By Eric Wolf Schoen
As I walked into my polling place at Yonkers Middle High School on Tuesday I felt proud, happy and sad. Proud that with all that is going on in the world today I was able to cast my ballot freely without any interference or soldiers carrying guns making sure no one would prevent me from doing my civic duty. Happy to see in this off year election without the Presidential candidates that several of my neighbors were casting their ballots too!
Sad? The poll workers who traditionally were senior citizens working this very long day were not there. They have been replaced by very competent younger people, but there was something about their absence. Many stopped working with the advent of Covid afraid of exposure. But many of them have gone to the voting booth in the sky and are no longer with us.
The seniors and their ‘kibitzing’ with the voters many of who were their neighbors made for a lively scene at the polls. There was my neighbor Ethel Samuelson who was so proud to see me cast my first vote on Election Day 2 days after my father had died. Ethel, loud unique voice and all ran things like a General in the Army making sure everything ran perfectly at the polls.
Sad that my mom is not alive to accompany me to the polls and cast her ballot together with me. Sad that the old lever voting machines are no longer with us and that everything is computerized. And sad that voters in 2023 don’t have the unique pleasure and ability to cast their ballots on the lever machines. They worked so well for so many year. Memories!
Congratulations Mike Spano on your reelection as Mayor. With voter approved term limits he should have served a maximum 2 four year terms. After Tuesdays election and the completion of the term he was elected to he will have served 16 years! As I have said before he swore to me that he would not go beyond 2 terms, and you can’t call it anything but a lie when he and the City Council twice changed the City Charter which now allows him to serve 4 four year terms.
A tidbit of information. Charter changes use to be done by a Charter Revision Commission that would pose changes to the electorate for vote on Election Day. We never had the City Council and the Mayor make changes even though they have every right to. This City Council Charter change method is new and has only taken place over the last 10 years or so. For something like term limits a vote by the public should occur.
It is time that the Mayor or the City Council who both have the ability to appoint Charter Revision Commissions do so. With a Commission the change is clear and it gives the public another opportunity to participate in their government. I have served on 3 Charter Revision Commissions appointed by 2 Mayors each of whom put a question on the ballot. The Commission has the right to propose any changes it wants to the electorate and takes the politics out of the process.
Mayor Mike Spano has done a good job in office during his first 3 four year terms. We have been witness to big changes to the character of our city. First and foremost is the Waterfront. How many years has there been talk of change on the waterfront and now it is a reality. Problem is what one must go through to get from the highway and parkways to the waterfront. Main Street and New Main Street both need a ‘cleaning up’ for lack of a better term. Basically, the whole area that we refer to as ‘the Square’ requires attention.
Our schools are rated among the top in New York State and in the nation. Mayor Spano has made some excellent choices for the Board of Education. The President of the School Board has had a long tenure in that role. It’s only fair to him that another Trustee step up to the plate and serve as School Board President. I still oppose the $15,000 compensation he receives which is unnecessary for a volunteer position.
Mike has done a good job of putting fresh faces on our city boards and commissions. If you are interested in serving contact his office and I am sure you will receive proper consideration. City unions have contracts and seem pleased with working conditions. For the ethnic and religious groups concerned with diversity in the workplace, my suggestion is to bring forth to the Mayor candidates for appointment.
Our Parks and the services they offer give citizens plenty to do. Crime is down thanks to the hard work of our police officers and leadership. One hopes that there will be no fires in Yonkers but our Fire Department is top notch. Department of Public Works employees keep our city clean. Now if only the public will help out! Our libraries? State of the art!
The Mayor must address affordable housing. We want to be sure the budget silence is real and that we won’t wake up one day with problems like we had in the past. The Inspector General’s office is awfully quiet. More auditing should be done of city departments. Yonkers has been criticized for using the same outside auditing firm for way to many years. This should have and must change.
The City must look at campaign financing. Candidates running for office and in particular the Mayor have their campaign coffers filled with donations from companies who do business with the city. This gives the appearance of a pay to play environment. The City Charter is specific in terms of donations to candidates allowed from city employees. This is an area that needs review.
The lack of an active daily paper that questions the affairs of the city is a problem caused by newspapers lack of local coverage. This paper, it’s editor Dan Murphy and his assistant Bayan Baker do an excellent job reporting on Yonkers but the job requires more than 2 people for a city of our size. The lack of an active cable public access program is an area city residents need to get more involved with. We pay a lot of money for cable television and one of its mandates is the ability of the public to use its facilities for community purposes.
Good luck Mayor Spano as you enter term number four. It’s critical that the citizenry play an active role in municipal affairs to support the Mayor. If you see a problem bring it to the attention of those in charge. If you see something commendable maker sure the powers that be know about it to!
Mazel Tov Mike! Happy Diwali! We Salute our Veteran’s TOMMORROW, November 11!
Reach Eric Schoen at thistooisyonkers@aol.com, follow him on Twitter (X) @ericyonkers or friend him on Facebook Eric Schoen…just look for him in the picture with Joan Rivers!
