The Hudson Independent: News for Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow, NY

Editorial: Every Day Has To Be Earth Day To Make A Difference

 It is only officially celebrated one day a year, but for Earth Day and everything it stands for to truly make a difference, it has to be a year-round commitment.
 Clean air, clean water, renewable energy: all noble causes and vital to the long-term health of the environment. But they can’t just be placed on the radar screen one day in the 365-day calendar; this year, April 22, one day after Arbor Day, where trees and their importance in the world take center stage.

Editorial: Get Out and Vote. Please.

Good voter turnout is considered essential for a healthy democracy.
The hullabaloo that surrounds national elections is rarely associated with local political campaigns and that may account, in part, for the usually much lower number of people who cast votes in village balloting as compared to the presidential election. That unfortunate lack of community incentive may be exemplified March 18 when Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow voters select mayors and trustees, and in one case, a village justice.

Independent Editorial: Shoddy School Fields Must Be Improved Somehow

The majority of voters who flocked to the polls in the Tarrytown and Irvington school districts over the past few years let their voices be heard loud and clear regarding their refusal to spend millions of dollars on upgrading athletic fields.

Some residents cited their increasingly empty wallets. Some questioned the possible environmental and health risks with synthetic turf. Some rebelled over not being given suitable options.

But whatever the reasons were for giving a thumbs down, few, if any, citizens disputed the obvious need for both districts to bring their fields up to par for the demand that is placed on them non-stop from March through November.

Editorial: Changes in the New Year

As the echos of “Auld Lang Syne” wane, and thoughts of the days gone by diminish, we look ahead in this New Year with hope for global change – better economic conditions, a lessening of turmoil and terrorism, a tribute to the environment.

Change was the rallying cry and promise of the political campaigns. Change, of course, is inevitable; its direction is less predictable. We hope it is all for the better, but we realize the changes we seek do not take place overnight. 

On a local, more personal level, we wish our readers good health and happiness. For our local merchants, businesses, civic organizations and institutions, we thank them and we hope all will prosper in the New Year.

At The Hudson Independent, we are experiencing important changes. We welcome a new editor, the very experienced and able Rick Pezzullo, and bid farewell to Marcy Gray, whose dedication and talent steered this newspaper successfully from its inception. We also welcome Rani Levy as our graphic designer and Jeanne Kaplan as our new editorial assistant.

As we navigate into 2009 with these new professionals aboard, along with our veteran staff, we promise our readers in Irvington, Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown the same level of ethical, award-winning journalism, balanced and unbiased reporting that we have provided for the past three years. Next month begins our fourth year of publishing The Hudson Independent. And once again, we wish you all the best the New Year can bring.           

Editorial: A Hitch in the STAR Program

There are times when good intentions lead to bad outcomes. A quirky provision of New York state’s STAR program may be a case in point.

The premise of the STAR program is to provide homeowners relief from burdensome school property taxes. The Basic STAR category exempts from taxes a proportion of the value of virtually all owner-occupied residential property in the state. An enhanced tax exemption kicks in depending on one’s age and income. Tax rebate checks go to some who qualify, most often seniors, low-income residents or veterans.

Independent Editorial

Curb Idling: Save Gas and the Environment

If you are not exasperated at drivers who leave their vehicles idling for long periods of time, you should be. In fact, motorists who have that annoying habit are not only wasting fuel at a time when it is financially painful to fill a gas tank, they are also unnecessarily polluting the environment.

While the state and county have laws that restrict idling by heavy duty diesel trucks and buses to five minutes, cars and most other vehicles are not covered.

Independent Editorial: The Business of Main Street

Local merchants generally have had to struggle over the past several decades to keep residents shopping in their communities rather than driving off to a big box store or mall for their purchases. For many it became a losing battle. That is unfortunate because the character of a village is commonly reflected by its “Main Street” business hub and when that core disintegrates, the community loses a part of its personality.

Independent Editorial: A Problem With the System

Each year, communities are presented with the seemingly inevitable higher school budgets — and the attending annual increases in school taxes. Residents in Irvington, Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown will vote on May 20 their approval or disapproval.

School officials and school boards have labored for months over the financial data and daunting educational requirements before presenting their budgets to the public. The budgets are often trimmed to keep school tax increases within the limits of perceived acceptance by residents.

It is not an easy task. Contractual obligations must be absorbed. Utility costs rise. State and federal mandates must be met, often without the financial aid needed to implement them. Infrastructure needs repair or replacement. Debt service has to be taken into consideration. New technology has to be integrated into the system. And on it goes.

Editorial: Regaining Civility After the Elections

When a political transformation takes place, the consequences are not always easy to predict. While Tarrytown and Irvington voters preferred to stick with their incumbent trustee teams that had been governing their villages, voters in Sleepy Hollow chose to alter the balance of their political leadership.
Republican Mayor Philip Zegarelli lost three of his trustee allies and will now have to deal with a board of trustees weighted with Democrats who had challenged his administration.

Editorial: Solving the Property Tax Dilemma

“New York’s property tax system is arguably the most complex and confusing system in the nation.”

The statement comes from none other than Albany’s Office of Real Property Services, whose mission is “to lead the state’s efforts to support local governments in their pursuit of real property tax equity.”

That struggle, along with efforts to lessen the ever-increasing financial burden the property tax imposes on homeowners, has been waging for decades – with mediocre success.  While the STAR program and a few other legislative and procedural actions have lessened the financial strain on certain classes of homeowners, the tax load remains a heavy weight on many property owners in our three river communities as well as throughout Westchester County.