The Westhelp Fiasco Just Got Worse
Valhalla Will Sue to Reinstate Illegal Program
Despite, the NY State Comptroller's finding that the so called Westchester Partnership was an illegal scam channeling Greenburgh taxpayer funds to the Valhalla School District, and despite the fact that Valhalla has indemnified the Town against all legal action, even agreeing to pay the town's legal costs, the Valhalla board of education has now threatened to sue the Town over these funds.
The school district waited until after it had secured another $4.0 million bond so that these funds could once again be channeled to off budget projects like trips to the opera and adult booze cruises, while telling Greenburgh that these were lectures and museum trips for children.
So in the middle of a state audit that will focus further attention on the illegal spending that entitled proponents call "manna from heaven" , Valhalla makes its own bad press by drawing attention to the Westhelp Fiasco again. Chasing illegal money for programs that do not affect education. Doing the bidding of a private civic association.
Lets recap some of the illegal spending
- Matching Grants to the Valhalla Foundation. It is illegal for private foundations to accept government (taxpayer) money.
- Two salaries for Kensico School Principal. Employees on a Goverment payroll can no be paid two full time salaries. Mr. Meile was $50,000 a year in addition to his principal's salary.
- Adult excursions including lunches, trips to the opera and a booze cruise. Disguising these as lectures and museum trips for children.
- Pay for a board member's expense at a private school
- Donations to Easter Seals
- Summer trips to the Grand Canyon
Greenburgh - WestHELP Audit Released
Read the first of two Comptroller's Department audits of the Westhelp Deal. This audit focuses on whether it is legal for the town of Greenburgh to gift $6.5 million to the Valhalla School District. The Comptroller has found that it is not. The next audit will focus on Valhalla's spending, controls and accountability. 
It is everything we have said it was, and more. It is illegal, there is no accountability, there are no controls on spending. It a side business run by private individuals using the public accounts and facilities of the Valhalla School district and Westchester County taxpayer money. Money flows to private individuals, private foundations, yacht cruises, added salaries and capital expenditures not approved by the voters. It is all off budget and unaccounted for.
It is not manna from heaven, it is not a philanthropic venture. It is yet another embarrasment to the Valhalla School District who will now be seperately audited by the Comptroller to determine what the money was actually spent on. The grants read like a money grab. Underlying everything are payments to individuals and entities for services that a school district can't make, off budget programs that will eventually add to the already bloated budget and obscure descriptions that hide the true nature of the expenditure. For instance Project Adventure, a high wire jungle gym of climbing walls and poles, used as an optional gym class (referred to as AP gym) is described as "a radically Revised Leadership Institute" It is a gym class where students routinely opt out to throw a frisbee. Leadership?
And none of the well documented adult programs or programs for "children of all ages" are even in these grants. So what you have is the Valhalla School Committee, a committee of the Town of Greenburgh, approving programs that are not even requested.
Greenburgh taxpayers want their money back and Mount Pleasant and North White Plains residents will pick up 80% of the bill. Your school board has guaranteed that you will!
Westhelp Partnership Illegal!The Journal News reports that the Comptroller's office has found that the Westhelp Partnership scheme granting money to the Valhalla School District for among other things, Ivy league summer camps, Grand Canyon trips and adult booze cruises on the Hudson, is illegal. The report also finds most troubling the $50,000 annual payment to Valhalla's Kensico School principal as the administrator of the grant. A payment that calls for the majority of his time to be spent administering the grant, while Valhalla taxpayers pay him $160,351 a year plus a 6% bonus, plus night differential for attending school functions at his building as a full time school administrator. Further confusing the issue is that official Valhalla School District records reflect only 15 days working as the full time grant adminstrator and according to the Journal News, Mr. Meile claims he works between 78 and 91 days in that function.
The Valhalla School Board President seems confused as to how the Comptroller's calculations were made. The Comptroller, using the official payment of $50,000 and dividing it by the official Valhalla payroll record of 15 days, arrives at the mathematical certainty that Mr. Meile received $3,333.34 a day for 15 days work. That is known as long division.
