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Olivia Castor and Peggy Hatton
Explain the Crisis in East Ramapo Schools 
Ramapo
Finds Way to Enable Illegal School Conversion 
Benjamin Wallace-Wells--Author
of "Them and Them" appears 
FBI
Arrests Spring Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmin and 
|
Village Elections--Results
Chestnut Ridge Elects Mayor Sam
Presti with 978 votes to Nancy Guirand's 303 votes |
WARD UPDATE
Judge Garvey Denies Motion to Dismiss Filed by the Town of Ramapo
Click here for the latest update on the Ward Petition and Petition to increase number of council members.
State may act on East Ramapo, education chief says
King responds to activist's concerns about troubled district
March 14, 2013
"The state’s
chief education official says he’s ready to intervene further in the
East Ramapo schools’
crisis if the district doesn’t take sufficient action on its own. In
a letter to a community activist, state Education Commissioner
John King Jr. said he’s “prepared to take escalating action, as
authorized by law,” if East Ramapo officials don’t “make sufficient
progress” to address the district’s problems, including its
multimillion-dollar deficit. Such action, according to state
education
law, may include the removal of local school officials if it’s
proved that they willfully violated the law or disobeyed an order
of the commissioner or Board of Regents.
The warning heartened activists who had hand-delivered a petition
with almost 5,000
signatures in Albany in January, asking King to appoint an oversight
monitor to take charge of the troubled district." Complete
Journal News coverage
here.
Dividing the East Ramapo District—A Response
March 13, 2013
State Senator Ken Zebrowski deserves real credit for his concern for
the future of the children who attend schools
in the East Ramapo school district. Unfortunately his proposed plan
to divide the district into two separate segregated school
districts is not legal, or, even if it were, a practical solution.
Read the full text of Bob Rhodes' response to the Zebrowski plan
here.
Zebrowski on East Ramapo: Create 2 school districts
March 13, 2013 "A
state lawmaker says the “untenable” problems of the East Ramapo
school district could be solved by carving out
new geographic lines that would divide the current district into
two. In an exclusive interview this week with The Journal News,
Assemblyman Kenneth Zebrowski Jr. said he wants to appropriate money
in this year’s state budget to commission an independent
feasibility study on his proposal.The plan, he said, would create a
new school district to serve the needs of East Ramapo’s 9,000
public school students — many of whom come from low-income,
immigrant families." Full story
here.
School
Board offers New
Interpretation of the First Amendment
March 12, 2013
School board president, Daniel Schwartz,declared tonight at a public meeting that if the "miscreants"
who offer critical and cynical remarks in the public comment
part of the board meetings persist, he and the board will move
the public comment section to the end of the meeting and perhaps
will even eliminate public comments from the meetings entirely.
That's what he said. If you don't have something nice or positive
to say, we'll simply remove your right to say anything. The
"miscreants" will surrender their right to public input, exchanging it
for the disciplined silence that badly behaved children deserve.
Some tutoring for this assemblage seems in order. Vocabulary, as in: How do you define the word "divisive"? And certainly a review
of the American Constitution and it's application in all American communities, even this one. To hear the President of this board call
the parents and students "miscreants" (more than once, actually) on the same day his attorney had a professional complaint filed against
him for cursing out an honor student might serve as a grim example of irony, and disturbing arrogance.
[di-vi-sive adj. : creating disunity or dissension] And please check out the sections in the First Amendment on "free speech" and, more
importantly, "the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances." You can view the video of the threats here.
Parent
files ethics complaint against E. Ramapo attorney
March 11, 2013 Newsday
"The mother of a student who was the subject of some harsh words from
East Ramapo School Board attorney Albert D'Agostino filed a complaint with the Grievance Committee for the Tenth Judicial District on Thursday.
Charlene Williams-Pulakos asked the committee to investigate an incident Tuesday in which D'Agostino allegedly called her
17-year-old son, Nicholas, a profane name after a School Board meeting. Williams-Pulakos is the supervising court attorney
for Bronx criminal court." (More)
East Ramapo schools attorney D'Agostino curses at student after board meeting
March 6, 2013 Newsday "A heated School Board meeting had just ended at about 8:30 p.m. after members of the boardunceremoniously took off early -- yet again -- leaving the board without a quorum and students without someone to hear
their complaints about cuts to programs and changes to graduation." Complete Newsday story here.
Legal Fees to Defend East Ramapo School Board Now at $3,000 a day
March 6, 2013 The East Ramapo School Board, whose deficiencies
have "exposed District funds and assets to abuse,
waste, and/or loss," according to the New York State Comptroller, are
currently fighting legal actions against the New York
Attorney General (investigating sales of school buildings), the New York
Board of Education (for illegal placement of students in
private schools, lost and mismanaged funds and resources), and 600 East
Ramapo parents who have launched a class action lawsuit
against the board members for "siphoning off public money to support
private religious institutions," and "segregating students in
special-education programs based on their race, at taxpayer’s expense"
(filed by the public-interest law firm Advocates for Justice).
The cost for defending this group, which the Comptroller’s Report
claims, "[Have] failed to fulfill its stewardship, oversight, and
leadership responsibilities," is considerable. Worse, it’s being shoved
off onto the taxpayers.
(More)
Newsday--State school officials to East Ramapo: Show us your books
March 1, 2013 "State
education officials have asked East Ramapo to allow them to examine the
beleaguered
school district's financial records in an effort to resolve a persistent
budget crisis. In a Feb. 14 letter obtained by
Newsday, Deputy Education Commissioner Ken Slentz deemed that East
Ramapo again had failed to provide the
state with sufficient information to determine why the district is
operating with a midyear deficit. Slentz also
requested a meeting with district leaders." Complete Newsday story
here.
NY Attorney General seeks testimony from ex-East Ramapo board member
March 1,
2013 "—
At least one former East Ramapo school board member has been asked to
testify to state
Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office, which is probing the
district’s controversial sales and leasing of
two former public school buildings to local yeshivas. Stephen Price, one
of two board members who abruptly
resigned from the fractured school board in January, told The Journal
News he was recently contacted by the
Attorney General’s office and asked to testify. 'They haven’t indicated
when. They just said they wanted to
talk to me,' Price said Thursday evening. He added that the office gave
no indication in a recent letter addressed
to him what the subject of the questioning would be about." Complete
Journal News story
here.
East Ramapo: State seeks rare meeting over finances
Feb. 28, 2013 "With
the troubled East Ramapo school district facing a multimillion-dollar
shortfall and the
potential of more program cuts, state education officials say they want
to meet face to face with school
leaders to address the district’s budget and its plans to dig out of its
deficit.
It’s a rare
intervention by the
state Education Department, which has been monitoring East Ramapo’s
financial problems and in recent months
demanded officials submit a plan to the state for how it will balance
its budget." Complete Journal News story
here.
East Ramapo fails public school students
Feb. 25, 2013 "I
was both perplexed and disturbed when reading the response by the
president of the East
Ramapo school board, Daniel Schwartz. Where is the mention of the public
school student? He has a fiduciary
duty to steward children through the K-12 educational process and
through education reform changes, and to
provide for them with proper budgeting." Complete Community View Reply
here.
Report: New
Square yeshiva got millions in tech funds despite
no student access to computers
Feb. 19, 2012 "An
all-boys school in the Hasidic village of New Square has accepted more
than $3.3 million
in federal funds earmarked for Internet and telecommunications
technology
even though students there do
not have access to computers, an investigation by the Manhattan-based
Jewish Week has found. According to
a Feb. 15 report published by the newspaper, Yeshiva Avir Yakov in New
Square “is just one of many fervently
Orthodox Jewish schools
in New York State that, despite publicly eschewing Internet use and
despite offering
their students minimal, if any, access to computers, have spent large
sums of E-rate money.” Journal News
story
here.
The Jewish
Week: Internet-Averse Haredi Schools Reaping Millions
in Federal Tech Funds
How does a
community that rails against the Web pull in $30 million in one year for
its schools from the
E-rate program? Story
here.
Ramapo's decision to refinance Provident Bank Park sparks state concerns
Feb. 15, 2013 "Ramapo
Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence signed off on the refinancing of
Provident Bank Park
despite not knowing how the stadium fared financially in 2012, sparking
concern and outrage from the state comptroller
as well as local residents.
St. Lawrence, who heads the town-backed Local Development Corporation,
and LDC board
members John Brunson and Moses Gross on Thursday extended the initial
five-year, $25 million bond financing for the
2-year-old Pomona ballpark to a debt that would be paid off over the
next three decades, LDC attorney Aaron Troodler
told Newsday.
While the terms of the refinancing seem favorable, to some critics of
the ballpark, it also raised red flags,
particularly with revenue figures from 2012 still not available, five
months after the stadium's tenants, independent baseball's
Rockland Boulders, finished off their season. "Short of them coming up
with new figures, I'm not sure how this is going to
alleviate any of the concerns of the initial audit," said Brian Butry, a
spokesman for state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, referring
to an investigation his office conducted in February 2012 that raised
questions about the ballpark's revenue estimates.The decision
to refinance has only exacerbated the concerns found in the 2012 probe,
said Butry, who added that this could spark another
audit from the comptroller." Read the complete
Newsday story here.
State firm on E. Ramapo special education violations
Feb. 13, 2013 "The
state Education Department is standing by its findings that the East
Ramapo school district
has violated the law in its placement of students with disabilities and
must take corrective action or face financial
and other consequences. Assistant Commissioner James DeLorenzo made the
statements in a Feb. 6 letter written in
response to a January rebuttal letter from East Ramapo lawyer David
Butler.East Ramapo has been cited by the state
three times since 2010, and subsequently had funding withheld, for
placing students with disabilities in private schools,
specifically private Jewish schools, or yeshivas, when public school
options were available. DeLorenzo’s recent response,
first reported Wednesday by The Journal News, makes clear that the state
will take action against East Ramapo if officials
don’t comply with several requirements — including creating a plan to
bring students who’ve been sent elsewhere for
Yiddish education programs back into the district.“A
(local educational agency) must conduct itself in compliance with the
letter and purpose of the law. We find in these instances, that the
district did not do so, and is now attempting to justify
its actions under the law,” DeLorenzo wrote.If the district doesn’t
comply, DeLorenzo states, it is subject to further enforcement
actions by the state Education Department, including redirection and/or
withholding of federal funds. A commissioner’s order
to the board and superintendent could also result. In the case of a
school board’s willful violation of an order from the state
education commissioner, John King Jr., the commissioner has the
authority to remove school board members from office.
The state, however, can take over a school district only if special
legislation is passed to authorize it." Read the complete text
of the Journal News story
here. Additional coverage in a Newsday story can be read
here.
I'll Show You Mine, If You Show Me Yours!
Newsday publishes a provocative
challenge from a perspective applicant for one of the vacant seats on
the East Ramapo School Board. It's both hilarious and very sad. Read the
letter here.
Ohhmmglph
February 4, 2013 On his Saturday radio
broadcast, Supervisor St. Lawrence had a
little trouble "controlling the message" when the laces on his Oxford
got in the way
of his usual measured eloquence.
(More)
The
Ramapo Sinkhole Known as the RLDC
January 31, 2013
Over the past year, millions have been transferred
from
the Town of Ramapo tax resources to Supervisor St. Lawrence’s
private
development company called the RLDC (Ramapo Local Development
Corp).
It’s a small corporation, St. Lawrence is both President and Chairman
of
the Board and there are two other members of the board and that’s it.
Yet it
spends tens of millions of taxpayer dollars each year. The New York
State
Comptroller’s Office has warned in a highly critical audit that the RLDC
funds
and the Town of Ramapo funds must be kept separate and apart. But since
the RLDC doesn’t have the money to
do what
it wants, it takes what it needs from the Town coffers. The State’s
warning is not an obstacle because the
Town Board
is as deaf to what the State says as St. Lawrence, who, of course, is
the herder of this group of accomplices.
(More)
Journal
News Editorial Calls for State Investigation of Resignations
January 25, 2013 Today, on its
editorial page, The Journal News echoed the same call for a State
investigation of those
circumstances that motivated the resignation of two school board
members, which we expressed as our first reaction to
the content of the
letters from Price and Young-Mercer. In part, the editorial reads: "The
recent resignation letters of two
East Ramapo school board trustees assert ongoing intimidation, accuse
the district’s administration of withholding key
information amid a fiscal crisis and express a lack of trust in the
district’s leadership. But what could be the most important
line comes at the very end — a cc to Dr. John B. King, New York state’s
commissioner of education. He needs to study the
letters closely as he weighs the need for future state intervention in a
district drowning in red ink and community distrust."
Read the entire editorial
here.
Why Stephen
Price and Suzanne Young-Mercer Resigned from
the East Ramapo School Board--Full Text of their Resignation Letters
January 23, 2013 The letters include
a number of serious situations that require investigation by state
officials. Read both
letters
here.
'Intimidation' cited by East Ramapo trustees who resigned--
School Board Comprised Now Entirely of Orthodox and Hasidic Members
January 23,
2013 "Two
East Ramapo school board members who unexpectedly resigned Tuesday said
they did so because
it had become “exceedingly difficult” to work in the district due to a
lack of information from the schools superintendent and
continuous intimidation from their fellow board members. Stephen Price
and Suzanne Young-Mercer submitted their resignation
letters to District Clerk Cathy Russell on Monday. The resignations were
announced at Tuesday night’s Board of Education meeting,
which Young-Mercer and Price did not attend. Young-Mercer said doing her
job as an elected official had become “exceedingly
difficult ... due to the lack of trust I have in the information being
provided to me.” She also cited “the persistent level of
intimidation” she felt when she spoke out or raised concerns, including
verbal abuse by fellow trustees. Price, who has served as
trustee for 20 years, wrote there was a “continuing pattern of
harassment and intimidation” that made it near impossible for him
to carry out his duties. In addition to being denied access to district
information, he wrote was “wrongfully accused of religious
discrimination” and threatened with legal actions.
Price also wrote he had made numerous requests to Klein for financial
and cash
flow data and other budget information but that his requests were
“ignored and the scant information that I did receive was generally
incomplete or inaccurate.” Read the complete Journal News story
here.
Ward System Update--Where the Petition Effort Stands in the Courts
January 21, 2013 The Town of
Ramapo is still fighting the legal right of petitioners to have a
referendum vote on whether Ramapo
should be divided into Wards, each with their own elected representative
on the Town Board.
(More)
After 26 years, Chestnut Ridge's only mayor says
it's time to step down
Jan. 19, 2013
It was general "mistrust of Ramapo government led to the creation of the
Village of Chestnut Ridge
in 1986. Chestnut Ridge followed several other communities becoming
villages in response to town government
planning or lack of enforcement of zoning laws. Kobre has been the
village’s only mayor and is currently the
longest-serving mayor in the county. 'I am proud to have been the mayor
of this beautiful, diverse community,'
Kobre said last week. 'It’s time for someone else to lead after 26 years
as mayor. The village needs someone younger who will
keep the village, in our estimation, the best in the entire county.'
Kobre has endorsed Rosario “Sam” Presti Jr. as his successor.
An election is set for March 19." The complete Journal News story
can be read
here.
East Ramapo threatens to sue Education Dept.
Jan 19, 2013
"The East
Ramapo school district is threatening legal action against the state
Education Department as officials challenge
state findings on their handling of special education student
placements.
In a blistering, 11-page letter to state officials, East
Ramapo
attorney David Butler writes the state has “misapplied and
misinterpreted” laws in determining the district remains in
noncompliance
with rules that require special education students be taught in the
“least restrictive environment.” East Ramapo has been cited three
times since 2010 in state reviews for placing students with disabilities
in private schools, specifically private Jewish schools, or yeshivas,
when placements in public schools were available.
Butler’s letter, dated Monday, is a response to the third citation on
Dec. 19 in a letter
from Assistant Commissioner James DeLorenzo, in the state Office of
Special Education, that requests corrective action from the district.
Required actions, according to DeLorenzo’s letter, include the immediate
“cease and desist” of allowing one district employee to “unilaterally”
determine the placement of students with disabilities and override
placement recommendations by the district’s Committee on Special
Education." Complete Journal News coverage
here.
East Ramapo needs money, oversight--A Journal News Editorial
Jan 18, 2013 "This is how East Ramapo school district leaders have answered the state’s demand that it present a comprehensiveplan to dig out of its deep deficit: It’s your fault, you fix it. The district’s general plan for correcting its financial woes — contained
in a four-page letter by Superintendent Joel Klein, along with seven addendum documents — mostly relies on the state changing aid
formulas so the district gets more money. That is hardly a path forward for a district that has rung up a $9.2 million operating deficit,
and owes Rockland BOCES $5 million for services provided to East Ramapo students. East Ramapo needs money, and it needs oversight.
The state — taxpayers — should make no further investment in the district without first setting up a structure to heighten oversight and
accountability, and ensure East Ramapo meets its financial obligation and legal duty to provide a sound basic education to the children
it serves." Read the rest of the Journal editorial here.
Ramapo
Planning Board delays vote on
Patrick Farm,
seeks to scale back housing
plan amid public opposition
Town
urged to
delay OK pending design review
January 17,
2013 "The
town Planning Board closed a public hearing on the long-debated
Patrick Farm development Wednesday night with a decision to seek a
reduction in the nearly
500 housing units proposed for construction on a vast parcel of
undeveloped land. The controversial
project calls for 410 high-density multifamily units and 87
single-family houses on 208 acres off routes
202 and 306 outside the
village of Pomona.
Opponents have fought Patrick Farm for years, arguing a
project of its
size will destroy the character of the single-family neighborhood and
endanger the environment. The Planning Board closed the
hearing as
midnight approached after hearing out more than three hours of speakers,
many of whom urged board members to delay final
approval of the project
to allow for further review of the designs. The board agreed to solicit
further written comments from the public and
the project applicant on
several disputed issues through Jan. 30." Journal News story
here.
East Ramapo makes deadline on deficit; schools chief seeks N.Y. help in fiscal crisis
January 17, 2013 "East
Ramapo school
officials made a state Education Department deadline Wednesday to submit
a
plan to address the district’s deficit, but they say that aside from a
multimillion-dollar bond they intend to use to close
this year’s shortfall, there’s “almost nothing” they can do to solve the
district’s broader financial crisis without an overhaul
of the state funding formula. East Ramapo Superintendent of Schools
Joel Klein made the statements in a four-page letter
to state education officials, at once pleading for support from the
state and criticizing the tenor of its recent communications
with the district." Complete Journal News coverage
here.
Sandy showed risks of Hudson water treatment plant plan
January 17, 2013 "If
United Water’s desalination plant, proposed for Haverstraw Bay, had been
built last year, the critical
water intake infrastructure and pipes could have been destroyed by
Superstorm Sandy. Unprecedented storm surges, 10 feet
in Haverstraw Bay, stripped the fronts off houses near the water, and
dislodged intake pipes and mangled equipment used
for United Water’s pilot plant. The storm knocked marine fuel tanks into
the Hudson and forced the partial shutdown of Indian Point,
located only 3.5 miles upstream from the proposed intake for United
Water’s plant. Raw sewage flooded the area adjacent to the
proposed water supply intake. Access roads to the proposed sites, needed
in emergencies, were completely flooded and impassable.
In short, the storm would have jeopardized public water supply for
hundreds of thousands of people."
(More)
Pomona
Court Decision-- Rabbinical College of Tartikov
Judge Dismisses Half of Complaint and Declares Major
Principle of Law—Next Step,
Pomona Responds to Decision
January 14, 2013 In an interview Saturday morning, Marci
Hamilton, one of the lead attorneys for the Village
of Pomona, told Preserve Ramapo she was very pleased with the
decision from U.S. District Judge Kenneth
Karas. "He did a great job," she said. "He called all of the
relevant case law and was absolutely clear that no
one comes into a community and gets to build without first making an
application." Without this clarification,
she explained, you would have the federal government (through the
RLUIPA law) establishing itself as a local
governmental authority, controlling land use and development.
(More)
School district makes big cuts--E. Ramapo axes teachers and sports
January 9, 2013 "A
week ahead of a state deadline to get a deficit-reduction plan in
place, the East Ramapo school board approved
eliminating six music teachers and almost all spring sports and
plans to borrow nearly $10 million to plug its massive deficit. The
decisions,
voted on during a meeting Tuesday night, followed a tense month of
budget discussions that involved public outcry from hundreds of
parents and students who protested initial proposals to cut
kindergarten and the entire elementary music and art program. Major
budget
cuts are imperative if the district is to meet a state deadline next
week requiring it to submit a plan to address the deficit and
balance
its budget, including payment of $5 million in overdue bills to
Rockland Board of Cooperative Educational Services." Complete story
here.
Lawsuits
mount against Minisceongo Park shopping center--Ramapo and
Haverstraw boards targeted
January 7, 2013
"Opponents of the
proposed Minisceongo Park shopping center have filed another set of
lawsuits against the towns
of Haverstraw and Ramapo. The development is proposed for a 53-acre
lot that straddles the Haverstraw and Ramapo border on
Route 202 near Exit 13 of the Palisades Interstate Parkway. One of
the recent lawsuits was filed by the village of Pomona, which
is challenging the Haverstraw and Ramapo planning board actions.
Other lawsuits were filed by local businesses including Green Earth
Farms Rockland LLC, Paint’N Place Inc., 202 United Development
Corp., Parkway Realty Corp., and Good Council Realty Ltd. and John
McDowell, who challenge actions by the Haverstraw town Planning
Board and the Rampo town planning and zoning boards." Journal
coverage
here.
DEC sets Patrick Farm public hearing,
suspends 90-day limit for permit review
January 5, 2013
"The debate over
the controversial Patrick
Farm development will move to a public stage next week when
residents get a chance to voice their opinions to state regulators.
New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation has scheduled
a legislative public hearing for Monday at the Joseph T. St.
Lawrence
Community, Health and Sports Center, 115 Torne Valley Road,
Hillburn.
Sessions at 3 and 6:30 p.m. are intended to solicit public comment
as
part of the ongoing environmental review from the state agency,
which needs to sign off on two permits before construction begins.
DEC spokeswoman Wendy Rosenbach said the agency was taking the
concern over the development’s impact seriously." Complete story
here.
Conceptual photo shows development proposed for the Patrick Farm
Property
Man
agrees to do community service, apologize for water-balloon scuffle
January 4, 2013 "A
man involved in the Spring Valley water-balloon incident — in which 50
men surrounded a
family — agreed Thursday to accept 40 hours of community service and
sign a letter of apology to the family of
Sherry Scott, the village clerk. As part of the court agreement, Solomon
Simkowitz, 40, of Wesley Hills will
see charges that he pushed Scott and harassed her family on June 15,
2011, dismissed if he stays out of trouble
for six months after finishing his community service. The incident
erupted when Scott’s then-11-year-old daughter
tossed a water balloon and hit a car driven by a Hasidic Jew, who was
turning off Monsey Boulevard onto Fletcher Drive.
The driver called the Chaverim of Rockland, a volunteer group that
assists community members. About 40 to 50 members
of Chaverim descended on the apartment where the Scotts live on Fletcher
Drive, police said. Spring Valley police and Scott contend the driver
chased Scott’s daughter, who was then protected by a 17-year-old cousin.
Scott and her son, Junathan McNeil Sr., 36, came outside. The Chaverim
and the Scott family began pushing each other, as Scott’s daughter
Shatiya tried to get into her apartment. At some point, Scott said
Simkowitz
pushed her against a brick wall, injuring her leg and back. Spring
Valley police charged Simkowitz with third-degree assault and
second-degree
harassment and Jacobowitz with second-degree reckless endangerment,
second-degree unlawful imprisonment and second-degree harassment."
Complete story
here on LoHud.
State warns E. Ramapo after deadline passes without plan
January 3, 2013
"The East Ramapo school district has just less than two weeks to get
a plan in place to address its multimillion-dollar
deficit and pay overdue debts to Rockland BOCES, state education
officials warned Thursday.A letter handed down from Deputy
Commissioner Ken Slentz is a second request to Superintendent of Schools
Joel Klein for East Ramapo to submit a plan and timeline
for addressing its estimated $8 million deficit and balance its budget,
including payment of some $5 million in back bills it owes to
Rockland BOCES.Today’s letter follows an initial Dec. 14 request from
Assistant Commissioner Charles Szuberla Jr. that gave the
district until Jan. 2 to submit the plan — a deadline East Ramapo
missed. If school board members willfully disobey or ignore an
order of the commissioner, he can remove them from office, though the
only way the state education department can actually
take over a school district is if legislation is passed to authorize
it." Journal story
here.
Town of Ramapo Kicks After-school Tutoring Program out of Spring Valley Site
January 1, 2013 "When
schools reopen Wednesday, a few dozen kids who attend a local
after-school tutoring program — and their
parents — may be out of luck because the town of Ramapo has ordered the
owner to stop operating out of its space at the Cultural
Arts Center.In a Dec. 24 letter to Jodi Georges, director of the
program, Ramapo Town Attorney Michael Klein said use of the space
on Dr. Berg Lane hasn’t been approved by the Town Board. Furthermore, he
said, the town hasn’t received proof the program is
licensed, insured and certified to operate as a not-for-profit. Georges
has been using the space for about three years after signing
an agreement in 2009 with Spring Valley village Trustee Demeza Delhomme,
who manages use of the center by not-for-profits that
serve seniors, youth and other community groups. The space is provided
rent-free to these groups by the town, which owns the
building, but the agreement authorizing Georges to run a “not-for-profit
after-school homework assistance and enrichment agency”
from noon to 7 p.m. five days a week is not town-approved, according to
Klein." Journal News story
here. For more information
on the connection between Trustee Delhomme and Supervisor St. Lawrence
see
these documents.
Community rallies to preserve graves--Historic site included in sale
of Edwin Gould Property to local developer
December 30, 2012 "Tucked
into a wooded hill on the land — some 145 acres of sprawling forest and
field off Chestnut Ridge
Road — is a tiny cemetery containing the graves of perhaps a dozen
Talmans, several of whom fought in the Revolutionary War,
Talman’s father told him. According to the family, whose ancestors were
some of the earliest settlers of Rockland County, the
property was acquired by Douwe H. Talman in 1796. It changed hands over
the years and was eventually owned by the Edwin
Gould Foundation in the 1920s, according to records from the Historical
Society of Rockland County. Earlier this month, and after
years of attempts, the Edwin Gould Foundation, based in Manhattan, sold
the property to a local limited liability company
for $9.3 million." Complete Journal News coverage
here.
Proposed Legislation Might Aid East Ramapo School District
December 28, 2012 "Sen.
David Carlucci, D-New City, plans to introduce legislation that will
increase the payout for education
funding from lottery winnings by 10 percent. That, and adding a portion
of unclaimed prize winnings to a pool for education,
could raise about $700 million for schools without increasing taxes,
Carlucci said.
Two other bills that were introduced in 2011
but stalled in committee will be reintroduced in the new session, he
said. These are a bill to change the state aid formula to
provide more money to the struggling district, and another that would
allow the commissioner of education to intervene." Click
here for complete story.
East Ramapo
still Violating Federal and NYS Laws concerning Placement of
Special Ed Students in Private Schools--Order to Post Letter Outlining
Charges
on the East Ramapo Website Still Not Obeyed
December 27, 2012 A
letter sent last week to Dr. Joel Klein Superintendent of the East
Ramapo Central School District outlined
violations of Federal and New York State laws regarding the placement of
special needs students in the district. Many have been
placed in private schools bypassing required reviews and offering no
documentation of the placements. The illegal placements
have been made by a single person handling the review. The violations go
back to July of this year. The district has been warned
several times of the violations with no change in its disregard of the
law. The letter sent last Friday explains the violations, itemizes
the demands needed to bring the district into compliance, and demands
that the letter be posted for public viewing on the East Ramapo
website in the announcements section. (The letter is dated Dec 19 and
today, Dec 27, it still is not on the website.) If the decision has
been made to hold off on posting this document until after the next
Board meeting, Jan 8, we offer
this copy.
Feel free to forward
the PDF on to other interested members of the school community--that's
what the State intended.
Law stymies savings if East Ramapo district cuts kindergarten
December 22, 2012
"A state law that entitles 5-year-olds to a public education regardless
of whether a school district
has a kindergarten program is giving East Ramapo officials reason to
pause as they consider what programs to cut — namely,
kindergarten — from their already bare-bones budget to stem a
multimillion-dollar deficit.
State education law says children
who turn 5 on or before Dec. 1 are entitled to attend public schools in
the district they live, no matter which grade they start in.
East Ramapo Superintendent
Joel Klein appeared to agree with the rationale in an interview this
week following a Board of Education
meeting where teachers and parents who’ve fiercely opposed cutting
kindergarten spoke up about the law.“We’re totally aware of
the law and we just became aware of that recently, and we will
definitely take that into consideration when making any decisions,”
Klein told The Journal News/LoHud.com Thursday." Read the complete
coverage
here.
Newsday--East Ramapo schools budget crisis: State demands answers
December 15, 2012 "With
the solvency of Rockland BOCES in peril, the state education department
sent a letter
Friday to East Ramapo school officials demanding that they balance their
budget and pay area education cooperatives
about $5 million in back bills, Newsday has learned. The missive appears
to be the first step in a process that, without
cooperation from district officials, could result in a state takeover of
the financially troubled district. "I'm very concerned
about the decisions the district is making around its finances,
including the failure to pay for the BOCES services," State
Education Commissioner John King Jr. told Newsday Friday. "We are
committed to exercising whatever authority we have
to assure that students are well served." East Ramapo school officials
estimated that, without cuts, they won't be able to
make payroll at the end of the school year. Still, when faced with
public outcry at a Dec. 4 meeting, the school board
balked at making any decisions and Orthodox Jewish board members, who
hold a majority, abruptly left the meeting
as public comment began." Read the complete Newsday article
here.
Ramapo Stadium Foes Accuse Town
of 'End Run' on
Public in Debt Vote
December 14, 2012
"It’s been almost two years
since town taxpayers first became obligated to back
$25 million in debt for Ramapo’s controversial baseball stadium. The
Town Board’s decision last week
to extend that obligation past the original five-year agreement has
critics worried that taxpayers could
get slammed down the road if revenues from the stadium and another
project, the Ramapo Commons
housing development, don’t roll in as expected. The way the vote was
held — as an unannounced “new
business” item approved at the tail end of a nearly three-hour board
meeting Dec. 3 — also has drawn the
ire of critics who’ve long opposed the stadium financing. Members of
Preserve Ramapo — a grassroots political
group whose members have challenged Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence
— claim the town purposely
shielded the vote from the public and further kept taxpayers in the dark
by failing to provide documents
from the meeting right away." The complete story on LoHud site can be
read
here.
Editorial:
Slipshod governance on Ramapo stadium financing
Journal News
Comments on Illegal $25m Bond Vote
clouded a financial relationship that has raised the ire of the New York State Comptroller’s Office and stirred
concern among credit ratings agencies. On Dec. 3, the Town Board took a vote — related to town-guaranteed
bonds for the project — that wasn’t listed on the meeting agenda. It couldn’t be found on meeting minutes either.
A week after the board action, the minutes still didn’t exist. Town officials wouldn’t even confirm the action on
the record." Read the complete editorial here.
New York State Dept. of
Environmental Conservation Orders
Public Hearing on Environmental Issues at Patrick Farm
December 10, 2012 The DEC has issued an
order for the developer of the Patrick Farm project,
Yechiel Lebovits, to set up a public hearing in Ramapo. The order
explains: "Because a significant degree of
public interest exists, DEC has made a determination to hold a
Legislative Public Hearing." The project
sponsor, Levovits, must arrange for a suitable venue for the hearing and
to secure the services of a steno-
grapher. An Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) will be assigned to the
hearing. The meeting will most likely
take place in January. Read the text of the DEC letter
here.
Boulders’ Off-season Rocky—Owners Fire the GM and the League
Scrambles to Replace another Failed Franchise
December 10, 2012 Now there are four. When the Rockland Boulders
joined the Can-Am League, two seasons ago,
there were eight teams from New Jersey, New York, New England and
Canada. Today, only four remain as the other
half of the league has gone belly up. At home, here in Rockland, the
Boulders prepared for the upcoming season by
firing the team’s general manager Dave LaPoint.
(More)
Sources: Ramapo board OKs refinancing $25M in ballpark debt to extend repayment
December 8, 2012 "With
a mega debt payment looming for the Rockland Boulders ballpark next
year, the Town Board
this week approved refinancing about $25 million in costs associated
with the park, sources with knowledge of the
decision told The Journal News/LoHud.com. The board voted unanimously,
minus one absent member, late Monday
to refinance the debt that funded construction of the park in order to
spread repayments over a longer term and lock
in a lower interest rate, the sources said. Numerous town employees and
elected officials refused to speak about the
matter on the record. The debt was issued as five-year bonds by Ramapo
Local Development Corp. and guaranteed
by the town for construction of the 3,500-plus seat baseball stadium,
known as Provident Bank Park. The park is home
to the Rockland Boulders and opened for its inaugural season in June
2011." Complete Journal News story
here.
Stavisky's Dual Role and the Inherent Conflicts
December 5, 2012 "Apparently
a flaw in the election law allows a party chairman to be approved
by a county Legislature as the election commissioner for that party. It
may be legal, but it isn’t right!
What will Mrs. Stavisky do when a candidate supported by her party
machine is challenged by an
independent candidate? Under the law, she will have the power to rule
their petition invalid and force
the independent candidate to go to court to overturn her decision. Many
Democratic committeemen
want Ann Marie Kelly to remain their impartial Democratic election
commissioner. Mrs. Stavisky obviously
did her best to prevent an open meeting. She also claims no conflict of
interest exists between the two roles."
