RyeCity REVIEW THE
September 22, 2017 | Vol. 5, Number 38 | www.ryecityreview.com
City approves Corcoran’s plan to add career firefighters By FRANCO FINO Staff Writer
Bounce back Sophomore quarterback Declan Lavelle avoids a sack during the Garnets’ Sept. 16 game against Eastchester. Lavelle threw for 118 yards and three touchdowns in Rye’s 35-7 win. For story, see page 15. Photo/Mike Smith
Port Chester mayor eyeing vacant Thruway Authority parcel By FRANCO FINO Staff Writer The village of Port Chester is interested in entering into a shared-use agreement with the city of Rye for the state property along Boston Post Road, and has sent a letter to Gov. Andrew Cuomo urging him to disallow the Rye Country Day School to buy the property. Last month, Port Chester Mayor Richard “Fritz” Falanka, a Republican, issued a letter to Cuomo, a Democrat, asking him to veto a bill put forth by state Assemblyman Steve Otis, a Rye Democrat, and state Sen. Michael
Ranzenhofer, a Republican from Erie County, in July that would allow the private school to purchase the New York State Thruway Authority land for construction of a playing field, track and field house. The vacant 4.7-acre land parcel sits in Rye, parallel to the school and along the Port Chester border. “The village is very active in inter-municipal cooperation efforts with its neighboring municipalities, whether it [is] in the area of fire protection, emergency services, and public works or library facilities,” Falanka’s letter reads. “Use of the site, as proposed in the referenced bill, would deny
Port Chester and its neighbors the opportunity to continue and deepen their cooperative efforts.” As of press time, the Rye Country Day School, RCDS, is awaiting Cuomo’s signature of the bill in order to begin negotiations with the state Thruway Authority to purchase the property. The bill was approved by the state Legislature in June. However, the school’s purchase could now be in jeopardy if the bill is vetoed by the governor, leading Democrats on the Rye City Council to point the finger at Mayor Joe Sack, a Republican, for allegedly engaging in private conversations with Port Chester
officials about jointly purchasing the Thruway Authority property. “It is clear from the [letter] that Joe Sack unilaterally made a decision to bring Port Chester into a conversation about the property and did so without consulting the rest of the council,” said Councilwoman Danielle Tagger-Epstein, a Democrat, who believes that Sack persuaded Falanka to write the letter. “That goes against our City Charter and his role as mayor.” In an email sent to both City Manager Marcus Serrano and Assistant City Manager Eleanor THRUWAY continued on page 9
After being tagged the department that was “staffed for failure” years ago by former City Manager Frank Culross, the Rye Fire Department will send three individuals to the academy next month as part of a plan to add more professional firefighters. Approved by the Rye City Council on Sept. 13, the plan put forward by Public Safety Commissioner Michael Corcoran will change the organizational structure of the department from the top down with the establishment of a career deputy chief position, the creation of three more professional lieutenant positions and the addition of three more professional firefighters. “I’m very pleased the council supported my recommendation to add more professional firefighters,” Corcoran told the Review. “They definitely saw the need for change and I’m very excited about what we’ll accomplish with this restructuring.” As part of the restructuring, the plan involves eliminating the department’s fire inspector position, which is currently filled by its only professional lieutenant, Kurt Tietjen, and dispersing inspector duties to the new lieutenants and deputy fire chief. The deputy fire chief will be in charge of overseeing the department’s administrative and investigative duties, and will serve as its human resources and health and safety enforcement component. According to current City
Manager Marcus Serrano, in total, the move to employ three more professional firefighters will amount to $419,518 against the city budget next year, not including any future salary increases, and will increase the tax rate by 1.78 percent. The Fire Department, which has four companies—one hook and ladder company, two engine and hose companies, and a fire police patrol unit—currently employs 18 professional firefighters and has roughly 30 active volunteers, 12 of whom are trained to fight indoor fires. It will cost the city approximately $93,000 to send the three individuals to the Career Fire Academy. Training for the prospective employees will begin on Oct. 2 and will end in January 2018. The approval of the plan comes after several concerns within the Fire Department related to staffing, operations and a dwindling volunteer base that spurred a review by Corcoran at the beginning of the year. In January, the state Public Employee Safety and Health Bureau, PESH, determined the department was in violation of 19 serious procedural policy and operational standards, some of which were prompted by former fire Chief Mike Billington’s lack of training. Billington left the department earlier this year, and it has been in the command of Chief David Larr, who is also currently not qualified to hold the position. FIREFIGHTERS continued on page 8
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