the nature of real beauty and reinvent the concept of heroism and the typical fairytale ending.

Showtimes are:Friday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.Saturday, Feb. 7, one

showing at 1 p.m. and anoth-er at 7 p.m.

Location: Hommocks Mid- dle School, Hommocks Audi-torium, 130 Hommocks Road in Larchmont.

Tickets can be purch-ased at the door for $12. (Submitted)

Shrek comes to life in Mamaroneck: catch “Shrek the Musical” at the Hommocks Middle School auditorium for select showings, this weekend only. Photos courtesy Shonna Keogan

The Village of Larchmont is planning a year-long commu-nitywide celebration of its 125 years since incorporation, with a year-long celebration of excit-ing public events and fascinat-ing educational programs that will appeal to all age groups.

Events are planned to honor Larchmont’s growth and devel-opment since Quaker refugees settled from New England in the 1600s. Later, as wealthy residents of New York City es-tablished estates, Larchmont developed an early reputation as “a summer playground for New York’s elite.”

Speaking at a news con-ference to kick off the event at Larchmont’s Village Hall, Larchmont Mayor Anne H. McAndrews said, “We want to take the occasion of the vil-lage’s 125th anniversary to speak not only of the past but of the village’s future. Today is a fantastic start to what will be a fantastic celebration of Larch-mont’s 125th birthday.”

A committee established by the Village of Larchmont Board of Trustees, “Larchmont 125,” is comprised of Larchmont area residents with ties to the local business, historical, educational and cultural communities. The celebration will commence in September 2015 and conclude in September 2016.

“Larchmont 125 is a cel-ebration about the life and times of the residents who have made this village such a special place,” said Larchmont Trustee Peter Fanelli. “This se-ries of special events will bring the community together as a whole. This year-long party will have something for every-one. It’s going to be a fantastic celebration.”

At least five signature events have been proposed to honor Larchmont’s 125th anniversary:

• Mayor’s proclamation and birthday cake, September 2015 kick-off event

• Living history trolley tours • “Decades” parade

• Time capsule, to be opened on the 150th anniversary in 2041

• 1890s gala ball, September 2016

A logo contest for the cel-ebration was also announced.

“The logo will be used for the branding of the festivities of our 125th anniversary,” said Maria Massimi, a Larchmont 125 celebration committee member. “The contest will be open to any individual of any age. We’re looking for a logo that will embody the great spirit of Larchmont.”

Information and entry forms can be found on the celebration organization’s website, Larch-mont125.org.

Larchmont 125 chairwom-an, Dee van Eyck added, “The logo and website are just the beginning. We have so many wonderful groups and orga-nizations and all of them have terrific ideas how they want to celebrate our milestone anni-versary. I can’t wait to get this party started.” (Submitted)

Larchmont plans 125th anniversary


Mayor Rosenblum said the New York State attorney gen-eral should be giving the infor-mal opinion, not the state de-partment. However, the village received a response on Dec. 9, 2014 from Assistant Solicitor General Kathyrn Sheingold say-ing that the attorney general’s office would not give an opinion because the state department had already provided one.

With a rejection from the attorney general, the village decided to seek clarification of the state department’s first opinion and another opinion from the New York Confer-ence of Mayors and Municipal Officials, NYCOM, to put the issue to rest.

authority from page 1

It’s now been a month since Goldberger first requested these opinions.

A proposed law that aims to adjust Mayor Norman Rosenblum’s authority over board appointments is awaiting several opinions. File photo

According to Laz Benitez, spokesperson for the Depart-ment of State, they received an email request from Gold-berger on Jan. 5 and, she said, the attorney that’s reviewing the request would provide a response to the village soon.

Potok said once he receives an opinion, he would be ready to vote. But if deliberations continue on past receiving the opinion, Potok and Rosen-blum both said the issue would require going to court over for a judge’s opinion.

Goldberger and Peter Baynes, executive director of NYCOM, could not be reached for comment, as of press time.


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What they say “there are no words for”—that’s what poetry is for.

