WHY I AM VOTING FOR VOICE OF CROTON IN NOVEMBER
After devoting a great deal of thought to the upcoming Village elections, I have concluded that it is imperative that we elect Voice of Croton candidates Gary Eisinger, Nigel Ravelo, and Stacey Nachtaler on November 4. I know most of the members of the current Democratic Village Board personally, and they are not bad people. But they have made a lot of bad decisions.
1. When any individual or group has been in power, unopposed, for a long time, they tend to lose touch with their constituents. They develop a sense of entitlement. They begin to believe their own propaganda and start to assume that only they have all of the answers, and no one else’s opinion matters. If for no other reason than this, it’s time for a change in Village government and we must give Voice of Croton an opportunity to govern.
2. In the same vein, this Board does not care in the least what you think. It has its own agenda which it follows religiously, regardless of competing opinions (or common sense) and often appears to be simply burnishing its “progressive” credentials. It essentially ignores any comments from its constituents that do not conform to the “party line.” As the line from My Fair Lady states, “she listens very nicely, then goes out and does precisely what she wants.” A perfect description of our Democratic Village Board. Voice of Croton will actually listen to you and adopt any beneficial ideas you may have.
3. Housing – This Board has approved numerous housing projects for the Village without any consideration of their collective impact on traffic, parking, our quality of life, etc. Their main consideration appears to be currying favor with Albany. If there is anyone who does not believe that the owners of the tire warehouse will not be back with another, scaled down, proposal, which will be rapidly approved by the Board, I’ve got a bridge I’d like to sell you. Voice of Croton will implement a rational program for expanding housing in Croton.
4. Lot A – This development is a perfect example of this Board’s rush to urbanization. One hundred units were approved with only 104 parking spaces (far, far too few), no green spaces, no community facilities, no children’s playgrounds, only the noise and pollution from the adjacent railroad yards. A competing proposal, for significantly fewer units, including many community amenities, better parking, etc. was rejected. But this proposal was kept secret until a decision had already been made. Your opinion didn’t matter at all. Voice of Croton will be totally transparent in every respect.
5. Affordable Housing – This Board told us that we need affordable housing for Croton seniors who are downsizing, for our young people who wish to stay in Croton, for our Croton Village employees and firefighters, etc. All completely valid points. What they refused to tell us was that, since affordable housing must be subsidied by the State (or Feds, as well as by the Village), that access to those units is open via lottery to everyone in the state and we cannot reserve any of them for local residents. Of the 30+ units in Maple Commons, only one, I believe, went to a Croton resident. Voice of Croton will always tell you the whole truth.
6. Gouveia – Gouveia, an old Kitchawank word meaning, “the place where nobody goes.” Anyone who has lived in the Village for a decade or more realizes that acceptance of the Gouveia property was a gross mistake and was predicated on a completely phony economic analysis promulagated by the then-Democratic Village Board. And for the past dozen years, the Board has been vainly trying to figure out what to do with it. The current multi-million dollar (where will the money come from?) plan is ridiculous. They want a “community center” without having detailed specifically what will be done there on a week-to-week basis. They have not held discussions about its impact on the current venues for performances and exhibitions (the library, the high school, many houses of worship, and others). Are they simply to be discarded? And moving the Recreation Department there will create an enormous inconvenience for both the Rec Department staff and all of our residents who deal with them. And have they even considered the annual operating costs for heating, cooling, cleaning, maintenance, etc. of the renovated building? And the $220,000+ already spent for roads and parking areas (they originally estimated only $14,000) will be completely thrown away. And what ever happened to the trail network that they promised would be constructed in the southern portion of the property? Voice of Croton will take a reasonable, economic approach to Gouveia (which we are, unfortunately, stuck with).
7. Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) – While there are many positive things that can be said regarding Sustainable Westchester’s CCA program, it has not been kind to Croton’s ratepayers. For many, many months, the amount we pay for electricity to the CCA is far, far above the rate charged by Con Edison. This Board was informed of this discrepancy and urged to inform its constituents of the situation so they could decide for themselves whether or not to continue in the program. The Board chose to keep Croton rate payers in the dark and decided to say nothing. They even executed a contract for a new CCA before they even knew what the price for electricity would be. Voice of Croton will always keep you completely and honestly informed and make timely, informed decisions on new contracts.
8. The Clock – The Board approved spending $15-16,000 for a “Gateway” Clock which was installed in a place where almost no one would ever see it. It might be appropriate for the middle of the Village business district, but that would mean doing away with the iconic “Dummy” light. It can even be considered a traffic hazard as any motorists (they are about the only ones who will ever see it) who glance at it to check the time will be distracted and could cause an accident. Voice of Croton will not waste any funds on such frivolous projects.
9. Lenny Amicola – And need we even raise the question of the fiasco of this Board’s years-long vendetta against Lenny Amicola and the flag he has chosen to fly on his own property? Of course the Board’s actions are political, and a mindless waste of Village time and money, which brought ridicule and derision upon our community. Similarly, this Board’s adoption of a highly controversial definition of antisemitism. Rather than determine how to actually fight discrimination in Croton, the Board quibbles over definitions and makes the situation worse. Voice of Croton will never engage in foolish, self-defeating issues.
I could go on and on. The list is extensive. To those of you still reading, I apologize for the length of this letter, but the upcoming election is critical to the long-term health of our Village.
But the actions we must take are clear. On November 4, vote Voice of Croton: Gary Eisinger for Mayor and Nigel Ravelo and Stacey Nachtaler for Trustee. Our future is in your hands.
