HomeTown Happenings

New Year's Eve in Depot Square

2011-12-30T11:50:00.003-05:00

Tuckahoe's annual New Year's Eve celebration is happening again tomorrow night in Depot Square from 10:30 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.Attendees can bring in the New Year with the band T-Bone, who is scheduled to perform from 11 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.The village will count down to 2012 with heated tents, confetti, noisemakers, hats and two plasma screens to watch the ball drop in Times Square. The event is

Napolitano wins Fire Board election

2011-12-13T22:08:00.005-05:00

Jerry Napolitano won a seat to the Eastchester Fire Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, unseating one-term incumbent and former town Fire Chief Keith Fennelly. Napolitano cruised to victory in a landslide, winning in every town voting district in an election that saw the highest voter turnout since 2000. Napolitano, 46, works as a solutions architect in Motorola's government and enterprise

Vote Today for Eastchester Fire Commissioner

2011-12-13T14:16:00.008-05:00

Polls opened at 2 p.m. for today's the Eastchester Fire Board election and will remain open until 9 p.m.Incumbent Keith Fennelly is running against challengers David Levy and Jerry Napolitano for one Eastchester fire commissioner seat. Voters in Eastchester, Tuckahoe and Bronxville can participate in the election.Polling locations for today's election are as follows:*Eastchester Town Hall, 40

Polling Places in Eastchester

2011-11-08T02:24:00.007-05:00

The full list of polling locations for all of the Town of Eastchester's election districts appears below. (Note: several polling locations serve multiple election districts.) Polls are open today from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. The following was released by the City of New Rochelle regarding Hurricane Irene:The City of New Rochelle is actively preparing for Hurricane Irene, which is predicted to affect our area early Sunday morning. While the direct path and intensity of the storm is yet to be determined, heavy rains and high tides may result in significant flooding and high winds could knock out

Bronxville Police prepare for hurricane

2011-08-26T11:41:00.003-04:00

The following is a report from Bronxville Police Chief Christopher Satriale regarding Hurricane Irene:THE VILLAGE OF BRONXVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ARE PREPARING FOR A POTENTIAL HURRICANE SATURDAY NIGHT INTO SUNDAY. WE HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH OUR STATE, COUNTY AND LOCAL PARTNERS AS WE PREPARE FOR THIS POTENTIALLY

Tuckahoe's Summertime Fireworks Extravaganza

2011-07-22T12:11:00.004-04:00

Village of Tuckahoe Trustee Janette Hayes (R) sent us this description of tomorrow night's fireworks display in the village:"Summertime and fireworks go together as naturally as family, friends and fun, and folks will be enjoying them both at the Village of Tuckahoe's Summertime Fireworks Extravaganza. on Saturday, July 23rd at the Parkway Oval, located at Lake Avenue and Bronx

Rye Lions Club: Outdoor family movie night

2011-06-24T13:58:00.002-04:00

Join The Rye Lions Club for an outdoor movie night screeing of Gnomeo and Juliet.The event will take place today at Rye Recreation beginning at 8 p.m. Cost is $10 per family. Join the fun! Warm up band, The Hammerheads, will be playing from 6-8 p.. Refreshments will be available. This is an important fundraiser to support many different charitable contributions such as local scholarships,

Breaking news: Rye City Dems to enter fray

2011-06-15T17:32:00.011-04:00

The Rye Democrats have announced their field this week nominating incumbents Paula Gamache and Catherine Parker as well as School Board President Josh Nathan for Rye City Council.The trio accepted the nomination officially on Monday a story broken by The Sound Shore Review. "Strong financial background and experience are essential for protecting Rye in these challenging times," the candidates

Eastchester Democrats to run two for Town Board

2011-06-15T01:22:00.000-04:00

On Saturday, April 9, the Committee to Save the Bird Homestead will sponsor a work project on the Meeting House property for interested volunteers starting at 10 a.m. The group will work to clean up tidal debris, pick up fallen sticks, rake, and mow. Alison Beall, Curator Emeritus of Marshlands Conservancy, will supervise the project. Volunteers may try their hands at