Read
here the full text of two letters to The Journal News about
Kristin Stavisky's dual political roles on the Board
of Elections and as head of the Rockland Democratic party.
Time Off Policy Defined--Ramapo Puts Vacation Rules in Writing
December 4, 2012 "A new
policy allows town employees to use vacation, personal or other earned
time off to observe religious holidays. The policy puts in writing an
established town practice of
accommodating employees who request to leave a few hours early Fridays
to observe Shabbat, for
example, or take off a day here and there for a holiday, Ramapo
Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence
said.The policy was adopted by the Town Board on Monday night and takes
effect immediately." Read
the Journal News story
here. Full text of the new rules
here.
Some
Democrats question party chief Stavisky's dual role,
nominated as election commissioner
November 29, 2012 "Kristen
Zebrowski Stavisky’s selection as Rockland County’s Democratic election
commissioner on Monday surprised no one. But it has caused rumblings
within her party, with some
committee members saying the current Democratic election commissioner,
Ann Marie Kelly, was forced
out of her position and Stravisky engineered her selection in such a way
that her opponents did not make
it to the meeting in New City where she was voted in.Stavisky has denied
the charges." Full story
here.
Sandy Storm Surge
Raises serious Questions about
Safety Risks at Desalination Plant
November 25, 2012 "The
tremendous damaging coastal effects of the Hurricane
Sandy has added grave new concern to the public view of United Water
desalination
proposal. The United Water desalination pilot plant pump house and
intake sites
are on the shore line of Haverstraw Bay just 3.5 miles south of Indian
Point Nuclear
power station." (Full text of the Letter to the Editor in Our Town
here.)
Wal-Mart on the Minisceongo Park Site--A Community View
November 24, 2012 "At the Nov. 14
Planning Board meeting, community residents, wetlands experts and
local business owners voiced objections to the project, ranging from the
negative impact on the character
of the community, devastating effect on local businesses to the
destructive impact on the wetlands in the
area and ultimately our drinking water and the Hudson River. The
objections by the public continued to be
expressed well after 10 p.m. The response from the developer’s paid
consultants could be summed up this
way: 'We are the experts, the local residents are not, so trust us.' "
(More)
Rockland
Democratic chief poised to win election commissioner post
Says dual role will not create conflicts
November 24, 2012
Kristen Zebrowski
Stavisky has spent months lobbying for support to secure the post and,
during the party’s convention on Monday, is likely to tie up the job
because she already has the key backing
of the party’s executive committee. If Stavisky’s appointment is
approved by the Rockland County Legislature,
which is virtually guaranteed, she would simultaneously come to hold one
job that requires her to be objective
and fair to all political office seekers and another where she is
helping the efforts of a candidate who is backed
by her party. She said she wasn’t worried about a conflict." Read full
text of The Journal News story
here.
Ramapo busts tax cap, passes $90.5M budget--9.43% tax increase
November 21, 2012 "The
town adopted its tax-cap-busting budget Tuesday, voting 3-2 to pass a
$90.5 million
spending plan for 2013. Spending will increase about $8.5 million this
year, or 10 percent over the current
budget.Under the plan, town taxes will rise 9.43 percent, meaning most
taxpayers will pay $46.80 more annually
for every $50,000 of assessed value."
How the
Board Members Voted (Yes vote approves tax increase--No vote opposes the
increase)
Comments cited were given to The Journal News Mareesa Nicosia
(full coverage can be read
here)
|
|
|
Brendel Logan Voted YES |
Yitzchok
Ullman |
Daniel
Friedman |
|
St. Lawrence said he wasn’t concerned that the vote wasn’t unanimous. Board members “have their own minds and they can vote however they see fit as to whether they like or dislike the budget.” |
Withers
described the budget as imperfect yet fair and said he voted
with public safety as his priority. “I always put public safety before politics, and the public safety part of this budget is what I like,” he said.
|
|
“To raise
taxes 9 percent is unacceptable,” he said. “To blame the county,
you know, two wrongs don’t make a right.” He added: “The supervisor’s attitude was the budget is his way or the highway, and I chose the highway.”
|
“I don’t
think anybody wants tax increases, but I wanted to see more cuts
in spending and more ideas for revenue enhancement to balance
the budget without raising taxes,” he said. “That wasn’t in
place so I voted ‘no.’”
|
Read the Community View: Tax Increase Isn't Solution to Ramapo's Debt Crisis here.
Download a PDF copy of the Adopted 2013 budget here, or read the Summary here.
East Ramapo school district seeks new budget cuts
Superintendent opposes eliminating kindergarten; familiar ideas on table
for $7M deficit
November 21, 2012
"Faced with a
growing $7 million deficit, the East Ramapo school district is looking
once
again to cut nonmandated programs and staff to close its budget gap.
Among the possibilities the district will
consider are cutting school nurses, shortening the school day, cuts to
elementary art and music, and centralizing
special services for private-school students. Eliminating the
kindergarten program, which was proposed last spring
and was curtailed from full day to half day this year, is another
consideration. But Superintendent Joel Klein, in
addressing more than 60 people including parents, staff, the school
board and administrators at a meeting at Kakiat
Elementary School on Tuesday night, said he does not support the
measure, which would affect more than 700 students."
Complete Journal News coverage
here.
Ilan Schoenberger aided in Rockland's mess
November 20, 2012 "Rockland
County approaches $100 million in debt, we recently had a 30 percent
tax increase, and a 4 percent surcharge added to our electric bill.
Guess who is running for county executive?
Ilan Schoenberger, chairman of the Budget and Finance Committee, the
very person who year after year was
responsible for advancing flawed budgets from County Executive C. Scott
Vanderhoef." Read the full text of
the letter to The Journal News
here.
Uphill Push for Change in Orthodox Stronghold
November 20, 2012 "After
a decade of fighting a public school board dominated by Orthodox Jews in
suburban New York, Oscar Cohen, a soft-spoken 71-year-old with a
reputation for composure, is starting
to get angry.'You have eight school districts in Rockland County,' the
retired school administrator told the
Forward recently. “One is cutting every nonmandated service to the bone.
Seven are not. Ninety percent
of the kids going to the one are children of color. Is something wrong
with that picture?' " (More from the
Jewish Daily Forward
here)
Preserve Ramapo to pursue town ward system in court
October 25, 2012 "In
late summer, Preserve Ramapo collected thousands of signatures and
submitted two
petitions to the town clerk, aiming to land two propositions on the
ballot in next month’s general election:
one to increase the number of Town Board members from four to six and
one to establish a ward system in
which each Town Board member would represent a designated geographic
area. Board members are now
elected at large. Members of the group — which opposes town Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence and
many of his financial decisions — said the town needs a better system of
checks and balances and their
proposals, especially a ward system, would ensure that happens." A show
cause filing and an Article 78
lawsuit have now been invoked because of the town's attempt to ignore
its obligations. Journal story
here.
Oustatcher Prevails in Lawsuit
Against School Board and District--Another
Costly Misstep by the Board and Its Attorney
October 23, 2012 "A
judge has ruled in favor of a former East Ramapo schools superintendent
who sued the district
for breach of his contract.Ira Oustatcher filed a lawsuit in December,
claiming he was owed more than $97,700 to
date because the district cut his pay — breaking the terms of his
contract — after he was demoted from the superintendent
job and reassigned to his current position, principal of Pomona Middle
School. Joel Klein, who was named in the lawsuit
along with the district and the Board of Education, succeeded Oustatcher
as superintendent in the spring of 2011." The
board's attorney, D'Agostino, was uncharacteristically silent when asked
for his opinion by the reporter. Journal story
here.
Land annex plan for New Square sparks
development fears from Ramapo residents
October 18, 2012 "A
proposal to annex 6.87 acres of
privately owned town land to the village of New Square
received scant support Wednesday during a public hearing
that drew about two dozen residents. The annexation, which
requires the full support of the town and village boards, would
enable land that is now zoned for single-family residences to be
developed into multifamily dwellings. Applicants want to
accommodate the growing numbers of families who desire to live
together in the insular, densely populated Hasidic village." Full
text of the Journal News story here.
Ramapo Taxpayers Footing the
Bill for the Highest Paid Public Employee in
New York State--Christopher St. Lawrence insists "He's worth every penny
of it"
|
Ramapo Police Chief Peter Brower Salary $321,719
|
NYC Police
Commissioner $205,180 |
Governor Andrew Cuomo $171,050 |
 St. Lawrence's explanation why Brower is the highest paid local employee in the entire State of New York:"It's a dangerous job and he's worth every penny." |
October 18, 2012 New York City
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly is in charge of the largest police force
in the country--more
than 35,000 cops. Kelly is paid $205,180 for enforcing the law in the
largest city in the nation (8.2 million people). Ramapo Police Chief
Peter Brower is in charge of 125 cops in a town of 126,595 in the Lower
Hudson Valley and is paid $321,719. Brower earns $116,539 more than
Kelly while managing roughly 35,000 fewer officers. These outrageous
numbers didn't discourage Brower's boss, Supervisor St. Lawrence,
from going on Channel 12 and insisting that his very pricey chief
"[Has] a tough job, and a dangerous job. . . and he's worth every penny
of it." St. Lawrence and his Town Board (Daniel Friedman, Pat Withers,
Brendel Logan, and Yitzchok Ullman) have recently voted a
9% increase in Ramapo Town taxes. Coverage in The Journal News
here and the NY Post
here.
The Death of a Once-Proud School District
October 16, 2012
October 16, 2012 "For the past five
years news, reports detailing the destruction of the East Ramapo School
District ("ERSD") have appeared on a regular, and recently daily, basis.
This once-proud and superlative school district, that
encompasses a section of Clarkstown, has been ravaged by mismanagement
and the shortsighted agenda of the ultra-Orthodox
majority on the school board. As a 1974 graduate of Spring Valley High
School, I find these events especially disturbing." Read
the full text of Michael Bongiorno's Op Ed that appeared in Our Town
here.
Group aims to prevent use of East Ramapo district funds for officials' legal defense
October 15, 2012 "Supporters
of a class-action lawsuit against the East Ramapo school district want
to block the Board of Education
from using public money to defend school officials in several ongoing
legal actions. In a petition served on the district Friday, Spring
Valley residents Steven White and Betty Carmand ask the state education
commissioner to grant an “emergency stay” on up to $2 million
in district money they say is earmarked for legal costs to defend board
members, administrators and former employees.The petition is
backed by New York City public interest law firm Advocates for Justice,
which filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of some 200 parent
plaintiffs against the district this summer." Complete Journal News
story
here.
Community
View: Tax increase isn't solution
to Ramapo debt crisis
Oct 9, 2012
Re "Ramapo to refinance bond debt: Plan
will save town millions," Oct. 6 article: "The 9 percent
increase in Ramapo’s tax rate in the town’s 2013 budget plan will do
nothing to solve our debt crisis. At
the end of 2013, I expect that the town — and its taxpayers — will be in
even deeper debt than we are now."
(Complete text
here.)
Ramapo Developer Blamed for Turning Lake Lucille Brown with Silt
October 9, 2012 "Clarkstown
will ask the state Department of Environmental Conservation to impose a
cleanup plan on a
developer whose actions officials say have caused Lake Lucille to turn
brown with silt. The DEC and the Ramapo building
department have instituted a stop-work order on the developer, Joseph
Herskowitz of Monsey, who is building the 18.6-acre
Sky Ridge development off Buena Vista Road in unincorporated Ramapo near
the Clarkstown border. Both agencies also have
issued violations to the developer for failing to comply with stormwater
controls that have allowed silt to flow a mile and a
half downstream into Crum Creek. The creek flows into Lake Lucille, off
South Mountain Road in New City, which feeds the
Lake DeForest reservoir that serves Rockland and Bergen counties."
Complete Journal story
here.
Community View: Better water management needed, not desalination
Oct 7, 2012
"The plan by United Water New York to construct an
environmentally damaging desalination plant on the shore
of the Hudson River’s Haverstraw Bay in Rockland County overlooks less
expensive and more sustainable options and could
end up saddling Rockland residents with increasingly escalating water
bills for years to come." Full text
here.
Firefighter Slams United Water Scare Tactics Used in Promoting Desalination Plant
October 5, 2012 Robert D. Jackson, a retired lieutenant in FDNY and a member of the Rockland County Incident ManagementTeam and former Rockland County legislator, wrote a letter to The Journal News condemning United Water’s inferences that
a proposed Hudson River desalination plant could solve a problem with water needed for firefighting. Read the letter here.
Journal News Editorial: East Ramapo must not compromise on children's safety
October 4, 2012 "Simmering
tensions between the public school community and the Orthodox majority
on the school board
boiled over this week at Grandview Elementary. Schoolyard squabbling
occurred — among the adults. It was a big disappointment.
A parent-coordinated intervention Tuesday aimed to stem trespassing on
school property while pupils in grades K-3 are in the building.
It quickly devolved into confrontation, with Ramapo police being called,
and became yet another example of the growing strife
between the public school community and the Orthodox and Hasidic Jewish
communities.
As with other hot-button issues in East Ramapo,
the school board and administration could have provided remedies.
Instead, the board’s longstanding inaction — even as parents and
school staff expressed concerns — exacerbated the problem." Read the
entire editorial
here.
East Ramapo parents patrol school property--Some
pedestrians argue
when told they are trespassing
October 3, 2012 "Tired
of hounding district policymakers to secure school borders against
trespassers, East Ramapo parents
took matters into their own hands Tuesday.
About eight parents patrolled the grounds of Grandview Elementary for
two hours,
informing dozens of walkers who were taking a shortcut through the
property that they were trespassing and asking them to
find another route. A district security officer joined them. Despite
parents’ demands, district officials have tacitly condoned
the presence of strangers on school grounds during school hours,
alternately denying trespassing is a problem and worrying they’ll
appear anti-Semitic if they take action. Police have said they can’t do
much unless “No Trespassing” signs are posted on the
property." Full text of The Journal News coverage, with video,
here. Story in Newsday
here.
Ramapo to blow past tax cap--Town taxes to
increase 9%--No mention of
ballpark debt or Elm Street millions in costs passed on to taxpayers
St. Lawrence just blames the County
October 2, 2012 "The
Town Board voted to bust the tax cap in July, much to the chagrin of a
group of residents who
protested the measure at Town Hall at the time. Clarkstown, Orangetown
and Haverstraw also plan to exceed the cap
in 2013. Ramapo’s proposed $90,398,592 plan increases spending by some
$8.4 million, or 9.3 percent more than the
2012 budget of $81,982,185.
According to
the 2013 proposal, townwide taxes will increase 9 percent, while
residents
of unincorporated Ramapo can expect a slightly lower increase of 7.23
percent. That means for each $50,000 of assessed
value, a homeowner would pay $44.65 more in property taxes in 2013 under
the townwide rate and $28.85 more
under the unincorporated rate." Complete Journal story
here.
School funding: Worse than they thought
East Ramapo officials put deficit at $6m
Sept. 26, 2012 "Ahead
of a financial audit due next month and following another round of
budget cuts, East Ramapo officials
say the school district faces an estimated $6 million deficit — far more
than what they’ve cited in recent weeks. The district
ended the 2011-12 school year with a $1.78 million deficit and no
reserves. Now, the district is adding about $1.5 million in
unanticipated expenses for transportation, special education and BOCES
services, mostly due to increased enrollment, Assistant
Superintendent for Finance Michael Ivanoff said Tuesday. About 1,000 new
students enrolled in East Ramapo’s private schools
this fall and 10 new private schools opened. Roughly 70 percent of
students in the East Ramapo district attend private schools,
which receive public funds for transportation, books and special
education." Complete Journal News coverage
here.
Preserve
Ramapo Asks NYS Attorney General
to Examine the Town’s New Confidentiality Policy
Sept. 25, 2012
Four
weeks ago, Supervisor St. Lawrence and his board voted
unanimously to enact a new Confidentiality Policy. This
policy threatens any
Town employee with termination and/or legal action if that
employee discusses
virtually anything about town business, records, plans, or
whatever St. Lawrence
deems “confidential,” with anyone outside of Town Hall.
What’s confidential
includes “processes, reports, research, sources of supply,
financial data” even
those things oddly classified as “confidential public
information.”
The Executive Director of the Committee on Open
Government at the Dept. of State in Albany has told Preserve
Ramapo
that the policy is illegal, and today we have filed
a formal complaint and request for an investigation by the
Attorney
General’s Intergovernmental Affairs Bureau.
(More)
Community View: Plan to Tap Hudson Just Doesn't Add up
Sept. 24, 2012 "This
does not make any mathematical sense at all. There are
several options and alternatives that can provide
additional water sources that would not include such a
foolish use of ratepayer dollars. Many of the alternatives
would create
construction jobs and if we invested more on fixing existing
infrastructure would also result in more construction jobs.
Let’s think
about a more robust and sensible solution to our water needs
and protect our existing infrastructure and environment. It
should not
be forgotten that UW is a private company with a corporate
interest; its goal is making profits, not improving existing
infrastructure,
leaving us poorly served." A practical cost analysis of the
proposed United Water desalination plant by an experienced
wastewater
engineer. Full text
here.
State Education chief John King has East Ramapo under scrutiny
Sept. 22, 2012 "State
Education Commissioner John King Jr. said Friday that he is
following developments in the troubled
East Ramapo School District and is aware that many parents
are calling for state intervention. “We are looking closely,
and
we are concerned,” he said at a meeting with The Journal
News/LoHud.com Editorial Board. Harry Phillips, the
Rockland/
Westchester/Putnam representative on the state Board of
Regents, which makes education policy, went further, saying
the
school district will have trouble meeting the
special-education costs of the region’s fast-growing Hasidic
and ultra-Orthodox
communities.“We see nothing but problems ahead,” he said.
“People will have to look at some sort of takeover.” "
Complete
Journal News story
here.
East Ramapo forecasts more cuts after school board trims transportation, jobs
Sept. 21, 2012
"The day after the East Ramapo Board of Education voted to
eliminate three staff positions and nonmandated
transportation to private schools, an administrator said
more cuts were planned soon to close the budget gap. Michael
Ivanoff,
assistant superintendent for finance, did not say when the
cuts would come or from where.“There are more financial
challenges
on the horizon,” he said. “There will be more cuts.” The
district has a budget deficit of $1.78 million and also must
produce savings
to pay for about $1 million in legal costs to defend board
members and administrators in a petition and lawsuit filed
earlier in
the summer." Journal News story
here. See also,
Spring Valley High's
fall play canceled by budget cuts
here.
RLUIPA Documentary America's Holy War Nominated as
Finalist In Great Lakes
International Film Festival
September 19, 2012 The documentary America's Holy War, from British filmmaker Moondance Films, will be screened next week
at the Great Lakes International Film Festival in Erie, Pa. It is a finalist in the Best Documentary category. The story about the RLUIPA
conflict features Ramapo as one of its central locations with the Patrick Farm project as a major flashpoint. The film's world premier
was at the historic Lafayette Theater in Suffern, NY, last October. Visit http://www.greatlakesfilmfest.com/ for more Information
about the Festival.
Funny Numbers from the Ramapo Democratic Committee's Financial Report
September 18, 2012
Keeping track of local
politicians can lead you down some rather strange rabbit holes. The most
recent
financial report from the Ramapo Democratic Committee (the July
Periodic) had a few entries that should have raised both
Democratic and Republican eyebrows. Where the money went might
have upset more than a few of the loyalists. That report
was followed by a second, amended periodic report, and it didn't do much
to shovel cover over some rather damning entries
in the first report.
(More)
Public responds to Journal News "East Ramapo District in Crisis" Series
Sept. 17, 2012 Click
here
for a sample of letters sent by readers responding to the two-day
investigative series
about the East Ramapo School District and embattled board of ed. Link to
index of Journal articles in that series
here.
|
Ramapo Reform Democrats Run the Table |
Patrick Farm: Judge nixes approval of development; Ramapo
must do
architectural review
Sept. 14, 2012 "A state Supreme Court judge has
annulled final approval for a high-density development of nearly
500 homes on
Patrick Farm that opponents argue would cripple the environment
and the character of the single-family neighborhood. Based on
legal action by the Ramapo Organized for Sustainability and a
Safe Aquifer, the judge ruled Ramapo violated its own rules that
require developments to undergo architectural review before the
Planning Board considers final approval. As a result of the ROSA
decision, Scenic Development LLC in Monsey must put its
architectural designs before the Ramapo’s Community Design
Review
Committee. No date has been set." Full Journal News coverage
here. Read the ROSA Press Release
here.
District in crisis: East Ramapo's public- and private-school families fight for resources
Sept. 9, 2012 "One week after East
Ramapo became the only school district in the region to see its
budget defeated by voters,
school board Vice President Daniel Schwartz warned at a meeting
that the district faced a “terrible, terrible crisis.” The
crisis
he referred to was not the impending dismissal of another 90
jobs, including all social workers and most teaching assistants.
It was not the reduction of kindergarten from full day to
half-day or the shriveling of art, music and sports programs, or
the
possibility that a second defeated budget would eviscerate the
school system like a carpet bombing. The crisis that Schwartz
bemoaned in May was a creeping anti-Semitism spurred by distrust
of the school board, which since 2005 has been run by majorities
of Hasidic and other Orthodox Jews who send their children to
private schools." Full Journal story
here.
This article
provides an overview of The Journal News' impressive coverage
that includes 14 news stories published
over two days, Sept 9 and 10. The news items cover the
economics, the New York State investigations, the
Comptroller's reports, the state intervention in two attempted
sales of grammar schools, the unprofessional
behavior of the Board's attorney, the class action lawsuit
against the board members, and more. There is additional
information and video the newspaper's online site. Check out the
Index Page
here for links to all the stories.
East Ramapo needs intervention: Journal News Editorial
Sept. 9, 2012 "With so much wrong in
East Ramapo school district, it’s hard to see how it can survive
without intervention at the
state or federal level. It will need that and much more. The
East Ramapo school district is broke. There’s not a penny in
reserve funds,
and the district is operating at a deficit. A litany of other
concerns are set forth in disturbing detail in today’s Journal
News/LoHud.com
special investigation,
A District in Crisis. School
board members have a fiduciary responsibility to make sound
decisions on behalf of the
public schools and the property taxpayers, and the East Ramapo
school board has failed miserably." Full text of the editorial
here.
|
Thanks
to All for a Successful Ward
Petition Drive |
Education cuts hurt East Ramapo kids
Sept. 4, 2012 Letter in The Journal News "School
starts this week and I ask, what is happening in East Ramapo?
Are they ready? It was announced at the last board meeting that the
fund balance is 90 projected to be minus $1.7 million.
We have seen egregious cuts to our children’s education over the
past few years and it was also announced that due to
pending litigation costs there could be even more cuts. Is it even
legal to carry a negative fund balance? Full
letter.
Ramapo group seeks ward system--Group's petitions also seek to expand board
Sept. 2, 2012 "Activists
with the grassroots political group Preserve Ramapo are reviving an
effort that’s been thwarted in
past years to seek a public vote that would change the composition
of the Town Board.
Members want to establish a ward
system in which each Town Board member would represent a designated
geographic area. Board members are now elected at large.
'Our system is one that’s supposed to be one of checks and balances, and we feel that right now there’s not enough of checks and balances,
and a ward system would bring that to Ramapo,' said Preserve Ramapo member Michael Parietti of Suffern." Complete Journal story here.
Rockland sues Ramapo over emergency communications equipment
rejection
Ramapo planners won't allow 7 antennas
August 28, 2012 "Rockland
County is suing the Town of Ramapo after a Planning Board rejected
the county’s bid to install emergency
communications equipment on a wireless tower in a residential
neighborhood in Monsey.
The rejection, which came after a
contentious May meeting of Ramapo’s Planning Board, blocked the
county’s attempt to install seven antennas and an equipment
shelter at the tower, which residents argue would increase health
risks as well as truck traffic in the neighborhood, since the
upgrades would require monthly maintenance.
The equipment would fill in gaps in the wireless coverage for the
county’s emergency
communications, which include radio from police, fire, and other
officials.
The tower, on Eastview Road in Monsey, is owned by a
division of Cablevision and has existed at the site for decades."
Journal story
here.
Can-Am's
Worcester Team Fading to Gray
Court Changes Locks on Main Street Office
August
27, 2012 Last Friday, the economically besieged Can-Am team,
the Worcester Tornadoes,
was
scheduled to play the Quebec Capitales at home. When the team took
the field, they were
wearing the yellow and black uniforms of the "Grays." The Grays were
a Can-Am "traveling team"
that disappeared five years ago. The reason for the name change was
that it was the only
alternative to a shirts-and-skins dress code for the contest. The
Tornadoes' uniforms had been seized under court order
granted to the Hilton Garden Inn, which is owed $32,562.00 by the
team.
(More)
Patrick Farm:
What Happens Next?
In
this Press Release from the activist group ROSA, an overview of the
current lawsuits against the massive development is presented as well as what can be expected next from the plaintiffs and the Town of Ramapo. Press Release here.
Jamieson reversed again on Patrick Farm--Judge erred by dismissing lawsuits
August 27, 2012 "Two
more legal actions seeking to block development of the 208-acre
Patrick Farm have been reinstated,
as a state appeals court ordered a judge to consider challenges to
Ramapo’s decisions on environmental impacts and increasing
the housing density for the property.
The Appellate Division panel ruled that Supreme Court Justice Linda
Jamieson erred when
she dismissed legal challenges in 2011 by property neighbors Sonya
and Milton Shapiro and Elizabeth Youngewirth.
An appeals
panel ruled in May that Jamieson also erred by denying Pomona’s
legal challenge on the same grounds.
Those three cases join
six other legal actions challenging the approvals and environmental
reviews for the Patrick Farm development." Journal News
coverage
here. Text of the court decision can be read
here.
East Ramapo
alumni berate school board
East Ramapo graduates, students protest cuts,
back class action suit
August 25, 2012 "Holding signs and chanting, “Save our
schools,” about 100 East Ramapo students and alumni demonstrated
in front of their alma mater Thursday night, decrying school board
decisions to cut funding and rallying in support of a lawsuit
that targets the district’s leadership." Complete Journal News
coverage
here. Video of the students who spoke at the
press conference can be seen at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOsCjzddgFk&feature=youtu.be.
President of the Spring
Valley Branch of the NAACP, Mr Willie Trotman, talks about Education and standing behind our
children.
View this part of the
Press Conference here
http://youtu.be/ZsISeUhq6Nc.
Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee wants new look at United Water rate case
that led to planned Haverstraw treatment plant
August 23, 2012 "Assemblywoman
Ellen Jaffee wants the state to reopen a 2006 rate case that
required United Water New York
to develop a long-term water supply solution. Jaffee asked that the
agency require an independent financial analysis of possible
alternatives to the water treatment plant, which, she said, is
estimated to cost between $139.2 million and $189.3 million. She
also asked the PSC to hold public hearings to consider “new
information and unforeseen circumstances" to determine whether
a joint proposal that settled the rate case should be amended or
vacated." I felt that we needed to raise these issues," Jaffee
said Wednesday. "United Water hasn’t done its due diligence and it
needs to do more.' " Full text of The Journal News story
here.
Clash over videotape interrupts East Ramapo school board meeting
August 22, 2012
"An East
Ramapo school board meeting broke up early, delaying time-sensitive
votes — including one related
to the federal lawsuit filed against the board — because of a
dispute over a woman’s right to videotape the meeting that nearly
led to her arrest.
Board members and about 50 members of the public were listening to a
presentation of a recent audit report
when board President Daniel Schwartz interrupted in an attempt to
enforce a new videotaping policy. The policy, which Schwartz
proposed after being elected board president in July, limits taping
of the public meetings to a designated area at the back of the
room. [The policy violates the public's right as defined in a
Committee on Open Government legal opinion given to the board.]
“When
you’re ready to arrest me, just drag me out,” said [the videographer
Emilia] White, after refusing Schwartz’s repeated requests for her
to move to the back of the room because, he said, her taping from
the location was interfering with the meeting. White, who is
Haitian,
added, “In the back of the room to me means the back of the bus.”
Full Journal News coverage
here.
You can view the video from the August 21, 2012 meeting when
Emilia White was threatened with arrest for video taping at a School
Board Meeting
at this site:
http://youtu.be/woB0K9aUfW4
D.A. seeks judge's recusal--David Stein accused of remark in race-tinged case
August 17, 2012
"Rockland County
prosecutors say disparaging remarks Town Justice David J. Stein
supposedly made about a civil rights
leader show he cannot properly judge three men accused of
misdemeanor charges after a Spring Valley incident involving a water
balloon.
In
June 2011, up to 50 members of an Orthodox Jewish group confronted
Spring Valley Village Clerk Sherry Scott, her daughter, son and
other
family members outside their home on Fletcher Road after a car was
hit by a water balloon. During a March 29 discussion in Stein’s
chambers,
Stein told the prosecutor and defense attorney that he didn’t think
an agreement could be reached.
“I doubt it,”
Stein said, according to the
court papers. “I knew Bill Scott (Sherry Scott’s father) and he was
the biggest racist in Rockland County and I know Sherry Scott.”
Pressed by
prosecutor Jason Rosenwasser to expound on his comment, Stein said,
“Well, she is his daughter.”
Rosenwasser then asked Stein to recuse himself,
contending “that due to Your Honor’s preconceived opinion about Bill
and Sherry Scott it is impossible for you to be fair and impartial
in these cases,
cases which candidly all have racial undertones.” Stein refused to
recuse himself and declined to speak on the record about his
comments." Complete
Journal News story
here.
Minisceongo Park development foes get more time to review plan
August 15, 2012
"The head of the Haverstraw Planning Board has decided to give
opponents of the proposed Minisceongo
Park development more time to learn about what would be the largest
shopping center in northern Rockland County. The 53-acre
lot, a former sand and gravel pit, straddles the Haverstraw-Ramapo
border on Route 202 near Exit 13 of the Palisades Interstate
Parkway. After more than two hours of public participation, Planning
Chairman Salvatore Corallo told the audience that the board
would continue the public hearing not in September, but Oct. 10,
partly because the town’s Zoning Board of Appeals is still
considering
parking variances, and partly because people can get more time to
study the environmental review documents. 'You have roughly
60 days, rather than 30 days, to review,' Corallo told the public."
Complete Journal News coverage
here.
Update: Can-Am Tornadoes $90,000 in the red--Two Companies Initiate Lawsuits
August 14, 2012 Today's Worcester Telegram reports that
the last-place Massachusetts team has $7,500 in a bank account,
which
has been attached. There are two vendors suing for more than
$30,000, and the city of Worcester is owed for police details from
2007 through 2010 and fire details from July 2011 through August 7
of this year--the tab so far totals $59,140. If this team goes the
way of the recently failed Pittsfield Colonials, Brockton Rox, and
NY Federals, there will only be four teams left in the Can-Am
League.
Read Two Companies Sue Tornadoes Over Bills
here.
The Cleaning Company Shows up with Court
Order
to Take Possession of the Can Am League Worcester
Tornadoes’ Uniforms, Bats, Gloves and Game Receipts
August 14, 2012 "The
Enterprise Cleaning Co. of Worcester cleans the Hanover Insurance
Park stadium, bathrooms and concourses at a discounted rate and has
not been paid for
any of its services this year, company president Mr. Buchalter said,
a pattern that has
played out for the past two years, he said. The Tornadoes are in
their eighth season.
Chief Executive Officer Todd Breighner bought the team after the
2009 season and he inherited $500,000 in debt
from the previous owners."
(More)
Amended copy of the East Ramapo Parents Class Action Lawsuit here
Parents to sue East Ramapo School District
August 7, 2012 "A class-action lawsuit brought on by a
bevy of parents claims East Ramapo school district’s top
officials and Board of Education members past and present have
repeatedly schemed to 'siphon off public money
to support private religious institutions.' Among other claims, the
group alleges the district has segregated students
in special-education programs based on their race, at taxpayers’
expense, according to a draft version of the lawsuit
provided to The Journal News/Lohud.com by the public-interest law
firm Advocates for Justice. The 60-plus-page
document, expected to be filed in federal court Tuesday, is the
latest legal blow to the struggling district as a conflict
intensifies between parents of public-school students and the
Orthodox and Hasidic school-board majority that makes
decisions on behalf of those students." Journal News coverage
here.
East Ramapo School Board refuses AG's request to have lawyers
step down
in probe--Continue to withhold more than 1,300 documents
August 2, 2012 "Lawyers for the East Ramapo school
district are seeking to sue state Attorney General Eric T.
Schneiderman over their right to represent Board of Education
members in the continuing state investigation
of the controversial attempted sales of two school buildings.
Lawyers Albert D’Agostino and Dominick Minerva,
both of Long Island, have worked for East Ramapo for the past three
years and are representing school board
members in the attorney general’s investigation into “alleged
improprieties” in the district’s attempts to sell
two former elementary schools to private religious schools."
Complete Journal News story
here.
