Letter to the Editor: Claire Pizzuti for Fairview Fire Commission in Greenburgh

To the Editor:

The Fairview Fire Monitors Committee has endorsed Claire Pizzuti, a lawyer and business woman, for election to the Fairview Board of Fire Commissioners in Greenburgh. The election will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 9 from 3 to 9 p.m. at fire headquarters, 15 Rosemont Blvd., and Fire Station 2 on the corner of Dobbs Ferry and Worthington Roads.

She is seeking the seat of Commissioner Fred Calaicone who is not seeking re-election.

“Ms. Pizzuti is committed to protecting taxpayers and providing transparency in the decisions of the fire commissioners who have kept the community in the dark while it has acted with impunity in raising taxes, becoming one of the costliest of the 880 independent fire districts in the state,” the Monitors Committee stated.

“She has an excellent record as a civic volunteer in Greenburgh during her residency of more than 30 years, serving, among other things, as sergeant with both the Greenburgh Auxiliary Police and Greenburgh Community Emergency Response Team. She is on the board and treasurer of Hilltop Farms Association and has attended all public meetings of the fire district since taxpayers banded together,” according to Milton Hoffman and Dennis Kalian, coordinators for the Monitors Committee.

The Monitors Committee was created nine months ago by district residents outraged by escalating, exorbitant property taxes and secrecy by the commissioners. In the past two years the Fairview District budget leaped to $12.4 million, a gain of $1.5 million with successive tax hikes of 6 and 5.7 percent. Yet the 45 man department continues to be understaffed, according to the committee.

Patch file photo.