Bronxville Insider: Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin Weekly Column.

 

Bronxville Insider: Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin: Mayor's Column Week of September 30, 2024.

Mayor’s Column - October 1, 2024.

As summer comes to an official end, the Trustees and I would like to thank our

community partners from the Bronxville Beautification Council who made the

Village so beautiful this summer by nurturing flowers in more than a dozen

locations throughout the Village. Their efforts were in coordination with our small

but mighty Public Works Department who are unsung heroes.

The Department of Public Works consists of two divisions - Sanitation and Highway.

The total team has six employees dedicated to sanitation – not an easy task indeed,

leaving the remaining seven gentlemen to maintain all of our streets, parks

and their infrastructure. This includes the grounds at Village Hall, the Library, the

recently restored Maltby Park, Sagamore Park, Dogwood Park at the tennis courts

and almost a dozen islands throughout the Village.

And as I write, the Working Gardeners are making plans to restore Dogwood Park

to fittingly deserve its name by planting six dogwoods along the walkway to the

tennis hut. This is another 50/50 landscape partnership with the Village which is

proving essential to keeping taxes at bay. We have the same incredible relationship

with our two other garden clubs; Boulder Ledge and the Bronxville Beautification

Council who work collaboratively on every beautiful thing you see in the downtown

area.

As icing on the cake, thanks to our enduring partnership with the Bronxville

Historical Conservancy, the three pairs of historic pillars at the entryway to

Lawrence Park received a much needed restoration and just nearby, the Hilltop

Association purchased personalized and lighted trash receptacles at heavily

traveled locations throughout the Hilltop that are now maintained by our DPW

team.

Again, in another enduring partnership, the Village and the Junior League are

collecting “Thanksgiving Sides” from November 6 th to November 13 th at Village Hall.

The items will be delivered to Beulah Church in Mount Vernon for distribution with

the annual turkey distribution in conjunction with Feeding Westchester. Needed

items for donation include instant mashed potatoes, canned sweet potatoes,

stuffing mix and juice in non-glass containers.

In other more routine initiatives throughout the Village, the DPW has been

working on paving/curbing modifications throughout the Village to keep water

along the edge of roadways and redirected to storm drains.

In addition to these modifications, the Village began a project in late summer

that continues into the fall of lining our sanitary sewers and rehabilitating old

manholes to reduce the likelihood of stormwater entering the sanitary sewer

systems, thus eliminating sewage backups.

Over the summer months, our outdoor municipal lights have been converted to

LEDs and additional lighting conversions are currently happening at the Library

and Village Hall. Not only does this save us thousands of dollars, but it helps the

Village to continue in a state program which will qualify us for reimbursement

for many of our Eco goals, which result in savings to our taxpayers.

The Hudson Valley Regional Council of the Department of Environmental

Conservation awarded Bronxville a Momentum Award for achieving notable

milestones in a remarkably brief timeframe. Specifically, Bronxville was

recognized for passing a Climate Action Plan for Municipal Operations and an

Energy Audit of our municipal buildings. Thanks goes to our hardworking Climate

Smart Communities Task Force: Assistant Village Administrator Stephen Shallo,

Trustee Helen Knapp, Ellen Edwards, Chair of the Green Committee and Carole

Upshur who wrote the Climate Action Plan for Municipal Operations and has

made invaluable contributions in all areas of our green work.

The Village is launching a new website and switching to a new vendor for more

efficient mass email notification in January as well as a complimentary outlay for

the upgrade of our existing cable system.

Our leaf collecting begins mid-month continuing until early December. Almost

incredulous, our annual leaf removal costs regularly top $100k per season and

this does not include the additional cost of repairing clogged drains as

rainstorms routinely send the leaves directly into our storm sewer system.

Drains clogged with leaves also vastly increase the risk of localized flooding. To

help the Village, both on the financial and ecological fronts, we ask that you

either bag your leaves or if not possible, keep them on your property and off the

Village streets and right of way. Based on our extensive drain-cleaning program

undertaken over the summer, it was quite clear that drain capacity was inhibited

by a proliferation of leaves that went directly into our system. Not only do the

leaves affect our water conveyance but as they begin to decay on the streets,

harmful phosphates and nitrates are released eventually ending up in the Bronx

River, further polluting those waters. The same leaf piles are also a significant

traffic hazard as they are often placed on narrow roadways creating slippery

road surfaces.

