Scrutiny Mounts for $1 Million Open Space Donation in Greenburgh

How Greenburgh should handle a donation of $1 million to buy open space in the area is drawing some scrutiny.

Town Supervisor Paul Feiner has asked the Ethics Board to review the donation and the agreement to buy land, which was reached in 2009. Officials negotiated the deal to help protect open space in the area from development.

The move to ask for the review was partially prompted by the concerns of Edgemont resident Bob Bernstein, who has take to the Edgemont Community Council Facebook page to question the deal.

According to The Journal News, Greenburgh must approve a purchase of more than 28 acres in Tarrytown under the deal, and Feiner wants to then transfer maintenance responsibilities to the Village. The parcel is next to more than 200 acres in East Irvington slated for future development.

Below is the text of an email Feiner sent to the Ethics Board this week requesting the review:

From: Paul Feiner

Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2014 11:42 PM

To: Carol Sarcinella; jackmc1@optonline.net

Cc: Town Board; Townclerk; Doris Friedman; Glenn Eisen; Hopkins, Thomas; Joseph Malara; ‘Danny Gold’; Timothy Lewis

Subject: RE: time sensitive

I would like to formally request that the Ethics Board review the following matter and issue an opinion. I would be happy to attend your meeting to answer any questions.

I hope that the Ethics Board will support the request to accept the one million dollar donation. If we don’t accept the donation the developer gets to keep the money according to the terms of the agreement.

I would like to emphasize that no member of the Town Board or town officials were aware of the agreement between the Avalon and the E Irvington civic association until recently. We were not influenced in any way by their donation since we were not aware of it.

The Town Board must make a decision before the end of September--or we lose the donation.

> On Wednesday’s agenda of the Town Board (pursuant to an agreement

> with the E Irvington civic association and Avalon Bay) there is

> a resolution accepting a one million dollar donation from Avalon

> Bay for the purchase of almost 28 acres of open space near

> Taxter Ridge park. The matter was held over. Although the Town Board approved the Avalon

> Bay applications no member of the Town Board (including myself)

> was aware of the agreement between the E Irvington civic

> association and Avalon Bay communities for a 1 million dollar

> donation to be made to mitigate the impacts of the multifamily

> project known as Avalon Green II.

>

> No member of the Town Board or staff was aware that the million

> dollars was offered prior to approvals being granted. No member

> of the Board solicited any donations directly or indirectly. And

> the chair of the E Irvington civic association did not

> communicate the agreement to town officials until a few weeks ago.

>

> The Town Board is being asked to accept the donation of one

> million dollars according to the terms of the agreement that the

> E Irvington Civic Association and Avalon Bay communities made.

> If the Town Board rejects the one million dollars than the

> money offered for the purchase of parkland will be withdrawn and

> the town will not be able to purchase the parkland. In addition,

> Avalon will be able to keep the money for themselves. The

> proposed agreement-according to Danny Gold (head of E Irvington

> Civic Association) must be endorsed by the Town Board no later

> than October 1st. If we do not express support for the purchase

> by October 1st the one million is lost.

>

> The Town Board recently was in contact with the village of

> Tarrytown. We will be turning over the property to Tarrytown and

> they will maintain the property at no cost to unincorporated

> taxpayers. The town will never get title to the property. I

> personally do not believe that we are violating section 570-4 or

> any provision of the ethics code. I think it is important for

> the Ethics Board to know that no member of the Board could be

> influenced or was influenced by the gift in the performance of

> our official duties because we were not aware of the gift before

> endorsing the proposal.> PAUL FEINER

> Greenburgh Town Supervisor