Police Prevailed Over Mother Nature in October Storm
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Police Chief John Brogan reported to the Village Board on 11/20 on what happened during Hurricane Sandy and the aftermath from the perspective of the police. Below please find excerpts from his remarks regarding the police response to the crisis.
The Police spent the days prior to the storm preparing for its arrival. In anticipation of Sandy, all vehicles were fueled up, and loaded with caution tape, emergency flares and barricades. Staffing was scheduled to allow for maximum coverage and no time off was permitted.
During the storm itself, serious injuries were prevented by measures taken to encourage everyone to stay home. School was cancelled, the MTA suspended train service, Bee Line Bus Service was cancelled, the County Airport was shut down and highways were closed.
After the State of Emergency was declared in Scarsdale at noon on 10/29 police were at the Emergency Operations Center 24 hours a day until November 2.
When the storm hit at 3:00 pm on October 29, double the normal staff were out in the field in response to toppled trees and wires. Three people were staffing the emergency phones.
At 6 pm, Lightpath phones, internet and the radio system at Police Headquarters all went down and cell phone coverage deteriorated. Calls were then forwarded to one of the two available copper Verizon phone lines. One of the officers was able to repurpose two POTS (Plain Old Telephone System) lines, and hook them up. These were used for incoming calls and for outgoing service to participate in the Con Ed conference calls and for the robo calls to residents.
By 9 pm on 10/29, most of the major north/south and east/west roads were partially or completely closed. The Ambulance Corps had to travel to Central Avenue to reach White Plains Hospital from Scarsdale.
Other facts:
Between 10/29 and 11/5, Police answered 3,300 phone calls from residents seeking assistance. They also dealt with traffic at intersections where the traffic lights were out, long lines at gas stations, the Popham Road Bridge project and the election.
Police made a daily map of open and closed streets
On November 7, the snowstorm caused extensive traffic jams as cars skidded and blocked roadways.
The good news:
Redundant communications systems allowed for continuous service throughout the storm. The 911 system was live and the back-up radio system worked as well.
The Public Safety building had power.
There were no serious injuries or deaths as a result of the storm.
All police officers reported to work during the storm – even those whose families were affected. Some drove 4-5 hours to reach Scarsdale and took dangerous and circuitous routes to get here. Some stayed at headquarters for several nights.
For the future:
We should look into more back-up communications systems or "redundancies."
According to Brogan, "We heard complaints that police were absent on darkened streets." He explained, "There are 90 linear miles of roadway... at a time when travel was slowed by numerous obstructions and officers had to adjust to new routes, we were not able to exhibit the type of police presence that people were accustomed to."
He also added, in regard to the complaints they received about the power outage, "We had no voice in the timing of the restoration and not much more information than the general public about the outages."
He ended by praising the force, saying, "We ran a 24/7 operation and responded to every emergency call in a reasonable period of time. Our police officers were vested in their mission and showed dedication and perseverance throughout, as did the members of the DPW, the Fire Department, the Village Manager's office and every other department of the Village. I was proud to be associated with the effort."
CNC to Hold Open Meeting Sunday Evening and LWVS to Review CNC Election
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This year, for the first time in its history, the Citizen's Nominating Committee will open its first meeting to the public. The CNC nominates candidates for the Village Board as its slate for the Scarsdale Citizens Non-Partisan Party to run in the general election in March 2013. The committee's role is to consider interested candidates for Mayor and Trustees and through due diligence to select those it believes would best serve Scarsdale.
This year the non-confidential portion of the first meeting, called the organization meeting, will be open to the public for the first time. The meeting will be held on Sunday night December 2 at Scarsdale Village Hall at 7 pm. Current Village Board members who are not eligible for re-nomination have been asked to offer suggestions as to the qualities of people they feel would make good Trustees or Mayor.
If you cannot attend, the meeting will be recorded for replay on the Village TV channels.
On Monday December 3 at 10:30 am, the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale will evaluate the recent Citizen's Nominating 
Committee election.
The public is invited to join the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale and the Citizens Nominating Committee Procedure Committee Chair, David Brodsky, and Vice-Chair, Eli Mattioli, for a discussion regarding the recent Citizens Nominating Committee election. The meeting will be held on Monday, December 3rd at 10:30 am in the thrid floor meeting room in Scarsdale Village Hall. Members of the community are welcome to attend the presentation, after which the League will hold a consensus meeting about the management of this most recent election.
Guys and Dolls: SHS Drama Club Hits a High Note
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The Guys and the Dolls put on a stellar performance of Damon Runyon's famed show this weekend at Scarsdale High School. The cast was lively, enthusiastic and full of verve, even at their third show on Sunday afternoon.
This demanding script calls for challenging dance routines and operatic voices and the cast was up to the task. They tap-danced, crooned and showed off their New York accents to produce a thoroughly delightful show.