As far as contesting the findings of the Comptroller, Valhalla will have its own second audit to deal with, as the Comptroller will now begin a new audit to determine just what these funds, were used for. We can't wait for those findings. But long before that audit is complete we expect that Greenburgh will start enforcing the indemnity clause of the grant. We expect Greenburgh Town taxpayers to act to recover the $1.8 million in grants and perhaps $1.3 million more. How many payments did Valhalla get? Three under the grant, but the Westhelp lease is in year 5. Maybe we should start with those who directly benefited with discounted opera tickets, evenings sails and lunch at MacMennimens. Let's see, who had the corned beef?
Restoring Financial Integrity, One Scam at a Time
Unwritten agreements between town officials and private citizens, unreported income and expenditures, hidden bank accounts are all the subject of an ongoing NYS Comptroller's audit of the "WestHelp Partnership". Another article in the Journal News reports that the Town of Greenburgh will now obey the law and follow generally accepted accounting practices and begin to properly report the $12 million dollar Westhelp deal. Well welcome to America, Mr. Feiner, we hope you enjoy your stay.
It is interesting to note that page #4 of the WestHelp Grant states specifically that "The Comptroller will make such disbursements from a special fund, designated by a seperate line item within the Towns budget, whose sole purpose is for the accumulation and disbursement of rent monies from WestHelp." Perhaps this constitutes those good intentions that got in the way of flexibility. You would think that when so many people worked so hard on something, someone would actually read and follow the agreement.
Another interesting misconception was that the money gifted to the Valhalla School district was ever intended to be spent on children from WestHelp. This appears in the Special Committee on Budget Allocation (SCOBA) report to the Greenburgh Town Board, as "an Educational Grant to the Valhalla Union Free School District of $650,000 per year. (to provide special services to the children who live in WestHELP) This grant was never intended to be used for the WestHELP Children. Where did the SCOBA committee get that information from?
Hidden, flexible bank accounts used to fund handshake deals will have to be disclosed. Questionable payments made to a single school district at the expense of nine others will have to be reported. Town funds might even have to be used for Town purposes. But don't stop there, let's see a full accounting of the entire income stream. Let's not pretend it all starts now. In the last two months alone, the Journal News has found a total of nearly $1.0 million dollars hidden in Valhalla School District and Greenburgh Town accounts. The Town and the School District must give a full accounting of all funds since the Sublease was signed in 2001. The sublease is in year 5, the grant is in year 3. Do the math.
Another article in the Journal News reports that the Town of Greenburgh was notified over a year ago that it was improperly accounting for the Westhelp money and has done nothing about it. Apparently the town is not only under reporting its cash balances, it is under reporting its receipts and disbursements. Caution- don't try this with your business, it is illegal, you might go to jail. But not in Greenburgh NY. No, in Greenburgh fudging the books is, well, business as usual. It shows your heart is in the right place. It shows you don't break your promises and don't break the hearts of the children.
The Journal News reports that $500,000 in Westhelp funds are sitting unreported and unaccounted for in Greenburgh Town accounts. This is in addition to $440,000 that the school district has accumulated in its accounts from under spent grants. Combined this is nearly a $1 million slush fund of taxpayer money meant to help homeless people.
The Greenburgh money that was originally meant to be paid directly to the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association. But even in Greenburgh, that would be illegal.
According to the article, town board members did not know this money existed, but the president of the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association did know.
Supervisor Feiner says he did not include in the budget because he wanted to maintain "flexibility" on how the money is spent."Once it's in the town budget, you can't say it's for one neighborhood," Feiner said. "Then it's in a town fund, and we had indicated we would give priority attention to Mayfair-Knollwood."
I suppose if you have the "flexibility" to hide the funds you would have flexiblity not to report what you spend it on.
We hope the Comptroller's office is paying attention.
It is interesting to read all the letters saying it's all about the kids, it is all about embracing the homeless and it's about trusting your government. It's not. It is all about the money, the control of the money and the distribution of the money.
If Greenburgh's deal with the county is legal, the money belongs to all of the people of the Town of Greenburgh. The State Comptroller's Office will present its findings in their audit. This program is being audited because of red flags, not because of complaints and naysayers. This is not a random audit.
