The Croton Friends of History are offering residents a chance to ‘divest’ themselves of all those things that are just taking up space around their houses. And best of all, the contributions all go to a good cause—namely the Friends of History, and their very-popular series of free, entertaining and educational programs. So, why not donate your no-longer-needed items to their upcoming garage sale. To participate, simply drop off your donated items at 108 Old Post Road South on Friday, May 9, 2008 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. And, if you’re unable to bring them yourself, please call 914-271-3135 to arrange for pick-up (for any & everything except clothing).

Then, on Saturday, May 10, 2008, from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, the GIANT garage sale opens to the public.

To the members of our community:

The sun is shining and spring is truly here! As I walk around our schools and see gardens built at PVC, spring shows at CET, and listen to the wonderful sound system used during West Side Story at CHHS I think of all the ways CHEF has helped the children of this community and I am so very proud of our hard work.

Saturday, May 10th marks the culmination of months of hard work by so many committed and energetic people from our community. Under the Stars, CHEF’s largest annual school fundraiser, will take place that night at the Senasqua Lodge, at Croton Point Park. The pre-dinner wine tasting at 5:30 PM followed by the dinner, dance, and auction starting at 6:30 PM, is truly an evening out for the Croton community.

Please come and enjoy a wonderful evening with old and new friends here in Croton. Please come and support our children and our schools.

If you haven’t bought your tickets there is still time. Log onto www.crotonfoundation.org or call 271-2410.

I look forward to seeing you on Saturday night!

— Gem Mitchell, President, Croton-Harmon Education Foundation

April 21

10:40 PM: Patrol responded to a report of a domestic dispute at a residence on Grand Street. Shortly thereafter, officer encouraged on of the persons involved to leave and return the next day to gather personal belongings.

April 22

2:13 AM: There was a report from a resident on High Street about a domestic disturbance in the area. Patrol responded to the scene and upon locating the persons in dispute, urged one of them to leave the area.

3:39 PM: There was a report from a business owner on Grand Street who had safety concerns about a backhoe having been parked atop a nearby pile of dirt. Patrol responded to the scene and later ask the contractor—who was fixing a gas main—to move the equipment.

6:19 PM: There was a report from a resident of Yorktown Heights that damage was done to his car while it was parked at the Croton Harmon train station parking lot.

The Westchester County Department of Health held its annual water tasting contest today at which residents sampled water from four of the County’s municipalities and proclaimed Croton-on-Hudson their favorite.

The blind taste test was held in recognition of National Drinking Water Week outside of the Michaelian Office Building on Martine Avenue in White Plains from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Nearly 140 people sampled water from the Village of Croton-on-Hudson, Town of Greenburgh, City of Yonkers, and City of Peekskill.

Croton-on-Hudson received the most votes (40), followed by Greenburgh (37), Yonkers (31), and Peekskill (30). Of the municipalities that participated, Croton-on-Hudson was the lone well water supplier.

For additional information about the contest or other water quality initiatives, contact the Westchester County Department of Health at 914-813-5000 or visit www.westchestergov.com/health.

From Clive’s blog, “I’m hosting a free mini-Star Wars fan film festival on Wednesday, May 7th from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM at the Croton Free Library, so if you love fan productions and you live in Westchester, c’mon down!”

Details: May The Fan Film Be With You will show and discuss some of the best Star Wars fan films ever made. Most people have only seen these movies on the internet, but this program presents them the way they were meant to be seen—in full-quality on a big screen. Films to be shown include: Hardware Wars; Troops; George Lucas In Love; Duality; Pink Five; Beagle and many more.

Besides showing movies, the program will discuss the history of the growing fan film movement and explore what compels filmmakers to invest so much effort into their personal visions of the Star Wars mythology. All material screened will be appropriate for the whole family, but the discussion will be aimed primarily at adults and young adults. The program will run about 90 minutes.

Host: Clive Young is the author of the upcoming Homemade Hollywood: Fans Behind The Camera (Continuum; September, 2008), the first book about the secret history and surprising future of the Fan Film movement. He also edits the fan film blog, fancinematoday.com.

For further program information, contact the Croton Free Library at 914-271-6612 or visit its website at www.crotonfreelibrary.org

On Saturday, May 10, 2008, the public is invited by Croton-on-Hudson artists Barbara Hunt and Jeanne D. Shaw for the grand opening and reception of their Riverdrifters Fine Art Works Gallery.