The two female leads were stellar ---Sophie Laruelle as the prim and proper Salvation Army reformer and Ali Whitney as hotbox girl and would-be bride "Miss Adelaide. " Laruelle's voice has range and power and she hit the high notes with clarity. Her conversion from teetotaler to Havana harlot was a riot demonstrating her ability to act as well as sing. Whitney stole the show as Adelaide, singing, dancing and begging Nathan to make her an honest woman after a fourteen-year engagement. Wearing a blond wig and not much else, she slithered around the stage and was the center of some wonderful dance routines. Sunny Feinstein and Bryant Lo gave acrobatic performances and were a pleasure to watch as well as the entire troupe.
Frank Loesser's score includes well-known favorites such as "I'll Know (when my love comes along), and "I've Never Been in Love Before" and Laruelle and Nick Cioffi as Sky Masterson made beautiful music together. Miss Adelaide's lament; "A Person Can Develop a Cold," and "Take Back your Mink" had her wavering between endearments and indictments in a comic dramatic mix. Biana Rogoff as Arvita sang "More I Cannot Wish You" and we could not have wished for more than her lovely, clear voice. Josh Ben-Ami as Nicely Nicely and Bryant Lo gave a rousing rendition of the show's title song, Guys and Dolls.
The sets and costumes looked nothing short of professional as were the lights and the sound ... a real feat for a high school production team. Kudos to Musical Director Kurt Kelly, Choreographer Dylan Smith, the orchestra, the SHS Drama Club and Mrs. Adrienne Meyer for another first-rate production.
Photos by Jeff Berman (father of Big Julie!) See more at JeffBernman.net
12th Annual Turkey Bowl in Greenacres
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Three generations of Greenacres' men and boys gathered at Greenacres Field on Thanksgiving morning for the 12th Annual Turkey Bowl. Once again the Schutzman boys – Grant, Gray and Cole were there with a host of friends, ranging in age from six to sixty-two.
According to Dad Keith Schutzman, "It is a great game -- we play hard but with a great sense of humor about our declining abilities. The younger guys in their 40's are taking over making the big plays from us old-timers (50 and over). Our younger kids play a game of their own and everyone brings a pre-Thanksgiving feast of donuts, bagels, muffins, and coffee .... (please don't mention the beer!)"
On hand for the fun were: Lawrence Patrizio and son, Charlie Kramer, Jon Bosco, Peter Doyle, John Kantor, Brian Hogan, Paul 
Goldstein and Peter D'Orto.
Greenacres Neighborhood Association Relays Concerns about Hurricane Sandy to the BOT
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Here is a letter from the Greenacres Neighborhood Association that was sent to the Village Board of Trustees and will be mailed to Greenacres residents. The letter was sent to Scarsdale10583 by Greenacres Neighborhood Association President Kathy Steves who invites you to email her with your concerns at [email protected].
On November 12, 2012, the Board met with Trustees Jon Mark and Bob Steves in order to better understand the current state of the Village and to express the concerns of residents over issues related to storm Sandy. One of the main issues raised was the status of the Village’s disaster preparedness plan, both prior to and after the storm. Mr. Mark indicated the Mayor and Trustees were just starting to review the details of actions by Village staff and vendors who supported backup systems, and nothing definitive could be reported at this time. In addition:
• Responsiveness from Con Ed and its deployment of crews to restore power was deemed extremely deficient.
• Communications between the Village and residents was also acknowledged by the Trustees to be below reasonable expectations.
• Robo calls from the Mayor were helpful, but a bit late in the process.
• Though not formally organized by the Village, Halloween is a major community event and the Village should have communicated some policy about trick or treating prior to and during the crisis since public safety was an issue.
Mr. Mark added some additional items that will now move off the back burner for more immediate consideration:
• Liberalizing and amending the Village code governing the installation of home generators.
• An assessment of town trees in the Village’s right of way that could once again cause damage to utility lines, and an examination of the code governing removal of trees on private property that could potentially harm neighbors as well as impact utility lines during another storm.
• Concern for the elderly or disabled during such a crisis was also expressed, and a plan to better identify those who may need extra assistance will be developed.
There will be additional public forums for residents to express their concerns, according to Trustees Mark and Steves. Our collective goal is to avoid, as much as possible, a repeat of the events that occurred before, during and after the storm. Based on the meeting we had with the Trustees, we feel that elected and appointed Village staff share our concerns and will develop and orchestrate an action plan designed to better anticipate and address the issues that occurred over the past several weeks. We will ask Village staff to share their action plan with the Association once it is formulated.
We encourage those who have not signed up for the Village’s Emergency Notification system to do so through the Village’s website, www.scarsdale.com . You can enter home phone numbers and additional numbers, such as your cell number, work number, or email address to ensure that there are multiple ways that you can be notified. During Sandy and her aftermath, many residents lacked home phone service from Verizon and Cablevision, but might have been reached with status updates via cell phone or email.
The Greenacres Association encourages residents to contact either Kathy Steves at 472-0611 ([email protected]) or Barry Meiselman at 723-5807 ([email protected]) to express your thoughts and to contribute to this ongoing dialogue.