The fall also signals the return of all the children to our Village for school and

play. In order to increase the safety of all those now walking about the Village,

our Village-wide speed limit is 25 mph, the lowest allowed by New York State.

The only exemption is the 20 mph permitted in marked school zones. Any

further speed reduction requires New York State legislation which must be

predicated on documented evidence of accident rates, speeding data and traffic

volume, something the Village cannot demonstrate. Despite repeated requests

from residents, the Village cannot install “Children at Play” or “Slow Children”

signs because State and Federal standards reject their use as they openly

suggest that playing in the street is acceptable and give children a false sense of

security.

Finally, our Eastchester Fire District Budget Hearing is scheduled for 6pm on

October 16th at Fire Headquarters at 255 Main Street, Eastchester. The proposed

2025 budget of $23,872,423 is a 14.41% raise over the 2024 budget of

$20,866,263. 

Bronxville Insider: Mayor's Column Week of May 20th.

 

Bronxville Insider: Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin Weekly Column.

Mayor’s Column: July 3, 2023.

Today, as I walked by some of our very decorative store fronts festooned with red white and blue, it brought a smile of gratitude for our country and the desire to learn more about the origins of the Fourth of July.

Often forgotten in the equation, all of the men who signed the Declaration of Independence were truly brave Americans, as they were fully aware that when they penned their signatures in Philadelphia, it was an act of treason, punishable by death.

To a person, they were well educated, propertied and of considerable means and standing who had much to lose, but as they said, “They valued liberty more.” 
The now famous John Hancock; wealthy merchant, Governor of Massachusetts and President of the Second Continental Congress, signed first and so boldly so, “The British Ministry can read my name without spectacles.”

Every one of the 56 Members of the Second Continental Congress who penned their signatures paid dearly.  Nine died of wounds or hardship during the War of Independence; five were in prison for decades, five were captured as traitors and tortured and killed.  Several had wives, sons and even entire families killed. One signer lived to see all 13 of his children murdered.

Every signer was a victim of manhunts with huge bounties on their heads. They lived on the run, leaving prosperous farms, shipping businesses, and law practices. Twelve signers had their homes and property burned to ruins and 17 lost everything dying destitute, yet not one defected or went back on his pledged word.

With poetic justice, on the 50th anniversary of their signing, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on the Fourth of July within hours of each other and five years to the day, James Madison also passed on the fourth.

As FDR reminded us over 70 years ago on the holiday, “Those of us who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy today forget that men died to win them.”

Despite all the hardship endured, John Adams felt July 4 must be a festive occasion, and wrote to Abigail that he wanted the fourth, “to be celebrated with pomp and parades, with shows, games, sports, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of the continent to the other.”

We have certainly lived up to President Adams wishes!

On a lighter note, the Fourth of July is the most popular day for barbecuing and Americans spend $6.7 billion on food: the most popular food, not surprisingly being the hotdog, as we will eat 150 million of them on Tuesday with about 86% of Americans planning to celebrate the holiday.

The Fourth is also one of the country‘s most prolific holidays for drinking right up there with Super Bowl Sunday and St. Patrick’s Day with $3 billion spent on beer and wine alone.

Around the holiday, Americans buy more than 6.5 million flags with 99% of them made in China.

$7 billion will be spent on fireworks and not surprisingly, 74% of all fireworks injuries occur within the weeks surrounding the Fourth.

Surprisingly, the Fourth of July was not made a federal holiday until 1870, nearly 100 years after the nation was founded and it was not a paid federal holiday until 1941. During World War II, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution spent the duration in Fort Knox. Two weeks after Pearl Harbor, both documents were packed in 150 pounds of protective gear and escorted via train by the Secret Service to Louisville.

For those who appreciate document edits, after Jefferson wrote the initial draft of the Declaration of Independence, the other members of the draft committee including Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman made 86 changes, including shortening the overall length by more than a fourth. 
Jefferson was quite unhappy about the edits, particularly the removal of language condemning the British promotion of the slave trade, even though he was a slave owner and Robert Livingston, though a member of the writing committee, refused to sign the document as he believed it was too soon to declare independence.

At the time Benjamin Franklin proposed that the turkey be named the official national bird in the narrative but he was overruled by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson who recommended as a side edition, that it be the bald eagle. 
 
There are actually five references to God in the Declaration of Independence and the stars on the original flag were in a circle so that all 13 colonies would appear equal.

What is probably the most widely held misconception is that the document was actually signed on July 4, 1776.

