Over $111,000 Unplanned City of Beacon Dollars Spent On "Employee Discipline" Matter(s) - What's Going On?

According to locals living in Beacon for decades, the City of Beacon is not known for firing city employees. When the you, you might find out by clicking refresh on the latest FOILs that were published by the City of Beacon. You certainly will hear about new hires and promotions by the City of Beacon during their weekly City Council Meetings, where City Councilmembers usually need to vote on a hire or promotion.

But if anyone is being fired, you will not hear about it. Such decisions are made in private during something called “Executive Session” which is a private meeting with the City Council that the public has no access to.

To seek information, just ask several people who know people who have worked for the City of Beacon over the past few decades. In these stories, you may hear stories of a white employee(s) testing positive for marijuana before it was legal to smoke in public or banned in Beacon’s public parks. You may hear stories of a vehicle accident that was never reported. Or of a gun casually being brought into a department destination before Beacon banned personal guns from being brought onto city property during work hours last year. You might see bent metal on the garage door of new Highway Garage, indicating that a vehicle backed or rammed into it, but that a collision report never made it into the books. On background, ALBB has seen a few photos, and heard from people with knowledge of such examples.

During the 12/13/2021 Monday Night Workshop Meeting, the City Administrator Chris White put forth to the City Council an approval to move $45,900 more dollars from an unrelated area of the budget - a real estate area of the budget - into a legal section of the budget to cover “associated employee discipline beyond the budget to date,” as noted in the proposal included in the Agenda packet for the City Council to review for the record.

This is not the first transfer of thousands of unplanned dollars for “Employee Discipline” during the pandemic, which has resulted in a nation-wide labor shortage and highlight of poor working conditions that may include emotional abuse in several industries. The first noted transfer of unplanned dollars was $66,418 to “Employee Discipline” from “CSEA Union Matters/FIRE IAFF Union Matters,” which ALBB wrote about here. This brings the total of unplanned spending on “Employee Discipline” to over $111,000 by the City of Beacon for 2021 alone.

The second noted proposed transfer tonight of $45,900 to “Employee Discipline” is being transferred from “In REM Sale of Property.”

What is an REM Sale of Property? An “REM Sale of Property” means, as City Administrator Chris White explained during the meeting, that when the City of Beacon takes control of a property in Beacon usually due to inability to pay, the City of Beacon can then resell that property and keep the profit. In 2020, there was a handful of those properties. In 2021, Chris noted, there was one such property. Therefore, they had real estate cash sitting that apparently had not been earmarked yet.

Who Or What Is The Employee Discipline Of Over $111,000 In 2021 For?

Reuben Simmons, former Highway Superintendent and current employee of the City of Beacon in the Highway Department.
Photo Credit: LinkedIn

The City of Beacon will not answer this question if ALBB were to ask, as they have a blanket policy of not answering to “personnel matters.” However, there is at least one employee who has had at least 8 Employee Discipline Hearings this year, and has been on forced paid and unpaid leave for the entirety of 2021: Reuben Simmons. ALBB sat in on at least one of those hearings.

Reuben Simmons, longtime employee in the Highway Department since 2002, and a Beaconite who is an involved member of the community, was Beacon’s former Highway Superintendent (ie lead position in that department, listen to ALBB’s podcast about it here) and has been the subject of Employee Discipline for quite some time. Starting in 2018, his case has taken unusual twists and turns. Including the dissolving of his job as Highway Superintendent based on a Civil Service technicality of the incorrect job title.

Beacon’s current head of the Highway Department, Superintendent of Streets Michael “Mickey” Manzi, who used to serve under Reuben as a staff member, replaced Reuben as head of the department after Reuben’s job title dissolved. According to documents that ALBB has seen, Michael “Mickey” Manzi continues to find fault in Reuben’s past work performance, and writes him up on charges that the City Administrator Chris White justifies for Reuben’s paid or unpaid leave status.

Those charges resulted in at least two 30-day periods of unpaid leave in 2021. Otherwise, Reuben has been kept on paid leave, but according to a letter sent to him by City Administrator Chris White, cannot come to public spaces in Beacon or talk to fellow employees within the working hours of the work day, until his disciplinary hearings are done. ALBB has attended one such hearing at the invitation of Reuben and received the Zoom link from the mediation attorney Jay Siegel, Esq., but was asked to leave when the City of Beacon objected to any reporters or members of the public attending.

What Are These “Charges” Justifying Unpaid Leave, Paid Leave, and Over $111,000 In Unplanned “Employee Discipline” Money?

Labor Attorney for the City of Beacon, Lance Klein, who is going against city employee Reuben Simmons.
Photo Credit: Keane and Beane

ALBB has seen the documentation of charges sent to Reuben, attempting to justify the “discipline,” which ALBB has learned amounts to accusations of things like talking to people for too long outside while on the job, or taking too long of a lunch.

Lunch for the Highway Department employees, ALBB is told, is 30 minutes. Which really just gives enough time to order and go from Mr. V’s and eat it in a Highway Department truck.