If it is all about the kids, why are they using $220,000 for salaries this year and paying at least one full time district employee for an additional full time job and after school club fees that are supposed to be unpaid the first year. Salaries for drama club support and drama workshops and more .
If it is not to be used for "regular education" why do these salaries include salaries for two teachers with benefits and field trips that have been standards in the school budget for 15 years? If, as the contract states, it is for enrichment of the students, why are adults going on boat rides and to the opera? If it is program driven, why are monies going to private foundations to flush back into the district via other programs not approved by the town? If money is only approved for specific proposals, why were there surpluses of $190,000 the first year $326,000 the second year and $439,000 in the third year? These surpluses now represent a 68% fund balance for a grant where all the money each year is supposed to be spent on the kids. Why won't they spend money on athletics, when the grant does not prohibit it?
If you think it is not about the money, you need to read the Sublease and Homeless Housing Facilities Agreement. There you will find the source of these funds, funds meant to help the homeless. There you will find an advisory board for the Grasslands facility with two seats for members of the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association and two seats for the Knollwood Manor Civic Association. You will also find a Westhelp/Greenburgh Advisory Board with a seat reserved for the Valhalla School's Superintendent and two for members of the Mayfair Knollwood neighborhood.
There too, you will see agreements to pay the the Town of Greenburgh $1,000 per homeless person per day if homeless occupancy of nearby shelters (not even in the Town of Greenburgh) should exceed cap levels of 149 at the Grasslands shelter and exceeding 271 units at the combined shelters of Westhab, WestHELP, Vaughn Glanton and the Valhalla Residence and future shelters that may be open within a radius described as a two (2) mile radius from the Center of the Grasslands Reservation, plus the Valhalla School District to the northeast, and an area along 119 to the southeast up to and including Old Kensico Road. Greenburgh has truly cornered the market on the Homeless. The center of this radius is Grasslands, in Mt. Pleasant, in the Pocantico School District, not even in Greenburgh.
$1,000 per homeless person per day, a social dividend and then some. Ten excess homeless residents, for 30 days would generate $300,000 to the town. A social dividend? More like a misery mutual fund.
Be sure to read today's Journal News Editorial and Community View on the topic of WestHelp/Greenburgh grant. How bad is it to have our god sent described as distasteful and as a handout? The public image of the Valhalla School District takes yet another hit of its own doing.
As bad as these two editorials are they don't even address the issues of Westchester subleasing its own building in order to effect this payoff, private individuals hiring district employees and Un elected and unaccountable individuals controlling money in school district accounts. Neither do they raise the spector of children running in school hallways and in school parking lots because they have no track, while their parents cruise around Manhattan. When will the Valhalla School district end the side shows, recover whatever is possible from the people that destroyed the track and created the contaminated fields, hold someone accountable for the mess the children's facilities are in and get back to providing every child with a basic education.
A message to the many people we have heard from in the past several days. Many of you are visitors for the first time to the site, some are not residents of the Valhalla School District. It would take too long for me to answer every letter so instead I will cover a few major points here.
- I don't do this to tear down the Valhalla school district. It is imploding from within.
- What I do here is not illegal, what your board and administration does, in many cases is illegal both in commission and cover-up.
- I don't do this to hurt the kids. Those that destroyed the track, the cross country trail, created and illegal and contamintated dump hurt the kids, not me.
- The information here is well documented. Click the hot links and you can see for yourself. If you don't like what you see, deal with it. Speak out, get involved.
- If you need to get your side out there, get a website. They are cheap enough, but they are a lot of work.
- If you are uncomfortable seeing how badly the district is run, don't blame the messenger.
- This website has been up for over two years. Some of the information is dated, but on the whole the illegal and unethical practices of the district have not been addressed and in many cases continue to be covered up. Unlike the students who are held to a complex, confusing and ever changing Code of Conduct our board and administration flaunt the law and their own policies.
- School corruption is a hot issue accross the state. There have been indictments and Grand Jury findings for the very same acts that have been committed here in Valhalla.
- This illegal and poorly run WestHelp deal that has been the subject of several articles in the Journal News has hit a nerve. Private agendas usually do. People seem to ignore a track team that runs in the hallways at the high school because we have no track, but take away their opera tickets and all hell breaks loose. Please be prepared in the likely event that the Comptroller's department finds the deal illegal, there will be a barrage of incriminations and accusations. We expect to be attacked for asking questions. Perhaps we will see another Hypocrite News. Just remember, in the end you can buy your own opera tickets, the kids, on the other hand, will still be running in the hallways.
