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It was the battle of the jumpy castles. One bigger than the other, this writer counted at least six of the blow-up beasts today at the Rye Merchant Association's Purchase Street Carnival.
In a reminder why Rye is a great city for families, the Merchant Association put on a great show with rides, freebies and a farmer's market along Purchase Street in Downtown Rye. Enjoy the full photo album here.
Has Santa's sponsor been hit by sub-prime mortgage woes too? The Rye Merchants Association staged its annual holiday shopping event along Purchase Street in downtown Rye today. The event was packed with families and many dueling jumpy castles.
But notably absent was Santa. Last year, local real estate brokerage Sotheby's sponsored Santa, flying Claus and at least one Elf decked out in green sequins in from the North Pole for the Purchase Street fete--see the 2006 photo.
Has Sotheby's gone soft? Has this real estate giant gone sub-prime? Can't foot the Claus contract for 2007? Did Claus and the Elf want too rich a contract to fly down to the Soundshore for the day? Maybe the Claus clan has been getting contract advice from Rye's Alex Rodriguez and asked for a $250 million pay day?
Coldwell Banker arranges for the life size electric train. Houlihan Lawrence forks over for horse drawn carriage.
But Sotheby's only had a carnival shanty filled with video games.
My Christmas list for 2007: Rye signs Santa for 2008.
Garden City Long Island developer Vince Polimeri wants to drive a truck under your front lawn. Actually, we wants to drive thousands of trucks under lots of front lawns in Rye, New York. Every day. Really.
Polimeri has proposed building a $10 billion dollar vehicle tunnel under the Long Island Sound connecting Syosset on Long Island and Rye in Westchester. The privately financed toll road would carry up to 80,000 vehicles daily, primarily trucks paying a toll of $100 one-way. Cars would pay $25 one-way. 
An executive from project engineering firm Hatch Mott MacDonald, Randy Essex, told Long Island Newday that the tunnel would be used primarily by truck traffic moving from the Island to update New York or Connecticut. All vehicles exiting the northbound side of the tunnel would exit at and connect to the intersection of Interstate I-95 and Interstate I-287 in Rye.
The project's Web site describes the potential location for the tunnel's "North Portal" in Rye (italics added):
"The north portal and facilities would be located in the vicinity of the I-95 and I-287 interchange in Rye, Westchester County, NY. The engineering of the portal location and various connections to the interstate highways is more challenging than for the south portal due to the uneven topography and current interchange configuration. There are several alternative configurations to successfully achieving the required connections, each having advantages and disadvantages with respect to the level of construction complexity, temporary impacts to existing interstate and local traffic and property taking and land acquisition."
Polimeri and his PR team at Rubenstein Associates might want to try driving from Rye up I-95 to Greenwich or across I-287 to Tarrytown and across the Tappan Zee bridge on a weekday morning. It is already a disaster. Note to self: invest in parking lots.
Rye Mayor Otis agrees. Last Wednesday Otis told The Journal News: "I believe this proposal would have a devastating impact on all of Westchester by clogging the I-287 corridor and I-95 to parking-lot conditions."
Not a New Idea
Proposals for links across the Long Island Sound are not new. The idea was first proposed in 1957 by Charles Sells, a former New York State Public Works Commissioner and founder of the eponymous engineering firm that authored the Sells Report about Rye's April flooding. Sells proposed an over water bridge, pictured here. 
According to Newsday, "Plans for a bridge between Bayville and Rye were killed in 1973 after studies showed it would generate at least as much traffic as it would divert."
MyRye.com will look at various people and issues around the Cross Sound Link Project in the coming weeks, including:
Rye Recreation's 31st Annual Turkey Trot is this Saturday.
All the action is at Rye Recreation Park across from the Midland School this Saturday, November 24th. On-site registration starts at 8am. The 1 mile "fun run" starts at 9:30am and the 3.1 and 5.2 mile race / walks start at 10am. There is also a PAWS (dog) walk that starts at 9am.
Resources:
Save money, stop changing light bulbs all the time and reduce CO2 emissions, all in one fell swoop.
I was in Brewer's Hardware on the Post Road in Mamaroneck a couple weekends ago to buy a couple screws for a project and noticed they now stock compact fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs. I tried these bulbs years ago when they were bulkier, more expensive and the light output was, well, fluorescent.