Witnesses have been called to at least 8 hearings deliberating Reuben’s case, where the City’s attorney Lance Klein of Keane and Beane questions those people included in the charges. Some of those witnesses have denied the charges and length of time that Reuben has spoken to them while outside on the job, or the logistics of a long lunch time that deserves penalty.

Current Beacon Superintendent of Streets, Michael “Mickey” Manzi. Writes up charges against Reuben resulting in new Unpaid Leave statuses for Reuben as Reuben’s hearings to defend himself progress.
Photo Credit: City of Beacon

One example of a disputed charge against Reuben is allegedly talking to a member of the public in Memorial Park (which is also the location of a Highway Department shed) for 2 hours. The witness for this charge allegedly denied it during the hearing when questioned by Lance the attorney.

If Reuben and this member of the public did speak for any number of moments, then a policy of any Highway Department employee speaking to any member of the public while out on public city streets, sidewalks, or parks would be in violation of some policy in the City of Beacon, would seem odd, counter-intuitive of an inclusive community and unproductive. Members of the public are not allowed to speak to city employees while on the job? Or risk getting written up if on the wrong side of a supervisor? Those supervisors being Michael “Mickey” Manzi and David Way.

In addition to speaking to members of the public in public, Reuben has also been accused of taking an extended lunch break. Lunch breaks for the City of Beacon are 30 minutes. Any moment after that due to long lunch lines or traffic could qualify as a violation equal to this treatment.

Members Of The Public Begin Speaking Out

City of Beacon Employee for the Highway Department, Reuben Simmons, speaks out about his communication with the City of Beacon. Reuben is currently on a rotation of forced unpaid and paid leave by the City of Beacon as they hold “Employee Discipline” hearings against him. There have been at last 8 Employee Discpline hearings so far, and a total of $111,000 of unplanned city budget money transfered in the City of Beacon budget to cover unplanned “Employee Discipline” legal expenses.

After years of silence, Reuben spoke out at a recent City Council meeting, addressing the elephant in the room - himself. He spoke directly and was well spoken in his thoughts, as he was when presenting city street status updates to the public and City Council during his time as Highway Superintendent from 2017-2018.

The City Council often meets in private Executive Sessions discussing “Personnel” and “Litigation” and have the legal protection of not disclosing who or what they are talking about.

Reuben - who is Black and is one of the few Black employees in the public works departments - has also been accused of speaking loudly to his supervisor Michael “Mickey” Manzi while voluntarily reporting an accident Reuben had in a City vehicle. According to multiple sources, Mickey, the Highway Department’s Superintendent of Streets who used to be Reuben’s employee years ago, found Reuben’s tone uncomfortable. Therefore, Mickey added the tone to the charges justifying unpaid leave.

This issue with “tone” is despite rumors from multiple people - in a generational age range - that several in the Beacon public works departments speak gruffly to each other on a regular basis, possibly even using racial slurs. Those direct mentions have not yet come to light yet in any public confessions.

It is notable that when Reuben was first placed on unpaid leave in January 2021 for the pursuit of these charges, the City of Beacon unveiled it’s Diversity Statement months prior in October 2020, where Beacon’s newly hired HR Director, Gina Basile, noted there was tension in the Highway Department.

During the City Council Meeting on December 6, 2021, longtime hawk of city government and regular participant in Public Comment, Theresa Kraft, spoke up. Not naming names, she made allusions: “Beacon is a strong, supportive community. It always has been, and always will be. We watch out for our neighbors. But enforcement is key [referencing to the spike in unlawful driving in Beacon and the recent death on Main Street and Teller Avenue]. I question how much the city wasted on litigation of an employee who took too long of a lunch break. I see at the end of tonight's agenda there is an executive Session for Personal and Litigation. Perhaps that alone could have paid to ease the food insecurity throughout Beacon for a few years. Holding a grudge is holding all Beacon residents hostage.” You can listen to her full speech here.

Background On Reuben’s Unpaid/Paid Leave - An Additional Expense To The City Of Beacon

Beacon’s City Administrator, Chris White, who authorized Reuben’s first round of 30-days of paid leave on Chris’ first week on the job.
Photo Credit: City of Beacon

Starting in January 2021, Reuben was placed on unpaid leave for more than one session of a 30-day unpaid leave status by City Administrator Chris White. Unpaid leave is difficult at any time, but for a Highway Department employee, January is the gravy month. It is the month they make overtime pay in plowing days during blizzards.

When not on unpaid leave, Reuben remains on paid leave. Unless new charges are filed against him, and he gets a new letter from City Administrator Chris White stating that he is on unpaid leave again.

The Union protecting and advocating for Highway Department Employees is CSEA. In January, Beacon’s representative and president was Paula Becker, who works as an employee in the Finance Department for the City of Beacon with Susan Tucker, Beacon’s Finance Director who signs off on these budget recommendations. Paula recently received a promotion and raise from the City of Beacon.

When ALBB called Paula to confirm Reuben’s unpaid status back when it started in January 2021, City Administrator Chris White emailed ALBB to say that ALBB should not contact any staff with questions, and to only address him. After publishing an article on this matter, City Administrator Chris White declined to answer any more questions from ALBB on any matter.

