To “Citizens to be Heard” a City activist group.

Wow, don’t understand what this group’s purpose is for anymore. Got attacked on their Facbook Group for wanting my neighborhood of Eastview to be as nice as the rest of the City. It is full of shopping carts, traffic from car dealer, litter, dumped items, storm drains filled with debris and lots of noise by barking dogs, cars zooming down the hill and businesses like the diner that don’t care that they are stinking up the air because they do not properly filter their air vents. My concerns were called petty. This was compared to saving one tree at WPHS or about someone wanting to find a contractor?

Is the Citizens to be Heard Group for people who want to promote their businesses or to find a missing dog by equating it to looking for a person? By the way, Eastview has lost a number of its trees one that was well over a hundred years old due to a strange lighting hail storm. But, other plants and trees came down just because the city wanted them down. And, they were never replaced. Our trees and bushes are home to hundreds of birds and other creatures.

I thought when I met the group at City Hall when I went to a hearing about The Collection that many on my street were against though they remained silent and City just approved anyway, I found a place to have a voice. But, instead I got called a Karen though the definition doesn’t fit me and there were more important things to complain about than a clean environment.

I also was concerned about our City that is losing its historic character one building at a time. When I wrote about what was still here from our past, I was amazed at how much was here but when I published my book after starting a blog in 2012, I had no idea how many of our older buildings would be knocked down to be replaced with high rise luxury rentals where tenants have little voice in how their buildings are run. Don’t want to leave White Plains as many suggested I do just cause I complained. Should we all just run away when we can’t improve things or make our lives better? Retired Special Educator who spent 31.5 years trying to educate the City’s forgotten but when I moved her could not afford a house. I just moved my mother to The Bristal and have lived in two neighborhoods.

Sadly, the block that I lived on in the Highlands on Davis from 1980 to 1988 but frequently go to my doctors has also become an ugly mess of litter, dog feces and broken sidewalks. The hospital took over a house and made it into a parking lot and the hospital hasn’t put in enough parking so it is impossible to find parking on the street with cars parking in driveways. But, this seems to be okay with some and my wanting our City to be cleaner, less noisy and less polluted isn’t.

What is the purpose of this Group?

I guess, I will just continue to go as an individual to make changes in our City. And, they are not just cosmetic. These are a few of the things that got done after complaining to City.

1. Replacing benches for Vogt and Anderson memorials on City land along Westchester Ave from Franklin and Main St. Had to go through Beautification Foundation, and City with lots of help from Commissioner Bass of Rec/Parks. I paid for 3 benches.
2. Redoing Tibbits park pathway around Civil War Memorial (Met with Commissioner Bass and Assistant Commissioner of Public Works to fix area that was damaged and erosion was being caused by snowplows. Fixing memorial plaque for Anderson by benches in front of Broadpark Lodge.
3. Tearing down of former Key Fords that was falling down and fencing to Franklin Lot was damaged.
4. Reporting zombie property to NY that goes from Amherst to Mitchell Place. Removal of garden, debris and clipping of bushes. Had to keep on reporting problems on sidewalk and fencing.
5. Putting in new trees on Main St that were dead when new sidewalk went in with building of Cambria Hotel.
6. Accessible Farmer’s Market. When market opened on Court St, there were vans and barriers not allowing people in wheel chairs to get into market. Took pictures and sent to Rec/Parks and problem was fixed. When block was done, accessibility was a factor in putting in ramps to get to street beyond barriers.
7. Stopping City workers from using gas blowers and blowing everything into street. Galleria and Library were two areas that were problematic.
8. Taking down old signs for Grove St on Dr MLK Jr Boulevard.
9. Improving crosswalk area on Franklin at top of hill by Westchester Av. Trimming back bush and removing parking spot. Bush was eventually removed as it died.
10. Shoveling of snow of City sidewalks by Main St and Westchester Ave and near Franklin. Not always done.
11. Taking down sign in land across from Tibbits from Franklin and Main along Westchester Ave that said Bikes yield to peds. Bikes were not allowed on sidewalks. Since then a sign for this was placed by crosswalk on Franklin with Westchester Ave intersection.
12. Ask for lines on roads and for repaving. Maple Ave from Bloomingdale Rd and Mamaroneck got redone. S. Kensico got a repave yet now needs another. Repaving of Bloomingdale Rd but sadly needs a redo with all the traffic. Ask for crosswalks to be marked but not done yet.
13. Replacing and fixing crosswalk buttons for crossing: Maple crossing with Paulding, Hamiliton and EJ Conroy, Westchester Ave and Paulding.
14. Reported to NY State during pandemic 2020 with homeless sleeping at shelters when essential workers needed them. One was urinating on sidewalk by Nordstrom and leaving litter. City has 3 shelters and most of these people were women. We have a woman shelter at Grace Church. No one should be sleeping outside. Women were doing so during day as well as night.
15. Removing abandoned bikes on Mamaroneck Ave and Main St as well as other streets.

If one does not complain directly to City, nothing changes. Report individual complaints with very specific info on City system for reporting complaints, used email and send pictures and call. Calling is often difficult and do not always get a great reaction or response. One woman in Parking informed me that I was correct that parking was not being enforced on my block of Franklin on weekends and rarely on weekdays. Police also were not ticketing cars at night but this issue is still on going. Parking on street does not allow for cleaning and street is horrible with litter in storm drains and dumped on sidewalks from parkers.

Voting alone will not change things and most people do not vote. Only about 6 thousand vote in this community of 57,000 or more. People who do not live in City can also report issues. Many work here.

If you are having trouble with your building not doing repairs etc, contact the Building Department. They did help me and I had damage from leaking not fixed by building not just inside but on outside where the water was entering.