Violent Crime Numbers Spike in Ramapo--Up 72% from 2007 to 2011,
Most Accelerated Increase in the County
August 1, 2012
According to disturbing recent statistics on reported criminal activity, the Rockland town withthe most accelerated increase in violent crime is Ramapo (up 72%), with Orangetown (34%) second, then
Clarkstown (18%), Haverstraw (12%), and Stony Point (11%). The numbers appear on the NYS Criminal Justice
Services website, and are current, reported as of 4/2/2012. The increases in the towns were measured over
the years 2007 through 2011, and the trends in Ramapo are not encouraging. (More)
Parents to sue East Ramapo school board over public funds
July 31, 2012 "A
growing number of parents with children in East Ramapo public schools
plan to file a lawsuit in
the coming days seeking millions in damages from current and former
school board members they allege were
involved in a pattern of abuse of millions of public dollars used to
support private schools. Arthur Schwartz, the
group’s attorney and head of the New York-based nonprofit public
interest firm Advocates for Justice said 'This
lawsuit would seek to recover damages from the people who wasted
millions of dollars in taxpayer money.' He
said the suit will target former school board members as well as the
five addressed in the earlier petition: school
board President Daniel Schwartz, Vice President Yehuda Weissmandl, and
members Moses Friedman, Moshe Hopstein
and Eliyahu Solomon.
Parents want the board members to be held personally liable for up to
millions in damages and
want to bar them from using district dollars to defend themselves, with
the money then returned to the district." Read
the full text of The Journal News story
here.
Governor Cuomo Vetoes Private School Tuition Bill
July 31, 2012 After passage in both legislative houses in Albany,
the Governor returned the Senate version of
the bill with his signed veto and reasons for his rejection of the
proposed law. Read the full text of his
veto
here. From The Journal News: "The amended special-education
bill drew a huge response from public-school
districts and private, religious-based school advocates across the area
once it was unveiled. Critics said the
amendment could cost millions of tax dollars to finance, was a back-door
voucher system that undermined the
separation of church and state, and could create a segregated school
program for the state’s most fragile
children." Complete Journal coverage can be read
here.
Rockland County Parents Ask State to Oust 5 Orthodox Jews on School Board
By Peter Applebome
The New York Times Jvetuly 28, 2012
SPRING VALLEY, N.Y. — In the East Ramapo Central School District here,
the children of Caribbean and Latin American
immigrants have filled the classrooms in recent years. About 85 percent
of the students are black or Hispanic, and only
7 percent are white. But on the school board, seven of the nine seats
are held by Orthodox Jews. Now, after years of
increasingly bitter discord between parents and the board, the parents
are trying to force the state to intervene.
(More)
ABC News Coverage of Impending
Federal Lawsuit Against the East
Ramapo School Board
July 26, 2012 Click
here for
video replay of
the story broadcast today.
New Cost Overruns for Ballpark Construction
keep
Rolling In--Bill for June is $143,785.15
July 26, 2012 If you thought the
construction at the Provident Ballpark was completed, unfortunately,
you're
mistaken. The cost overruns keep coming as a continuing insult to the
taxpayers who voted to reject paying
these bills more than a year and a half ago. The Supervisor and Town
Board just voted another $144K to
Morano Brothers and Holt Construction Corp. That's the June bill for
taxpayers, and keep in mind that these
costs are for change orders--cost overruns--tariffs for lousy planning.
(More)
Probe Looks at Spring Valley Judge-Alan Simon in
the Middle of another Controversy
June 24, 2012 "Justice Alan Simon is being investigated by police
for harassment involving a confrontation with
an intern assigned by the mayor to work in the justice court clerk’s
office.
Simon became concerned that someone
he didn’t interview or approve to work in the office had access to
confidential court files, his lawyer, William Frank,
said Monday, confirming his client was under police investigation.
Simon also is accused of threatening to have the mayor,
police officers and other court personnel arrested or held in contempt
of his court or both for not following his orders. Another
issue is whether Simon will be reviewed by state court authorities such
as the 9th Judicial District or the state Office of
Judicial Conduct. Rockland County Court Judge Charles Apotheker, who
oversees the Justice Court for the district, didn’t
have any comment on Simon or the events in Spring Valley." Read the full
story in The Journal News
here.
July 24, 2012 In a letter to the
Governor, the Rockland County AARP Chapter 1577 warns of
the impact of
the proposed desalination plan. Read the full text of the letter
presented recently to Cuomo
here.
Five East Ramapo School Board Members face ouster attempt,
accused of using funds to support religious schools
July 19, 2012 "Critics of the East Ramapo Board of Education are
asking the state education commissioner to
remove Orthodox and Hasidic board members they say have spent millions
of taxpayer dollars to support
private religious schools while ignoring the growing needs of students
in the public schools. The New
York-based public interest law firm Advocates for Justice, on behalf of
14 East Ramapo parents and
community members, said it is calling for the removal of five board
members and the appointment
of a state monitor to oversee all spending and special-education
placements at the district."
(Journal News)
The five targeted for removal are Board President Daniel Schwartz, VP
Yehuda Weissmandl, Moses Friedman,
Moshe Hopstein, and Eliyahu Solomon.
(More)
North Jersey drinking water going to waste as system leaks lose 25%
July 17, 2012 The Record reports: "Last
year alone, United Water could not account for 26 percent of the water
it
treated and pumped. That amounts to 10.6 billion gallons, enough to fill
the Oradell Reservoir three times over. 'United
Water has a lot of leaks in their system. It’s one of the leakiest
systems I know,' said Robert Kecskes, a retired water
supply expert for the state Department of Environmental Protection." Now
consider this: "In
the summer of 2007, downriver
from Lake DeForest at the Oradell (N.J.) Reservoir, United Water was
discharging 7.31 million gallons per day. This is nearly
as much water as the 7.5 million gallons per day that the proposed
Haverstraw desalination plant would produce at full
build-out and 5 million gallons per day more than the historical daily
median flow." Are Rockland ratepayers going to pay
for United Water's failure to maintain its own infrastructure in order
to supplement UW New Jersey customers?" Read the Record
article
here.
Albany Bill Would Add Family to Special Education Factors (New York Times)
July 15, 2012 "Critics of the bill, including the
administration of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, said the language in the
bill was too broad and could cover anything from clothing or food
preferences to the cultural norms and customs practiced
in Orthodox Jewish, Roman Catholic or other religious households."
Article
here.
Questions About Town of Ramapo Finances--Letter to the Comptroller
July 12, 2012 In a letter sent to the Chief Examiner for the
NYS Comptroller's Office, Bob Rhodes addresses a
number of financial questions that remain unanswered by the town
administration. Read the full text of the letter
here.
County Legislators Turn their Backs on East Ramapo Parents and Students
July 11, 2012 Last night’s Rockland County Legislature meeting
began with a short ceremony honoring one of the most
celebrated East Ramapo High teachers, Michael Smith. Leader of the
justifiably famous East Ramapo Marching Band,
Smith was recently fired, joining hundreds of staff that have been let
go in this year’s round of devastating cuts. But
it turned out to be just more empty political theater as many of those
same legislators who were pushing in to be
photographed with Smith were the same members who later in the evening
refused to allow a vote on a resolution
requesting Governor Cuomo to veto a bill that has the potential to
destroy what’s left of the East Ramapo school
district.
(More, including how each member voted)
Read My Lips
“The stadium will
be built with private money.
There will be no taxpayer dollars. I got the
message.” (Sept. 2010)
More than $60 million taxpayer dollars later:
We need
to increase taxes and not be limited by the state 2% cap.
(Friedman—Agreed; Logan—Agreed; Ullman—Abstained; St. Lawrence—Agreed;
Withers—absent July 2012) The Bill for the taxpayers? 8.9%
for starters
July 10, 2012 “Citing
a budget shortfall as it plans for 2013, the Town Board approved a plan
to override the state’s
2 percent tax-levy cap, despite opposition from angry residents who
demonstrated at Town Hall on Monday. The board
voted 3-0 Monday night, with one abstention and one member absent.The
vote followed a lengthy public hearing during
which residents opposed to the override plan alternately assailed
officials for mishandling their money and for holding a
budget-related public hearing in the dead of summer with little notice.”
Full Journal News coverage
here.
Legislator Meyers to Introduce Resolution
at County Legislature Tuesday
Urging Governor to Veto Special Needs Student Placement Bill
July 8, 2012 The Journal News, The
Spring Valley Chapter of the NAACP, even the Huffington Post have
called on Governor Cuomo to veto a bill that will in effect create a
voucher system for private schools,
an illegally segregated school system, and overwhelming new debt for the
East Ramapo School District as
well as districts around the state. Parents have been calling the
Governor's office, and Tuesday Joseph Meyers
will ask the County Legislator to adopt a resolution expressing their
legislature's agreement with the parents,
the paper, the NAACP, and news outlets like the Huffington Post. You can
read the resolution
here.
And please join the East Ramapo parents and taxpayers at 7pm Tuesday at
the Rockland County Legislative meeting.
Ramapo Dumps Provident Bank—Or—
Provident
Bank Dumps Ramapo
July 3, 2012 The resolution that was passed at the town board
meeting contained no explanation. And there was no discussion
at the board meeting to explain the removal of Ramapo bank
deposits from the bank that christened Chris St. Lawrence’s ballpark.
The message simply read: "Cross River Bank is hereby designated as
official depository for Town of Ramapo funds for the remainder of 2012."
Cross River Bank is not in Ramapo,
it’s not even in the State of New York. Why the offloading of tax
revenues and other deposits out of state?
(More)
JN Editorial: N.Y. special-education bill
would saddle
many districts with soaring costs
June 27, 2012 "Amid last week’s
bill-passing whirlwind in Albany, legislators passed a bill designed to
empower
special-education families by demanding districts give consideration to
cultural and family background when
making placement decisions, and by mandating a rapid timetable for
tuition reimbursement when a parent
decides to place a child in a different program than what a district
recommends. Despite its laudable goals,
the bill likely oversteps federal rules, and sets up skyrocketing
special-education costs for some districts.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo should veto the bill, and encourage legislators to
craft reforms that work for families
and are affordable for school districts."
(More--including full text of the bill)
Who is Kalman Weber?
June 25, 2012 Kalman Weber is usually
described as a community activist. He is
the president of the South East Ramapo Taxpayer’s Association. That’s
the short
answer to the question of who he is. But more important than the
self-ascribed
titles, the question should also be viewed from the vantage point of
what Kalman
Weber does. In the most recent East Ramapo budget and school board
election
(May 15, 2012) Weber’s Taxpayer’s Association placed a number of ads
relating to
the candidates and the issues. Most of these ads were divisive,
questionable,
and misleading. (More)
Crowd Protests Proposed
Water Treatment Plant in Haverstraw--Opponents
Argue Construction, Desalination Costs too High
June 26, 2012 "Members of the
Rockland Coalition for Sustainable Water said they want an issues
conference before a state
Department of Environmental Conservation judge so alternatives can be
considered. George Potanovic was among about 30
coalition members who gathered on the steps of the Rockland County
Courthouse to deliver petitions containing the signatures
of 24,000 people who oppose the plant. Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee,
D-Suffern, and state Sen. David Carlucci, D-New City,
accepted the petitions and said they would get them to Cuomo’s office.
Potanovic said the project deserved more scrutiny
because economic and environmental issues that weren’t evident when the
plant was first pitched had surfaced.
They include
the cost to build the plant, which the coalition pegs at $198 million,
and the cost to run the plant, because desalination uses
a lot of power that will “forever tie local water rates to the cost of
electricity,” Potanovic said. The coalition estimates that
ratepayers could see their annual bills increase by as much as $500 if
the plant is built." Journal coverage
here.
DiNapoli bid to
up control of LDCs fails--But some say increased oversight
likely in future
June 24, 2012 "State
Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s latest bid to gain more authority over
local development corporations
failed to make
it to the Senate floor
before state lawmakers went home for the summer. But state officials are
optimistic
that the measure, which passed unanimously in the Assembly on Wednesday,
stands a good chance when senators reconvene
in Albany — whether it’s in a special session this year or in a new
legislative session next year. The comptroller has been a
vocal critic of LDCs in recent years, including the Ramapo LDC, which he
said in a 2010 audit of the Rockland Boulders
baseball stadium had sidestepped regulations and left taxpayers liable
for up to $60 million. He cited the ballpark in pushing
the bill last week." Full Journal News article
here.
DiNapoli Urges Senate to Pass Legislation to
Give Comptroller
Audit Authority Over LDCs--Bill has passed in the Assembly
June 22, 2012 "Citing
millions of dollars in unnecessary costs to taxpayers, State Comptroller
Thomas P. DiNapoli
called on the state Senate to vote on his proposal to give the
Comptroller’s office direct audit authority over
local development corporations (LDCs) and other similar entities that
are controlled by local governments. The
bill has passed the Assembly (A.9689) and is awaiting Senate (S.7540)
action." When passed in the Senate, St.
Lawrence will be legally forced to open the Local Development Corp books
to state auditors. Full text of the
press release from DiNapoli's office
here.
Ethical
Values in Ramapo--Real and Imagined
June 22, 2012
When John Layne, the Deputy Head of the Highway Department in Ramapowas arrested on May 23, 2012, and charged with a garden variety of felonies, Christopher
St. Lawrence's response was unhesitating: "Public officers must be held to the highest
standard of integrity and honesty, and the Town Board will take all steps necessary to
ensure that all persons working for Ramapo live up to those expectations." He gave
the statement to The Journal News. Yes, "The highest standard of integrity and honesty." Indeed! In Ramapo!
And that applies to everyone. (More)
East Ramapo voters approve budget
June 19, 2012 "A small fraction of East Ramapo voters easily
approved the district’s $191.9 million
school budget
Tuesday during a revote, bringing closure to a long and anxiety-ridden
budget season. The 2012-13 spending plan,
virtually identical to the one taxpayers rejected last month, was
approved by a vote of 3,562 to 1,217, according
to unofficial results announced by the district late Tuesday." Journal
coverage
here.
Newsday Reporting: Team changing name to. . . Bergen Boulders?
June 19, 2012 A story in today’s Newsday warns
that Ramapo should "Say farewell to the Rockland Boulders." The
team will be changing its name this Saturday in a news conference in
Upper Saddle River N.J. The new name will
be directed at New Jersey to attract potential fans from Bergen County.
Although the Jersey fan base being groped
by the team’s management have not kicked in a dime for the stadium,
they
have become the target of a pretty
strange marketing scheme.
(More)
East Ramapo School District set for revote
June 18, 2012 "As
voters in the East Ramapo school district head to the polls Tuesday to
decide on a $191.9 million
budget proposal for next school year — for the second time this spring —
they will do so without knowing what their
schools will look like if the budget fails again. If it fails, the
district is required to adopt a contingency budget with a
zero percent tax-levy increase, which would require it to cut $2.6
million from an austere spending plan for 2012-13.
District officials say they haven’t put together a contingency plan and
they’re counting on the budget to pass." Story
here.
East Ramapo touts union pay concessions in 5-year teachers contract
June 14, 2012 "The
East Ramapo teachers union has agreed to a new, five-year contract that
limits raises and temporarily
freezes salaries for those who take on extracurricular leadership roles.
The contract, which goes into effect July 1, includes
average annual cost-of-living raises of 1 percent to 1.5 percent
starting in the second year. Additional step raises based on
teachers’ individual years of experience and other factors will be given
only three out of the five years of the contract,
rather than annually as in the past. The contract’s approval by the
Board of Education at a meeting last week followed six
months of negotiations between the school district and the union." Full
text of the Journal News story
here.
Ballpark further dents Ramapo's beauty
June 12, 2012 Letter
in The Journal News
"Why does
this Provident Bank Park baseball stadium in Ramapo have to be such an
annoyance? It’s bad enough the
citizens who live near it have to be forced to put up with the
fireworks’ sound; now concerts. My once quiet street
is now strewn with beer cans and bottles from the pre-show tailgaters."
Read the complete letter
here.
Attorney General Investigating East Ramapo Sale of Schools
June 9, 2012
The Journal News reported today: “The East Ramapo school district this
week handed over the last of
thousands of emails and other records related to the attempted sale and
current leases of two school buildings after
the state Attorney General’s Office subpoenaed the district earlier this
year.”
(More)
Funny
Numbers at the Ballpark
June 5, 2012 More than most
sports, baseball is a game of numbers. Individual and team
statistics
define the value of a franchise, and, ultimately, its history.
Immortality of individual players is
celebrated with the retirement of the star’s number. All of this
makes what is happening with
the weird numbers at Ramapo’s Provident Ball Park all the more
disturbing.
(More)
Ramapo
Racks Up Debt Quickly
June 3, 2012
In just two years, the Town of Ramapo has gotten itself on the hook for
about $100 million to fund
the construction of its Elm Street “affordable” housing project and its
super-deluxe baseball stadium. Now, just
as I predicted, Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded Ramapo’s credit
rating by two steps, and anticipates
a further reduction. It reduced Ramapo’s credit rating just in time for
Ramapo’s sale of a $15 million bond
anticipation note. Why is Ramapo borrowing another $15 million? And why
is it doing this with a bond anticipation
note instead of an ordinary bond? Read the full text of Bob Rhodes'
Community View
here.
East Ramapo fails to make budget cuts at the top
May 30, 2012 "You cannot compare East
Ramapo with Clarkstown or any other district. When you talk about budget
cuts, start at the top.
Instead of trying to cut the budget, the Board of Education saw fit to
hire an out-of-town attorney at an outrageous cost to the taxpayers.
How many unnecessary administrators do we have in Central Office? Cuts
need to be made at the top, not with the educators who are
working directly with children and their families." Read the full text
of this Community View
here.
Federal Court Tosses Redistricting Battle of Chasidic Villages
May 30, 2012 "A
federal court has dismissed claims that threatened to upend newly drawn
lines for Assemblywoman Annie Rabbitt’s district
and those of surrounding Assembly districts in Orange and Rockland
counties. A legal challenge brought by a Town of Ramapo councilman
had accused state lawmakers of diluting the voting power of Ramapo’s
large Hasidic population by separating the Hasidic villages of New
Square and Kaser into two Assembly districts rather than keeping them in
the same one, as they are now."
(More)
Ramapo Leaders Must Take
Blame--Journal News Editorial
May 30, 2012 It was the combination of
the arrogant ego of the Supervisor who turned his back on the taxpayers
who voted against funding
his crackbrained ballpark project and the clueless complicity of his
board that has brought the Town of Ramapo to the negative economic
outlook
described in the latest Moody's ratings. The taxpayers now have years,
or decades of $100million+ debt added to their taxes, and the Town is
now burdened
with the lowest credit rating of all the towns in Rockland County.
Preserve Ramapo forced the referendum vote on this project, and the
people
responded by rejecting any money for the ballpark. St. Lawrence then
lied about no taxpayer funds for the park, and his board backed him up.
The New York Comptroller slammed this group for the enormous waste of
taxpayers' money, and now Moody's has cut our credit rating off at the
knees
with the promise of more downgrades in the near future without some
dramatic improvements. Today, The Journal News has pointed to
those responsible
in a lead editorial. "Ramapo
town leaders can point to the state’s property-tax cap, the weak economy
and even Rockland County’s fiscal troubles for
contributing to a two-step downgrade by Moody’s Investors Service. But
they need to save significant blame for their own choices — namely, the
guarantee
of loans taken by the Ramapo Local Development Corporation to build a
controversial baseball stadium." Full text of the editorial can be read
here.
Moody's
Drops Ramapo Credit Rating--
Boulder's Ballpark Debt Dents Ramapo Credit
Ramapo now has
lowest credit rating of any Town in Rockland
Town now Two Steps
Above Junk Status
Rating from Aa2 to A1 on $119 million outstanding Debt
Ramapo only Town in County with "Negative Outlook" from Moody's
May 29, 2012
"The
millions of dollars in debt guaranteed by the town to build its
controversial
baseball stadium continues to play a major role in its financial
standing, as evidenced by Moody’s Investors Service, which cited the
debt
guarantee as part of its rationale to downgrade the town’s credit
rating.
The debt-rating agency has lowered Ramapo’s rating two notches,
citing “significant erosion of the town’s financial flexibility” due to
two years of operating deficits, midyear shortfalls and “aggressive”
revenue expectations.
The town has $119 million in outstanding general obligation debt, of
which $40.3 million is issued by the local
development corporation and guaranteed by the town. The $40.3 million
includes a $15.3 million loan from Provident Bank for the
construction of phase one of the Ramapo Commons housing development and
a $25 million bond that financed the construction of the
baseball stadium.The bond guarantee, though, is just a fraction of what
taxpayers have invested in the Provident Bank Park facility.
According to the New York State Comptroller’s Office, town taxpayers are
on the hook for as much as $60 million for the stadium.
The two-notch drop in Ramapo’s creditworthiness — the first change in
its rating since 1997 — puts it in last place among towns in
Rockland."
Read Mareesa Nicosia's story
here. Read the Moody's report on its research for the downgrade
here.
Albany Law School Blog posts Patrick Farm Lower Court Reversal
May 29, 2012 Patricia E. Salkin,
Associate Dean and Director of the Government Law Center of Albany Law
School,
has posted on her Law of the Land blog the reversal won by Pomona in its
court action against the Patrick
Farm development. Read
"NY Appellate Court Holds Village Has Standing to Challenge Town
Rezoning
on SEQRA Grounds and on Procedural Grounds"
here. Our coverage can be read
here.
Disgraceful, but Not a Departure from the Way They Do Things
May 28, 2012 The ad in the
Sunday Journal for the upcoming game with the Worcester
WPIX coverage of East Ramapo (click image for video) Why Block Antenna, But Not Stadium? May 26, 2012 Letter in The Journal News "I find it both
incongruent and preposterous that the Ramapo Planning
St. Lawrence Appointee Arrested--Second May 21, 2012 Last June when Christopher
St. Lawrence and his Board enthusiastically created
Tornadoes featured the man who is arguably the most notorious abuser
of steroids and
other illegal enhancement drugs in the history of baseball. He
has also been arrested and
charged with other crimes, and most
recently was kicked off the latest minor league
team that gave him a
chance. The team was in Mexico and he was released for
admitting to using a
banned
substance without a prescription. A world-class sports cheat
who is the featured attraction at Sunday's game.
Nothing like promoting a career drug abuser for the kids.
(More) .gif)
Budget and the prospect for keeping
Kindergarten classes
Board rejected the emergency services request to add antennas to an
existing tower because it would increase noise
pollution and traffic and the changes could contribute to the diminution
of property values. Where was the rejection
of the plan for the Provident Park baseball stadium in the backyard of
my neighborhood for the same reasons in 2010?
Full text of the letter
here.
in Command at the Highway Dept, John Layne,
Charged on numerous Counts by DA
an $80k position for John Layne as Deputy Superintendent of Highways for
Ramapo, we posted
a long piece itemizing all the red flags hauled up by this ex-mayor of
Airmont, and ex-building inspector for Sloatsburg.
We concluded the piece with this warning: "Some sources tell us that the
$80,000 for Layne will buy personal internal
surveillance for St. Lawrence in the Highway Department. Many feel that
Layne is being maneuvered in position to take
over when the current Superintendent, Tony Sharan, retires. But whether
it’s for a political periscope or the
patronage-equals-control calculus that defines local politics, the
spending and borrowing has maneuvered the town of
Ramapo into an increasingly dangerous position." Then in this
afternoon's LoHud: "Former Airmont Mayor and current Ramapo
deputy highway department superintendent John Layne was arrested at
10:30 a.m. today on corruption charges relating
to his previous job as the Sloatsburg building inspector. The District
Attorney's Office charged Layne with official misconduct,
first-degree falsifying business records, petty larceny, and issuing a
false certificate." St. Lawrence told the Journal reporter
that he was shocked. We're not. Read our assessment of Layne from last
June
here and The Journal News article John
Layne,
Airmont ex-mayor, charged with corruption in his former role as
Sloatsburg building inspector
here.
May 17, 2012 "Once again, public school
children lost in East Ramapo, as the majority of district voters — many
of whom have children who attend nonpublic schools and yeshivas —
rejected the proposed school budget. The
“No” vote was an especially bitter pill to swallow; not only was East
Ramapo’s the only budget in the Lower Hudson
Valley to go down, it also was $7 million less than the district’s
current budget. The 2012-2013 budget plan already
contained draconian cuts that limited options for children, from the
very beginning of their public school experience
through to the very end. For youngsters who attend the public school
system — mostly minority-group members from
working-class families — it will only get worse." Read the complete
editorial
here.
Read Mareesa Nicosia's
evaluation of the consequences of the failed budget vote:
"East Ramapo budget loss may mean deeper cuts, including all
kindergarten"
here
A Delusional Solution
May 16, 2012 A puzzling story in The
Journal News last week claimed, "Two councilmen want Ramapo LDC
control shifted to Town Board, cite accountability." The two are Daniel
Friedman and Pat Withers, and what
they want is actually not legal. And their reasons for wanting to take
control of the LDC (Supervisor St. Lawrence’s
Local Development Corp), as explained to the Journal reporter, is
to protect the public from none other than themselves.
(Full story
here)
|
East Ramapo School Budget only one in the Yonah Rothman 8410 (wins seat on Board)
Ramapo Central School Budget--Yes 1358 No 618
Theresa DiFalco 1293 (wins seat on Board) Journal News Coverage: East Ramapo: Solomon, 2 Newcomers Elected (here); East Ramapo is sole Rockland district to reject school budget (here) |
United Water fine just a drop in bucket
May. 14, 2012
A fine of
$40,000 is a minor inconvenience to United Water New York, a
subsidiary of Paris-based
Suez Environnement; but we in Rockland should take notice.
Without algal blooms, there wouldn’t be an issue
with copper sulfate. Without excess nutrients in the reservoir,
there wouldn’t be algal blooms. Full text of letter
here.
Moody's sinks Rockland's credit rating, now lowest-rated in New York State
May 11, 2012 "Rockland
County now has the lowest credit rating of all New York counties
rated by Moody’s Investors
Service after the company downgraded the rating Thursday by three
levels, from A3 to Baa3. Moody’s also is reviewing
the rating for further downgrade, which could occur at any time
within the next 90 days. A drop of one more level — to
Ba1 or lower — would put the county at below-average
creditworthiness, meaning the county’s credit rating would
essentially
be at junk status.
Rockland County is now the lowest-rated county in the state.” Full
text of The Journal News coverage
here.
Former
Airmont trustee Veronica Boesch to finish late mayor's term
May 10, 2012 "The
village board has appointed a former trustee as its new leader after
the sudden death of
Mayor Dennis Kay last month.
Veronica D. Boesch, a retired teacher who was elected to the board
in 2007,
succeeds Kay, a longtime local leader who was involved in the Boy
Scouts and other causes. Complete
Journal News story
here.
Financial Analysis of the 2011Annual Report of the Ramapo
Local Development Corp (LDC)
May 8, 2012 We finally have the long awaited financial
statement from last year’s operations of the Ramapo Local
Development Corporation. The financial statement only hints at the
financial disaster that Supervisor St. Lawrence
has created for our town. When reading the report one has to keep in
mind that following standard accounting practice
they assume the assets of the LDC are worth what it cost to
create them. Readers should recall that the "affordable"
housing was built on a cost plus basis and the stadium was
constructed through the worst winter in recent memory by
tradesmen working weekends and two and three shifts. Today these
assets are worth almost nothing. Read the
complete report
here.
Pomona Wins Decision in Appellate Court:
Judge Jamieson's Patrick Farm Lawsuit
Denials Overturned
May 7, 2012 On April 24th, a
four-judge panel of the
Appellate Division of New York State overturned orders
written by Judge Linda S. Jamieson in the Rockland County
Supreme Court relating to the Village of Pomona's lawsuit
against the Town of Ramapo and the concessions Ramapo
had made to the developer of Patrick Farm. Jamieson had ruled that
Pomona had no right to sue ("did not have
legal standing"). The Appellate Court ruled that Jamieson had gotten
it wrong ("erred") and that the village did
have that right.
(More)
Saudi Arabia on the Hudson?
Why Water Speculators Want
Desalination in the Moist Northeast
on Huffington Post here. Greene is the Environmental Director, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater.
The
Other Costs of the New Square Arson Attack
May 6, 2012 When, at around four o’clock in the morning,
Shaul Spitzer showed up at the
home of Aron Rottenberg carrying accelerants, with which he would
threaten the lives of
an entire family, the fire he ignited seriously burned both
Rottenberg and himself. The fire
also starkly lit several underlying problems that brought the two
New Square residents to
that deadly confrontation in the middle of the night.
(More)
"We’re not going to take it anymore!"
Volunteer Firefighters on Building Violations
May 3, 2012 John Kryger, an assistant
fire coordinator at the Rockland Fire
Training Center, told The
Journal News yesterday
that firefighters "shouldn’t
have to be adversarial" but they will
be taking the offensive against local
government officials and
boards
that allow illegally altered housing to pose
a threat to volunteer
firemen. The situation has reached a tipping point,
and Kryger
announced, "We’re not going to take it anymore."
(More)
DEC
Fines United Water $40k for Polluting Reservoir
May 2, 2012 "United
Water New York has agreed to a civil penalty of $40,000 for
improperly
applying pesticides to the Lake Deforest Reservoir under the terms
of a consent order with
the state Department of Environmental Conservation, the agency said
Tuesday.
United Water
New York owns and operates the reservoir, a major drinking water
supply for thousands of
Rockland homes and businesses. The company had nothing to say
regarding its pollution of the reservoir Tuesday." Journal
News story
here.
Let New Jersey pay for the Hudson water plant
April 26, 2012
"Concerning the
United Water proposal to build a reverse osmosis water treatment
plant using Hudson River
water — I get it, it safely removes most contaminants to an
acceptable level. But, it will cost more to operate than we’re
told. There is a very simple way to increase Rockland water that
costs Rockland zero — stop sending Rockland water to
New Jersey and have United Water N.J. build a plant for New Jersey
where they drink the Hudson River water and absorb
the cost to build the plant." Complete letter to the Journal
here.
East Ramapo candidates make their pitch to concerned citizens
April 26, 2012 "Gathered
at the Chuggin’ Rhino in Pomona from 7-9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17,
Kim Foskew, Hiram Rivera
and Joanna Thompson rallied a group of roughly 50 for support in
this year’s East Ramapo school board election. These
three candidates were picked by the Concerned Citizens of East
Ramapo because they claim to be committed to putting
the “children first.”
Story.
Popular Nanuet Carnival Disappears in Pomona
April 26, 2012
"Dreamland
Amusements can no longer stage their once popular biannual carnival
in the parking lot of the
Nanuet Mall due to construction there, so they moved the location to
the parking lot of Provident Bank Park. So far,
it’s not working out, organizers have told the Rockland County
Times. People cannot see the amusements from the
road and that is affecting turnout." Posting from Rockland County
Times
here.
Welcome to Jose’s Nightmare
April 23, 2012 It was only one month
ago, on March 8, that he was kicked out of the Mexican Baseball
League for admitting
to using a banned substance without a prescription. The drug was
testosterone and the player was 47-year-old Jose Canseco,
who might be the most infamous pro sports juicer of all time. Then,
on April 20th, the Worcester Tornadoes of the Can-Am
League announced the signing of Canseco. In the press release,
Tornadoes General Manager Jorg Bassiacos said, "We expect
Jose to bring a lot of excitement to Hanover Insurance Park at
Fitton Field." Story
here.
Community View: Water Treatment Project Faces Costly Snags
April 19, 2012
"United Water has proposed
building the Haverstraw Water Supply Project treatment plant on
property at a
closed town landfill, just south of the Haverstraw Marina. The
treatment plant would draw water from the brackish Hudson
River, remove contaminants, treat it and deliver it to its
customers. The company provides drinking water to the majority
of homes and businesses in Rockland." Read William Stein's Community
View
here.
East Ramapo budget cuts spending by $7million, slashes staff, programs
April 19, 2012 "The East Ramapo
school board adopted
a $192 million budget that decreases spending by $7 million and
reduces
scores of staff and programs while raising the tax levy by 1.9
percent. Taxpayers will cast their votes on the budget May 15.The
5-1 vote, with two abstentions, by the Board of Education late
Wednesday night came after weeks of public controversy about
the impact of the district’s multimillion-dollar deficit." Journal
story
here.
Shaul Spitzer gets 7 years for New Square arson attack
April 18, 2012 "An
18-year-old New Square man who severely burned a village dissident
during an arson attack got sentenced
to seven years in state prison on Tuesday after apologizing for
trying to burn Aron Rottenberg’s family out of the Hasidic
Jewish village.
The attack on Rottenberg and others for refusing to pray in the
village synagogue and other activities raised
how the Hasidic Jewish theocracy in New Square controls the lives of
residents and deals, harshly at times, with those
who choose not to follow the grand rabbi’s dictates." Full text of
the Journal News coverage
here.
Joe Meyers' remembrance of Mayor Dennis Kay hereThe Preserve Ramapo community will miss Mayor Kay |
Airmont Mayor Dennis Kay dies at 65
April 15, 2012 "Dennis
Kay, a two-term mayor of Airmont and longtime local leader involved
in the Boy Scouts and other
causes, has died. Kay, who had recently turned 65, was found dead
this morning in his home on Lorna Lane, his family said.
Family members said Kay had been in good health and that his death
was unexpected. They did not immediately know
the cause." Journal News story
here.
New Square
arson attack: Spitzer Faces 5-10 years at sentencing Tuesday,
Supporters seek leniency from Judge William A. Kelly
April 14, 2012 "Shaul Spitzer,
18, faces five to 10 years for first-degree assault in the attack on
Aron Rottenberg at 4:15 a.m. May 22
during an attempt to burn down the family’s home on Truman Avenue in
New Square. Rottenberg, 44, once a plumber, continues to
recover from third-degree burns over 50 percent of his body,
suffered when Spitzer set off an incendiary device while grappling
with Rottenberg. Spitzer suffered burns to his hands and arms.
