September 3, 2025

Happy first week of school! Wishing all students, faculty, and administration a wonderful and successful 2025-2026 school year. This is a special day filled with new beginnings and fresh opportunities, and I hope it's a great one for everyone. Please remember to drive safely, and let's make this an incredible school year.

There is an exciting event coming to the waterfront this weekend, on Saturday, September 6th (rain date: September 7). The event will feature a full day of free music, highlighting riverwalks, river crossings, ferry connections, and more in Westchester and Rockland Counties, presented by Historic Hudson River Towns.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Path

Rockland Landing:

3:00 – 4:30pm Pocket Royals

Westchester Landing:

4:30 – 6:00pm Mark Morganelli and the Jazz Forum All-Stars

Half Moon Overlook:

6:00 – 7:00pm Guitarist Paul Speziale

Ossining/Haverstraw Metro-North Ferry Communities

Ossining: Louis Engel Park

3:00 – 4:30pm The Barn Vultures

4:30 – 6:00pm Funk & Disorderly

Haverstraw: Emeline Park

3:00 – 5:00pm Adriano y la Fuego

Stay for a free circus performance!

6:00 – 7:30pm Flotsam River Circus

Peekskill: Fleischmann Pier

3:00 - 4:30pm Voodoo Jelly

5:00 – 6:30pm Dos Belos

Click here to learn more: https://www.hudsonriver.com/hhrt/music-across-the-hudson/

Next week marks the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the United States of America. In Ossining, we host a remembrance ceremony on this date to honor lives lost on that date, as well as those who have lost their lives due to 9/11-related cancers.

The Ossining & Briarcliff Remembrance Ceremony will take place next week, Thursday, September 11, at 7:00 PM at Louis Engel Waterfront Park. All are invited to attend the ceremony. In attendance will be emergency service organizations and elected officials serving the residents of the Village of Ossining, the Town of Ossining, and the Village of Briarcliff Manor.

Our nation's 250th anniversary is just around the corner, and it's going to be a big deal! We're expecting lots of celebrations - at the national, state, and local levels, and especially in the Ossining community. There will be numerous opportunities for everyone to get involved and celebrate this amazing milestone together.

We are pleased to announce the establishment of the Ossining 250 Steering Committee (O250), which will lead our community’s participation in the nation’s 250th anniversary of independence in 2026. This committee will serve as a hub for planning, coordination, and community engagement around commemorative events and initiatives that highlight Ossining’s unique history and contributions to our shared American story.

The O250 Steering Committee will work collaboratively with local organizations, schools, cultural institutions, and residents to coordinate meaningful programs that honor our past, celebrate our present, and look forward to our future.

Steering Committee Members:

• Mayor Rika Levin, Chair
• Supervisor Elizabeth Feldman, Chair
• Village Historian Joyce Sharrock Cole
• Town Historian Caroline Curvan
• Michael O'Connor
• Doug Turshen
• Jane Botticelli
• Scott Craven
• Steven Felsenfeld
• Representative from the Ossining Police Department, representative TBD
• Representative from the Ossining Fire Department, representative TBD

We will keep you updated as the committee sets priorities and begins outreach efforts. Your support and partnership will be essential in ensuring that Ossining’s voice is strongly represented in this historic celebration.

Thank you for your continued commitment to our community.

Tonight's Legislative Meeting will take place at 7:30PM at the Courthouse.

Some items of note:

• We will begin with a Public Hearing on proposed changes to the RDD (Residential Development District). There will be a resolution later in the meeting referring this proposed change to the EAC for confirmation of consistency with the LWRP (Local Waterfront Redevelopment Plan, which covers all properties west of Route 9 in the Village).
• There will also be a series of resolutions authorizing contracts to be signed by Village Manager, Karen D’Attore related to Youth Bureau grant funding from Westchester County:
• One is a contract for the Summer Youth Employment Program this past summer, the other is to submit a proposal for the same program in 2025-2026.
• One is for a proposal to secure $50,000 for the “Invest in Kids” program, which requires a 10% local match if awarded.
• One is for an agreement with Friends of the White Plains Youth Bureau for $20,000 which will assist with administering the Grandpas United program in Ossining.
• There will be a resolution for the renewal of agreement for the Section 8 Department’s MRI software program.
• There will be a resolution that represents the next step in our Westerly Road Restoration project, which will use $171,500 of NYSDOT funds to offset the cost of re-paving Westerly Road between Snowden Avenue and Harbor Square, as well as replace and restore sidewalks and curbs to increase safety and walkability—this resolution is a requirement to officially proceed with the design phase.
• There are two resolutions rescinding prior bond issues for construction on the new Indian Brook Water Treatment Plant (the more recently-issued bond is all-encompassing and takes the place of both of the issues from 2023).
• The Board will have a resolution to call for a Public Hearing on the proposed Moratorium on Cannabis Dispensaries, Vape Shops and Smoke Shops. The Public Hearing is scheduled to take place at the September 17^th Legislative Meeting.
• There will be a resolution authorizing the loan of Village-owned materials to the Sing Sing Prison Museum for a term of five years.
• There will be a resolution updating the Village Fee Schedule to remove the $93 surcharge on violations observed in parking spaces designated for handicapped drivers.
• The BOT will have a resolution to approve a tax certiorari on property owned by Urstadt Biddle at the Arcadian Shopping Center.
• Finally, there are three resolutions adding OFD members to the active roll.
• Under New Business, we have two presentations from adult-use cannabis dispensary applicants: The Upscale Smoker (140 South Highland) and King’s House of Fire (175-177 North Highland). We are asking these teams to present in order to reserve the BOT’s right to weigh in on their application before the parameters of the moratorium are made official. We will send these presentations as soon as we receive them. 

Village of Ossining | www.villageofossining.org