TV angels help seniors!

GREENBURGH TV ANGELS--meet 2 outstanding citizen volunteers from E Irvington who have picked up 18 TVs from homes of senior citizens/disabled residents and dropped them off at the DPW yard

TV sets have weighed as much as 150-200 pounds!

The Town of Greenburgh sanitation crews does not collect electronic waste, such as TVs, computers, printers, etc. This cost-reduction policy imposes a relatively minor burden on most households, who can deliver their electronic waste to the DPW Yard. However, for those who are elderly, disabled, or otherwise unable to carry a television to Sprain Road, the policy is a problem. To solve that problem, one couple from East Irvington, Debra Pelo and Bob Brantl, accepted my invitation to serve as volunteer TV Angels. They started picking up TVs from the homes of elderly or disabled residents in April of last year. So far they have picked up about 18 TV sets and personally carried them to the public works yard. Most of the TVs that they have delivered to the yard weigh about 30-35 pounds. However, they have picked up old TV sets that have weighed as much as 150 to 200 pounds. Their efforts are invariably met with gratitude by the residents they assist, who in many cases are replacing old, large plasma-screen cabinets and smile warmly at the willingness of these strangers to give time and risk back-ache to help out. Greenburgh residents needing the assistance of the TV Angels can contact the Department of Public Works or me at pfeiner@greenburghny.com

Debra Pelo and Bob Brantl represent the best of the best in the town. In addition to our TV angel program, the town has a snow angel program. Volunteers assist in shoveling out driveways of seniors and disabled residents. During Hurricane Sandy we started a new program: house angel program. Home owners with power offered to shelter residents without power in their homes for free! We have many other volunteers working hard to enhance your living experience in Greenburgh. Our volunteer firefighters, ambulance corp members, volunteers working as police constables, CERT team members, citizen board volunteers work long hours --usually without much recognition.

We owe a big thanks to citizens like Debra and Bob who make Greenburgh a very special place to live. A BIG THANK YOU!
PAUL FEINER
Greenburgh Town Supervisor

9500 out of power..2 con ed trucks

9,500 out of power...only 2 Con Ed crews. About half of Greenburgh is without power. About 9,500 powerless families. Con Ed has assigned two Con Ed crews to our town. Restoration of power is taking a very, very , very long time. We desperately need more Con Ed crews.


I spoke to an official at the office of Homeland Security yesterday. Also spoke with Congresswoman Lowey and wrote to the Governor’s office. GREENBURGH IS NOT GETTING THE SERVICE WE NEED TO RESTORE POWER.

This morning a resident of Fairview stopped me. His wife has LUNG CANCER. It’s cold in his house. Yesterday, I received a call from someone whose mother is terminally ill (staying at home) with BRAIN CANCER. She is also suffering because of the cold. Another man called me yesterday. A family member is recovering from brain surgery. The police chief and I stopped by at a constituents house in Hartsdale. Her father, also without power, has many illnesses including parkinson’s. Con Ed is not making special arrangements for those who are elderly, frail and very sick.



I have a suggestion—perhaps nursing homes/assisted living facilities would be willing to rent out vacant rooms short term until power is restored.



The town has opened up a 24 warming station at the Theodore Young Community Center. But, most people who are very sick don’t want to leave their homes. A new program is being set up –HOUSE/ANGELS. Cari Gardner of Hastings stopped by at my office yesterday to pick up an elderly woman who resides in Fairview and was without of power. She drove the woman to her house – and will be providing her with free shelter.



If you have a room and want to offer it to a resident – please advise me. If you want to stay with someone (provided I can find families willing to offer free room), please advise. My cell is 438 1343 –but it’s easier to e mail me: pfeiner@greenburghny.com.

PAUL FEINER

power outages...storm updates

The power outages from the hurricane have begun... Con Ed officials advise that the most effective thing you could do if you are out of power is to call their 800 number -1-800 Con Ed.