Before Spitzer pleaded guilty Feb. 8, state Supreme Court Justice
William A. Kelly told the teenager that he would cap his prison term
at 10 years.
The violent felony assault charge carries
a sentence
range of five to 25 years for a first-time offender." Complete story
at Journal News
here.
East Ramapo schools Concerned Citizens group to kick off campaign ahead of district vote
April 11, 2012
"The Concerned Citizens of East Ramapo will hold a campaign kick-off
meeting tonight ahead of the East Ramapo
school district’s Board of Education and budget vote May 15. The
group of public education advocates will introduce three
candidates running for three open seats on the Board of Education:
Kim Foskew, Hiram Rivera and current board member
JoAnne Thompson. The event is from 7 to 9 p.m. in the faculty dining
room of the Rockland Community College cultural arts
building, 145 College Road. Training and coordination for campaign
volunteers also will take place." Journal story
here.
Journal Editorial: Bad time for Spring Valley Raises
April 3, 2012 "Spring
Valley Mayor Noramie Jasmin justifies her newly enacted 8.5 percent
salary increase by saying she
works hard — “24/7” — for her village. No doubt she and the
village’s four trustees, also getting substantial raises, put in
long hours; but the increases come at the wrong time, with village
residents still struggling to dig their way out of the recession.
The four village trustees will see a 20.6 percent salary bump in the
2012-2013 budget, putting base compensation for the part-time
posts at $25,750; compensation for the mayor, whose post is
considered full time, increases to $125,000. Taxpayers have been
generous to the mayor in other respects; they already picked up the
$46,000 tab for the high-end SUV Jasmin drives. The raises
come as Spring Valley homeowners will see their village property tax
bills go up more than 3 percent in the new budget; the
village’s tax levy increase is 3.4 percent." Read the complete
editorial
here.
Ramapo Placed on Municipal Early
Warning System Watch
(MEWS) for Distressed Debt
March 30, 2012
The Town of Ramapo has accumulated a dangerously high debt load and
now has been placed on a watch
list for those municipalities and companies involved in distressed
debt.
(More)
Hundreds protest cuts to East Ramapo budget
March 29, 2012
"Several
hundred people turned out Wednesday night at an East Ramapo
community forum where a
proposal to cut millions from the school district’s budget — and the
impact of those cuts on students — was the center
of attention. Administrators,
saying the district faces a multimillion-dollar deficit next year,
have proposed a list of
nonmandated staff and program cuts totaling more than $20 million.
Superintendent of Schools Joel Klein has said the
district needs to cut between $13 million and $20 million to meet
the state tax cap and pass the proposed $202 million
budget for the 2012-13 school year. Recommendations include
eliminating the kindergarten program to save $5.1 million,
cutting extracurricular activities by half or in total to save up to
$400,000, and eliminating the elementary library program
to save $1.2 million. Another would cut the athletic budget in half
or in total to save up to $850,000. Cutting the entire
program would eliminate all after-school sports and intramural
programs. Other proposals would drastically reduce the number
of teachers, social workers and nurses." Full Journal coverage,
including video,
here.
Journal Editorial: More oversight needed for LDCs
March 25, 2012 "Ramapo’s
LDC — which St. Lawrence chairs — allowed the town to get around all
sorts of other
issues as well. After town voters overwhelmingly defeated a
referendum to guarantee a $16.5 million loan for the
stadium, the RLDC went ahead and secured a short-term bond (for $25
million) that was guaranteed by the town,
or rather its taxpayers. Plus, town land, purchased by the town for
$7.7 million, was given to the RLDC, which
could use it as collateral. Then, there’s town-paid site work that
benefited the RLDC project, and the town’s
payment of fines to the state Department of Environmental
Conservation for violations at the site.
Of more concern:
The comptroller cast doubt on the RLDC’s scheme to pay back the
stadium bond — using profits from the sale of units
at an affordable housing complex being built by the RLDC. The
comptroller doubted the profit could cover both bond
payments for the housing construction and the stadium’s debt. If the
RLDC come up short on its stadium bond payments,
the bills could land in the lap of the guarantors — the taxpayers of
Ramapo." Full text of the editorial
here.
Ramapo Cited
for Abuses of
St. Lawrence's Development Corp
that Bills the Taxpayers
March 25, 2012 In a joint investigation by the Rockland and Westchester
offices of The Journal News, reporters Mareesa Nicosia and Jorge Fitz-Gibbon
profile the role of Local Development Corporations in the two counties.
(More)
The best alternative to meet Rockland's water needs
March 24,
2012
"The United Water Lake DeForest
water treatment plant has a capacity of 20 million gallons per day.
However, the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) currently
limits production to an average of 10 million
gallons per day. The best alternative to meet Rockland's water
needs is to remove this NYSDOH production limitation
and operate Lake DeForest as it was originally intended, 'solely for
the benefit of the citizens of Rockland County'."
Read the full
text of Bob Dillon's letter to the County elected officials
here.
Radio show 'East Ramapo Underground' spotlights school district issues
March 23,
2012
"Our
goal is to inform the public about what is happening to the East
Ramapo school district with
regard to the budget cuts and the upcoming election and to make sure
the people are fully aware of what’s happening,”
Hatton said, following the show’s debut Thursday morning." Journal
story
here.
East Ramapo mulls 4.78% tax hike; worst-case scenario includes 180 staff cuts
March 23, 2012 "If
taxpayers vote down the proposed budget, the district must adopt a
contingency budget with no tax-levy
increase. In that scenario, it faces at least a $15 million deficit.
Proposals totaling $24 million worth of cuts include up to
180 staff positions, the entire kindergarten program and the
elementary library program. The district has shed 255.8
employees in the past four years." Journal coverage
here.
Wesley Hills
Incumbents Prevail
Mayor
David Goldsmith 728
Bret Bekritsky 580
Trustees Ed McPherson 694
Marshall Katz 732
Jonathan Gewirtz 595 William Fried 562
(Totals are unofficial and do include absentee ballots)
Journal News story
here.
East Ramapo Schools Weigh $20m in Cuts
March 15, 2012 "In addition to
extracurricular programs like sports and clubs, it will consider paring
down honors and
Advanced Placement classes and BOCES offerings. Most significantly,
officials said, more than 180 staff positions could
potentially be cut. 'We do not have a choice. We will have to make some
of these, if not all. We don’t know yet,'
Superintendent Joel Klein said, of the proposed cuts. If nothing else,
the district will look to maintain a 'good, solid'
general education program, he added." Full text of Journal story
here.
An Environmental Engineer's Objections to the Desalination Proposal
March 14, 2012 Among the documents
presented and sent regarding the desalination project there is
this letter from a local consulting engineer with credentials in
environmental engineering. Mr. Stein, of
New City, has more than fifty years of experience in the design and
development of water supply and
waste water disposal, highway, bridge, dam and land development
projects. He explains why the project
is unnecessary. Text of the letter
here.
Arson Victim Rottenberg's Car Set on Fire in New Square
March 9, 2012 "A car belonging to Aron
Rottenberg — the dissident member of the Hasidic community
targeted and seriously burned in a May arson attack — was intentionally
set ablaze Thursday night. Hillcrest
firefighters responded to Jefferson Avenue about 10:40 p.m. to find the
rear of Rottenberg’s 2003 Mazda
in flames, Ramapo Police Sgt. Blaine Howell said. The arson fire started
with someone lighting either
paper or cardboard under the trunk near the gas tank, Ramapo Capt. Brad
Weidel said this morning.
He said the criminal charge is third-degree arson if someone is caught."
Journal coverage
here.
ABC Ignores “The Supervisor Misspoke”
Excuse
and
Embarrasses CSL into Honoring his Word
March 5, 2012 In a
retirement ceremony at town hall, Supervisor
St. Lawrence
promised on camera, “As a retirement we will keep
the dog in food and
health.
We will give him health benefits like
one of the guys here.” The dog had
saved
lives and provided
notable service to the police K-9 Corps and the
public. When he became critically ill, however,
the
cameras were no longer rolling and repeated, even certified requests
to the Supervisor for help after
the dog's
benefits were abruptly discontinued went unanswered. Cue the cameras,
and guess what
the response was once the
lights were on again? The story and video
here.
Rockland Has Enough Water
March 5, 2012 "United
Water wants to treat and desalinate Hudson River water to meet
Rockland’s
water supply needs. Before the already overtaxed residents and
businesses of Rockland County pay
for an unneeded “Haverstraw Water Supply Project,” United Water must
first gauge the real supply,
and real need, within the county. Meeting the current and foreseeable
future water needs of Rockland
is simply a matter of United Water complying with the state Department
of Environmental Conservation
discharge permit for Lake DeForest."
(More)
SHELL GAME: Developers Bet on Rezoning to Maximize Profits
March 4, 2012 A lead story in
Journal News Sunday examines the nexus of developers, politicians,
and
zoning boards in Rockland and Westchester Counties. The article includes
the changes in zoning at the
Patrick Farm site from Adult Student Housing to high-density placement
of 500 homes over an aquifer.
Story
here.
Hillcrest Fire Company joins lawsuit to halt Patrick Farm
March 3, 2012 "Saying
firefighters’ concerns about the design of the massive Patrick Farm
housing development
have been ignored, the Hillcrest Fire Company has joined an existing
lawsuit that seeks to halt the project in its
current form. The controversial 497-home development was approved by the
Ramapo Planning Board late last year
amid public criticism over its planned density, wetlands location and
proximity to a pressurized gas line. Several
lawsuits seeking to reverse the decision followed in January, including
one filed by 10 members of the environmental
group Ramapo Organized for Sustainability and a Safe Aquifer (ROSA)
against the town and the developer, Scenic
Development LLC of Monsey." Full text of the Journal story
here.
Call to Investigate Elm Street Condos Triggers
Federal Monitoring
March 1, 2012 This was the promise
from the Supervisor: "The Ramapo Local
Development Corporation (RLDC) is spearheading an initiative to
construct a
new affordable work-force housing development on Elm Street in
Spring Valley.
The project, known as Ramapo commons, is going to benefit families
who otherwise might not be able to afford
to purchase a home in Ramapo." So who are the families who bought
the first 24 condos recently completed?
A clue: Most of them weren’t people.
(More)
Activists challenge religious land-use law (RLUIPA)
March 1, 2012 "There are 40
synagogues on the Great Neck peninsula, more per capita than
Jerusalem, notes Rita Hall
of Reach Out America, a grassroots advocacy organization that has as
one of its missions upholding separation of church
and state. In the Village of Great Neck, alone, there are 28 houses
of worship - adding in the schools and parks almost
one-third of its property falls under "tax-exempt" category." The
article is a review of the film "America's Holy War" and
a general commentary on the destructive nature of the RLUIPA
legislation.
(More)
Estimate of First Year's Loss at the Stadium
February 28, 2012
The Provident Bank Stadium Park has been and will continue to be an economic disaster for Ramapo.
Ramapo Supervisor St. Lawrence cited the Fishkind study in order to
argue that the stadium will someday be a financial
success. But he
doesn’t remind us that Fishkind based his optimistic projections on
a total construction cost of only
$20 million. Based on incomplete
data the Comptroller’s report found a total cost of $60 million.
Preserve Ramapo
believes the final cost will be closer to $70
million.
(More)
Ramapo Stonewalls on Revenue Numbers for the Ballpark
February 27, 2012 "Ramapo
officials are dragging their feet on requests by The Journal News to
release records of revenue
generated by the multimillion-dollar baseball stadium, an expert on
state open government law said. Robert Freeman,
executive director for the state Committee on Open Government, said
Thursday that the town and officials from its
development corporation have imposed an “artificial roadblock” by
failing to fulfill requests for records about how much
money Ramapo made during the facility’s inaugural season. The
town-created quasi-governmental agency, the Ramapo
Local Development Corp., owns and operates the controversial
stadium." Journal story
here.
Ramapo Officials Disgrace Themselves over the Banning of RLUIPA Film
February 24, 2012 "A
documentary (America's Holy War) explaining the history and
substance of the Religious Land Use and
Institutionalized Persons Act was banned by the New York Association
of Towns, at its annual conference in Manhattan earlier
this week, because of unspecified objections from municipal
officials from the Town of Ramapo in Rockland County. The
executive of NYAT, who would not specify who had objected, never saw
the film or even asked to preview it before
they acted." Read the director's full response
here. And remember, a screening of the film is scheduled next
Wednesday, 8pm,
at Rivertown Film in Nyack. Click on notice above for details.
Ramapo
stadium's earnings fall short in 1st year
February 23, 2012
"The
town’s controversial baseball stadium generated $734,100 in its
inaugural
season, falling more than $300,000 short of projections made by a
consultant in 2010 that it would
net $1.1 million. A revenue
shortfall is significant as the RLDC prepares to make the first
payment
of the year toward the $25 million, five-year loan backed by the
town for the stadium’s construction.
The stadium’s success also has been tied to the taxpayers, though
St. Lawrence insists residents
will not be liable. The town deeded ownership of the 61 acres of
parkland the stadium sits on
to the RLDC to pay off the costs.
The first payment of $1,937,500 is due March 15, and a
second payment of $437,500 is due in September." Journal
story
here.
Montebello on track to have its own court
February 20, 2012 "The village is
on track to operate its own Justice Court during the spring,
joining eight others within the Town of Ramapo that already do so.
The village has operated
without a court since its incorporation in 1986, relying instead on
Ramapo Town Court to hear
traffic cases, violations of zoning and building codes, and minor
civil and criminal offenses. Though
he has opposed the idea of a village court in the past, Mayor
Jeffrey Oppenheim said times have
changed. 'Now I feel that there is a legitimate need,' Oppenheim
said Monday. 'My feeling is that
the people in the village deserve the right to elect a justice for
their own court.' Contributing to the
decision, Oppenheim said, was the loss of a re-election bid by
longtime former Town Justice Arnold
Etelson, a Montebello resident, to Alan Simon in November. Because
Etelson was ousted from the
bench not by Montebello residents’ votes, but by Ramapo’s large
Jewish bloc vote, Oppenheim said, village residents 'are
essentially disenfranchised.' " Full Journal story
here.
Water desalination plant a bad idea for residents
February 19, 2012 "United Water has
launched a major public relations advertising and direct mail
campaign aimed at
convincing us that its plan to build a desalination plant for Hudson
River drinking water is a good idea and the least
expensive alternative for Rockland residents. But United Water is
not telling us the whole story. The company claims its
plant would provide economic benefits and new tax revenues. But the
fact is, the projected cost of the plant has been
increasing, it would create only a few permanent jobs, it would
require higher operational and energy costs and any tax
revenues will be generated by higher water rates for everyone.Hudson
River desalination is a bad idea for Rockland." In
a Community View appearing in The Journal News, two members
of the Rockland Water Coalition explain six reasons why
the plant is a bad idea for residents.
(More)
Ramapo's financial 'tricks' dig a tremendous hole
Feb. 17, 2012 Community View in The Journal News
The Town of Ramapo is facing a cash crunch that could become a true
emergency
toward the end of this year. It will almost certainly not be able to
make scheduled
debt payments without borrowing millions of dollars.
(More)
East Ramapo schools chief proposes $202M budget; layoffs, program cuts likely
Feb. 16, 2012 "The East Ramapo school district has a hard
road ahead as it seeks to provide effective education with fewer
resources
while meeting the state’s new tax levy cap next school year. That
was the message of Superintendent of Schools Joel Klein, who on
Wednesday night floated a $202 million budget proposal for the
2012-13 school year."
(Story here)
Religious school ruled illegal by Ramapo still open; congregation gets 30 days to file plans
Feb. 16, 2012 "A Route 306 religious school continues to hold
classes for children in a former single-family house despite being
taken
to Ramapo Town Court for operating illegally and after yeshiva
officials promised the village mayor they would first seek
approvals.
Congregation Ohr Torah went before Ramapo Justice Rhoda Schoenberger
on Tuesday and got another 30 days to move ahead on
filing plans and going before village planning and zoning boards.
The congregation lacks a certificate of occupancy and approvals to
operate a school in the house and an addition."
(Story here)
The law applies to New Square, too
Feb. 15,
2012 "The recent climax of the New Square arson case is
troubling on several counts. First, it is troubling that a man who
attacked a home with a fire bomb that resulted in life-threatening
burns on Aron Rottenberg can plea down from attempted murder
to assault. Secondly, it is troubling that the leadership of New
Square can squash investigation into their role in the attack on a
man
who they had allegedly repeatedly threatened by the writing of a
check. However, the most troubling aspect is the concluding
sentence of the above editorial on this plea deal: “The community,
like the Rottenbergs, is moving on.”
(Full letter
here)
RLUIPA
Documentary America's Holy War to be Screened
at Annual Conference of NYS Association of Towns (Feb 21)
The story of Ramapo and RLUIPA, as covered in America's Holy War,
will be going Statewide when
it is screened at the Annual Conference of the New York State
Association of Towns on February 21
at the New York Hilton in Manhattan. Officials from every
municipality in the State as well as others
will be attending. The screening is part of a session entitled, "How
to Survive an RLUIPA Investigation." There will be a panel
discussion after the screening. Local screening will be at Rivertown
Film in Nyack, Wed. Feb. 29 at 8pm. Details
here.
Cost of new United Water plant questioned
February 14, 2012 "United Water
New York is trying to lessen its impact on the Hudson River and
aquatic life as it seeks approvals to tap
the waterway as a drinking water source. Meanwhile, critics want to
determine what they consider the “true” costs of the plant before
the process moves any further. The developments come as deadlines
for public comment have been set, the Rockland Water Coalition
prepares to hold information sessions, and United Water readies an
open house at its testing lab in West Haverstraw." Story
here.
Journal News editorial: Arson plea ends further inquiry
February 8, 2012 "Spitzer
admitted that he acted out of retribution — for Rottenberg’s
defiance of an edict by Grand Rabbi David Twersky,
leader of Skver Hasidim. That order commanded residents to pray in
New Square’s lone synagogue. For months prior to the attack,
Rottenberg
and his family had been on the receiving end of escalating protests
due to his and other dissident men’s decision to worship at
Friedwald Center,
a rehabilitation and nursing center outside New Square. While most
of the others eventually returned to the community synagogue,
Rottenberg
continued on at Friedwald. His defiance could have cost him his
life. There were documented
incidents of smashed car and house windows;
rapping on a bedroom window in the wee hours; phone calls
threatening torment of Rottenberg’s daughter in school — followed by
her school
desk and property turning up on the front porch; and crowds of men —
as many as 300 — massing outside the Rottenberg home. This was
joined
by a letter circulated by the village’s rabbinical court, with Rabbi
Twersky’s stamp, spelling out instructions on where to worship. This
area, too,
is beyond further inquiry in these proceedings." As is the public
response of the Supervisor and Ramapo Police Chief ("top Ramapo
police and political
leaders would parrot each other’s assurances that the arson attack
was an isolated incident and part of no pattern of intimidation.
Read the
complete editorial.
Uncovering St. Lawrence's Ballpark Numbers
February 8, 2012 On Wednesday, Feb. 1,
the auditors from the New York State Comptroller’s Office issued the
final results of their
examination of finances in the Ramapo Town government. Along with
other serious criticisms of the supervisor and town board,
they repeated the charge that "Town officials have inappropriately
mingled the activities of the Town and the Ramapo Local
Development Corporation (RLDC) in construction of a baseball
stadium. These actions allowed Town officials to circumvent laws the
Town is required to abide by for the approval and construction of
such projects." The State officials predicted "Taxpayers could be
liable for up to $60 million in the stadium deal, and in addition,
there is little likelihood that the project will generate sufficient
revenue
to help the Town pay for this outstanding liability." When contacted
by local news media, the Supervisor initiated a shrill but shallow
defense of his RLDC claiming he had no idea where the Comptroller’s
numbers were coming from.
(More)
Ex-East Ramapo School Board President sentenced
to a Year and a Day for Mail Fraud
February 8, 2012 "Nathan
Rothschild, 54, the ex-fire district chairman and former president
of the East Ramapo Board of Education, had sought probation after
pleading guilty to one
count of mail fraud in the summer. In addition to the prison time,
Rothschild was
sentenced to two years of post-release supervision. Federal
prosecutors had recommended
27 to 33 months in prison. Journal Story
here.
New Square arson suspect pleads guilty to assault; says he set resident on fire
February 8, 2012 "An
18-year-old follower of the New Square grand rebbe pleaded guilty
Tuesday to setting a dissident community
member on fire during an arson attack that rocked the Hasidic
community. Shaul Spitzer, who lived with Grand Rabbi David
Twersky and did butler-type work for him, will face a maximum state
prison sentence of 10 years for first-degree assault
when sentenced April 17. The plea was part of an overall agreement
that included the settlement of a civil lawsuit brought
by the victim, Aron Rottenberg. He will receive a monetary award –
believed to be in the $2 million range — from supporters
of Spitzer and Twersky." Journal News story
here.
Journal News: Comptroller Stands Firm on Basic Findings and Incompetence of the Board
February 2, 2012 "Auditors stand
firm on earlier findings that the town 'inappropriately mingled its
activities' with the Ramapo
Local Development Corp. it created to finance the stadium, allowing
officials to circumvent laws. For the first time, auditors
called on the Town Board to 'cease using the RLDC to, in effect,
circumvent procurement practices' that would have been
required for any normal capital project. 'Town Board members failed
to properly monitor the project, did not know the
stadium cost or how it would be paid for,' auditors added." Full
story
here.
NYS
Comptroller's Ramapo Audit (final) Released today:
DiNapoli: Actions of Ramapo Town Officials Highlight need for LDC
Reform
Taxpayers Could be Liable for Up to $60 Million in Stadium Deal
February 1, 2012
"Ramapo town
officials took a risky approach to financing a minor league stadium
through the Ramapo Local
Development Corporation (RLDC), according to an audit released today
by New York State Comptroller
Thomas P. DiNapoli. As a result, taxpayers may be liable for up to
$60 million.
'Local officials can and should nurture economic development
opportunities in their communities, but they have an obligation to
taxpayers to ensure that projects are realistic and financially
viable,' DiNapoli
said. 'Instead, Ramapo officials ignored red flags that the project
numbers didn't add up which could adversely impact its finances for
years to come.
It is questionable deals like this that prompted my proposed reforms
for the future use of LDCs by local governments.'
In addition, DiNapoli's
auditors found that Ramapo had operating deficits of more than $2.4
million in 2010 and has experienced cash flow problems." The full
text
of the press release and link to the complete final audit
here.
Jury selection to begin Tuesday in New Square arson attack case
February 1, 2012 "Shaul
Spitzer has waived his right to a pre-trial hearing and jury
selection is now scheduled to begin
Tuesday on charges in an arson attack on a dissident resident of New
Square last May. Spitzer is facing felony counts of
attempted murder, arson and assault for his suspected role in a May
22 attack on fellow New Square resident Aron Rottenberg.
He faces 5 to 25 years if convicted of the top count of
second-degree attempted murder." Story
here.
New lawsuit filed against Patrick Farm project
January 31, 2012 "Members
of the environmental group Ramapo Organized for Sustainability and a
Safe Aquifer filed a petition
Thursday in Rockland County Court against the town and the
developer, Scenic Development LLC of Monsey. The controversial
development was granted final Planning Board approval Dec. 27, amid
heated public criticism centering on the environmental
impact of building on a site that is now woods and wetlands. The
board’s approval is conditional on the developer obtaining
state permits.
The 10 ROSA members listed in the lawsuit live near the 196-acre
site near Routes 202 and 306 outside Pomona."
Full story
here.
Ramapo Bends, then Breaks over Bates-Horton Violations
January 31, 2012
"One of several recent amendments to the
town’s zoning law unanimously approved by the Town Board last week
applies to owners of the illegally converted two- or three-family
homes on Bates Drive, Horton Drive and Witzel Court. Many of those
converted homes still lack certificates of occupancy.
The change to the law reverses an earlier clause, added in 2004,
that for the
first time permitted the once-illegal conversions on the condition
that property owners join a homeowners association that manages
the condominium apartments." Read The Journal News' "Ramapo
tidies housing site, approving 2-family homes in management pact"
and then read the paper's editorial "Ramapo
backs down on zoning."
Desalination Plant and Radioactive Waste from
Indian Point
"Indian Point has
one of the largest stockpiles of spent fuel in the U.S. Approximately
1,500 tons
of radioactive waste is stored in densely packed pools at Indian Point.
No containment
structures exist over the spent fuel pools, leaving them vulnerable to
sabotage. If Indian Point
is relicensed, an additional 1,000 tons of highly radioactive waste will
be produced and stored
at the site indefinitely. (Riverkeeper)"
(More)
Update on Release of Comptroller's Audit of the Town of Ramapo
January 24, 2012 In response to a request sent to the NYS
Comptroller's Office, we were told by the Assistant Director of
Communications, Kate Gurnett, that the state expects to "release the
final audit within the next few weeks." We will post that document
here when it is released. Commentary and the complete text of the draft
version can be read
here.
East Ramapo Takeover Unlikely
January 23, 2012 "A state takeover of
the struggling East Ramapo school district is being suggested by some
community
advocates, but the dramatic step is unlikely, based on past practice in
New York. East Ramapo will face a multimillion-dollar
budget deficit before the end of the school year, and the district may
borrow up to $10 million this spring to cover costs,
Superintendent Joel Klein said recently." Journal article
here.
Desalination Plant Raises Costs, Harm in the Long Run
January 19, 2012
"United Water
New York has embarked on a public relations blitz in support of its plan
to augment the
Rockland County water supply by desalination of the Hudson estuary.
Advertising for its “Haverstraw Water Supply Project”
is misleading when it touts the planned plant as cost-effective and a
great tax generator for the Rockland community." Read
the Community View by Professor Nicholas Christie-Blick of the
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
here.
DEC ready to review United Water's Hudson River treatment plant
January 19, 2012
"United Water New York has provided enough
information on its Hudson River treatment plant to allow
the state’s review of the project to proceed. The state Department of
Environmental Conservation has deemed the company’s
draft environmental impact statement complete, agency spokeswoman Wendy
Rosenbach said.The draft environmental report is
now ready for public review along with draft permits that the company
needs to obtain before it can begin withdrawing and
treating river water it wants to supply to its Rockland County
customers. A public hearing on the report and the permits will be
held at 2 and 6 p.m. Feb. 28 at Haverstraw Town Hall, 1 Rosman Road,
Garnerville. Written comments may be submitted until
March 19." Full text of the Journal article
here.
East Ramapo Superintendent: Layoffs and cuts are assured
January 14, 2012 "Describing
East Ramapo’s financial condition as 'not a very pretty picture,' the
superintendent says
layoffs and program cuts next school year are all but assured in order
for the district to comply with the state’s 2 percent
tax-levy cap in 2012. 'It’s very, very tight,' Superintendent Joel Klein
said of the struggling district’s current budget. 'And
going forward, it’s going to be even worse. As we know, next year we’re
going to be making cuts. Of what magnitude,
I don’t know.'” Full text of The Journal News story
here.
Ramapo—A
Fiscal Deadbeat?
January 10, 2012 It was just a little over
a week ago that Supervisor St. Lawrence
admitted on the radio that the Town would not be able to pay back the
$2.5 million
borrowed in September from the Workman’s Compensation Fund and two other
funds.
The loans were due no later than December 31, but the Town let the
deadline slip.
Eight days later, The Journal News reported that of the $15
million owed to Provident
Bank in Ramapo-backed loans for the Ramapo Local Development Corp’s Elm
Street
Housing project, the Town has only been able to repay $6 million, less
than half of what’s owed. Worse yet, the housing
project now needs another $8.4 million from Provident Bank—an
institution that is experiencing its own dangerous fiscal
stresses at this point.
(More)
Ex-legislator
Connie Coker: Patrick Farm plan is abhorrent
Letter in Our Town: Patrick Farm downzoning--Ramapo’s assault on
the rest of Rockland
January 10, 2012 The former Chair of
the County Legislature's Environmental Committee condemns the Patrick
Farm Plan,
and a Tappan resident speaks out voicing concerns about destructive down
zoning that will affect everyone in Rockland. Both
here.
Our Water Bills, Our Future
January 9, 2012
0ur family just received
another slickly written, glossy mailing from
United
Water Co. (UW) telling how OK it will be to drink water that comes from
the
Hudson River.
Facing huge opposition from the public, UW seems to be making a
desperate, all-out push to
persuade
the public that UW's "Haverstraw Water Project" would be good
for Rockland County.
In the last several months our
mailbox has been cluttered with at least
five such mailings, plus almost nonstop newspaper ads.
Who is paying for all
of this? It's probably all of us, from our
recently jacked-up water bills. And for what? Read the full text
of Chad Murdock's
letter
here.
Journal News Editorial: Patrick Farm Plan Untenable
January 5, 2012 "Ramapo
town leaders recently took steps to aid homeowners who were victimized
by poor planning decisions
of yesteryear, and almost simultaneously increased the likelihood that
bad planning will cause further harm to town residents.
The contradictory decisions could cause costly headaches down the road.
The same week that St. Lawrence touted the tax help
for homeowners, the town’s planning board on Dec. 27 cleared the way for
a controversial mega-housing development on a swath
of lush, open land known as Patrick Farm. The development, which
environmentalists and neighbors have fought for years, brings
nearly 500 housing units to 196 acres off routes 202 and 306, near the
headwaters of the Mahwah River, a key part of Rockland’s
drinking water supply. Rockland’s planning department found much wrong
with the requested zone changes.
In fact, the county
negatively viewed the first downzone by the town, in 2004, that allowed
the area to change from two-acre to one-acre zoning.
Now the town has approved 410 high-density, multifamily units with up to
six bedrooms and 87 single-family homes with four
bedrooms." Full text of the editorial
here.
Two Year-end Letters to The Journal News
December 31, 2011
We encourage all
of our readers to write letters not only to The Journal News, but
also to the Rockland County Times
and the other local papers as well. In the last issue of 2010, the
Journal published the following two letters:
Issues
swirl
around Patrick Farm plan and Ramapo needs to invest in future.
Ramapo Fails to Repay $2m Borrowed from Workers’ Compensation
Fund—Also Defaults on $500k transferred from Ambulance and Lighting
Districts
December 31, 2011 Back in September, apparently under cash-flow
pressures, St. Lawrence and his board borrowed
$2.5 million, most of it from the Workers’ Compensation Fund, most of it
($2m) going to bail out the Town’s General
Fund. Today it was reported St. Lawrence said they will not meet the payback
deadline, nor did he offer any assurance
about repayment. He simply said they would revise the resolution that
originally ordered the transfers.
(More)
Planning Board Approves
Patrick Farm Plan—Opposition
Lawsuits Will Go Forward in Appellate
Court—DEC Approvals still Missing
December 28, 2011 Last night at the Ramapo Planning Board meeting
there were three 7-0 votes granting
board approval to three propositions related to the Patrick Farm plan of
developer Yechiel Lebovits to place
500 housing units on the rural site in Pomona.
(More)
St. Lawrence and Board Wrap up Year-end Gift for Ballpark Contractor
Morano Contract Bloats from Original $4.3 to $15.4 million
December 27, 2011 No, ‘Tis not the season. The season was over in
September with the Boulders
in next to last and the taxpayers still holding the bag for what has
become an endless stream of
construction costs at the ballpark site on Firemen’s Memorial Drive. Now
it’s late December, and
change orders (cost overruns) are still coming up regularly in the
Ramapo Town Board meetings.
When these resolutions are read aloud in the meetings, Town Attorney
Michael Klein always neglects
to mention the amounts so we have a few for you to look over, with the
numbers attached.
(More)
St.
Lawrence Legacy Gets more Ragged by the Day
Posted on the LoHud
Rockland Blog Saturday, December 17:
"At the Lafayette Theatre in
Suffern on Saturday, close to 1,000 people sat in the historic theater
watching the Christmas Classic, It's a Wonderful Life. The movie
was brought to the masses as
part of the Ramapo film festival. And dignitaries and town officials
were on hand to take their bows.
That’s when life became not all too wonderful for Ramapo Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence,
the hometown fellow from Suffern who attended the film with his wife and
his mother.
When
his name was announced, a strong cascade of boos filled the theater."
Full blog here.
Can-Am
Baseball League Falling Apart--Three Teams Fold
in First Year of Boulder's Play--Pittsfield Colonials, Broxton
Rox, and New York Federals Will not Return in 2012
December 16, 2011 Can-Am Commissioner
Miles Wolff announced today that his league of eight
teams
in 2011, the league which is the home of the Rockland Boulders, has
shrunk to five teams.
The Broxton
Rox folded today, joining the Pittsfield Colonials, which went belly up
earlier this fall.
Wolff announced
the remaining five teams will join another independent league, the
American
Association, for part of the
season to round out the current unbalanced schedule. Details of the
financial collapse of the
Rox
here. Visit the
www.CanAmLeague.com
for today's announcement of of the future for the remaining five.
Ramapo Planning Board Decides to Decide on Patrick Farm
December 15, 2011 After two long nights
of criticism, expert testimony and community reaction to the
Patrick Farm application, the Planning Board, at 1:21 in the morning,
decided to close the public hearing and
adjourn until December 27 when they will meet to vote on the three
items related to
the Patrick Farm
development: 1. Patrick Farm
Subdivision approval of a drawing entitled Patrick Farm
Subdivision, consisting
of 88 tax lots on
196.4 acres; 2. Patrick Farm Condominiums plan approval of a
drawing consisting of 314 market
rate townhouses and 72 "work force
flats" on 51.459 acres; 3. Patrick Farm
Volunteer Housing final site development
plan
approval of a drawing entitled Patrick Farm
Volunteer Housing, consisting of 24 residential rental units
for
community service volunteers on 5.065 acres. All votes last night were
6-0 with Timothy Scott absent and Rev.