You've come a long way, baby.
We have replaced about 1/3 of the light bulbs in our house and this GE Energy-Smart CFL Savings Calculator (note ConEd charges $0.16/kilowatt hour and the default setting on this calculator is $0.10/kilowatt hour) tells me after installing just 19 light bulbs we will save $233 annually or $1,281 over the lifetime of the 19 bulbs. And this CFL savings calculator from Environmental Defense tells me by replacing one single 60W bulb with a CFL bulb we will prevent 414 pounds of C02 from being released. Cool.
If you are not sure or just want to try CFL bulbs, I recommend starting with buying 5-10 compact 13W, 20W and 27W fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs designed to replace the old 60W, 75W and 100W varieties and try these in various high traffic areas in your home where you tend to leave the lights on for an extended time.
Here are a couple things I have learned switching over, which will help anyone considering the switch:
Depending on the CFL bulb, it will last 4-9 years. When the bulb does finally give out, it must be disposed of as hazardous material (ie not in household trash) because of its mercury content. You can bring these to one of Westchester County's household chemical clean-up days (there is usually one at Rye Playland in May and again in November).
GE offers some good background on CFL bulbs including common questions & answers.
I found it helpful to buy our CFL bulbs at Brewer's so I could exchange things easily, but here are a couple online stores I found.
We have not tried these online retailers, so let us know about your experience. Good luck!
Yes, that's right.
In a follow-up to our story on Saturday on Merrill Lynch's new CEO and local resident John Thain, it turns out mystery deepens. Is Thain a Rye Garnet, Harrison Huskie or a Blind Brook (Rye Brook) Trojan?
That's because Thain's landholdings, while primarily in Rye City and Harrison, also cross over into Rye Brook. All this according to a story published by James Doran in the Evening Standard of London on the 16th:
"The size of his private home in Rye, a country village in New York's Westchester County, is testament to that. It is so big, in fact, that he pays property taxes in excess of $150,000 a year in two different towns - Harrison and the City of Rye. The property is so big that it also sneaks across the boundary of Rye Brook, another village.
The $10 million mansion, in at least 10 acres of grounds, includes a small farm and several beehives, from which Thain used to collect honey with his youngest son each morning. It has 14 bedrooms and two swimming pools. A river runs through his back garden, feeding a lake stocked with fish."
The river referenced in the story is the Blind Brook. The Thain property is downstream from Kip Konigsberg's pending Bowman Avenue development, the Bowman Avenue dam and I-287 which means back in April during the flood Thain saw some serious white water on its way to flood Indian Village, Purchase Street, Mead Place and the rest of Rye.
Maybe the Rye Flood Action Committee should call up Thain and ask if he wants to expand that lake of his to retain more water.
Alex Rodriguez may be staying in Rye after all. A-Rod as been renting on Parsonage Point with his wife Cynthia and daughter Natasha Alexander, who turns four years old today. The Rodriguezes are also expecting a second child.
A-Rod may be Rye's own Stay-Rod in part because of the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett. As The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, A-Rod blew off his agent Scott Boras and called the Oracle to ask for help resuscitating talks with the Yankees:
"...a worried Mr. Rodriguez called Mr. Buffett, say people familiar with the matter. The two had become friends a few years ago, after the slugger flew to Omaha to meet with the investing guru and rabid baseball fan. After that, the two met socially several more times, say the people familiar with the matter. Signifying their mutual admiration, an autographed Rodriguez jersey hangs at Berkshire Hathaway's Omaha headquarters."
Word is with Warren's help and some help from Goldman Sachs, A-Rod may walk away with a 10-year, $275 million dollar contract with the Bronx Bombers.
For the Oracle, he now has a second place to stay in Rye. Billionaire and Island Drive resident David Gottesman is a Buffett pal and Berkshire board member. Now just a short drive up Manursing Drive and across Forest Avenue will bring Warren to A-Rod's waterfront pad on Parsonage Point.
Some real estate agent in Rye is going to make a killing selling A-Rod his house on Parsonage or an equivalent. He is currently renting.