Castracucco hopes to return to inpatient program

2011-04-05T12:00:00.002-04:00

In a brief hearing at Tuckahoe Village Court this morning, Clare Degnan, Legal Aid attorney for assault suspect Denise Castracucco, indicated that her client was seeking to return to an inpatient program she had been in at the time of her March 15 court date."We had run out of funding for her current inpatient program," said Degnan, indicating that her client wished to return to a similar program

Ecklond to appoint Giordano deputy mayor

2011-04-03T20:26:00.002-04:00

New Tuckahoe Mayor Steve Ecklond (R) told The Town Report Friday that he plans to appoint Trustee Tom Giordano (R) as his deputy mayor at Monday night's reorganization meeting."Being a former chairperson of the Zoning Board," Ecklond said of Giordano, "I felt that he demonstrated the skills to stand in at a meeting or at a presentation."Ecklond served as deputy mayor himself for the past four

Schubert's $5M suit against Rye City dismissed

2011-03-31T15:33:00.011-04:00

The Rye Sound Shore Review has just learned that Bob Schubert's lawsuit against the city has been thrown out of court.The suit filed by both Bob and Rita Schubert alleged First and Fourteenth Amendment violations as well as a claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress levied only against former City Manager Paul Shew. But the court found no evidence to substantiate the resident's

HOPE to honor 4 at gala, celebrating 25 years

2011-03-22T09:30:00.000-04:00

HOPE Community Services will celebrate its 25th anniversary as Westchester’s largest emergency food program on Thursday, March 31, by honoring four individuals who have served the program in extraordinary ways. The gala will be held at The Beckwith Pointe Club in New Rochelle. William O’Shaughnessy, president and CEO of Whitney Radio, will receive the Mary Lou McNaney

Rye's Schubert arrested

2011-03-20T14:02:00.025-04:00

In yet another sad turn to the never-ending saga, resident Bob Schubert - in his crusade to expose alleged city corruption - was arrested Friday at Rye City Hall by police.He was charged with harrassment and making life-threatening statements bringing the five-year-old dispute to an all-time low. Schubert, 88, was taken into custody, appeared in Rye City Court and was released to his attorney

Tuckahoe Election Results

2011-03-16T09:21:00.000-04:00

According to Tuckahoe Village Clerk Susan Ciamarra, the totals for yesterday's uncontested election in the village are as follows: Steven Ecklond (Mayor - one seat) - 162 votes Tom Giordano (Trustee - two seats) - 150 votes Greg Luisi (Trustee - two seats) - 149 votes The above vote totals include the handful of absentee ballots received by the village. No write-in votes were cast in the

Village Elections TODAY

2011-03-15T09:07:00.001-04:00

Polls are open today from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. for elections in the Village of Tuckahoe and Village of Bronxville today.In Tuckahoe, voters in districts 10, 13, 14, 32 and 33 will vote at the Tuckahoe Community Center at 71 Columbus Ave., while voters in districts 11 and 12 will vote at the Assumption Church Hall, at 100 Pleasant Ave.All Bronxville voters will cast their votes at Bronxville

Mayor's column

2011-03-09T12:37:00.002-05:00

HARRISON HAPPENINGS WITH MAYOR JOAN WALSH The weather, again The Weather Service tells us that on Sunday, March 5th, our area had about three (3) inches of rain. I am happy to report that we did not have any serious flood problems in our streets and I hope your homes were as fortunate. However, new weather reports warn us of more heavy rain on Thursday and

Mistrial declared in Pileggi trial

2011-03-05T15:22:00.001-05:00

The manslaughter trial of former Eastchester Police Officer James Pileggi ended in a mistrial late yesterday afternoon after five days of deliberation by jurors. Just after 4 p.m. yesterday, Friday, jurors sent out a note to Westchester County Court Judge Barbara Zambelli stating that they remained deadlocked on whether or not to find Pileggi guilty of second-degree manslaughter. The note

Mistrial in Pileggi case

2011-03-04T16:24:00.004-05:00

After four days of jury deliberations, the manslaughter trial of James Pileggi has been called a mistrial.Our reporter Charlie Johnson has been at the courts covering the testimony and trial and will update the latest news as it becomes available.

