WPCNR MR. & MRS. & MS. WHITE PLAINS VOICE. March 28, 2006: The President of the Rocky Dell/Reynal Park Neighborhood Association takes exception to the WPCNR Poll "setup" :
I don't like the way your Railside poll is set up- There is a missing vote opportunity - How about redoing it with a choice to get money from different method? There are more ways to keep the city running than destroying woods during the supposedly good for our economy building boom Rennaissance. The issue of woods and taxes aren't grafted together inexplicably.
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The woods and nature appreciators aren't to be footing the bill for the high buildings and extra infrastructure they'll require. An example of the wrongness of this melding of tax rate and existance or diminishing of nature is demonstrated by the dialogue given by Mr Hockley, pre-election at the League of Women Voters debate.
He was asked: How do you view the future for the White Plains taxpayer?
His response, paraphrased, yet accurate in meaning- Was that he's a taxpayer, like we all are, but there were creative ways to help with the tax situation. He then listed four:
1. "We need to have public meetings between the School Board and Common Council, and do purchasing jointly. The city and school can do mergers and acquisitions corporately. (Something like that)
2. Get sponsorship for some of our park areas
3. We should get advertising on some of our rolling stock, not including police and fire, the city has 400 vehicles.
4. We need to give incentives to city workers to come up with ideas on waste...
So there are a lot of things we can do.
Mr Hockley made no mention of having a rushed, tiny legal print tag sale of wooded land that is not only needed for its beauty, but for health-related reasons, benefitting even those on the opposing side of protecting nature. This WPCNR entry is dealing only with the poll set up, but I believe it is a very narrow poll in design, because there should be more than two choices. The existance of the woods did not cause us to need to raise taxes.
This should be dedicated parkland. The city was wrong to have been paying the minimal taxes on it for as long as it has. Dedicate it parkland and exempt it. The woods didn't do anything to us except help improve our poor air quality. The trees did nothing to us to cause us to need a higher tax rate. Please don't blame the Railside Woods for us needing higher taxes just because they exist.
Please John, add another check box.
I like Mary Cavallero's quote about going to CNR if you want to know what's going on in WP, but she should add, "and also get out your magnifying glass and read the legal notices diligently."
Also, The Bernsein tax statements seem not so much like voodoo economics, but more like "Destructo Economics" At the March 6th Common Council meeting he said something about how MAYBE.we'll need the approx 3 million from the sale, and if we don't, it will be nice to have it in kind of like a rainy day fund, in case we need it.
What has transpired, or what has the woods done since March 6th, that suddenly Mr Bernstein thinks we'll have higher taxes if we don't sell. What have they tried other than this simplistic uncreative, neighborhood character-wrecking, tree-destroying, environment -hurting action.
John, I have thought your site is very interesting, and agree with Mary Cavallero's quote, but your vote gives no option for anything else. Please ask Mr Bernstein to respond to why he stated on March 6th that only MAYBE we'll need this revenue and now it's so important. Please ask him that. Paula
Paula Piekos
(President, Rocky Dell/Reynal Park Neighborhood Association
The CitizeNetReporter Replies: The object of the poll was to see if the public would agree to pay more taxes to keep the Greenway green all the way. If I added a "Keep the Woods, find other money" option, the poll-participant does not have to make the choice, they can dump it on the Common Council. The Common Council chose to sell land for some inexplicable reason given last night as they need more taxes.