Walter Brightman recusing himself. The public may submit written
commentary to the board up until 5pm Dec. 21.
Comments should be mailed or brought to: The Ramapo Building Dept., 237
Rte. 59, Suffern, NY 10901.
Patrick Farm Meeting Held Over--
Continues Tonight (Wed Dec 14) 8pm
at Ramapo Town Hall
December 14, 2011 With an overflow crowd and a long list
of speakers,
the Patrick Farm application before the Ramapo Planning Board will
continue tonight. Journal News coverage of last night's meeting can
be read
here. We will present a list of principal speakers against the
project and the evidence they presented Tuesday and Wednesday
evenings in the next few days.
Comptroller Enforces State Law in East Ramapo School District
December 10, 2011 "East
Ramapo has revised its textbook-loan policy and is taking other
corrective actions after the state
Comptroller's Office blasted the school district for its handling of
millions of dollars between 2008 and 2010.
The audit
also
found that the district undercounted the fund balance in its budget
by more than $4.5 million in 2010 and that board members
in its health insurance pool failed to make payments totaling
$15,672." Journal story
here.
Stadium Architect Sues St. Lawrence's Local Development Corp
in dispute over ballpark payments
December 7, 2011 "The town's local development corporation
is being sued by an architecture firm in a
dispute over payments for the design of its baseball stadium. The
RLDC failed to pay the Nebraska-based
company $62,061, the remainder due on a contract of more than $1.5
million, according to the lawsuit."
Journal News story
here.
Update: Comptroller audit of the Town of Ramapo
November 30, 2011 In a phone call to
the Chief Examiner of the Office of the State
Comptroller, we were told that the final version of the audit of the
Town of Ramapo will
be posted within three weeks on the State website at
www.osc.state.ny.us.
RLUIPA Documentary Shown at Cardozo Law
School
November 30, 2011 Holy
Wars the
documentary film about Ramapo and the Religious Land Use
and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) was shown and the Benjamin N.
Cardozo (NYU) Law
School this past Tuesday. The movie was shown in the Moot Court
auditorium before an
audience of about 200. Most members of the audience were students at
Cardozo including
NYU law students. The two invited guests and speakers were Anne
MacGregor, the director
and producer of the film, and Marci Hamilton, Paul R. Verkuil Chair in
Public Law at Cardozo.
Professor Hamilton is a leading church/state scholar and author of
God vs.
the Gavel.
(More)
Legislator
Meyers to Hold Forum on County Budget
and Proposed 30% Tax Increase
November 22,
2011 County Legislator Joseph Meyers sent the following notice in an
email to his constituents: "I will be having a County budget information
session at Airmont
Village Hall
on Tuesday, November 29th at 8pm.
Please come to learn more about the projected
2012 County budget and share your concerns and ideas before the
Legislature votes on the budget
in early December. This directly affects all of us. The County
Executive’s proposed budget for
2012 would increase County Property Taxes by about 30% for next year and
cut many jobs and
services besides. It would close the County nursing home. Even with all
of that, the budget
is still out of balance to the tune of about $18million."
(More)
Ramapo Board Approves 2012 Budget
November 20, 2012 Last week, the Ramapo
Town Board approved the 2012 budget for the Town.
We received a copy of the full document at the end of the week, and have
begun the process of
analyzing the various sections of the plan. At the same time, the highly
critical final audit of the
Town is due back from the comptroller, probably shortly after
Thanksgiving.
(More)
Thank You from the Candidates,
with a Comment on
the Two-Party System in Ramapo--click
here
Region's aging schools crumble as finances falter
November 13, 2011 "In East Ramapo, it's
not clear how officials can pay for $34 million
in repairs outlined by inspectors. The district, operating on a
contingency budget, has
cut almost 400 employees since 2008 despite growing enrollment." Read
the complete LoHud
report on schools in the lower Hudson Valley
here.
Numbers for the Voter Turnout
Recent totals at the Board of Elections list
58,806 registered voters in the Town of
Ramapo. In the November general election there was a total of 21,395 who
voted
for Supervisor. The voter turnout then was 36% of those who could have
voted. By any
measure, this was a very poor showing, especially when you consider the
drastic
changes taking place in the town.
Election Results for Ilan Schoenberger
November 10, 2011
Take a look at the
election results for Ilan Schoenberger and you
may (or may not) be surprised.
(More)
Election Results--How the
Districts Voted and Who Won What
Click here for larger image
Election Results--All
Districts Reporting--Nov 8
Unofficial Results from the Rockland Board of Elections
RAMAPO SUPERVISOR:
Christopher St. Lawrence 11,809
Robert Rhodes
6,799
Marino Fontana
2,787
RAMAPO TOWN
BOARD:
Daniel Friedman
11,754
Brendel Logan
11,141
Emilia White
6,375
Patricia Wooters
6,151
Michael Dolan
2,399
Michael Campbell
2,308
COUNTY
LEGISLATURE DISTRICT 4:
Ilan Schoenberger
2,999
Michael Parietti
1,048
COUNTY
LEGISLATURE DISTRICT 12:
Joseph Meyers
3,002
Elye Kramer
448
COUNTY
LEGISLATURE DISTRICT 14:
Aney Paul
1,591
Henry Stewart
959
ROCKLAND
SHERIFF:
Louis Falco
28,477
Timothy O'Neill
20,166
Matthew Brennan
7,319
RAMAPO JUSTICE:
Alan Simon
11,908
Arnold Etelson
7,581
FAMILY COURT
JUDGE:
Sherri Eisenpress
24,022
Paul Chiaramonte
20,088
Karen Riley
6,590
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Important Meeting With East Ramapo School Superintendent Klein
Thursday Nov. 11--Kurz Center in Spring Valley
(Details)
Response to Journal News Endorsement
Candidate Robert Rhodes discusses the collapse of the two-party system in Ramapo. (More)
One Measure of Corruption in Ramapo
November 2,
2011 In
an Oct. 31 letter to the Journal News editors, a reader in Orangeburg
complained about the
contributions that Orangetown Supervisor Paul Whalen accepted from
businesses that do work for the town. Rightfully,
the reader, Pearl Samuels, pointed out, “This puts a business person in
an impossible situation — how do you say ‘no’ when
it may affect your livelihood?” I think it also carries with it the
malodorous pay-to-play taint that functions as that special
species of bribes-after-the-fact here in Rockland. In Ramapo, however,
$9,000 would be a pretty paltry sum compared
to the hundreds of thousands paid to Supervisor St. Lawrence. His take
in the last five years rounds out to $705,752.00
in political donations.
(More)
St. Lawrence Asks for Extension on Disastrous State Audit
November 1, 2011 We have been informed by
Christopher Ellis, Chief Examiner of the Office of the State
Comptroller,
that the Supervisor has asked for an extension beyond the thirty days
allowed for comments on the State Audit of the
Town's financials. The report had been damning, and the delay would
allow the comments to be sent back by November
4, which would take the matter past the date of the upcoming elections.
If you have not read the State's review of the
financial condition of Ramapo check
here.
Judge rejects legal challenges to Ramapo's Patrick Farm development
October 25, 2011 "A state judge has rejected
three lawsuits seeking to block the nearly 500-home Patrick Farm
development,
decisions that allow the builders to start applying for
construction-related permits from the town. Acting Supreme Court Justice
Thomas Walsh found the Ramapo Planning Board and Town Board followed
land-use and planning regulations and state environmental
laws when approving a Monsey-based developer's highly dense development
along Routes 202 and 306 outside Pomona. All three
opponents plan to appeal Walsh's decisions to the state Appellate
Division." Journal story
here.
America’s
Holy War--World Premier of British Documentary
Film on RLUIPA in Ramapo--1pm Sunday, Oct. 23 at
the Lafayette Theater in Suffern
Filmed in Ramapo between 2007 and earlier this year, the documentary
examines RLUIPA
cases past and running. The filmmaker,
Moondance, an
Anglo-Italian-American production
company with Australian Associates, was established in 1987 by
journalist and award-winning author, Anne MacGregor. The
London-based independent has produced programs for the BBC, Discovery US
Specials, Smithsonian Networks, and ITV.
Screening is open to the public—tickets are $8 for the1pm screening at
the Lafayette Theater. (Full
text of the Press Release)
Here’s Your Summer Electric Bill for the
Ballpark--
More than $30,000.00 a Month
October 21, 2011 Orange and Rockland gas
and electric bills for St. Lawrence’s ballpark
are really steep, and they were delivered to the taxpayers not to the
owners of the Boulders
who use the park exclusively during the season. These bills are part of
the continuing costs that
the residents will have to bear along with the boulder-size debt
payments on the loans to build
the park the public didn’t want.
(More)
Etelson stands on reputation after town justice primary loss
Oct.15,2011 Letter in The Journal News "
I am saddened by losing the primary elections for Ramapo town justice,joined by hundreds who have graciously expressed their dismay, but I am still running on the Republican line. My solace
is the enjoyment of knowing that I have devoted my legal and judicial career to fairness, honesty and patience to listen
to the plight of litigants." Full text of the letter.
St.
Lawrence Rakes in $51,400.00
from those Who Built the Ballpark
Check the list
here
CSL and Board Vote $1.6 million more for the Ballpark
7 Cost Overruns for Holt, Morano, and AKRF Inc.
October 11, 2011 If you thought you were done paying for St.
Lawrence’s ballpark you are mistaken. Tonight, at the
Ramapo Town Board Meeting, Supervisor St. Lawrence and the town board
members unanimously voted to approve
10 change orders for construction and testing at the baseball park. The
total cost to the taxpayers was
$1,632,079.00.
(Story here)
There
Are No Consequences
October 5, 2011 Within the span of six
days, Supervisor St. Lawrence and others associated with
him were found guilty of denying a worker’s civil rights in one
courtroom and of improperly sticking
the taxpayers of the town of Ramapo with a $25 million debt in another.
In neither place, though,
were there any penalties handed down by the judges.
(More)
Can-Am Pittsfield Team Folds--New York Traveling Team
also Gone
Hobbled League is Now Left With Six Teams
October 4, 2011
"The Pittsfield Colonials are no more. Team owner Buddy Lewis said the Can-Am League's owners votedto rescind the team's membership in the league. 'We've been trying to get investors. We were unsuccessful in doing that,'
Lewis said in a phone interview following the league meetings in Newark, N.J. 'We were trying to keep [the team] here.'
Lewis said the team's inability to refresh a $200,000 line of credit helped lead to the demise of the franchise. It marks the
second consecutive season that a Can-Am League team will not return for the next season. The Sussex Skyhawks did not
return to the league after the 2010 season." Story from The Berkshire Eagle here.
General Fund Needs Cash Infusion--So St. Lawrence Transfers
$2m from Workers’ Compensation Fund
September 28, 2011 On September 14 at the regular Ramapo Town
Board meeting, Supervisor St. Lawrence requested
authorization to make the following budget loans: $2,000,000 from the
Workers’ Compensation Fund to the General Fund,
$100,000 from Ambulance District to the Highway DB account, and $400,000
from the Lighting District to A Fund. On
Friday, Sept. 23, when he was asked on WRCR why this massive withdrawal
from Workers’ Compensation Fund, he
offered a confused narrative about a worker with a serious medical
condition to account for $1million of the transfer.
He didn’t have much to say about the other $1million. He did, however,
insist, once again that there are no cash-flow
problems at the Town.
(More)
Board
Member Friedman finds his own Baseball Bonus
September 27, 2011 In
the New York State Comptroller’s report on money and Ramapo Town
governance, the examiners described the Town Board as ineffectual and
often ignorant of the
issues on which they voted. "In fact," the Comptroller’s Office reports,
"Board members told us
that they did not know how much the baseball stadium would cost the
taxpayers or how it
would be paid for." None of that seemed to bother Board Member Daniel
Friedman who, more
than any other councilman, hustled quite a pile of donations from those
involved with Project
Grand Slam (the ballpark). He might not know what it would cost the
taxpayers, but he certainly
knows what it was worth to him.
(More)
New Hempstead resident petitions to block East Ramapo's
lease of
Hillcrest school to yeshiva
September 27, 2011
"An East Ramapo school district resident is petitioning the state
Department of Education to halt the 2011-12
lease of Hillcrest Elementary School to Congregation Yeshiva Avir Yakov
of New Square.
"East Ramapo has an appraisal in front of it
that says the fair market rental value of this property is $10.50 per
square foot, yet still they arbitrarily turned around and leased the
property for $4.22 per square foot," Forrest said Monday. "There's no
rationale on how (the Board of Education) arrived at that figure.
It's troubling, and we're operating on an austerity budget, and the
district could use that income." Forrest's petition further charges
that Avir Yakov has fallen behind in its monthly payments on the prior
lease and owes $3,500 in back rent since January." Journal story
here.
Five Boulders players lived in clubhouse for weeks
September 25, 2011 While St. Lawrence and his
political cronies partied in their luxury box,
five of the Boulders were homeless at the home field. Being paid less
than $1,200 a month
doesn't give you too many options, and their own organization and the
politicians who built
their $70 million stadium didn't think they were required to help them.
In fact, "Boulders
president Ken Lehner said the team had no obligation to provide housing
to the players." The
Journal reported, "For the last couple weeks of the Rockland
Boulders' inaugural season, Mike
Richard ate his postgame meal at Provident Bank Park and slept on a
training room table in the
clubhouse. Don't call it dedication. Richard said he and four of his
teammates had no other place to go." Full story
here.
East Ramapo enrollment surge crowds classes, blocks students from AP classes
September 24, 2011 "Enrollment is up in the East
Ramapo school district this year, and unanticipated numbers of students
entering from outside the district and outside the U.S. are contributing
to crowded classrooms and overextended teachers.
Compounding the problem, many of the district's new students don't speak
English, putting stress on the faculty and causing
the district to examine its need for special services the students may
require.Some students who were signed up
for Advanced
Placement, or AP, Regents and honors courses have been shut out of those
classes." Story
here.
Two Letters in The Journal News Concerning the State Audit
"Return town finances to sound practices", and "Ramapo: 3 hats and no checks and balances." Read both letters here.
A
Financial Mess, Cluelessness, and Criminal Violations
Uncovered in Comptroller's Audit of Ramapo
September 21, 2011
How bad was the State Audit of the Town of Ramapo and its Board?The Journal News bannered its publication this way: "Comptroller’s draft audit blasts Ramapo’s
ballpark financing, budget planning." But it wasn’t just the ballpark that created the current
financial mess. The audit itemized 8 possible violations of State law, pointed out three out of
five town budget funds under water in 2010 (who knows where they are now in 2011), it identified
scores of worst practices (even absent practices) throughout financial operations, and it found an
IT department that seemed dangerously clueless about protecting residents’ private information,
locking down banking transactions, and managing user accounts. And of course, as the Journal points out, the audit has a lot to say
about the ballpark financing, including this damning assessment: "As a result of the decisions the Board made (St. Lawrence and the
four board members), Town taxpayers are now potentially responsible for approximately $35.4 million in expenditures for a property
not owned by the Town. Furthermore, the Town has agreed to guarantee an additional $25 million in bonds issued by the RLDC against
the voters’ wishes." That’s $35.4 million up until May 18, 2011, before the million dollars a week in cost overruns in June and into the
summer. More of what the examiners found at Town Hall here.
Ramapo Residents, Brace for Tax Hikes
Sept. 21, 2011
The New York state comptroller did
a great job revealing the irresponsible spending and reckless lack of
financial controls that characterize the town of Ramapo. Furthermore,
the auditors' very conservative observation that
St. Lawrence's stadium is probably not going to pay for itself was well
taken. Read entire letter
here.
Ramapo Stadium Audit Revealing--Journal News editorial
Sept.19, 2011 "Auditors said that
Ramapo Town Board members appeared to be in the dark about how the
stadium
financing worked, and said they did not know how much it would cost
taxpayers, or how the project was being financed.
Yet, a majority voted in favor of the project every time. How and why
Town Board members went along with the scheme
to build a stadium with no idea how it would be paid for, or even how
much it would cost, is a question voters must
continue to ask." Full text of the editorial
here.
Jury finds Supervisor St. Lawrence Guilty of Violating Worker's Civil Rights
Sept. 16, 2011 At around four this
afternoon, in a White Plains Federal courtroom, a jury returned a
verdict of guilty against
Supervisor St. Lawrence in the Tim Cronin first amendment lawsuit. St.
Lawrence had been charged with taking retaliatory
action against Cronin when the employee of the Spook Rock Golf Course
refused to place a large four by eight plywood campaign
sign for St. Lawrence on his front lawn. "The verdict was delivered
Friday afternoon at the U.S. District Court after several hours
of jury deliberations and after days of testimony during which Ramapo
Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence was cross-examined. The
jury found that Timothy Cronin's refusal to allow St. Lawrence's
campaign signs on his property in 2005 was a motivating factor in
his termination, 11 months later, from his job at Ramapo's Spook Rock
Golf Course." The jury did not award any
damages. George
Cotz represented Cronin in the action. Journal News coverage
here, the back story on what happened
here.
If you like the stadium, put it in your town
Sept.14, 2011 Letter in The Journal News
How ironic that these two letters praising Ramapo Town Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence for building a baseball stadium
over the objections of the majority of his own constituents were from
writers living outside of Ramapo.
(More)
Primary Returns: Joe Meyers wins the
Democratic Line for Legislature--Robert Rhodes, Patsy Wooters and
Emilia White Fail to Win Democratic Line--all will Campaign on the
Preserve Ramapo Line
Among those who lost in the Democratic Primary: Henry Stewart, Denet
Alexandre, Tim O'Neill, Karen Reilly,
Arnold Etelson, and Rita Louie
First Amendment Lawsuit Filed Against Him--Jury Trial
Began on Monday Background Story here
Can-Am Evicts Playoff Team from its Home Stadium—Colonials will Play Entire Series on the Road
Sept. 8, 2011 In a bizarre turn of events, the Can-Am League has decided to have the Pittsfield Colonials team play all of its post-seasonplayoff games as if it were another of the league’s “traveling teams.” League Director Miles Wolff told the Berkshire Eagle, “We didn’t
want to do it; it certainly doesn’t look good for anybody. It’s purely a financial decision for the clubs to move the games. Basically, the
league members have sort of been financing a lot of the operations in Pittsfield. The members [feel] if the ownership can’t do it, why do
we have to keep financing it?” So the Pittsfield fans will not see any of the playoff games unless they, the fans, decide to travel. The
franchise is not expected to return to their park next year, and the mayor says he believes they have not made either rental payment
the city required this season. He also said the city will “make every effort we can” to collect the money it’s owed. (Story).
September 7, 2011 Alan Simon, candidate for
Ramapo Town Justice, told the Monsey Advocate in a front-page
interview
that he was capable of handling 170 cases a day in the Spring Valley
courtroom where he serves as village justice. He offered
this astounding claim in response to those who have pointed out that
it’s unwise to have one judge serving on two courts,
both with very busy schedules. By reassuring the public that he can deal
with landlord-eviction cases, small claims lawsuits,
even criminal matters in even less time than it takes to prepare a
two-minute egg, Simon has redefined the term "judicious"
for us all. A carefully considered and weighed legal opinion is,
apparently, available to all who appear in his Spring Valley court
in an average of less than two minutes per case, no matter the nuances,
evidence or complexities. If you prefer your judicial renderings loose
and runny, you probably couldn’t do better than this short-order judge.
Our objections to Mr. Simon’s candidacy, however, also include his
controversial tenure as head of the Ramapo Building Planning and Zoning
Department when he was the highest paid official at Town Hall.
(Story
looks at this instant Justice problem, reviews a Journal News editorial
very critical of his years as Director of Planning and Zoning in Ramapo,
and
provides a clear example of Simon's disregard for the law as Planning
Director)
Digging an $85M Hole for Taxpayers in Ramapo—Is a Major Tax Hike on the Horizon?
Sept. 1, 2011 In the short span from June
9, 2010, to July 29, 2011, Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence and his
town board have
passed 18 bonds creating more than $85 million in new debt for the
Ramapo taxpayers. That’s about $7 million more than the total
of the entire 2011 annual budget for the town. What’s going on?
(More)
Audit: East Ramapo School Board bungled millions
the fund balance by more than $4.5 million in 2010, according to an audit by the state Comptroller's Office. The audit was released
Wednesday and covers the period of July 1, 2008 to April 13, 2010. It found that East Ramapo failed to put $2.4 million of professional
services out to bid and allowed three school board members to receive health care through the school district's insurance pool even
after they missed $15,672 in payments. 'The board, along with district officials, failed to fulfill its stewardship, oversight and leadership
responsibilities when it failed to establish a proper control environment, implement its own adopted policy and establish policies
and procedures required by sound business practices," the report concludes. "The deficiencies exposed district funds and assets to abuse,
waste and/or loss.' " Read the complete Journal News Coverage here.
DiNapoli Press Release with link to complete Audit of the Board here
Keep Scrutiny on East Ramapo - Journal News Editorial
investigation is needed by state and federal authorities. Taxpayers, parents and students in this working-class district deserve assurances
that their resources are being used properly and that their school leaders are endeavoring to provide the best education possible. So far,
the evidence is less than reassuring. The comptroller's report makes plain that the voters had good reason to be concerned about district
finances and leadership. The authorities should keep digging; the district's so-called leaders must be held accountable." Read the full text
of the Journal News editorial here.
What Is Bottom 9 Ball?
August 23, 2011 Is it the deal of the
century? How did an unknown marketing expert from Florida gain total
control of a $70 million
stadium/catering facility without risking a penny of his own money? In
2009 Ken Lehner incorporated Bottom 9 Ball (B9B). He is the
only officer listed in the document of incorporation. This corporation
supposedly has a number of "owners." What kind of an investment
does an individual have to make in order to become an owner? We have no
idea, in fact we have no idea if this corporation has any assets
of any kind. All we do know is that the number of "owners" and their
names seem to change on a regular basis.
(More)
Bears Might Join the Colonials as Teams Absent from the Can-Am League next Year
August 21, 2011 The Independent League, in
which the Rockland Boulders play, might be missing two teams next year.
As the
Pittsfield Colonials teeter on bankruptcy this season (see
As
Boulders Prepare for Opener), the Newark Bears have prospects
as bleak in their digs in Newark. An article in yesterday's New York
Times outlines the problems. If the Bears and the Colonials
fail, that would put the Boulders in a six-team league. The Boulders
rocky season continues in next to last place, 20 games out.
Read the Times article Did Newark Bet on the Wrong Sport?
here.
Habitat report stirs concerns for Haverstraw Bay--Desalination Plant cited
August 22, 2011
"A new state report on the Hudson River's fish and wildlife habitats
states that certain activities
would significantly impair Haverstraw Bay, considered the aquatic
nursery of the historic waterway.
In the case of Haverstraw
Bay, the report states that 'any activity that would degrade water
quality, increase turbidity or sedimentation, alter flows,
water salinities or temperature ... would result in significant
impairment of the habitat.' Rockland County Legislature Chairwoman
Harriet Cornell, D-West Nyack, submitted comment on the new report,
which is still in draft version, concerned by the impacts
mentioned.
eagles and harbor seals; and said it was critical to commercial and recreational fisheries throughout the Atlantic Coast." Complete
story here.
Judge Orders All Attorneys to Court on Monday, Aug
22--ROSA's Lawsuit
to be Argued in State Supreme Court
August 19, 2011 Full text of the ROSA press release here.
Read the Journal News story Ramapo housing lawsuit may hinge on aquifer under 497 planned homes
"Please be advised that no such record exists"
August 18, 2011 Preserve Ramapo frequently
submits Freedom of Information Act (FOIL) requests for public documents
in
order to check the reality against politicians’ public rhetoric.
Recently, Supervisor St. Lawrence and his assistant Phil Tisi
have been claiming that the profits at the Boulder’s baseball games will
cover the costs for the numerous multi-million-dollar
loans and will even generate a profit for the town. That’s the rhetoric,
and you’ll hear the same talking points repeated by
these individuals on local radio and in stories in the newspapers. We
submitted several FOIL requests to vet these claims, and,
not surprisingly, there is a wide disconnect between the claims and the
cash accounts.
(More)
New Square Flouts Building Safety Codes: Clout
Protects Hasidic Enclave
from State Rules
August 10, 2011 "At least 60% of the
structures in New Square have serious code violations," said Kim Weppler,
who
retired in April as chief of the fire department responsible for New
Square. "It’s only a matter of time before someone
gets killed." Read the full text of the story from the current issue of
The Jewish Daily Forward
here.
Michael Grant's Attempt to Run Unopposed Fails in Court
August 3, 2011 Rita Louie, the current
deputy mayor of Pomona and a long-time
activist and advocate
for good government
in Rockland decides she wants to run for
county legislature in her district. She and
her team of
supporters/petitioners gather
and submit 426 signatures, well above the required number of
281.
Michael Grant, the incumbent legislator in that district,
and the choice of the Haverstraw machine,
turns in 434 signatures.
(More)
Discussion of Financial Condition of the Boulder’s Stadium Needs Real Numbers
July 28, 2011 An article in today’s Journal News attempts
to present a balanced analysis of the financial state of the Boulder’s
and the baseball stadium. (See
Rockland Boulders So Far: Rock-solid or a millstone?) A fatal
flaw at the center of the
discussion is that many of the numbers could not be vetted by the
reporter because these key figures have not been
made public. In fact, some of them have been kept from the public.
(More)
Ramapo Surpasses $1million in Legal Fees
to Defend
Adult Student Housing (ASH) on Grandview Avenue Site
July 27, 2011 "A state appeals panel
has temporarily blocked a justice's order holding Ramapo and its
Planning Board in contempt
concerning a yeshiva's Kiryas Radin adult student housing complex on
Grandview Avenue. The case, while increasing the town's
legal costs in the 7-year-old dispute to more than $1 million, focuses
on the Planning Board ignoring a state justice's order to
conduct a complete environmental impact statement. A second issue
centered on the board legalizing occupancies." Ramapo's
appeal of Supreme Court Justice Frances Nicolai's contempt and eviction
order will now go before the Appellate Division in Brooklyn."
The complete Journal News story
here.
Ramapo owes $50G environmental fine in
ballpark construction
(Another insult to Ramapo taxpayers)
July 22, 2011 That's the headline of
the Journal News story. But there's a serious question to be answered
here. Christopher St.
Lawrence's Ramapo Local Development Corp. built the ballpark, and
they broke the environmental laws that prompted this
fine. St. Lawrence is the President of the RLDC and he is the Chairman
of the Board of the RLDC, so why are the taxpayers
asked to bail out his sorry butt once again for this illegal activity at
Fireman's Memorial Drive? I guess part of the answer is
traceable to his board of sock puppets who will vote for any and all
expenses relating to the ballpark, but the primary problem
is with the Supervisor who has built this $70m disaster on lies. The
voters overwhelmingly rejected the funding of this thing, and
he told anyone who would listen that no taxpayers' dollars would be
spent, and yet he continues to bill the public. If you see
Mr. St. Lawrence at a public appearance, or any of his board members,
make it a point to ask them, Why did they lie? And demand
a straight answer. We are past the point where they can be allowed to
endanger the economic well being of the entire town
with this kind of arrogant, catastrophic governing. Journal Story can be
read
here.
Opening Night--Did We Make any Money?
July 19, 2011
Having perverted the old saying to now read, "If we
build it, they
will pay for it," (Yes, that’s St. Lawrence and his board pointing to
the Ramapo
taxpayers), the big question becomes, "How are we going to pay for even
the
debt service on this $70 million monster?" A quick analysis of the money
on
opening night isn’t very reassuring. In this article we evaluate how
much money
the Town made or lost on opening night of the Boulders season.
(More)
Should the President of a School Board be a High School Dropout?
July 11, 2011 In a letter to The
Journal News a reader writes: "I have been getting angrier and
angrier thinking about former
East Ramapo School Board President Nathan Rothschild's 11th grade
education. During the court proceedings, when he entered
a guilty plea on federal charges, Rothschild admitted he had only an
11th grade education." Read the full letter
here.
Aron
Rottenberg Delivers Invocation at County Legislature--Legislators
Balk at Resolution Asking FBI to Lead the Investigation
July 7, 2011 On Wednesday evening, Aron
Rottenberg was invited to deliver the invocation at the
Rockland County Legislature meeting. Later in the evening, Legislator
Meyers proposed a resolution
calling on the FBI to take a leading role in the investigation of the
deadly assault on the Rottenberg
family within New Square. What followed was an object lesson in the way
elected officials stand up to or acquiesce quietly
to the voting cartels.
(More)
East Ramapo's Colton School sale halted pending state review
July 7, 2011 "The state Department of Education has ordered
the East Ramapo school district to temporarily halt the sale of the
Colton School, a department spokesman confirmed Wednesday. Commissioner
John King has issued a stay in the school sale pending
his decision on an appeal filed June 20 by Brenda Carole Anderson.
Anderson has accused the board of failing to made a good-faith
effort when it voted 5-2 to sell the school for $6.6 million to the Bais
Malka/Hebrew Academy for Special Children. In July 2010,
the Town of Ramapo assessed the school and the parcel of more than 15
acres on Grandview Avenue at $11,962,569. The appeals
process typically lasts for months before a final decision. The district
cannot take any action toward selling the school during
that period." Full text of The Journal News story
here.
United Water's Argument for a Desalination Plant Leaks Like a Sieve
July 6, 2011 Bob Dillon has created an
in-depth evaluation of the United Water Joint Proposal for building a
desalination plant to
draw drinking water from the Hudson. His study addresses five serious
flaws in the Water Company's argument, including: the proposal
is incomplete without the groundwater study by the US Geological Survey;
it does not consider the illegal releases from Lake De Forest
to New Jersey customers of United Water; it doesn't consider additional
supplies from Lake Tappan; nor does it consider Rockland's
riparian rights to additional water supply from the Hackensack River; it
doesn't account for the economic cost of desalination (adding
almost $500 a year more to customers; and it doesn't have realistic
estimates about the supposed ratable benefits for Haverstraw. Dillon's
study is complete with volumes of reference material linked to his
analysis. Read it
here.
Town Board Still Spending $1million per week on the Ballpark—
June Overruns Equal $4+ million—Votes still unanimous at 5-0
July 1, 2011 They say baseball is a game of numbers, but here in
Ramapo it’s not the numbers
on the field that are impressive. As the team is muddling along,
struggling to get out of next
to last place with a 12 and 19 record, the Ramapo Town Board keeps
piling on the debt with
millions in cost overruns at meeting after meeting. In the two board
meetings in June, the
million dollars a week pace has been matched again. And for those who
think the ballpark
is built and the spending is over, take some time to attend a board
meeting—the wasteful
spending continues on this project.
(More)
In Rockland, water's in all the wrong places
Jul. 1, 2011 Community View in The
Journal News
Re "Rockland flooding might be worst since 1999," June 24 article:
"After all the flooding and the "State of Emergency"
issued by the Rockland County Executive's office on June 23, we must ask
ourselves the question: Does Rockland County
actually have a water shortage? It's a vital question as United Water,
which supplies water to a majority of Rockland residents,
moves forward on plans to tap the Hudson River to supply water to the
county. Just days before the storm that flooded many
homes and businesses in Rockland, about 50 county planning officials and
residents met in Haverstraw Town Hall to hear
Paul Heisig, hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, present the
findings of the Rockland County Water Resource Assessment,
a five-year scientific study that was funded by the County of Rockland,
the state Department of Conservation and United Water.
(More)
Ex-East Ramapo School Board President Pleads Guilty
Will
serve
time in prison
June 30, 2011 The Journal News is reporting that "Former East
Ramapo schools chief
and Monsey fire commissioner Nathan Rothschild this morning pleaded
guilty to engaging
in a mail fraud scheme. He could face up to 20 years in prison for the
felony charge."
Rothschild was charged with attempting to sell public property worth
$125,000 to eliminate
his own personal debts. The federal judge who accepted the plea said
Rothschild will
likely serve 2 to 3 years for the offenses.
(More)
Criminal
Law, the Legitimate Concerns of the Religious Minority in New Square
and
Civil Rights
June 20, 2011
Conspiracy, literally, a breathing
together, has been called the prosecutor's best friend. Recent events
in New Square
suggest that a charge of conspiracy will be used in the prosecution of
the persons allegedly involved in acts of intimidation and worse
against the families of Aron Rottenberg, Dovid Fromovitz and other
members of the community.
(More)
State Supreme Court Judge Cites Ramapo and
Ramapo Planning Board for Contempt
Over the Adult Student Housing Complex on Grandview Avenue
June 16, 2011 When
the Ramapo Town Planning Board was ordered by the state Supreme Court to
re-evaluate the Adult Student Housing
complex on Grandview Avenue, beginning with a new environmental impact
study, board member
Dora Green expressed her own
legal opinion at a board meeting saying she didn’t think Judge Nicolai
had the legal right to tell them to do that. Yesterday, Nicolai held
the Planning Board and the Town of Ramapo in contempt. His published
decision "gives Ramapo 45 days to nullify all final approvals for
the ASH housing project and evict the tenants, except for the 16
families approved previously by the court." Ramapo taxpayers will now
be paying the legal bills for the opponents who filed the lawsuit that
resulted in this decision. Ms. Green might better represent those
residents by: a) Remaining awake during critical hearings on which she
is supposed to vote, and b) Refraining from the amateur practice
of law, which is not one of the requirements for a planning board
member. Read The Journal News story
here, and the complete text
of the judge's order here.
