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Written by Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 26 November 2019

Created: 26 November 2019

Last Updated: 26 November 2019

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Due to an increase in incidents of telephone scams, where the caller attempts to fraudulently obtain money from victims using several different tactics, the Scarsdale Police Department has issued the following alerts to prevent people from becoming
victimized.

In particular, police warn residents of the following common scams:

First, the “overdue utility bill” scam: In this scam, the caller claims to be a representative of a utility company and states that one’s bill is overdue. The scammer then requires that a money order be sent or that a Green Dot Money Card
or a Money Card be purchased and the card number provided to caller.

Second, the “IRS tax warrant” scam: In this scam, the caller claims to be an agent or police officer from the Internal Revenue Service, claiming to call about a past due tax balance that is owed. The caller then tells the victim that unless the debt is paid immediately, a team will be sent to the victim’s house to immediately arrest the victim. In order to prevent the alleged impending arrest, the scammer instructs the victim to pay the alleged “tax debt” with a Western Union MoneyGram, a Green Dot
Card Money Card or other such money card. Scams can be reported to the IRS here: 

Third, the “warrant of arrest” scam: In this scam, the caller claims to be a police officer or a warrant officer from Social Security Administration, Westchester County or New York State Police, claiming to have a warrant for the victim’s arrest. The scammer claims that unless a fine is immediately paid, police will be sent to the victim’s house to arrest the victim. The scammer then demands that the fine be paid using money orders, Apple Gift Cards or Green Dot Card Money Cards.

According to police, the public should be aware that all of the above telephone scams have been occurring frequently, and that scammers are very good at frightening victims into compliance. According to detectives, no government agency or official organization will ever ask a person to pay a fine using money orders, Apple Gift cards, a Western Union Money Gram or a Green Dot Money Card. Police advise that anyone receiving such calls should immediately instruct the caller that police are being notified and hang up.

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Written by Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 03 December 2019

Created: 03 December 2019

Last Updated: 04 December 2019

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To the Editor: The Village Board of Trustees is pleased to invite residents, merchants, and others to a community meeting about the proposed redevelopment of the Freightway parking garage site on Wednesday, December 11th at 7 pm at Rutherford Hall in Village Hall.

The idea for a potential project on this site has been discussed for decades. The recent interest has been rooted in two widespread trends: (i) aging infrastructure and (ii) weakening community retail hubs.

First, the Village owns the Freightway site and, based on an engineering study of the parking structure, the community is facing estimated costs of approximately $2.5 million over the coming three years to repair, maintain and improve the nearly 50 year-old structure. Those repairs are expected to carry the structure for the next 8-10 years, at which time more significant expenditures are expected to be required.

Second, retail trends have not been kind to local merchants as e-commerce giants make it harder and harder for brick and mortar retail to survive. This is occurring throughout the country and unfortunately, our Village Center is not immune.

The fact that the Village owns the Freightway site, well-located by the train station, is a potential asset for Scarsdale. Any development would be expected to upgrade our primary commuter parking facility and enhance our Village Center overall. Transit-oriented developments (TODs) have been used and are being examined by some of our neighbors and countless communities throughout the country to enhance vibrancy, livability, walkability, and sustainability near public transportation hubs. This community discussion of the potential redevelopment of the Freightway site is an important opportunity to defray significant taxpayer costs while upgrading our primary commuter parking facility and enhancing our Village Center.

The Board of Trustees has selected AvalonBay Communities and a team led by LCOR and East End Capital as the two finalist development teams in the competition to be named the preferred developer of the Freightway site. Both development teams are highly qualified, and we are impressed with each team’s commitment to this lengthy process.

The Board remains committed to seeking extensive community input, and we encourage residents and merchants to attend this community meeting. It will be an opportunity for the community to: (i) hear from both finalist teams, (ii) see preliminary design concepts for the project, and (iii) comment on your priorities and preferences for the development plans.

I am proud to be working with a talented and dedicated Board of Trustees who have rolled up their sleeves and committed significant time to this project. We have rigorous criteria for selection that includes the developer’s track record, financial wherewithal, development programming, and the demonstrated ability to successfully partner with municipal governments. We take this responsibility and opportunity very seriously.

The Board remains focused on key issues that matter to the community, such as potential impacts on parking, schools, and traffic, as well as the effect on the Village budget – revenues and expenses. These matters have been discussed at every step and will now take an even more prominent role in our discussions. The Board is also considering the ramifications of the development program on open space and other public amenities, connectivity between the east and west sides of our Village Center, and the context of the development within our Village Center – one of the prize gems of our Village.

Scarsdale, we want to hear from you. We are keeping the public comment period open for 45 days following the community meeting. If you are not able to attend the meeting on December 11th, we encourage you to watch the video on TV or online as well as visit Village Hall, where poster boards will be available for viewing throughout this period. There will be comment cards available at Village Hall and residents may also comment via email – at freightway@scarsdale.com – or through a dedicated link found on the Village website – www.scarsdale.com. During this public comment period, the Village will continue its due diligence on the two finalists with visits to comparable properties they have developed, as well as meeting with the two finalists to probe further on financial components of the development plan, among other things.

