THE FLASH September 5, 2008 1:20 A.M.:

CON EDISON RAISES PRICE OF ELECTRICITY 65% IN 8 MONTHS.

CON EDISON JACKS ELECTRIC RATES 21% IN AUGUST--BLAMES "SHARP INCREASES IN OIL, NATURAL GAS, FOSSIL FUELS"

Zoning Board Adjourns Saxon Woods Assisted Living Complex Hearin to October...Neighborhood Says No Way...Zoning Board Suggests New Route to Project Through Pool Area...Traffic, Flooding Issues Raised

THE WPCNR BUSH COUNTDOWN CLOCK NEVER STOPS...IT JUST KEEPS ON TICKIN WHILE WE TAKE A LICKIN

138

DAYS

TO

INAUGURATION DAY 2009

When a New Actor Takes the Place of the Man Who Has Been "Playing" the Role of President

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WPCNR MEDIA NEWS. September 5, 2008: The News Compadres of White Plains return with an all-new White Plains Week tonight at 7:30 P.M. and Monday at 7 when John Bailey, Peter Katz and Jim Benerofe  give you the stories the paper media just does not give you. Tonight on Public Access Channel 76, if you have Cablevision, and on FIOS,  Channel 45 -- the action starts at 7:30 P.M.

If you miss any portion of White Plains Week due to not-so-immaculate reception -- viewers around the globe can see the show on www.whiteplainsweek.com Saturday.

The White Plains Big Three of News: "The White Plains Newsboys" John Bailey, Peter Katz and Jim Benerfore -- talk about what nobody wants you to know bout -- The Democratic primary No One Knows About  this coming Tuesday -- The Assisted Living Project in Saxon Woods no one knows about  and the rapidly rising enrollment in White Plains Schools no one is paying attention to and MORE ...tonight on White Plains Week -- in its 8th Extremely Aggravating Year

WPCNR THE POWER NEWS. By John F. Bailey. September 5, 2008:  Con Edision has raised the price of electrictiy 65% in eight months. The Consolidated Edison charge per kilowatt hour has hit an all time high in August, rising 21% to 25.4 cents per kilowatt hour for Supply and Delivery charges combined on the typical Westchester bill.

The 25.4 cents is rapidly approaching the 28 cents predicted by the Con Edison media relations department to WPCNR, back in June. August cost  of 25.4 cents  is up from 21 cents a kilowatt hour in July and 19.45 cents in June.

Con Edison told WPCNR last month they had been able to keep the price down in July due to the efforts of their energy buyers, but apparently the runup in oil this summer has taken its toll, Con Edision includes this explanation in the current electric bill for August:

"You've heard about rising energy costs. Sharp increases in the cost of oil, natural gas, and other fossil fuels have driven up the cost of producing the electricity that Con Edison buys for you and delivers to your home." Con Edison's flyer predicts summer 2008 (June-September) bills to be approximately 22% higher than summer 2007.

However, in 8 months, the Con Edison has raised the cost of electricity to Westchester consumers from 15.4 cents per kilowatt hour to 25.4 cents -- a 65% increase -- substantially higher than the cost runup of oil the last eight weeks.

In

WPCNR FOR THE RECORD. From Westchester County Board of Elections. September 5, 2008: Herewith, by clicking on "Read More" below, the White Plains Registered Democrat eligible to vote in the Tuesday, September 9 Democratic District Leaders Primary Election, from 6 A.M. to 9 P.M., can go to their Election District and find out who is running and whether it is contested. If you district is not contested with candidates or a candidate in the "Challenger" Column, you do not have to go to the polls. Only Districts where there are challengers will have polls open. The places you vote per district are also available.

WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. September 3, 2008 UPDATED 7:05 P.M. E.D.T.: White Plains schools open Thursday morning, expecting a projected enrollment of 7,123  students from Pre-K through high school, 5% ahead of previous long term projections for 2008-2009.  The enrollment level of 7,000 students was not anticipated to be approached until 2010-11, according to school projections in 2005, when it was estimated by Bishop Associates to be 6,914. Now White Plains has bypassed that level three years earlier than expected

WPCNR notes that previously issued long-term district projections predicted the White Plains District as having 6,775 students in 2008-2009, as follows – 2,800 in k to 5, 1,400 in Middle School and 2,000 in the high school, and 575 in Special Education.