Town
Adds another Layer to the Bureaucracy--$80K Position
Created for John Layne
June 10, 2011 He’s a politician with
a past—and a building inspector with baggage, as well. And now
he’s the Deputy Town Superintendent of Highways at a salary of $80,000
per year. At a time when all
other levels of government are cutting, does Ramapo’s Dept. of Highways
need an additional high-price
functionary? St. Lawrence and his board think so.
(More)
New York State Commissioner of Education Nullifies and
Sets Aside
East Ramapo Board of Education sale of the Hillcrest School
June 6, 2011 Using the facts
presented, Commissioner David M. Steiner ordered that the July 28, 2010
sale of the Hillcrest
Elementary School be nullified because "the board abused its discretion
by hastily approving the sale of Hillcrest [school]
to the Congregation [Yeshiva Avir Yakov] and that such sale must be set
aside." Click
here for Journal News coverage. To
read the full statement from the Education Commissioner, click
here.
"Jihadis" enforce obedience to grand rebbe in New Square, residents say
June 5, 2011
"Residents who defy this Hasidic
enclave's spiritual leader say they live in fear of a band of thugs who
sometimes
violently defend his edicts — and they cite a recent arson attack as the
latest example of the group's work. Described as "jihadis"
by those who fear them and "hotheads" by some village leaders, the group
numbers up to 40 men and boys between the ages of
15 and 35, current and former members of the community told The
Journal News." Complete Journal coverage
here.
FBI Joins Ramapo cops in New Square investigation of attack
June 4, 2011
"They will assist us and will
not take over the case," said Ramapo Detective Lt. Mark Emma. "If they
determine
federal crimes have been committed, they will make a determination on
whether to pursue them."
Police and the FBI
will not only investigate the attempt to burn down the home of Aron
Rottenberg, 43, but also months of vandalism,
harassment and threats in the Hasidic Jewish village, Emma said. Full
text of The Journal News story
here.
Investigation
of Ramapo Police Dept.
Shouldn’t Be Done by the Ramapo Police Dept.
June 3, 2011 For the second
time in 10 days, The Journal News has called for an
investigation
of the Ramapo Police Department in its handling of the events
leading up to the arson attack
on Aron Rottenberg and his family in New Square. And now there’s
another legal question for
the state or federal authorities. Why is an obvious hate crime
not being investigated as a
hate crime, and why has Shaul Spitzer, the accused arsonist, not
been charged with a
hate crime? Who made the decision to drop this from the case,
and what are the legal
consequences for the authorities who decided to ignore state and
federal statutes on bias crimes?
(More)
Press Release: Legislator Meyers Joins Call for Federal Probe of New Square Incident
June 2, 2011
County Legislator Joe Meyers has joined the call for a federal
probe into the recent events in New Square where
Aron Rottenberg was recently burned over more than half his body
for his decision to pray outside his community’s synagogue.
“A federal probe is necessary because issues of civil rights and
freedom of religion are involved and these are potential federal
crimes. Furthermore, we all saw Ramapo Supervisor Chris St.
Lawrence, who is the head of the Town of Ramapo Police
Commission,
dismiss the incident as an isolated one based on assurances he
received after the incident by the Deputy Mayor of New Square.
This is not appropriate conduct given his position and the
on-going investigation”, said Legislator Meyers. Press release
text
here.
Political Whitewash of Arson Attack Begins--
Newspaper and Lawyer Demand Federal Investigation
May 26, 2011 The opening of the Journal News editorial is
hardly ambiguous. "Aron Rottenberg
of New Square has long complained to Ramapo Police that he has
suffered for his decision
to pray outside his community's synagogue. Now he is in critical
condition with burns over half
his body, and an 18-year-old New Square resident is charged with
attempted murder,
arson, and assault. Federal authorities, better positioned to
inquire where local officials
will not, should vigorously investigate the attack, and the
systematic harassment that preceded
it, as a civil rights violation and hate crime."
(More)
 |
 |
Second East Ramapo School
Board Officer to Face Legal
Charges Within a Month--
Wieder Arrested for Voter
Interference at Polling Place
May 20, 2011
On April 16, East Ramapo
School Board
President, Nathan Rothschild, was charged in U.S.
District Court with mail fraud in an attempt to
defraud the public. Rothschild is free on bail
and has
resigned as President of the Board.
Yesterday, Aaron
Wieder, current Vice President of the Board, was arrested and
charged with violations of the state
election law. Charges
arose from a poll watcher at Hillcrest Elementary who said Wieder
was photographing and
otherwise intimidating voters, and, along with two unknown men, blocked the entrance to the
school, preventing
voters from entering the polling
station. Wieder was released without bail and is due to appear in Clarkstown Town
Court on June 15. Story in today's
Journal News
here.
Airmont settles federal suit, agrees to allow religious student housing
May 10, 2011
"The settlement of the U.S. Attorney's
Office's 2005 lawsuit against the Ramapo village could end a
decade-long
legal action involving the Hillside Avenue development sought by the
Hasidic congregation. Journal News coverage
here.
At
Two Hidden Board Meetings
Ramapo Approves 9 Resolutions
Worth $51.7million
May 7, 2011 The regular Ramapo town board meetings are scheduled
for the
second and fourth Wednesdays of each month in the evening (8pm) at Town
Hall.
State law requires notifying the press of these meetings "at least one
week prior",
and providing "conspicuous posting in one or more public locations at
least 72 hours
before such meeting." This year, there were two very important town
board
meetings about which the public got virtually no advance notice. The
first, a daytime
meeting on Feb. 17, was kept from the press and the public until 53
minutes before
the meeting was to begin. The second, April 14, was scheduled for the
morning after
the regular Wednesday night meeting. On Monday, April 11, Supervisor St.
Lawrence
notified the board members of the meeting. He then sat on the
information until late
in the afternoon of the day before the 11am meeting, when he had it
faxed it to the newspapers. At these two meetings,
protected from public scrutiny, St. Lawrence and his board passed nine
resolutions that itemized $51,721,990.85 in new
spending—much of it for the ballpark project which had been rejected by
the public last fall.
(More)
Comptroller targets law Ramapo used to build baseball stadium
May 7, 2011 In a recent press release, State Comptroller Thomas
DiNapoli wrote: "Local governments are supposed to
use LDCs for economic development purposes. But we found that isn't
always the case. Time after time, our auditors
uncovered LDCs being used to skirt the laws governing local government
operations. And that's costing taxpayers money."
Citing an ongoing pattern of abuse, the Comptroller has introduced a
package of reforms. Christopher St. Lawrence formed
the Ramapo Local Development Corp (LDC), and he became its President and
Chairman of the Board. The Ramapo LDC is
currently building a housing complex in Spring Valley, Project Grand
Slam, and it plans to build a hotel in Sloatsburg and
a housing development there also. He has committed tens of millions of
Ramapo taxes to the ballpark while still publicly
insisting that it will be built with private funds. There have been no
investors and the cost, which St. Lawrence claimed
would only be $25m is now bumping up against a $70m completion total.
The land for both projects belonged to the taxpayers
before St. Lawrence and his board gave the first two properties, the S.V.
housing project and ballpark site, to his LDC.
The first two projects for his LDC could reach $90-$100m, and St. Lawrence is
just getting started. Preserve Ramapo has been
working for months to provide the information and to get the state
Comptroller involved. The
Journal Story (here) outlines
what we hope is a beginning of a hard look at the books kept by the
Supervisor's private development company.
NAACP: Feds Investigating East Ramapo School District
April 19, 2011 "The NAACP announced Monday that the United States
Department of Education Office of Civil Rights
has begun investigating the East Ramapo School District."We cannot
release any information as to what they're looking
at or what they're looking for, but we do know that they have begun an
investigation into the functioning of the East
Ramapo School District," Aldridge said, adding that the U.S. Department
of Education has asked that the particulars
of the investigation be withheld." Complete Journal News story
here.
Redistricting Approaches final phase
Chestnut Ridge Hosed Again
April 18, 2011 The final maps are up on the GIS County Portal
website. We also look
at the comments from a Chestnut Ridge Trustee, Howard Cohen, delivered
before the
committee on April 11. Links to maps and comments
here.
President of East Ramapo School Board
Indicted in Federal Court--Resigns from Board
April 15, 2011 "East Ramapo Board of Education President Nathan
Rothschild
resigned from his role with the district Friday amid federal charges
that he
engaged in a mail fraud scheme while serving as a Monsey fire
commissioner.
Rothschild, 54, of Monsey, appeared in U.S. District Court in
White Plains on
Friday, pleading not guilty to the felony charge, said Herb Hadad, a
spokesman
for the U.S. Attorney's Office. Hadad said Rothschild used his position
as fire
commissioner to cause Monsey to enter into a real estate deal with one
of his
personal creditors in order to pay an outstanding debt."
Complete Journal News
article can be read
here. "Rothschild faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in
prison
and a
maximum fine of the greater of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss
derived
from the crime (Press
Release -- US Attorney's Office)." Read the full
text of the
press release
here.
St. Lawrence and Entire Board Backdoors $25m Bond for the
Ballpark—Jamieson
OKs Process Hidden from the Public—Moody’s downgrades Bond Rating and
Assigns Negative outlook to LDC Bonds
April 12, 2011 The last time the Ramapo Supervisor and his Board
wanted to bond $16.5m for the ballpark, they posted a public notice
in the Rockland County Times. They said in the notice that this
loan was subject to "permissive referendum" (the public could be
allowed to vote on it), and the matter was handled in public Town Board
meetings—this was all done as a matter of required procedure,
probably not out of any sense of fair play or open government. They got
killed in that vote. More than 70% of the taxpayers told them
absolutely no taxpayer dollars should be spent on the ballpark.
Immediately afterwards, St. Lawrence publicly vowed, "I got the message.
There will be no taxpayer dollars." But then the investors who were
supposed fund this project never showed up. And you can’t blame
them given the unbelievably shaky history of the Can-Am Baseball League
(73% failure overall, 100% failure in New York State). Even banks
refused to make the loans. So the race to get ready for the June opening
ramps up to three shifts around the clock and at $30m and counting
you’re running out of money. What can you do? SHUT THE LIGHTS OUT! You
don’t publish any public notice this time. No Legal Notice in the
paper, no visibility for the public. Then call a special meeting of the
Town Board at four o’clock in the afternoon (that was Feb. 17). No one
there to see and hear the vote—a 5 to 0 complete agreement on a new $25m
bond for the ballpark: that’s St. Lawrence, Daniel Friedman,
Fran Hunter, Pat Withers, and Itzy Ullman all colluding to keep these
tens of millions borrowed for the ballpark hidden away from public
sight.
And yesterday, the IPREO Municipal Deal Calendar lists a $25m Revenue
Bond (fully backed by the Town of Ramapo—the taxpayers, that is)
offered by the Ramapo Local Development Corp. What began as monumental
lie by the Supervisor promising that the will of the taxpayers
would be honored and "The stadium will be built with private money.
There will be no taxpayer dollars. I got the message." has developed
into a wider, absolute betrayal of the residents of Ramapo by the town
board and the lead town attorney Michael Klein.
(More)
Journal News editorial: Ticked Off over Ballpark Fiasco? Then
Bench
St. Lawrence, Daniel Friedman and Fran Hunter in November
April 6, 2011 From The Journal News editorial Page: "St.
Lawrence has gotten into plenty of dust-ups over his "Project Grand
Slam,"
starting with the supervisor's pledge not to use taxpayer money for the
project. After voters soundly defeated an August referendum
to guarantee building loans taken out by the Ramapo Local Development
Corporation, St. Lawrence said, "I got the message." He didn't.
St. Lawrence and his majority on the Town Board continued to use town
money to pay for [the project]. The stadium's full cost has
topped $30 million, according to St. Lawrence, although Preserve Ramapo
pegs the costs at near $60 million. Miffed taxpayers, however,
are not without recourse: As always, they can remember St. Lawrence's
role — and that of board supporters Frances Hunter and Daniel
Friedman — when they fill out their "lineup" cards on the next election
day." St. Lawrence has needed Friedman and Hunter's votes to
continue paying for the stadium with taxpayer money. All three are up
for election this November. Complete editorial
here.
Judge Linda Jamieson Turns Down Appeal to Stop the Ballpark--
Puts Ramapo Residents Back on Deck to Pay $30m More
April 5, 2011 The decision from the court was disappointing for
what it said and even more so for what it left out.
Judge Jamieson seemed to deal with one single issue while disregarding a
dozen other legal points in the proceeding.
(More)
The Journal News story "Preserve Ramapo loses bid to stop baseball stadium" is up here.
East Ramapo Board Ousts Oustatcher, Appoints Klein Interim
Superintendent--
Finalizes Budget with 7.5% Tax Increase to Send to Voters
April 1, 2011
Thursday night's meeting of the East Ramapo School Board finalized
changes to the proposed budget that
will be voted on May 17, along with four seats on the board. The seven
members present also voted to demote Super-
intendent Ira Oustatcher and appoint Joel Klein to serve as interim
schools superintendent.
(More)
hy·poc·ri·sy noun, pl sies
March 24, 2011
If you attend a sufficient number of Ramapo board meetings, you will
likely find yourself one evening asking,
They don’t really believe that stuff they’re saying, do they? Surely
there’s a limit to their capacity for
self deception. (More)
Who's Paying for Ramapo's Investor-less Ballpark?
March 17, 2011 Community View in The
Journal News "The private investors never showed up, so work in and
around the crater on Pomona Road is 100 percent taxpayer funded. In one
recent two-week period, cost overruns
totaled $2.3 million. St. Lawrence and two council members, Fran Hunter
and Daniel Friedman, didn't bat an eye
voting their approval. (Feb. 23 Town Board meeting minutes show
$2,315,890.30 approved.) That was just two
weeks after a Feb. 9 Town Board meeting at which the same three approved
$1,307,069.85 in overruns."
(More)
NYS
Dept. of Environmental Conservation Issues a Stop Work
Order at Ballpark Site Due to Environmental Violations
March 11, 2011 After an inspection at the site yesterday, the
NYS DEC found a number of
violations and ordered a stop to all construction activities except for
the work necessary
to correct the half dozen violations. This is not the first time
violations have shut down
the project.
(More)
Oh #@%&, It’s an Ilander
If you'd like a picture of how corrupt the political process can be
here in Rockland and Ramapo click
here.
Agency Ramapo buys insurance policies through
linked to one named by feds in alleged fraud scheme
February 28, 2011 "A Monsey company that provides Ramapo with
liability insurance carriers and handles the town's
claims is associated with the firm charged last week by federal
prosecutors in a $550 million insurance scam.
The LeBaum
Co. is providing the town with $491,166 in liability insurance through
three companies until February 2012." Full text
of The Journal News story
here.
Chaim Mayer Lebovits Indicted in $550-million Insurance Fraud Scheme
February 27,
2011
Monsey businessman and political activist, Chaim Lebovits, was named in
a Federal indictment
last week along with five others accused of multiple counts of insurance
fraud, money laundering and wire fraud.
As Managing General Agent and Vice-President of Liberty Planning, Inc.,
an insurance agency located in Monsey,
the defendant and others are alleged to have purchased large insurance
policies for “Straw Buyers” offering
fraudulent information and then created trusts to sell the policies on
the secondary market. The Department of
State lists Moishe E. Lebovits as Chairman or CEO of Liberty Planning,
Inc. Moishe is also Chairman or CEO of
LeBaum Company, the company that insures the Town of Ramapo.
(More)
Ballpark Now Costing Taxpayers $1million per Week
February 27, 2011 At every Ramapo Town Board meeting there are
cost overruns and change orders approved
for hundreds of thousands of dollars for St. Lawrence’s ballpark. The
Town Attorney Michael Klein doesn’t identify
the project when he abbreviates the reading of the resolution, and only
two of the council vote for approval along
with St. Lawrence. Fran Hunter and Daniel Friedman vote to approve the
spending. At the last Town Board meeting,
Feb. 23, the total approved by St. Lawrence/Hunter/Friedman was more
than $2million. This time, the baseball
tax trio voted while the other two council members, Itzy Ullman and Pat
Withers, were out of the room.
(More)
Who’s
Paying for the Ballpark—Part 2
Entire Package of State Aid for Ramapo Used up
in
One Cost Overrun for St. Lawrence’s Ballpark
February 23, 2011 In the governor’s
proposed budget, aid to all municipalities will be
cut by about 2%. The Town of Ramapo, which receives the greatest share
of state aid
of any town in the County, will have its aid package cut by almost
$9,000, but that hardly
makes any difference because St. Lawrence, Hunter and Friedman have
blown the entire
amount of state aid in 2011 on one check to Turco Golf for a cost
overrun on their
ballpark project.
(More)
Ramapo inspectors find evidence of 22 illegally occupied units
at Mosdos Adult Student Housing site on Grandview
February 15, 2011 "Ramapo
building and fire inspectors have found evidence of 22 apartments
being occupied in violation
of a state judge's order and town regulations at a congregation's
adult student housing project off Grandview Road outside
New Hempstead. In late January, attorneys for four villages provided
Nicolai with utility bills that indicated at least 17 more
units were illegally occupied. Nicolai said the evidence was
overwhelming; he called Ramapo derelict in its duties to uphold
his order and town zoning rules and order another inspection."
Journal News story
here.
A Fresh Start in Ramapo?
February 11, 2011 Following on the announcement that Alan Simon
has quit as planning director in Ramapo, The Journal News
printed an
editorial today that opened with: "Ramapo Planning and Zoning
Administration Director Alan Simon has issued his
resignation, which takes effect March 4. The date represents an
opportunity for Ramapo, where land-use issues and zoning
enforcement are the spark of fiery politics. It is time to turn around
the town's legacy of ever-bending zoning regulations and
lax enforcement that has fostered an attitude among some developers that
it's easier to seek forgiveness than ask permission.
By choosing someone who will enforce zoning laws and sniff out building
violations, Ramapo can stem a dangerous tide of
developers who choose to ignore building codes until they get caught."
It's a nice thought, but it neglects to mention that
Simon followed Brophy who left office after they found the envelope
stuffed with $100 bills and the weed in the glove compartment
of his Town vehicle. It also doesn't push for an answer to the obvious
question: Why wasn't Simon fired by the Supervisor when the
town attorney said he was routinely breaking the law? If this whole mess
teaches us anything, it's that there's truth in the old saw--A
fish rots from its head.
Alan Simon
Quits as Ramapo
Director of Planning and Zoning
February 10, 2011 "The town's embattled planning and zoning
administrator has resigned,
effective March 4. When the Town Board hired Simon, the Building
Department was in
disarray after its chief inspector was forced to resign after being
caught with cash and
marijuana. Simon ran zoning and planning, while another person oversaw
the inspections.
Simon also began running the enforcement side and his tenure became
controversial and
confrontational with other departments, specifically the town Attorney's
Office and engineering
department. The battle heated up — according to letters obtained by The
Journal-News — when
the town's top lawyer told Simon he was illegally signing building
permits and other documents, and overruling engineering
decisions on developments. Simon was fast-tracking specific developments
— mostly in Monsey — and changed town policy
to allow a developer's engineer to self-certify a project without
oversight from the town's engineers and planners. Simon
responded that he acted properly and had permission from Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence. Town Attorney Michael
Klein had told the Town Board in a memo that Simon's actions potentially
left Ramapo open to "significant civil and
criminal liability." Complete Journal News story
here.
Inept!
-- Bottom 9 Baseball Neglects to Trademark
Baseball Team's Name, Then Loses It
February 9, 2011 If you go to the Patent Office search site at
http://tess2.uspto.gov/
and look up Rockland Boulders, you will find a trademark filed for the
baseball team,
but it’s not owned by Bottom 9 Baseball, the Can-Am League, or
Christopher St. Lawrence.
Apparently the business arm of the enterprise did not have the sense to
protect their most
important property—the brand. The TM is owned by a local, small
businessman, Peter Vistocco. Months after Vistocco filed
and got the listing Bottom 9 finally got around to applying and found it
was too late.
(More)
Dropped Ball on Stadium Project
February 9, 2011 Out-of-control costs have already guaranteed that Ramapo Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence's
vanity stadium will lose millions of dollars a year. Initial bids have meant nothing. Contractors have been forced to
do dangerous work on water saturated mud and to remove snow from frozen ground so that work can continue.
We, the taxpayers of Ramapo, are paying for overtime and could cover endless "unanticipated" construction costs. (More)
State Judge finds Ramapo yeshiva illegally housed people at Nike
site--blames
Ramapo and threatens special inspector if Town doesn't end violations
February 3, 2011 "A state Supreme Court justice found the
evidence convincing that a Ramapo yeshiva allowed people to
live in adult-student housing on Grandview Avenue in violation of his
orders and town law.
Justice Francis Nicolai also
called Ramapo 'derelict' for allowing the illegal occupancies. 'To
a large degree ... what has happened here is as a result
of the lackadaisical ... attitude of the Town of Ramapo towards this
building site. ... It was absolutely clear that there
were violations of the building code ... violations of the fire code,
and yet they took almost no action,' Nicolai said.
He
said he might impose daily fines on Mosdos Chofetz Chaim but was
concerned the fines would be absorbed by the
bankruptcy petition. The justice also said he might fine Ramapo."
Journal News story
here.
Can-Am League and a study in public policy failure
Tuesday, 01 February 2011 12:50
BY EVAN WEINER NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
THE BUSINESS AND POLITICS OF SPORTS
"Ramapo taxpayers better understand that this stadium will be a loss
leader
no matter what both sides say.
Ramapo officials think the team will bring in
$900,000 in stadium
related revenues. The bad news, the revenues
figure is grossly overstated, the good news
for Ramapo is that at this
point they are not being asked to pay the
team's expenses like New Orleans and
Indianapolis and Glendale, Arizona
residents are doing for pro sports teams.
The bad news is that Ramapo will
have to find money somewhere to pay for
the annual $1.3 million stadium debt.
That money won't be coming
from local college baseball teams (Rockland
Community College, St. Thomas Aquinas
College and Dominican
College) or high school baseball or stadium
concerts, as the seating capacity is too small
for anything but
small acts." (Full text of the story
here)
Preserve Ramapo Files Grand Slam Lawsuit in State Supreme Court
January 28, 2011 "Among a dozen accusations — most of which town
officials already have denied — Preserve Ramapo
claims the town has improperly financed the multimillion-dollar project
and wrongly transferred a taxpayer-owned 61
acres to the Ramapo Local Development Corp. The complaint filed in state
Supreme Court in New City on Wednesday
also claims Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence has acted improperly by
voting on financial and other issues as both a
Town Board member and as head of the development corp. The 54-page legal
action also says the town and St. Lawrence
continue to fund the 3,500-seat stadium with taxpayer money, even though
voters rejected the town guaranteeing
$16.5 million for the project's construction in August." Full text of
The Journal News story
here.
Read the Complete text of the Lawsuit here
Project Grand Slam--the Cost to the Taxpayers, so far
January 28, 2011 The question that’s likely to occur to anyone
driving by the ballpark site out on Pomona Road is,
"With no investors, how is he paying for this?" The unfortunate answer,
so far, has been, "The taxpayers are paying
for it." Forget what he told the paper the day after the public soundly
rejected public funding in the August 24th
referendum vote. The measure of what Mr. St. Lawrence’s word is worth
appears below. "No taxpayer
dollars!"—you add them up for yourself.
(More)
The Ramapo Hatter and the Reorg
January 19, 2011 Is it fair to assume you
can guess the size of a politician’s head
by the number of hats he tries to put on it? If so, then nothing short
of a haberdasher’s
nightmare was created at the last Ramapo Town Board meeting.
(More)
Water Resources: Wistful thinking won't replace a plan
Our Town January 5 Editorial
January 16, 2011
"The Rockland
County Sewer Commission oversees wastewater.
The Rockland County Drainage Agency weighs in on wetlands, streams and
runoff.
What official agency, determines the policy that ensures an adequate
supply of drinking
water and the use and conservation of water resources in Rockland? You
guessed it, no one,
thus a classic policy vacuum that is filled by the organization most
likely to benefit itself,
our multinational water utility, United Water Resources."
More
Legal battles continue in
Ramapo Planning Dept.--
Alan Simon lashes out at Attorney's Office and Co-workers
December 26, 2010 Apparently, Alan
Simon, Ramapo's Director of Planning and Zoning has decided that the
best defense is
a truly offensive offense, and he's gone on a tear--scripting one
potential lawsuit/and or/investigation after another. Keeping
track of all the possible illegalities in this short article is a
challenge, so pay attention as you add up your own total. The surprise
ending for the story might be contained in his score on a retake of the
Civil Service exam. He failed it the first time around, and
now the County Personnel Office says his current job ($143k) and his
$7,166 raise depend on his December 11 retake.
Journal story.
Preserve Ramapo Initiates Lawsuit against Ballpark
December 19, 2010 A letter has been
sent to Christopher St. Lawrence, all the principals of the Ramapo Local
Development
Corp., the members of the Ramapo Town Board, and Ramapo Attorney Michael
Klein that explains the following legal responsibility:
"You are hereby placed on
notice of such impending lawsuit. Accordingly, please be advised that
you have a legal, fiduciary and
ethical obligation to disclose to any lenders, consultants, title
companies and other parties involved in such land transfer or any
financing involving such land of the above impending and threatened
legal claim. You may not knowingly make any representation
that is inconsistent with your knowledge of the impending and threatened
lawsuit." Full text of
Joseph Meyers' letter.
The Short Uneasy Career of Ryan Karben--Finance Director
December 16, 2010 It was only two
days ago that Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence announced the
appointment of Ryan
Karben as the new Ramapo Finance Director. He had bucked the straw vote
of the Board members who opposed the appointment
of the ex-Assemblyman/Village Attorney. The Board, with the single
exception of a political lapdog-in-training, rejected Karben,
offering a clear sign of the political risk the Supervisor was taking
for his long-time ally. In fact, you can still see the vivid evidence
of that price-to-pay on the LoHud blogs. Then, this morning, Karben
rewarded the Supervisor's misguided loyalty by handing in a letter
that, in effect, was a resignation. The strangest thing about the
sequence of events is that Karben knew about the problem of his
personal clients appearing before the Town two days ago when he
apparently accepted the offer. He let the bonfires on the blogs
burn for two days, and then, finally, today, said, "No thanks," and the
anger on the blogs turned to laughter. If you missed them,
the Comments sections at the end of both stories are still up on LoHud.
Original Journal story with 80 comments
here. The
updated
story with a different set of comments
here.
Permits for Illegal School Expose Ramapo to "Significant Civil and Criminal Liability"
Dec. 15, 2010
"A religious school operating illegally on
Highview Road is receiving state funding based on Ramapo building and
zoning
officials wrongly giving the congregation a temporary permit to operate,
says Ramapo town attorney Michael Klein. It appears the town
illegally issued a building permit and certificate of use which are or
may be used to defraud the school district or state in providing aid.
It is patently illegal to issue a building permit and/or a certificate
of occupancy or use for a building (other than one-, two- or
three-family
home) if the site plan approval has not been granted. Significant civil
and criminal liability may arise from this situation." Ryan Karben is
the attorney representing the school. Journal story
here.
St. Lawrence Appoints Ryan Karben as Ramapo's Finance Director
Dec. 14, 2010 Despite a suspicious
exit from his State Assembly post, a recent drunk driving charge that
led to an evening in the County
lockup, and his recently being fired from his post as Spring Valley
village attorney, Ryan Karben was appointed by St. Lawrence to the
position of Ramapo Finance Director over the objections of Board members
Fran Hunter, Pat Withers and Itzy Ullman. The only board
member at St. Lawrence's side supporting the appointment was Daniel
Friedman, whose vote on most issues has developed into little
more than an echo of the Supervisor. Karben might not be available for
immediate comment, as he is likely busy in preparation for
a court date this Thursday in the Elizabeth DiGiacomo vs. High Mountain
Sanitation in Rockland Civil Supreme Court. Background on
that situation is available
here.
The Journal News story is
here.
No
Decision at Patrick Farm Meeting
December 2, 2010
[In brief] Meeting runs 5 hours. 52 speakers address the Board
with objections to the project. Ken Zebrowski and
Ellen Jaffee send reps to voice concerns over aquifer
and the Columbia gas pipeline. Leonard Jackson Associates
withholds critical information from public and Town
professional staff. Planning Board member nods off.
Shortly after 1am, public session is closed but no vote
is taken. Vote not scheduled for any particular time.
(Story)
Grand
Slam "A project that has failure written all over it"
Nov. 27, 2010 An award-winning sports journalist writes:
"In the suburban New York City
at the Town Hall of Ramapo in Suffern, New York, which is about 35
miles north of the
George Washington Bridge, Ramapo Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence
will once again
on Tuesday night explain why he feels there is the need to spend
millions of dollars for a
project that has failure written all over it."
Evan
Weiner, the
winner of the United States
Sports Academy's 2010 Ronald Reagan Media Award, has written a
detailed analysis of the
economics, the faltering history of the Can-Am League, and the
disasters experienced in other
regions that continue to pay for sports fields that have failed or
even have been already
torn down as taxpayers are still working on the original debt. Read
"No Never Means No in
the Politics of Sports Facility Construction."
Baseball Tax Heading over the Fence
Nov. 22, 2010 At the end of the
summer, on August 24, the voters of Ramapo voted to end taxpayer
funding for Christopher St. Lawrence’s
baseball park. The vote was an overwhelming 70% to 30%. In effect,
the voters erected a financial wall between St. Lawrence’s RLDC
(Ramapo Local Development Corp.) and St. Lawrence’s Ramapo Town
Board. About the vote, St. Lawrence told The Journal News
that he
had gotten the message, and going forward, he pledged "there will be
no taxpayer dollars" tossed over that wall to the RLDC and its
ballpark.
An examination of the paper trail since that infamous declaration
lays out a pattern of monumental deceit, some of it possibly
prosecutable.
(More)
Ramapo officials looking to rein in zoning boss Alan Simon
Nov. 21, 2010 “Planning
and Zoning Administration Director Alan Simon was criticized for
fast-tracking developments by overstepping his authority
by signing documents he was not permitted under law and town rules
to sign, town officials and town memos said. St. Lawrence said he
continues
to support Simon, even though he agrees Simon has overstepped his
authority and the law by signing building permits and certificates
of use and
occupancy, overruling engineers and changing town policy. He said
Simon was wrong to try to ban town engineers from his office and
from reviewing
development plans. And he hasn’t passed the civil service exam for
his position. Simon also has changed policy by signing temporary
approvals for
developments still before the Planning Board, like a religious
school that opened illegally on Highview Road in a residential
house. And he’s allowed
developer’s engineers to self-certify that projects followed site
plans.” Yet St. Lawrence still supports him. Journal story
here.
Ramapo
adopts $78.5M Budget—Property Taxes Up 4.9%,
Police Services Up 6.2%, Elected Officials Get 5% Raises
November 21, 2010
Blaming
the State and pension funds,
St. Lawrence said during a Town Board meeting held Friday
morning to adopt the budget, "We hope the state gets their act
together." An unusual sentiment from a politician who has
turned his back on the taxpayers in his Town, and despite their
clear objections, seems hell-bent on spending $20 to $30 million
on a baseball park that will undoubtedly feature his name on
everything but the hot dogs. That's about a third of the entire
budget
total invested in a business enterprise that has a 70% likelihood of
failure. Journal coverage of the tax increases
here.
Questionable
Activity at Ramapo Planning Dept. Widens
November 10, 2010 It was only two weeks ago that Alan Simon,
Ramapo
Director of the Planning and Zoning Administration, was in the news
for some
rather questionable activity. Documents show that he, Simon, and
Supervisor
St. Lawrence were planning to have the taxpayers pick up a $75,000
bill owed
by developer Rabbi Areyah Zaks to the State Supreme Court. Zaks had
moved
16 families into his Adult Student Housing development on Grandview
Ave. that
Judge Nicolai had ordered closed with an injunction.
(More)
Lee Ross's Presentation before the Planning
Board--What Patrick Farm will be turned into
Larger photo and links to the video presentation here.
Simon
and St. Lawrence Wanted Taxpayers to Put Up
the $75,000 Court-ordered Bond Demanded of ASH Developer
October 27, 2010 When State Supreme
Court Judge Francis Nicolai ordered that a $75,000
surety bond must be posted by the developer of the Adult Student Housing project
at the
Nike base, the builder turned to an unusual source for the funding. Rabbi Areyah
Zaks turned
to Town Hall and the Ramapo taxpayers for the $75,000 he owed the court. And
even more
surprising, Supervisor St. Lawrence and Alan Simon, Director of Building and
Zoning,
both agreed to work on the withdrawal from the town’s tax coffers. (More)
Karben Fired as Spring Valley Attorney
October 26, 2010 "Mayor Noramie Jasmin fired Village Attorney Ryan
Karben on Monday for not doing the job she expected
of him. Jasmin said Monday night that she fired Karben because he didn't
"fulfill my expectations as the village attorney."
She didn't provide specifics." Trustee Demeza Delhomme told The Journal News,
"The mayor told me there
was an incident."
Journal story here.
DEC
Order Shuts Down Work at Ballpark Site--Multiple
Erosion and Sediment Control Violations Cited
October 15, 2010 The New York State Dept. of Environmental
Conservation-–Division of Water—inspected the Grand Slam
construction
site last Thursday, and then on Tuesday of this week ordered a "stop
to all
construction activities, exclusive of that work necessary to correct
the
erosion and sediment control deficiencies." The DEC found five
violations of
State Environmental Conservation Law ranging from no erosion
controls to a larger problem with "the entire site
under construction and there are no stabilization measures." The
work site includes two wetlands, one State
and one Federal, and the property drains into a large County park.
