Pleasantville development; a local coach’s passing; honoring those lost to suicide; Yorktown golf course flap
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There’s a ton happening across our coverage area, and with our latest print editions circulating today, here’s a quick roundup of a few stories and issues making news across northern Westchester and Putnam County.
As Examiner Editor-in-Chief Martin Wilbur explores in his coverage, frequent visitors to Pleasantville can easily recognize there have been significant development changes in the downtown in recent years.
It’s often the central ongoing debate in our northern suburbs: Too much development, too quickly? Or is it smart growth to propel the community’s future?
Former Mayor Bernard Gordon is one resident who has expressed some skepticism about the direction of the downtown. Just over two decades ago, the village needed and received a spark with the addition of the Jacob Burns Film Center.
“We needed to encourage some development, some housing so that there would actually be people to patronize the businesses,” Gordon said. “But that was then; it doesn’t mean it should be encouraged now if it’s been fully developed and there aren’t the roads and the utilities available to accommodate for the development.”
Examiner Sports Editor Ray Gallagher poignantly writes about the passing of Coach Dan Callahan of Mahopac in his “Direct Rays” column this week. As Ray explains it, utilizing his unmatched Section 1 institutional knowledge, the 50-year-old Callahan “bled the blue and gold as a Mahopac Sports Association youth coach, but his impact was vast at places like Hendrick Hudson where he cut his teeth as an administrator before changing the culture at Peekskill to this day.”
Coach Callahan was the type of guy who makes a community tick. Read Ray’s tribute here.
On a separate sober note, Westchester County last week announced it will be dedicating space at Ridge Road Park in Hartsdale to create The Healing Garden, a quiet location for a memorial in the 236-acre facility, designed to remember those lost to suicide and help their families grieve. It will include flowers, trees, walkways, and benches in a circular shape to give friends and relatives grieving the loss of a loved one to suicide a chance for quiet reflection and remembrance.
“Go by at any time. It’s a great place,” said Marie Considine, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Westchester. “It’s already cut out where the garden will be, and there’s a sign there designating the spot so you can’t miss it. Here’s Martin’s piece.
Meanwhile, up in Yorktown, town officials have set a deadline for a new par 3 golf course to open in Jefferson Valley. The board passed a resolution to terminate an agreement with RC Recreation Department, LLC if it fails to clear up various outstanding violations and open the town-owned park by November 15.
On July 20, RC had filed an Article 78 proceeding in the state Supreme Court, accusing town officials of using a “Keystone Cops approach to local zoning enforcement” and engaging in a “politically motivated campaign.”
But Yorktown’s supervisor had this retort: “Holding a contractor accountable for under-performance over eight-and-a-half years is not a political campaign, sabotage, abuse, or disparagement.”
OK, fine, a fifth thing. Last but certainly not least, don’t forget this weekend is SeptemberFest! It’s become such a fun yearly event, and kudos to the leaders at the Mount Kisco Chamber of Commerce for all they do to coordinate the town’s annual highlight.
Enjoy your Tuesday evening, -Adam
We hope you’ve enjoyed these highlights from this week’s print issues. To read all four print issues in their entirety, click on the links below:
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Adam Stone is the publisher of Examiner Media. When not running local news outlets or chauffeuring his children, Stone can be found on the tennis courts at Mt. Kisco’s Leonard Park, on his Ipad playing chess, or on the floor cleaning after his two dogs.
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