Just a reminder that the Town of New Castle does not have an Aaa rating from Moody, just the following specific refunding bond offering: "Moody's assigns Aaa rating to the Town of New Castle's (NY) $7.5 million Public Improvement Refunding Bonds and $5.4 million Public Improvement Bonds, Series 2013 Rating Action - 26 Mar 2013" Other recent Town bonds have not been so highly rated. The Millwood Fire District $9.95 million General Obligation Bonds received an "Aa2" from Moody's. "Moody's assigns initial Aa2 rating to Millwood Fire District's (NY) $9.95 million General Obligation Bonds, 2013 New Issue - 08 Mar 2013" and to put the ratings into perspective Valhalla Schools also received an Aa2: "Moody's assigns Aa2 rating to Valhalla Union Free School District's (NY) $17.12 million School District Refunding Serial Bonds, 2012 New Issue - 29 Aug 2012" Town of North Castle 2011 offering received an Aa1: "MOODY'S ASSIGNS Aa1 RATING TO THE TOWN OF NORTH CASTLE'S (NY) $2.5 MILLION PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT SERIAL BONDS, SERIES 2011; OUTLOOK IS STABLE Rating Action - 07 Dec 2011" View Comment

Congratulations to State Sen. Greg Ball and Assembly Reps. Cohen and Gelef, as well as Congressman Maloney. I'm just sorry we could not honor Assemblyman Castelli who did so much for the northern suburbs as well as Congresswomen Hayworth, and candidate Carvin who would have achieved so much in the upcoming term. View Comment

Much ado about nothing when considering the scope of New York State and Bedford, Harrison, Lewisboro, Mt. Kisco, New Castle, North Castle, North Salem, Pound Ridge, White Plains problems and opportunities. This election is all about helping Westchester county residents & towns in Albany. Lets remember that. In any case gun control is way down my list of the top need to do's in Westchester. I'd rather lower taxes and reduce budgets as well as spending. View Comment

Thanks so much for the story. Two hours after it was posted we received a question via Twitter as to location of Sunday's Blood Drive. It will be held at the Church of St. John & St. Mary RCC, 30 Poillion Dr., Chappaqua NY 10514. That's next to Lange's Little Store, (just off King St.- Rt. 120) at the top of the Hill. Stop by 8am to 2pm to donate if you can. View Comment

The Annual Spring Community Blood Drive is scheduled Saturday, May 19th from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. “Volunteer donors from New Castle and the surrounding communities are expected to donate as many as 50 pints to help reduce the continuing blood shortage in the Hudson Valley” according to Debbi Kleinman of the Greater New York Blood Program office in Elmsford which partners with Chappaqua Rotary to staff the drive. The blood drive runs concurrently with the Chappaqua Rotary Pancake Breakfast, from 8:00 a.m. till 1:00 p.m. (you can give blood until 2:00 p.m.) on South Greeley Avenue at the Church of St. Mary the Virgin next to Bell Middle School. Potential donors are encouraged to sign up in advance by calling 914-238-8444. As in the past, walk-ins will be welcomed as well. Donors Receive Pancakes All who donate receive breakfast courtesy of the Chappaqua Rotary including their famous chocolate chip pancakes. “Not only is breakfast a good idea before donating, some donors including women can be prone to low iron which can cause a donor to be rejected or deferred. A pancake breakfast with juice is rich in many nutrients such as Niacin, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6 and B12, Folic Acid in addition to other nutrients and can really help.” said Kleinman. Baby Sitting Will Be Provided So Parents Can Donate As with all Rotary blood drives held in conjunction with town events such as the Pancake Breakfast and Community Day, baby sitting will be provided by teenage volunteers so parents can bring their children. The kids have fun while their parents donate and it gives the parents an opportunity to show by example that giving blood is a good thing to do. Donors include New Castle town officials a State Senator and even our County Executive “It’s really amazing how town and area officials step up and join with New Castle residents to donate blood at this event” said one Rotarian. A number of Town Board Members donate, regulars also include a Town Judge, the Town Attorney, multiple department heads and many other town employees—even our State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer and Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino. To sign-up to donate you can call (914) 238-8444, email john@ehrlichmedia.com or just stop by Saturday from 8am to 2PM. Stop By And Enjoy Breakfast and Help Local Organizations Proceeds from the event fund local community organizations like the Food Bank for Westchester and many others. Stop by before or after shopping downtown. Chappaqua Rotary is the local chapter of Rotary International. The club is the preeminent service organization in New Castle and meets weekly on Mondays at 12:15 p.m. at the Crabtree Kittle House in Chappaqua, New York. The club also sponsors and runs events throughout the year including Community Day, the Annual Pancake Breakfast, Community Service Awards, Wine Tasting and two All Town Blood Drives. For more information on the club and its activities, contact drjciccone@aol.com, lkallner@yahoo.com or john@ehrlichmedia.com View Comment

