Change Afoot at Village Hall
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- Written by: Joanne Wallenstein
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Big changes are coming to the management of Scarsdale Village. Village Manager Al Gatta who has served as Village Manager for 25 years is retiring as of June 1 and will be replaced by longtime Deputy Village Manager Steve Pappalardo.
A retirement party for Gatta will be held at Mamaroneck Beat Point Club at 900 Rushmore Avenue in Mamaroneck at 6:00 pm on Friday night May 29th. The evening includes a cocktail hour and a sit down dinner and the cost is $90 per person. RSVP to RSVP@scarsdale.com or by phone at (914)722-1100 no later than Friday May 15.
At the April 28 meeting of the Scarsdale Board of Trustees, Pappalardo was officially appointed as Village Manager. Due to his long tenure in Scarsdale and experience 
running the Village, Pappalardo was tapped for the top spot and a search was conducted for a new Deputy Village Manager. Steve has seen the Village through severe storms, managed large construction projects, spearheaded grants and been involved in all aspects of running Scarsdale. He has an undergraduate degree from Lehigh, a Masters in Public Administration from Pace and worked in Scarsdale since 1987 with a two year stint as Vilage Manager in Mt. Kisco. He has been the Deputy Village Manager in Scarsdale since 2003 and handled the budget, the building of the Popham Road Bridge, Public Safety Building and stormwater management projects. He was responsible for traffic safety, emergency planning, a hazard mitigation plan and contract negotiations, in addition to even more responsibilities.
After a search, Jon Mark announced that Robert Austin Cole has been selected for the job of Deputy Village Manager. He comes to town from Oak Park, Illinois where he as worked for 19 years and is currently the Assistant 
Village Manager. According to the Mayor, Cole has experience in budgeting, finance, capital improvement projects, grant writing, land use, planning and sustainability. He holds a B.S. and a Masters in Public Service Management from De Paul University and plans to be on the job here next month.
Former Yankee Mickey Rivers Throws the First Pitch At Scarsdale Little League Opening Day
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- Written by: Michael Heffner
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News 12 Sports Anchor Walt Fowler and All-Star NY Yankees Center Fielder Mickey Rivers greeted players, parents and friends at Scarsdale Little League's opening day ceremony on Saturday April 18th at Crossway Field. With over 800 registered players and 70 teams, little league baseball is the village's largest independent sports organization. Scarsdale's Cub Pack 440 marched in with their color guard to raise the American flag and helped lead the recitation of the pledge of allegiance. SLL President Larry Medvinsky, Mayor Jon Mark and Scarsdale High School Varsity Coach Doc Scholl made remarks to the gathered crowd of players, coaches and parents. Scarsdale Little League continued the tradition of having a "legend" throw out the first pitch. All-Star NY Yankee center fielder Mickey Rivers gave the players some words of inspiration and made the throw to last year's Michael Ludwig Award winning player, Matt Daniel.
In other baseball news, The Scarsdale Raiders baseball team got a little luck from 
their Little League bat boys this past Tuesday (April 21). Junior League player James Heffner and Atlantic League player Matt Daniel were winners in the annual Scarsdale Baseball Club's raffle that gave them the chance to: participate in pre-game activities, act as bat boy for the entire game, get exposure to Coach Doc Scholl and his players and – most importantly – see Raider baseball at the next level. As an added bonus; the boys got to see Scarsdale come away with a solid 13-to-5 win over the visiting Mount Vernon Knights.
Firefighter Dan Brown Promoted to Captain
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Representatives from the Scarsdale Fire Department, Police Force, Village Managers Office, elected officials, family and friends all gathered at the Public Safety Building in Scarsdale on Friday April 10 to honor Firefighter Dan Brown who was promoted to Captain at a ceremony led by Fire Chief Thomas Cain.
The event was particularly moving because Dan Brown's father Kevin was also a firefighter in Scarsdale who retired in 2008 after 30 years on the job. He travelled to Scarsdale from South Carolina with his wife Kathy to attend the proceedings.
Cain explained that Brown had passed a lengthy civil service exam and an extensive interview and was selected out of three candidates for the position. Cain said, "Dan rose to the top of the group" and added that he was "not afraid to think, act and make decisions." He cited words from Brown's recommendation letters which said he was "well respected, trustworthy, a hard worker, always smiling and a strong leader." Cain welcomed Brown to the management team.