- If you were part of the mob that verbally assaulted Mr. Rosenberg at the last meeting, it really doesn't matter if it was your job to call him despicable, infer he was a criminal or call for his resignation. It is quite obvious to everyone viewing that this was a well orchestrated attack, that the comments, for the most part were being read. We have the DVD. If those who participated in the attack would like to forward the statements they read, we would be happy to post them here. To set the record straight.
The following is an Email I received from Evelyn McCormack. She has asked me to publish it on this website, so I do. I also publish my response. Both are pdf files.
Rewarded, Wooed and Mollified, Everyone Gets a Piece of the Action
Sunday's report in the Journal News is an eye opener for their readers. We have been calling this deal into question for months, but even we did not realize that money appropriated for the homeless was sending kids to elite summer camps for residents who can well afford to pay the $4,000 cost. No wonder this particular resident indignantly called for the resignation of a BOE member who publically questioned the program.
The district spokesperson claims tons of proposals have been received, lets see those proposals. Who is asking for this money, who is getting it and who is not. The principal of the Kensico School claims he does his second full time position at nights and on the weekends, is that what he is telling state auditors? A district wide mailing suggests residents can call him during school time hours. He has a Westhelp paid secretary for this position. Is she also working with him at night, on weekends and during his vacation?
There are so many more questions to ask, so many more foils to send. Let's see who is paid directly out of these funds. Let's find out is benefitting, who is taking those moonlight cruises and who, if anyone, is getting a 1099 at the end of the year reporting this taxable income to the government.
The Town of Greenburgh Website explains that the town board voted to release $439,000 in funds to Valhalla because the school board had counted on that money in their budget. It they believe that, they are seriously misinformed. The WestHelp grant funds are not in the regular school budget of $36 million. They are not in the budget revenue and not in the budget expenditures. In fact if these councilmen would just read their own contract/grant they would see that the process for proposing and approving grants can not, by contract, begin before the budget is settled by the district vote. So who ever told them that the district was counting on the money in the regular district budget was lying.
Here is a final thought for everyone in Greenburgh who feels that the indemnifications agreed to by Valhalla will protect the town In the likely event someone sues to get these funds returned. If this deal is held to be illegal, how will you enforce the indemnity clause? Aren't illegal contracts, unenforcible? Would you be surprised if this is what Valhalla has in mind in the event you attempt to recover the funds from the school district?
Valhalla Accepts Greenburgh Terms
The Valhalla school board continues to dance to the tune of the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association, agreeing to further indemnify the Town of Greenburgh, putting taxpayers on the hook for more than $2.2 million should anyone sue for the return of this money illegally transferred from Westchester County to the Town of Greenburgh to the Valhalla School district and used for boat rides on the Hudson, opera tickets. Greenburgh has no reason to defend against a lawsuit now that the Valhalla School District has agreed to pay all costs and to be responsible to pay all the money back. The Greenburgh Town Attorney thinks the deal is illegal and the Comptroller is auditing it. Of course if this happens it will be North White Plains and Mount Pleasant taxpayers covering 80% of the cost as they do for all school taxes to it is a win - win for Greenburgh.
The Journal News describes it as wooing. Paul Feiner says "the concept was to provide a benefit to people living near a homeless shelter" and as "getting something in return" . We have been told it is manna from heaven, a gift, a philanthropic endeavor and now a social dividend.
It took three years and $2.2 million of wooing, benefiting and getting something in return before anyone got to see what the Valhalla School district is spending its cut of Westchester's homeless funds on, even in the most general terms. Today's Journal News article reveals some of the funding levels and gives rise to many questions.
- Given the fact that the Comptroller's Department is auditing this program, and the fact that the Greenburgh town attorney has given an opinion that the deal is not legal and that there is a new requirement that Valhalla must indemnify the town in the event that anyone sues the town over the original entire $2.2 million, why is Valhalla in such a rush to spend this additional money. This does not affect day to day operations of the Valhalla School District, this is not funding regular education. What is the panic?
