Thursday, Dec 26th

harcourtstreambankThe Scarsdale Village Board met on Tuesday October 9 and approved the expenditure of an additional $23,990 for Dvirka and Bartilucci Engineers to make revisions to the storm water management plan for changes at Harcourt Woods as outlined on Scarsdale10583 last week. The changes will include de-silting of the watercourse, construction of a sediment pond, installation of a drainage diversion on Brewster Road, stabilization of the stream banks, realignment of the stream, removal of obstructions, construction of a Gabion wall, installation of a maintenance path and landscaping.

Also at the meeting:

  • Trustees also approved an extension of an agreement with NYS for ice and snow removal along 15.7 miles of state-owned roadways in Scarsdale for a fee of $23,659.90
  • The Village accepted the gift of a 55” LED Smart TV for the lobby of police headquarters from Robert and Wendy Zohn of Value Electronics on Popham Road in Scarsdale. The gift is valued at $3,374.99.
  • Trustee Bob Harrison who heads the Personnel Committee announced openings on the Planning Board and the Conservation Advisory Council. Emily Sherwood will step down from the Planning Board and Lynne Clark will vacate her seat on the Conservation Advisory Council. Harrison said that those interested in applying should visit the Village website to apply by October 31, 2012. The application can be found here :
  • During the portion of the Town meeting Village Manager Al Gatta asked Treasurer Mary Lou McClure for an update on 19 properties that have fallen behind in their tax payments. She reported that there are 19 such properties in Scarsdale and that the Village is now working with many of the owners to bring payments up to date. However, for those who have not responded to the Village to schedule payment of back taxes by October 22, 2012, the Village will begin proceedings to foreclose. A list of the delinquent properties was not provided.

Mayor Flisser responded to questions that were posed to her at the meeting of the Scarsdale Forum on October 4th. Here are the questions and answers:

1) What is the total budget for The Crane Road Bridge project?

Budget is $53,460,000
Design/Engineering $5,300,000
ROW Incidental & Acquisition $1,100,000 of which Scarsdale received about $900,000
Construction $40,000,000
MTA Force Account $3,000,000
Construction Inspection $4,060,000

2) How does the Revaluation Project now being undertaken by the Village affect NY State Real Estate Taxes?

To bring the existing 1969 assessments up to current market value, conversion factors are required. These conversion factors are Equalization Rates (EQ) and Residential Assessment Ratios (RAR), which are established annually by the New York State Office of Real Property Services. The RAR is a weighted average-calculated ratio that is used in the setting and converting of assessments for residential properties only and is derived annually by ORPTS through an assessment-at-sale ratio study. Fall all other property types, an annual EQ rate is used for the same purposes. There is a small bonus of State Aid for each year that the roll is at 100% of market value.

3) What is the current position of the Historical Preservation initiative?

The VB's Advisory Committee made three recommendations:
1. Adoption of a new Historic Preservation Law;
2. Historic Resources Survey;
3. Training for CHP and BAR.

A draft of a new Historic Preservation Law was submitted by the Advisory Committee, and reviewed by the Village Board at two Law/Land Use Committee meetings. The Board decided to conduct the Historic Resources Survey before adopting a new law. The Historic Resources Survey Report was presented by Li/Saltzman, and as a result of the presentation, was later updated to include the Boulder Brook property. The Village Board's Land Use Committee will deliberate about how to deal with the recommendations made by the Advisory Committee and the Historic Resources Survey.

tricycleBurglary on Brambach Road: On the afternoon of September 26 someone entered a home on Brambach Road and took several items of jewelry valued at $5,100. Though the residents noticed that a screen had been removed from a kitchen window on 9-26, they did not realize that anything was amiss. Two days later, on 9-28 the homeowner looked for her jewelry and noticed that several pieces of gold jewelry were missing.

Who raided the toy chest? The Head of the French American School on Palmer Avenue got a disturbing surprise when she arrived at work on Monday morning October 1. She found that the plastic bins that hold the school’s scooters, tricycles and outdoor toys had been pried open and damaged. The two bins are valued at $300 each and this is the sixth time in the past few years that the containers have been vandalized. She also reported that occasionally she comes to school and finds scooters and tricycles on the field. Fortunately this time, the toys inside of the containers were intact.

