Fire and Dramatic Rescue at 912 Post Road
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At 3 pm on Thursday, an improper generator connection cause an electrical fire at 912 Post Road. A SVAC Volunteer happened to be driving by and was the first to arrive at the scene. When he arrived, he saw a woman trying to re-enter the burning house to save her cat. He had to pull her off the stairs as she tried to go up to the seond floor to rescue her pet. He also kept all incoming units updated via his SVAC portable radio.
He then ran up the driveway to shut off the temporary generator. Firemen, volunteers and Hartsdale firemen arrived quickly, but there was extensive heat and smoke damage to the house and it is now uninhabitable. Two people who were inside the home were taken to White Plains Hospital where they were treated for smoke inhalation. The Scarsdale Voluntee Ambulance Corps also attempted to retrieve the cat, who unfortunately did not make it.
Building Permits for Storm Repairs
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PROCEDURE FOR FILING BUILDING PERMITS RELATED TO THE RECENT STORM EVENT (3/13/10 & 3/14/10 WHERE REQUIRED
1. WHERE BUILDING PERMITS WILL NOT BE REQUIRED:
• Building Permits will not be required where the repair work only includes cosmetic work such as roof shingle repair or replacement, flashing repair or replacement, siding or brick and masonry veneer repair and replacement, gutter repair and replacements, window repair or replacement and any other exterior or interior non-structural repairs (repair or replace plaster or gypsum board walls and ceiling, bathroom tiles, etc.)
2. WHERE BUILDING PERMITS ARE REQUIRED:
• All repairs that require structural work including the repair or replacement of the following require Building Permits to be filed:
➢ roof rafters
➢ roof ridge beams
➢ structural window headers
➢ interior doorway headers
➢ ceiling and floor beams
➢ main girders
➢ exterior wall framing
➢ interior bearing walls
➢ foundation walls
➢ chimneys
➢ retaining walls
➢ accessory structures such as detached garages and sheds
• All Building Permit Drawings and Building, Electrical, & Plumbing Permit Applications should be marked as “STORM DAMAGE REPAIRS”
3. WHERE ELECTRICAL & PLUMBING PERMITS ARE REQUIRED:
• Where electrical or plumbing work is required, the work must be performed by a Westchester County Licensed Electrician and Plumber. Electrical and Plumbing Permits must be filed with the Building Department.
• In the event that the interior was damaged by water or the basement or cellar was flooded and the wiring, receptacles, switches or panels were compromised, a Westchester County Licensed Electrician should be contacted to inspect, evaluate and make the necessary repairs. An Electrical Permit must be filed with the Building Department.
4. PROCESSING OF BUILDING, ELECTRICAL, & PLUMBING PERMITS:
• The processing of all storm related Building, Electrical, & Plumbing Permits will take PRIORITY and Building Department & Engineering Department Staffs will make every effort to EXPEDITE the issuance of these Permits.
• In an effort to expedite the processing and issuance of the Building Permit, the homeowners should have their design professionals (NYS Registered Architect or NYS Professional Engineer) contact the Building Department at 722-1140 or 722-1143 in order to obtain the appropriate information required to prepare the Building Permit Drawings and Applications. This is recommended so that only the information required is filed so as to expedite the issuance of the Building Permits.
Nunzio Pietrosanti, P.E.
Village Engineer/Building Inspector
Scarsdale Schools to Reopen Wednesday
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Scarsdale Public Schools are closed today, Monday March 15 and will continue to be closed on Tuesday March 16. Officials fear that students, teachers and school personnel would have problems getting to school safely due to downed trees and power lines. The traffic lights on the Post Road are out and the Village does not have enough personnel to man each light. As many as 70% of Village homes are still without power. In Edgemont, Edgemont High School was closed Monday due to power outages, but Seely Place and Greenville Elementary Schools are open. As soon as we have information from Edgemont about Tuesday we will post it.
Thanks for all of your photos and storm updates. Please continue to add them in the comments section below or by emailing scarsdalecomments@gmail.com.
Greenburgh Storm Update from Con Edison
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Paul Feiner forwarded the following report from Con Edison on power outages in Greenburgh: More than 7,300 Greenburgh homes have been affected by the storm and nearly 6,900 remain without service. Restoration is slow moving and concentrated on blocked roadways, downed wires and public safety issues. Con Edison expects to make significant strides in restoring service as we supplement our workforce with crews from outside our region beginning tomorrow morning.
Con Edison expects restoration to last throughout the week. The company has been securing mutual aid from utilities in several states, including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Massachusetts.
Con Edison has approximately 210 restoration crews now in the field, in addition to other field support personnel clearing roads and trees. The number of restoration crews is expected to grow to 350 on Tuesday and 425 on Wednesday as more out-of-state crews arrive.
Con Edison has additional customer service representatives, electrical and construction crews, along with tree-clearing crews working around the clock to respond to customers and power outages that may occur.
Customers are urged to call Con Edison immediately to report any outages at 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633). Customers can also report power interruptions or service problems at www.conEd.com and on their cell phones and PDAs. When reporting an outage, customers should have their Con Edison account number available, if possible, and report whether their neighbors also have lost power. Customers who have already reported their outage need not call Con Edison again. They will be called by Con Edison when their estimated restoration time has been established.
