An unfortunate confrontation brought an abrupt end to a Beczak Center candidates’ forum on Oct. 21.
Kisha Skipper, a candidate for Westchester County legislator, was taken from the building in handcuffs after an altercation in the women’s restroom involving Donna Nolan, the mother of Skipper’s opponent, County Legislator James Nolan. Skipper was released without charges, and Donna Nolan was treated at a hospital for minor injuries, police said.
If you follow social media, you probably already know all too much about the incident that made the New York Post — and even The Plain Dealer of Cleveland.
It’s what gets clicks. Moments from a profane cellphone video get the eyeballs, but an interesting and rather unusual candidates’ forum doesn’t get a mention.
I was there as one of the moderators of the forum. Believe it or not, there was a lot of substance to what was said that night. And it’s a shame that it’s been obscured by the angry back-and-forth about the altercation, which is still under police investigation.
The Meeting on the Water Treatment Plant
The night before the forum, on Oct. 20, the same sponsors — the Hudson River Community Association and the Ludlow Park Residents Association — held a workshop at Beczak on the environmental and health problems at the county’s wastewater treatment plant. I went to gather questions for the candidates.
The first meeting lacked the drama of the second, but the problems we discussed are troubling. How bad is the water pollution from the Yonkers Joint Wastewater Treatment Plant, the southwest Yonkers facility that processes half of the county’s sewage? And is the plant hurting our health — even killing us — because of air pollution?
Dan Shapley, a policy expert from the environmental organization Riverkeeper, explained that aging infrastructure and the effects of climate change are increasingly causing raw and partially treated sewage discharges, making the river unsafe for activities on or near the water.
Bob Morrow, a retired family doctor and Ludlow Park resident, warned about toxic air particles produced by “flaring” — the burning of the methane gas byproduct at the plant. State health data shows that areas near the facility are among the unhealthiest in New York, with sharply elevated rates of premature death, heart attacks, asthma and other ailments. He explained that the flare released particulates into the air, including microplastics, that he believes are harmful to our health. See Ledger story on Morrow and his concerns here.
Polluted air and water are serious problems that can’t be solved by only one level of government. According to both Shapley and Morrow, the solutions require the cooperation of many layers of local, county, state and federal governments, beginning with comprehensive testing to accurately diagnose the problem.
Linking the Problems at the Treatment Plant to the Candidates’ Forum
Several issues at the forum shared that problem: Solving them requires officials to work across government lines.
First, I asked the candidates about real estate development in Yonkers’ west side, where new apartment buildings are transforming neighborhoods, raising concerns among longtime residents about gentrification and affordability. You can watch this segment of the forum here.
While land-use and planning decisions are largely the responsibility of city government, I argued that their consequences are not simply local matters. They affect constituents represented by county legislators, state lawmakers and members of Congress.
I asked the candidates whether they would attend Yonkers City Council meetings and advocate for their constituents, even when the issues involved decisions made by the city government. Several candidates said they would.
Rep. George Latimer energetically pushed back. Drawing on his experience at different levels of government, Latimer argued that elected officials have distinct responsibilities and should not make promises simply because they are politically appealing.
“When we stop saying the political thing, then we start saying the honest thing,” he said. “The honest thing is each level of government has its priorities.” Latimer did offer a concrete next step: a community forum to discuss development, organized by Mayor Mike Spano.
As pleased as I was at the prospect of a future Spano-sponsored meeting, I switched gears a bit in my next question, asking the candidates how their own level of government could help solve a big problem: pollution from the Yonkers wastewater treatment plant.
Latimer had another commitment and was pressed for time, so I put the question to him first, specifically asking about the plant’s EPA permit. Latimer didn’t answer about the EPA but instead focused on the county’s role.
Latimer, who served seven years as Westchester County executive, said the treatment plant is primarily a county responsibility. He recommended convening a meeting of residents, county elected officials and the professionals who run the facility, which could produce an “action plan.” When he asked community leaders at the forum about costs, they said the most viable plan to address the plant’s problems would cost about $180 million. At that price, Latimer said, state and federal funding would inevitably come into play.
What People Want: Solutions, Not Excuses
For residents confronting the consequences of aging infrastructure, development pressures and environmental concerns, the critical question is not simply which government has jurisdiction. It is whether their elected representatives can work together to produce solutions.
That may be the larger lesson of the two evenings: Residents need more than assurances that their concerns are being heard. They need elected representatives who can help translate those concerns into coordinated government action.
Whether that happens will be a more meaningful measure of the meetings’ significance than the confrontation that brought the candidates’ forum to an abrupt end.