Pileggi trial: still no verdict after day 4 of deliberations

2011-03-03T21:47:00.000-05:00

Jurors in the trial of James Pileggi, the former Eastchester police officer who is charged with second degree manslaughter, have yet to reach a verdict after four days of deliberations. Pileggi is charged in the off-duty shooting death of his friend, Andre Everett, on Nov. 3, 2009, while sitting in his car in Everett's driveway, when Pileggi unintentionally shot Everett while showing off a laser

VOM mayor undergoing open heart surgery

2011-02-24T12:01:00.000-05:00

Village Manager Richard Slingerland announced this morning that Mamaroneck Village Mayor Norman Rosenblum is undergoing cardiac bypass surgery this morning at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital In New York City. Below is Slingerland's communication on the mayor's condition: Please be advised that Mayor Norman Rosenblum was admitted to White Plains Hospital on Tuesday, February 22, 2011 after a

Shop Rye coming soon!

2011-02-23T19:34:00.003-05:00

Mark your calendars.On Saturday, March 5 come and shop Rye! The Rye Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring $50 on the 5th, an event encouraging local residents to come out and support their downtown by committing to spend $50 on Saturday, March 5. By spurring on local shops and restaurants the downtown community will be able to ensure a diversity of business and continue to support local causes. Many

Harrison Meals on Wheels reacts to arrests

2011-02-23T18:28:00.002-05:00

Linda Callari, Acting President of Meals on Wheels of Harrison, released a statement today to reassure those to whom meals are being delivered that there will not be any interruption in service."Meals on Wheels is a non-profit, volunteer organization that delivers meals to a total of 25 senior citizens in all areas of Harrison. These meals are prepared at St. Vincent’s Hospital in

Tuckahoe death initially called a homicide by medical examiner; final report not complete

2011-02-21T15:57:00.003-05:00

A spokesman for the Westchester County Medical Examiner's Office said this afternoon that the office has listed homicide as the cause of the death of Dorothy Carraturo, 70, of Tuckahoe on Feb. 9., in its initial findings following the autopsy performed earlier this month. If homicide is found to be the cause of death in the final report, that report will not be released to the public. Tuckahoe

Citizens want input on redistricting

2011-02-17T12:27:00.005-05:00

The New Rochelle Branch of the NAACP is leading an effort to get a citizens committee to give input to the City Council on redistricting. The group met on Feb. 16 with New Rochelle firefighter Mark McLean representing the NAACP. McLean said that he hopes the process goes more smoothly than it did last time when the NAACP sued the city and won after District 3 was diluted. Former Mayor Leonard

Six arrested for stealing from Harrison Food Pantry

2011-02-17T10:00:00.011-05:00

Six town employees were arrested yesterday, accused of stealing from the Harrison Food Pantry, sources say. Food, intended to end up on the dinner tables of needy town families and senior citizens, instead was being taken out of the back door. For more visit our website link:

County Attorney Recuses Himself From CSEA Lawsuit

2011-02-14T17:22:00.002-05:00

According to Board of Legislators Chairman Ken Jenkins (D), paperwork sent in by County Attorney Robert Meehan on Feb. 4 requesting recusal from the CSEA lawsuit filed against the county has officially been accepted.The Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA) filed the suit last month in hopes of saving 38 Section 8 jobs after employees were laid off by County Executive Rob Astorino (R).

