THE DECADE LONG NIGHTMARE
IS OVER, OR IS IT?
Mayors are no longer elected in Hastings-on-Hudson. They are now anointed by the Hastings-on- Hudson Democratic Committee headed by Vanessa Merton, the "Boss Hogg" of this modern day leftist Tammany Hall. There has not been a single representative outside the "Merton Gang" to sit on the Board of Trustees for over two decades, the last being Trustee Anthony Gagliardi. At a recent caucus / circle jerk, some seventy plus progressives in attendance announced that in March, Trustee Nicola Armacost would assume the thrown vacated by the decade long train wreck known to contributors to this page, as "Fredo" Swiderski. Armacost, who was herself appointed by Swiderski to fill a vacated seat on the Board of Trustees in 2009, will appoint her own successor in April following her swearing in as Mayor. Thus the progressive beat of these leftist SJW's goes on, with Hastings now nothing more than a disturbing echo chamber.
Following her induction, Swiderski's "leftenant" spoke briefly to the small gathering. She explained that she wanted to be Mayor because she was "upset by national politics." The comment was of course mainlined by all in attendance, as under Swiderski the coopted Board of Trustees has become a podium for meaningless virtue signaling on national politics. With leftists swelling with delusional pride, Armacost continued, feeding more trite to the tribe. 'As Mayor I will rely on Trustee Marc Leaf's unique insight of the village's history and character.' Though utter lip service, this remark is somewhat encouraging, as it seems to imply that Armacost will preform some form of due diligence before embarking on a particular course of action. This unlike Swiderski who arrogantly engaged in misguided personal agendas without any real understanding of the village he represented. Examples of "Fredo's" many disastrous "pilot programs" and embarrassing missteps have all been well documented on this page. Ms. Armacost's reliance on Trustee Leaf's insights into Hastings history and character is of course foolishness and will serve little to no purpose.
For the Hastings on Hudson that village Trustee Marc Leaf knew as a youth, sadly no longer exists. That Hastings was an actual village, devoid of group think. One thriving with diversity and filled with unique and colorful individuals. It was a village where children once walked to school, not an entitled suburban community where S.U.V.'s line Lefurgy Avenue waiting to collect coddled offspring from Hillside Elementary. Telling yourself you are what once was, does not make it so. If the village is ever to return to any semblance of the "character" of it's former self, this lip service must end. For far too long Hastings has been trading on this romantic notion, which serves no one. Trustee Leaf's memories of the former village where real men once walked it's streets and could be found in places outside the D.P.W. and volunteer fire departments, are better shared with the Hastings Historical Society.
Thankfully there are a few engaged voices who still remain, as there are key questions that must be asked of the anointed Mayor before she assumes office. Here are two which we feel are paramount.
1. When was she aware of the county's proposal to fence the Warburton Avenue bridge? A proposal that Swiderski and Village Manager Frobel withheld from residents for two years before making public. If she too were unaware, why did she not speak out against this abhorrent manipulation of the public, resulting in the destruction of an historic and signature view
2. What, or whom (David Shaw), was most responsible for saving Hastings from bankruptcy?
That said, we wish Ms. Armacost well. She is certain to be a vast improvement, it's hard to imagine anyone who wouldn't be. She will bring a much needed authenticity and engagement to the proceedings, as she replaces the most socially awkward, duplicitous and fearful Mayor ever to serve. She will hopefully return a spine and bring some taste to the office, as Swiderski displayed neither. No doubt she will continue to be a fiscal asset as the only board member who can dissect a budget, much less make sense of a spread sheet. Given this, our hope is that Ms. Armacost's term as Mayor will reflect at least some of the following.
Placing the village's day to day operations and protecting it's welfare as her top priority.
Return actual transparency to the proceedings, not just vapid references to the term.
Restore allotted time for public comment to five minutes, from the three minutes to which it was cut by Swiderski who feared, rather than welcomed, public input. Residents should not be hampered by a three minute restriction and or time clock when speaking. You will find no such clocks in Dobbs Ferry or Irvington.
