Sound Shore

Journal News columnist Phil Reisman follows up today on the mail carrier who helped an older couple escape their burning home in Rye Brook last week.

Jason Dang spoke humbly about his efforts at the Port Chester post office, where one of the WPA-era murals (pictured) acknowledge the mail carrier as part of the community work force.

Dang encountered 80-year-old Judy Uhry on Rock Ridge Drive as her husband, Gus, who uses a walker, was still inside the smoke-filled house.

Read the rest of the column here.

 

Here’s an alert from Rye police:

We are experiencing some coastal/tidal flooding of roadways in the Kirby Lane, Manursing Way, and Milton Road/Hewlett Avenue areas. Please use caution while traveling in those areas, do not drive into standing water, and plan alternate routes. We expect flooding to abate by about 1:00 P.M. as the tide recedes.

There is no danger of flooding in the Blind Brook watershed at this time; we are experiencing coastal flooding only, as a result of high tide.

 

The Port Chester – Rye Brook Public Library reopened today after extensive renovation work over the last month, offering a first look at the new elevator, reconfigured space and brand new seats and tables. These chairs are designed for a parent and child reading together:

The biggest changes are in the children’s areas in the older part of the building facing Westchester Avenue. A crowded office was relocated to provide a big open room for young readers and for storytimes. The checkout and reference areas are also reconfigured with a more open design and new tables and armchairs. The children’s section also has new tables and chairs with more space to move around. Below, Christopher Loja reads aloud about zebras today for his mother, who was delighted at the changes.

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The average citizen could be forgiven for not reading up on the “Study of Governance and Service Options” under way in the Town of Rye. The topic seems as dry as can be, except it’s also kind of interesting—particularly considering that some people don’t realize they live in the Town of Rye and pay taxes to it (about $32 a year on average).

The study, being carried out by the nonprofit Center for Governmental Research, is the latest to look at whether it would save money to eliminate this vestigial layer of local government altogether or rejigger municipal services in some other way. A forum Jan. 12 (click for PDF) will examine the current setup of taxes and services. (The meeting starts at 7 p.m. in the Mamaroneck Village courtroom, 169 Mount Pleasant Ave., Mamaroneck.)

So with the aim of sparking some interest, I present this list of some of the most unusual things about Rye Town.

1. The town of Rye consists of two pieces, which sit on either side of the City of Rye and don’t connect.

One chunk consists of the villages of Rye Brook and Port Chester. The other piece is a slice of Mamaroneck called Rye Neck. The total 7.4 square miles are what’s left after the incorporation of various communities over the years. Rye Town in the 1660s covered a large swath extending from White Plains to Greenwich. Most town residents, 63 percent, live in Port Chester.

2. Rye Town Park, despite the name, is not located in the town. It’s in the City of Rye. It’s governed by representatives from the town, city and three villages.

3. Rye Town’s main responsibility is to assess and collect taxes within its territory. It also runs a court  and oversees the care of two parks and three cemeteries.

4. The town supervisor, a global hedge fund manager, is serving for free, until he brings property taxes to zero as promised. Rye Town relies on property tax for just 10 percent of its budget, and  Supervisor Joseph Carvin’s administration is trying to bring tax bills to zero by relying on other revenue. In Port Chester, your village tax bill on a $500,000 house is about $3,560 and your town taxes are about $30.

5. Rye Neck, the smallest chunk at 1.4 square miles, seems to be the clincher whenever questions come about about eliminating the town.

Says CGR’s baseline study:

As recently as 2007, the Village of Mamaroneck commissioned a Pace University study which considered potential options to address Rye Neck’s uncommon situation. The aim of the project was to look at annexation and consolidation alternatives. Results pointed to a potential 44.7 percent increase (from $85 to $123) in town taxes for Rye Neck residents if their locality were to be taken over entirely by the Town of Mamaroneck.

Intrigued? CGR’s “Baseline Report” is available here in PDF form. The document lists in detail all your local services, who performs them and at what cost.

You might want to plan ahead for your holiday reading if you live in Port Chester or Rye Brook.

The Port Chester-Rye Brook Public Library is taking a long winter’s nap — closing down from Dec. 5 through Jan. 8 to make way for the ongoing construction project. The book drop is closed from Dec. 2 through Jan. 8 Patrons are reminded that they may use any other public library in Westchester County.

The library website has more information about the project.

Tax-cap discussions are well under way at your local school and municipal boards. Blind Brook is planning a discussion at Monday night’s school board meeting with some interstate insights from two principals, who have worked in Massachusetts and New Jersey. New York property tax levy increases will be capped at 2 percent this year, without an override by 60 percent of the voting body.

The district website has the agenda and a budget info page.

Lou Del Bianco, a Port Chester resident well known to local school kids for his Abe Lincoln act, is helping to spread the story of his own grandfather and another aspect of American history.

Luigi Del Bianco was an Italian-born stone carver who left Port Chester to work on Mount Rushmore – including the detail on Lincoln’s eyes. (He is photographed at left, with a model of the project.) His contribution was little known until Lou, his grandson and namesake, began researching and performing the story. You can learn more on the website luigimountrushmore.com.

Locally, Lou will give his 50-minute performance “In the Shadow of the Mountain: Luigi Del Bianco and Mount Rushmore” at 4 p.m. this Sunday at the Port Chester Senior Center, in conjunction with the Port Chester Council for the Arts. Admission is $15; $10 for seniors.

The first day of classes at Port Chester Middle School ended with a flurry of activity Wednesday after the sighting of a coyote on the grounds. Or possibly a fox — administrators aren’t certain.

Principal Patrick Swift was in the middle of afternoon announcements when Byron Womack, assistant principal, alerted him to the animal’s appearance near the woods in back of school. Police, security guards and administrators with noisemakers chased the creature away, and children were kept inside a few minutes past dismissal time. Swift added a better-safe-than-sorry message to the announcements, and children were guided out the front of the building.

This came after heavy rains had added some challenges to the start of school.

“For the first day of classes,” the principal said, “what a day.”

Nathan Carr stands among salvaged family belongings, as rising waters from the Blind Brook begin to flood out their home on Highland Road in Rye Sept. 8, 2011 for a second time in less than a week. His family was flooded out of their home following flooding from Tropical Storm Irene. Read more about the flooding in the Lower Hudson Valley and view an online photo gallery of flooding in Rye and from around the area at Lohud.com.

Rye Brook residents won’t have to wait until the Wednesday bulk trash pickup to dispose of Irene-related waste. There’s a dumpster available at the Rye Brook Highway Garage, 511 West William St., to collect storm-damaged items. Drop-offs may be made between 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Sept. 2, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 12.

Residents should bring an ID. The site does not accept construction debris or electronics. (For info on disposing of e-waste and appliances, call 939-0753.) Further information is on the Rye Brook website.