Tuckahoe woman dies after assault incident

2011-02-09T20:29:00.004-05:00

A Tuckahoe woman died today at Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville after allegedly being assaulted Tuesday by her daughter at their 68 Lake Avenue home, Tuckahoe Chief of Police John Costanzo said this evening.According to Costanzo, Dorothy Carraturo, 70, was assaulted by her 47-year-old daughter Denise Castracucco yesterday, Tuesday, around noon inside the two-family home on Lake Avenue in Tuckahoe,

Fitzpatrick executive draft budget - FULL RELEASE

2011-02-09T17:39:00.000-05:00

The following is the full text of Tuesday's press release from Tuckahoe Mayor John Fitzpatrick (D) regarding his executive draft budget: Tuckahoe, NY- Mayor John Fitzpatrick released his executive budget today and will send it for consideration to the Trustees of Village Board calling for a tax decrease of -1.68% to all Village properties. This budget calls for continued controls to spending,

Fitzpatrick releases executive draft budget for 2011-2012

2011-02-08T22:53:00.001-05:00

Tuckahoe Mayor John Fitzpatrick (D) released his executive draft budget for 2011-2012 on Tuesday, proposing a spending plan that would use new building revenues to facilitate a modest tax decrease.The $11,035,672 spending plan holds library fund spending constant at $500,000 from the 2010-2011 adopted budget but reflects increases in areas such as the mandated New York State Retirement System as

Rye City audits Rye Town over park deficit

2011-02-03T16:25:00.007-05:00

A $142,000 deficit has led Rye City's mayor to call for changes to Rye Town Park's operations; he has also asked city staff to review the town's financials.With an expectation for one of the best seasons in recent memory, city representatives were completely shocked to learn that the park's deficit grew to nearly $150,000 in the final months of the year. Rye City Mayor Douglas French (R), who

Burrows secures $550,000 for wetlands restoration

2011-02-02T15:08:00.002-05:00

County Legislator Gordon Burrows (R-Bronxville/Yonkers) has secured $550,000 through the Westchester County Board of Legislators (BOL) for a wetlands restoration at Scout Field in Bronxville. The money will be used for stream bank stabilization, improvements in water quality as well as some advances in storm water management. Of the money, $300,000 comes from Westchester County while $250,000

Anonymous group submits Playland proposal

2011-02-02T12:06:00.004-05:00

On Wednesday, a group known only as PlaylandWatch.org submitted the first official proposal to Westchester County to reinvent Rye Playland. The deadline for submissions in March 10.The group which consists of volunteers from Rye, New Rochelle, Katonah and Yonkers offers 50 ways to once again turn the county-owned amusement park profitable. Our newspaper gained access to the submission on Monday,

Dems will drop out of Tuckahoe race, chair says

2011-01-30T14:55:00.002-05:00

All three candidates nominated by the Tuckahoe Democratic Party at its caucus last Monday will be formally declining their nominations for the village's March 15 elections tomorrow, according to Tuckahoe Democratic Committee Chair Chris DiGiorgio.Sitting Tuckahoe Mayor John Fitzpatrick (D) had been seen as likely to decline his re-nomination for mayor, which was made at the caucus in his absence,

Tuckahoe Dems re-nominate Fitzpatrick for mayor

2011-01-24T23:11:00.005-05:00

The handful of people present at tonight's caucus of Tuckahoe Democrats matched their Republican counterparts by providing a full slate of nominees for the village's March elections.The small group of caucus-goers nominated incumbent Trustee Clare Gorman to run for her third term on the board and Tuckahoe Democratic Committee Chair Chris DiGiorgio to run for the second trustee seat that is up for

Bronxville NPC meeting scheduled for Jan. 25

2011-01-24T15:56:00.001-05:00

The Bronxville’s Committee for Non-Partisan Nomination and Election of School Trustees (NPC) has commenced the search for 2011 candidates for school trustee. An open meeting will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 25, at 7:30 p.m. in the Yeager Room of the Bronxville Public Library in connection with the NPC’s process of seeking and nominating candidates for School Trustee. At this