Drunk driver: Police stopped the driver of a 2005 Honda Civic on Mamaroneck Road at 4:45 am on October 7th after he swerved off the roadway and moved between the lanes unsafely. The driver, who was identified as Nelson R. DeLeon-Lopez. age 39, failed sobriety tests and refused to complete the alco-sensor screening, though his breath smelled of booze. He was arrested for DWI and his wife admitted that they had been drinking at the Veracruz Restaurant in White Plains. At headquarters, Lopez was found to have a BAC of .24%. His car was locked at St. Pius Church and his mother picked him up at police headquarters.

Stolen lens: A football enthusiast reported that his camera lens was stolen during the Scarsdale High School football game on 9/22. The man left his bag of camera equipment under the seats of the bleachers around 3 pm and noticed that the $650 lens was missing about 4:30 pm.

Stuck in the mud: On Friday afternoon 10/6, police and firemen were called to the eighth hole of Saxon Woods Golf Course on a report that a golfer was stuck in the mud on the embankment of a brook on the course. According to the report the man had sunk to his knees. By the time the fire department arrived, the man had pulled himself out of the mud unharmed and left the course.

Identity theft: A Canterbury Road resident reported that someone opened a Barclay’s Bank credit card in her name on October 1 and made $4,500 in purchases at an Apple Store. The resident did not know how her personal data had been stolen.

Imposter: A Queens man, posing as a representative from Con Edison, called DeCiccos Market at 4:30 on October 3rd and said that unless a Con Edison bill of $399.00 was paid by 5 pm that day the power in the store would be shut off. The store checked and found that they were up to date with Con Edison and police called back the phone number from which DeCicco’s received the threatening call. The call was answered “RX Pharmacy” and police received no cooperating in locating the caller.

Busy bee: Police noticed a man taking photos of the bikes parked at the bike rack on East Parkway for over an hour around 5 pm on October 1. They asked the man what he was up to and he said he was photographing a bee. Police reviewed the photos in the man’s camera and indeed they were shots of a bee.

Whoops! A woman from Old Army Road was driving on Heathcote Road at 6:23 am on October 4 when she hit the curb and got two flat tires on the passenger side of her car. A tow company was called to tow the car away.

Rude: Police got a call from a woman who had been approached by a threatening man while she was waiting in her car on Secor Road on the afternoon of 10/5. The man got out of his car and “told her to get off her fuckin cell phone while driving.” The woman refused to identify herself but police spoke to the man and told him not to act like this again.

Missing: An Edgewood Road resident reported that her Garmin navigation device and two pair of glasses valued at $613 were taken from her Hyundai Sonata sometime around July 25, 2012.

Lost: A Colvin Road man who suffers from Alzheimers was spotted wandering the neighborhood by the postman on the morning of 10/6. Police picked up the confused man and returned him to his home.

Found: A Kindle was found on the sidewalk in front of Metro Diner on Scarsdale Avenue on the evening of October 4, and turned over to the Scarsdale police.

Party tweet: Things got out of control on Fayette Road on Sunday night 10/7 when a small party turned into a big party of unwanted guests. One of the youths sent out a twitter feed inviting all of his followers to this friend's house on Fayette Road and many came over. As they showed up, they were turned away and “commotion ensued.” Police advised the boy to call the police to help if this happens again.

scarsdalesecuritylogoThis police report is sponsored by Scarsdale Security who does more than just security. Contact them about remote video for your home or business. Call 914-722-2200 or visit their website , http://scarsdalesecurity.com/

stormSeptember2012Arrested: Around 5 pm on September 23, police stopped a driver at the intersection of Popham Road and Depot Place because the man was speaking on his cell phone while driving. When police asked to see the man’s license he said that he did not have it with him and gave the police his passport, saying that his license may have a few suspensions for unpaid tickets. Police did a D.M.V. check and found that the man’s license had been suspended 7 times for failing to pay fines. The driver was identified as Ryan Duffield, age 32 of Edgewood Road in Scarsdale. Police took Duffield and his dog to headquarters and called his mother who came to pick up the dog. Though he had an outstanding warrant from another precinct, he was released on $200 bail and given a court date of 10/3.