(More)
Read
My Lips!
October 14, 2010 Just three weeks ago, in response to an
overwhelming 70% to 30% defeat
in the ballpark referendum vote, Christopher St. Lawrence promised
the 10,145 voters
who came out that he had heard them. He told The Journal News,
"The stadium will be
built with private money. There will be no taxpayer dollars. I got
the message." Last night,
St. Lawrence and two board members broke that promise rendering what
the Supervisor
guaranteed just a few weeks ago an expedient lie.
(More)
Taxes in Two Towns: Clarkstown reduces Taxes by $5-$10 per
homeowner
Ramapo payers face stiff increases of 5%+ per household
October 6, 2010 In Ramapo: "The proposed budget
would increase town property taxes by 4.97 percent, with taxes
for town police services rising 6.2 percent, and sewer user fees
jumping 4.89 percent, Supervisor Christopher
St. Lawrence said.
The spending plan
increases spending by $3.5 million and includes 5 percent raises for
elected
officials and nonunion members." Journal Story
here. Clarkstown: "For the first time in recent memory,
Clarkstown
residents would see a modest decrease in their taxes under a $110
million budget for 2011 proposed by the
Town Board." That story
here.
Desalination Plant to Cost United Water
Rate Payers $485 per year
October 1, 2010 "United Water’s
proposal to construct a desalination plant in
Haverstraw
NY is being promoted as a source of additional property tax revenue
for the North Rockland
School District and the Town of Haverstraw. However,
the average
North Rockland United
Water customer will likely see an increase in
annual water bills of
$485, roughly 2.2 times
the estimated $221 annual property
tax revenue that would accrue to
the benefit of the
average North Rockland
customer / household from property taxes
derived from a desalination
plant."
The other towns, including Ramapo will pay $485 per
customer. Read Bob Dillon's
analysis
here.
Patrick Farm development would damage water source
September 24, 2010 Community View
in The Journal News "The Ramapo Planning Board is deciding
whether to approve an
immense residential development on a 206-acre parcel of land known
as Patrick Farm. The site sits atop a critical component
of the Ramapo River Basin, designated a sole source aquifer by the
Environmental Protection Agency. I believe that the Rockland
County Legislature should begin the act of taking Patrick Farm by
using eminent domain law. An Aug. 8, 1992, the EPA action
notice addresses the importance of the Ramapo aquifer systems: "As a
sole source aquifer there are no viable alternative drinking
water sources of sufficient supply; and if contamination were to
occur, it would pose a significant hazard to the public health."
(More)
JN Editorial: East Ramapo Sale Rightly Delayed
Sept. 2, 2010
"Questions raised about East Ramapo's sale
of Hillcrest Elementary School are apparently shared by the state
education
commissioner, who has halted the sale of the school.It could take up to
six months for the commissioner to weigh an appeal of the
Hillcrest sale filed by East Ramapo parent and public school activist
Steve White. It's worth the wait. Because of the board's lack of
transparency in its decision-making on this and other issues, the public
has been denied the information needed to judge the benefit
of the property's planned sale to Yeshiva Avir Yakov of New Square."
Complete editorial
here.
State blocks sale of East Ramapo's Hillcrest School
Sept. 1, 2010
"The state education commissioner has
ordered the East Ramapo school district to halt the sale of Hillcrest
Elementary School, an Education Dept. spokesman confirmed Tuesday.
Commissioner David Steiner issued a stay in the
school sale, pending his decision on an appeal filed with the Education
Department by Steven White, a district parent,
on Aug. 7.
White thinks the East Ramapo Board of Education improperly sold the
school to Yeshiva Avir Yakov, a New Square
congregation, in July for about $3.2 million, far below the $10.2
million value assigned to the 12-acre property by the
Clarkstown Assessor's Office. The sale price was decided after a first
appraisal valued the school and land at $5.9 million.
A second appraisal, which the board did not approve until nearly a week
after the school sale, was obtained by the school district's
attorney, Albert D'Agostino." Journal News coverage
here.
St. Lawrence isn't Ramapo's dictator
St. Lawrence to Ramapo: Drop Dead!
I’m going to build this stadium no matter what the voters say,
and they’re going to pay for it.
August 27, 2010 In a rare referendum vote, more than 70% of the
voters rejected taxpayer
guarantees for a $25 million baseball stadium for an Independent League
team here in Ramapo.
On the night of the vote, Supervisor St. Lawrence’s challenge was
repeated as he offered a
more polite phrasing for his blunt message: I don’t give a damn what
they want—they’re going to
pay for it, one way or another, and I’m going to build it.
(More)
Voters decisively reject $16.5m for stadium
August 24, 2010 The vote count was an overwhelming
7 to 3 margin against
spending $16.5 million taxpayers'
dollars for a stadium
for an Independent League ball team. The totals published by the Town were
7,166 No (against
funding the ballpark), and 2,979
Yes (in favor of the funding). The total number of voters was 10,145
with an overwhelming 70.6% showing up to reject the
resolution . The rare referendum
special election was the only check of the public of its kind in
recent memory, and the voters
were hardly equivocal in their opinion.
Check the
Journal News
coverage. Click here for a
breakdown of districts.
Destroyed!
August 3, 2010 Another piece of
Ramapo history has been obliterated
from the landscape--to be paved over with parking lots. The most
recent
views and a retrospective of what had been on the site--a legacy
that reaches back to pre-Revolutionary Ramapo.
July 28, 2010
The
destruction of a pristine woods at the
corner of Pomona Road and Firemen's Memorial Drive has
accelerated as the politician who has proved himself to be
the greatest threat to Ramapo's environment blunders ahead
without the funding or support for a project that he has
repeatedly said in public is going to be built whether the
taxpayers want it or not. Photos and link to Flickr catalog
of images
here.
Federal
agreement ends poultry slaughtering in
violation-ridden New Square plant; Adir has plans
to replace plant with a 5X larger factory
July 23, 2010
Federal prosecutors and owners of a violation-ridden and unsanitary
poultry
processing plant have reached an agreement that permanently shuts down
the slaughtering
operation but could allow storage and sale of imported fowl inspected by
the government.
The U.S. Attorney's Office took civil action in December against New
Square Meats for
unsanitary conditions at the plant and selling poultry since 2002 that
the U.S. Department of
Agriculture never inspected. Adir Poultry, a company connected to
New Square Meats and Ezras Yisrael, wants to replace the
5,000-square-foot slaughterhouse with a $3 million, 26,250-square-foot
plant." Journal News story
here.
Sports
Journalist Examines Ballpark Memorandum of Understanding--
Calls it "A Potential sports financial fiasco in the making"
July 19, 2010
"Assuming Bottom 9 Baseball
gets into the Can-Am League (and pays a million dollars
or so for that right) and is set to go and Ramapo or the RLDC gets the
stadium funding together, the new
facility will be built over the winter and will be ready to open on June
6, 2011. Bottom 9 Baseball will
be throwing a million dollars or four percent of the estimated costs
into the venue. The team will pay $175,000
a year in rent. It would take more than a century for Ramapo to get back
the construction costs at that rate.
The team threw a couple of bones to Ramapo. The municipality will get a
dollar for each ticket sold (not including those seats
in the stadium's 20 luxury boxes – the town will get some money from
those seats and some money from the sale of the stadium's
naming rights. What are the odds that a Ramapo Stadium can get any money
for naming rights when the New York Giants/Jets
Meadowlands Stadium, the Dallas Cowboys Stadium and the Golden State
Warriors facility are still unnamed?)"
Complete article
here.
Ballparkdigest.com Skeptical Over Hired
Consultant’s Rosy Financial Picture for Ballpark
July 11, 2010 "A
consultant estimates that a new Can-Am Association ballpark in Ramapo,
N.Y., should turn a profit if things go well. But a closer look at the
number shows that
the city has almost no room for error and will rely on offseason events,
not baseball, to
cover debt payment."
The site's editors also have this to say: "Crunching
the numbers: It
will take $700,000-$800,000 just for debt service on $25 million in
bonds on a 20-year repayment schedule using current interest
rates. No way this deal works without a lease where the city eats at
least half the cost of the ballpark." Click
here to read
the two articles.
One
Time Political Operative for St. Lawrence
Arrested for Burglary and Assault
July 5, 2010 An article in the July 1st Journal News
reported that "a 34-year-old local
businessman has been charged with forcing his way into a Kaufman Court
home and
assaulting the couple living there. Jacob Wagschal, owner of JW
Developers on Sunrise
Drive in Monsey, faces a hearing in Ramapo Justice Court on the morning
of July 15.
An argument over a parking issue apparently caused a confrontation
between Wagschal
and a family living on Kaufman Court, according to a spokesman for the
police department.
The male homeowner told police that Wagschal was carrying a cane and hit
him in the face, and then punched him
several times in the chest." Wagschal is familiar to our readers as one
of the individuals connected with the fraudulent
signs put up the night before a recent election. These signs directed
Preserve Ramapo supporters to vote on the line
containing the St. Lawrence slate.
(More)
Census estimates show big gains in some local communities
according to newly released census estimates. Rockland's Orthodox Jewish villages, Kaser (34%) and New Square (32%),
have seen the region's biggest population increases, as they continue to build more housing to accommodate growing
families there. Also in Rockland, Haverstraw (11%), Pomona (10%) and Montebello (10%) saw high growth." Story here.
Ramapo Voters Demand a Say
on the $25 million Ball Park
June 24, 2010 Late this morning, Preserve Ramapo Chairman Robert
Rhodes and Rockland County Legislator Joseph Meyers delivered four
volumes of petitions with 2,139 signatures from those in Ramapo who
want the voters to decide whether $16.5 million in new loans to build a
baseball park should be co-signed by
the already stressed taxpayers.
(More)
Jim Bouton on
Building New Baseball Stadiums
"The only
people, besides team owners, who want new stadiums are
politicians, lawyers, and the
media. Politicos like to
swagger around a palace—and stadiums are the modern
palaces—the bigger
the better, especially for mayors
suffering from stadium envy. They like to watch games from
the
owner's box in full view of the TV cameras and hang out
in the clubhouse with the players. This is
in addition to
the usual perks, graft, kickbacks, and patronage that accrue
to politicians on big
construction projects."
(Click here
for More from the ex-Yankee All-Star)
Preserve Ramapo Files Complaint
with Inspector General—Asks for
Fraud Investigation of the Urban
Renewal Certification of Ballpark Site
May 5, 2010
Yesterday, Preserve Ramapo filed a formal
complaint with the New York State Inspector General.
At the same time, the organization requested a thorough
investigation of what it considered to be a fraudulent
application for urban renewal status for the wooded site
next to the Fire Training Center in Pomona.
Applicable sanctions were also sought by the group.
(Complete story with full text of the complaint
here.)
Patsy Wooters gets Rockland County
environmental
volunteer award
May 2, 2010 "Patsy
Wooters has spent more than a decade raising awareness about
the environmental issues confronting Rockland County.
From threats to
drinking water
and air quality to concerns about overdevelopment and habitat loss,
Wooters has
worked to explain how these issues fit into everyday life." Story
here.
A Risky $26million Gamble with
5 to 1 odds-Against
and There’s
No Business Plan
April 28, 2010 Last week,
Preserve Ramapo received a stack of 120 pages, documents and notes,
from the Ramapo Town Clerk’s Office. We had submitted a Freedom of
Information Act request
for two things: the business plan for Supervisor St. Lawrence’s $26m
baseball park (Project Grand Slam)
and a list of the investors he said he had lined up for the project.
What we got back was an assortment
of unrelated papers pulled from a number of areas, but there was no
document that purported to be or
even vaguely resembled a business plan, and there were no investors.
(More)
Official
spokesperson for Mendel Hoffman
chosen for the Ramapo Town Board
April 15, 2005 Daniel Friedman was appointed to the Ramapo
Town Board at last night's board meeting. Friedman will take
the place of Ed Friedman who passed away on March 12. Board
members St. Lawrence, Hunter, Withers, and Ullman voted to
seat the 24-year-old to serve out the remainder of Ed Friedman's
term. (More)
Nike/Mosdos—Federal
Judge Tosses Bias
Claim Against the five Villages
April 8, 2010
In the latest legal milestone in the ongoing odysseyof the Nike Base, U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas has thrown out
the religious discrimination lawsuit brought against the five villages
that opposed the ASH (Adult Student Housing) project on Grandview
Avenue. Karas’ dismissal was delivered in a written opinion dated
March 31, 2010. The RLUIPA club that was wielded by the developers
against the villages has been cast aside, Christopher St. Lawrence’s innovative ASH dispensation from zoning
laws has been rebuked, and the judge found the charge that the residents "began to establish villages for the
purpose of controlling who resided within each village" and to exclude the "increasing Orthodox and Hasidic
Jewish population" was baseless. Story here.
1,000,000 Visits
April 5, 2010
Over this past weekend, the
PreserveRamapo.org website crossed a
threshold the average blog doesn't reach. Since it's launch on May 30,
2003
Web address to check local news in Ramapo and the 12 villages
in the Town. (More)
Fire Chief: Locked Doors Trapped New Square Students During Blaze
Chained fire exits described as "barbaric"
April 1, 2010 From the Journal News "Firefighters
had to knock down a locked door in order to
evacuate teenage boys from a fire in a yeshiva Thursday after the
students living in the dormitory
were unable to get out because several exits had been padlocked, said
Kim Weppler, chief of the
Hillcrest Fire Company.
Weppler said that when firefighters arrived, some of the estimated 30
teenage boys living in the dorm had escaped the building, but that about
20 others had been unable
to evacuate because several of the exits had been padlocked or
dead-bolted. To gain
access to the
rest of the building and search for additional students, Hillcrest
firefighters had to pry open a door
in the common hall, which separates the school from the dormitory, and
cut a padlock on a gate in a
common fire exit stairwell, Weppler said. 'Deadbolts, padlocks or any
other devices used to chain a
fire exit are barbaric,' he said. 'Especially when people are occupying
the space within.'"
Full story
on Journal News site
here.
Independent League Commissioner Promises
"Great Success" Despite History
Where are the Durham Bulls of Yesteryear?
March 28, 2010 The Commissioner of the
Independent Can-Am League, Christopher St. Lawrence's
partner in the proposed $25million baseball park in Ramapo, claimed in a
Community View in The
Journal News:
" In every
market where our leagues have built new facilities, the municipalities
have enjoyed great success and seen strong positive economic benefits. I
hope this helps clear up some of
the discussion, and I am sure that a new stadium with Can-Am baseball
will be providing great baseball
entertainment for decades to come in Rockland County."
Actually, the Can-Am League has
fielded seven teams
in New York State and all seven have gone belly-up and/or moved out. Of
the 22 modern franchises, this League has
seen 16 fail. We also look at the Commissioner's most famous team, the
Durham Bulls, and what happened when he
tried to get the town of Durham to build a stadium for that team.
(More)
Let taxpaying "investors" view business plan for Ramapo Ballpark
Community View in Journal News March 23, 2010
There are problems with the facts in
Supervisor St. Lawrence’s
Community View, "Baseball will lift up region.
" He says a formal
business plan for the $25.5 million project does exist. On Feb. 17,
Preserve Ramapo submitted
a Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA)
request for all documents, notes and communications concerning
this project.
A month later, Tuesday, March 16, we were given
48 pages and a large technical drawing. No business plan—in fact,
no documents or papers that might be part of a business plan, were
included. Either the Town is illegally
withholding
information in violation of State law, or Mr. St. Lawrence is
violating the public trust with a serious
lack of candor.
(More)
Playing With House Money
The Economics of the Baseball Field Proposal
March 19, 2010
Before investing $25.5 million in a baseball stadium and team, you would
think the first steps
taken by the Town of Ramapo would include a serious business plan.
Estimate the costs, the risks, the benefits,
ROI, and the overall suitability of the project for the community.
There’s no evidence that this has been done,
and the public has been generally stonewalled in its attempt to get any
information about the project beyond what
Christopher St. Lawrence chooses to feed to the newspaper and Channel
12. None of this seems to bother the Supervisor.
But then again, he’s not playing with his own money—he’s using house
money, or more precisely, the taxes you pay
on your house—that money. And the obligation will be yours and your
kids’ until the year 2040. Click
here
for an
analysis of the economic liabilities of this project, including
information about the league he is looking to partner with.
This time D'Agostino lashes
out at students
Last time, he launched a threatening
tirade
against a parent who criticized the selection
of the costly counsel under investigation by
the State's Comptroller. That performance
looked like this. Story and video
here.
A pattern is emerging. One that seems
to indicate serious issues with the First Amendment and
anger management. Reasoned discourse? A measured professional
demeanor? Don't get your hopes up.
A student wrote to us, concerned that the characterization of the
confrontation presented in the Journal
article didn't tell the complete story. He sent the video, so those
who weren't present could hear the
exchange. Click
here to view what happened.
St. Lawrence plans to enter "floating craps ga
me"
with taxpayers' money
Baseball plan is analyzed by sports business expert
March 7, 2010 Evan Weiner, a New
York City-based journalist and speaker,
is recognized as a global expert on the business of sports. He was
presented
with the United States Sports Academy's first ever Distinguished Service
Award for Journalism in 2003 in Mobile, Alabama. This morning on the
www.examiner.com website he posted
an analysis of the St. Lawrence
initiative to borrow $25 to $30million to build a stadium and bring a
minor league baseball team to Ramapo. "If that happens," Weiner writes,
"Ramapo will join a league [CanAm Leage] that is more of a floating crap
game
than a stable organized entity." Read the entire analysis
here.
New Snow Removal Service in Airmont "Excellent"
February 12, 2010
When the Village of Airmont replaced the Town
of Ramapo
Highway services at a savings of $86,000 a year the only question was
how well
the new contractor would do. Phone calls made yesterday to a number of
Airmont
residents unanimously rated the new snow removal contractor as "very
good" to
"excellent" with most using "excellent" as their preferred descriptive.
The pretreatment before the snow began to fall around midnight striped
the roads, and by 6am the morning after the day-long 14-inch snowfall,
the roads
were black throughout Airmont. Story
here.
United Water Created Shortages that Now Justify Desal Plant
February 7, 2010 "The New York State
Department of Conservation decision authorizing the construction of
Lake DeForest states, "This Commission has the full power to see that
this project is operated solely for the
benefit of the citizens of Rockland County. The only benefit to the
Hackensack Water Company (United Water
New Jersey) and the people of New Jersey is the incidental benefit of a
regulated flow in the river." Even during
periods of drought between 1991 through 2007, the United States
Geological Survey's Hackensack River West
Nyack monitoring station recorded an average flow of approximately 15
million gallons per day. As a result, the
average flow to New Jersey exceeded the amount permitted by the DEC by
more than 7 million gallons per day."
(More)
Slumlord
Sits on East Ramapo School Board and
Spring Valley Zoning Board
February 5, 2010 The owner of the house at 38 N. Myrtle Avenue
in Spring Valley has
been cited numerous times within the last four months, and along with
the health and
safety violations, the Rockland County Dept. of Health has described the
home as an
illegal boarding house. Of the many violations throughout the building,
it was noted by
the inspectors that, "Some of these violations are considered to be
life-threatening."
The owner of 38 N. Myrtle is Eliyahu Solomon, a school board and Spring
Valley zoning
board member. Full story
here.
How
Congress Undermined the American Dream:
The Effect of the Religious Land Use and
Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA)
on Residential Neighborhoods
January 28, 2010 "How could Congress have passed legislation
that so dramatically harmed the interests
of so many of its constituents? There are two main explanations.
First, Congress did not bother to familiarize itself with the
constitutional rules surrounding land
use. There is no evidence in the legislative history that any member (or
staffer) grasped that land
use law that has been the domain of the states and local governments
since the Framing. They
simply did not understand that this attempt to federalize local land use
law was a revolution in
the making. Nor is there any evidence of even a modicum of knowledge of
the purposes and
principles underlying zoning and planning, or how such legal rules aid
and protect private
property owners.
Second, the record on RLUIPA was unbalanced, and thus distorted. The
only groups permitted to
testify regarding the bill were religious groups, and less than a
handful of constitutional scholars,
including myself. The very group most affected by the bill - residential
homeowners - was
conspicuously absent." Read the entire article by Constitutional Law
Expert Marci Hamilton
here.
Ramapo Town Board Sells Out Patrick Farm
in Unanimous Vote:
Frances Hunter--Yes; Yitzy Ullman--Yes;
David Stein--Yes;
Christopher St. Lawrence--Yes
January 26, 2010
Three hundred Ramapo
residents showed up at the special meeting of the Town Board last night,
and 2,000 more
had emailed board member Fran Hunter asking her to vote against the
high-density building on Patrick Farm. Owner
Yekiel Lebovits and his developer from Brooklyn, Abraham Moskovits,
have applied to put 500 homes on the environmentally
sensitive property on Route 202 near the corner of Route 306.
(More)
St.
Lawrence talks about Patrick Farm
becoming a new village--Would not stand
in the way of religious developers
January 24, 2010 Friday morning,
Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence
explained to the audience of a weekly radio show that he would not stand
in the way of Yekiel Lebovits or Scenic Development of Monsey if their
intentions include the creation of a new high-density religious
community on the Patrick Farm property.
Click
here for recent aerial views of the density in two other Orthodox
communities in Ramapo. This promise contrasts
starkly with his active opposition to the petitions from the residents
of Ladentown when they applied for the
same thing. Or the several petitions for single-district elections which
he fought in court.
St. Lawrence Protégé Quits—Total Comp for
Less than 1 Year of Probationary Service is $522,474.00
January 22, 2010
Baile Glauber had been Ramapo’s first Orthodox
Jewish Policewoman
until yesterday. Actually, she was a probationary officer, and despite
the strong personal
support of Christopher St. Lawrence, when Glauber’s probationary period
was to end in
February, Police Chief Peter Brower planned to recommend that she not be
hired on
as a regular on the force.
(More)
Joint Resolution by Legislators Joseph Meyers
and Jacques Michel
Concerning the Haitian Crisis and Relief Efforts
January 15, 2010 Read the full text of the resolution here.
Report on the Clarkstown Public Hearing on Desalination
January 13, 2010 A most informative
informational meeting was held before the Clarkstown Town Board
last night. The most interesting information was provided by a
well-informed and persistent audience
that would not accept the evasive answers provided by executives and
engineers representing United Water.
(More)
Proposed
Rockland County Desalination Plant a Boon for United
Water New York, a Bust for Area Water Customers
January 12, 2009 Washington, D.C.—"The Haverstraw Water Supply
Project, a proposed
desalination plant in Rockland County, New York, could generate as much
as $5 million in annual
profits for United Water New York, but community members would
ultimately pay the price
in the form of increased water rates, finds a new report released today
by the national consumer advocacy
group Food & Water Watch. Entitled Not Worth It’s Salt: How Rockland
County Could End Up Paying for an
Unnecessary Desalination Plant, the report recommends approaches to
meeting the area’s water needs that
include conservation, improving existing water infrastructure, and
better stormwater management and land use
planning, among others." Read full text of this press release with link
to the full study by Food & Water Watch
here.
Federal judge shuts down New Square poultry plant
December 29, 2009 "A federal judge has ordered a New Square
kosher poultry slaughterhouse padlocked
for unsanitary conditions that pose a health risk to the community.
During an April visit to the plant, federal
investigators said they found poultry residue on walls, light fixtures,
and the manager's office. Employee restrooms
had no soap or hand sanitizer while rubbish and foul-smelling pools of
water were found outside the plant, according
to court papers federal authorities filed asking for the temporary
restraining order against the plant." Story
here.
Feds: New Square chicken plant sold
uninspected poultry since 2002
December 28, 2009 "A kosher poultry slaughterhouse and processing
plant in New Square has been
selling uninspected meat since 2002 and continues to operate under
unsanitary conditions, federal
prosecutors said. The U.S. Attorney's Office is seeking a temporary
restraining order and a preliminary
injunction against New Square Meats, which is seeking an expanded
facility, for violating federal law.
The case will be heard at 10 a.m. tomorrow in federal court in White
Plains. 'The defendants ... have
demonstrated a brazen disregard for the health and welfare of the
consumers of its poultry products,'
the U.S. Attorney wrote in a court document. It went on to state the
defendants have 'repeatedly flouted' the
law and ignored requests by federal investigators to provide necessary
records." Story
here.
No Résumé Needed in Spring Valley
December 11, 2009 Two recent
appointments in Spring Valley
seem to prove that if you want to hide your qualifications,
or lack of qualifications, or you’d just rather avoid any
conversation at all about your life experience and professional
track record, the new Jasmin administration could have
a place for you.
(Story here)
New York Times: Board's Hiring Sets Off a School War
December 7, 2009 "Ground
zero for now is the schools, where roughly 70 percent of the students
are
black and Hispanic, and where Hasidic and other Orthodox Jews, who
almost always send their children
to private yeshivas, control six of the nine seats on the school board."
Read Times' article
here.
Lawyer-Go-Round Continues to Spin
in East Ramapo
Board Meeting Features Long, Angry Public Monologue
D'Agostino Erupts at Parent's Criticism
December 3, 2009 It’s gotten to the point
where you need a
scorecard to see who’s the legal
counsel today for the East Ramapo School District,
so here’s a current
lineup of who’s in and
who’s on the bench. Also we have Albert D'Agostino's
first legal action--he threatens a parent with, "I will
have you in court by Friday." The parent had expressed the opinion that
the decision to hire D'Agostino "stinks."
Complete story
(here).
"This
is a Declaration of War"
November 24, 2009
It was well past midnight (12:42) when theschool board came out of executive session to open the public
portion of last Wednesday’s East Ramapo School Board meeting.
There was a single item to be discussed. The Orthodox majority
on the panel wanted to fire the two attorneys currently serving
the district and to bring in another attorney, Albert D’Agostino,
at quadruple the salary. School Superintendent Oustatcher called
it a disservice to the children of this community, adding "that the
decision would rip asunder both the board and a community."
Deputy Superintendent Joe Farmer characterized the decision as a "declaration of war." The President of the School Board,
Nathan Rothschild, had requested that the vote not be taken, but be put off until next week for a full session devoted
to the issue. But Moshe Hopstein, Aron Wieder, Morrris Kohn, Eliyahu Solomon, and Richard Stone were deaf to the
objections. They had no answers for the Board’s nor the Superintendent’s questions, and they voted 5 to 3 to bring in
the attorney who assisted in the Orthodox takeover of the Lawrence School District on Long Island. (More)
Holy
War
October 29, 2009 In his
newspaper Mendel Hoffman announced, "We now have to deal with
over 10,000 people who sent a strong message: We don't want Jews to
live and expand in
Ramapo. Their concern is our existence." During this year's primary
elections some anonymous
writer posted the following on synagogues in the Monsey area: "These
dangerous activists proclaim
that the Town should go back to the times when there was the limit
on how much we can
expand, and that shall never be!" The two writers were obviously
working on behalf of the
St. Lawrence campaign, and the distrust and anger they fomented had
a purpose. Story here.
St. Lawrence Turns His Back on the Ramapo Fire Chiefs
October 26, 2009 At the beginning of this year (Jan. 14), the Ramapo Fire Chief’s Association sent an urgent letterto Supervisor St. Lawrence concerning unnecessary risks the volunteer firefighters faced in Ramapo due to building
policies and violations there. They described the current situation as "an extremely dangerous and untenable situation"
that is allowed to exist as projects continue to be approved, altered and illegally occupied. Read the letter and the
response here.
Leaders must stand up to New Square slaughterhouse plan
October 18, 2009 "The
leadership of New Square has decided that it wants to build a huge
chicken slaughterhouse off
Route 45, directly opposite single-family homes and perhaps only a
hundred yards from apartment houses occupied by
New Square's own residents. The role played by Rockland's political
leaders in this whole affair can only be described
as dreadful. To put it simply, it appears that our county's entire
political leadership has turned its back on our residents
for the continued political support of the very small group of
individuals who will deliver New Square's bullet vote to
properly compliant politicians." Read the complete text of Robert
Rhodes Community View
here.
Neighbors
and Village, Town, County, and
State Officials Stand Together Against the
Proposed Slaughterhouse in New Square
October 17, 2000 For photo coverage of the rally in New
Hempstead
against the poultry slaughterhouse, click
here.
Thom Kleiner:
"This should not be allowed in a
residential neighborhood. We cannot let this stand. If Perdue wanted
to open
a chicken plant in Pearl River, we'd stop that, too."
Ken Zebrowski: "We have to work together to stop this."
Zebrowski recently introduced legislation to prohibit municipalities
from granting any approvals for the construction or operation of a
slaughterhouse that is within 1,500 feet of a residential area.
Joe Meyers: Legislator Meyers introduced a resolution in the
county Legislature calling on New Square to reject the proposal
and asking the state to withdraw the $1.62 million grant awarded for
the project.
Preserve Ramapo
Files Complaint with Attorney General
over DA's Failure to Investigate Voter
Violations
October 2, 2009 This week,
Preserve Ramapo filed a formal complaint and requested an
investigation of the Rockland County District Attorney’s failure to
investigate felony
violations of New York State Election Law at a New Square polling place. We also asked that
a
second, independent investigation look at the possibility of
election fraud based on a
political relationship between the office
or any individuals in the Office of the Rockland County District
Attorney
and the officials of the Village of New Square. Both
requests were sent to the Public Integrity Bureau of the New
York
State Attorney General's Office in New York City.
(Story here)
Rockland County has 5th highest property taxes in the United States
October 1, 2009 According to the American Community Survey,
which is based on US Census Bureau statistics,
in 2008, Rocklanders paid median property taxes of $8,430--up $895
from the year before. The median is the
middle number with half paying more and half less. The number for
property taxes in all of New York
State is $3,622 and the median for the country is $1,897. Last year
we were 6th highest, so we're edging our
way up toward the worst in the nation--definitely not good. Journal
story here.
Slaughterhouse—The
Environmental Cost
and the Political Backlash
September 25, 2009 Because the proposed 50,000-square-foot
slaughterhouse on
Route 45 in New Square could prove to be an environmental
Chernobyl for homeowners
in New Hempstead, Spring Valley and Clarkstown, there has been a
political backlash
rising up from the grass roots. Two letters today in The Journal
News accuse
politicians of serving the bloc vote with no regard for consequences
that will
end up being paid by local residents. Read "Mad at Sen. Morahan for
chicken plant
support" and "Apathy only makes the bloc vote stronger"
here.
A
Slaughterhouse on Main Street--
An Environmental Catastrophe
September 9, 2009 The proposed 50,730-square-foot poultry
slaughterhouse in New Square would not only create the type of air
pollution called "brown air" throughout the surrounding
neighborhoods,
it would also have a disastrous impact on the supply of potable
water.
Slaughterhouses like these also negatively impact waste-water
systems,
storm and sewer, and this one is to be built on one of the more
traveled
roads (Route 45) in Ramapo. The firestorm created by the plan is a
reaction to the size, the location, and the politics of the
decision—the
last of which has a particularly offensive odor. Full story
here.
Grant to New Square is the last straw
September 11, 2009 "The recent $1.63 million "Restore New
York" grant ("State to give New Square $1.6M for chicken
slaughterhouse," Sept. 4) for a kosher chicken slaughterhouse in New
Square is the last straw for this second-generation
Ramapo homeowner. How can this be allowed when we pay some of the
highest property taxes in not only the state
but the country?" Full text of the letter
here.
Crying Fowl--Journal News Editorial
September 5, 2009
"The
Rockland County Planning Department has recommended against the
proposal [the poultry
slaughterhouse in New Hempstead], as submitted by New Square.
Planners found problems in the site plan, a variance
request and a special-permit request. Concerns ranged from lack of
parking to the stress on New Square's notoriously
low water pressure.
The county still has not been notified that the area was re-zoned
for industrial use, something
that New Square Deputy Mayor Israel Spitzer says happened more than
a year ago. There's also some fuzzy math - though
the state announcement hails the project, which it reported will be
placed on a 7.8 acre lot, county documents show
the parcel for the slaughterhouse at 0.99 acres. The Empire State
Development spokesperson said, '[There was ] a great
deal of support' from elected state officials." Read the full text
of the editorial
here.
Haverstraw supervisor asks New York Attorney General to investigate
New Square slaughterhouse grant
September 4, 2009
"Following a $1.6
million state grant for a kosher chicken slaughterhouse in New
Square, Haverstraw
Supervisor Howard Phillips is asking the state attorney general to
investigate the process by which municipalities are
chosen for awards of public money." Journal story
here.
St.
Lawrence's Protégé Files Complaint
Against the Police Union, Department, Town,
and Fellow Officers
August 22, 2009
Baile Glauber's "nomination as a police officer was strongly
supported by Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence and the Town
Board." Today,
The Journal News reported, "Ramapo's first ultra-Orthodox
Jewish police officer
has filed a federal labor complaint accusing the town and some
fellow officers of discriminating against her because
of her religious beliefs." Ms. Glauber had been given a work
schedule that gave her the Sabbath and other religious days
off. "She said the department gave her a hard time about taking
Jewish holidays off, but relented when her lawyer got
involved. She has been assigned to desk duty for months after
complaining that she was injured." Journal story
here.
