Thursday, February 9, 2012
Instead of calming the waters, the ethics review of Mayor Doug French sparked dissent and accusations between council members at Wednesday's night meeting.
Mayor Doug French and Councilman Joe Sack went head to head at Wednesday night's city council meeting. The Rye City Ethics Board recently responded to the request for review from Deputy Mayor Peter Jovanovich, concluding French did not solicit preferential treatment related to a rental property he owns. Instead of settling the matter as Jovanovich requested, the review did little to silence the mayor's critics or French himself. Eventually, Mayor French openly collided with Councilman Sack from the council dais.
40.980968
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Rye City Hall
1051 Boston Post Rd, Rye, NY
/articles/poll-tempers-flare-at-rye-council-meeting-over-ethics-review
74516
/locations/6343680
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Rep. Nan Hayworth is the fifth highest scoring Republican member of Congress, according to the environmental watchdog organization.
Democratic members of Congress from the Hudson Valley had high marks on the annual New York League of Conservation Voters 2011 National Environmental Scorecard release Tuesday. Both Democratic senators—Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand—had top scores of 100, said Marcia Bystryn, president of the league. "New Yorkers care a lot about our environment," she said. "It should not come as a surprise both of our senators had perfect scores in 2011." In the House, Rep. Nita Lowey, D-Harrison, achieved a 97, while Rep. Eliot Engel, D-Bronx, scored a 94. On the Republican side of the aisle in the House, Rep. Nan Hayworth, R-Mount Kisco, was given a grade of 43. "While her score is nothing to write home about," Bystryn said, "her score in the …
In a new report, Westchester County claims it's far ahead of schedule in its commitment to build affordable housing. The Anti-Discrimination Center disagrees.
As families move into the first affordable housing units mandated by the federal government, Westchester County says it's ahead of schedule in its obligation to build 750 fair housing units. But a range of civil rights groups and the plaintiff in the case, New York City-based Anti-Discrimination Center, dispute the county's claim. The majority of affordable housing projects in the works continue the practice of "exclusionary zoning" and won't make an impact in housing segregation in the county, they say. The first affordable housing unit was sold late last year, and two families are moving into rental units in a three-family house this month, according to the county. The county also touted its progress in moving larger projects through …
State officials released findings last week that Indian Point could close with little impact on ratepayers and reliability.
New York Assembly committees released preliminary findings of their Jan. 12 public hearing on the plans for the potential closure of Indian Point Energy Center (IPEC). The findings concluded that Indian Point could close without overburdening ratepayers or threatening reliability standards, according to a press release from the Committee on Energy and the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions. This could happen with proper planning and the success of proposed energy and efficiency projects over the next several years, which would provide “more than enough resources to close Indian Point,” the committee chairs said. They based findings on testimony and evidence demonstrated by several energy and environment organizations, …
41.258722
-73.942125
Indian Point Energy Center Units 2 & 3
3rd St, Buchanan, NY
/articles/indian-point-can-close-with-little-impact-state-committee-says
487390
/locations/6326232
Minutes from last week's Ethics Board meeting indicate Mayor French has been cleared of alleged violations, but reveal tensions among elected officials.
The City Ethics Board has cleared Mayor Doug French of any impropriety or inappropiate behavior. According to the minutes of its February 2 session, board members interviewed assessor Noreen Whitty and building inspector Maureen Eckman during a 90-minute executive session. After the minutes were released, Mayor French sent an email expressing his frustrations with the entire episode. He said, in part: The reason I called for a review by the Board was because of misleading press reports and statements from elected City officials which were parroting the allegations by the accusers and distorted the issues without looking at the facts of the matter at hand. As the persons being accused, there were never any specific charges or facts of …
40.980968
-73.683766
Rye City Hall
1051 Boston Post Rd, Rye, NY
/articles/ethics-board-takes-pass-on-french
74516
/locations/6335330
Monday, February 6, 2012
The Super Bowl champions will be feted by NYC Tuesday.