- Why isn't $20,000 for Curriculum mapping part of the regular education budget? It certainly sounds like something to do with "regular education" and anything to do with regular education can not be funded by this grant.
- A math consultant at $6,000 can wait until the comptroller finishes going through the books. And if the Comptroller rules that the deal is illegal you may need that math consultant to tally up the legal bills and settlement costs the district has already agreed to pay on behalf of its benefactors.
- A $20,000 author in residence. There is an odd emergency expenditure, can't that wait?
- Class Trips at Virginia Road $12,000. When were class trips cut out of the regular education budget? Can't the parents cover the $35 per child expense, at least until we find out if this is legal?
- With Smart board at every level, where can we fit another $20,000 in classroom technology. This is the K 1 2 school!
- Natures Classroom has been the 3rd grade trip for as long as I can remember. When was this dropped from the regular education budget? Again at about $30 per child parents can easily pick up this expense.
- $10,000 of Musical Infusion. I trust this is not muzak, I suspect it could wait a few months.
- Science/enrichment teacher for $78,000. This is a curious expenditure. Isn't this the perenial intern who several years ago was moved from his classroom assignment and given this title in mid-year. Now we learn that he is not a regular teacher, but a hiree of the Valhalla School Committee. We have to ask, does he get benefits in this position, is he a VTA member, wouldn't that make him a regular education teacher and this grant can't be used for that, can it? And benefits are not paid to the grant administrator, so are they paid to this employee? Logically we also have to ask, is he also on the payroll twice as is the grant administrator/ Kensico School Principal? Does he too have two full time goverment jobs? What are his job functions? If he has a regular function in the Kensico School why is he paid by the Westhelp money? Why did the school disrupt the children at the direction of this unelected and unaccountable group of private individuals?
- Given the blanket non-descript nature of 95% of this money, $2,000 for a revolutionary way re-enactment seems odd.
- $30,000 for drama programs. Why are drama programs not part of the regular education budget and why so much money for such a small school? $30,000 for drama, $0 for athletics?
- $50,000 for the grant administrator, well he can get by on his other full time salary, at least until we know whether it is legal to pay him for 2 full time government jobs
- Under the heading Center for Enrichment and Equity we find a Valkyrie Community Program for $40,000. And among the cuts is under the same heading there is another $40,000 item symply titled Valkerie. Who is or was being paid this $80,000 as Valkerie?
- Grants of $24,000 to the Valhalla Foundation and $6,000 to VIF. Let's see, Westchester taxpayer money appropriated for the homeless, becomes Greenburgh taxpayer money, becomes Valhalla taxpayer money is donated to private non profit foundations that are set up to give money back to the school district. In what world is this legal?
- With so many district residents district employees feeding off this program, we ask is everyone getting a 1099 for the value of their "scholarships" or expense reimbursments, or subsidized trip or boat ride?
Share your thoughts about the Westhelp Deal at the Journal News
Town Attorney Questions Legality of WestHELP Deal
As reported in the Journal News, even the Greenburgh Town attorney has a problem with the Greenburgh Grant/ Contract that channels County taxpayer dollars appropriated for the Homeless through the Town of Greenburgh to the Valhalla School District.
After watching the 9/26 Valhalla BOE meeting, where Trustee Rosenberg was all but thrown under a bus by angry proponents of this money with strings attached, we can only imagine the frustration of those longing for bus rides to Caramoor and lazy cruises on the Hudson as "their money" is frozen as more questions are asked and as the Comptroller's investigation into this deal continues.
Not only is the $650,000 for the 06-07 year frozen, but the underspent surplus of $440,000 (after kicking back 15% to the Valhalla School Foundation) is also frozen. Over $1.0 million in unbudgeted money that is on hold pending growing concerns and increasing questions from the public and public officials. Even the $440,000 sitting in Valhalla's general fund can not be spent without approval of the Town of Greenburgh.
So why the angst? Why not let the Comptroller's audit run its course? No core educational programs are affected, no contract personnel will lose their pay. We trust the district did not buy anything on credit against these funds. So what is the urgency?