Republicans nominate full slate for March elections

2011-01-20T21:51:00.007-05:00

Tuckahoe Republicans tonight nominated sitting Deputy Mayor Steven Ecklond to run for the mayoral seat that will be vacated this spring by current Mayor John Fitzpatrick (D) and nominated candidates for the other two seats on the Village Board which will be voted on this March."I'm very happy that I've received the nomination of my party ... I'm very appreciative of the support and kind words

Eastchester approves stipulation of settlement with Rosado

2011-01-18T23:26:00.002-05:00

The Eastchester Town Board this week approved a stipulation of settlement with former Eastchester Police Officer Ramon Rosado, bringing the town’s disciplinary action against Rosado as well as Rosado’s civil rights lawsuit against the town to an end as part of a deal between the two parties that included Rosado’s resignation earlier this month.The settlement, approved unanimously by the Town

Gamache named Rye City deputy mayor

2011-01-13T17:13:00.004-05:00

On Wednesday, Mayor Douglas French (R) chose Councilwoman Paula Gamache as his deputy mayor, the lone Democrat on the Rye City Council. Gamache will take over those duties from Councilwoman Suzanna Keith (R) who was appointed to the position last January after taking office with French . The mayor said it had nothing to do with Keith's performance but instead an opportunity to get everyone

Rye PD hires two new officers

2011-01-12T20:23:00.006-05:00

Brandon M. Amlung and Jonathan Klein have been appointed to the postion of police officer in the City of Rye Police Department, effective Jan. 10. The two were sworn in at Rye City Hall last Friday, Jan. 7.Amlung, 22, is a graduate of Manhattan College and the New York City Police Academy, and served as a New York City Police Cadet. A native of Pearl River, Amlung follows in the footsteps of his

Eastchester School Closings

2011-01-11T23:16:00.000-05:00

The websites of Eastchester School District, Tuckahoe School District and Bronxville High School all report that school has been canceled for tomorrow, Wednesday, due to the heavy anticipated overnight snowfall.

Rye School Board meeting postponed

2011-01-11T18:03:00.001-05:00

Due to the weather, tonight's Rye City School District Board of Education meeting has been cancelled and rescheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 18 at 8 p.m. in the Rye Middle School multi-purpose room.

Tuckahoe Village Board votes 3-2 in favor of leaf blower restrictions

2011-01-10T22:14:00.001-05:00

The Tuckahoe Village Board voted 3-2 tonight in support of a long-debated law creating hour restrictions for outdoor power equipment and instituting a four-month summer ban of gasoline-powered leaf blowers in the village between June 1 and September 30.The three Democrats, Mayor John Fitzpatrick and Trustees Clare Gorman and Stephen Quigley, supported the measure, while Republicans Deputy Mayor

Bronxville's Bellitto named to Town Board

2011-01-04T20:48:00.001-05:00

At the recommendation of Eastchester Supervisor Anthony Colavita (R), the Eastchester Town Board tonight appointed Bronxville Trustee and Deputy Mayor Glenn Bellitto (R) to fill the unexpired term of Eastchester Councilwoman Vicki Ford (R), who resigned from her post at the year's end."This is an exciting opportunity to serve all the people of Eastchester, Tuckahoe and Bronxville," said

New Town of Eastchester website up and running

2011-01-04T15:17:00.000-05:00

The new website for the Town of Eastchester is finally online. The new site, at the same www.eastchester.org web address, features a new design, an updated calendar of events and a rotation of images of the town, in addition to the links to town departments and other informational pages found on the previous site.

