Dogs

http://www.ci.white-plains.ny.us/templates/template_text_image_right_panel.aspx?Id=Dog%20Licenses

Who knew?

Parade dates: perverse, weird or what.

Sunday October 5, 2008 WP had its annual Columbus day parade. Columbus day is October 12. Why not have the parade on the actual date? Both are Sundays, so that cannot be the reason. The New York City parade is scheduled for Monday October 13. No conflict there. It is almost perverse.

WP also does this for St. Patrick's day. The parade is never on St. Patrick's day, March 17. Weird.

Fourth of July fireworks are not on held on the fourth of July.

Why?

Power, Roach and Paulin do not respond.

Over the last couple of years have I sent several e-mail messages to the city of White Plains Common Council members, including the mayor, using e-mail IDs listed on the city web site. The Mayor finally sent his one and only response this summer and his message is posted below. I have occasionally received responses from CC members Hockley, Malmud and Boykin, as I had from former members Bernstein and the late Robert Greer. They never actually did anything but at least they had the courtesy to respond.

I never received a response from Dennis Power or Thomas Roach. Nor have I received a response from new CC member Lecuona.

For the record when I moved I sent messages to the two New York state assembly people
who represent parts of White Plains (no at large members there): Paulin and Bradley. Bradley responded indicating that Paulin represented citizens where I live. Paulin never responded to that or any message.

I would never vote for anyone who fails to respond. The arrogance of ignoring a constituent message is inexcusable.

Green buildings and planning.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™

http://www.usgbc.org/displaypage.aspx?cmspageid=222

http://nymag.com/realestate/features/31519/

The Visionare seems like an interesting building. And apparently it is quite green. Also see the Solaire by the same developer:

http://www.batteryparkcity.org/page/page2.html

http://www.thesolaire.com/

I did a google search on "leed white plains": Your search - "leed white plains" - did not match any documents.

I wonder if any of the new buildings in White Plains are green. I wonder if White Plains planners ever thought about it. Planning in White Plains seems to consist of plopping structures down regardless of whether they belong there evaluated by size, style or function.

Consider Battery Park City in Manhattan for an example of comprehensive urban planning on a scale that could apply to White Plains:

http://www.batteryparkcity.org/

Cars, the only issue in White Plains

Today I forwarded a New York Times article about pod cars to the city e-mail ID. The reference is below. It describes the efforts of the city of Ithaca, NY to to deal with too many cars. Ithaca is described as "a very progressive, forward-thinking, educated place", words that are not associated with White Plains.

Would pod cars work in White Plains? Beats me. But White Plains needs to do so something different.

The sole issue in White Plains: move 'em, park 'em.

The sole solution: more lanes, more garages.

This is an escalating cycle that cannot be continued. White Plains has tried some minor things in the past including a free shuttle bus and a few electric car chargers. However, it is still jerking around with planning a city bus system and cannot get the county buses to run during rush hour from all the most densely populated areas:

- Main St. and Mamanoneck Ave.
- Lake St.
- Old Mamanoneck RD

White Plains is odd in that these areas are not near the train station as they are in places like Scarsdale and Bronxville.

White Plains needs elected officials who have the imagination to consider new and different ideas. Otherwise, there will be more speedways slashing through downtown and more monster garages.

__________________________________________________________________

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/nyregion/21podcar.html?ei=5070&emc=eta-1

Try something! You cannot continue to add lanes and garages. That is NOT planning.

NYREGION | September 21, 2008
Ithaca Takes a Hard Look at Pod Cars
By MICHELLE YORK
A group of urban planners, engineers and energy experts held a conference at Cornell University to explore the idea of personal rapid transit.

Where do Common Council members live?

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=us&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=103040367337361097468.000445a6e9cc47e0e7b83&ll=41.026017,-73.760662&spn=0.059183,0.157757&z=13&om=0

Above is a link to a google earth map that I made with the locations of the homes of the CC members, not including the mayor. Click on a marker to see who lives there.

The addresses were taken from the WP city web site.

Hey, they all live in the suburbs, not in downtown. Who are their natural constituents?

Dog Shit

I'm using the word shit to drive home the point. Might as well describe it accurately.

White Plains city planners cannot even deal with something as basic as shit. In recent years they have approved THOUSANDS of housing units in downtown. These apartments are all designated as dog friendly, a euphemism to indicate that animals may cohabitate with humans. That's THOUSANDS of additional animals in downtown.

There is only one downtown park: on Canfield between Main and Lake and dogs are prohibited; that's as it should be, keeping the park clean for people. That park is not near the THOUSANDS of newly arrived animals. There is zero dirt, non-concrete space near the four super towers near Main and Mamaroneck.  And what about the Avalon on Barker?  And Bank Street Commons?