Comments on 10/5/06 letter to the Editor
To read today's letter in the Journal News, you have to believe the writer has not watched last week's school board meeting. When a board member expressed his position that there were problems and issues with the Greenburgh Grant/ Contract he was attacked by a series of speakers reading prepared statements, one speaker implied the board member was guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors, while the BOE president refused to control the meeting and refused to apply the rules of conduct that are in her Board Policy Manual. So much for the proper forum.
When that same board member tried to reveal that the school's attorney also has problems with this poorly written grant, he was silenced citing attorney client privilege. By the way, the fact that the board refuses to discuss the attorney's advice is saying something, if the taxpayers would only listen. The client is free to break the privilege. What are the concerns? The deal in question is being investigated and audited by the NY State Comptroller might also give a clue.
Regarding the passing of the 2006-2007 budget, it failed in two of the three towns, again. Again votes were pulled out of the Westchester Meadows where residents have no roots or stake in our school system and pay no taxes, to pass it and there was no organized opposition this year.
Finally as to the achievements of the district, we all read last month's fluff piece in the JN on how after twelve years of having a middle school we again have a middle school identity. Even a former teacher wrote to debunk that success. The fact that parents of some 15 of last year's eighth graders chose to pull their children out of Valhalla and send them to private school, is the truest indicator of district success.
Comments on the Board Meeting of 9/26/06
The BOE meeting of September 26, is again must see TV. It includes an orchestrated parade of supporters of the deal wherein Westchester County tax dollars appropriated to help the homeless are paying for opera tickets for Westchester's well to do. Each speaker reading prepared statements attacked BOE member Rosenberg for raising questions about the deal, a deal which is already being investigatged and audited by the state comptroller.
Even more disturbing, is the fact that the BOE president allowed this attack, including baseless allegations, inuendo and inferences about a sitting board member to continue. Perhaps board members should read the BOE policy manual that does not allow for such personal attacks at a public meeting. Not once did any board member speak out in Mr. Rosenberg's defense. Not one board member objected to these vile attacks but their silence spoke volumes.
Here are some interesting highlights:
- The contract with Greenburgh clearly indicates that the position of grant administrator is a full time position. When it says a "majority" of the administrator's time must be sent on the grant, it leaves only a minority of his time to work on his other full time job, principal at the Kensico School. Therefore Mr. Meile has two full time jobs, both on the school's payroll.
- We are told that the position was changed to a part time job via a grant proposal (which based on the documents we have seen is either prepared by or approved by Mr. Miele himself) The contract has never been changed. In fact, the position, described in the contract as requiring a majority of his time (that would be full time) was never adjusted in salary to a part time rate, in fact it now pays $52,156, an increase of 4.31% over the original salary.
- Mr. Rosenberg was chastised for revealing that he was a school board member in a letter to Greenburgh Supervisor Feiner. Yet one of those so appalled by his letter failed to identify herself at the meeting as a vendor whose company not only is paid for services by the school district but paid for services from this homeless money as well.
- One former board member even suggested that the board should only discuss these issues in executive session. Perhaps Mr. LaLuna is not familiar with the NY State Constituion and the Open Meetings Law. The Board of Education is a government body. It conducts its business, or it least it is supposed to conduct its business in open session.
- Superintendent Ramos-Kelly cautioned against discussing the "advice of counsel". This is odd. Shouldn't counsel have advised what the board should now be doing. This is not private counsel, this is the school district's counsel. He certainly can't be advising ways to skirt the law. So why can't his advice be revealed?
More Controversy
In a recent article in the Journal News the school board president, Grace Stone claims "We have done everything aboveboard, and anybody who has questions can ask them, and we'll get them answers," she said. "We were willing to have an entire work session devoted to his questions, but he resigned before we were able to do it."
The fact is that during the week of September 11;
- A work session was scheduled for Tuesday 9/12 and cancelled the day before.
- Then a special meeting was called by a concerned board member for the same day, 9/12. The meeting was called to order, the board went into executive session, with the school district's attorney present. Inexplicably the board vice president, mrs. Sicuranzo walked out, breaking quorum and ending the meeting. Mrs. Stone did not attend that meeting.
- Another special meeting was called for Thursday 9/14, by a second concerned trustee. This time the district's attorney was not present.
