The trustees representing Unite Sleepy Hollow have tried to not get involved with Mr. Munroe’s comments about Mayor Wray. This letter, however, is simply not accurate. Let’s take this point by point:
1. Mayor Wray’s successful efforts to win grant funding for Sleepy Hollow are nothing short of commendable. These public funds mean that the Sleepy Hollow downtown district will benefit from major infrastructure improvements that otherwise would have been put off. By suggesting that anyone could have acquired the funds as easily, Mr Munroe shows a lack of understanding of how funding is raised. It took very hard work and countless hours, months and years of developing relationships with the Rockefeller Brothers Fund to secure an appropriate site for our new water tank. There were untold hours of effort to put together a compelling narrative with a professional team of grant writers and consultants who helped get Sleepy Hollow on the NYS radar as a regional attraction site. Ken has been a force in guiding the unprecedented private/public partnership to redevelop the former GM property, as well as building strong relationships with our County and State representatives. Maybe someone else could have accomplished this, but they didn’t. Mayor Wray did.
2. The basic design elements of the Edge development were extensively reviewed by Sleepy Hollow design committees and residents, negotiated and formed in an important element of the Special Permit – no mayor could have made arbitrary changes given the legal entanglements of the GM lawsuits related to the Special Permit. Mr. Munroe is simply misinformed. (Point in fact, as a trustee, Ken Wray opposed the proposed density and massing. He was the only nay vote on the board at that time). While some may not favor the design, the buildings represent a vibrant and long-awaited addition to the Sleepy Hollow community, and now house many new residents that call Edge home.
3. Mr. Monroe is simply wrong. Mayor Wray has publicly discussed in board meetings and has promoted the need for a secondary entrance and egress to/from Edge on Hudson. Drawings for the bridge across the MetroNorth tracks are online and have been displayed at board meetings. The Board of Trustees, the Planning Board, the Local Development Corporation, with legal representation and engineering studies have spent years negotiating with NYS Department of Transportation, MetroNorth and elected officials in Albany working through a secondary entrance/exit from the new development for both safety and public access reasons. It is a crucial element of the East Parcel/Common development.
4. An odd allegation, and another that is simply false, given Ken’s strong support to establish the Length of Service Awards Program for emergency responders, his attendance at many fire department functions and the ongoing discussion about the major capital purchases of new emergency equipment.
Regarding trees and the urban canopy, the tree code has been updated after many years to prioritize stewardship and a tree officer has been retained, as the tree committee requested. These changes were made in January 2022 through a public process, including hearings with the Trustees.
Under Mayor Wray’s leadership, progress has been made on many fronts. Now is not the time to change leadership while we are in the midst of so many exciting things. Vote for Ken Wray for Mayor on Tuesday.
Denise Scaglione, Deputy Mayor
Tom Andruss, Trustee
Sleepy Hollow
You credit Ken for “guiding the unprecedented private/public partnership to redevelop the former GM property.” Indeed, he bears the blame for not rejecting those ugly Boxes-on-the-Riverbank. Ken appointed the “Sleepy Hollow design committees and residents” you praise, but he and his Trustees had the power to reject their recommendations. The Mayor & the Board are empowered to make those decisions, not the committees they appoint. We won’t let Ken pass the buck to people we didn’t elect.