As of 3:00 P.M., the following power outages are reported throughout the unincorporated Town of Greenburgh:

· Edgemont Section;

1. Fort Hill Rd. / Paradise Dr., transformer outage, (582) customers affected.

2. Edgemont Rd. / White Oak Ln., tree down on wires, (513) customers affected.

3. Lynwood Rd. / Sherwood Pl., tree down on wires, (42) customers affected.

· Mayfair Acres Section: Chelsea Rd; tree down on wires, (82) customers affected.

Con Ed has been notified with respect to the above power outages. Con Ed customers are urged to report power outages utilizing the following contact number: 1-800-Con-Ed.

As of 3:00 P.M., Greenburgh Police report the following road closures:

1. Old Kensico Road: from Old Tarrytown Rd to Woodland Hills.

2. Ft. Hill Road: Paradise Dr. to Central Park Ave.

3. Pat Capone Road; from Pinewood to Central 7 Campus.

The Theodore Young Community Center has been designated as a short term (no lodging) shelter for people to go to. Programming and the indoor pool swimming has been suspended. We have set up at the Multi-Purpose Center for a longer period of shelter. We will activate this center as soon as someone needs to be evacuated from their home usually because of flooding or a tree into a house that makes the structure unsafe. A shelter is usually not needed because someone losses power since it usually is safer and more comfortable to remain in your home and it does not appear that cold will be a factor

From the Hartsdale Parking District..

Metered parking on the street will be suspended tomorrow (Tuesday). Metered parking in Site A and Site C is not suspended so that we can control and maintain parking for our paying permit holders. ONLY SITE A PERMIT HOLDERS can park overnight in Site A - we already have at least a dozen 24-hour permit holders who have been displaced by non-permit holders. This is creating quite a problem for us as we now have to inconvenience our paying permit holders to park in Site F rather than where they paid to park in Site A.

Please be clear when providing information to the public - EMERGENCY PARKING IS AVAILABLE TO NON-PERMIT HOLDERS IN THE SITE F GARAGE ONLY, SITE F IS LOCATED BEHIND INDIGO CHIC BOUTIQUE AT 221 EHA. IT IS BEHIND THE METRO NORTH STATION. There are still spaces available on the upper levels of Site F and it is perfectly safe to park up there.

My cell phone is 438-1343. My home phone is 478-1219. My office is 993-1545. I will try to respond to every complaint quickly..

PAUL FEINER

big belly coming to e hartsdale ave

The Greenburgh Town Board met with representatives of BIG BELLY, a company that manufactures solar waste and recycling containers placed in streets around the world. We will test the containers on E Hartsdale Ave and will also consider placing the containers at some town parks. The discussion took place at the Town Board work session -October 23rd. The discussion took place at the beginning of the meeting (which is archived on our website: www.greenburghny.com).

PAUL FEINER

• TIME Magazine: Trash Talk - June 25, 2012 The future of garbage is greener, cleaner, smarter and cheaper to pick up. And it’s here… There are 15,000 BigBelly Solar waste & recycling stations deployed around the world, and they’ve already started to transform the industry, keeping gas guzzling trucks off the street while cutting costs for cash-starved communities. So what’s the catch? Really, there isn’t one. The BigBelly system helps reduce our carbon emissions — and our vulnerability to price shocks — and also helps keep cities cleaner, eliminating overflows that attract rats and pigeons.

• Dirty to Digital: Changing the Way We Think About Waste - April 19, 2012 As part of a just-launched pilot at University of Washington, a number of the existing outdoor garbage and recycling cans on Red Square have been replaced with high-tech, automated kiosks that collect more types of materials.
  “It’s changing the way we think about waste,” said UW Recycling & Solid Waste Manager Emily Newcomer. “We expect the increased capacity and the as-needed servicing to dramatically reduce our fuel use and disposal costs while using a sustainable energy source to create these efficiencies.”