The projection for 2008-2009,  according to the school calendar just published shows  the population of K Through 5, Middle School and High School  running 5% ahead of that projection, in the grade schools, Middle and High Schools at 6,620 plus 215 enrolled in alternative programs, 198 in PreK and 90 in Out-0f-District programs for a total of 7,123. This is a 5% increase in enrollment from previously projected  – the bulk of that coming in Pre-K, or course.

Three years ago (2006-2007) the White Plains enrollment was 6,784 students. Last year, the total was 7,041, an increase of 4% in enrollment  and the projection for 08-09 is 7,123, a 1.1% increase. 

A slight worry.

If the district continues to miss its previous projections by a 5% margin the enrollment in the White Plains Schools will reach 9,543 students by 2014-2015, raising the spectre of the need for one new elementary school, in addition to the new Post Road School now being built, and perhaps another addition to the high school if the projections of the school continue to be 5% off.

 The projection for 08-09 was 6,775 students which was reached two years ago in 2006-2007. The projection fo 2014-15 by the school projections assumes flat growth in enrollments at Middle School and High School, with an increase of 300 students at the elementary level to a total of 7,400 students by 2014-15. 

Actual enrollment figures will not be available until October, according to Michele Schoenfeld.

So far this year,  elementary Schools enrollment is up by 42 students (1.3%). High School enrollment is down by about 11 students. Middle School is down by 16. Alternative Program, PreK and Out-of-District Placement students is up by 16 students.

By now all parents should have received their school bus notifications from the district. Bus transportation is provided up through eighth grade. The cost per one way trip by bus to the high school has increased from $1.25 to $1.50 per trip, with a 20 “One Way” trip booklet available for high school students for $23, up from $20 last year.

WPCNR SOUTH END TIMES. September 3, 2008: The White Plains Zoning Board of Appeals takes up the Renamba LLC Assisted Living Development being planned for the Saxon Woods – Scarsdale neighborhood adjacent to Saxon Woods road tonight at 7 P.M. The three-story, 115-apartment complex has been opposed by the city for eight years until last month when the Planning Board found no objection to the project.

Coming to Saxon Woods: The Renamba assisted senior living project of approximately 115 units was greenlighted by the Planning Board last night. It is planned to be built to the left of the Ethical Culture Society of Westchester top building with access off of Saxon Woods Road (the fork off Mamaroneck Avenue (green and yellow road). The white rectangle in lower center of your picture is the Saxon Woods Pool & complex. Photo by Google Satellite.

The development, though on Scarsdale land needs White Plains water, emergency, police and fire services in order to be built. Entrance is planned through the Westchester Ethical Culture Society entrance at the entrance of Saxon Woods Road.

Neighbors have circulated a call to arms to muster a strong presence at this evening’s meeting when the Zoning Board takes up the matter.

Flier Being Circulated in Saxon Woods Neighborhood Calling Neighbors to Tonight's hearing. For more information, neighbors are encouraged to Call Laura Green.

WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2008. From the White Plains City Democratic Committee. September 3, 2008: Today at 11:00 a.m.,  elected Democratic officials will  gather to announce their endorsement of the White Plains Democratic City Committee slate of district leader candidates for the upcoming Democratic primary on September 9^th.  The endorsements will take place at Druss Park, at the corner of Lexington Avenue and Prospect.

Congresswoman Nita Lowey, State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer, Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano, Assembly Member Amy Paulin, and Assembly Member Adam Bradley have united behind the City Committee slate.

WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2008. By John F. Bailey. September 2, 2008 UPDATED WITH WEIGHTED DISTRICTS IDENTIFIED September 3, 10:45 A.M. EDT; UPDATED WITH POLLING PLACES BY DISTRICT 11:50 A.M. EDT: Voter Registration Notices were mailed to White Plains residents last week informing registered  voters  of the forthcoming elections: the Democratic Primary in White Plains September 9 and the Presidential election November 9.  However, to vote for District Leaders, you must vote at the polls because no absentee ballots will be issued, WPCNR has learned from Councilman Glen Hockley.

To find out where to vote for your district leaders, Registered Democrats should check their Voter Registration Card mailed last week, in the lower left hand corner of the addressed side.

The Democratic Primary features 29 different contests  between competing slates of possible District Leaders for 29 of the 43 Democratic Party Election Districts in White Plains in which a slate of “reform Democrats” many thought to be sympathetic to the continued candidacy of incumbent Democrat Councilman Glen Hockley.

