Mayor Mike Spano and Councilman Anthony Merante with moderator Kathy Meany
By Dan Murphy
Mayor Mike Spano and Councilman Anthony Merante participated in an online forum hosted by the League of Women Voters Rivertowns on September 28. The one-hour forum can be viewed online at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoyAWxt4c7Q
The forum was mostly a respectable exchange of views between the two, with Mayor Spano pointing out the successes in Yonkers during his 12 years, while Merante challenged Spano’s tenure with criticisms on crime, homelessness, mental illness, and migrants.
Spano gave a positive review of where the City of Yonkers is, while Merante painted a more challenging portrait of Yonkers moving ahead.
“Our city has come to a renaissance. We are the fastest growing big city in New York State. We have the highest big city graduation rate. We have built 12,000 units of housing and 22% of that is affordable. We have created open spaces and new parks. We are the safest city in the big 5. We went from a 17% graduation rate to 90%. We want people to come here,” said Spano.
Merante said, “I believe that we have crime related issues that statistics are not showing. Development has not been good for some communities. A lot of the problems are related to bail reform -which has hurt our ability to get kids to stay away from Gang Violence. Rents have gone through the roof, and I would ask you what has the development done for you? “
There were no heated moments in the debate, and thus no political knockout was achieved. Merante did challenge Spano on term limits, stating that Spano “supported term limits 12 years ago when you first became Mayor.”
But Spano turned the tables on Merante, pointing out that Merante supported term limits five years ago but opposed it four years ago. “We want to make sure people have a choice. We already have term limits; every four years the people decide. Let them make the decision,” said Spano.
Merante said, “in 2018 I made a mistake of extending term limits to three terms. I didn’t know they would come back to extend it again. When someone is in power for that long a period -it’s too long. On day one, I will work to change the law back to 2 terms.”
On Affordable Housing Spano said, “Yonkers has 40% of all the affordable housing in Westchester and we will continue to do our part, working with non-profits and developers. But no other community in Westchester has built more affordable housing than in Yonkers.”
Merante focused on “trying to bring rents down in Yonkers. It is making a lot of good people leave. “
On Waterfront development, or shopping and dining downtown, Merante returned to one of his major themes; “We need to clean up Getty Square and the areas around it. These areas are crime ridden and many residents stay home. There are too many homeless and mentally ill persons, and others are not comfortable on the waterfront. We have an underlying problem that is preventing us from solving other problems; crime, the homeless and mentally ill.”
Two other big issues discussed in the form include flooding and migrants living at the Ramada Inn.
“I’m a big proponent of allocating some funds to look at all our sewers and storm drains and find out which are broken and what we can do. Some of the flooding may be because of overdevelopment. I don’t know if it’s 100% fixable, but we do need to get our share of infrastructure money,” said Merante.
Spano said that Yonkers is flooding more “during this age of global warming. “There is no system that can sustain that amount of water in a city with two mountain ranges. But we continue to fight for federal funds so we can expand and improve. And in some areas, we have made improvements, including on Kimball Avenue and on the Bronxville border and on the Saw Mill. When you get a 500-year storm its tough for a city like ours.”
On the Migrants at the Ramada Inn, Merante said, “That hotel is in my community. The first thing I would do is make sure that we put a halt on any others coming in without a plan. I would sue NYC Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul to make sure. I have been kept in the dark because I’m running for Mayor. We need to know what the plan is and what is the end game. Where are these folks going to go and how are we going to pay for it,” said Merante?
Spano said, “We made it clear to Mayor Adams and the Governor that this was unacceptable to send us these individuals without a plan and funding. They came and we have worked with Westchester County, worked with Westhab and have treated the immigrants with dignity and respect. We are not getting any reports of criminal activity. “
On gun violence, Spano said, “We are down from last year in the number of shootings, but one is too many. The problems came when there were changes in the law and just coming out of COVID. Bail reform and raising the age has placed a significant impact on our police to keep our community safe.”
Merante said, “Foot patrols are needed in some neighborhoods. We need to try and get rid of the gangs and keep kids from joining a gang. We are failing our kids and I think that many kids that are graduating high school are doing so because we have lowered the bar. “
On Minority representation in City Hall and City government, Spano said, “My administration has the most diverse workforce of any Mayor. Yonkers is one of the most diverse City’s in America, and I look for qualifications and diversity. They both can work together.”
On bringing new businesses to Yonkers, Merante said, “The sale of real estate has made rents go through the roof. That makes it difficult for a small business. We also need to get people to come out more and spend some money and make going out a social event again. But crime is an underlying factor.”
Spano said, “Unemployment is 3.1% in Yonkers, the lowest in New York State’s big cities. We have Lionsgate building 22 studios in Yonkers, creating thousands of jobs and revenues for the city, all in Southwest Yonkers. And full gaming at MGM will provide thousands of jobs and give our residents in black and brown communities a chance to get a middle-class job.”
Merante asked “where are all the jobs from Lionsgate? I don’t see them.”
At the end of the debate, Spano emphasized that a Mayor should be a cheerleader for the City and its 211,000 people. “I never try to beat up our city. You can’t escape the successes we have had. Don’t let people dismiss Yonkers. I have heard people dismiss Yonkers and our kids, but we have made so many strides. Our communities are thriving, and our city is booming. I’m proud to say we are from Yonkers-six generations of my family have called Yonkers home. Let’s be real, let’s move Yonkers forward and let’s be positive.”
Merante said, “I like the mayor, but he has lost focus. I’m here to take care of the people. I’m a listener and I will act.”
One other debate is scheduled to be held by the Yonkers Chamber of Commerce at St. John’s Riverside Hospital.