• Eliminating the Waste in Waste Collection - February 27, 2012 To provide vital public solid waste collection services in the face of rising costs, rising waste volumes and increasing budget pressures, a growing number of communities around the globe are taking an innovative, practical step to reduce the demand for waste collection trips, reaping both immediate and ongoing benefits of dramatic operating cost savings and substantial reduction in fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

• BigBelly Solar Honored as New England Clean Energy Council’s Emerging Company of the Year - November 3, 2011 NECEC recognized BigBelly Solar for its dramatic growth and substantial global influence in increasing resource efficiencies and reducing environmental impacts in the waste management industry.

• BigBelly Solar Unveils “Smart Grid for Waste & Recycling” - September 26, 2011 BigBelly Solar launched its next-generation intelligent waste & recycling collection system, the “Smart Grid for Waste & Recycling,” which features new and expanded capabilities at each layer, delivering dramatic cost savings while improving service levels.

• COVER STORY Chicago Sun-Times: City signs $2.5 million deal for solar-powered trash compactors - March 7, 2011 The City of Chicago launched an initial business district deployment of 400 solar-powered trash compactors with wireless monitoring and companion recycling units, taking a major leap forward in transforming the way the City manages public litter collection and a new recycling program downtown.

• C40 Cities: Global Best Practice for Waste – Philadelphia, USA - May 13, 2011 The BigBelly system in Philadelphia has been highlighted by the Climate Leadership Group as a global best practice in the category of managing waste. The citywide use of BigBelly Solar waste & recycling stations has resulted in annual CO2 reduction, financial savings and increased residential recycling rates.

• National League of Cities: 250-Station BigBelly Solar Deployment in Allentown PA - December 12, 2011 The City of Allentown, PA turns to the BigBelly intelligent waste & recycling collection system to save money, time and fuel. Introducing public-space recycling for the first time, the City is deploying 250 waste & recycling stations in high-traffic areas and parks around town.

• The ChronicleHerald: Recycling bins getting noticed on Halifax waterfront - February 5, 2011 Halifax’s waterfront has achieved an impressive 95% recycling rate for containers. Last September, Halifax replaced 51 regular garbage containers on the waterfront with 15 four-stream BigBelly Solar kiosks to handle discarded drink containers, paper, organics and garbage.

• BigBelly Solar Selected as a GoingGreen Global 200 Winner - September 22, 2011 “We are honored to have been selected by AlwaysOn as one of the game-changing companies driving the global greentech revolution,” said Barry Fougere, CEO of BigBelly Solar. “The innovative application of information technology and renewable energy to solve the world’s energy, environmental and financial problems is an exciting mission for our firm and the other winners.”

• College Planning & Management: Solar-Powered…Waste Collection? - April 22, 2011 Washington, DC – Georgetown University’s Solid Waste and Recycling manager has several important goals: to bring sustainability leadership to the management of waste and recycling, to do so in a highly efficient and cost-effective way, and keep to the historic campus looking constantly clean and green. An innovative solar-powered waste collection system is a unique solution.

• El Paso Inc.: City rolls out solar-powered bins Downtown - June 2, 2011 The City of El Paso began installing 73 BigBelly solar-powered trash compactors in Downtown last week, replacing 40 percent of the green rod-iron trash bins in the area. The city expects to save money by cutting collection trips, reducing fuel costs and allowing the city to reallocate staffing resources to other programs. A recent pilot program showed the collection frequency using the solar powered trash compactors was reduced to twice a week, compared to 14 times a week for a conventional bin.

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Recent News

• ThisIsBath.com: Solar bins launched to flatten waste - September 10, 2012 Bath, United Kingdom – New solar powered bins have arrived in Bath to help keep more litter off the streets. The 26 bins, which have been installed around the city centre, have eight times the capacity than the average street bin.

• Telit Magazine: “Smart Grid” for Waste & Recycling: M2M Transforms Public-Space Trash Collection Operations - April 30, 2012 The BigBelly Solar intelligent waste & recycling collection system combines a powerful management console, software-enabled network command center, and family of mix and match waste & recycling stations into a toolkit that enables municipalities, colleges & universities, government facilities and other institutional customers to reduce the operating costs associated with collection by 80 percent.

