Politics & Government

With New Strings Attached to County Grants, Port Chester Balks

Facing federal pressure, Westchester County wants greater control over local laws in exchange for community development grants.

Port Chester won't agree to Westchester County's terms for handing out community development money, Mayor Dennis Pilla said Monday after receiving an update from village attorneys.

At the heart of the problem is a lawsuit -- the Anti-Discrimination Center successfully sued Westchester in 2009, arguing the county had "utterly failed" to provide affordable, "desegregated" housing, despite receiving federal cash.

The county settled, and a federal judge ordered the county to come up with a plan to build 750 affordable housing units. County officials decided to relieve some of the federal pressure by passing it along to municipalities, mayors and elected officials say.

Since the county distributes federal community development money, it has attached some strings to those grants as part of the plan to satisfy the Anti-Discrimination Center's lawsuit.

Officials in other towns are backing off, too. At a Monday board meeting in Tarrytown, one trustee in that town urged against taking county money to build a playground.

"Sounds like you're selling your soul for $35,000," said Tarrytown Trustee Doug Zollo.

Pilla said he's been hearing similar sentiments from mayors of towns like Mt. Kisco and Peekskill. Taking Community Development Block Grant money under the new terms would give the county partial control over local matters like zoning, and elected officials in several towns aren't enthusiastic about that.

Apparently, neither is Judge Denise Cote. Last month, the federal justice ordered the county to revise its plan -- for the third time. The latest revision is due Monday.

"We don't want to sign up for something where the county is controlling more than they ought to be," Pilla said.

For Port Chester, that means some modernization and beautification projects won't be funded until local mayors and the county can sort things out. Among them is a planned beautification project to plant trees along Main Street.

"The bottom line, to the taxpayers of Port Chester, is our Community Development Block Grant funding for the trees and other projects is delayed, basically, until this is resolved," Pilla said.

Anthony Cerreto, Port Chester's village attorney, said he'd spoken with the county's lawyers and "it was a positive conversation."

But he's also been in contact with other attorneys from cities like Peekskill, and said municipal lawyers would meet within the next week or two "to frame a response together."

"It's important for us like-minded municipalities to talk to each other," Cerreto said, "and present a united front to the county."


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