Supervisor Blog

Happy Friday! Lots to share this week. First, you may have noticed that the Town website has gotten a bit of a refresh! We have been working on this redesign for quite some time now, and we were so excited to officially have launched the newly designed website this weekend. Huge shout out to Brian Sheridan of Hothouse Designs for the beautiful layout, and Dean Pacchiana, our webmaster extraordinaire, for doing all of the technical work behind the scenes. We are also rolling out a new look for the Update e-mail and agenda blasts to coordinate with the look of the new website. The new e-mails and website are mobile friendly and more ADA accessible than the previous versions, two important goals for us with the re-design. Thanks for staying connected with us!

Another way we’re staying connected is through meetings. I was pleased to be able to host a coffee and conversation with State Senator Pete Harckham last Sunday at the Ossining Public Library. Thank you to everyone who came out to join us! 

Other meetings you should be sure to join us for:

• At next week’s Town Board meeting, we’ll be re-opening our public hearing on e-bikes. Please join us and share your input; click here for the meeting agenda, including the Zoom link. 
• Join us on Thursday, November 3rd at 6 p.m. at the Ossining Community Center (95 Broadway) for the Ossining Shoreline Revitalization Community Meeting to share feedback on the draft shoreline improvements. We look forward to hearing your input on how we can improve the waterfront to reflect your values and priorities. An interpreter and translated materials will be available for Spanish speakers. Learn more about this project and its importance at https://www.greenossining.org/shoreline-resiliency/. 

Speaking of environmental protection, Westchester County Government recently released an excellent video reminding everyone to flip over their ballots when they go to vote next month. The flip side of the ballot contains a question about whether or not to pass New York’s Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act. If “Yes” wins, the $4.2B Bond Act will fund restoration and flood risk reduction, climate change mitigation, open space land conservation, recreation and water quality improvement, and resilient infrastructure. Click here to watch the video, and remember to flip your ballot!

In other sustainability news, Assemblywoman Sandy Galef recently hosted a virtual town hall meeting on home energy alternatives called Heat Pumps 101. It was an informative session with experts who detailed how New York’s grid is changing to address climate change, and how to update our homes to improve energy efficiency, increase savings, and move away from fossil fuels. If you missed the conversation, click here to view it on YouTube.

Be sure to take advantage of a couple of upcoming opportunities for mobile government services if you need them:

This Saturday, October 15, the Westchester County Mobile Shredder will be at the Joseph G. Caputo Community Center in Ossining from 10am to 1pm.  Residents can bring up to four file sized boxes of confidential papers per household, remember to remove all large binder clips and covers. Papers from businesses are not allowed, and remember to just include truly personal documents – junk mail does not count, unfortunately! 

The Westchester County Mobile Shredder will return to Briarcliff on Saturday, October 22, 2022 from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM.  The shredder will be stationed at the Briarcliff Department of Public Works, 10 Buckhout Road. For more information, click here.  To ensure the health and safety of all residents and staff, you can read about the safety protocols here.

The Westchester County Clerk’s office will be bringing its community outreach mobile office to the Joseph G. Caputo Community Center on Wednesday, October 26 from 10 AM to 1 PM. Apply for a passport, access notary services, and more! Make your plans now to access this service so that you’re ready with the necessary paperwork on the 26th. We will send a separate e-blast with more details this weekend so you can prepare.

That’s all for now! For ideas for what to do this weekend and beyond, keep scrolling! Extra leaf peeper trains are available starting tomorrow for those looking to get their fall foliage fix; click here for more details!

We will see you soon - till then, be safe and healthy! 

--Dana

If your business, non-profit, or community group has an event that you would like to submit to be a part of the Supervisor's Update, please complete this form. We are happy to pass along events that provide a benefit to the community and support our local economy. Thank you for helping us to highlight all the best Ossining has to offer!

Subscribe to our email blast list and receive Town news and updates. 

Happy Friday! Hope you’re enjoying today’s beautiful fall weather. 

