RyeCity REVIEW THE
January 6, 2017 | Vol. 5, Number 1 | www.ryecityreview.com
Rye Historical Society opposes milestone work
Center of attention Charlie Nagle takes the ball
to the hoop against Spring Valley at the Westchester County Center on Dec. 29. Nagle scored 24 points in a losing effort, but the Garnets did also come away from the County Center with a win over winter break. For more, see page 15. Photo/Mike Smith
County meets housing deadline; still must submit AI By COREY STOCKTON Staff Writer Four days before a courtimposed deadline, Westchester County has met and exceeded the core obligations of its 2009 settlement with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD,
county officials said. During a Dec. 27 press conference, Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, a Republican, announced that the county had financed and arranged building permits for more than 750 affordable housing units in its 31 of its predominately Caucasian communities,
surpassing a benchmark set in a 2009 settlement with HUD. Astorino said that the county has financing and permits in place for 790 units, with additional provisions in place to build at least 100 more units in 2017. In 2006, the Anti-Discrimination Center of Metro New York, ADC, sued Westchester
for collecting annual federal block grant money to promote fair housing, and not doing enough to respond to housing needs in its communities. According to the 2010 census, the county population is 15 percent African-American HOUSING continued on page 9
By FRANCO FINO Staff Writer While the city has mulled a committee proposal to relocate one of its Benjamin Franklin mile markers, the City Council will again postpone a decision until the end of the month, according to the city manager. According to City Manager Marcus Serrano, with the Rye Historical Society’s recent opposition to the city Landmarks Advisory Committee plan, it is currently unclear when the City Council will make a determination about the project. “The City Council is weighing its options, and the landmarks committee is now gathering more information,” he said. During the last City Council meeting of 2016, the historical society opposed the proposal to relocate and restore one of Rye’s three milestones, known as the 25th, which is currently embedded in a stone wall running along Boston Post Road, to a location on Old Post Road near the Osborn retirement community property; that space is believed to be the mile marker’s first location. In November, the landmarks committee proposed to mount the milestone in protective glass near the retirement property as a way to prevent further deterioration and weather damage. “We recognize the work of the landmarks committee to bring
attention to the [milestones], but our position is that the mile marker should stay where it is,” said Jennifer Plick, the acting director of the Rye Historical Society. “For preservation efforts, it’s probably best that it stays in its current location.” According to Plick, while it is often believed the city of Rye is the only municipality in Westchester County to still possess a full set of mile markers that are either located near or at their original designated sites, their original locations are still somewhat uncertain. According to Mayor Joe Sack, a Republican, there were two sets of mile markers. He said the first set was placed in the 1700s by Benjamin Franklin, who was the deputy postmaster general at the time; Franklin constructed 230 milestones at 1-mile intervals along Boston Post Road for regulating postal rates and aiding mail delivery between New York City and Boston. Further, Sack said one of the original markers from that set was probably located somewhere in the vicinity of what is now called the Old Post Road. As a result of an alteration of the route between New York City and Boston in the early 1800s to make the traverse shorter and several other changes since the creation of the milestones, a second set was placed by the MILESTONE continued on page 8