Where do all these animals take care of business, dump, shit, ... call it what you will?

Wherever did the city planners think all this dog shitting would occur? At the remotely located dog run on the other side of 287 almost outside the city limits to which a humans must drive their animals? You can hardly find the place.  Not likely.

What were they thinking? Or did they not give it a second thought? The Common Council members do not live in White Plains. They live in the suburbs (OK, the mayor lives downtown but when do you see him walking  around?). They drive to city hall and park in reserved spaces, not in one of the monster parking garages built to make visiting White Plains easier, not for people who live in Connecticut, but for them and their neighbors who live in the suburbs of White Plains, no where near the epicenter of over development.

District based voting is the only way to have any chance of properly planning the urban center. Anything less is ignoring the problem with the system of governing the City of White Plains.

Democratic Party Politburo

Yesterday I received a two page paper letter from the Democratic Party Politburo (Political Bureau) of White Plains.  It addresses the local September 9, 2008 primary, which will elect "members of the Democratic County Committee ... voters will be choosing two volunteers per district".

The letter represents the interests of five of the six the Common Council members who are not mayor.  They are all Democrats.  The letter is signed by the two New York state Assembly members who represent parts of White Plains: Amy Paulin and Adam Bradley.  I guess they could not figure out which of them represents me.  Amy Paulin represents the part of White Plains in which I live.  I have sent her two messages in the past couple of years but she never responded.

They could, however, identify the two candidates who should receive my vote.  Paulin and Bradley state that they "join Congresswoman Nita Lowey and State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer in urging" me to vote for their candidates.  They single out "Council Member Glen Hockley" as a Republicat who they claim is "attempting to take over the White Plains Democratic Party by organizing his own slate of District Leader candidates".

So?  They are using a sledge hammer to kill a fly.  Besides, no one ever asked me to decide on district leaders before.  I kind of like being asked.  It doesn't mean that I would support Hockley.

Paulin and Bradley go on to attack the new candidates and Hockley.  You would think that they would want new blood in their party.  They state that the newcomers never helped Lowey, Oppenheimer nor either of them, Paulin and Bradley.  Oh.  Now we're getting to the heart of the matter.

Paulin and Bradley state that "Hockley filed candidates ... against all five of his Democratic Common Council colleagues" (Boynkin, Malmud, Power, Lecuona, Roach) and against former CC members Brown and Oliva.  How does one file "candidates against"?  What does that mean?

Apparently Hockley is undermining the system that props up not just local office holders but also state and national incumbants.

Hockley is then attacked because he wants to run for mayor.  This is described as "his own grandiose personal ambition".  His ambition does not seem to be very high and mayor of White Plains is hardly grandiose.  Besides, don't all the other five CC members want to be mayor?  Would they pledge to not run in the next mayoral election?

I do not care about what Hockley is doing nor about the petty local politics that have been exposed.  I am offended by this public fued that should have been resolved among the petty little local power brokers involved who never asked my opinion on such matters in the past and only come to me when forced to do so.  Clean up your own mess and answer your damn e-mail messages.

Environment & Energy

The mayor and other Common Council members were falling all over themselves in self congratulatory mode because they had broken ground on a new development at Minerva Place with 14 units that will use a geothermal heating/cooling system. That's good. However, what were they thinking in recent years when they approved THOUSANDS of new housing units that have zero renewable energy systems? No geothermal, no wind, no solar. NOTHING!

These recent developments include The Gramercy (Clayton Park), City Center/Trump Tower, Bank Street Commons, Jefferson Place, Ritz-Carlton, The Avalon. These developments increase traffic enormously. The city did not have the sense to include proper retail to limit needless driving. Residents at Bank Street Commons in particular must drive for almost everything.

Clifford Blau for Mayor

My friend Cliff Blau would make a great mayor of White Plains, NY. He has both intellectual and financial integrity. Cliff is a life long resident of White Plains. He grew up in a house in the suburbs and has lived in a coop in downtown for many years, so he understands both sides of the equation that has tilted toward house owners for far too long. Cliff graduated from White Plains high school and became a certified public accountant.

Cliff actually likes White Plains unlike many of the rest of us residents who live in White Plains because it is a convenient compromise. Cliff would be a major upgrade as mayor.

Let's write in Clifford Blau for mayor in the next general election, bypassing the usual nonsensical procedures that help keep the two traditional parties in power. Let's also improve on the lame attempt by those two old farts who ran in 2007 for the Common Council as insurgents with a fake new party to get them on the ballot. Forget the ballot. WRITE-IN!

All that is needed is a web site with write in unstructions and some poll watchers, preferably lawyers, to ensure that the write in votes are counted.

Vote for Clifford Blau for Mayor of the City of White Plains, NY.