Eastchester REVIEW THE
February 16, 2018 | Vol. 6, Number 7 | www.eastchesterreview.com
Killian gets GOP nomination for Senate By JAMES PERO Staff Writer
Boundless Adventures, an aerial outdoor park with several obstacle courses, will open its first New York state location in Harrison this month. For story, see page 6. Photo courtesy Lorrie Funtleyder
Latimer approves gun show ban on county property By FRANCO FINO Staff Writer Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat, has signed a bill into law that would prevent gun shows from being held on county-owned property. The approval comes just after the Westchester County Board of Legislators, BOL, passed the bill in a 12-5 party line vote on Feb. 5. With his signature, county officials have officially codified an existing executive order to ban gun shows on county property that Latimer made earlier this year just days into taking office as county executive. “There is quite a debate in society at large about the roles of
guns and the role that guns have played in the violent deaths of individuals,” Latimer said during a press conference. “So to me, it’s very logical to say, as was said by [former County Executive] Andy Spano almost 20 years ago, that this type of show is not appropriate in this type of facility.” Gun shows on county-owned property were previously banned after the shooting that took place at Colorado’s Columbine High School in 1999, in which 13 people were killed by two students. After the incident, Spano, a Democrat, issued an executive order banning gun shows. In 2010, former County Executive Rob Astorino, a Republican, lifted Spano’s executive or-
Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat, has signed a bill into law that was approved by the county Board of Legislators on Feb. 5, banning gun shows on county-owned property. Photo courtesy Wikipedia.org
der, which allowed for gun shows to be held on Westchester public properties once again. A show
was scheduled to occur at the county center in 2013, but was cancelled after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in 2012. Last year, the BOL passed legislation in a 9-8 vote banning gun shows on county-owned property; however, the bill failed to capture a supermajority approval and was vetoed by Astorino. The vote was sparked by a gun show that occurred at the county center in January 2017. With the Legislature’s bill becoming law, current and future county executives can no longer lift the ban without the Legislature’s vote of approval. CONTACT; franco@hometwn.com
With the Republican nomination in the rearview, former Rye City Councilwoman Julie Killian will prepare to take on Democratic candidate and state Assemblywoman Shelley Mayer in an upcoming special election for a crucial state Senate seat. On Feb. 7, Killian won the nomination in a vote by Republican district leaders over candidate Dan Schorr, a former inspector general in Yonkers and previous candidate for Westchester district attorney. Both Schorr and Sarmad Khojasteh, who stepped aside just days prior to the nomination process, have pledged their support for Killian. The nomination will kickstart Killian’s second attempt to win the 37th District state Senate seat after a failed bid to unseat current Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Democrat, in 2016. Because of a special election, there will be no primary following the nomination process. Similar to her bid in 2016, Killian—who served on the Rye City Council between 2012 and 2017—will run on a platform of reform and bucking an Albany establishment through term limits and a redistribution of school aid. Both Democrats and Republicans consider the open seat— which was vacated by Latimer, who assumed his role as county executive in January—to be a critical one as Republicans currently maintain just a one-seat majority in the state Senate. In New York, Democrats currently control the Assembly and governorship. While Killian will position herself as an alternative to establishment politicians, Mayer will look to capitalize on a reinvigorated Democratic voting base, fueled in large part by opposition to President Donald Trump, that prompted an influx of Democrat-
Former Rye City Councilwoman Julie Killian, a Republican, will go head-to-head against state Assemblywoman Shelley Mayer, a Democrat, for the vacant District 37 state Senate seat after receiving the nomination from her party this week. File photo
ic votes across the county in November. The resurgence catapulted Latimer and local Democrats across the county to a convincing win over seven-year incumbent County Executive Rob Astorino, a Republican, and established a new super majority of Democrats in the county’s Board of Legislators. Both candidates will look to establish a quick presence in an expedited race that will be decided in a special election on April 24th, a date decided by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, earlier this year. The seat is one of two open seats in the state Senate and the winners will face a quick re-election turn around in November when state legislators will run for a new two-year term. The 37th Senate District encompasses the cities of Yonkers, White Plains, New Rochelle and Rye; the towns of Eastchester, Harrison, Mamaroneck, Rye, Bedford and North Castle; and the villages of Harrison, Bronxville, Tuckahoe, Mamaroneck, Larchmont, Rye Brook and Port Chester. Killian could not be reached for comment as of press time. CONTACT: james@hometwn.com