In fact, independence was formally declared on July 2, 1776 a day John Adams believed would be, “The most important epoch in the history of America.” 
Only two men signed on the fourth, one being the famous John Hancock with the other 54 signing over the course of several months not days.

Quotes made by the founders surrounding the creation of the document are timeless and certainly quite apropos.

“For true patriots to be silent, is dangerous.”—Samuel Adams

“If ever the time should come, when vain & aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin.”—Samuel Adams

“The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.”—Thomas Jefferson

 

Bronxville Insider: Mayor Mary Marvin: Mayor's Column Week of June 26th.

Mayor’s Column: June 26, 2023.

Our treasured bookstore has just set up a Go Fund Me page with the hopes of generating revenue in order to continue initiatives that will keep the bookstore going and growing.

So far your generosity, just on a person to person appeal basis, has generated $50,000 towards a goal of $150,000. To donate click here to be directed to their Go Fund Me page.

The changes anticipated with this funding infusion include launching an in-store café already in the works; revitalizing the space by removing the drop ceiling to reveal  the original pressed tin ceiling and skylight 10 feet above; replacing  worn carpet with durable hardwood, installing better lighting and most importantly, promoting in-store events, community partnerships and customer loyalty programs  to ensure sustainability.

Events anticipated include more author visits, children’s activities, a nexus for book groups, introduction of monthly new titles and expanding online access and purchase.

The comprehensive business plan calls for an increase in annual revenue of 15% based on similar sized stores with cafés. The café alone should conservatively generate a 5% growth, leaving 10% to be developed through the enhanced programs.

As you may recall, twenty year Village residents, Barbara and Morin Bishop, purchased the 85 year old bookstore just six months before the pandemic struck, virtually eliminating the opportunity for any in-store programs, let alone in store customer purchasing and they have been struggling to recover from this grievous blow ever since.

Let’s be honest, no one gets into book selling to make millions so independent booksellers like the Bishops sell books because they enjoy doing so as they are passionate readers with a deep faith in the value of the written word.

Currently, the landscape is bleak for the small independent bookstore as the behemoths completely invade the space. More than one independent bookstore has closed each week since the pandemic and currently 20% of independent bookstores across the country are in danger of closing. But we need not worry about Amazon as it has doubled its net profit year after year to $5.2 billion compared to $2.6 billion at this time in 2019. Amazon’s Q4 revenue  is also projected to exceed $100 billion for the first time making it one of the very few American companies ever to achieve that alongside only Walmart and Exxon.

So why is it worth it when it seems so much more convenient to order a book at midnight that someone told you about on your way home from work instead of waiting to call Womraths the next morning? On the very well documented financial front and just reaffirmed by the firms Civic Economics, using the Andersonville neighborhood of Chicago as a template, trading independent retailers for big box chains unequivocally weakens the local economy.

This occurs because while local stores recycle a much larger share of their sales revenue back into the local economy, most of the dollars spent at chain stores immediately leave the community, sending profits back to corporate headquarters or to distant suppliers.

In contrast to national chains, local businesses conduct all management functions on site, spend a higher percentage of their revenue on local labor, spend more than two times as much purchasing goods and services from other local businesses, use local banks, locally hired accountants, attorneys, designers, and advertise in local media. Approximate 28% of all independent bookstore revenue immediately re-circulates in the local economy compared to that of Amazon, which research documents a recirculating rate of 4%. Or as someone said buy books from people who want to sell books and help your town, not colonize the moon. Bookstores pay into state and local taxes that support our public infrastructure programs. Just a perusal of the Village budget would most certainly attest to that. A book may seem like a small purchase, but whenever you buy locally, you are sustaining your community.

Buying local also means less packaging, less transportation and a smaller carbon footprint and there is no need for two day shipping in cartons when you can pick up your book directly from the bookstore by walking there. Very important to our community in particular, on average charitable giving by local businesses is five times that of chain stores. As you can clearly notice when we have wonderful fundraisers at the schools and churches, the donations are never courtesy of Amazon or even Barnes and Noble.

The hope is that informed people like Village residents will realize the cost and consequences of “convenience “shopping before it’s too late.

Equally important is the non-economic benefits to a community like ours. A revitalized bookstore can be a beacon of the core values of our community: creativity, convening with neighbors, civility and just interpersonal contact as we browse the shelves together in search of something, perhaps not yet known, and enjoying the delights of accidental learning and discovery.