Thomas Barr, age 44 of Port Chester surrendered to police in response to a bench warrant dating back to May 20, 2012. He was booked and brought before Justice Galloway who released him and gave him a court date of September 26.

Unruly Customer: The VP of Wells Fargo Ban on Chase Road called police on the morning of 9/22 when a customer acted in a threatening manner. The man and his Asian wife entered the bank and the man demanded that the bank notarize some paperwork. The bank officer attempted to read the paperwork to the wife who appeared to speak very little English. But the man grabbed the papers before the bank officer could read what it said, and picked up the officer’s name plate and came at her while yelling at her. He then left the bank with his wife. Police spoke to the man who claimed that he attempted to have the document notarized earlier in the week but it was incomplete. He said that when he returned to the bank, they would not notarize the document because his wife did not appear to understand what she was signing. The man was advised not to return to the bank and he agreed.

Disputes: A landscaper working on Leatherstocking at 8:30 am on 9/20 got into a dispute with his boss and called the police. The worker did not like the way the boss was treating him and wanted to quit. They got into a dispute about wages that were owed and the worker claimed that his boss hit him in the face while he was calling the police. When police arrived the boss admitted to trying to grab the phone out of the man’s hand. The two agreed to work the issue out themselves.

On 9/22 a Sage Terrace man complained to police that landscapers at a neighboring home on Ridgecrest North had cut down one of his own trees. Police said this was a civil matter and advised the man to contact his neighbor.

Marital Matters: A husband and wife from Murray Hill Road had a fight when they were driving home from a family event about the use of the navigation system. By the time police arrived the disagreement had ended and they required no assistance.

A Putnam Road woman complained that her ex-husband entered her home while she was away this summer and removed paintings, a lamp and a coffee table without her permission. On 9/21 an Eastchester woman came to the Scarsdale Police to report that she was concerned that her ex-husband would prevent her from picking up her daughter at nursery school. Police went to the school and spoke to the Director who gave the woman permission to pick up her daughter.

Inappropriate Behavior: On 9/21 a Heathcote man reported that a construction worker had made several passes at his wife earlier in the month while he was working in their home. The construction company terminated the man’s employment and the homeowner wanted to bar the man from returning to the house.

Missing Kids: A Greenacres man reported that his 14 year-old son and his nephew were missing on the night of September 22 at 9 pm. They had been gone since 7 pm. A few hours later, the boys were found and brought home to their parents.

Accidents: A Scarsdale woman driving a Subaru struck a pedestrian who was crossing Popham Road on the afternoon of Tuesday September 18. The condition of the pedestrian was not released.

A collision occurred between two cars at the intersection of Heathcote Road and Crossway on Saturday September 23 at 4 pm. A 32 year-old driver in a Lexus was turning onto Crossway from Heathcote Road. An 81 year-old driver from Yonkers driving a Toyota south on Crossway ran into the Lexus, hitting the passenger side of the car. The 81 year-old woman said she had chest pain and was taken to White Plains Hospital.

Damage: An exterior lamppost at a Tisdale Road home was damaged overnight on 9/16-9/17. The glass was broken and the top was knocked off the post. This is the third incident this year following damage to the lamp posts in April and May.

A branch from a village-owned tree on Brayton Road fell on a Honda Civic on the afternoon of September 18 and damaged the taillight.

The owner of a 2006 Nissan Sentra reported that a window of the car was broken while it was parked on Brite Avenue on the evening of September 18.. It was not apparent what caused the window to break.

Storm Damage: The storm on September 18 was the cause of many phone calls to the police about downed trees, wires and branches – see the list of locations below.

