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MAYOR'S UPDATE
From the desk of Mayor Rika Levin
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Last night, the Village of Ossining declared a snow emergency on designated snow emergency streets located in the Village, where stopping, standing, and parking are prohibited. Since our region has not had a significant snowfall in quite some time, I'd like to share with you what a snow emergency is, when it's called, and what it means to our residents and businesses.
A Snow Emergency is typically announced if more than 6 inches of snow is forecasted and street plowing is required. The Village Manager, Chief of Police, and Village Engineer meet to discuss the forecast, expected snow accumulations, safety issues, and the duration of the storm.
Our goal is to provide as much time in advance of a snow emergency for vehicle owners to find an appropriate place to park. If a vehicle is parked on a snow emergency street during the timeframe of the snow emergency, the Ossining Police Department is authorized to issue tickets and begin towing in accordance with the provisions of § 250-28(1) of the Village of Ossining Code. With many of our streets being both narrow and hilly, it can be challenging for our plows to do their jobs with vehicles in the way -even a single parked car can cause a whole street to be unplowable.
Snow Emergency Streets are established and signed as follows:
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Broad Avenue, South from South Highland Avenue to State Street
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Croton Avenue, Both Sides, Entire length
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Dale Avenue, Both Sides, Entire length
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Edward Street, West Side, From Broad Avenue to Washington Avenue
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Everett Avenue, South Side, From South Highland Avenue to Spring Street
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Ferris Place, West Side, Entire length
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Lafayette Avenue, South Side, From Spring Street to State Street
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Main Street, Both Sides, Entire length
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North Highland Avenue, Both Sides, Entire length
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Pleasantville Road, Both Sides, Entire length
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Secor Road, Both Sides, Entire length
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South Highland Avenue, Both Sides, Entire length
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Spring Street, West Side, Entire length
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State Street, West Side, Entire length
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William Street, South Side, From South Highland Avenue to State Street
When a Snow Emergency is announced, you can expect to be notified in the following ways:
We ask that folks avoid throwing snow back into the streets. While finding places to put piles of snow may be difficult, shoveling the snow back into the street can create public safety issues. Also, if you have a fire hydrant on your property, it would be greatly appreciated if you cleared that area in case of an emergency.
A reminder to keep those sidewalks clean! Via Village Code, property owners, including commercial lots, are responsible for the maintenance of their sidewalks. Snow and ice must be removed within 24 hours after the end of the snowfall.
As a result of the impending bad weather, the following events have been canceled and rescheduled.
- Village of Ossining Zoning Board Meeting. Folks that were on tonight’s agenda will be rescheduled accordingly.
- The OUFSD has postponed the Senior Valentine’s Day Breakfast and Concert to a later date.
- Special Needs Kid’s Night Out has been rescheduled for Thursday, February 15th @ 6:30 PM. Click here to register: https://bit.ly/3UtFNWr.
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As a matter of public interest, last week, the Department of State Division of Consumer Protection issued notice of New York General Business Law section 518 related to credit card surcharges.
The law requires that where a seller in any sales transaction imposes a surcharge for using a credit card, the total price for using the credit card, including the surcharge, must be conspicuously posted. The listed prices must reflect the surcharge, and consumers can receive a discount for cash. The surcharge cannot be more than what is being paid by consumers selecting to use cash. A surcharge may not exceed the surcharge being charged to that business from the credit card company.
Click here for more info: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/GBS/518.
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You asked, and we listened. I am pleased to announce that the Village of Ossining will be offering a pilot program for 2024 to recognize veterans and active-duty service members. In 2023, we researched various programs available to residents and businesses to honor our residents' beloved Veterans, active duty, Reserve, and National Guard members to beautiful military banners displayed in our community. The original request came to us from various members of our community, and the Board of Trustees believes we have found an appropriate way for folks to thank the brave men and women of our great United States military.
