Kirkpatrick Elected White Plains Council President
Kicking off the 100th anniversary of the incorporation of White Plains as a city, Mayor Tom Roach ceremoniously used the gavel that had been given to the city in 1916 for the first meeting of the Common Council in 2016. The Mayor noted that the gavel had not been in White Plains’ possession but had been found out of state. It was donated to the city’s historical society for good keeping.
Noting that about 25,000 people had come to White Plains the previous week for its outdoor New Year’s Eve celebration including the now traditional ball drop and fireworks display, the city’s anniversary was also celebrated with a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday.”
The first order of the day at the Jan. 4 Council meeting was the swearing in of incumbent Council members Nadine Hunt-Robinson, Dennis Krolian and Milagros Lecuona, each winning their seats in an election that had one Republican challenger to the all-Democrat Council.
Councilman John Kirkpatrick was then nominated for the position of Council President and the unanimous vote that followed secured his position. Kirkpatrick was sworn in by the Mayor with his family by his side.
Other business of the first meeting in 2016 included the acceptance of several sizeable grants for Youth Bureau programs including job training for adults and youth programs at the city’s new community center on South Lexington.
The public hearing on outdoor dining sites proposed for the development at 60 South Broadway as part of a pending site plan for the entire development was opened and closed. William Null, the attorney representing the developer Maple and Broadway LLC, explained that the architect had designed six different locations for outdoor dining at the development, some at street level and others on the rooftop.
Null said the addition of outdoor dining potential at the development made it more attractive to restaurants interested in leasing space.
Council members expressed their concerns that appropriate landscaping provide enough of a buffer for a favorable dining experience on a busy traffic corner.
Council members Kirkpatrick and Lecuona both said they felt considering the high volume of traffic at the South Broadway, Maple Avenue corner was important.
Lecuona also noted that any plantings should not obstruct drivers’ views of the corner.
All of this would come under further consideration during the site plan review.
