Westchester County Joint Committee Meeting – June 29, 2026

The Westchester County Board of Legislators held a combined committee session on Monday, June 29, 2026, beginning at 10:17 a.m. and adjourning at 11:15 a.m. Committees participating included Budget & Appropriations, Legislation, Infrastructure & Housing, and Public Safety & Veterans. Legislators approved routine minutes and a special counsel contract, advanced a $375,000 public safety facility study bond, discussed a proposed local law on code enforcement, authorized a radio system expansion in Blue Mountain Reservation, and handled several receive-and-file items. Note: The written agenda listed the minutes, the Hawthorne bond act, and the fire/building code local law; the transcript also included additional committee business not listed on the agenda.

Consent Calendar

• Approved nine sets of committee minutes (dated 2/9/26, 2/17/26, 2/25/26, 3/24/26, 4/13/26, 4/27/26, 5/18/26 at 10 AM and 1 PM, and 5/26/26) unanimously.
• Accepted a gift from Friends of Musco Inc. consisting of accessible hayride wagons and three sets of steps for hay wagons at Musco farm. Parks staff described the equipment as ADA-accessible additions and noted a family with a wheelchair-bound child was able to enjoy a hayride because of the new wagon.
• Received and filed the report on the extension of the PCL Hollow Sewer District.

Discussion Items

• Special Counsel for Board of Ethics: County Attorney John Nona introduced a proposal to retain Stephen Leventhal as special counsel and independent consultant for the Board of Ethics, a role he has served in since about 2010. The proposed three-year contract commencing August 1 would pay $9,000. The motion was approved unanimously.

• Bond Act – Renovation of Public Safety Facility in Hawthorne (BPS15-3161): Captain Frank Donovan of the Department of Public Safety presented the request for a $375,000 bond act to fund the second phase of a planning and design study. He described the 1953-era headquarters (with a 1986 addition) as having leaking roofs, no elevator and non-ADA access, failing HVAC systems, undersized booking rooms and holding cells, and no indoor impounded vehicle storage. The study will produce at least low-, middle-, and high-cost options and is expected to take about six months. A separate capital project for impounded vehicle storage is on hold pending the study. The bond act was approved unanimously in the budget and infrastructure committees.

• Local Law 2026-276 / Public Hearing 2026-275 – Administration and Enforcement of NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code: Commissioner Hugh Greechan, Deputy Commissioner Hernane De Almeida, Director David Barbuti, and Associate County Attorney Jason Whitehead presented a proposed amendment to Chapter 131 to formalize county code enforcement on county-owned properties in county custody. Presenters said the county already performs plan reviews and inspections, and the law would create a consistent program, tracking software, and fee authority for services such as reviewing lease properties, with fees comparable to municipal charges. Legislators raised fiscal and fee-approval concerns, asked about certificate-of-occupancy procedures, and Leader Cunzio raised an indemnification and liability concern about fire access at the county hospital. The committee decided to hold the item so the fee structure could be amended to require Board approval following precedent; no vote was taken.

• Radio System Replacement – Bond Act Amendment and Montreal Station Road Site: IT and Parks staff, joined by Parks acting commissioner Peter Tartaglia, presented a proposed expansion of the BIT 32 public safety radio system to add construction of the Montreal Station Road site in Blue Mountain Reservation. The original Montrose VA site could not be acquired, so the alternative site was designed. The site is intended to complete stage two and guarantee portable on-street coverage for first responders; it would support DES dispatch, Department of Public Safety park patrols and responses, park ranger radios, and better in-building coverage at the Sportsman Center. Parks staff worked to avoid trails, and tree removal is subject to a two-to-one replacement requirement. Completion is targeted for November 30, 2027, subject to contract amendment. Legislator Pierce asked whether the tower could also provide public cell service and called the inability to do so "a missed opportunity"; staff explained county parkland alienation restrictions and the need for state process changes. The bond amendment and environmental review authorization were approved unanimously.

• Future Legislation (no action): A legislator highlighted three proposed items—property record notification/deed theft prevention, an accessory dwelling unit property tax abatement program, and a small business/MWBE microgrant pilot—and said they would be developed with the county clerk, taxation director, and planning department. The items were held rather than receive-and-filed. An illegal housing enforcement law was also noted for the Infrastructure committee.

Key Outcomes

• Unanimously approved the special counsel contract for Stephen Leventhal.
• Unanimously advanced the $375,000 Hawthorne public safety facility study bond act.
• Held Local Law 2026-276 and its public hearing resolution for additional drafting on fee authority.
• Unanimously approved the radio system bond amendment and Montreal Station Road site construction authorization.
• Accepted the Friends of Musco gift and the PCL Hollow Sewer District report.
• Adjourned at 11:15 a.m.