A complete list of the candidates and contested districts is included in this report.

According to Liz Shollenberger, the Party Chair of the White Plains Democrats,  speaking to WPCNR Wednesday morning, the most heavily populated Election Districts, where votes are weighted according to their higher population -- and are instrumental in any close nominating race --  are Districts 1 (North Street-Haviland Manor), 2 (Haviland Manor to Mamaroneck Avenue), 5 (Highlands roughly), 10 ( north of  Rosedale West to Mamaroneck Avenue), 12 (Prospect Park), 14 (Gedney Farms), 15 (South of Rosedale, West to Mamaroneck Avenue, East to North Street), 19 (Eastview), and 20 (North of Lake Street) -- all of which are being challenged by candidates sympathetic to Mr. Hockley.  Shollenberger pointed out that the most populated district is District 38 (which contains the Winbrook complex), but that is not being contested. 

Mr. Hockley has criticized many of the present district leaders  for simply following the wishs of City Democratic party leaders, citing those district leaders complicity in the ouster of his fellow councilman Arnold Bernstein, preventing him from running for relection to the council last year, and rejection of democrat council candidates whom many felt were better qualified than the candidates chosen.

A little known technicality applies to this Democratic primary as opposed to the general election: no absentee ballots will be accepted because it involves party positions -- not general elective offices.

• Property Tax Relief News (http://www.cptr.state.ny.us/news/nysCPTR_articles.html) is updated each business day and provides links to relevant articles from newspapers across the state.

• Property Tax Relief Editorials (http://www.cptr.state.ny.us/news/nysCPTR_editorials.html) provides links to related editorials from the past few weeks.

Both the editorials and news webpages include broad perspectives on a variety of property tax relief issues.  Links to both of the webpages are available from the "News" link on the Commission's homepage: http://www.cptr.state.ny.us/index.html 

            WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. From Michele Schoenfeld. August 26, 2008: The White Plains Board of Education has announced a schedule of community meetings to develop a profile of the new Superintendent of Schools who will be appointed in the coming year.  The  public is invited to meet and provide input to representatives of Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates,  Ltd., the consultants leading the search.  The same organization conducted the search which led to the  appointment of Superintendent Timothy P. Connors, who will retire in June, 2009.

            Members of the public are encouraged to attend one of the following sessions:

Monday, September 22nd, 7:30 P.M., White Plains High School B-1 Room

            Tuesday, September 23rd, 10 A.M., Education House Assembly Room

            Sunday, September 14th, 12:30 P.M., El Centro Hispano (St. Bernard’s Church Chapel Hall)

            Monday, September 15th, 7 P.M., Bethel Baptist Church

            In addition, the consultants will meet with groups of staff members, students, PTA representatives and others in September.  Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates will report on the resulting profile at a public meeting of the Board of Education on Monday, October 6^th, 7:30 P.M., at Education House.

            To facilitate the information-gathering process, the consultants have developed a questionnaire which may be obtained online at www.whiteplainspublicschools.org.  These should be completed and 

brought to a public meeting or returned to the consultants as indicated on the questionnaire.

            For further information, contact Michele Schoenfeld, District Clerk, at 422-2071.

WPCNR WHITE PLAINS LAW JOURNAL. By John F. Bailey. August 25, 2008: New York Supreme Court Judge Francis Nicolai  told WPCNR he did not “recollect” writing the key word “overnight” into the margin of the court order spelling out how Hockley District Leader Candidates’ attorney Jay Boyarsky was to deliver a show cause order to ten persons of Hockley District Leader challenger petitions August 4.

Judge Nicolai does not remember how the “overnight” found its way onto the court order spelling out how the Hockley attorney was to respond to the Board of Elections denial of 10 Hockley petitioners.

Nicolai, asked by WPCNR why he wrote overnight into the margin, which according to the Hockley/Garfunkel attorney  said “To my recollection I did not write (“overnight”), somebody in the administration court system must have added it,” he said. 

The "overnight" word in the margin was key in creating the situation resulting in the removal of ten supporters perhaps sympathetic to Glen Hockley from the September 9 District Leader Democratic Primary contests for district leader in White Plains.