There is still much work to do to create a reimagined Freightway site, and there will be many more opportunities for the public to give feedback on the development plan as it evolves over the coming year and beyond. Your input has been instrumental to get us to where we are, and we will need your voices to continue to help guide us into the future. We hope you can join us on Wednesday, December 11th.

Sincerely,

Marc Samwick
Mayor
December 2, 2019

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Written by David Stafford

Published: 20 November 2019

Created: 20 November 2019

Last Updated: 20 November 2019

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This letter was sent to Scarsdale10583 by Scarsdale resident David Stafford.
I am a political moderate who leans right on most economic and geopolitical issues, and left on the majority of social ones. I am distraught about the Trump Presidency due to the current inhabitant’s defilement of his office through his constant prevarications, narcissism and intemperance. I have, until recently, been hoping that Joe Biden would emerge as the Democratic Presidential nominee. “Uncle Joe” is a moderate and a fundamentally decent guy who would return dignity and reason to the White House. The other two moderate candidates in the Democratic Presidential field, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar, are impressive and perhaps someday their time will come, but I do not consider either one electable in 2020.

Unfortunately, I have come to believe that we moderates who fall into the category of ABT (Anyone But Trump) have a problem. Biden has faltered during the debates and his apparent inability to finish a sentence coherently can be painful to watch. His financial support is weakening and Elizabeth Warren has emerged as the current favorite to win the Democratic nomination. This leads to a question. Does ABT mean that any sentient human being who opposes Trump in 2020 is worthy of support? The politically moderate New York Times columnist David Brooks answered this question in the affirmative in a column last month, in which he stated that given a choice between Warren and Trump for President, he would vote for Warren. I cannot go that far. Warren is by all accounts brilliant and a good and well-meaning politician. But her policy proposals are too extreme for me. Free Medicare for all would eliminate private health insurance and cost countless trillions of dollars. Free college and forgiveness of student debt would also be prohibitively expensive, as would the wild-eyed Green New Deal which she supports. Her proposed wealth tax is probably unconstitutional and is unlikely to generate anywhere near the kind of revenue that she imagines. Her policies would, in my view, fundamentally alter the US economy by vastly increasing the government’s role in peoples’ lives and undermining many of the incentives that help drive US economic growth.

A recent poll asked a sample of people intending to vote in the Democratic primary how they would react if Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, or Michael Bloomberg entered the race. 50% said they would vote for Obama, 27% said they would vote for Clinton, and 6% said they would vote for Bloomberg. This tells us that a meaningful number of Democrat primary voters aren’t content with the party’s current field of candidates and long for a dignified, moderate candidate – even one (Obama) who has made clear that she has no interest in being President. Hillary Clinton? I don’t think so. Bloomberg, who announced that he plans to enter the race last week, has clear flaws as a candidate. He’ll be 78 by Election Day 2020, which would make him the oldest first term President in US history; he supported “stop and frisk” as Mayor of NYC even though it was shown to be racially discriminatory in its application; he unsuccessfully proposed a city tax on soda as a means to combat obesity; he is less than a dynamic speaker or electric personality; and he’s rumored to have not promoted women on his staff sufficiently during his Mayoral administration.

Notwithstanding these issues, Bloomberg is a classic conservative when it comes to economics, with a strong belief in policies that incentivize capital formation and investment, which in turn leads to business expansion, job creation and wage growth. He believes in a strong US military and doesn’t ascribe to the populist, insular, autocrat-loving approach we’ve seen Trump pursue. Perhaps most important, he is smart, measured, dignified and ethical. And for us Scarsdale residents, it probably wouldn’t be too long after inauguration day when President Bloomberg takes steps to unwind Trump’s punitive and unfair SALT deduction limitation, which adversely affects many of us.

In sum, my fear is that a far left Democratic candidate such as Warren or Bernie Sanders will ensure Trump’s re-election. The US needs two viable parties competing for many of the same voters to make our system of checks and balances a governing reality. These days, an electable Presidential candidate must not be perceived as hostile to free speech, religion and the everyday concerns of working- and middle-class citizens as most voters in “fly over country” perceive the left wing of the Democratic Party. Bloomberg checks the boxes in this regard as well.

Would it be easy for a Jewish, billionaire plutocrat to win over undecided, moderate voters across the United States? No. But Bloomberg may be the best option for us moderates. Plus we can count on our current President to help with his sophomoric Twitter tantrums, self-aggrandizement, self-dealing and unpresidential behavior.

If there’s a better moderate Presidential candidate than Mike Bloomberg who can win the Democratic Presidential nomination, then bring him or her on. In the meantime, I’ll be throwing my support to Mayor Mike for President.

David Stafford