Editor’s note: This message was provided by Pelham Mayor Chance Mullen.

Neighbors,

Before we all drift away into another Pelham summer, I write to bring your attention to some of the work being done by your local government.

The most enjoyable part of being mayor so far has been working with our excellent staff. Quick on the heels of the 5-year agreement we resolved with our firefighters, I’m happy to announce that we’ve just resolved a new 5-year agreement with our Crossing Guards, Parking Enforcement Officers and Code Enforcement Officers, as well. This agreement not only keeps that portion of our budget below the tax cap for the next five years, it also provides Village management with more flexibility and better coverage over the weekends. Our sincerest thanks to the members of the CSEA for their commitment to our Village.

Our police department maintained a strong emphasis on training over the last three months. Individual members of the department participated in various training opportunities focused on active shooter response, sexual assault response, pedestrian safety, party prevention and controlled party dispersal. Most notably, they participated in Autism Shield Training which helps first responders navigate complex situations and avoid tragic consequences. My thanks to Chief Pallett and Lt. Green for ensuring our officers are prepared to keep us safe in every situation.

In addition to planting 30 new Azealia’s along Wolfs Lane just in time for summer, our Department of Public Works laid 15 tons of blacktop to fill in potholes this spring, much of it in response to requests through the Village’s new mobile app, MyVOP (available in the Apple App store and the Android store). That work will continue through the summer. They’ve also started the annual cleaning of catch basins to help us avoid potential flooding. This work has been led by Mr. Senerchia who also heads our Buildings department, where, among other priorities, they’ve been diligently working to stop unpermitted work throughout the Village. These efforts make us safer and result in additional revenue—in fact, building department revenue increased roughly 44% since last year, and that is very welcome news for all Village taxpayers.

Finally, you may have noticed our new firetruck during the Memorial Day parade. This truck has now been placed into service after a yearlong effort by several members of the fire department. A special thanks to retired Scarsdale FD Captain and certified apparatus expert Jeff Gaskin who donated his expertise to this purchase, and additional thanks go to Chief DiNapoli and Lt. Tim Frusciante for ensuring our newest vehicle will provide the kind of long-term value our taxpayers deserve. The previous truck served the Village for 21 years and this most recent arrival will serve us for the next two decades or more.

The Village Board of Trustees has been busy as well. The single largest challenge our community will face in the next few years will be addressing our infrastructure needs. The downside to living in such an historic community is that the bones of our Village are, frankly, old. We have an 80-year old sewer system, traffic signals that need to be upgraded with new technology, and public facilities that are in serious need of investment and/or replacement. Maintenance of these assets has been deferred for many years and we now have the responsibility of addressing all these challenges at once. Candidly, in my first few months, I have been continuously reminded of Teddy Roosevelt’s famous words: “The best thing you can do is the right thing; the next best thing you can do is the wrong thing; the worst thing you can do is nothing.”

The Village Board has decided to approach these needs from many angles. First, we’re working to take advantage of grant opportunities. We’ve hired an intern to assist in writing grant applications—starting with funds to conduct a Complete Streets assessment of Pelham’s roadways and upgrade our traffic intersections so our streets are safer and our downtown is more walkable. We’re also working with the EPA to repurpose a $350,000 grant that was set to expire. This will allow us to conduct a full evaluation of our sanitary sewer system.

Second, we’re drafting a law which would allow the Village to charge developers a fee for their “fair share” of the cost of mitigating impacts from their projects. This money can be directed toward Village infrastructure needs, including water, sewer, traffic signal and road infrastructure.

Finally, we are negotiating with a private investor, Pelham House LLC, to develop a plan to resolve issues we are facing with our facilities. Currently, we have a parking garage (at the corner of 3rd Street and 4th Avenue) that is in serious disrepair and has already cost us roughly $100,000 in temporary shoring just to keep it safe. Additionally, we have a firehouse reaching the end of its useful life, a police station we rent from the Town (which is not compliant with modern codes), and a Village Hall that is not ADA-accessible. None of these buildings are energy efficient. Rather than issue bonds for new facilities, we requested proposals from interested parties to purchase much of the land where these facilities are located to build mixed-use developments that can help revitalize our downtown, in exchange for building Village parking facilities and a new municipal center that will consolidate fire, police and Village Hall into one energy-efficient, ADA-accessible building. I speak for the entire board when I say if we can reach an agreement with Pelham House, we believe this will be a very big victory for our community.

We are very close to settling on the overall terms of the project. In order to secure the best possible deal for the Village, we engaged Peter F. Gaito & Associates as our Owner’s Rep. Their team is working alongside our engineering consultants at Sam Schwartz Engineering and our attorneys at Spolzino, Smith, Buss & Jacobs. That expertise will continue to be supplemented with the perspectives of our Police Chief Pallett, Fire Chief DiNapoli, Village Administrator Small, other members of our staff, and a host of resident volunteers, including former mayor Mike Volpe, the chair of our Planning Board, Joe Marty, and the Trustees on our Village Board. After more than a year on this project, I very much look forward to sharing final details soon. Mark your calendars for a very exciting discussion this fall.

Also on the agenda, will be two private developments that have received referrals from our Planning Board and Architectural Review Board. The first, located at 139 Fifth Avenue, envisions a mixed-use development to replace the existing 1-story building currently home to the Public House and Paper Chase.  This project was originally proposed as an age-restricted building for our seniors, but as it progressed through the approval process, the owner made a choice to drop the age restriction in favor of a building that is now five floors instead of six. While I recognize that there are some in the community who celebrate this change, I am personally very saddened by the prospect of losing an opportunity to build senior housing. I have long been a proponent of dedicated housing for our seniors—a critical need for many in our community. Addressing this need is still a top priority for our Village Board and for me personally. There will be more to discuss, but for now, we are continuing to seek opportunities to provide better housing for our seniors.

The Village Board will also be discussing the project intended for 163 Wolfs Lane, which would replace the closed gas station that sits directly beside our historic Picture House. This proposal has undergone significant changes throughout the approval process as well, and residents will be able to weigh in on both proposals prior to the board making a final decision in early fall. Many thanks to the volunteers on our Architectural Review Board and Planning Board, who commit their time, energy and talents, often while receiving significant scrutiny from the rest of us. They’ve done exceptional work on both of these projects, and we should be grateful for their service to our community.

As a final note, some have asked about the Highbrook Highline and Young Avenue field (the open field east of the bridge), which are both currently closed to the public. Our engineers have concluded that there are potential sinkholes underneath Young Avenue field and the area should remain closed until we can determine the best path forward.  The good news is we will be installing a new fence around the Highline part of the property this summer to make the bridge safe for residents to access. Once completed, I highly recommend checking out the exemplary work done by Eagle Scouts Mike Ruggerio and Woods Johnson

Thank you for your engagement and kindness during my first three months, and special thanks to Omar, Chris, Cara, Shirley, Debbie and Terri in the Village office for your incredible stewardship of our Village’s assets. It has been very much appreciated.

I hope you have a wonderful summer, Pelham.

Best,
Chance

Mayor, Village of Pelham