Relocate meetings of the Board of Trustees from the municipal building, where the Board lords over residents from a dais, to the Harmon Center where they can be conducted on a level playing field with the public.
Replace or retire the mediocre at best, village manager Francis Frobel.
Dissolve the 35 grand a year Downtown Advocate / Cheerleader.
Gradually phase out all L.E.D. lighting from Hastings streets.
Put an end to the board's endless self congratulatory back slapping. Any and all congratulations should be left to the public. You want to congratulate "the team," do so amongst yourselves, in private.
Cease all back room rehearsals - withTrustees given talking points and discourse prior to B.O.T. discussions. This practice on display nauseatingly under Swiderski, was an insult to residents intelligence, turning many discussions into horribly cheap theater.
As we prepare to turn the page, we are encouraged by a handful of residents who have been paying attention and speaking out. Stephen Seibert, who repeatedly challenged the lack of transparency under Swiderski, the need for real diversity in the village, and the illegal demolition of Building 51. Gene Calamari, who exposed and challenged Swiderski's secretive plan to combine the Recreation Department with Dobbs Ferry. Patrick Randolph Bell, a vocal opponent of the Mayor and watchdog of village commissions. Brian Allen, who exposed the withholding of information from the public, resulting in the monstrous fencing of the Warburton Bridge. Kyle and Jen Mooney, who engaged the public and shed harsh light on proposed zoning changes, putting a stop to the Artis development. And currently a relative new voice, Lyz Perry, who's engaging others in the on going waterfront development process. Finally, long time resident and Hastings legend, John Gonder, who has long questioned the Board's ethics and their relationship / "negotiations" with B.P. Calling out an exec at the global pariah as, "The Godfather of Hastings.
Though Swiderski will soon be gone, the individuals listed above, as well as others, need the support of the vast silent majority of Hastings voters. Far too many remain either unaware or disinterested in their local government. They must be awakened and engaged, especially now, as the future of the waterfront and so this very village lay in the balance. Hastings needs real public involvement, not just small hand picked 'in house' committees. It is as result of this village wide apathy that someone as deeply flawed and incompetent as Mayor Swiderski could have ever remained in office for a decade.
This concludes the final post of this page. We owe the aforementioned Mr. Gonder a deep debt of gratitude. It was his reading of a card he'd received from "Big Buck Vandeer" that first made myself and other contributors aware of the soon to be former Mayor. We were repulsed by Swiderski's ignorance on the deer issue, and nauseated by his arrogance, hubris, and disturbing lack of anything approaching real empathy. We were struck, almost dumbfounded, by how very little he shared in common with any of the Mayor's who preceded him, and so we set out via YouTube videos to document Mayor Swiderski in his own words.
Peter Swiderski's record stands for itself. He will go down in history as the worst Mayor ever to govern the village of Hastings. He has been nothing short of a colossal embarrassment as the face of this village. For the first time the fire department will greet an outgoing Mayor leaving the train with horns and sirens sounding not as thank you, but rather as a celebration that this long nightmare is finally over.
Rest assured Ms. Armacost, there will be no page dedicated to yourself as Mayor, nor any YouTube videos documenting your handling of issues, no matter perceived differences. To do so would require countless lies and an embarrassing mountain of empty hypocritical rhetoric. As we find Ms. Armacost to be someone comfortable in her own skin, who does not fashion herself a statesman, and one not in love with the sound of her own voice, it is inconceivable that she, nor anyone else, could ever near anything approaching such lows. Though an anointment of Dan Lemmons could force this page to reconsider this stance.
Though it's been disturbing at times to follow and document a Mayor of such epic character defects, the consistency with which he placed his foot in his mouth, at times hard to fathom, became so cartoonish one couldn't help but find it comical. There of course will never be another like him (thank God). He truly was the gift that kept on giving.
Keep close guard of those secrets, Fredo. Regards to your kind in Bronxville.