Unless you live under a rock, you know Rye resident John Thain, CEO of the New York Stock Exchange and former president and COO of Goldman Sachs, has taken a new job as CEO of Merrill Lynch. When The New York Times reported the story on Thursday, it said:
"Merrill directors personally wooed Mr. Thain at his home in Rye, N.Y. At 5 p.m. Sunday, Ann N. Reese, a Merrill director who lives nearby, stopped by his house for a cup of English tea."
Reese, the Executive Director of the Center of Adoption Policy, and a 25 year financial industry veteran including time at private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, lives with her husband Stanley and their children on Rye's Kirby Lane.
But what about Thain?
Is John Thain a Rye Garnet or does he only play one in the media? In what will be upsetting to Dino Garr and Rye football fans, Thain may in fact be a Harrison Huskie.
Thain apparently owns one of the largest private land holdings in the area--a sprawling 25 acre compound so expansive the Thain family shuttles around the property on a golf cart.
Besides The York York Times reporting the Rye residency, Thain himself reports a 350 Purchase Street Rye address to the Federal Election Commission and one of his daughters reports Rye as her hometown on a Yale University web site.
But upon further investigation, available property records for at least two separate land holdings totaling 13.6 acres show Thain paying taxes to Harrison, not Rye:
Other property records were not immediately available. A third address on record, 401 Purchase Street, is described as a tax billing address in Rye, but on Google maps and on the Westchester County GIS map above, all three available Thain addresses show up in Harrison, not Rye.
Is John Thain a Rye Garnet or Harrison Huskie?
You decide!
See our UPDATE to this story.
Single Family Homes in Rye (week ending 11/5/07):
-On the market: 59
- In contract: 9
Shop Talk
One hundred single family homes have sold in Rye in the past six months, compared to 99 during the same time period last year. 26% of the sales were under $1,000,000 for an average sales price of $843,281. In the $1,000,000+ category, there have been 74 sales, with an average price of $2,222,973.
*Data per WPMLS 5/5/07-11/05/07 RCSD & RNSD only.
On the Market: The Value of the Rye Golf Club
I was walking with my dog alongside the path of the Rye Golf Club course the other day, now that the weather has gotten colder and the golfers less frequent. I have a soft spot in my heart for for Rye Golf. Although I am not much of a golfer myself, my parents met playing golf and it was always a part of my family life growing up. I held my wedding reception at RGC's Whitby Castle long before I lived in the neighborhood, and as a real estate agent, I truly appreciate what an advantage it is to have this club as an asset to Rye residents. The club's full golf course and pool facilities play a significant part in supporting our property values.
The privately owned Rye Woods Golf Club was purchased by the City of Rye in 1965, primarily for residents, yet does not receive any financial support from the city. It is operated as a municipally owned member only club supported by user fees.
Rye City residents all have the opportunity to join while non-residents may participate in a lottery for remaining spots. The Rye Golf Club offers a variety of memberships:
There are other membership categories for weekday golf, juniors and a new category for seniors. The restaurant at Whitby Castle is open to the public.
Whitby Castle was built in 1853 as a private residence and designed by the prominent architect Alexander Jackson Davis, who designed Lyndhurst Mansion in Tarrytown.
Although other communities along the Sound Shore offer public beach access or a town pool facility, Rye is unique to have a 127 acre golf course as well. Lake Isle in Eastchester - not on the water- is one of the few communities with a similar setup.
The golf course also makes for a great area for sledding and cross country skiing in winter!
As I mentioned in last month's post (A Great View for Less), having the Rye Golf Club as a backdrop for many of our local streets lends an aura of peace and serenity to the neighborhood and serves as a haven for natural wildlife. I currently have a house listed at 9 Eldredge Court that backs up to the course, and during a public open house on a recent Sunday, I stood transfixed for a moment looking out the kitchen window at the array of fall colors and genteel golfers on the 3rd hole. I know RGC played into my decision to choose Rye over surrounding communities when I moved here from Port Chester in 1994, and continues to be a factor for my clients to consider when choosing Rye.
Written by Judy Croughan, Licensed Real Estate Salesperson, Coldwell Banker/ Country Properties.
Your Name: Gary Olivier
Your Day Job: My current assignment is to the Rye Police Detective Division. Prior to this, I was RPD Marine Unit C/O since 2000. The unit staff consisted of myself and 5 seasonal Bay Constables. The majority of them are retired or former law enforcement officers.
