Mamaroneck REVIEW THE
May 5, 2017 | Vol. 5, Number 18 | www.mamaroneckreview.com
Village petition calls attention to age restrictions on pills By JAMES PERO Staff Writer
Making their mark
The village of Mamaroneck held its second Food Truck and Makers Market, drawing hundreds of visitors to the industrial area. MADE, an arts studio on Boston Post Road, provided paint and a portion of Fayette Avenue for children to be creative. For more, see page 6. Photo/Sibylla Chipaziwa
County still struggles to satisfy HUD settlement By JAMES PERO Staff Writer Eight years after a settlement on Westchester County’s lack of compliance with affordable housing standards, County Executive Rob Astorino’s administration continues to grapple with satisfying the requirements of a lingering 2009 decree being monitored by the federal government. Earlier this month, for the 10th time, federal the Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD, denied the county’s Analysis of Impediments, AI—a document meant to detail the barriers to affordable housing—despite the federal agency’s new helm, Republican Dr. Ben Carson. Dovetailing HUD’s decision to
deny the county’s AI earlier this month, a federal appeals panel also denied the seventh appeal from the county on April 28, ruling that Westchester has engaged in “total obstructionism” regarding its 2009 federal mandate to increase access to affordable housing in more affluent pockets of the county. In addition to denying an appeal of HUD’s rejection to the county’s AI, the panel also found that county officials had failed to ensure the construction of a contested project in the town of New Castle called Chappaqua Station by “all available means.” The project, which is geared to build 28 affordable housing units near New Castle’s Metro-North Railroad stop, was the subject of staunch opposition from local offi-
cials who insisted the development be built in a different location. The project has since moved forward with reluctant permission from the local town board. In a statement last week, Ned McCormack, a spokesman for the Republican Astorino administration, said he is confident that the county will still be able to clear up its remaining requirements from the settlement, despite the latest denial. “The monitor-approved consultant, VHB, has found no evidence of exclusionary zoning based on race,” he said. “We are confident the remaining requirements can be met, and the settlement concluded in a timely manner.” But county Legislator Ken Jenkins,
To crack down on the growing abuse of potent prescription medication, village of Mamaroneck residents are urging elected officials to tighten age restrictions that some local parents feel are too permissive. “My kid can’t go get a Bud Light, but they can get all this other crap,” said Christie Derrico, a Mamaroneck resident and village judge. “And there’s nothing you can do about it.” For Derrico, the ease with which teenagers can procure a prescription to psychoactive substances without the consent of a guardian has become a matter of concern; enough for her to create a petition lobbying state and local elected officials across the spectrum to take action. “I have encountered many situations where parents are shocked to find out that their over [18-yearold] college student was prescribed oxycodone for a minor sports injury, or Xanax for a bout of anxiety,” reads the petition that she plans to distribute after press time. “By the time parents become aware that such an arrangement may have taken place with a medical provider, the minor may well be on the path to addiction.” Derrico, who, in addition to her tenure as a judge, worked as an attorney for more than a decade, said she has seen the effects of prescription drug abuse on many occasions firsthand. Oftentimes, Derrico said, throughout the course of her work as an attorney, she has encountered adults in their early 20s who have
INSIDE A look at the village of Mamaroneck budget Story on page 9.
HUD continued on page 8
already held a prescription to opioids—pain medication that mimics the effects of heroin—for five years or more. “Maybe we allow too much,” Derrico said. “Somehow these kids are getting their hands on pharmaceutical drugs, whether they’re stealing it from medicine cabinets or getting a lawful script for it.” Just last year, the village of Mamaroneck saw five drug overdoses in just under two months’ time— two of them in their mid-20’s— which has since prompted the formation of a communitywide coalition to prevent drug abuse. By raising the age of consent for prescription medication to 21 years old, Derrico hopes the village can prevent trends like those from occurring. Currently, New York state public health law dictates that any person over 18 years of age can legally consent to medical treatment—including a prescription to medication—without the approval of a guardian. But according to Christopher Bell, the executive director of a Rochester chapter of the American Academy of Pediactrics, there are some exceptions. Specifically, if that person is married, pregnant or a parent, they would be able to consent to receiving prescription drugs if they’re below the age of 18. How many minors fall into those categories, Bell said he is unsure. Today, young adults and teens ages 18 to 24 have been among the hardest hit by the effects of opioid abuse. Data from the National Institute PILLS continued on page 10