In the event of severe outages, primary distribution feeders are restored first, with the highest priority given to lines that supply the most customers out of service. Next, the crews restore secondary facilities, such as transformers and secondary cables, again with highest priority given to lines supplying the most customers out of service. Individual services, lines serving a single home, will be restored as crews become available.
Con Edison offers the following tips to prepare for a storm:
If you see downed electrical wires, do not go near them. Treat all downed wires as if they are live. Never attempt to move or touch them with any object. Be mindful that downed wires can be hidden from view by tree limbs, leaves or water. Report all downed wires to Con Edison and your local police department immediately. If a power line falls on your car while you’re in it, stay inside the vehicle and wait for emergency personnel.
If your power goes out, turn off all lights and appliances to prevent overloaded circuits when power is restored. Leave at least one light switch in the on position to alert you when power has been restored.
Check to make sure your flashlights and any battery-operated radios or televisions are in working order. Use candles and oil lamps with care. Also, make sure you have a supply of extra batteries. Weather updates and news on restorations of electrical service can be heard on most local radio and television stations.
Avoid opening your freezer to see if food is still frozen. Every time you open the door, room-temperature air enters and speeds the thawing process. Most fully loaded freezers will keep food frozen for approximately 36 to 48 hours; half-full freezers will keep food frozen for approximately 24 hours.
The company is maintaining close contact with the New York City Office of Emergency Management and the Westchester County Department of Emergency Services to coordinate storm response as necessary.
Comprehensive Village Plan Approved
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The Scarsdale Board of Trustees met on Tuesday March 9th and at long last the Village Center Component of the Comprehensive Plan was approved. The plan has been in the works for two and a half years and many factions of the community provided input and contributed to the result.
Two Planning Boards, Village Planner Elizabeth Marrinan, the Conservation Advisory Council, The League of Women Voters, Scarsdale Friends of the Parks, the neighborhood associations, the TVCC plus shoppers, brokers, property owners, retailers and concerned citizens all provided input during the planning process.
The resulting plan closely examines three key opportunity sites; Spencer/Christie Place, Scarsdale Avenue and Freightway where development could occur. For each area the plan describes existing conditions, opportunities, planning options and recommendations.
The plan does not make zoning changes or provide specific plans for development. It is meant to give the village a framework to make planning decisions as they arise.
Before the voting took place, the Mayor, trustees and attendees were given the chance to comment on the plan and the process. Mayor Stevens thanked all involved for their hard work and long hours spent formulating a plan that addresses the concerns of the community. She reminded the public that the purpose of the plan was to provide guidance for future planning and provide trade-offs for improvements downtown while protecting the scale and character of the village.
Mr. Pullman, representing the Overhill Association thanked the Board for listening, respecting member views and for amending the plan to meet their concerns. The Board had made revisions to the plan in February and March 2010 to address Overhill resident's comments about permissible building heights on Scarsdale Avenue. He said, “Overhill residents are still concerned and will always be concerned” as their properties border the Village. Trustee Lindsay echoed the Mayor’s thanks to the community, saying that the plan “is a sound document because you all cared.”
Trustee Flisser was not as positive about the plan or the process. She commented that the plan “started with a flawed premise” and provided urban solutions for a suburban landscape. The initial survey was given to only 70 passengers on Metro North and was not reflective of the views of the community at large. She reminded the group that the original plan called for building over the train tracks and constructing housing where there were no services to support residents. The original planners neglected to maintain Scarsdale as a “village in a park.”
From there, the process improved as a second survey was done and caring residents spoke up. The plan grew to incorporate the sentiments of tree-lovers and homeowners and ideals for “green development.” She ended by encouraging residents to speak up and by assuring them that “the people they elected will listen.”
Trustee Dan Hochvert said that a great deal of thought had been put into the plan and that it should serve as a reminder for future boards that mass building is not desirable. He also felt that building height limitations should be noted in feet, not in the grade above sea level.
Ending the comments section, the Mayor said, “I do appreciate the conversation”. Trustee Lindsay read aloud the resolution to adopt the SEQRA findings, and the Resolution to adopt the Village Center Component of the Comprehensive Plan and both were approved unanimously.
In an earlier discussion of the Village Budget, the Mayor announced that she anticipated a 5.96% increase in the Village Budget for fiscal year 2010-2011, which would mean an average increase of $296 per household. She cited declining Village revenues and said that any further cuts to the bare bones budget would impact services.
Bob Harrison spoke about financially stressed families and the decrease in real estate values and called for a 4% increase in the budget. He asked for cuts to the library budget and the funds for road repairs suggesting we use the hot patch machine to temporarily fill potholes until the economy improves. The Mayor replied that the Village gets many complaints about potholes and that failure to repave the roads would impact safety.
In other news, the Mayor invited the community to attend a ceremony at Village Hall on March 29th at 2 PM to honor former Mayor Walter Handelman and his wife Judy who both gave years of service to the Village. The Handelman family will donate a sculpture called “Yearning” by Aris Demetrios in honor of their memory.