A bookstore presents a logical location for community interaction and perhaps making a reader friend in a meaningful face-to-face way. Bookstores are also never a sad place for a community. Part of the new philosophy of bookstores is to become what is now called a “third place”, not home or work or school, but a critical area for relationship building, exchanging ideas, or just relaxing and perhaps becoming a hub for book clubs, story times, author talks, writing workshops or just sometimes a nice quiet place to be alongside the book you are loving.

Neighborhood bookstores also highlight the work of regional and even very local authors and small presses and will also be a window for display of local events.

We know the pride we all take in all good deeds; as example, our new composting program, doing more recycling, planting trees, reducing our carbon footprint, donating to a charity that needs us or even limiting our tech time. I think the same warm feeling could apply to shopping locally. As you can gather, I feel quite passionate about retaining our local character and ethos via the bookstore. As I said in a recent column, “The Village has many stores, all part of the fabric of our unique small downtown, but some represent more than just a business, an edifice, and represent what a community wants to be. Personally, I cannot imagine our special home without our bookstore. It says something about what we value and hold dear. Our bookstore at 85 years old is iconic, a wonderful throwback, but in so many ways so is our one square mile and perhaps why we treasure it so.”

Bronxville Insider: Mayor's Column April 24, 2023.

Mayor’s Column: April 24, 2023.

“Poems are made by fools like me, but only God can make a tree.”  Joyce Kilmer

On this Friday, April 27, the entire nation celebrates Arbor Day.

As commemoration, we plan to plant a new beech tree to replace the one we lost to disease on Beechtree Lane, so named for that venerable and exquisite tree.

In addition, Arbor Day will signal the start of our street tree planting throughout the Village.

In the spirit of Arbor Day, the Village will redouble efforts to plant trees lost in the past decade due to storms, as well as trimming and feeding those that survived. We recognize they are our most valuable natural resource as the benefits of trees make them the best bang for the buck in preserving the character and health of our Village.

My colleagues on the Village’s Green Committee feel exactly the same way, and they are writing their column this week about the importance of what truly are the lungs of the planet.

Our double mention just emphasizes the critical need for healthy trees in our Village.

As point of history, the first Arbor Day originated in Nebraska City, Nebraska on April 10, 1872 when an estimated 1 million trees were planted in one day.

The brainchild behind this Herculean effort was J. Sterling Morton, a westward pioneer born in Detroit. Morton was a journalist who soon became editor of Nebraska’s premier newspaper, which became his voice to advocate for families and civic organizations to plant the trees/species they so missed from their home states. 
According to accounts, Nebraska City celebrated Arbor Day with grand parades and school children planting and then caring for the trees they planted.

In 1885, it became a legal holiday in Nebraska, and other states soon followed with 45 of them celebrating by 1920. The first documented Arbor Day worldwide was celebrated in the Spanish village of Mondonedo in 1594 when the entire community planted lime and horse chestnut trees and today 44 other nations worldwide celebrate the holiday.

On April 15, 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt issued the, “Arbor Day Proclamation” to the school children of the United States emphasizing the importance of trees and forestry.

Forty nations now have national observances.

We all know that trees are essential as a food source, harboring wildlife, lumber, pulp and take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen, but did you know that a single acre of trees could produce enough oxygen for 18 people for an entire year and absorb the same amount of CO2 produced by 26,000 car miles? Staying in the energy realm, just three trees placed strategically around a single-family home can cut summer air conditioning needs by 50%.

Trees placed in commercial areas can lower temperatures in a parking lot and break up the black top “heat islands.”

The net cooling effect of just one young healthy tree is equivalent to 10 room size air conditioners operating 20 hours a day.

In all facets of the quality of life, the importance of a healthy tree stock cannot be overstated.

Trees absorb odors and pollutant gases and filter dirty particles out of the air. 
Shade from trees also slows water evaporation from thirsty lawns and parks. Trees reduce runoff by breaking rainfall, thus allowing the water to float down the trunk and into the earth below the tree. The slow runoff also prevents erosion by holding soil in place.

Of great importance is the role they play on school property and playgrounds as trees reduce UV -8 exposure by almost 50%, providing protection to children playing outdoors.

Trees on private property also produce great monetary benefit. Studies have demonstrated that 10 to 23% of the value of a residence is based on its tree stock.

More intangible, but so important nonetheless, is the value of trees in marking the seasons, calming a stark landscape, acting as neighborhood landmarks and points of identity. They also serve as symbolic links to the past when other connections have long since gone.