• Dirty to Digital: Changing the Way We Think About Waste - April 19, 2012 As part of a just-launched pilot at University of Washington, a number of the existing outdoor garbage and recycling cans on Red Square have been replaced with high-tech, automated kiosks that collect more types of materials.
  “It’s changing the way we think about waste,” said UW Recycling & Solid Waste Manager Emily Newcomer. “We expect the increased capacity and the as-needed servicing to dramatically reduce our fuel use and disposal costs while using a sustainable energy source to create these efficiencies.”

• Bryce Canyon National Park’s Solar Compactors - March 13, 2012 On a recent trip to Bryce Canyon National Park, I noticed that all the trash cans weren’t simply regular garbage cans, but solar powered trash compactor cans. It’s such a simple idea that makes a whole lot of sense. I hope that I end up seeing more of these, and other similar simple concepts that make sense, in other National Parks I visit.

• NewsWorks.org: Philly worker saluted for service beyond call of duty - March 11, 2012 Mayor Michael Nutter presents Carlton Williams, Deputy Commissioner of the Philadelphia Streets Department, an award for going above and beyond daily requirements. “He works with our block captains to keep our streets clean, he implemented weekly recycling and installed those fantastic BigBelly solar-powered trash cans all over the city,” Mayor Nutter said. “You know I love those BigBellies.”

• Newport Life Magazine: Crunch Time - February 29, 2012 A system that combines solar-powered remote monitoring and on-site compaction is responsible for cleaner streets, less trash truck traffic and reduced emissions downtown, allowing Waste Management to collect the 25 BigBelly Solar waste stations about twice weekly instead of twice daily as before with the 50 trashcans they replaced. “If it’s a busy summer weekend…they’ll be emptied,” says Kristin Littlefield, City of Newport, RI’s Clean City Program Coordinator. “But on a Monday, they’ll be monitored instead of sending a truck right away.”

• Virgin Islands: High-tech trash cans tell workers when they are full - February 22, 2012 BigBelly waste & recycling stations are helping make the US Virgin Islands cleaner and more efficient. Remote monitoring and on-site compaction allow the stations to be collected less frequently, freeing up manpower and resources. The stations have been approved by the appropriate Historic Preservation Commissions.

• Creative Fundraising for NKU Green to purchase BigBelly Solar Waste & Recycling System - February 15, 2012 Northern Kentucky University Dining Services is hosting a charity event on April 9 in which participants will attempt to make it into the Guinness Book of World Records. Proceeds will be going to NKU Green and will support sustainable initiatives on campus: “Specifically, to purchase BigBelly solar-powered waste and recycling stations for the campus,” said NKU Dining Services Marketing Director Janelle Craft.

should tax exempt properties pay for sanitation?

Not for profit properties are exempt from property taxes. Some communities in the region have created a separate enterprise fund and charge everyone a fee for sanitation services. The comptroller, Bart Talamani, has been looking into this concept for some time. If we collect a fee for sanitation services (instead of a tax), tax exempt properties would be charged for sanitation services--revenue that would keep taxes down. the town of Greenburgh is currently researching the number of tax exempts in town and are trying to determine the additional revenue that we would receive if this initiative is approved. An enterprise fund would also provide residents and businesses with choices: possible competition down the road. Residents and businesses would be able to easily compare the cost of our sanitation services to the private sector. What do you think? The property tax cap, which the NYS Legislature and Governor approved earlier this year, should motivate all officials to think out of the box --to look for new ways to manage government. The six villages in the town have their own sanitation services and would not be impacted by the decision of the town. However- they may be interested in this concept as well.