IS OVER, OR IS IT?
 |
| "SIT HERE AND HOLD OUT YOUR HAND" It will become clear, he never had your back Hastings |
Mayors are no longer elected in Hastings-on-Hudson. They are now anointed by the Hastings-on- Hudson Democratic Committee headed by Vanessa Merton, the "Boss Hogg" of this modern day leftist Tammany Hall. There has not been a single representative outside the "Merton Gang" to sit on the Board of Trustees for over two decades, the last being Trustee Anthony Gagliardi. At a recent caucus / circle jerk, some seventy plus progressives in attendance announced that in March, Trustee Nicola Armacost would assume the thrown vacated by the decade long train wreck known to contributors to this page, as "Fredo" Swiderski. Armacost, who was herself appointed by Swiderski to fill a vacated seat on the Board of Trustees in 2009, will appoint her own successor in April following her swearing in as Mayor. Thus the progressive beat of these leftist SJW's goes on, with Hastings now nothing more than a disturbing echo chamber.
Following her induction, Swiderski's "leftenant" spoke briefly to the small gathering. She explained that she wanted to be Mayor because she was "upset by national politics." The comment was of course mainlined by all in attendance, as under Swiderski the coopted Board of Trustees has become a podium for meaningless virtue signaling on national politics. With leftists swelling with delusional pride, Armacost continued, feeding more trite to the tribe. 'As Mayor I will rely on Trustee Marc Leaf's unique insight of the village's history and character.' Though utter lip service, this remark is somewhat encouraging, as it seems to imply that Armacost will preform some form of due diligence before embarking on a particular course of action. This unlike Swiderski who arrogantly engaged in misguided personal agendas without any real understanding of the village he represented. Examples of "Fredo's" many disastrous "pilot programs" and embarrassing missteps have all been well documented on this page. Ms. Armacost's reliance on Trustee Leaf's insights into Hastings history and character is of course foolishness and will serve little to no purpose.
For the Hastings on Hudson that village Trustee Marc Leaf knew as a youth, sadly no longer exists. That Hastings was an actual village, devoid of group think. One thriving with diversity and filled with unique and colorful individuals. It was a village where children once walked to school, not an entitled suburban community where S.U.V.'s line Lefurgy Avenue waiting to collect coddled offspring from Hillside Elementary. Telling yourself you are what once was, does not make it so. If the village is ever to return to any semblance of the "character" of it's former self, this lip service must end. For far too long Hastings has been trading on this romantic notion, which serves no one. Trustee Leaf's memories of the former village where real men once walked it's streets and could be found in places outside the D.P.W. and volunteer fire departments, are better shared with the Hastings Historical Society.
Thankfully there are a few engaged voices who still remain, as there are key questions that must be asked of the anointed Mayor before she assumes office. Here are two which we feel are paramount.
1. When was she aware of the county's proposal to fence the Warburton Avenue bridge? A proposal that Swiderski and Village Manager Frobel withheld from residents for two years before making public. If she too were unaware, why did she not speak out against this abhorrent manipulation of the public, resulting in the destruction of an historic and signature view
2. What, or whom (David Shaw), was most responsible for saving Hastings from bankruptcy?
That said, we wish Ms. Armacost well. She is certain to be a vast improvement, it's hard to imagine anyone who wouldn't be. She will bring a much needed authenticity and engagement to the proceedings, as she replaces the most socially awkward, duplicitous and fearful Mayor ever to serve. She will hopefully return a spine and bring some taste to the office, as Swiderski displayed neither. No doubt she will continue to be a fiscal asset as the only board member who can dissect a budget, much less make sense of a spread sheet. Given this, our hope is that Ms. Armacost's term as Mayor will reflect at least some of the following.
Placing the village's day to day operations and protecting it's welfare as her top priority.
Return actual transparency to the proceedings, not just vapid references to the term.
Restore allotted time for public comment to five minutes, from the three minutes to which it was cut by Swiderski who feared, rather than welcomed, public input. Residents should not be hampered by a three minute restriction and or time clock when speaking. You will find no such clocks in Dobbs Ferry or Irvington.