  • A tree fell at 14 Circle Road at 8:56 am and took down the wires
  • A branch feel at the intersection of Mamaroneck and Carthage Roads at 2 pm
  • A branch fell on Brayton Road and damaged a car at 2:30 pm
  • A tree fell and brought down power lines on Rodney Road at 3 pm
  • Wire covers fell in the yard of a Kingston Road home at 3 pm
  • A falling branch hit wires on Corell Road at 3 pm
  • A large tree fell on power lines at Fenimore Road at Brite Avenue at 5 pm
  • A large tree fell at Hyatt Field at 6 pm

In addition, at 8 pm, police report that they had responded to reports of falling trees and branches at:

  • Greenacres and Walworth Avenues
  • Sherbrooke and Duck Pond Roads
  • 7 Paddington Road
  • Secor Road
  • 26 Autenreith
  • 45 Popham Road
  • Kingston Road and Greenacres Avenue
  • Post and Lorraine Road
  • 4 Burgess Road
  • Tompkins and Chesterfield Roads
  • Palmer and Wynmor Roads
  • 6 Lincoln Road
  • 227 Madison Road

At 3:39 am on September 19 police got several calls about a possible transformer explosion at 26 Fenimore Road and found sparking wires but no fire. However, at 5:46 am a wire had fallen and was burning on the ground close to the sidewalk. Fenimore Road was closed between Oakstwain and Donellan and Con Edison was notified. A detour was set up and a portion of Fenimore Road was closed for the majority of the date while Con Edison made repairs. Later that day police received a complaint that drivers were going around the barricades.

Due to the repair on Fenimore Road, the traffic light at Walworth and Fenimore was not working and police were assigned to direct traffic there. In addition, the stop light was out at the intersection of Greenacres Avenue and Walworth and police delivered temporary stop signs to leave at the intersection. That light was not fixed until the following day.

 

golfballAround 4 pm on September 26 a Secor Road man made a disturbing discovery. He heard a woman screaming and he walked outside of his home and called 911. As he was calling he looked into a wooded area of the Sanitation Department property and saw the woman who was screaming on the ground with two men on top of her. She screamed, “Why are you doing this to me?” and “ “Mom”, “Mommy”. The caller had a limited view of the men. He turned away to call the police again and then saw a car leaving the area. Police searched the area for the car and the people but were unable to find either. A hotline broadcast was made to surrounding agencies.

Theft: Two men entered the 7-11 on Garth Road around noon on September 20 and began to request items that were behind the counter. One of the men distracted the store employee while the other grabbed the donation box for Muscular Dystrophy that was on the counter. The two then left the store. Police were able to capture the suspects’ faces on video. The amount of money in the stolen box is unknown.

Damage: The windows of a Village-owned shed at the transfer station at Crossway and Mamaroneck Road were found broken on 9/27. The windows are valued at $800.

Identity Theft: A Popham Road man reported that someone had made three fraudulent purchases on his credit card on 9/16 at an AT&T Store in Hoboken, N.J. totaling $4,000. He also stated that another fraudulent purchase of $1,200 had been made on his card at the same location about three months ago. At that time, the credit card company issued the man a new card, but the account number on the new card was very similar to his old account number.

Locked in: A Yonkers’ woman accidently locked her 5-month-old great grandson in a Jeep when she was in the process of having the valet park the car for her at the CVS on Popham Road. On the morning of 9/25, she left the keys on the drivers seat, closed the door and then realized the boy was locked inside. Al Porpora of Heathcote Exxon arrived and was able to unlock the car and remove the baby, who was in good condition.

Golf balls: A Sherbrooke Road woman called police on the morning of 9/27 to report that she found five golf balls on her property that were hit from her neighbor’s putting green on Heathcote Road. Police agreed to speak to the neighbor about the errant balls but the neighbor said they were away the previous weekend and no one was hitting golf balls. She also said that they have installed a net to catch the balls.

Plumbing supplies anyone? Residents of Lyons Road called police on the evening of September 27 when UPS delivered two large boxes from a plumbing and heating supply company to them. The packages were addressed to an unfamiliar name at their address. Police told them to call UPS and ask for them to take the boxes back.

Strange: A Carthage Road woman told police about two suspicious visits she received on 9-27 and 9-28. On 9-27 around 5 pm, two disheveled men appeared at her door and asked about the building materials that were used to build her house, claiming they wanted to replicate it. The next day, around the same time, an unkempt woman came to her door and asked about a tree that is located on the property line. The police said they would make extra ride-bys of the house.

Gunshot: On Hutchinson Avenue, three young men were planning with a BB gun at 1 am on 9/29 when the gun went off by accident and hit an 18-year-old boy on the side of the head. The shot caused a bump and the man refused medical attention. All three boys agreed it was an accident.