Open
Space Generates Overwhelming Debt for
Taxpayers--Opportunity for Developers
August 14, 2009 Ramapo
Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence boasts proudly of
the $35 million dollars he has spent for “open space.” There
are a few things you
should know about his “open-space” purchases that he will not
tell you. (More)
St. Lawrence to Face Charges in Federal Court
for 1st Amendment Violations
District of N.Y. filed a ruling on Wednesday (Aug. 5) that Tim Cronin, former greens
keeper at Spook Rock Golf Course, has adequate cause to bring Christopher St. Lawrence
to trial in Federal Court. St. Lawrence is charged with the violation of Cronin’s First Amendment
rights and with retaliation taken by him, St. Lawrence, against Cronin. For complete
story, click here.
Mendel
Hoffman--The Clinic, the Taxes, and The Advocate
August 4, 2009 The Ben Gilman Medical and Dental Clinic in Spring
Valley is
scheduled to reopen today. The building had been closed by
the Board of Health,
The Journal News reported, because it
had dead birds, animal droppings, and other
unsanitary conditions.
Today, the news focus shifted to the Director Mendel Hoffman.
According to the Journal, "Hoffman was paid more than
$556,000 in 2006 as director
of [a number of local nonprofits], many
of which receive much of their budgets
from taxpayer funds,
according to records." Full story
here.
A
Slaughterhouse on North Main Street
July 27, 2009
Last Friday, The Journal News
posted the Rockland
County Planners’ rejection of the proposed poultry
slaughterhouse
on North Main Street in New Hempstead. They called the plant "an
incompatible, industrial use that should not be permitted
alongside
residential properties." On the same Friday morning, Supervisor
St.
Lawrence, on his WRCR local radio slot, said he would not oppose
it,
and, in fact, he praised the project as economically
advantageous
and state-of-the-art, as well. He virtually guaranteed that
there
would be no brown-air problems on Main Street from this
50,730-square-foot factory. (Story
here)
Some
Republicans who were asked to carry
candidate petitions are rippin'--literally--
protesting Dolan, Reda, and the Carpetbagger
(Christopher St. Lawrence)
July 13, 2009 We have
learned from Republican friends that the petitions
returned to the Ramapo Republican Committee have included
shredded candidate petitions as well as some
that were just torn up, stuffed into an envelope and returned.
(More)
Journal News editorial:
Ramapo must consider the cumulative and
regional impacts of its high-density development
July 6, 2009
"In Ramapo, land-use
issues are about more than traffic, sewer and water use. A
growing religious
community's needs for housing and schools has rubbed against a
woodsy, single-family home, suburban culture.
Overdevelopment angst is often fed by the town's willingness to
downzone, even in the densest areas, and the
planning and zoning boards' perceived overflexibility for
developers seeking more building on less land. County planners
have consistently warned of the stress overdevelopment
throughout Ramapo puts on the county's infrastructure.
Frequently
criticized is downzoning in the Monsey area that allows
six-family structures to replace single-family homes. Town
officials
have said that it is better to accommodate a rapidly growing
population, rather than create onerous zoning laws that beg
for illegal development." Read the full editorial
here.
New
Square and Kaser are the fastest-growing municipalities
in the Lower Hudson Valley
July 1, 2009
"Two villages in
Ramapo - New Square and Kaser - are the fastest- growing
municipalities in the Lower Hudson Valley, according to newly
released data from the
Census Bureau. Between 2000 and 2008, New Square grew 40
percent, while Kaser's
population grew 30 percent, according to the data. The
population of New Square was
6,461 in 2008. In Kaser, it was 4,315. New Square ranks fourth
in the state, behind
Brookville, Romulus and Kiryas Joel. Kaser ranks ninth." Tables
of the new data
here.
New Square considers plan for poultry
slaughterhouse
on Route 45
June 30, 2009 "New Square
is considering a plan
to allow a business to build a large poultry
slaughterhouse on Route 45 across the street from New Hempstead. The
proposed
50,730-square-foot facility would be built in a new industrial park
at the intersection with
Rovitz Place, according to documents.
(More)
A St. Lawrence Sampler
June 22, 2009 Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence has filed a lawsuit against
the candidates running against him in the
September
15 primary. Bruce Levine,
Veronica Boesch, and Rod Lustin were
served with
legal notice that Mr. St.
Lawrence is highly incensed over their
characterization
of his administration as
corrupt. In this piece we take a look at an abbreviated
list of some of the
"gifts"
this administration has offered all of
us, beyond even the invention of a new kind
of zoning called Adult Student Housing, and in addition to
that colorful building
inspector driving around with an envelope stuffed with cash
alongside the pot in the
glove compartment of his town vehicle.
(Story
here)
Journal News coverage: Ramapo zoning
board nixes one yeshiva,
favors another
June 20, 2009
"The fates of two controversial plans to
build yeshivas in residential neighborhoods were questionable
despite decisions this week by the Zoning Board of Appeals. The
first soundly rejected Bobover Yeshiva of Monsey's
plan for a school to replace an illegal one it operates on Route
306." Story
here.
Bobover Yeshiva denied approval by
Zoning Board: Vote is 4 to 1
June 18, 2009 After
one-and-a-half hours of public testimony, the
request for zone changes needed to permit the building
of a school for 250 students on two acres on Route 306 failed by a
four to one majority vote. The Town Hall meeting room was packed
with an audience that spilled out into the hallway. The crowd
erupted
with the announcement of the denied approval.
(More)
Christopher St. Lawrence,
Carpetbagger
June 11, 2009 What do
you do when you are
faced with the first difficult primary challenge
of your career, and your bloc might not be able
to pull your bacon out of the fire? Well, for
Christopher St. Lawrence, the answer was obvious--
high-tail it over to the opposition. Send enough of
your Monsey base over to the opposition party's
convention, and if you can't get your own party
line, steal theirs. And what about loyalty to your
own party? Forget it--no place for that when it's your
own fat you smell in the pan. Republican candidate
Christopher St. Lawrence will soon be seeking your
endorsement on the Republican Party Line. Sounds
odd doesn't it, especially when you think here's a
guy who never misses an opportunity to remind you
that, as a kid, he spent hours licking envelopes
working on his father's campaigns. (Read the complete story
here.)
NYS
Board of Elections: Gift cards given out at New Square
Polling place, a felony--DA investigating similar abuse in Monsey
(Update)
June 10, 2009 After receiving the legal
determination from a state Board of Elections Enforcement
Counsel, a Preserve Ramapo representative met with a detective from the
Rockland County District
Attorney's Office and requested that the department complete a full
investigation of two events in
recent elections. In the 2005 Supervisor's race, poll workers at a New
Square location handed out cards
that promised a gift to those who had come to vote. In the September
Primary Election in 2006, ice-cream
making machines were promised to voters in Monsey. Both acts constitute
felony violations of the State
Election Law Section 17-142. The Journal News learned yesterday
that the District Attorney is now
actively investigating the apparent felony in the Monsey election.
Complete story here.
Criminal
Fraud
June 5, 2009
The flyer sent out to all residents in
Ramapo
proclaiming Ramapo as the safest place in the
country is a fraud. In fact, it is one of the more
outrageous examples of marketing fiction to belch
out of the St. Lawrence smoke machine. This piece,
though, goes beyond the usual attempts to dupe the
public. It, in fact, places the academic reputation
of a publisher at risk, and, worse, it portrays the
FBI as an organization that doesn’t have a clue when
it comes to crime
statistics. (More)
Federal Judge hears arguments in Pomona
Rabbinical College RLUIPA suit
May 21, 2009
"Marci A. Hamilton, attorney for Pomona and an
expert on the federal Religious
Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, known as RLUIPA, presented
the village's case first, arguing
that Pomona has never received an application from the developer on the
project, so the village
officials and residents didn't know what Tartikov really wanted to build
on the site. Congregation
Rabbinical College of Tartikov sued the village in July 2007, arguing
that Pomona's land-use regulation
and conduct prohibited it from building and operating the college and
housing for students on a 130-acre
site off routes 202 and 306." The judge's decision is expected in 6 to
12 months. Read story
here. See
draft of the Tartikov original plans
here.
Bobover Backlash
May 10, 2009 Members of the Monsey
community expressed their criticism of the illegal
slaughtering of a calf at the Bobover school on Route 306. Rabbi David
Eidensohn
said, "This was not a religious act, it was an act of a fool." "Rabbi
Moses David Tendler of
Community Synagogue of Monsey, a professor of medical ethics and biology
at Yeshiva University
as well as an expert on Talmudic law, said the group's slaughter of a
cow showed a disregard for
laws as well as the group's failure to understand American society.
"They are ignorant of social mores,"
he said. "They don't know what is right and proper in an American
community."
In an editorial in Saturday's paper titled "No More Breaks for Yeshiva
Bobover," The Journal News
editors wrote: "On May 14, the Ramapo Zoning Board of Appeals should not
give an inch on Yeshiva
Bobover's continuing dispute with the town over variances to allow the
construction of a building on the
property to serve 250 students. In recent years, Ramapo has allowed
organizations, often private schools,
to continue to operate even if they are out of compliance with codes.
Sometimes, this has resulted in
good compliance with local codes and general cooperation. Other times,
the violations pile up as town
regulations are repeatedly ignored. Guess which pattern fits here?"
Dramatically absent from this general discussion are the town
leaders--Supervisor St. Lawrence, Inspectors, and the
Boards responsible for preventing illegal schools like Bobover, not
looking the other way for years.
Read: Jewish leaders, others condemn cow slaughter in Ramapo
here,
No More Breaks for Yeshiva Bobover
here.
Rancor where private-school parents
make public-school decisions
April 26, 2009 A New York
Times reporter looks at the situation
in the East Ramapo School District. He compares Ramapo and
Lawrence, Long Island. "In
both cases, the boards voted to close one of the local schools.
In both cases, one reason given is declining enrollments because so many
local families now
send their children to yeshivas. In both cases, the decision was made by
boards dominated
by Orthodox Jews who are running the public schools but don’t send their
own children to them."
The Times' suburban reporter also discusses the recent attempt to stack
the board. "It gained a
measure of acrimony a year ago when two Orthodox school board members
dropped out of
the race a week before the election, in effect giving their seats to two
other Orthodox
candidates, one of whom never campaigned, never supplied information for
a candidate
questionnaire and never showed up at candidate's forums."
More
Lamont-Doherty Rockland water website is
out of beta--visit
Water
Resources in Rockland County
“It is a disgrace that a
criminal investigation has
not been initiated in this matter…"
April
11,2009 The outrage over
the disputed transfer of a 76-year-old woman's home for $40,000
made its way from the LoHud blogs to Saturday's editorial page. Many are
calling for a criminal
investigation over the proceedings. With the RICO statute as the basis
for the lawsuit against Gershon
Alexander ("purchaser") and Ryan Karben ("attorney who was chosen to
look after the woman's
best interests at the closing") there will, no doubt, be an
investigation. Many would prefer that the
DA's office take a look also. Our cursory look at the numbers put the
Ramapo Supervisor St. Lawrence
in bed with another of Gershon Alexander's companies, Puddingstone in
North Haledon, N.J. Read
the most recent update "Congers Woman's belongings trucked from disputed
house"
here. At the
bottom of the article are the comments and questions from the public.
Read about St. Lawrence's
involvement with Gershon Alexander
here.
Ramapo denied appeal in Adult-Student Housing case
April 9, 2009
"The town has been denied a chance to appeal a
court ruling that gave four villages
the right to sue it over the town's zoning for adult-student housing.
The Court of Appeals, the
state's highest court, preferred instead to allow the villages' case to
proceed. Chestnut Ridge,
Montebello, Pomona and Wesley Hills launched the lawsuit in 2004,
charging that Ramapo hadn't
fully considered the environmental impacts of its zoning that permits
dormitories and apartments
connected to schools." Full story
here.
Cracking a Rotten Nut
April 8, 2009 During the week that Christians celebrate
Easter and Jews celebrate Passover, in Congers, the
next callous phase of an alleged house theft played out.
“The belongings of a 76-year-old Congers woman
were hauled away from her home this week in the
midst of a federal racketeering lawsuit charging she
was swindled out of the townhouse. Elizabeth
DiGiacomo's property, including all of her dying
husband's clothing, was trucked away before her
attorney could try to prevent it with a court order
against High Mountain Sanitation Haverstraw, a company based in Haledon,
N.J. DiGiacomo lived
in the development since 1997. She was locked out of the 46 Leif Blvd.
townhouse late last month.
She is now living with her son, John, in New City. Her husband is
hospitalized with terminal brain
cancer.”
(Journal News) At the center of this sordid affair is Gershon
Alexander of New Hempstead,
Ryan Karben, two companies (High Mt. Sanitation and Puddingstone Group),
and a trail that leads up
the side of a mountain of garbage with one other surprise standing at the
top. (More)
The Tax Shell Game in Ramapo
April 8, 2009 What do you do
if you’re soon running for Town office
and your budget is swelling? You have to pass the increases to the
taxpayers, unless. . . Unless you can shove the costs off to the
villages.
Charge the increases to them, and then credit the costs you’ve
transferred
to them as accounts receivables on your books. Let the taxpayers pay the
costs to the villages while
you’re "reducing" taxes at your level. It’s the kind of fraud the Town
of Ramapo has been pulling for
years with highway department costs, and will once again claim as part
of their “responsible stewardship”
in Ramapo. In addition, this year, Supervisor St. Lawrence has taken
$200,000 out of the Chestnut Ridge
budget by prohibiting Interstate Waste Systems from operating in
Chestnut Ridge. The company had to
suspend operations, and the village lost almost a quarter million in
revenues. Read “Taxes could rise 8.9%
in Chestnut Ridge”
here. Then read “Airmont looks to replace Town of Ramapo for road
maintenance”
here.
More Than Half of Local Politicians Accept or Consider Pay Freeze—
Darden and St. Lawrence: "No thanks, we’ll pass."
March 23, 2009
In a Journal News feature article, Len Maniacewrites, "Faced with a crumbling national economy, a number of
top municipal administrators around the Lower Hudson Valley are
foregoing pay raises this year. More than half the municipalities
and school districts responding to an informal survey by The Journal
News said their top officials were considering or already had agreed
to do without raises." Two high-profile officials (Mayor of Spring Valley
and Supervisor of Ramapo), with two of the heftiest compensation
packages, have decided to forego the idealism. (More)
Karben returning to court, again--Lawsuit
charges a
violation of the RICO statute
March 13, 2009 Ryan Karben and a
corporation that seems to have a fictitious address were named
in a lawsuit that accused the Monsey attorney "and a New Jersey-based
company of misrepresenting
a real estate transaction in which a 76-year-old Congers woman says she
lost the deed to her home."
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in White Plains under "civil
provisions of the federal Racketeer
Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act, known as RICO." Read the Journal
story, "Lawsuit: Woman
duped of deed to home"
here, and for an interesting couple of degrees of separation from
Supervisor
St. Lawrence read this
interesting comment posted by a reader online at the LoHud site, and
then
review the Preserve Ramapo story he refers to.
Wi-Fi Sprinklers--You're kidding, right?
Feb. 22, 2009 Living in Ramapo,
you get used to some pretty bizarre situations. From
the Supervisor calling down at you twice an hour from one of those
$30,000 clocks (eight in all
scattered around the town), to a judge (Scott Ugell) telling Ramapo
Building Inspector Brian Brophy
not to worry about the dope and envelope of cash he was caught
with--just consider it never
happened. Here's
another one of
those Ramapo moments that makes life so surreal here.
Building a death trap
Feb. 20, 2009 "For decades,
volunteer firefighting officials in Rockland have
warned that one day their colleagues would die, trapped in an illegally
converted
apartment or condo, running into rooms without windows or walls blocking
what they
expected would be an escape route. So many single-family homes have been
altered into
two, four and even six apartments that the officials were certain
tragedy would someday
strike. It was just a matter of when and where." Read the Journal News
editorial
here, and
then read "Hillcrest Volunteers Want Out of New Square"
here.
_____________________________________________________________
County
Loses Activist
with an Historic Record
Jan. 27, 2009 Last
Friday, Irving Feiner
of Nyack passed away at the age of 84
after a short illness. From early adulthood to
the present, Irv dedicated himself to the
defense of the civil rights guaranteed to all
while fighting inequalities from the trial of the
Trenton Six in 1949 to the current unfair tax
burden on the residents of Spring Valley.
Story
here.
Two tributes to Irv Feiner in The Journal News:
Editorial page--An appreciation: Irving Feiner
"Irving Feiner believed in
speaking his truth to power--often with cutting and colorful
language. Feiner died Friday at 84. We remember his legacy of standing
up for civil
rights and social justice, and expressing his thoughts loud and clear."
Full text
here.
Bob Baird's column--Guardian of our liberties
"Irv Feiner was a pain in
the neck, and points south. He was irritating, aggravating,
and sometimes downright annoying. And he was usually right." Full column
here.
_____________________________________________________________
Karben agrees to plea--sentenced to a sleepover
December 11, 2008 The court case had
reached jury selection when Ryan Karben
pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of driving while impaired by
alcohol. He was
given a two-day jail sentence and a fine. Taken to the Rockland County
Jail last
night at about 10pm, he was reported released by 8 am this morning. "His
attorney,
Kenneth Gribetz, said that under the law, people who serve a portion of
a day receive
credit for the entire day. 'There was no special treatment given to
him,' Gribetz said.
'He's fully served. He's completed his sentence.' Prosecutor Kevin
Gilleece said this morning
that he was not aware Karben had gotten out." Journal story
here.
Ramapo record on
'Open Space'
stirs questions
October 27, 2008
For years, Ramapo Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence and town attorney Michael
Klein have assured us that the open space he has been
buying will never be developed. Preserve Ramapo has suggested that St.
Lawrence is not to
be trusted and asked why he has refused to dedicate this property as
parkland, a simple process
requiring only a formal resolution by the Ramapo Town Board.
(More)
Latest mismanagement of Ramapo Police by
Supervisor St. Lawrence
September 16, 2008 First there
was the situation where "a young Ramapo officer
was publicly excoriated by Town Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence for
ordering
a Hasidic Jewish woman, being booked on a fraud charge, to take off her
wig." What
followed was a St. Lawrence public apology to the officer. Now,
"Ramapo Officer
Ernst Tenemille, who has sought a work schedule that would permit him to
observe
his Sabbath as a Seventh-Day Adventist, has found his request stalled on
technicalities.
Now he faces more paperwork and a Police Commission hearing to explain
his needs.
None of that happened when Ramapo's first Orthodox police officer
earlier this year
was granted Friday night through Saturday off, to accommodate her
religious obligations."
A Journal editorial asks, "Why the different treatment?" Full text
here.
The ZBA, the cops, and the Supervisor
Two homes replaced with 42, political
fraud, and the machine
boss makes promises to his base--connecting the dots.
Sept. 2, 2008 The notice for the public
hearing first appeared
on West Central Avenue on a cold, rainy Thursday in February.
In fact, it was February 14, Valentine’s Day. The laminated
12 by 18-inch signs were bound to trees with blue tape. What
was unusual about these notices was the middle section below the
heading: VARIANCE REQUESTED OR OTHER REASONS FOR
HEARING. A large block of text, 27 lines, followed, itemizing
not just a single variance, but a list of 50 variances. The list
was too long for anyone to stand in the cold rain and read all
the way through, in fact, it was almost too long to fit on the large
poster. Fifty variances—there was no way any board would allow
that many violations of the zoning rules, no way.
(More)
Preserve Ramapo sues Supervisor and board
over broken pledge to protect open space
August 28, 2008 Preserve Ramapo warned
the residents
last year that St. Lawrence and his board had formally dedicated only
one of the open space properties, the one that surrounds St. Lawrence's
home, and that all the rest were vulnerable and could be sold to
developers. At the time, St. Lawrence and his attorney Michael Klein
were "shocked and dismayed" at the accusation. St. Lawrence said
of our warning, "This is utter nonsense." Less than one year later, the
two have overcome their indignation and entered into a contract with
developer Jeffrey Goldstein to sell item number 16 on their list of
"Open Space, Parkland and Historic
Preservation"--the Tilcon Quarry. Goldstein wants to build 440 condos on
the property that had been gifted to the
people of Ramapo by Tilcon. Wednesday morning, Robert Rhodes, Chairman
of Preserve Ramapo, was joined
by Legislator Joseph Meyers and attorney James Hyer as they filed a
Supreme Court lawsuit to prevent the sale of
the open space property.
More.
Tapping Hudson no substitute
for planning
August 22, 2008 "Responsible
planning must
be based on real information, not propaganda
provided by interested parties. Unfortunately,
United Water, working closely with the Rockland
Business Association, is doing its best to mislead
the citizens of Rockland." Read the full text of
Robert Rhodes' letter to The Journal News
here.
You can also read Rhodes' July
Testimony at
the Public Hearing on the Proposed United Water
Experimental Treatment Plant.
Supervisor St. Lawrence and his Board
are sued by worker
August 8, 2008 The Journal
News reports today that the
supervisor and Town Board are being sued in federal
court by a former employee charging that he was
disciplined for refusing to post a four-foot by eight-foot
St. Lawrence campaign sign on his lawn. Tim Cronin's
lawyer explained, "We're suing over the violation of his
First Amendment right to take whatever position he wanted in a political
race." We reported on this in an extensive story titled "The Awful Price
of
Independence in Ramapo." You can read that story
here, and check today's update
in the Journal
here.
The Quarry, Political Lies, and
the future of Ramapo
August 6, 2008
Last night,
at a Suffern workshop
called to address a plan to put 496 condos on the
Tilcon Quarry site, the man who put the deal together
sat silent throughout the entire meeting. Ramapo Supervisor
St. Lawrence had no comments. He had sold the open space
property that had been given to the people of Ramapo by Tilcon to one of
his biggest donors—the
developer Jeffrey Goldstein. Suffern had not been part of the
negotiations—our sources say the
mayor of Suffern had not even been told about the deal—and last night
the Supervisor adopted a
godfather-like demeanor throughout the entire proceeding.
(More)
Building
Condos on the Dump
August 1, 2008 It’s not just a dump,
it’s a Superfund
Cleanup Site. That puts it in the major leagues of
dangerous landfills. The N.Y. State Department of
Environmental Conservation will continue to monitor
the site for 20 more years to make sure poisonous
leachate doesn’t run into the groundwater. It’s 86
capped acres of fermenting garbage that has to be
vented so methane buildup doesn’t one day blow it all over the Torne
Valley. And now it’s
being seriously considered as a future site for 650 living units. Once
again, a really bad smell
leads back to Town Hall in the form of a damp money trail.
(More)
Do You Really Want to Drink
Hudson River Water?
July 12, 2008
"United Water New York's
proposal to build a reverse osmosis desalinization
and filtration plant to supply Rockland County with
drinking water from the Hudson River leaves many
with a bad taste in their mouths and concerns about
the quality of our drinking water, how the plant
will affect the ecosystem of the river, the
increased development it will bring
on land - and at
what costs?" Read George Potanovic's Community
View
here and please attend the public hearing Monday.
Photo George Potanovic, Jr.
Politicians: It's property taxes, stupid
July 10, 2008 "Gov.
David Paterson, Assembly Speaker Sheldon
Silver and former Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno agree
that property taxes are seriously threatening to drive homeowners
out of their houses. But they couldn't agree to do anything about it."
Read Irv Feiner's Community View
here.
Robert Rhodes Announces
Preserve Ramapo Plans to
Sue Ramapo over Sale of
Quarry to Builder
July 3, 2008 "We
believe this sale is illegal.
A municipality is not allowed to give gifts to
private parties. The fact that the developer is a generous contributor
to St. Lawrence’s
election campaigns does not give him the right to accept gifts from the
town of Ramapo."
The Chairman of Preserve Ramapo explained that they are in the process
of researching
the sale and gathering documents for the action.
(More)
Patrick Farm To
Have nearly 500
Residential Units--
61 of the 207 acres to
Be Downzoned to MR-8
June 19, 2008 Developers Yechiel and
Isaac Lebovits have submitted a
Draft Scoping Document that will be
reviewed by the Ramapo Town
Board in a public meeting scheduled for
Monday, June 23 at 6:30 at Ramapo Town
Hall on Route 59. The builders propose the
construction of 497 dwellings on the 207-acre
historic site. The
proposal includes
a map change of 61.3 acres now zoned for R-40 (one residence with 40,000
feet) to
MR-8 (multi-family housing with 8 units per acre). The village-size
development is
expected to increase local population with numbers that could match the
entire
population of the Village of Pomona as it exists today. The site is
located over a
primary aquifer. Read The Journal News story
here. A PDF of the 17-page scoping
document is available
here.
Ramapo Land Company II Opens for Business
June 18, 2008 On Monday evening, the
Ramapo Town Board
approved the sale of 65 acres in Suffern to one of the most
powerful developers in the area, Jeffrey Goldstein. At the center
of the deal was the man who brokered the sale, Supervisor
Christopher St. Lawrence. The land had been donated to the
people of Ramapo by Tilcon New York, and St. Lawrence
engineered the sale to Goldstein who plans to build a complex
of 440 condominiums on the Suffern site.
(More)
The Back Door to the Board Room
May 29, 2008
On May 20, the day of the school board
elections, a dangerous precedent played out in full view
of the public, but it went by mainly unnoticed. A
candidate was granted a seat on the Board of Education
in East Ramapo. He was not elected, he was appointed
after hiding out throughout the campaign.
More.
Shadow Candidates and Musical Chairs
in East Ramapo
May 16, 2008
Some things you take for granted--like
democratic
elections. After the election, they count the votes, and before that,
the candidates
campaign--showing up at grocery stores, on the inside
pages of the newspaper--taking hold of your sleeve wherever the
opportunity presents itself. But not this time in the School
Board Elections in East Ramapo. Two candidates have been out talking
and giving interviews, but two others just suddenly quit
without any explanation,
with only
one week to go before election day. And then there are the
final two, who are
more like shadows with nothing more known about one of them than just
his name,
and little more about the other. Should stealth candidates be tolerated
in a system so
dependent on an informed electorate?
More.
Lebovits to develop
Patrick
Farm without ASH
St. Lawrence backs away from
his Adult Student Housing
April 25, 2008 The
Journal News reported this morning
that "Ramapo Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence and
Terry Rice, the attorney for the developers, said in separate
interviews that adult-student housing would not be built on
the [Patrick Farm] property."
More
Spring Valley taxes--now that's a crime
April 15, 2008 Irv Feiner comments on the 10% jump in Spring Valley taxes. Read his letter here.
Wow, We Could’ve Had a V8
April 1, 2008
At a time when the
Fed is bailing out investment
banks to prevent a collapse of the system and
the state is looking for even more ways to cut a
budget already hanging in shreds, what are we
doing here in Ramapo to keep the tax wolves from
our doors? We’re buying time. Literally, buying time
with property tax money. Read the sad details
here.
Letter writers answer RLUIPA attorney Savad
"What Savad chooses not to
mention is that an unintended byproduct of the law allows
developers to wield the RLUIPA sword as a weapon for economic gain."
Read the full text
of this and two other letters responding to Savad's defense of the
RLUIPA legislation
here.
The new residential look
for St. Lawrence's Ramapo photo©rosspilot.com
The St. Lawrence Legacy—Emptied Aquifers
March 25, 2008
In a Community View in today’s Journal News,
Phil Tisi continues the water war between
United Water and Supervisor St. Lawrence’s office. This has been going
on for a month or so now, and as
the two sides point and throw brickbats at each other, there is silence
over the fact that they both have
actively conspired to destroy the water supply that has served this
region for eons.
(More)
DWI charge leaves Karben's political future cloudy
"Even if found not guilty of driving while
intoxicated, former Assemblyman Ryan Karben could find
it difficult to return to office, voters and experts said yesterday."
Read Laura Incalcaterra's full story
in the online Journal News
here. Note--the Journal online articles often have interesting
comments
sent in by readers. These appear at the bottom of the article, and
they're worth checking out.
St.
Lawrence owes $27,066
in back taxes--Pattern of being
delinquent goes back 5 years
In early November we reported on the
Supervisor's
tax
issues with the Village of Montebello. He didn't pay those either
until they were handed over for collection by the County.
As Ramapo Town Supervisor it is extremely unseemly that he
would force the same collection agency to get involved in
his Ramapo Town property taxes, school taxes, police, and
library taxes. Actually, the last time he paid his town taxes on time
was in 2002. Perhaps, like
the infamous Leona Helmsley, he thinks that "taxes are for the the
little people." Our coverage
includes current tax bills and table of past delinquencies. Story
here.
Hasidic community's bloc vote a far cry from democracy
Irving Feiner, a political activist for
more than half a century, offers an analysis of the
calculating and undemocratic nature of Ramapo's Hasidic bloc vote. Using
voting
statistics and trends, he considers the same question voiced in a
Journal editorial,
"Are all the voters registered in the area living in the area?" Irv
discusses five qualities
that set the vote apart from any other special interest. Read the full
text of the
Community View piece
here.
St. Lawrence Once Again
on the Tax
Deadbeat Rolls
The name of Supervisor Christopher P. St.
Lawrence
appears on this year's
warrant sent to the County for
collection. But it's worse than that. The
tax
bill he has
refused to pay, again, is being picked up by the rest of us.
To
read the documents, both current and those related to
past similar
performance
by the town
executive click
here.
Ramapo's third try at proving that the
Open Space properties
are protected forever
In the beginning, Supervisor St. Lawrence
just said that they were all dedicated parklands and
open space. When showed the documents that only one property was
formally dedicated, the
one wrapped around his house, he turned to town attorney Michael Klein
for some support. Klein
said there were convenants in the deeds that protected them, and then
almost immediately
recanted when he searched a half dozen deeds and couldn't find any
covenants. Now, with this
recent Community View by Klein, again, we have another vague citation to
law "dating back at
least to 1871" (no specific citation quoted) and two curious other
claims that contradict the
town's own documents. Three explanations in about three weeks. Why not
do what the people
asked for at the demonstration--dedicate the properties just as you did
the one in your back
yard? It will take 15 minutes at a town board meeting. Is there
something we are not being told?
Read more here.
The Awful Price of Independence in Ramapo
It's one thing to ask employees for
political donations and quite another
to enlist their attendance at political events and to assume their
complete
allegiance in a campaign. Town, state or federal employees do not give
up
their independence when they fill out the application for their jobs. In
fact,
without their independence, the entire system would suffer because
monolithic governments tend to collapse of their own stagnating weight.
Tim
Cronin's story is a cautionary look at a broken system. Story is
here.
Journal News joins Preserve Ramapo calling
on St.
Lawrence to dedicate open space properties
"It's no surprise that the grass-roots
organization, with a mission to curb
overdevelopment in the town, is wary of the way "open space" purchases
have been made. With no official "open space" resolutions from town
government
dedicating the properties as parkland, disposition of the lands could
become
cloudy in the future, Preserve Ramapo supporters say." There's a simple
solution
according to the editorial page of the Journal--"dedicate the land a
parkland."
More here.
The Supervisor, Open Space, and Credibility
The last time Supervisor St. Lawrence asked
the public to take his word
about the absolute security of a situation it cost us plenty. For three
years,
Preserve Ramapo warned about overdevelopment and the collapsing sewer
system, and St. Lawrence, again and again, denied the massive spills, he
announced at a Sewer Commission meeting "There's nothing wrong with
the sanitary sewer system," and in a recent Community View he vigorously
defended the system as a "marvel of modern engineering." Then the en-
gineering report ordered by the DEC informed us that $50 million is
needed
to fix the failing system. $50 million taxpayer dollars, and the repairs
have
been mandated by the State. Now in another Community View St. Lawrence
is reassuring us again--this time vowing that the open space purchases
are
"protected forever." This could cost us even more in money and quality
of
life issues. Story and commentary
here.
Ramapo Open
Space Purchases
not Protected
except. . .
Twenty-three of 24
Open Space purchases,
which cost taxpayers
$24 million, have not
been protected despite
the propaganda from the
Supervisor and his Board.
The solitary property that has been protected in perpetuity is the Mitch
Miller
property which just happens to completely surround Supervisor St.
Lawrence's
home. Full text of Community view
here.
Supervisor and Town Board
Refuse to Protect Open
Space Properties
Having trumpeted his open space purchases for
four years, the Supervisor
refuses to dedicate the properties as protected parkland, the only way
to
guarantee that they will not end up sold or developed. Asked at Monday's
Town Board meeting, St. Lawrence had a single word response to the
question, Will you dedicate the 23 purchases that remain unprotected?
Story
here.
Open space or the Ramapo
real estate company?
Documents obtained through a Freedom of
Information
Act request raise some disturbing questions about
claims made by the Supervisor concerning open space
purchases. With no clear answers coming from the
Town Clerk's office or attorney, Preserve Ramapo
looks elsewhere for explanations.
Read the story
here.
The Ethically Challenged County
Legislature and Ramapo Town
Supervisor
Richard Kavesh, a Nyack Village Trustee,
points to
some recent problems with raises, redrawing district
lines to keep incumbents in place, and the silencing
of the public at Legislative meetings. In a similar
vein, Preserve Ramapo looks at a buried ethical
problem for Supervisor St. Lawrence. Read the
Kavesh Community view ("Hold incumbents to a
higher standard")
here, and the story of St. Lawrence's ethical problem
here.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Ramapo Residents
Do you know what's going on in our
Town? Neighbors in Airmont, Chestnut Ridge, Hillburn, Kaser,
Montebello, New
Hempstead, New Square, Pomona, Sloatsburg, Spring Valley, Suffern, and Wesley
Hills--read what's really happening in the stories on our pages, and then
remember, as Ramapo voters,
you can fix these problems when you vote in local
elections.
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