White Plains CitizeNetReporter - "King Komments" on Hale Avenue & Fortunoff's

Councilman William King sends along this commentary after his meeting with Fortunoff's and members of the Carhart Neighborhood Association within the last week. After listening to neighbors' concerns about the entire Hale Avenue/Maple/The Westchester sector, here is his personal take:

To keep it simple, what I think we should do for this area:

1. Resident permit parking only on Hale Ave. between Maple and Carhart - or, in the interrim, some kind of parking restriction - The residents argue correctly that when Fortunoff's comes they will only have paid parking and there could be more of an impact on the nearby neighborhood for free parking.

2. Extend sidewalk streetscape improvements, including burying overhead wires, up Maple, to at least Hale Ave. (how about all the way to South Broadway or Mamaroneck?) as well as up Hale Ave. to Carthart Ave. I think the block on Hale Ave., from Maple to Carhart, would be a good test case of what it would take to bury overhead wires in a residential neighborhood. There is a need to preserve and strengthen this neighborhood of fine old Victorian homes in any way we can.

3. Redo the medians in Maple Ave. in the brick motif and make the crosswalks, which will be increasingly well used, visible and aesthetic - don't just do parallel white lines. Give pedestrians slightly longer to cross the street. Make this area more pedestrian friendly.

4. Use the same new streelights with white light as are being used Downtown. This will help connect this area to Downtown and make it 'part of Downtown.'

5. Get private lot owners to clean up the trash dumped on their properties on Hale, Dekalb, S. Broadway and Maple. Get them to also to dress up their sites (previously brought up with neighborhood lot on southwest corner of S. Broadway and Maple).

6. Take care of the Hale Ave. residents during construction if air quality is hazardous during demolition/construction. Pay for them to stay out of town during peak work - small children especially in the neighborhood should be protected from hazardous air.

Are these a bunch of 'whoo boys'? I don't think so. I think they are very reasonable requests. If the city really cares, these should be 'no problem.' Thanks

- Bill King

P.S. I think on-street parking - even if just a half dozen spaces, should be allowed right in front of the Westchester Pavilion on South Broadway (northbound) - very little traffic here. Also, there should be a cut in the median on S. Broadway for cars going southbound so cars can turn left off S. Broadway into the Westchester Pavilion mall. This has been needed since the WP opened. Thanks.


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