How It Works:
Community members, businesses, or organizations can sponsor a banner to honor a service member in their life. The banner is customized with a military service member's name, photo, and service branch and will be displayed along Croton Avenue. The Village of Ossining is proudly working with Military Tribute Banners to create and print these custom banners. All banners will be displayed from Memorial Day through Veterans Day 2024. Banners will be given to the family/sponsor after the display period.
Sponsor A Banner:
Honor a hero in your life by customizing a tribute banner with the photo and name of your hero. Orders are placed directly through Military Tribute Banners, who will work with you to customize your banner to the highest quality. Please note that payment must be received before the design can begin.
The sponsorship rate is $250/sponsored banner. For additional details, please contact Village Historian Joyce Sharrock Cole at historian@villageofossining.org.
Click Here to Order Banner
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Chief of Police hiring process update: We are moving forward in our search for the next Chief of Police. Over the past few weeks, in addition to trustees having conversations with individuals, our search consultant has engaged nine stakeholders that are a cross-section of our community. He met each stakeholder at length to gain insights into what skills, attributes, experiences, and community involvement the next Chief should have to succeed in our community. Stakeholders include individuals, community leaders, elected officials, and organizations of various sizes who are actively involved in our community. For example, Organizations that are large employers, one that works with families and children, and one that works mainly with our immigrant community, retired Ossining Police Officers, current Police Officers, the Town of Ossining Supervisor, one of our volunteer committees that works directly with the police, and others. Our next and final step is to have the entire Board of Trustees interview the qualified candidates in the next couple of weeks to make our final decision before our March 30 deadline as set forth by the County. | |
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Fourth in our series of volunteer committee spotlights:
The Board of Ethics (BOE) provides advisory opinions to municipal officers and employees of the Village pursuant to Article 18 of the General Municipal Law and the Village's code of ethics. Additionally, the BOE can receive and investigate complaints from the public regarding alleged violations by municipal officers and employees of the Village of the Code of Ethics, General Municipal Law, or any other law relating to the ethical conduct of such municipal officers and employees.
The BOE also may make recommendations to the Board of Trustees with respect to amendments to the code of ethics. The committee has up to five members, three of whom must be residents of the Village, while the remaining two can be Westchester County residents. At least one member shall be a non-lawyer. Mayors and Trustees also have an opportunity to ask this Board to look into ethical matters that come before us for their opinion.
Click here to view the Village of Ossining’s Board of Ethics Page
The remaining volunteer boards/ committees to be spotlighted are:
- Environmental Advisory Council
- Historic Preservation Commission
- Landlord-Tenant Relations Council
- Placemaking Committee
- Police Reform Advisory Committee
- Youth Advisory Board
- Zoning Board of Appeals
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Valentine's Day is this Wednesday, and I am thrilled to spend it at a Work Session discussing my favorite subject: The Village of Ossining.
This week’s Work Session will be held at 16 Croton and begin at 7:30PM on Wednesday, February 14th, 2024.
- Village Engineer Paul Fraioli, PE, will provide an update on the Spring Street Walkability Improvements, Phase One, from the CDBG 2022-2024 allocation. In this allocation, the Village of Ossining was funded $200K, including design assistance from Westchester County for this work: sidewalks, concrete curbs, ADA improvements, and some limited streetscaping along Spring between Broad Avenue and Lafayette Avenue.
- Mr. Fraioli will stay with us to discuss the potential locations for a digital message board, which was approved in the 2023 Capital Plan. The BOT is expected to discuss various location options.
- Valerie Monastra, Principal Planner - Nelson Pope Voorhis will address the Board to review the Planning Board's comments on proposed Zoning Changes.
- Karen D’Attore, Village Manager, Corporation Counsel Stuart Kahan, and Maddi Zachacz, Assistant Village Manager, will speak briefly about (2) upcoming.
- Land Use Counsel (3-year agreement)
- Workers Comp TPA (3-year agreement)
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Village of Ossining | www.villageofossining.org | | | | |
