This year has been one of renewal, advocacy and internal reform. For the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to hold every ECC Board of Directors meeting in person – with the exception of one – bringing a sense of normalcy back to what have been a challenging few years.
Smoke Shops
Much of the focus of the ECC this past fall was on working with the Greenburgh Town Board and staff on the drafting and ultimate successful adoption of a set of laws to address the proliferation of smoke shops in Greenburgh in close proximity to where children learn and play. This was the result of a six-month-long advocacy campaign by the Edgemont Community Council. The new laws on vaping and weapons were written and advanced through a collaborative effort between the ECC Special Committee on Smoke Shops and the Greenburgh Town Board. Members of the ECC Special Committee on Smoke Shops included:
– Dr. Kim Abrams, Division Chief of the Pediatric Group of New Rochelle at Boston Children’s Health Physicians
– Lauren Lappen, Former PTA Co-President
– Pamela Montgomery, ECC 1st Vice President and PTSA Co-President
– Dylan Pyne, ECC President
– Linda Richter, Vice President of Prevention Research and Analysis at Partnership to End Addiction
Adopted at the December 14th, 2022 Town Board meeting, New Local Law Chapter 453 entitled “Tobacco Products and Smoking Paraphernalia, Prohibition of Sales, Display and Advertising of Specified Tobacco Products and Smoking Paraphernalia” in the Code of the Town of Greenburgh restricts the sale or offering for sale of any vaping products and smoking paraphernalia within 750 feet of public parks or any school that has students under the age of 21. Additionally, the law prohibits the advertising or display of any vaping products and smoking paraphernalia within 1,500 feet of any public park or school which has students under the age of 21.
Vaping products include e-cigarettes and synthetic nicotine products which are aimed at the youth market. Smoking paraphernalia is defined to include pipes, bongs and rolling paper. Importantly, “display” is defined as visible from any exterior or interior location visible from any public road or sidewalk.
However, the term “specified tobacco products” does not include cigars and cigarettes, including flavored cigarettes, which are not covered by the Town’s new law and, unless sold to minors in violation of state law, would remain lawful for smoke shops to sell in close proximity to schools and public parks.
Penalties for violating this new law can result in fines of up to $2,500 for the initial day and $2,500 for each day the violation remains. Any person convicted of a second violation of this law within three years of a prior conviction under the law can face fines up to $5,000 for the initial day and $5,000 for each day the violation remains.
The advertising and display restrictions on vaping products and smoking paraphernalia went into effect immediately upon the Town filing the law with the New York Secretary of State in January 2023. However, the prohibition against selling vaping products and smoking paraphernalia within 750 feet of a school or public park will not go into effect until January 2024 as the Town wanted to give the businesses affected what it thought was sufficient time to adjust to the new restrictions.
New Local Law Chapter 472 entitled “Weapons, Prohibition of Specified Sales, Display and Advertising of Weapons,” in the Code of the Town of Greenburgh restricts the sale or offering to sell of any weapons within 750 feet of any school that has students under the age of 21 as well as public parks. Unlike the limited ban on selling vaping products and smoking paraphernalia, which will not go into effect until January 2024, the limited ban on the sale of weapons went into effect upon the Town filing the law with the New York Secretary of State this past January.
Additionally, the law restricts the advertising or display of any weapons within 1,500 feet of any public park or school that has students under the age of 21.
Both of these new laws are enforceable by both the Town of Greenburgh Police Department and the Town Building Inspector and both laws also empower the Town Attorney to seek the closure, for good cause shown, of any business found to be operating in violation of these laws.
As part of this effort, earlier this week the Greenburgh Drug and Alcohol Task Force along with the New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), the White Plains Police Department Intel Unit, and the Town of Greenburgh Building Department conducted multiple inspections of smoke shops, including Scarsdale Convenience on Central Park Avenue. That inspection resulted in the shop being temporarily closed and the power being turned off by ConEd.
Last week Hartsdale Tobacco on East Hartsdale Avenue, Cloud House Convenience on the corner of Mount Joy and Central Park Avenue and #1 Convenience and Tobacco on Central Park Avenue right near the Cotswold border were temporarily closed for building code violations. Also last week a number of gas stations on Central Park Avenue were issued summonses for tobacco-related violations.
At the State level, the ECC also worked with our Assemblyperson Amy Paulin to combat the rise of illegal marijuana sales by Smoke Shops and Convenience Stores. As a result of our advocacy, last December, Assemblyperson Paulin introduced a bill that would establish that any business selling cannabis without a license would be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $2,500 for the first violation, $5,000 for a second violation, and the potential seizure of the business on a third violation. The current fine for a business is a mere $250.