Exciting things are happening in the Town. Last night, the Equity Task Force held an important meeting about equity with members of our municipal boards and commissions. The meeting was well-attended and well-facilitated by Michael T. Holmes of Insights4U Consulting, who is working with the Ossining Public Library on incorporating DEI into strategic planning and programming. We had a fantastic discussion about beginning to do work similar to that which the library and Ossining Public Schools have already undertaken to produce greater equity. 

I spoke a bit about the founding of the Equity Task Force, which began with a meeting between the Town and the local NAACP and has since become a coalition of our local governments, schools, library and community organizations. 

I was joined by Mayor Rika Levin from the Village of Ossining, as well as our County Legislator and Chair of the Westchester County Board of Legislators, Catherine Borgia. Special shout out to our County Legislator for staying with us till the end of the session and engaging with the work. Unfortunately, it conflicted with the Village’s rescheduled legislative session (due to the Jewish Holiday). 

The session was very productive and I’m hopeful that the Task Force has some new wind in its sails as we press on toward a more equitable community. Thank you to everyone who helped pull this session together - our co-chairs Althema Goodson and Sandy McAllister, my fellow Executive Committee members Fran Wills and Kemi Pogue, Acacia Mauriello and Victoria Cafarelli from my office, and Alice Joselow and Jermain Smith who round out the Task Force’s planning group with their insights and input. 

In other equity news, at this week’s Town Board meeting we discussed considering a local law to increase the maximum income limit for the senior citizens tax exemption. The Town of Ossining currently provides the maximum level of exemption allowed under state law, to annual incomes of $37,399.99, and the new maximum level can be $58,399.99. Bringing that income limit up will make living here more affordable for our seniors, by recognizing that fixed incomes do not go as far as they used to due to inflation. We may not be able to control the actions of those causing prices to rise, but we will do what we can to help those most vulnerable to price increases to make ends meet. 

As the weather gets cooler, cold and flu season is upon us, particularly since many of us are becoming more relaxed about mask wearing. Preparing for cold and flu season now includes getting our COVID boosters along with our flu shots. I took a few minutes out of my schedule a couple of weeks ago to get my booster, and encourage everyone to do the same! 

OVAC has the new Moderna booster, which protects you against the original Covid and the new Omicron variant. Click here to register for an appointment to receive a booster. They do accept walk-ins, but there has been a lot of interest in the new Moderna and Pfizer boosters, so they recommend an appointment.

The County is also offering the new bivalent booster at the Westchester County Health Department Clinic at 134 Court St in White Plains from 9am to 3pm on Fridays. Appointments are required – walk ins will not be accepted. Click here to register for an appointment at the County clinic.

If you’re looking for good coffee and conversation, please join Senator Pete Harckham and I at the Ossining Public Library this Sunday, October 9 at 3:30 PM. Hear from us about issues impacting the area and tell us more about what is on your mind. RSVP at .

That’s all for now! For ideas for what to do this weekend and beyond, click here to go to the blog. Tonight is the First Friday of the month and there are a number of businesses and organizations participating in the Community Crawl brought to us by ENU Builds and the Chamber of Commerce - check it out! 

We’ll be closed for the holiday on Monday, but waste and recycling will continue on its normal schedule. We’ll also be back to our regular meeting schedule on Tuesday. We will see you soon - till then, be safe and healthy! 

--Dana

If your business, non-profit, or community group has an event that you would like to submit to be a part of the Supervisor's Update, please complete this form. We are happy to pass along events that provide a benefit to the community and support our local economy. Thank you for helping us to highlight all the best Ossining has to offer!

Subscribe to our email blast list and receive Town news and updates. 

TGIF! Hope everyone is doing well at the end of the first full week of fall.

This week was bittersweet for Team Town, as we said goodbye to two outstanding employees. Yesterday, we presented a proclamation to recognize Angela Juarez for her cheerful and dedicated service to the Town in the Tax Receiver’s office since 2019. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors, especially the master’s program in Physician Assistant studies she will be starting soon!