-Marvin Bell

The Possibility of Snow

Even if it snowsI will be all right.I know what to do.I will pull the blue shawlover my shouldersand wait by the windowlike a drowsy goddess.I will climb up and down my moodsfor a better view of reality.

I have decidedthat if it snows by morningI will drop the shawland move out into the white worldwhere winds thrash the pine branches.I will accept their harvestof needles and snowflakesin the depressionsof my cupped hands.

Mary Louise Cox is the poet laureate of the Town and Village of Mamaroneck

Evil foreigners hack legitimate designers

Don’t be surprised if you find an exact duplicate of your present or future kitchen, rep-licated in such foreign places as North Korea, China or even New Jersey. Even where food is scarce and life is cheap, people still want a breathtak-ing kitchen and they will not be denied, even if it means us-ing illicit means to hack into the interweb or darknet to steal your most secret design concepts or selfies. Is noth-ing safe today? Not really, just watch “Person of Interest” on TV, or the news if you dare. If you want to ensure a unique solution to your kitchen or bathroom project, and have it executed properly, look for a secure, licensed, accredited firm that has been around for a while and knows what they are doing.

Beware especially of the “sleeper contractor” who re-mains dormant until there’s mischief to be made. These reprehensible operators op-erate under the radar, off the grid, in the shadows, until it’s time to strike. They have no license, they have no insur-ance, they don’t even have scruples. They would steal a design or cut a corner, without giving it a second thought and install cabinets infused with arsenic, from countries that pay their workers pennies a

day. Just wait until something goes wrong or you need a re-placement part or the cabinets start to warp. If you’re lucky enough to find them, just as their name connotes, they’ll probably be “sleeping” on the job and unable to help you.

Unfortunately legitimate design/build firms don’t come cheap and I’ll tell you why. Licensing fees alone for a lawful home improvement business in our area runs more than a thousand dollars. They include Westchester County fees; separate fees for Yon-kers; Connecticut license fees and New York City, too. And in New York City you can’t actually do home im-provements even if you have a home improvement license unless you also get a “Home Improvement Salesman Li-cense” too. Also add Rock-land and Putnam license fees for firms that work there.

Then there are the feds. In order to be a legitimate home improvement contractor you must pay to be trained and certified by the EPA for the “Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program.” This train-ing costs a couple of hundred dollars every few years, not to mention the time involved for classes. In addition, you also have to pay $300 to the EPA every so often, just to be registered. On the other hand, you have to weigh all that against being taught never to leave stuff lying around that can be inhaled, stolen or cop-

ied by another, less reliable contractor.

And let’s not forget insur-ance, as if anyone with 15 minutes could ever forget in-surance. The “sleeper contrac-tor” doesn’t need “no stinkin’ insurance.” However, the properly trained and licensed home remodeling firm is re-quired to have many types of insurance. They need liabil-ity insurance, disability insur-ance, Worker’s Compensation insurance, auto insurance; and those with permanent loca-tions like a showroom need even more insurance. And in-surance isn’t free.

So when you hear that someone got an all new kitch-en with installation for $5,995, you can only guess who did it. Wake up. They made a con-scious choice to give up the piece of mind that comes from using a real American contrac-tor who plays by the rules. Of course this type of security doesn’t come cheap, but you get what you pay for. And, if you need warranty service years after the job has been completed, who do you think will not be sleeping and be willing to take care any prob-lems that may arise?

Walter is a one-year-old male orange tabby. He is a total lap cat, cuddly as a teddy bear. Walter greets you with soft meows and loud purrs. He is great with other cats and would be purrfect to keep you warm on cold winter days. Walter is in excellent health, neutered and up to date with all vaccinations. The adoption donation for Walter is $80. To meet this handsome kitty, please contact Pet Rescue at 740-4072 or visit NY-PetRescue.org.(Submitted)

Paul Bookbinder, m.i.d., c.r., is president of DreamWork Kitchens,

Inc. located in Mamaroneck. He can be reached for questions

at 914-777-0437 or www.dreamworkkitchens.com.