Let's support Mr. Tribou and all our coaches and teachers who have the courage to make a positive difference in the lives of our sons and daughters. View Comment

Let's support Mr. Tribou and all our coaches and teachers who have the courage to make a positive difference in the lives of our sons and daughters. View Comment

For those interested Bert Sugar funeral/memorial service will be 2:30pm Saturday at the First Congregational Church of Chappaqua. 210 Orchard Ridge Road Chappaqua, New York 10514 (914) 238-4411 www.fcc-chappaqua.org May he rest in peace (with a drink in hand and cigar of course). View Comment

What can you say about a Bert Sugar? That he defined the word "character;" that his signature fedora and cigar made him instantly recognizable in any arena around the world and of course in the Chappaqua he loved; that he was one of the greatest and most prolific sportswriters this country as ever known; that we would chat for literally hours about Ali or one of the others we covered decades ago; that every time you ran into him he had just published another book, over 80; that he gladly turned in a JD and a career as a lawyer for an advertising slogan he would pen- one of the original 1960's "Madmen"; that he was a Terrapin and the affable black sheep of a distinguished DC family; that he never stopped talking about the most patient woman anyone has known, his beautiful bride he worshipped; that he appeared in five films including Night and the City, The Great White Hype, Rocky Balboa, Unforgivable Blackness and The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson; that no one would be surprised to learn that Bert actually was Damon Runyan reincarnated; that he bought Boxing Illustrated; edited and published The Ring magazine; that he was a friend and neighbor I'll certainly never forget; that his stories were always longer and far more colorful than this intentionally verbose run-on sentence. I'm going to celebrate your life by talking about you with anyone who cares to listen this week with a bourbon and a cigar in front of Quaker Hill Tavern. We already miss you Bert. View Comment

Clearly good relations with a major commercial resident is an excellent policy. However I'm a bit confused. Is Carpenter proposing a supermarket at Chappaqua Crossing because the owner wants it? If not, is this just another impediment that the town is putting before Summit Greenfield? First Carpenter cites a benefit to the town in the above story: "[It] would be an incredible benefit to us in terms of our real estate tax revenues and in terms of some sales tax revenue," said Carpenter. "That’s an issue that we would like to investigate." Then "Carpenter stressed that rezoning of the property does not necessarily mean a supermarket will be built at the site." "Changing the zoning doesn’t mean that we’d approve the facility," Why would Carpenter and the Board propose something the town is not sure to approve? It's misleading. Then Carpenter said. "Even if we change the zoning, they might decide they don’t wanna do it. All you’re doing is telling them that they could." Why go through the motions until and unless Summit Greenfield actually requests it? Not only misleading, it's also superfluous. View Comment

There is a perception that the local League of Women Voters actively promotes incumbents and events like this are most often attended by their supporters. Very glad you covered this though thanks! View Comment

Thanks for taking the time to provide this. Hope it becomes a regular weekly feature! View Comment

Your article reports that "any signs placed in an area of property that is owned and maintained by the Town will be removed." It seems to me that candidates, political committees and supporters or opponents of propositions and zoning changes should be permitted to post signs during the 60 days prior to an election or decision. This limits exposure to a short focused period but still prevents eyesores. Let's encourage and not discourage communication with the voters on Town property. Not to do so makes it harder for potential decision makers to communicate with the voters that they hope to serve and unfairly benefits incumbents who have regular access to public podiums, the media and publicly funded means of communicating with taxpayers. View Comment