Associate Judge of NYS Court of Appeals to officiate at swearing in ceremony Thursday

Theodore Jones, an Associate Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals (New York’s highest court—the equivalent of the US Supreme Court for New York State) will officiate at the swearing in ceremonies of the three new Town Judges—Arlene Gordon-Oliver, Walter Rivera and Delores Scott Brathwaite this Thursday at 5 PM at Greenburgh Town Hall.
Our goal: to make Greenburgh the best local court in New York State. Hope to see you at the ceremony.
PAUL FEINER

town may require leaves to be bagged

The Greenburgh Town Board is seriously considering a change in our leaf collection process for 2012. We are considering a requirement that leaves be bagged instead of picked up at the curb. There are a number of reasons for this. Our leaf collection process has never been efficient. It’s also extremely expensive. Most years we don’t complete the leaf pick up season until early January (although most of the leaves are picked up by December. This year, because of the October storm, we are backlogged—with leaves and tree branches. As of today we probably completed half the town. Our crews are working on Saturday’s (this Saturday will be the third overtime Saturday for leaf pickup). We have sanitation and highway crews working until it gets dark every day –expanding their hours (also an overtime expense). We eliminated a recycling week to also expedite the pickup. Despite our efforts we don’t anticipate completing all the leaf/debris pickup until mid-late January (IF IT DOESN”T SNOW). If it does snow the leaves/debris will be on the ground till the spring.

I was speaking to a sanitation crew in the Mayfair/Knollwood section of town yesterday. One of the members of the crew told me that it takes 15 minutes to pick up one pile of debris.

PLEASE REVIEW THE ENCLOSED YOU TUBE SEGMENT—THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT SAFETY ISSUES. CHILDREN ACROSS THE NATION HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES PLAYING IN LEAVES.

The Villages of Ardsley & Elmsford (among other neighboring communities) have required bagging of leaves for a number of years. I spoke with Mayor Robert Williams of Elmsford last night. They were able to reduce overtime expenses (only one Saturday) and their leaf/debris season is finished.








The equipment we use damages curbs, roads and shortens the lifespan of our roadways—costing you more money because we have to repave roads and fix more curbs sooner.

The leaves that pile up for months cause drainage problems. The drains become covered—increasing the chances of flooding and becoming a dangerous condition to vehicles and pedestrians. Residents also put twigs, limbs, bricks and garbage in the loose leaf pile making it necessary for employees to take additional time to separate the leaves from other debris before taking the leaves to the local nursery.
Residents complain—neighbors leaves blow onto their property.
The leaves on the roads create safety obstructions, and limit parking.
If residents are required to bag their leaves more people would mulch their leaves. Mulching leaves is VERY INEXPENSIVE and is good for the lawns. There is absolutely no reason why landscapers should not mulch leaves. We are throwing away your tax dollars on a service that could be cut back with little impact to you and your family. I have received many e mails (which I would be happy to share with you) from residents who have had very positive experiences with mulching over the years.
I attended a meeting of the Town Supervisors Association on Monday. Many of the Supervisors complain that landscapers are illegally dumping piles of leaves/debris on the streets when no one is looking –because it saves them money. If leaves are bagged fewer leaves from other localities will be illegally dumped in our town. Your tax dollars are going to pick up some leaves and debris from other localities—in all probability.
What do you think? Our final budget hearing is tonight.
PAUL FEINER
• Fall Driving Safety Tips
safety.lovetoknow.com › ... › Safety › Personal Safety and ProtectionCached - Similar
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A pile of leaves raked to the side of the road is an inviting place to a child. Children enjoy jumping into the leaf piles or burrowing down into them and hiding. ...
• Kid Dying In Leaf Pile - YouTube



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www.youtube.com/watch?v=8b9GintPlxAOct 31, 2010 - 34 sec - Uploaded by ross44444444
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• Mother Warns Parents After Daughter Killed In Leaf Pile - Boston ...
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Nov 5, 2004 – Natalie Gravel Died After Father Accidentally Ran Her Over ... message for parents Friday -- always know where your children are playing. ... The little girl was playing in a pile of leaves with a friend Wednesday evening, when ...