Relocate meetings of the Board of Trustees from the municipal building, where the Board lords over residents from a dais, to the Harmon Center where they can be conducted on a level playing field with the public.
Replace or retire the mediocre at best, village manager Francis Frobel.
Dissolve the 35 grand a year Downtown Advocate / Cheerleader.
Gradually phase out all L.E.D. lighting from Hastings streets.
Put an end to the board's endless self congratulatory back slapping. Any and all congratulations should be left to the public. You want to congratulate "the team," do so amongst yourselves, in private.
Cease all back room rehearsals - withTrustees given talking points and discourse prior to B.O.T. discussions. This practice on display nauseatingly under Swiderski, was an insult to residents intelligence, turning many discussions into horribly cheap theater.
As we prepare to turn the page, we are encouraged by a handful of residents who have been paying attention and speaking out. Stephen Seibert, who repeatedly challenged the lack of transparency under Swiderski, the need for real diversity in the village, and the illegal demolition of Building 51. Gene Calamari, who exposed and challenged Swiderski's secretive plan to combine the Recreation Department with Dobbs Ferry. Patrick Randolph Bell, a vocal opponent of the Mayor and watchdog of village commissions. Brian Allen, who exposed the withholding of information from the public, resulting in the monstrous fencing of the Warburton Bridge. Kyle and Jen Mooney, who engaged the public and shed harsh light on proposed zoning changes, putting a stop to the Artis development. And currently a relative new voice, Lyz Perry, who's engaging others in the on going waterfront development process. Finally, long time resident and Hastings legend, John Gonder, who has long questioned the Board's ethics and their relationship / "negotiations" with B.P. Calling out an exec at the global pariah as, "The Godfather of Hastings.
Though Swiderski will soon be gone, the individuals listed above, as well as others, need the support of the vast silent majority of Hastings voters. Far too many remain either unaware or disinterested in their local government. They must be awakened and engaged, especially now, as the future of the waterfront and so this very village lay in the balance. Hastings needs real public involvement, not just small hand picked 'in house' committees. It is as result of this village wide apathy that someone as deeply flawed and incompetent as Mayor Swiderski could have ever remained in office for a decade.
This concludes the final post of this page. We owe the aforementioned Mr. Gonder a deep debt of gratitude. It was his reading of a card he'd received from "Big Buck Vandeer" that first made myself and other contributors aware of the soon to be former Mayor. We were repulsed by Swiderski's ignorance on the deer issue, and nauseated by his arrogance, hubris, and disturbing lack of anything approaching real empathy. We were struck, almost dumbfounded, by how very little he shared in common with any of the Mayor's who preceded him, and so we set out via YouTube videos to document Mayor Swiderski in his own words.
Peter Swiderski's record stands for itself. He will go down in history as the worst Mayor ever to govern the village of Hastings. He has been nothing short of a colossal embarrassment as the face of this village. For the first time the fire department will greet an outgoing Mayor leaving the train with horns and sirens sounding not as thank you, but rather as a celebration that this long nightmare is finally over.
Rest assured Ms. Armacost, there will be no page dedicated to yourself as Mayor, nor any YouTube videos documenting your handling of issues, no matter perceived differences. To do so would require countless lies and an embarrassing mountain of empty hypocritical rhetoric. As we find Ms. Armacost to be someone comfortable in her own skin, who does not fashion herself a statesman, and one not in love with the sound of her own voice, it is inconceivable that she, nor anyone else, could ever near anything approaching such lows. Though an anointment of Dan Lemmons could force this page to reconsider this stance.
Though it's been disturbing at times to follow and document a Mayor of such epic character defects, the consistency with which he placed his foot in his mouth, at times hard to fathom, became so cartoonish one couldn't help but find it comical. There of course will never be another like him (thank God). He truly was the gift that kept on giving.
Keep close guard of those secrets, Fredo. Regards to your kind in Bronxville.
