The Katonah-Lewisboro Times 10.01.20

VOL. 3 NO. 9 Visit TapIntoKLT.net for the latest news. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2020

Goldens Bridge FD plans In KLSD, football and
creative Fire Prevention Week all junior varsity sports
have already fallen to
Backpack curbside pickup and virtual contests for the coronavirus and
students replace in-person event girls swimming, lacking
sufficient facilities, has
BY STEVE MANGIONE of the visit to Increase Melillo said are designed been put on hold. But
GOLDENS BRIDGE FIRE Miller is Fire ghters pre- to encourage parents and officials are putting
DEPARTMENT senting each student with children to discuss good in place plans for
a backpack lled with fun other fall teams to
e lingering pandemic and educational items and re safety practices and start interscholastic
is cancelling events that materials. habits, and to ensure that competition on Oct. 10.
would typically take place families have an escape
in October for National “Our Fire ghters look plan and a checklist of PHOTO: METRO CREATIVE
Fire Prevention Week. forward to re safety day what to do if a re breaks CONNECTION
But that isn’t stopping at IMES just as much as out in their home.
the Goldens Bridge Fire the students, but we were Play ball?
Department from driving forced to cancel this year’s is year’s re safety and
home the important mes- visit because of COVID- prevention outreach will KLSD contemplates safety of sports season
sage of re prevention and 19-related restrictions,” look very di erent than in
safety to school children Melillo said. “But that years past: BY TOM BARTLEY Hudson Valley, at least one high school,
and their families, accord- doesn’t stop our e orts to CONTRIBUTING WRITER Pawling, has canceled all fall sports; oth-
ing to Fire Chief Al Mel- engage school students and Free Backpack ers are maintaining a full slate, including
illo. their families in the impor- Curbside Pickup e Katonah-Lewisboro School Board JV teams.
tant dialogue of re safety at the Firehouse is expected to decide next week how—or
Goldens Bridge Fire- and prevention. It just perhaps whether—varsity sports will be Most KLSD school board trustees—
ghters would normally be means that we have to de- Parents drive curbside to played in a season dominated by hybrid enough to shut down a varsity sports sea-
planning their annual visit liver this message in other the Golden’s Bridge Fire- learning and pandemic fears. son—voiced concerns last week over the
to Increase Miller Elemen- ways.” house (Route 138), where wisdom of competing with students from
tary School for a day of Fire ghters will be on In KLSD, football and all junior varsity other schools and the risk the school’s
interactive demonstrations In compliance with hand for two days: Satur- sports have already fallen to the coronavi- athletes could pose not only to each other
and presentations about COVID-19 safety prac- day, Oct. 10, and Sunday, rus and girls swimming, lacking su cient but also the community at large.
re safety during National tices and guidelines, the Oct. 11, from noon to 3 facilities, has been put on hold. But of-
Fire Prevention Week, Goldens Bridge Fire De- p.m., distributing to IMES “ is is life and death,” Trustee Wil-
which is October 4-10 this partment has rolled out a cials are putting in place plans for other liam Rifkin, a medical doctor, said. “Peo-
year. One of the highlights series of virtual events and SEE FD PAGE 6 fall teams to start interscholastic compe- ple die from this disease. e kids bring it
a curbside experience that tition on Oct. 10. home, to the grandparents, to the uncles,

In Section 1, the governing body for SEE SPORTS PAGE 16
interscholastic athletics in the lower

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PAGE 2 THE KATONAH LEWISBORO TIMES THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2020

Bedford budget rebounds following pandemic

BY TOM BARTLEY rus gut punch, three key revenue streams— could have as large as a $2 million gap in the Mortgages taxes, the amount paid to re-
CONTRIBUTING WRITER mortgage and sales taxes and building-per- 2020 operating budget,” Burdick said. “Our cord a property transfer,wrote a similar story.
mit fees—have rebounded strongly, he said, comptroller is projecting something less Budgeted at about $900,000, revenue from
In the midst of a pandemic that has outperforming earlier forecasts. than that, but it [the anticipated shortfall] is this source was projected early in the pan-
claimed the life of many and upended life still going to be a very signi cant number.” demic to fall to as low as $300,000, Zam-
for all, Bedford is nding some good news. Nevertheless, Supervisor Chris Burdick brano said. Instead, the town now believes it
said, the board “is almost certain” to tap e forecasts kicked o the formal start may even surpass the original $900,000 es-
As its begins work on next year’s spend- reserve cash—its “rainy day” money, as the of Town Board consideration of Bedford’s timate, thanks to a surge in suburban home
ing, with a budget expected to be tax-cap budget’s fund balance is often called—to 2021 budget. Spending seems certain to buying by people eeing a densely populated
compliant, the Town Board last week heard meet 2020 operating expenses. tap reserve cash, Burdick said, “because New York City.
better-than-expected revenue projections if this isn’t a rainy day, then I don’t know
and anticipated reductions in department But looking ahead, Burdick said, “I am what is.” at same pandemic-inspired urban
spending as well as continued applause from con dent that we will adopt a tax-cap-com- ight has also boosted the anticipated fees
the bond market and an outside auditor. pliant budget [for 2021].” Zambrano outlined a number of surprises, for building permits. Instead of seeing a loss,
most of them happy ones. Sales taxes, for ex- the town now expects to exceed projections,
Town nances “came through the pan- Zambrano said next year’s tax levy ample, made a remarkable comeback after “not by a lot,” Zambrano said, but by more
demic relatively well so far,” Comptroller could grow by just over $880,000 and still absorbing an initial hit. than the budgeted $650,000.
Abraham Zambrano told the board’s Sept. remain below Albany’s cap on increases, Some income sources, however, did su er
22 work session. Despite a ceiling based on consumer prices and “Based on my projections . . . we’re actu- the e ects of the lockdown. With so many
an initial coronavi- other calculations. ally anticipating that we’re not only going Manhattan o ces closed, commuter lots
to make it to the $3,242,000 we budgeted went unused, so Zambrano is “projecting a
e comptroller’s report came on a for the year but we’re going to be able to ex- substantial shortfall in parking revenues for
night the town announced it had re- ceed it by approximately $230,000,” Zam- the year.”
tained its coveted triple-A bond rat- brano said. Similarly, with court activity largely cur-
ing. “You are a good, strong triple A tailed, the comptroller noted, “revenues are
Sales tax receipts “dropped drastically” as drastically lower than the amount budgeted
by Standard & Poor’s,” Bedford’s Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s lockdown of nones- for the year.”
nancial consultant, Beth Fergu- sential commerce took hold. After posting a Alan Kassay, a partner at the accounting
son, said. robust rst quarter, almost 38 percent bet- rm O’Connor Davies LLP, said that “other
“Triple A’s do everything right,” ter than 2019, sales taxes took a nosedive in than some minor quibbles,” an audit of the
noted Ferguson, vice president of the early months of the pandemic. Second- town’s books “went very well.”
quarter receipts were down 0.41 percent. He called Bedford’s cash reserves, the
Fiscal Advisors & Marketing Inc. fund balance,“fairly healthy.”
(Hopewell Junction). “You are the But as New York moved through a phased “ is is, as you say, a rainy day fund,”Kas-
shining example of what other munici- reopening of businesses, consumer demand say noted,and it certainly is being used at the
palities are reaching for.” rallied to show an increase in sales taxes correct times.”
In the spring, a state-mandated lock- of more than 14 percent over the previous
down of nonessential activity and year’s.For the year,receipts are now projected
businesses to thwart spread of the to hit $3,473,984, or $231,984 more than
lethal coronavirus cut into municipal budgeted.
income. “We had anticipated that we