February City Council Updates from Mayor Douglas French

Rye Fire Department Alignment
On one of my first days as Rye Mayor in 2010, I learned that the Rye Fire Department made up of both volunteer firefighters and career personnel each had separate organizations and reporting relationships.  While that model served the City well for decades, it was imperative that the City seek alignment for the future with respect to fire department personnel.  For the past year, the City Manager and I have met with key stakeholders to include the Fire Chiefs, volunteers, career personnel and Board of Wardens with one fundamental question – do we have the right structure for the future of Rye?  While not the most the most popular question to ask, we had the courage to forge ahead.  The results speak for themselves.  We are pleased to announce that after having worked with the Board of Wardens, it is proposed that both the volunteer and career Fire Department personnel will align under the auspices and in conjunction with the City Manager.  This will require a City Charter change and we will have more public discussion in addition to the two workshops held already.  This is an important change that will allow for better coordination in fire services.  Further, with respect to the retirement of the fire inspector and its impact on the career personnel who currently report into the City Manager, the Council has asked the manager to develop an interim transition plan for immediate implementation while the City explores an optimal structure for the long-term.

Flood Mitigation Sluice Gate Gets Final Approval
One phase of the city's flood mitigation plan got final approval last week as the Village of Rye Brook board approved the sluice gate project at the Bowman Avenue spillway.  In total, there are roughly 900 acre-feet of water that flow down from upstream during a major storm that need to be retained.  The sluice gate will regulate the water flow to help mitigation efforts.  Thanks to Rye Brook Mayor Joan Feinstein and her leadership and partnership with Rye, we have taken another important step in our flood mitigation efforts.  The City can now go to bid the project out.  Other phases of the City’s flood mitigation plan include the expansion of the upper pond at Bowman Avenue, more detention at the Westchester County Airport, and additional water retention in the Anderson Hill Road area -- all of which would collectively retain approximately half of what is projected to be needed.

Permanent Rye Flood Committee Established
At the January 11th meeting of the Council, a permanent flood committee was established to advise the Council and assist the City in the implementation of the City’s flood mitigation plan, to educate residents on personal flood mitigation measures, to monitor land-use development upstream and surrounding areas and their impact on storm-water as well as to look at potential legislation and funding options.  The Council will confirm appointments to the 7-member committee at the meeting of February 8th.

Council Strategic Workshop
The Council met in an unprecedented workshop last Saturday morning to review and discuss key priorities for the coming year.  A few of the highlights included the need for a public safety bond that addresses critical needs of the City such as flood mitigation and crumbling streets and sidewalks.   In addition, the council charged the City Manager to deliver an interim report on potential future changes in trash collection.  And, the council has asked the Government Policy and Research Committee to look at the impact of a transfer tax on cash home sales similar to other City’s and is an extension of the current mortgage tax currently applied by the City.  There is more public discussion and dialogue to come in these areas and others ideas.

Rye Cable and Communications Committee
The city expanded this committee last year to include new media.  Beyond overseeing the City’s cable operation, the committee is looking at communication vehicles in social media to expand the information flow to how residents access information.  Further the Council asked for the committee to make recommendations on establishing a Public Information Coordinator to assist on a volunteer basis in the creation and dissemination of information to the public on City issues.

For more information on these matters, visit the City of Rye Website at www.ryeny.gov or contact me, your City Council members or the City Manager.  Mayor’s office hours will be at 7:30 pm on February 8th in the Mayor’s Conference room. Mayor Doug French, mayor@ryeny.gov