White Plains CitizeNetReporter - CNA Opens Doors – Schedules New York Presbyterian Hospital InfoForum.

Special to WPCNR:The White Plains Council of Neighborhood Associations voted at its regular monthly meeting last week to open its monthly meetings to all residents of White Plains neighborhoods.

They have also arranged for executives of New York Prebyterian Hospital to present details of their biomedical complex proposal for Bryant Avenue to the public at Education House on January 23 at 7:45 PM. The meeting will be open to all, including the media.

Carl Barrera, of the Hillair Circle Association, newly elected CO-President of the Council for Neighborhood Associations; Jesse Crell of Colonial Corners, Ron Shakeridge of the Rosedale Residential Association, and John Bailey of the Haviland Manor Association, worked for the last year to make the Council more accessible to the community at large with the purpose of involving more White Plains residents.

Barrera told WPCNR the vote to open CNA meetings up to residents other than just delegates of the member associations (27 in all, 21 of which are active), was to achieve more “outreach,” to allow CNA to achieve “more focus” (in the community).”

Eight neighborhood associations voted to open the meetings, with 2 abstaining. Ten associations are required to be present under current bylaws for a quoram. The resolution which the associations voted on reads as follows:

Resolved, that regular meetings of the Representative Board be open to all members of the CAN’s constituent neighborhood associations, as well as to a limited number of invitees of association delegates, unless a meeting (or a portion of a meeting) is declared in advance to be an executive session limited to association delegates. The attendance of working journalists must be specifically approved in advance. Meeting discussions are limited to association delegates, unless the Chiar of a meeting recognizes other attendees.”

The Resolution allows the Council the right to limit non-delegate speakers, and to exclude the news media to allow more freedom of expression of views, while at the same time giving the right to attend to virtually all neighborhood residents of the city.

Open Meeting Policy in Effect for New York Presbyterian Hospital Special Meeting January 23

The effect of the new policy will be tested in its ability to draw new participants in the Council on January 23, the date on which the CNA leadership has invited representatives from New York Presbyterian Hospital to present details of their biomedical complex proposal for the Bryant Avenue end of their campus, now before the Common Council in public hearings.

Marc Pollitzer, of the North Street Civic Association, characterized the January 23 Hospital meeting as being a Special Meeting to present to CNA delegates, association officers and association boards of directors their proposal and to review highlights of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

This past August, a similar information forum held by the Council of Neighborhood Associations which invited Louis Cappelli to present his City Center proposal, attracted a larger crowd than CNA usually draws. It was credited by many observers with having changed peoples’ minds about the height of his proposed apartment towers and their effects on the downtown.


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