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remains on paid suspension as a village employee but Slingerland wouldn’t com-ment on his status except to say that the village’s labor counsel is working with Ge-rety’s attorneys to form an agreement to resolve his cur-rent suspension.

However, even before Ge-rety, the Building Depart-ment has had its fair share of problems.

In July 2011, then Build-ing Inspector John Win-ter resigned and the posi-tion was filled by Assistant Building Inspector Robert Melillo until September 2012. Shortly after, Melillo was demoted back to assis-tant building inspector when the village hired Ron Carpa-neto as an interim building inspector. Finally, Gerety, a former building inspector in Harrison, was hired in April 2013.

Since Dan Gray stepped in as building inspector in September 2014, the village board felt it was premature to move forward on Slinger-

land’s proposal for a depart-mental revamp that included the creation of a web portal and an organizational reas-sessment. Slingerland said his goal for the reassess-ment was to see if there was a need to reallocate staff ti-tles and the responsibilities that came along with them.

The proposal has since changed where there is no longer the inclusion of an organizational reassessment of the department, accord-ing to the village manager. Slingerland said Gray felt the reassessment was un-necessary at the moment, and that the department has already made some per-sonnel switches and task reassignments.

Since the inclement weather has delayed sev-eral village board meet-ings, the next time the board would discuss the web por-tal proposal is at its Feb. 9 meeting.

Gray could not be reached for comment, as of press time.

ContaCt: [email protected] of coming into the Village of Mamaroneck’s Building Department, applicants may be able to submit forms and requests in the future through a web portal that is being talked about amongst the Board of Trustees. Photo/Jackson Chen

app from page 1

14 • the MaMaroneck review • February 6, 2015 SPORTS

Like a lot of American sports fans, I’ve got some questions that need answering after last Sunday.

Questions like “What mar-keting genius thought that Na-tionwide commercial was a good idea,” or “Was the Pepsi halftime show real, or just a scary fever dream?”

But the biggest question of all is the most obvious; what the heck were the Seahawks thinking?

With under a minute to go, Seattle had the ball on the half-yard line with the best power running back in the game and a good chance to be the first team in 10 years to repeat as Super Bowl champs.

We all know what happened next; Seattle opted to throw the ball, Patriots’ defensive back Malcolm Butler picked it off, and just like that, Tom

A Super blunderBrady was hoisting his fourth Lombardi Trophy.

As entertaining as the game was—and in my mind, it was the best Super Bowl in my life-time that didn’t involve the Gi-ants—it’s been much more fun listening to pundits and fans come up with explanations for the bizarre play call that cost the Seahawks the game.

Some of the best hypothe-ses center on the media-averse Marshawn Lynch—who should’ve gotten the ball.

Did Pete Carroll not call his number because he—and NFL officials—didn’t want Lynch to take the podium as the Su-per Bowl MVP?

Was Carroll thinking about offseason negotiations with the star running back instead of winning the game?

Given enough time—and enough ammunition—sports fans can come up with all sorts of crazy scenarios. But I think the answer here is a lot simpler; Carroll and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell

simply got too “cute” for their own good.

Even the best coaches—and I’d include Carroll in that group—aren’t immune to buy-ing into their own hype.

I can remember what it’s like watching this happen as a fan.

In Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS, first-year Red Sox manager Terry Francona called on starter Pedro Marti-nez out of the bullpen against a lineup that had tattooed him all season long—and just one year after manager Grady Little stuck with Pedro one in-ning too long against the same Yankees’ squad, denying the Sox a shot at the World Series.

But at least when that hap-pened, I had time to talk my-self into the move—and Pedro thankfully didn’t blow the game.

For Seahawks fans, Sun-day’s decision must have been a real shot to the gut.

Carroll has long market-ed himself as an iconoclast, someone who goes against

Last Sunday’s Super Bowl was one of the most entertaining championship games of recent memory. But even on the biggest stage, mistakes do happen. Photo courtesy NFL.com

conventional wisdom. What better way to prove it than choosing the biggest play, of the biggest game of the year, to show just how forward-thinking he is?

