A BATTLE HILL ANALYSIS OF THE 2 BUS RAPID TRANSIT LANES ON HAMILTON AVENUE PLAN -- AND THE SAFETY ISSUES
March 13, 2010
John,
I want to comment regarding the article about two NYS proposed bus lanes on Hamilton Ave. These plans to dedicate two lanes to the already inadequate width of Hamilton Ave is really un-acceptable. Anyone who lives on this side of the tracks and drives to work in areas inside and outside of White Plains already know the pain of getting to and from our homes in Battle Hill and other close in neighborhoods.
Don't we all know live with the pain of getting to our homes through this area during the holidays and when there are traffic disruptions 287? We also understand the fear, at the thought of a rush hour fire during peak holiday times, strikes at the hearts of many Chatterton Parkway, Battle Hill, Fisher Hill, North Broadway and Church Street area residents.
Let's not forget that there is also no adequate emergency fire or police support 24hrs a day on the Battle Hill side of the railroad tracks!! Our Fire station is in-active!! The local neighborhood associations in all these areas and especially Battle Hill should demand that this abandoned Fire House be reactivated and staffed with Fire, EMT and Police personnel 24 hours a day!! This location should house a minimum contingent of fire, police and EMT personnel and equipment at all times.
Is our new mayor and common council ready to take responsibility for the possible death or injury of a close-in neighborhood resident so our NYS representatives and the business owners' lobby in downtown White Plains can get more butts in the seats or money in their pockets???
As owners of, owner occupied 1-4 family taxable properties we must also ask ourselves, would we need 200/350 plus police-fire officers on the payroll if the bars and restaurants in White Plains were forced to close at 2:00AM instead of 4:00AM, with their lingering, mostly out of town drunks hanging around until 6:00AM on the streets of White Plains??
Where are our City administrators priorities? Did we actually need all this vibrant night life in White Plains?**** Our municipal insurance rates are up, our police and fire departments have to show an increased presence in the down town area 24 hours per day, 7 days a week!! ***
Do we need this? ***Now we hear, for the fourth time, that sales tax receipts are down and the money train has stalled!! The sales tax golden fleece is lost again!! ** So now we need two bus lanes to get the drunks back and forth from White Plains??
I have an interesting question for our new WP Public Safety Commissioner Chong
In the last year how many of the individuals involved in misdemeanors, drug busts, prostitution, gang violence, rapes, all other felonies and petty crimes in the downtown area were residents of different cities? When the WP Public Safety commissioner, Mr. Chong reports the crime report this year could he include two extra stats?
Mr. Chong should include; 1) the home residence of the criminal and 2) the day of the week and the actual the hours the individual crimes were committed? Let's hope Mr. Chong can provide this info because his predecessor certainly withheld real crime info and covered it up with the former mayors blessing!!
The residents in our lower and middle class areas like Battle Hill have been exposed to extra risks and have been denied an equal share of all City services for years. We still drink water coming from lead water main taps, our streets/curbs are made of 1910-20 era concrete, ancient dangerous and aggressive trees destroy our sidewalks and fall on our heads, our schools were closed and sold off for private business profit, our Fire House was abandoned, run down motels host multiple sex offenders and prostitutes are allowed to exist in residential neighborhoods.
Our pleas for stricter traffic management and enforcement are routinely ignored and this pattern of taxpayer discrimination by our City officials continues and it must end.
**** If your readers and local residents remember I pointed that the Westchester County Affordable Housing and HUD call for 4-5 major points when they are looking for low income and middle income affordable housing. The number 1 search criterion for affordable housing site selection is number of bus routes in an area. I hope our Battle Hill residents are also paying attention to this as well. With additional bus traffic we will be considered a primary # 1 location for additional affordable housing which will be run and operated by numerous for profit affordable housing groups like WESTHAB!! Beware of these larger than life grand municipal schemes!
It's all one big issue and everyone whether it's a GREEN Group, affordable housing group or corrupt builders: They all would like to get their hands on already economically devastated areas like Battle Hill.
Watch out Middle America were going to get it in the neck again.
Regards,
Mike McConnell
Battle Hill area resident.
City Must Crack Down on Illegal Housing -- Do They Want to? What Needs to be Done Now.
March 13, 2010
Editor,
When will the issue of illegal housing be vigorously addressed and landlords who commit these blatant housing/fire code violations be punished?
Here in White Plains the Battle Hill Association has been committed for years to ensure that all our residents especially the children are living in safe housing.
The building/fire code violations must be aggressively pursued and substantial fines must be issued to all landlords who are not in compliance, The waiting period to issue fines and gain access to alleged overcrowding conditions must be addressed. Revisions to our current municipal law is in desperate need of change. Our elected officials have been promising to combat this problem for some time and to date not a single piece of legislation has been written. We were promised that overcrowding/ illegal housing issue would be a priority.
The proliferation of illegal housing is also generating a much greater demand on our city services.
The involvement of the Westchester DA , assessor's office and our building department need to create a joint task force to assist in combating illegal housing to ensure our population is living in safe housing and the landlords adhere to our laws.