MyRye.com: A 23 year veteran of the Rye Police, you were recently promoted to the rank of Detective. Congratulations. It sounds as if you like your job.
Yes. Being a detective was something I always wanted to do in a police department. It is a privilege to be assigned to the Detective Division.
You are responsible for patrolling the 14 miles of Rye coastline on the Long Island Sound—responding to emergencies, enforcing New York State conservation and navigation law, as well as City of Rye statutes relating to waterways. What are the three most common enforcement actions you work on?
1. Enforcement of safety rule according to the NY State Navigation law. e.g. equipment violations, operating violations, and moving violations.
2. Environmental conservation enforcement in which we arrest persons for possessing over the limit/short fish, crustaceans, pollution control, sewage discharge, duck hunting, etc.
3. Boating while intoxicated. Fortunately in the past several years our marine unit has been effective in educating the public about BWI, so we have not had many problems regarding same.
You manage five seasonal Bay Constables, a job that has its origins in the early 1800s in the eastern towns of Long Island when bay constables were elected to two year terms to protect the shell fish beds on the Great Southbay.
Two years before you joined the department, in 1982, the position of Bay constable was created by the Rye City Council for the purpose of enforcement of the conservation laws related to fish and wild life and water fowl hunting. Who are these guys, what qualities do you look for in a constable and where can you find one in the off season?
What we have found that serves the unit best is to solicit retired or prior law enforcement persons. Of course it’s better if they have prior boating experience, but we will train the right candidate. Our unit consists of a retired Bay Constable LT from Mamaroneck, a retired NYC Detective, a former Yonkers Raceway Police officer, a retired Port Chester Harbor Master and a member of our Auxiliary Police Unit in Rye -- Andrew Landau, Patrick Early, Larry Miano, Bruce Caldwell and Ronald Olivier.
As the one full time marine officer, are you on the water year round?
Our harbor gets ice locked so we remove our primary patrol vessel form the water in late December. We have the ability to respond year round by the use of our inflatable vessel, (Rye PB 3), which is ready 24/7 to go. We patrol in all weather conditions. We place an emphasis on patrolling in bad weather. That’s when people get in trouble and really need you. Not when it’s 72 and sunny.
How do you interact with New York State Econ officers, Coast Guard and other municipal marine officers from the Sound Shore such as Portchester, Greenwich , Mamaroneck and Larchmont?
We have conducted joint training sessions with units from the USCG Aux, Stamford PD, Mamaroneck, USCG, Greenwich and Port Chester. Out there you need joint cooperation because there are not a lot of police out there. We need each other out there.
Some of the training items have been in climate weather navigation, zero visibility navigation, search and rescue, fire fighting etc.
Do you ever work with community and environmental groups such as Terry Backer’s Soundkeeper group?
Not directly. But we are here to assist whichever entity requests. If of course, it is within our ability and mission statement to do so.
Does the marine unit respond to flooding within Rye ? Did you respond to the April 15th flood with your 12’ Mercury inflatable, one of the three marine crafts under your supervision?
Yes. Myself and two of our full time officers responded with the Mercury. We responded as over town, but primarily in the Indian Village are. Croton Falls Fire Department responded and greatly assisted us with their inflatable. Fire Fighter Mike Outhouse of Croton Falls is a former member of our marine unit and has been trained in flood rescues.
Unfortunately, we do not have the Boston Whaler anymore. It was in dilapidated condition and un seaworthy. It has not been replaced. We are currently down to the Glacier Bay and the Mercury inflatable.
What are your three favorite restaurants in Rye that deliver?
1. Piazza Pizza. 520 Milton Road, Rye 921-4444. Excellent dinners and fast food. Grilled Chicken with Broccoli is my favorite.
2. Sunrise Pizza. 7 Purdy Avenue, Rye 967-8696. His chicken soup is great and gorgonzola salad.
3. Don’t have a third.
Where do you live in Rye?
I don’t live in Rye . I did attend Rye schools, graduated in 1980.
Tell us your contact information:
Your web site: Rye City Police Marine Division
Your phone: 914-967-1234 ext 307
Your email address: golivier (AT) ryepd.ryeny.gov
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