Sincerely,
Joel E. Gingold
After devoting a great deal of thought to the upcoming Village elections, I have concluded that it is imperative that we elect Voice of Croton candidates Gary Eisinger, Nigel Ravelo, and Stacey Nachtaler on November 4. I know most of the members of the current Democratic Village Board personally, and they are not bad people. But they have made a lot of bad decisions.
1. When any individual or group has been in power, unopposed, for a long time, they tend to lose touch with their constituents. They develop a sense of entitlement. They begin to believe their own propaganda and start to assume that only they have all of the answers, and no one else’s opinion matters. If for no other reason than this, it’s time for a change in Village government and we must give Voice of Croton an opportunity to govern.
2. In the same vein, this Board does not care in the least what you think. It has its own agenda which it follows religiously, regardless of competing opinions (or common sense) and often appears to be simply burnishing its “progressive” credentials. It essentially ignores any comments from its constituents that do not conform to the “party line.” As the line from My Fair Lady states, “she listens very nicely, then goes out and does precisely what she wants.” A perfect description of our Democratic Village Board. Voice of Croton will actually listen to you and adopt any beneficial ideas you may have.
3. Housing – This Board has approved numerous housing projects for the Village without any consideration of their collective impact on traffic, parking, our quality of life, etc. Their main consideration appears to be currying favor with Albany. If there is anyone who does not believe that the owners of the tire warehouse will not be back with another, scaled down, proposal, which will be rapidly approved by the Board, I’ve got a bridge I’d like to sell you. Voice of Croton will implement a rational program for expanding housing in Croton.
4. Lot A – This development is a perfect example of this Board’s rush to urbanization. One hundred units were approved with only 104 parking spaces (far, far too few), no green spaces, no community facilities, no children’s playgrounds, only the noise and pollution from the adjacent railroad yards. A competing proposal, for significantly fewer units, including many community amenities, better parking, etc. was rejected. But this proposal was kept secret until a decision had already been made. Your opinion didn’t matter at all. Voice of Croton will be totally transparent in every respect.
5. Affordable Housing – This Board told us that we need affordable housing for Croton seniors who are downsizing, for our young people who wish to stay in Croton, for our Croton Village employees and firefighters, etc. All completely valid points. What they refused to tell us was that, since affordable housing must be subsidied by the State (or Feds, as well as by the Village), that access to those units is open via lottery to everyone in the state and we cannot reserve any of them for local residents. Of the 30+ units in Maple Commons, only one, I believe, went to a Croton resident. Voice of Croton will always tell you the whole truth.
6. Gouveia – Gouveia, an old Kitchawank word meaning, “the place where nobody goes.” Anyone who has lived in the Village for a decade or more realizes that acceptance of the Gouveia property was a gross mistake and was predicated on a completely phony economic analysis promulagated by the then-Democratic Village Board. And for the past dozen years, the Board has been vainly trying to figure out what to do with it. The current multi-million dollar (where will the money come from?) plan is ridiculous. They want a “community center” without having detailed specifically what will be done there on a week-to-week basis. They have not held discussions about its impact on the current venues for performances and exhibitions (the library, the high school, many houses of worship, and others). Are they simply to be discarded? And moving the Recreation Department there will create an enormous inconvenience for both the Rec Department staff and all of our residents who deal with them. And have they even considered the annual operating costs for heating, cooling, cleaning, maintenance, etc. of the renovated building? And the $220,000+ already spent for roads and parking areas (they originally estimated only $14,000) will be completely thrown away. And what ever happened to the trail network that they promised would be constructed in the southern portion of the property? Voice of Croton will take a reasonable, economic approach to Gouveia (which we are, unfortunately, stuck with).
7. Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) – While there are many positive things that can be said regarding Sustainable Westchester’s CCA program, it has not been kind to Croton’s ratepayers. For many, many months, the amount we pay for electricity to the CCA is far, far above the rate charged by Con Edison. This Board was informed of this discrepancy and urged to inform its constituents of the situation so they could decide for themselves whether or not to continue in the program. The Board chose to keep Croton rate payers in the dark and decided to say nothing. They even executed a contract for a new CCA before they even knew what the price for electricity would be. Voice of Croton will always keep you completely and honestly informed and make timely, informed decisions on new contracts.
8. The Clock – The Board approved spending $15-16,000 for a “Gateway” Clock which was installed in a place where almost no one would ever see it. It might be appropriate for the middle of the Village business district, but that would mean doing away with the iconic “Dummy” light. It can even be considered a traffic hazard as any motorists (they are about the only ones who will ever see it) who glance at it to check the time will be distracted and could cause an accident. Voice of Croton will not waste any funds on such frivolous projects.
9. Lenny Amicola – And need we even raise the question of the fiasco of this Board’s years-long vendetta against Lenny Amicola and the flag he has chosen to fly on his own property? Of course the Board’s actions are political, and a mindless waste of Village time and money, which brought ridicule and derision upon our community. Similarly, this Board’s adoption of a highly controversial definition of antisemitism. Rather than determine how to actually fight discrimination in Croton, the Board quibbles over definitions and makes the situation worse. Voice of Croton will never engage in foolish, self-defeating issues.
I could go on and on. The list is extensive. To those of you still reading, I apologize for the length of this letter, but the upcoming election is critical to the long-term health of our Village.
But the actions we must take are clear. On November 4, vote Voice of Croton: Gary Eisinger for Mayor and Nigel Ravelo and Stacey Nachtaler for Trustee. Our future is in your hands.
Sincerely,
Joel E. Gingold
Thank you for sharing this.—Jess
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