“Honoring the Spirit of the Wood” is the overriding theme of the work done by artists Barbara Hunt and Jeanne D. Shaw. The two create sculpture out of Driftwood and other found objects, as well as paintings, photography, ceramic art, Dream Catchers and walking sticks. Along with a strong Native influence, the Hudson River is their main inspiration.

The festivities begin a at 11:00 AM and continue until 4:00 PM and include a gallery dedication at noon, followed by a session on Eastern Woodland history at 1:00 PM. Throughout by day, drumming will be provided by the Nimham Mountain Singers—a unity drum group that sings Eastern Woodland songs of their native Aboriginal Heritage. Light refreshments will also be served.

For more information, please email Jeanne D. Shaw at Maniart8@aol.com.

One almost expects to be assailed with fear mongering by politicians in the nation’s capital. Scare tactics, a standard operating procedure in Washington, are de rigueur nowadays. But one doesn’t expect to experience them in the Village of Croton-on-Hudson from a would-be contractor to the village.

Yet that’s exactly the unseemly tactic Anthony O. Conetta, 60, vice president of the Long Island-based engineering firm of Dvirka and Bartilucci, tried to employ at last Monday’s sparsely attended work session of the village board. Dvirka and Bartilucci have done work for this village before. They should know better.

It seems that some 700 parking spaces may continue to be lost to use from time to time if the flood-prone area of the parking lot (Sections G and H) at the Croton-Harmon station is not renovated at a cost to Croton of more than $2 million. FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Administration, has already unequivocally turned down Croton’s application for a grant to make improvements that would forestall future flooding events.

The federal government is obviously not anxious to open its coffers for the repair of a parking lot built over a filled-in marsh and with a long history of flooding—one that probably should never have been placed there. Where were environmentalists when this wetland area was originally filled in? Croton is appealing the decision, but getting an inept FEMA to acknowledge that it made a mistake is unlikely. It still won’t admit that anything was wrong with the hundreds of thousands of formaldehyde-contaminated trailer homes it supplied to Katrina hurricane victims, causing many to sicken or die.

Dvirka and Bartilucci have their eyes fixed on a heftily remunerative contract to raise sunken portions of the parking lot by five or six feet. Mr. Conetta conjured up his mushroom cloud at Monday night’s work session. Unethically trying to scare board members and the public, he claimed that the loss of the sinking parking spaces would mean that some 700 current parkers would be driving to New York City instead of taking the train.

The Croton Teen theater, a summer educational program now in its twenty-first season, has announced auditions for its upcoming production of Cole Porter’s 1939 musical, “Anything Goes.”

Organizers hope that the romantic musical comedy will serve as the springboard for area teens to sharpen their acting, singing and dancing skills in a professional environment. Under the direction of tom Berger, Artistic Director of Directions Theatre company in Manhattan and regional musical director John Bronsten, the show is a shipboard tale of identity mix-ups coupled with songs such as “I Get a Kick Out of You,” “You’re the Top,” and “Anything Goes.” Croton Teen Theater also offers learning opportunities in lighting, sound, costumes and set construction.

Auditions will be held Monday, May 19th, Wednesday, May 21st and Thursday, May 2, 2008 at the Asbury United Methodist church, located at 9 Old Post Road in Croton-on-Hudson. For more information, please contact John MacLean at 914-271-1418.

To the editor:

I am one of those village residents involved in the Croton Ad Hoc Dog Committee, hereafter referred to as CAHDC. Since last fall, we have been meeting with the Village Board and the Recreation Advisory Committee in an attempt to have one of the village’s existing recreational areas designated as “dog-friendly”, where dogs and their humans can meet and socialize on an informal basis. We have never requested access to all parks, nor have we worked to obtain a “dog park.” If you’d like more information, please feel free to write to me at crotondogs@gmail.com and either one of the members of CAHDC or myself will be happy to answer your questions.

— Jane Murtaugh

To the editor:

Can anyone tell me of even one single service or government function that is not or could not be provided by our own local government?

We have so many layers of government doing things for us and duplicating services already provided, it’s no wonder our taxes are among the very highest in the nation.

Someone has to put the brakes on and have the courage to seriously look at the 1000 pound gorilla that’s grown over the years.