Recycling the recycling: On 9/29 a Sage Terrace man complained that boxes for recycling that di not belong to him had been left outside his house. There was no scheduled pick-up the following day. Police issued a summons to a neighbor whose name appeared on the boxes.

Noise from the dumpster: A Popham Road resident complained about noise from Savona Restaurant at 11 pm on September 30th. The woman said an employee of the restaurant was throwing glass bottles into a dumpster causing “excessive noise.” When she yelled down to him to stop, the employee threatened her. Police spoke to the restaurant’s chef who agreed to throw out bottles before 10 pm and said the employee would no longer be working there.

Note: last week we received several comments about the wording of the police report.  All terms in the report are taken directly from the police blotter and repeated here to add descriptive details to the incidents.

scarsdalesecuritylogoThis police report is sponsored by Scarsdale Security who does more than just security. Contact them about remote video for your home or business. Call 914-722-2200 or visit their website, http://scarsdalesecurity.com/

 

scarsdale-police-car200Pedestrian Hit: On Sunday morning September 16 a Brewster Road man driving an Acura Jeep ran into a 16-year-old girl who was walking at the intersection of Fenimore Road and Walworth Avenue. The driver said that the girl walked into the car while the girl said she was struck while crossing the street. The injured pedestrian was taken to White Plains Hospital where she was treated for a broken ankle.

Dog hit: A New Rochelle woman ran over a 4-month-old St. Bernard puppy who belonged to a Cambridge Road resident on the afternoon of 9/14. The dog ran into the car as the woman was backing out of the driveway. The Scarsdale Fire Department lifted the car off the dog and the dog was taken to Central Animal Hospital.

Found: On the afternoon of September 12 a contractor working in a yard on Black Hawk Drive called police when he found a crying young child in the yard. By the time police arrived, the girl had been reunited with her mother. Police spoke to the mom who said her daughter was upset about breaking something and left the house without telling her mother.

A wallet, including credit cards and personal papers, was found in a bag of garbage at the Scarsdale dump on Secor Road on the morning of September 10th. The wallet belonged to a New Rochelle man and was returned to him.

Pile-up: A 17-year-old girl driving on Brewster Road on the morning of September 11 failed to stop quickly enough and rear-ended a second car that then ran into yet a third car. There were no injuries. All three drivers were 17-years-old.

Spill: A garbage truck leaked fluid from the power steering for 300 feet along Heathcote Road on the morning of September 17. The truck was towed and the Scarsdale Highway Department cleaned up the fluid.

Identity Theft: On 9/11, a Lee Road woman reported that she was the victim of identity theft when $3,000 in unauthorized charges were made to her credit card. She received an email from a company that she thought was Paypal asking her to update her account. After she provided all of the requested information including her social security number, credit card number, security code, and expiration date, unauthorized charges were made to her Visa account. It turns out that the email she received was a scam and was not from Paypal.

On 9/13 a woman who lives on Crossway reported unauthorized charges on her credit card made from a correctional facility. The two charges totaled $800 and she does not know anyone at the jail.

Arrests: Talicia Reynolds, age 25 of Brooklyn, was arrested on the strength of a bench warrant on September 12, arraigned before Judge Arlene Katz and released on $180 cash bail. Amardeep Shegill, age 31 of Scarsdale, was also arrested on the strength of a bench warrant on September 13, and given a court appearance date for September 19.

Strange: A woman from Fox Meadow School called police on the morning of September 12 to say that a man wearing a gray hoodie was sitting on Chesterfied Road reading comic books. Police checked the area but the man had already gone.

Locked in: A thirteen-year-old boy locked himself into a bathroom at his home on Ross Road and could not get out around 11 pm on September 13. The Fire Department came to the house and was able to open the door.

Fight: Police were called to mediate in a fight between a Lockwood Road man and his neighbor on Overhill Road on the afternoon of September 14. The Lockwood Road man claimed that his neighbor was “making noise and yelling at him.” Police have gone to this address numerous times about disputes between these two residents.

Raccoon in the road: On the morning of 9/15 police got a call about a raccoon lying on Mamaroneck Road in front of the Middle School. The raccoon appeared to be sick – so when it left the road, police shot it and the highway department took it away.