OP ED
The British houses of
Parliament observe a practice called “stating one’s interest” in which members reveal
their connection to an issue before speaking on it. Let me state mine.
I rise figuratively to express my deep
disappointment with the current Democratic administration in Croton. Having
turned 21 in 1939, I registered as a Democrat and proudly voted for FDR in the
1940 election. My record as a lifelong Democrat surely lends a measure of heft
to my grievances.
Without taking the public pulse, this
administration has pushed issue after issue in a high-handed, manorial fashion
not seen since the Middle Ages in feudal Europe .
The time has come for the serfs of Croton to express their displeasure at the
repeated flouting of the principles of representative government.
Here are a few examples of the indiscreet actions
taken by this administration without adequate public discussion:
¶
Proposed cruel bow hunting of deer from tree stands in Croton parks while they
were open to the public and even tested skills of bow hunters before
legislation existed.
¶
Made ill-advised zoning changes in commercial areas under the guise of mixed
use later deemed to be discriminatory by the monitor overseeing the 2009 settlement.
¶
Displayed ignorance of Croton’s zoning code by preparing to install already-purchased
bike racks on sidewalks, and then red-facedly hastened to revoke the existing ban
on sidewalk parking.
¶
Grossly underestimated costs of the
unnecessary redesign and reconstruction of a major thoroughfare to alleviate
two brief weekday periods of heavy traffic that could be handled by merely
staggering traffic lights.
¶
The same redesign project also damages local businesses by totally banning on-street
parking to create bike lanes for a handful of seasonal bicycling commuters.
A majority of trustees and the mayor are
now falling all over themselves to accept the gift of the so-called Gouveia
property plus an accompanying million dollars to be left in trust for the
village pending the donor’s demise.
The “gifted” property would not be immediately
accessible to the public. The property’s tax burden, however, would instantly
shift to village taxpayers because of Mrs. Gouveia’s demand to live on the
property tax-free for the remainder of her life.
Why the headlong rush by Croton officialdom
to make the transfer happen when no firm plans exist for use of this veritable
white elephant? The reason may be that
this dubious “gift”--largely handled in off-the-record conversations with the
would-be donor--is exactly what it appears to be: a sweetheart deal fraught
with mendacity, misinformation and unanswered questions.
The process has also been tainted by scare
tactics tantamount to blackmail. There is no fairer word to describe the
officially voiced suggestion that if Croton fails to accept Mrs. Gouveia’s
terms, she will offer the property to an unidentified tax-exempt entity, such
as a religious denomination.
Croton lately seems to harbor more dark
secrets than Peyton Place