- Finally an emergency meeting was called by the superintendent for Saturday morning, 9/16.
The stated topic for all these meetings was WestHelp, they went into executive session to discuss matters pertaining to a particular district employee. Does this sound like it was above board? We may not know exactly what was discussed, as the school district no longer takes minutes of executive sessions, in violation of its own policy, but we know it had to with Westhelp and with a district employee. Have these two matter been discussed in public?
Mrs. Stone? Five months have passed. How about those answers?
In the same article, former School Board president McGuinn says "His stated reasons may be true, but consider the possibility that he and his father discovered that actually fixing real problems is a lot harder," . "They'd rather just stand on the sidelines and criticize those trying to fix the problems."
Let's instead consider that the board continues to engage in and cover-up illegal activities that are well documented on this website. Activities that can be attributed to this board and traced to previous boards during Mr. McGuinn's service. The Comptroller's audit of Greenburgh has now confirmed that the Westhelp Partnership is illegal. They are initiating a second audit of the Valhalla School district to see how Valhalla spent the illegal funds.
The article goes on to say "LaLuna said Ramos-Kelly also told him she had contacted the school board's counsel, David Shaw, and urged him to await a subpoena from the Attorney General's Office before he turned over any documents." So, if you believe Dr. Ramos-Kelly, here you have the school's attorney giving advice to a former board member, through the Superintendent of Schools and further that this legal advice was not to cooperate with the state Attorney General.
There is a $400,000 Surplus in Westhelp Fund
Article Describing WestHelp Lease and Leaseback:
- In 1991 Westchester County built the WestHelp Homeless Shelter on county property, at county expense.
- A deal was made to offer the Town of Greenburgh the option to lease the facility from the county in 2001 and turn it into Senior Housing.
- In 2001, the Town of Greenburgh chose not to lease the facility from the County, and chose not to create senior housing. You would think that would be the end of the story, but you would be wrong.
- Now the county leases the property to the Town of Greenburgh anyway (maybe for a $1) and then subleases it back from the Town of Greenburgh for $1.2 million a year.
- Most of that $1.2 million is channeled to the Fairview Fire Department, the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association and into the Valhalla School District to be spent at the discretion of a committee controlled by the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Assocation.
Why are Westchester County taxpayers leasing their own building from themselves in a way that costs them $12 million. What claim does the town, the fire department, the civic association or the school have on these taxes? This turnaround is costing Westchester County taxpayers $24 million dollars. The $12 million the should be getting from the Town of Greenburgh plus the $12 million they are paying.
When you were given your copy of the Westhelp Grant two weeks ago there was a page missing. The page wherein the school board president indemnifies and holds harmless the Town of Greenburgh for any any all "liability damage, claims, demands, costs, judgments, fees or loss arising directly or indirectly out of the provision of educational programs and services funded by this Agreement" on behalf of the district, and its officers, employees and agents. Wake up, this was not a mistake. You can not trust your administrators. Like the parents and the public you are being spoon fed misinformation by your employees.
And don't think this indemnification is simply boilerplate language. It is not. Spending is tightly controlled by a committee appointed by the Town Board of Greenburgh that is made up of a majority of members of the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association. Greenburgh was well advised to put all the risk on Valhalla, Valhalla was not well advised. If Valhalla's attorney ok'd this agreement, they should be fired. And it was no accident that this page was not given to the present board.
For those of you who think the WestHelp money is philanthropic endeavor, click the title above, this should be eye opener. This is a $6.5 million contract that funnels money through school district accounts at the direction of a small committee appointed by Town of Greenburgh. A committee that by Town directive must comprise a majority of members from the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association, controls every penny of spending. This agreement, signed by the school board president excludes not only residents of Mount Pleasant and North Castle that pay 80% of the school district taxes, but precludes those who live in Parkway Homes, Valimar, the Apartments and the Co-ops from ever controlling these funds.
- The grant administrator, who is paid $50,000 a year must devote a majority of his time to administration of the grant. How is that possible when he is the full time administator of the Kensico School paid $160,351? When he is even paid a $5,000 stipend for evening administration? When he is eligible for a 6% bonus every year as principal? Nice work if you can get it.