Eastchester councilwoman steps down

2010-12-23T09:06:00.002-05:00

After 17 years on the Eastchester Town Board, Councilwoman Vicki Ford (R) is calling quits. Ford announced her resignation, effective Dec. 31, at Tuesday's meeting of the board. The longest-serving elected official in Eastchester, Ford was given a standing ovation after reading her resignation letter to a council room packed with well-wishers.A Minnesota native, Ford attended Sarah Lawrence

All sides settle Rye Osborn differences

2010-12-22T14:48:00.011-05:00

The Osborn, Rye City School District and city have finalized an agreement calling to end a groundbreaking legal battle that was waged for more than a decade. After a recent Appellate Court decision regarding assessed values and property taxes, a settlement that resolves the remaining issues in the longstanding dispute amongst the three parties was announced this week. Originally, the matter

Rye City School Board, custodial union announce deal

2010-12-22T14:40:00.004-05:00

On Tuesday, the Rye City School Board voted to approve a four-year contract with the district's custodial union, CSEA Local 860.The deal is retroactive to July 1, 2009 and will expire on June 30, 2013; it includes salary increases averaging 1.5 percent per year. Union employees will also further contribute to their health insurance contributions starting with 12 percent in 2009, 13 percent in

Rye's Bird Homestead & Friends Meeting House to host winter tree walk

2010-12-22T14:32:00.010-05:00

For its first program of the new year, the Committee to Save the Bird Homestead will present Learn to Identify Trees in Winter, a guided walk through the Meeting House and Bird Homestead grounds, on Sunday, Jan. 2, at 1:00 p.m. Although the leaves are gone, naturalists can still identify trees by examining their buds and other clues. Alison Beall, curator emeritus of Marshlands Conservancy, will

Rye Town cuts taxes 15%

2010-12-22T14:21:00.004-05:00

The Town Council approved its 2011 budget, on Dec. 14, adopting a 15.7 percent tax decrease and $3.5 million in spending. When the tentative budget was first announced back in November it proposed $3.64 million in expenditures. The town will move forward next year using $705,000 of its fund balance although town officials are confident that it remains a conservative estimate with expectations

DiNapoli audit bashes Harrison's budgeting practices

2010-12-21T13:38:00.004-05:00

An audit conducted by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli was released today, unveiling what DiNapoli called "unrealistic and unbalanced" budgeting practices by the town. This comes one day after the town adopted its 2011 budget upping property taxes 5.4 percent."Enacting unrealistic budgets is unacceptable," DiNapoli said, noting that the town incurred $10 million in cumulative operating deficits

Harrison budget passes, taxes upped 5.4%

2010-12-21T13:29:00.003-05:00

Last night, the Town Board approved their 2011 operating budget after a contentious and polarizing meeting. Property taxes will be upped 5.4 percent next year as the town continues to contend with declining revenues from sources such as mortgage taxes amidst the recession.Though a large tax increase, the number is Harrison's lowest jump since the recession started. In 2009 taxes were increased

RyeTV streams online

2010-12-18T14:05:00.006-05:00

With new features added to RyeTV residents now will be able to fully access prgoraming at the push of a button on the city's website.There is now a 24/7 streaming of the government channel so you can watch your Rye City Council meetings in their entirety live online. From now on council meetings will also be fully indexed online meaning you can click on an agenda item for the portion of the

Rye City Council votes down Law Dept. findings

2010-12-17T15:08:00.010-05:00

A comprehensive analysis of Rye's Legal Department was undertaken earlier this year providing 23 recommendations. The findings were never adopted by the Rye City Council and it seems they never will. On Wednesday night, Councilman Joe Sack (R), one of the authors of the report, asked the rest of the City Council to generally support the report. He specifically focused on the two central themes

Winter re-elected to Eastchester Board of Fire Commissioners

2010-12-14T22:54:00.000-05:00

Incumbent Eastchester Fire Commissioner Dennis Winter has secured a second five-year term on the Eastchester Board of Fire Commissioners in tonight's election with around 64 percent of the vote, defeating lifelong Eastchester resident and freelance journalist Bob Fois in the two-man race. The final vote tally was 433 votes for Winter to 242 votes for Fois, a total of 675 votes cast, down from