Assemblyperson Paulin’s bill also amended language in the New York State penal law to clarify that unlicensed cannabis retailers are subject to current laws relating to the unlawful sale of cannabis. Current ambiguity in the law has in some instances impeded police crackdowns on illegal sales at shops, which has allowed them to continue illicitly selling.
We are hopeful and optimistic that this law or aspects of this law will eventually become New York State law and thank Assemblyperson Paulin for her work in advocating for the interests of Edgemont.
The ECC also thanks the members of the Special Committee on Smoke Shops for sharing their personal and professional expertise with the community by serving on the task force and thanks former ECC President Bob Bernstein for assisting in the drafting of the laws, providing the necessary legal research, and his guidance throughout the process, and thanks Councilman Francis Sheehan, Town Attorney Joe Danko and Commissioner of Community Development & Conservation Garrett Duquesne for working with the ECC to address the rise of illegal marijuana sales by Smoke Shops and Convenience Stores in Edgemont and for the collaborative approach that was taken in working to solve this problem.
While these new laws were the results of compromises, and there are still some concerns originally raised by the committee that remain unaddressed, these laws constitute a significant improvement. The ECC hopes the Town will continue to work with us to address these important health and safety concerns for the children of our community. The ECC also hopes this experience can be used as a model for a collaborative partnership between the ECC and the Town Board in the future.
Programming
This year, the ECC sponsored a number of events that fostered community engagement and spirit. This fall, we hosted a meet-and-greet event with the new Edgemont School District Superintendent, Dr. Kenneth Hamilton.
We also sponsored our second community-wide service event – partnering with Feeding Westchester to raise over $5,000 and packing 3,290 meal kits totaling 5,764 pounds of food that will go directly to the community to support our neighbors in need. Looking forward, we are excited for our next community service event on Sunday, May 7, this time in partnership with the Greenburgh Nature Center to clear and maintain a number of trails within the property. If you have not already registered for this great event, you can find the link to do so on our website. With our increased membership dues and new membership levels, the ECC looks to sponsor even more community programming next year.
To that end, I’m excited to announce that the ECC will be revitalizing and sponsoring the Newcomers Club. Since the former Newcomers Club ceased operations last June, we’ve heard from a number of new residents to the community looking for a way to get involved and meet other neighbors, especially new residents who have no children or children who have not yet entered the schools. We’ve also heard from longtime residents who recognize the importance of making all new residents feel welcome and helping them find opportunities to give back and get engaged regardless of what stage in the Edgemont lifecycle they might be in. We have already begun to recruit members to the Newcomers Committee, but it’s not too late to raise your hand and get involved. Whether you are new to Edgemont or a long-time resident, if you are interested in helping out with this initiative, please email me or find me after the meeting. Please also look out for additional communication about the new Newcomers Committee in the coming months.
Internal Reform
The ECC started the year by launching our new website and new domain, EdgemontECC.org. We also revitalized our committee system, with Logan Clark following zoning and planning issues within the Town as Chair of the ECC Zoning and Planning Committee; Laura Wilker working tirelessly as chair of the Community Service Committee; planning the two amazing events mentioned earlier; Evan Levine laying the foundational steps of what resulted in the launch of the new Newcomers Club by chairing our New-to-Edgemont Committee; and Lucas Cioffi designing and implementing a first-of-its-kind community engagement effort as Chair of the Traffic, Sidewalks, and Safety Committee – which I hope you have seen the many emails about. Please be on the lookout for next steps on the efforts of that committee and opportunities to get involved and have your voice heard.
Additionally, the Board of Directors also drafted and endorsed three ECC bylaw amendments and also endorsed the recommendation to establish an SBNC Rules and Procedures Revision Committee for the first time since 1994 to review and recommend updates to the SBNC Rules and Procedures – which we are grateful for the membership approving earlier this meeting.
Graditute
In closing, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who plays a role in the success of the Edgemont Community Council. Thank you to the entire Board of Directors for their hard work, dedication, and engagement month in and month out, especially Eliana Weissman and Jeremy Feffer, who will be departing the ECC Board this June, each after six years of service. Thank you to the School Board Nominating Committee for another successful year and smooth process, thank you to David Stern for serving as Chair of the SBNC for the past two years, and congratulations to Jen DeMarrais and Heather Stern on their endorsements to serve on the School Board. Most importantly, thank you to you – our members – who enable us to pursue our mission and whose ranks have doubled year over year, exceeding 150 members for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
Lastly, I would like to personally thank former ECC Presidents Bob Bernstein and Colin McCarthy for their insight and counsel over the past year, ensuring a smooth transition and continued success for the ECC. It has been an honor to represent Edgemont as President of the ECC over the past year, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue to serve next year.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dylan Pyne
President, The Edgemont Community Council