WPCNR SPORTS. From Wendy Traskos. August 24, 2008: "New York Pole Dancing" has recently opened up a studio at 110 Mamaroneck Avenue in White Plains, bringing a trendy new fitness craze to Westchester County -- poledancing. This latest fitness trend has gotten thousands of women in shape, from young hot Hollywood to trendy China, and has finally arrived in White Plains.

WPCNR ALBANY ROUNDS. By John F. Bailey. August 22, 2008: The Circuit Breaker Bill passed by the Assembly  Tuesday of this week, lowered the tax relief proposed originally by Assemblyperson Sandra Galef's bill that had been the basis for the new bill the Assembly passed, and subject of an extensive analysis by WPCNR this week, showing the effects of eliminating the Middle Class STAR Rebate. The Middle Class STAR Rebate is preserved under the whirlwind rewriting of the bill. However, the tax relief has been cut substantially. WPCNR will provide an analysis of how it affects White Plains.

The new bill  was introduced for the first time in the Ways and Means Committee August 16, after WPCNR's interview with Assemblyperson Sandra Galef, the original sponsor of bill A01575.

The new legislation cleared the Assembly Tuesday after 5 days of being given life.

Taxpayers earning below $90,000, will be eligible for a refund of only 25% of their property tax bills exceeding 5% of their income, instead of the previous 70% in Assemblyperson Galef's original proposal. Taxpayers earning between $90,000 and $125,000, would receive a refund of 20% on property taxes exceeding 5% of their income, and taxpayers earning between $125,000 to $250,000 are cut down to 15%  of the property tax exceeding 7% ot their income--  down from the original 70%.

Renters now are included in  the tax relief, being allowed to a special tax reduction based on relationship of income and rent.

The gentry are profoundly affected by the Circuit Breaker Law the Assembly passed. Persons earning between $1 Million and $5 Million, will pay a new tax rate of 7.85% on all of their income; taxpayers with incomes above $5 Million would pay 8.6% on all income.

Signifcantly missing from the Assembly bill, Assemblyperson Galef introduced,  is the repeal of the Middle Class STAR Rebate, which Ms. Galef saw the Circuit Breaker replacing. Now the Circuit Breaker is in addition to the Middle Class STAR Rebate, though the "Assembly approved" Circuit Breaker puts significantly less of individual taxpayers' property taxes subject to the tax refunds granted by the "Breaker."

WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. August 21, 2008 UPDATED 10:07 A.M. EDT. UPDATED 11 P.M. E.D.T.: Fire broke out at the hydrogen filling station at the White Plains Department of Public Works garage this morning shortly after 9 A.M. according to Melissa Lopez, press spokesperson for the Mayor's Office. It was contained and extinguished by 9:45 A.M.

Ms. Lopez in a statement received by WPCNR Thursday reports that Commissioner of Public Works, Joseph Nicoletti reports  it was an electrical malfunction inside a Hydrogen Compressor that caused the fire.  The sensors at the facility notified the fire department immediately.  It occurred at 9:11am.

Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety Daniel Jackson reports  to WPCNR that the fire was called in about 9:10 A.M because of a compressor, used to cool the hydrogen had apparently overheated. Jackson said "there definitely was a fire there, but our guys are trained for this situation." He said at no time was any hydrogen ignited. There was no explosion.

WPCNR MR. & MRS. & Ms. White Plains Poll. August 21, 2008 UPDATED August 22, 2008: This week, ground was broken on a new 14-unit "affordable housing" project on Minerva Place. Since this and projects like it have been funded with contributions to the affordable housing fund made by developers who have opted to "buy out" of building actual affordable units in their projects, WPCNR wondered how the populace feels about this continued policy of subsidizing projects like this. The last two projects took some $1.1 Million in city money. The Minerva Place project will use another $1 Million. Some of the apartment units themselves  built previously approach $300,000 per unit to build, and generally pay the developer a developer's fee, and provide the land at reduced cost.

Paul Wood, the Mayor's Executive Officer, wrote WPCNR saying to make clear no tax payer dollars were used in these two products, that all money came from the Affordable Housing Fund, that is funded by developer contributions in lieu of building affordable units. However, tecnically it is city money to use as the council sees fit within the purposes described by the Affordable Housing Fund. 

The affordable housing is meant for so-called "workforce" housing for police, teachers, city employees, then it is thrown open to every one else.  How do Mr. and Mrs. White Plains feel about this on-going effort?  Choose from the following choices: