Mamaroneck REVIEW THE
June 10, 2016 | Vol. 4, Number 24 | www.mamaroneckreview.com
COUNTING DOWN
The village of Mamaroneck is piloting four different types of parking meters along Mamaroneck Avenue in an effort to find the right fit. The goal, according to village officials, is to select a meter by August. For more, see page 6. File photo
Lorenzen Park ready to play ball with 2 new fields By JAMES PERO Staff Writer A $1.6 million project to add two new baseball fields to the village of Larchmont’s Lorenzen Park will move forward after several years of planning and fundraising. According to the plans, both fields will be grass, and one will be sized for little league base-
ball while the other will be large enough for softball and minor leagues. Currently, the park features just one little league-sized baseball field with ample unused space abutting. The funds will also pay for the addition of new electronic scoreboards, benches, spectator seating and a concession stand. The project, which Village
Administrator Justin Datino said has been in the works for about five years, comes as a welcome addition to Larchmont’s Recreation Department, which, in the 1990s, lost several playable fields in the area due to the expansion of Hommocks Middle School and Mamaroneck Avenue School buildings. Most of the funding for the project—aside from $135,000
that the village used for planning and a $250,000 state grant secured by Assemblyman Steve Otis, a Rye Democrat—was raised by the organization Fields for Kids, which focuses on providing recreation fields for students in Larchmont and Mamaroneck. According to Jim Hanley, president of Fields for Kids, FIELDS continued on page 7
Village Dems to run full slate, 2 newcomers By COREY STOCKTON and SIBYLLA CHIPAZIWA Review Staff The Mamaroneck Village Democratic Committee announced a full slate—incumbent Trustee Leon Potok and two newcomers—for the three village trustee seats up for election in November. Keith Waitt and Victor Tafur will be joining Potok on the November ballot. Potok, who will be seeking his third term on the village Board of Trustees, told the Review that he feels he has earned respect from the volunteer board and committees in the village and has learned how to mobilize resources for the better of the community through his nearfour years in elected office. “Experience counts,” the trustee said. “You get to learn how the village works.” Potok said the village of Mamaroneck has a lengthy to-do list that will be his focus, if reelected, including the Department of Public Works facilities. “They have not been maintained and they should have,” he said, adding that he wants to ensure these facilities are safe for public works employees. Potok also said he hopes to build upon some of his previous successes in office, including helping save taxpayers money on water. “Without my active in-
volvement in the community, our water rates would be 30 percent higher than they are in the village,” he said. Other efforts the trustee pointed to was protecting the wildlife, particularly the geese at Harbor Island Park, and preserving the character of village neighborhoods with rezoning laws he has helped to pass. The three candidates were vetted by a nine-member nominating committee of the village Democrats. Potok said his status as an incumbent trustee did not guarantee him a spot on the slate. Standing on the village board clearly didn’t pay dividends for Trustee David Finch. “I was not asked to be considered,” Finch told the Review. “I’m a little saddened.” The one-term trustee said his time on the village board has been a wonderful experience. “I’ve lived here for… years and had no clue as to what makes this village tick,” he said. “I’ve had a fabulous opportunity to learn that; an opportunity of a lifetime.” Trustee Ilissa Miller will also forego a re-election campaign this year after two terms on the board. Miller could not be reached for comment as of press time. Hoping to take either of their DEMS continued on page 8