Today, we said farewell to Fernando Gonzalez, IAO, our Assessor for the past ten years. Fernando oversaw the Town-wide reappraisal and re-assessment in 2015, and has helped us maintain our assessment at 100% of full market value ever since. In recognition of his accomplishments and superlative leadership in the area of assessment, the Town Board has proclaimed September 30, 2022 to be Fernando Gonzalez Day in the Town of Ossining. Thank you, Fernando, and best wishes for a long, happy and healthy retirement!

In other news, on Wednesday I participated in a press conference at Ossining High School, recognizing the milestone of 75,000 food and school supply deliveries to families in Ossining, Peekskill, Yonkers and Mount Vernon through the partnership of United Way, DoorDash, Feeding Westchester and the schools. Ossining High School students participate in the program by bagging fresh fruits and vegetables to be delivered to households in need by DoorDash drivers. New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins was also in attendance, along with Assemblywoman Sandy Galef, Ossining School Superintendent Ray Sanchez, leaders from United Way of Westchester and Putnam, Feeding Westchester, and DoorDash, and several of the students who participate in the program.  

We're grateful for public-private partnerships such as this that help address these problems in the short-term as we work to implement long-term solutions. The added benefit of student participation in delivering food which gives them additional skills towards employment as well as a reality check on what is happening in their immediate world, speaks volumes to the good work United Way leads regularly to address some of our most intractable challenges like hunger.

I’m also pleased to share that next Thursday, October 6, the Ossining Community Equity Task Force will be holding an important meeting on equity for representatives from the Town and Village volunteer boards and committees. The goal of this session, which we’ve dubbed “Equity University,” is an initial meeting to help our volunteer board members begin to explore how they can use equity as a lens through which to view their decision-making.  This has been a project the Equity Task Force has been working on for some time, and we hope it will be a fruitful exercise for all of our volunteer boards as the Equity Task Force works to develop a Diversity Equity and Inclusion Strategic Plan for the community.

You should have received a notice this past week regarding the new Westchester Power electricity supply contract, and Sustainable Westchester is hosting information sessions where residents can get the facts about the new contract and ask questions. If you have questions, be sure to attend a session! Visit this Westchester Power web page to sign up for one and/or access more information about the program. The new contract begins on November 1, and you can opt out at any time.

Lastly, a tax reminder - payment for the first half of school taxes are due today, September 30. If you pay directly instead of through an escrow account and have questions or need assistance, please call the Tax Receiver’s office at (914) 762-8790. The Tax Receiver’s office will be open until 6 PM tonight in case you need help. You can also view and pay your bill online at the Tax Receiver’s page of our website: https://www.townofossining.com/cms/receiver-of-taxes. 

That’s all for now! For ideas for what to do this weekend and beyond, keep scrolling. A heads up regarding a Town Board schedule change: next week, we will hold our Work Session on Monday, October 3 rather than Tuesday, as some of us will be observing the Jewish Holiday of Yom Kippur Tuesday night and Wednesday.  We will see you on Monday, and wishing those of you who celebrate Yom Kippur an easy fast! 

--Dana

If your business, non-profit, or community group has an event that you would like to submit to be a part of the Supervisor's Update, please complete this form. We are happy to pass along events that provide a benefit to the community and support our local economy. Thank you for helping us to highlight all the best Ossining has to offer!

Subscribe to our email blast list and receive Town news and updates. 

Happy Friday! Hope your week has gone well. 

It has been a busy week in the Town! Last Saturday, we kicked off our Car Free Day celebration with a pop-up at the Farmer’s Market. Pedego Bikes in Croton demonstrated one of their e-bikes, and a representative from 511NY Rideshare joined us to talk about ridesharing options and take Car Free Day pledge cards from attendees. 

The Ossining School District joined in the fun, demonstrating a car-lite method of traveling - carpooling - in this video! And seven of our local businesses offered incentives to people who pledged to go car-free or car-lite. Thanks to Mike Risko Music School, Bigfoot Creamery, Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, Logrea Dance Academy, The Tasty Table, Sing Sing Kill Brewery and Family Veterinary Care for participating. 