Recent studies also show that being around trees can have a calming effect, relaxing brain waves, and reducing our heart rates while offering our eyes visions of beauty. These varied and truly amazing benefits are why we think celebrating Arbor Day is so important and we encourage you as a family to plant a tree, native shrubs or even a patio container garden this weekend as according to an old Chinese proverb, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

Bronxville Insider: Mayor's Column.

Mayor’s Column: April 3, 2023.

I am honestly working as hard as I can to share how the Governor’s “Housing Compact” would not only affect Bronxville but all small communities especially in Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester Counties that have rail lines in their municipalities.

In the interest of full disclosure, the following, in speech like form, is what I have been sharing with other communities as well as organizations that have sought my input.

By necessity, the remarks to follow have been edited based on speaking time limits and the tone and tenor of the audience.

“Thank you for giving me this opportunity. I will just give you facts, not my view, how this Housing Compact affects a small Village such as mine, which is Bronxville, just under one square mile.

A little background:

In the Governor’s budget, school-aid will increase by 10% to $34.5 billion. Aid to municipalities will increase by zero in all categories of local assistance. It remains flat at $750 million, even though the Governor’s budget has an increase of $7 billion.

Some Food for Thought Re: the Housing Compact

In a New York Times article titled, Hochul’s Massive Campaign Fortune: Here’s Who It Came From, “Governor Hochul received the legal limit in campaign donations of $69,700 from dozens of New York City’s biggest real estate firms, including Vornado Realty Trust. Douglas Durst, who chairs the influential Real Estate Board, personally gave $55,000; members of the Rudin, Tishman and Speyer families collectively contributed more than $400,000.  All of the top executives at Related Companies maxed out in contributions.”

As stated in the Times, “Few industries gave more than real estate and frequently in large amounts and large developers are keenly watching how Hochul will not only approach large state funded capital projects, but the future of the state’s affordable housing law.”

So this is where we are.

Caveat: My community completely understands the need for affordable/workforce housing and wants to be part of a cooperative, collaborative solution. As Martin Luther King said, “A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus." 

I have been in contact so far with over two dozen Mayors, all of whom are from Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Not one of us has been contacted by the Governor’s office as to how this law might actually play out especially in small communities.

Bronxville: Part One of the program requires a community such as Bronxville to increase housing by 3% every 3 years, which translates into 75 units per cycle. The Governor has stated that, “This legislation is to build housing for employees, this is for families; this is for senior citizens.” Given how the legislation is written, every community could meet their requirement by a developer building above market co-ops or condos, clearly not meeting the affordable objective. Given our density, which is the highest in Westchester along with Pelham and Tuckahoe, even to do that would require us to tear down existing structures and/or violate our own local zoning. But important: no affordable housing is required in Part One.

Should we miss this deadline, a mechanism will be triggered by the state for mixed income, multifamily projects, notwithstanding any local zoning, planning or land-use regulations to the contrary for the developer who steps in. This includes no height, parking, historical or environmental concerns.

We are also part of the Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) compulsory new zoning law requiring the Village to pass a density law allowing 50 units per acre in the half-mile radius surrounding our train station. As written, 2/3 of Bronxville would be a transit oriented development site.

A Village of 6600 people and 2650 homes and a school capacity near 1500, the new law would allow the building of 10,000 potential new housing units. The cost of this TOD mandate would include the Village’s expenses for water and sewer service, police coverage, fire protection, road construction, parking and the education of students.

The Governor has offered $250 million statewide to help cover these costs. As example, our neighbors in Mount Vernon need this amount just to fix their current aging water/sewer infrastructure.

To be conservative, this amount of money could probably assist one medium sized city in the State, resulting in the largest unfunded mandate in State history.

As the flooding is so constant in Bronxville, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation designated our area their next to study and assist. While we are fighting hard for flood monies on the one hand, the lack of any environmental reviews would allow high-rises to be built on these same floodplains.

Like many other communities in Westchester, our infrastructure is over 125 years old and we live in a Town that’s over 350 years old. We are going to be bonding millions of dollars just to give the current residents the water and sewer services that are needed for a healthy environment.

A community with 2650 housing units expected to absorb 10,000 more units by legislation is incomprehensible.

I will end with the words of Nelson Mandela who said, “Lead from the back and let others believe they are in the front”, and less gently, the words of Dwight D. Eisenhower, “You do not lead by hitting people over the head; that is assault, not leadership.”