Eastchester REVIEW THE
May 12, 2017 | Vol. 5, Number 19 | www.eastchesterreview.com
EFD files for contempt of court against volunteers By COREY STOCKTON Staff Writer
FIGHT ANOTHER DAY
Ken Jenkins, left, and George Latimer pause for a moment during the Westchester County Democratic Committee Convention on May 10. The two candidates are vying for the party’s nomination for county executive. For story, see page 9. Photo/Jen Parente
Standard delays Playland payment again By JAMES PERO Staff Writer With an appeal of a lawsuit over slated renovations at Playland Park looming large, new park manager Standard Amusements says it will again wait to issue its first contractual payment to Westchester County until litigation with the city of Rye is resolved. The extension, which was announced by Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino’s administration last week, will prolong the transfer of a $750,000 payment from Standard—half of a contractual $1.5 million payment initially due in June—until a “final determination is made with regards to litigation with the city of Rye.” Last month a lawsuit filed by the city, which sought to declare itself lead agency on environmental review of capital projects at the park, was thrown out by a judge, and Rye has since filed a notice of
appeal—the precursor to an official appeal—of the court’s decision. The city will have approximately five months to finalize an official appeal. Another $750,000 payment, according to a statement from the Astorino administration, will be made to the county following a Board of Legislators decision on $10 million in improvements for Playland’s pool, which has remained in limbo since last year. A contractual deadline on the pool’s fate is Dec. 31. But this week, tensions over Playland’s pool escalated after representatives from Standard floated a plan to build a removable deck that would support a café or restaurant area over the rehabbed pool site; an option that drew concern from Democrats. “I don’t think anyone would have a problem with a more of a passive use,” said Legislator Catherine Parker, a Rye Democrat, of Playland’s pool location. “Unfortu-
nately, something like a coffee shop or restaurant would create a lot of noise and trash.” In addition to Parker, Rye elected officials have also spoken out against the idea of adding a dining space, citing the potential to exacerbate noise and traffic conditions for abutting Rye neighborhoods. Last year, the Board of Legislators voted to include $10 million in a 2017 list of capital projects that would go toward renovating an ailing Playland Pool. Playland pool, according to a 2007 report from the county’s parks department was, at one point, leaking as much as 35,000 gallons of water per day. Though both Standard and the administration had pushed for the complete removal of Playland’s pool last year, backlash from lawmakers and county residents, of which nearly 2,000 signed a petition PLAYLAND continued on page 8
More than a month after a New York state Supreme Court ruling ordered the volunteer organizations of the Eastchester Fire District to immediately turnover documents to the district, the volunteers have continued to withhold those records. Now, the Board of Fire Commissioners has filed a contempt of court motion urging the court to penalize the volunteers for not adhering to the court order. That motion was filed in late April. “The volunteers were issued a court order to turn over their documents that they haven’t been turning over for the last year,” said Dennis Winter, chairman of the Board of Fire Commissioners. “They have not responded to that order.” The district sued the volunteers in March 2016, alleging that the Firemen’s Benevolent Association, FBA, and the Volunteer Officers Association, VOA, had not properly responded to requests made through the state Freedom of Information Law, FOIL, which allows the public to request access to records held by any government agency within the state. In March of this year, the court ruled in favor of the district, ordering the volunteers to overturn several years’ worth of records, including bank statements, bills and expenditures, credit card statements, scholarship letters, investment statements, meeting transcripts and personnel information. But the volunteers have not released any of those documents as of press time, according to the fire district and an attorney representing the volunteers. The volunteers are waiting for the court to rule on an appeal motion the volunteers made in April before they plan on releasing those records, according to Steven Blau,
the volunteers’ attorney. But, as of press time, the volunteers have only filed a notice of an appeal, a precursor to an actual appeal of the court decision. In the meantime, the volunteers have asked the courts to allow them to protect their documents until an appeal is heard. “We made a motion in the appellate division to get a temporary restraining order preventing the fire district from getting the records pending the determination of the appeal,” Blau said, adding that the volunteers would follow court orders if an appeal is denied. Blau has continued to argue that the VOA and the FBA are not government agencies, and therefore should not be subject to the state’s transparency laws. But district officials argued that the court’s order was clear and decisive in its initial ruling. Acting Justice Helen Blackwood, who presided over the case, ruled that both volunteer organizations were obligated by FOIL as they perform governmental functions and act as an agent of the fire district. “In the case at [hand], the respondents have subverted the entire FOIL process since the filing of the very first FOIL request,” Blackwood wrote in her decision. “Not only did they fail to respond to the request within the statutory time, but they failed to respond at all and had no reasonable basis for denying access.” As part of its decision, the court ordered the volunteers to cover the district’s legal expenses for the case. That would apply to any expenses incurred during the appeal process or for a contempt hearing, unless the decision is overturned by the appellate court. “Basically, they’re doubling down with house money,” said Fire District Commissioner Steven Baker. CONTACT: corey@hometwn.com
INSIDE Tuckahoe brewery competes for best craft beer Story on page 6.