Thank you to Miriam Risko, Suzie Ross and Dorian Burden of Green Ossining; Ray Sanchez, Maria Angelica Meyer and Nancy de la Cruz of the OUFSD; Pedego Bikes; Modou Cham of 511NY Rideshare; and Maddi Zachacz and Jaimie Hoffman from the Village of Ossining for collaborating with me and my office, Victoria Cafarelli and Acacia Mauriello, to pull together more innovative Car Free Day programming! Last year, Ossining won the prize for most signups of any municipality in New York, and we were also acknowledged for innovative programming; fingers crossed we’ll do it again. 

If you were unable to participate last week, you can still choose any work day between now and September 30 to take the pledge to alter your commute and have your sign up count toward Ossining’s total for this year’s contest. The purpose of Car Free Day is to reduce our carbon footprint and envision a less car-dependent future, and that’s something you can do any day! If you take a photo or video of your car-free/car-lite travel, tag us (@townofossining) on Facebook or Instagram and we’ll share. 

This Sunday at 5:30 PM, one of the businesses promoting Car Free Day, Sing Sing Kill Brewery, is presenting a documentary about another mode of carbon-neutral travel. Windshipped tells the story of the Schooner Apollonia, the Hudson Valley’s fossil fuel-free sail freighter. Entry is free. Come for the informative and inspiring content; stay for the sustainably-produced beer!

This past Sunday, the Town participated in Ossining Padres Hispanos’ 3rd annual Hispanic Heritage Festival. I was joined by Deputy Supervisor Liz Feldman and Town Board members Gregory Meyer and Angelo Manicchio, as well as State Senator Pete Harckham and a representative from his office. 

On Tuesday at this week's Board meeting, we held a Town Hall regarding our New York Forward grant application for funding to revitalize the Executive Boulevard/Stormytown Road area of Town. We envision the grant funding would be helpful with establishing new bike and pedestrian infrastructure in the area and zoning that incentivizes economic development, mixed use developments, and “missing middle” housing (housing that hits a range of affordability) while also incorporating open space that is accessible to the public. If you have ideas about how this area might be developed, or anything else, you are always free to email the Town Board at . 

Notices are in the mail now regarding the new Westchester Power electricity supply contract, and Sustainable Westchester is hosting information sessions where residents can get the facts about the new contract and ask questions. If you have questions, be sure to attend a session! Visit this Westchester Power web page to sign up for one and/or access more information about the program. The new contract begins on November 1, and you can opt out at any time.

A reminder that the New York City Department of Environmental Protection has been drawing down water levels in the New Croton Reservoir to allow for routine operational inspections of the New Croton Dam and spillway. As DEP begins lowering the water level of the reservoir, there will be significant increases in the flow of water into the Croton River. Members of the public should be extra cautious while the increased water is released into the river. Activities such as wade fishing and kayaking are discouraged, as the fluctuating flow in the river could make them unsafe. The increased release is expected to continue until approximately September 27th. More details in the message below.

Lastly, a tax reminder - school tax bills have been sent out, and payment for the first half is due next Friday, September 30. If you pay directly instead of through an escrow account and have not received your bill yet, please call the Tax Receiver’s office at (914) 762-8790. You can also view and pay your bill online at the Tax Receiver’s page of our website: https://www.townofossining.com/cms/receiver-of-taxes. 

That’s all for now! For ideas for what to do this weekend and beyond, keep scrolling! We are now back to our regular meeting and office schedule, and are also back to hybrid meetings. You can still participate and watch remotely. We will be in person at 16 Croton Ave. Hope to see you soon! 

--Dana

If your business, non-profit, or community group has an event that you would like to submit to be a part of the Supervisor's Update, please complete this form. We are happy to pass along events that provide a benefit to the community and support our local economy. Thank you for helping us to highlight all the best Ossining has to offer!

Subscribe to our email blast list and receive Town news and updates.