Newly minted Mayor Jon Mark said it takes "dedication, hard work and perseverance" to be a firefighter and called on Brown to "be brave."
Brown was officially promoted by Chief Cain, Village Manager Al Gatta, Trustee Matthew Callaghan and Mayor Jon Mark – and salutes the chief in the photos shown here.
Swatting Incident Causes Emergency Response in Eastchester
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A man who claimed that he had stabbed his girlfriend and tied up her entire family in Eastchester, caused the mobilization of a major emergency response on Saturday April 4th at 5:16 pm. Police received the man's call from a private number and could not ascertain whether it originated from the home at 1 Joyce Road in Eastchester. Since the caller said he had a gun and was holding the family hostage, police set up a perimeter around the house and blocked off surrounding streets.
Eastchester Police called in for assistance from:
- Eastchester Command and Detective Division
- Westchester, Tuckahoe, Bronxville and Pelham Emergency Response Units
- Westchester County Department of Public Safety Special Operation, SWAT, Aviation and K-9
- New Rochelle Tactical Unit
- Greenburgh SWAT and Hostage Negotiation
SWAT team members, wearing bulletproof vests and helmets were on hand and a helicopter landed at a nearby school.
However, shortly thereafter, Eastchester police were able to reach the homeowners who denied making the call. Members of the SWAT team then entered the house with support from an armored vehicle provided by Westchester County. They determined that the call was a hoax or an incident of "swatting."
Eastchester Detectives are conducting a "vigorous" investigation of the origin of the call and identity of the caller, who police say will be "prosecuted to the full extent of the law."
Discussing the event, Eastchester Police Chief Timothy Bonci said, "It is unfortunate that these incidents take place, and really waste the resources of all the jurisdictions that responded. I can only speculate what would motivate someone to do this."
He added, "The response from all the assisting agencies was overwhelming and it was reassuring to know that had the incident been an actual incident, due to the coordinated efforts of all involved, we were very prepared to respond appropriately."
Jewish Film Festival Starts on April 8 at Jacob Burns Film Center
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Tickets are now on sale for The Westchester Jewish Film Festival at The Jacob Burns Film Center which will run from April 8th - 30th and feature an extraordinary crop of moving, humorous and enlightening films from all over the world, plus discussions, special guests, receptions and live music. You'll find the full listing at Westchester Jewish Film Festival.
Here are recommendations for films you may like to see and programs to attend from Karen Goodman, a former Scarsdale resident who selected the movies and programs for the festival.
She found a group of films at this year's Toronto International Film Festival including several historical dramas: Phoenix, the opening night selection which is a stunning post-war drama about mistaken identity from Germany, and the unexpected break out hit from the Netherlands Secrets of War, along with Israeli films including the riveting courtroom drama Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem with Ronit Elkabetz, and the courageous dark comedy The Farewell Party. Another one of her personal favorites is Felix & Meira, a tender drama about an unhappy Hasidic wife featuring young actress from last year's hit Fill The Void.
The festival includes some documentaries that highlight the broad history and legacy of Jews and the entertainment industry, some with live musical performances: Forbidden Films, the chilling chronicle of film making under the Nazi regime, The Go-Go Boys: The Inside Story of Cannon Films, which chronicles the rise and fall of moguls Menachem Golan and Yoram Globus, Theodore Bikel: In The Shoes of Sholem Alechem which will be presented with a live concert from The Aaron Alexander Klezmer Trio, and finally The Outrageous Sophie Tucker, a delightful look back at the iconic stage and screen star dubbed 'Last of the Red Hot Mamas' for which they have arranged to welcome the cabaret performer and renowned impressionist Christine Pedi to share Tucker's musical legacy and milieu.
Scarsdale residents may be interested in seeing 112 Weddings which will include a session with WRT's Rabbi Blake who is in the film. The new Ben's Deli on Central Avenue in Scarsdale will sponsor a Community Night reception with the film Deli Man.
Also on the program are Lloyd Handwerker with his unique documentary Famous Nathan about his grandfather's legendary Coney Island empire, and veteran actor Mark Blum who gives a spot-on performance in the quintessentially New York comedy Blumenthal. And finally, the iconic Israeli singer/songwriter David Broza will be speaking and performing on closing night after East Jerusalem/ West Jerusalem which highlights his music and peace initiatives in the Middle East.
All of the events and many films sell out quickly, so reserve your tickets today.
