Running to Put an End to One-Party Rule in Yorktown
Yorktown has urgent needs that are not being met by the Town’s current one-party Board. The Town is failing to address our crumbling infrastructure and the effects of a warming climate. And, if this isn’t bad enough, our Town Board votes over and over to shift the tax burden for commercial development onto residential taxpayers.
The 2024 approved Town budget does not address the urgent needs of the Town. Yorktown has $47.8 million in its Fund Balance, well above recommended levels. Of that, $27 million is available for immediate and long-term projects, including improving the Town’s infrastructure and advancing its clean energy transition.
Within the first 100 days of my administration, I commit to taking these crucial steps:
Transparency and Accountability
- Ensure the current law clearly prohibits favoritism in all Town contracts.
- Hold public reviews of the existing ethics law, including recommendations by the Ethics Board from 2022, within three months
- Hold a Town Board vote on amending the law, as appropriate, based on recommendations and subsequent review, within six months
Responsible Development
- Immediately reevaluate the 485-b Tax Exemptions Business Improvement Law to ensure the Town is not giving away tax incentives, shifting the tax burden for commercial development onto residential taxpayers
- Promote the active use of commercial spaces and drive economic revitalization by discouraging landlords from keeping commercial units vacant through local measures to counteract state tax write-offs
- Host an economic summit to showcase the advantages of Yorktown and our five hamlets
- Invite regional businesses, incubator programs, and developers who work with new and growing businesses in the Hudson Valley to share ideas about redevelopment of vacant storefronts
- Explore ways to tap into NY State incentives for local development
Infrastructure Improvements
- Evaluate Yorktown’s needs, develop a strategy to upgrade our aging water mains and sewer systems and allocate monies from the fund balance to advance this initiative
- Collaborate with regional planning agencies to identify future flood risks and develop a plan to support residents including stream maintenance on Town property
- Develop a wetlands maintenance program to address future flooding, expand and support wetlands, and provide green space for recreation and flood mitigation
- Identify potential funding sources, such as NYS’s Environmental Bond Act, NYS DEP WQIP or WIIA Grants, or the Federal Inflation Reduction Act
- Put the Town’s Tree Fund to use as intended. There is currently no plan to invest the money collected to replace removed trees
Clean Energy Transition
- Acknowledge the science of climate change and our responsibility to reduce fossil fuel consumption.
- Commit to transitioning Yorktown’s Town buildings and facilities to cleaner energy options
- Create a plan to transition to plugin hybrid electric cars and review heating, cooling and hot water needs and opportunities to transition to ground or air-sourced heat pumps. By the end of year one, we will have plans to cover our roofs and parking lots with solar panels and charging stations to save money and the planet
- Reengage with our Climate Smart Communities Task Force and collaborative partners such as Sustainable Westchester, Yorktown 100, and other organizations who are focused on clean energy initiatives
- Install electric charging stations on Town property to generate revenue and allow Town residents to transition to EVs
Community
- For community members who are unable to attend Town Board meetings, provide a video conference link to allow residents to participate remotely in Courtesy of the Floor
- Support the Yorktown Town Clerk’s Senior ID program expansion to Veterans and provide emergency contact IDs