Westchester View

As posted yesterday, the Bengal Tiger – a landmark Indian restaurant in downtown White Plains went up in flames yesterday.  The cooking oil that was everywhere combined with 100 degree temperatures and flammable chemicals from the adjacent dry cleaners caused the fire to rapidly escalate into a 5 alarm fire.  Over 160 firefighters from White Plains and neighboring communities responded to the blaze.  The roof collapsed about 5 hours after the blaze began.  The fire is now “under control” but not over. 25 were overcome by smoke inhalation and the heat and taken to area hospitals.

I drove by this evening to see what had happened. I was going to walk the streets, but decided against it as there were too many bystanders as it was and I didn’t want to be underfoot. The few shots I have were taken from my car, but you can still see the horrific damage.  At least half that block is wiped out. The presence of White Plains’ finest and bravest was very dominant – as well it should be.

There are ancillary issues to this fire.  One would be that it is a fire under investigation.  The Journal News indicated that the restaurant had filed twice for bankruptcy protection in recent years.

Another issue is the down-sizing of the police and fire departments.  White Plains residents faced an eye-popping 19%  tax increase or layoffs.  The unions did not appear interested in negotiating a pay cut or a cut in benefits and something had to give. The mayor and council took a line down the middle through layoffs and increasing copays for retirees and a 6% tax hike.  Many are calling for the return of the laid off fire fighters.  When I went on-line to see what was going on in the local on-line news – you could hear the hate on both sides.  The anger from the union end and the anger from the taxpayers end.  I must say here and now that anyone who thought the fire fighters didn’t “work hard enough” need serious psychiatric help.  It is entirely possible for a fire to get out of control in that heat with the grease and chemicals creating the “perfect storm.”  But I also have to say that White Plains resident’s have seen their taxes nearly triple in the last 12 years.  The union demands have been and continue to be totally unaffordable and something had to be done.  I will address this issue in a future blog.

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Homeowners in New York are up in arms over property taxes. For those who don’t know the region, New Yorkers enjoy just about the highest property tax rate in the country. Westchester has some of the highest taxes in the state – so you get the picture…..In some areas of Westchester, the taxes actually exceed assessed values.

Recently, Cut Property Taxes NOW rally signs have appeared around the city of White Plains. They are dotting the lawns of beleagured homeowners fed up with what seems like the unending tax hikes that show no signs of abatement. Right now the center of their wrath is on County taxes. However, many are pointing fingers at local taxes and school taxes.

It was just a few years ago that White Plains enjoyed significantly lower property taxes then the rest of the county thanks mostly to our large commercial and retail base. But even though that base has increased, the number successful certioari actions has also increased exponentially. The net result has been a shrinking tax base in the commercial/retail sector pushing the lions share of the burden on homeowners. Most notably: owners of single family homes. Although there was grumbling during the housing boom – residents were mollified by increasing home values. Now that that bubble has burst, the tax bubble has become the elephant in the room.

Homeowners and city officials in White Plains need look no further than Sleepy Hollow to see what happens to home prices when the homeowners are saddled with an ever more onerous tax burden. This burgeoning problem needs to be nipped in the bud or home values could well suffer.

I chose Sleepy Hollow for a comparison because it is an analogous community in many ways to White Plains. Although city officials prefer to liken White Plains to Scarsdale and Larchmont where high taxes are better tolerated, our community profile is in truth more like that of Sleepy Hollow – with respect to its diversity and schools. The commute to Manhattan is similar the two neighborhoods I chose to focus in are are quite comparable in terms of home size, amenities and lifestyle.

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Magnificent to look at – but less than user friendly for the commuter. The Tappan Zee Bridge has been called the bane of the Rockland county commuter. Someone once referred to it as “a bridge too slow.” Whatever prose you choose to use (including profanity) it is clear that the current bridge – is not enough to service the commuters who rely on it adequately. For months, planners have been meeting behind closed doors discussing plans for renovation and expansion. This week the “grand plan” was released by the DOT and it includes a new bridge to be built next to the old bridge with an eye-popping $16 billion price tag. The services of the expanded bridge are impressive and include a rapid bus transit system that will utilize the I-287 with accompanying expansion and infrastructure changes. This is to provide a mass transit service that will permit effective public transportation from Rockland to business hubs in Westchester such as White Plains. The bridge construction is also being constructed to support a commuter rail system that will hook up with the Hudson Line of Metro-North in Tarrytown for an easier commute to midtown Manhattan for Rockland and Orange County residents. Many public meetings and hearings will probably cause the plan to be tweaked and changed. Construction is not set to begin until 2012.