- The Town of Greenburgh (actually the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association) hires and determines the salary of the grant administrator. They hired our building principal for this full time job, in effect he holds two full time jobs paid through the school district payroll.
- Paragraph 8 of this grant establishes a flow back of up 15% of unspent money to the Valhalla Schools Foundation. Are we actually writing school district checks to a foundation set up to contribute money to the district?
- Nowhere in this agreement does it preclude using these funds for a track or other capital improvements though we have been told it does.
- Nowhere in this agreement does it refer to your elected Board of Education. Nonetheless the board of education routinely approves spending from this fund.
- If all the money is not spent and after kicking back 15% to the Valhalla Schools Foundation, excess funds are carried over to the next year and still subject to approval of the exclusive committee, the majority of which must be members of the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association.
- This contract actually assigns tasks and duties to the Valhalla Superintendent of Schools and other district employees. Presentations, proposals, reports and meetings required of the superintendent who we are paying to run the school district, not this side show.
- Paragraph 11 "The District, and its officers, employees and agents, agree to indemnify and hold the Town harmless from and against and and all liability damage, claims, demands, costs, judgments, fees or loss arising directly or indirectly out of the provision of educational programs and services funded by this Agreement" So all such actions will fall on you, the taxpayers. Do you think it doesn't matter? It mattered enough to Greenburgh to put it in the grant. Can the president of the board of education sign such an agreement on behalf of employees who are represented by unions and associations?
Take a look at the Valhalla School District revenues from 03-04 through 06-07 and you will find a very curious increase in interest income, which averages $70,000 for three prior years suddenly jumps to $220,000 in 06-07. That is an incredible jump of almost 200%. Certainly the budget could not generate that much interest. Rates in general are not up appreciably and the district is not investing in the Cayman Islands, so where did come from? They are floating "rising interest rates" as the reason for a 200% increase in interest. Let's put that into perspective interest rates have not risen 200% and at current rates the district would need an extra $3.5 million to invest for the entire year to get that return. With a fund balance capped at $700,000 there is no way they could project $220,000 in interest unless they already had it and had not reported it from prior years. You can see that suddenly in 2006, the district stopped presenting comparative years, so it was impossible to detect this unexplained interest increase. Could this have something to do with the magical $1.3 million that our chearleader CPA was "so excited" about at the last board meeting? The magical $1.3 million that does not appear in the district's revenue projection for the 06-07 budget, but which he says has been used to reduce taxes. Would it be too much to ask the district to put the Auditors report on their website and maybe look for a more professional and less excited CPA firm.
These questions could be asked at a board meeting but unfortunately the board takes no minutes of their discussion, refuses to read or enter coorespondence into the minutes, limits residents to 5 minutes (soon to be 3 minutes) and when asked complex questions never have an answer. Remember when Mr. Wolfson was going to prepare an analysis of all costs associated with the fill-for-fields scheme? Well he never did and refuses to do so now.
We are finally able to see where the WestHelp money comes from. It comes from the taxpayers of Westchester County. Pay close attention, according to this article:
- In 1991 Westchester County built the WestHelp Homeless Shelter on county property, at county expense.
- To quiet local resistance from the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association, a deal was made to offer the Town of Greenburgh the option to lease the facility from the county in 2001 and turn it into Senior Housing.
- In 2001, the Town of Greenburgh chose not to lease the facility from the County, and chose not to create senior housing. You would think that would be the end of the story, but you would be wrong.
- Somehow, the county leases the property to the Town of Greenburgh anyway (maybe for a $1) and then subleases it back from the Town of Greenburgh for $1.2 million a year.
- Most of that $1.2 million is channeled to the Fairview Fire Department, the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Association and into the Valhalla School District to be spent at the discretion of a committee controlled by the Mayfair Knollwood Civic Assocation.
Why are Westchester County taxpayers leasing their own building from themselves in a way that costs them $12 million. What claim does the town, the fire department, the civic association or the school have on these taxes? This turnaround is costing Westchester County taxpayers $24 million dollars. The $12 million the should be getting from the Town of Greenburgh plus the $12 million they are paying.
Philanthropic Nimbysm can best describe the Westhelp Partership.
