Sound Shore

Aeisha McDavid of Ursuline won the 55 meter hurdles during the Westchester County Track and Field Championships at the Armory in Manhattan today. Photo by Seth Harrison

Hundreds of area track and field athletes competed in the 2011 Westchester Track and Field Championships at the Armory in Manhattan today. Look for coverage at Lohud.com and in tomorrow’s edition of The Journal News. View a gallery of photos from the 2011 Westchester Track and Field Championships.

Port Chester Mayor Dennis Pilla relayed this safety advisory from the National Weather Service, in light of the accumulated snow that can pose a risk of building collapse. About 10 to 20 inches of snow remains on the ground after the series of recent storms.

According to the National Weather Service:

3 TO 5 INCHES OF SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT IS IN THE CURRENT SNOWPACK ACROSS THE AREA. THIS RESULTS IN A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WEIGHT PER SQUARE FOOT.
THERE HAVE ALREADY BEEN REPORTS OF COLLAPSED ROOFS DUE TO THE WEIGHT OF THE SNOW…AND WITH THE THREAT OF YET ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT STORM SYSTEM EXPECTED DURING THE MIDDLE OF THIS WEEK…NOW IS THE TIME FOR RESIDENTS AND BUILDING OWNERS TO TAKE PREVENTATIVE ACTION TO SAFELY REMOVE SNOW FROM FLAT ROOF TOPS AND DECKS.

Cheerleading squads from all over the lower Hudson region traveled to Croton Harmon High School for the Hudson Valley Classic High School Cheerleading Competition on Saturday afternoon.Croton cheerleaders compete at the Croton-Harmon Hudson Valley Cheerleading Classic at Croton Harmon High School Jan. 29, 2011. ( Frank Becerra Jr / The Journal News)

To see more photos from the Croton cheerleading competition click here.

Carrie Liaskos of Pelham, right, prepares to launch a giant snowball over the head of her son Stephen, 6, left, during the Knickerbocker Ice Festival at Rockland Lake State Park in Congers on Jan. 29, 2011.

Ice-sculptor John Hedbavny of New Paltz works on creating his half mermaid and half octopus “Lady of the Lake” from a giant block of ice during the Ice Sculpting Invitational at the Knickerbocker Ice Festival at Rockland Lake State Park in Congers on Jan. 29, 2011. The festival, five years old, pays tribute to the importance of the ice industry that once dominated Rockland Lake. ( Xavier Mascareñas / The Journal News )

See more photos in a Knickerbocker Ice Festival photo gallery, and go to LoHud.com.

Port Chester’s facade fix-up program is still moving ahead on North Main Street, and planning consultant Dwight Douglas gave me an update this week.

The next project in the pipeline is a restoration of the big, white, tile-covered building (top photo) that includes Tandoori restaurant and Redi-Cut Carpets and other businesses. It shares the block with newcomer Tarry Market, the Batali-Bastianich food provision store.

I hear there’s some history to this building. Can anyone enlighten me as I start to look into it?

The brick building across the street (bottom photo) is also due for renovations. Port Chester is providing a total of $225,000 in matching grants for facades along a four-block stretch of North Main. The funding comes from the  New York Main Street program, which used to give awards only to nonprofit entities, and now gives the grants directly to municipalities as well.

Douglas said Port Chester’s program has had success in part because it has relatively few property owners downtown, and they quickly got on board.

The goal is to refurbish some of the historic character that has been hidden behind 60s-style facades. Occichone leather goods shop, the new Subway eatery and Via Brasil specialty store represent some  of the finished work performed over the last year.

In all, 10 properties are participating: three projects are complete, two are underway and five others are in the works.

Jeremy Burke of New Rochelle, center, competes in the Suburban High School Boys’ 4×400 meter relay during the 2011 Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden Jan. 28, 2011. Photo by Seth Harrison

Harbert Okuti, representing the Westchester Track Club, second from right, finished in second place, behind Stephen Hass in the New York Road Runners’ Men’s Distance Challenge 2 Mile during the 2011 Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden Jan. 28, 2011. Photo by Seth Harrison

Local high school and professional runners competed in the 104th edition of the Millrose Games at the Garden. Look for coverage at Lohud.com and in tomorrow’s edition of The Journal News. View a gallery of photos from the 2011 Millrose Games.

Peridot Smith curates this experiential tribute to Black History Month. Eight artists of varying ages and both genders explore what the black experience means to them.

Using a multimedia and multi-sensory approach, the curator brings together artists of varying ages and genders to bring new life to the idea of Black History Month at the Chapman Gallery at Iona.

The opening reception is Sunday, Feb. 6, 1pm-3pm. The exhibits closes on March 3rd.

Click here to see an online gallery.

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(Carucha L. Meuse / The Journal News)

Next stop, relief?

Two weeks after the city closed the public bathrooms at New Rochelle’s train station, some City Council members are pushing to re-open them.

Council member Richard St. Paul has posted signs on the shuttered facilities saying that he’s “directed” City Manager Charles Strome III to include a discussion of the issue in the agenda for the council’s Feb. 8 meeting.

“You’re waiting for Amtrak or Metro-North, you should have a place to relieve yourself,” St. Paul, a Republican whose district includes the station, said Friday afternoon.

Strome could not be reached for comment. Previously, he had said the cost of keeping the bathrooms safe, clean and in working order had climbed too high. Metro-North owns most of the stations along the New Haven line, but New Rochelle owns its station. That means the burden of operating the facility rests with the city. (more…)

Rye Country Day School seniors Jamie Mazur and Jake Heller were named Honorable Mention recipients of the National Football Foundation’s Golden Dozen Scholar-Athlete Award at the Foundation’s awards ceremony at Westchester Country Club on Jan. 27.

Mazur (left) and Heller are pictured here with former New York Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer, who served as the ceremony’s keynote speaker.

It’s snowing again. This is not going to be a pleasant rush hour. In Port Chester, it’s  exceedingly difficult to park. Signs along North Main Street announce that snow removal is scheduled there between 7 tonight and 4 tomorrow afternoon, when parking will be prohibited.

Click here for the forecast.