Archive Port Chester Newswire 2000

WMU NewsApril 2000 doctoral recipients announced. June 7, 2000 ... The daughter of Mathew and Leelamma Paulose of Port Chester, she earned her bachelor's degree at ...
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$100M Port Chester waterfront is go - G and S Investors - Brief ...Real Estate Weekly, June 21, 2000. Ground was broken on the $100 million waterfront and downtown renewal project in the heart of Port Chester, N.Y., ...
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Port Chester project is real eye-openerThe following is a true political parable. It is set in the village of Port Chester.Five years ago, Westchester County agreed to lease a strip of land along the Byram River waterfront that would later be transformed into a "nautical-themed" promenade.
For all intents and purposes, the lease was a taxpayer-supported gift. What else could you call it? Endorsed and approved by County Executive Andrew Spano and the county Board of Legislators, the land deal called for the county to make annual payments of $840,000 for 20 years.
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Institute for Justice: Private Property Rights Cases: New York ...Village of Port Chester New York Property Owners File Federal Lawsuit To Stop ... File Federal Lawsuit To Stop Abuse of Eminent Domain (October 4, 2000) ...
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Public Documents
1. Port Chester Audit Report - 2000
Village of Port Chester - Summary of Recommendations
Internal Control and Compliance
An effective system of internal control is necessary so that the Board of Trustees can have reasonable assurance that resources are safeguarded and that transactions are executed in accordance with management's authorization, are in accordance with statutory requirements and are properly recorded.
Failure to establish proper controls could expose the village's resources to loss or improper use. The following recommendations help ensure that the village's resources are not at risk and that transactions are properly authorized and are in compliance with statutory requirements.
Payments for Professional Services
The Board of Trustees should establish procedures to ensure that the audit of claims includes a comparison of the amounts billed to the agreed upon compensation. Furthermore, all claims should be sufficiently itemized and documented so as to allow a proper audit of the charges by the Board of Trustees. In addition, the Board of Trustees should enter into written agreements with all professionals, stipulating the services to be provided and the basis for compensation.
Competitive Bidding
The Board of Trustees should develop procedures to help ensure that all commodities whose annual purchases are likely to aggregate in excess of $10,000, and all public work contracts whose cost is likely to aggregate in excess of $20,000, are identified and procured in accordance with the competitive bidding requirements of the General Municipal Law.
Street Lighting Maintenance Contract
The Board of Trustees should develop procedures to ensure that public work contracts are not extended unless authorized in the bid specifications.
Segregation of Duties
The treasurer and the Board of Trustees should review the operation of the treasurer's office to determine the feasibility of separating the incompatible functions of cash custody and record keeping to provide additional safeguards for assets and proper maintenance of financial records. Although optimal separation of duties may not always be practicable, we believe that, at the very minimum, the duties of asset custody and record keeping should be separated.
Police Department Investigation Fund
The Board of Trustees should consider authorizing an increase in the police department petty cash fund and allowing its use for investigations as well as other authorized petty cash purposes. The petty cash fund should only be replenished by the village treasurer, after a list of all expenditures together with bills or other documentation supporting such expenditures, are presented to the Board of Trustees for audit. Investigation expenses that cannot, because of their nature, be supported by paid bills should be documented on a form requiring supervisory approval. Furthermore, the board should ensure that moneys received by the police department are remitted directly to the treasurer for recording and deposit.
Audit and Payment of Claims
Unless the Board of Trustees appoints a new finance officer and designates that person village auditor, the Board of Trustees should audit and approve claims prior to payment and evidence such audit and approval by resolution recorded in the minutes of its proceedings.
Solicitation of Competitive Quotations
The Board of Trustees should review the village's procurement policy to ensure that it is in keeping with the current needs of the village and require a specific number of verbal and written quotations for each price range as would be appropriate. In addition, the Board of trustees should ensure that there is compliance with the procurement policy regarding the solicitation of competitive quotations.
Payment of Overtime on Claim Voucher
All payments for personal services, including payments for overtime, should be based on duly approved payrolls. The village treasurer should institute procedures to ensure that required state and federal taxes are withheld from the payment of overtime made to the firefighter and transmitted to the proper authorities.
Filing of Annual Financial ReportThe Board of Trustees should institute procedures to assure compliance with General Municipal Law, §30 regarding the timely preparation and filing of its annual financial report.
Fixed Assets
The Board of Trustees should improve accountability for fixed assets by designating, by resolution, an individual to be responsible for maintaining the fixed asset inventory records. This individual, subject to Board of Trustees approval, should take steps to establish an up to date and complete fixed assets inventory record and should develop written policies and procedures to be followed by village departments and personnel to assure the timely and accurate reporting of all acquisitions, dispositions and transfers of fixed assets.
Vehicle Fuel Records
The Board of Trustees should ensure that a perpetual inventory record is established and maintained showing gallons received, distributed and balance on hand. Periodically, an individual other than employees involved in receiving or distributing fuel, should take physical readings of the amount actually in the tank and should compare these readings to the balances indicated in the inventory records.
Reporting Days Worked to the Retirement System - Part-Time Employee
The Board of Trustees should take steps to ensure that the number of days worked as reported on monthly reports to the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement System is based on actual hours worked on payrolls paid during the monthly reporting period and the number of hours set by the village as a full standard workday.
Reporting Termination Payment to the Retirement System
Village officials should ensure that the correct number of days are reported on the monthly reports to the retirement system, and that termination payments for unused leave are not reported, except for up to thirty days for vacation for Tier 1 members.
Reporting Days Worked to the Retirement System -Elected Officials
The Board of Trustees should establish a standard workday for retirement reporting purposes. Elected officials who are members of the retirement system should submit a report of the number of hours worked in a representative sample month to the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees should review the hours worked by these officials in the sample month submitted and determine the number of days to be reported for retirement service reporting purposes by dividing the total hours included in the sample month by the number of hours established as a standard workday.
2. Village Profile
The People and Families of Port ChesterIn Port Chester, about 41% of adults are married. The faces of Port Chester are those of its large families. Approximately 39% of Port Chester is non-white. Diversity is a hallmark of Port Chester. Males are more numerous in the village than in most villages
.Wealth and EducationIn 2000, Port Chester had a median family income of $51,025.
Port Chester Housing
As of 2000, the share of housing units in Port Chester that were owner-occupied was 43%. Homes in this community tend to be somewhat older than those in other areas. People on their own appreciate the studio and one-bedroom apartments in Port Chester. As a whole, property taxes tend toward the pricey side in the village, but this often equates to better schools and government services.
Commuting
In Port Chester, 75% of commuters drive to work. More folks in Port Chester use public transportation than most people elsewhere.