The celebratory ticker tape parade for the New York Giants—winner of Super Bowl XLVI—will kick off at Battery Place and Washington Street in New York City on Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 11 a.m. “Big Blue gave us a game to remember, and on Tuesday we're going to give them a parade to remember,” said New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in a statement today. The parade will travel north on the Canyon of Heroes to Worth Street. A ceremony will follow at City Hall, where the mayor will present the Keys to the City to the team. Metro North will be offering additional trains to accommodate travelers tomorrow: To Grand Central Terminal: From Grand Central Terminal: Click here to see to access the regular Metro North schedules. NJ TRANSIT will offer extra…
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Passers-by may have noticed an innocent, environmental striptease in front of Rhythm in Rye Too Wednesday afternoon; a revealing way to support Rye's new plastic bag ban– taking it all off...
"In honor of the new law to rid of plastic, we are taking it one step further and encouraging people to bring bags so we can go bagless," said Rhythm in Rye Too owner Renee Drummond.
40.984789
-73.684633
Rhythm In Rye Too Consignment Shop
85 Purchase St, Rye, NY
/articles/rhythm-in-rye-takes-it-all-off
157500
/locations/6296995
The Rye City Ethics Board adjourned its meeting without comment to the press. City manager Scott Pickup and corporation counsel Kristen Wilson participate in deliberations.
The Rye City Ethics Board met in executive session until 11:45 a.m. this morning to discuss a formal request for review of Mayor Doug French. Though members of the press waited outside the mayor's conference room, committee chair Elizabeth Griffin Matthews left City Hall without comment about the proceeding–whether the board had agreed to further review the allegations against Mayor French or dismiss the request without further consideration as they concluded at their last meeting. According to corporation counsel Kristen Wilson there were no recusals from this morning's proceedings. Though Wilson and city manager Scott Pickup were accused by Ray Tartaglione of being involved in obfuscating the matter of Mayor French's STAR tax exemptions…
40.980968
-73.683766
Rye City Hall
1051 Boston Post Rd, Rye, NY
/articles/poll-ethics-board-adjourns-with-no-comment
74516
/locations/6300059
The clash between the County Board of Legislators and County Executive Astorino over Bee-Line Route 76 continues today. The Government Operations committee meets today.
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Thursday, February 2
[This is a press release from the County Board of Legislators] The Westchester County Board of Legislators (BOL) plans to protest the application of Liberty Lines Transit, Inc., for service modifications of the Route 13 bus line in a special resolution, which will be discussed and voted on Thursday morning at the meeting of the BOL’s Government Operations Committee. The protest and resolution come in the aftermath of County Executive Rob Astorino’s abrupt cancellation of the Route 76 bus line service between Port Chester and Milton Point in Rye on December 27, 2011, with service officially stopping on December 31, 2011. Regular passengers of the 76 bus—and BOL members—learned that the service was being discontinued on Wednesday, December …
Now that Deputy Mayor Peter Jovanovich has submitted a proper request, the Rye City Ethics Board is expected to reconsider whether the actions of Mayor Doug French should be formally reviewed.
Two weeks ago, the board declined to conduct a formal ethics review of Mayor Doug French because the request and allegations of impropriety had been improperly brought before them. According the Rye municipal code, only a city official or employee has standing to request a formal ethics review. Prior to last week’s city council meeting, Mayor French said that he wanted to be reviewed by the Ethics Board to dispel any concerns that he intentionally violated local building codes or claimed improper STAR tax exemptions regarding a residential property on Richard Place. French insists that he neither improperly renovated the house from a two-family to single-family dwelling nor did he intentionally claim STAR tax exemptions for which he was …
40.980968
-73.683766
Rye City Hall
1051 Boston Post Rd, Rye, NY
/articles/ethics-board-to-reconsider-review-of-mayor-french
74516
/locations/6296887
RyeDad
8:46 am on Thursday, February 9, 2012
French is a disgrace and needs to resign. Pickup and Wilson need to go too. The City of Rye has been compromised by the actions and inactions of these three people and the damage they have caused is unrepairable. more ›