If that play had worked, had

Ricardo Lockette come down with the ball, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. We’d be talking about the “gutsy” second down call by Carroll and his refusal to obey the norms of playcalling.

But, it didn’t work. Sometimes, conventional

wisdom is conventional for a reason.

Follow Mike on Twitter @LiveMike_Sports

Follow Mike Smith @LiveMike_Sports stats • recaps • commentary

Follow @mamaroneckviewfor Mike’s live, in-game action updates

To CoVER loCal spoRTs, you nEEd a

LIVE MIKE!

February 6, 2015 • thE MaMaronECK rEviEw • 15SPORTS

Golden Dozen honors starsBy MiKE sMithSports Editor

On Thursday, Jan. 29, the Westchester chapter of the National Football Foundation honored some of the area’s brightest stars at the annual Golden Dozen Awards ban-quet held at the Westchester Country Club in Rye.

A number of local stars were named to this year’s team, in-cluding Rye’s Andrew Liv-ingston and Tim DeGraw, Ma-maroneck linebacker Andrew Sommer, and Charlie Tarry and Steven Ircha from Bronxville.

According to Bob Everett, the secretary and chairman for the foundation, the Golden Dozen selections were made in recognition of each player’s achievements on the field and their commitment to academic achievement and philanthropic efforts away from the gridiron.

“We canvas all the coaches, and we had 44 nominations this year,” Everett said. “We look for kids who are truly student-athletes and make sig-nificant contributions to their school and their community.”

The Golden Dozen awards,

which have been around since 1974, have long been a source of pride for the area, Everett said, and serve as a reminder of the positive influence that young people can have.

“These kids are truly student-athletes,” Everett said. “We are talking about young men taking advanced placement courses, participating in two or three sports, serving in student gov-ernment and taking leadership roles in their schools.”

In addition, the foundation also handed out $15,000 dol-

lars in scholarship money to deserving recipients. Livings-ton—who became Section I’s all-time leading passer last fall—won the Chris Mello Scholar Athlete Award named after the former Garnet stand-out who lost his life on Sept. 11, 2001.

Tuckahoe’s Enoch Penney-Lareya, a two-way standout who rushed for 1,144 yards and 16 touchdowns this year, was an honorable mention for the Golden Dozen and was also awarded the Tony

Sabella Scholarship.Tuckahoe football coach

John D’Arco, who has coached Penney-Lareya for the past several years, said the award was affirmation for the positive impact that his star running

Tuckahoe’s Enoch Penney-Lareya fights for an extra yard against Haldane in the Class D championship game last fall. On Jan. 29, Penney-Lareya was awarded the Tony Sabella Scholarship Award at the Golden Dozen award banquet. Photos/Bobby Begun

Mamaroneck linebacker Andrew Sommer punts the ball against Arlington last October. Sommer was one of 12 football players named to the Golden Dozen team last week. Photo/Mike Smith

back has had on the school. “It’s something that coaches

want, to have a player [like Enoch] who has such a positive attitude,” D’Arco said. “He has set the bar high as a role model on and off the field.”

According to Sommer, al-though the thrill of being named to the Golden Dozen was immense, the true payoff came at the banquet, when he got the chance to mingle with some of Section I’s best and brightest.

Sommer, who serves as the treasurer for Students for Senegal at Mamaroneck High School, said that meeting the other award winners was an eye-opening experience.

“It was an honor, and at the banquet I did my best to talk to as many of the other guys as I could,” the senior said. “Guys like Andrew Livings-ton from Rye, James Nicholas from Scarsdale. There were so many talented and intelligent people there.”

As the Westchester chap-ter of the National Football Foundation continues to hon-or these student-athletes, the function serves as a celebra-tion of how much of an impact sports can have on the commu-nity, Everett said.

“One thing I said in my concluding remarks was about looking at some of the schools these young men will be going on to,” he said. “I don’t think there is any reason to worry about the next generation.”

ContaCt: [email protected]’s Andrew Livingston became Section I’s all-time leading passer last fall. Livingston, pictured, and teammate Tim DeGraw were both named to the Golden Dozen team.


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Mamaroneck Review 2-6-2015