Landlords who are in violation of our housing laws and who are responsible for causing much concern of our quality of life in our neighborhoods, have to be punished by the courts with fines that double the amount of rent the landlord receives and/or imprisonment or both for repeat offenders. If White Plains is serious about safe housing, protecting its neighborhoods and the quality of life for its residents then pursing a meaningful and proactive stance is necessary.
A roundtable discussion with all community leaders of the affected neighborhoods must take place with our city officials. It is extremely important that they understand the seriousness of this problem that will not go away and will only become more fragile and explosive as the city continues to neglect the present situation.
Our Police officers, Firefighters and emergency personnel are under increased risk when entering these illegal/unsafe premises during a emergency situation. Our Sanitation department is burdened with the increase in garbage that is generated by these residences.
Will this be the year our city addresses the illegal housing issue? Will this be the year that other well respected organizations in our city will also address this as a priority?
Or is it a priority?
Augie Zicca
Co-President
Battle Hill Association
City Sustainability Meeting Accomplishes Little--Can the City Do Something Instead of Talking?
March 11, 2010
(Editor's Note: Last night the city convened its committee on making White Plains environmentally "sustainable." Here is one citizen's reaction:)
The group was adrift - and THAT was the disappointment. There already ARE identified, short term, mid term and long term ideas that have been talked to death. THESE should have been on the outline. Agreement of the group LAST NIGHT ON SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN LISTED should have been obtained and work begun NOW.
SOME low load/no load items, such as the Greenway and getting fed (eral) $ (limited time availability!!!!!) for bike/walking paths within some already greenway'ed areas as presented by Eco Neighbors and CCOS should have been "yessed" last night and shown to the public that talking is ongoing while action is immediately happening on things we already know about and issued already identified.
The more I think about this, the more I think I came away with a feeling of "I've just wasted about 2 hours on things we have already gone over".
We PAY people to figure out the fine details and implement the plans and policies. Why must the Citizens carry ALL the weight? Why can't Planning come up with the bike path/walking path grant $$ and plans? What are they waiting for? Why do they earn a salary? Does Planning work for the Citizens?
Planning came up with detailed, architectural plans for sub dividing the NY Hospital pretty quickly. Why the delay on this one - bike path $$/walking path $$ - even if for manpower/jobs to spread mulch and collect garbage and plant and buy native flora to improve the buffers and walking trails?
BTW, (by the way), who paid for that time spent on the subdivision plans for the NY Hospital? and planning presentations? Was that Tax Payer dollars or developer dollars that paid for the Commissioner and her dept. to do that work and plans and scaled auto cad drawings and hardboards? THAT time should have been spent on items like the bike/walking path so it would be shovel ready when push came to shove.
Dedication of already owned City land as parkland - why not "yes it" last night?
Like Dennis (Councilman Dennis Power) said last night, we are light years behind other surrounding communities in legislation and action and there is no need to reinvent the wheel - issues are already identified - for years.
It's up to the Admininstration to put words to action NOW!! Or make some more lists and have some more meetings.
Yeah, I'm still upset. Maybe someone from Planning could review the tapes of the Common Council meetings for the last five years, write down the issues and sources cited, read some recent EIS's for the "cumulative impact statements" (if they were ever done), put together a list of issues that is good ( just read the Citizens' Plan Review work of 2004, 2005, 2006) and work on making these things happen, all with constant P.R. (public relations) so the People can see what is happening?
Yes, warts and all - let the people see and hear what is happening!!!
Dan Seidel
CITY, COUNTY SHOULD BUY THE WHITE PLAINS RAILROAD STATION, REDEVELOP IT...
March 11, 2010
Gentlemen!
The proposed Bus Rapid Transit system proposal to run along the 'new' trans-Hudson bridge that will replace the Tappan Zee Bridge is a step in the right direction, although ideally a train would have more benefits in terms of attracting riders and helping spur residential as well as commercial development in the communities it would transverse on both sides of the river.
As far as downtown White Plains and utilizing Hamilton Avenue at a corridor for this system, certainly this thoroughfare is the only logical east-west artery capable of handling such a project, however, what really needs to be done is for all authorities: MTA/MetroNorth, NYS and Westchester County dept's. of transportation, and the City of White Plains to seriously consider 'burying' the MetroNorth tracks underground and re-developing the White Plains Train Station, which presently is a eyesore and a negative image as a gateway to our modern city, and allowing a developer to tie-in the undersized County Center with a new residential/commercial development of the train facility, with restaurants and possibly a Children's Museum and Hudson River Valley Gateway Museum for tourist visiting our area.
Tarrytown Road (Route 119) has become a speedway in both directions, and the notorious curve entering Main St. in the heart of downtown, has been the scene of accidents, with motorists jumping over two lanes to cut in front of other vehicles to turn right at Bank Street, and the poor pedestrians who have to wait and wait to walk across the entrance ramp to the Bronx River Parkway from Battle Hill and Tarrytown Road and approach the train station - this is the introduction of White Plains?
A comprehensive development plan must be made here, because the roadway cannot accommodate present activity let alone the projected growth in the not too distant future.
Thank you!
Good Day,
Nick Deramo
White Plains