Listen to Reuben explain the start of his employment situation on ALBB’s podcast recorded in July 2020 here. His employment disputes started in 2018.

City of Beacon Urges Reconsideration of Partial Matteawan Road Closure By Fishkill Correctional Facility

The week that the Beacon City School District announced to families that the part of Matteawan Road that passes through the Fishkill Correctional Facility after the Beacon High School, and intersects with Business Route 52 (at which point, it is called Prospect Street), would be closed to the public on November 1, 2021, the The City of Beacon’s Administrator Chris White announced at a public City Council Workshop Meeting (at 1:19:00) that the City strongly urged the Fishkill Correctional Facility to reconsider the partial road closure, to start a dialogue to form a better plan, and to support Assemblyman Jacobson’s efforts to allow school bus routes at the very least until solutions could be found.

According to Administrator Chris, the City of Beacon was first informed on October 18, 2021 by the Superintendent of the Fishkill Correctional Facility that the part of Matteawan Road passing the facility would be closed to the public on November 1, 2021. In response, Administrator Chris prepared a resolution of the City’s urging of a reconsideration.

The proposed resolution to be signed during tonight’s public City Council Meeting can be found here. Today, November 1, 2021, which is the start of the partial road closure to the public, Beacon City School’s Superintendent Landahl sent a notice to district families that buses will continue running through Mattweawan Road near the Fishkill Correctional Facility, but reminded families that that part of the road is closed to the public. There has been no announcement to Beacon residents of the road block via robo-call, text, or website posting, other than the mention of it during last week’s City Council Meeting.

In providing context for Beacon’s position on the closure, Administrator Chris stated:

“Mattawean Road runs through the City of Beacon and the Town of Fishkill. It goes past the Fishkill Correctional Facility. The Town owns a piece of the road near Prospect Street that feeds in. Then the prison owns a large part of it, and then the City owns the rest of it.

“We had heard rumors from the School District that the Fishkill Correctional Facility was going to close that road as of November 1st. We only received a call on October 18th, which was the first official notification that the City was given, that the road was going to be closed permanently in less than 2 weeks.

“We have been in touch with Superintendent and our state representatives. I know that Assemblyman Jacobson's office is working diligently to try to exempt buses which would be severely disrupted if that closed. We thought we would support - I put this together because I thought it important to support our state delegation's effort to delay the implementation of this so we can do some planning, to exempt buses at the very least, and to begin a real dialogue between the Town of Fishkill, Beacon City School District, and the City of Beacon.

“There has been no planning or traffic modeling to look at what the impacts were. I would say this strongly recognizes their right and their necessity to secure their facility. Nobody is questing that. The way that we do it, though, is important. We think we can thread that needle so that it's not as disruptive to the traffic going into Rombout and the High School.”

Covered In The Proposed Resolution

Included in the City of Beacon’s Resolution, spearheaded by Administrator Chris, is the point that, for years, “Matteawan Road serves as a connection between the Town of Fishkill and the City of Beacon and is an important street access from Fishkill Avenue to the Beacon High School and Rombout Middle School.” In response ALBB’s article announcing this partial road closure last week, former City Councilperson Ali T. Muhammad, who grew up walking to Beacon school in that area, recalled when that part of the road was temporarily closed: “Grew up there, sounds awful. Last time it was shut down was due to 9/11. Good luck.”

The resolution points out that the closure to the public is “during the daytime.” The resolution makes sure to state the City of Beacon’s dissatisfaction with not being consulted by the Fishkill Correctional Facility prior to their decision: “City of Beacon recognizes the necessity and right of DOCCS and the Fishkill Correctional Facility to secure their grounds, including this section of road, the City is concerned that it and other major stakeholders, including the Beacon City School District, were not consulted on the closure and received insufficient notice to allow for traffic safety modifications and adjustment that might need to be implemented as a result of the change to traffic patterns in and around Matteawan Road.”

The City of Beacon cited concern for where traffic would increase due to the partial closure of Mattawean Road, stating that it “would create traffic and pedestrian safety issues at key intersections in the City of Beacon, including Verplanck Avenue and Matteawan Road, Wilkes Street and Matteawan Road, and at access roads through Memorial Park, which now may be used as a cut-through for motorists.”

The resolution pointed out the effort required to properly answer the partial road closure: “Any adjustments to the traffic control signage in the area will take the City a period of at least several months to assess needed modification and adopt revisions to the City Code for such modifications, which require a public hearing and adoption of a local law amending the City Code, and the City received less than two weeks’ notice of the impending partial road closure without any prior traffic safety planning by the Facility or coordination with the City.”

The City of Beacon is asking for a pausing of the partial road closure, and a commitment to work together on solutions moving forward “with a immediate establishment of a working committee to coordinate with Fishkill Correctional Facility on this matter, including the following key stakeholders: the City of Beacon, Town Town of Fishkill, and Beacon City School District in order to consider potential alternatives, and if necessary, properly plan for the impact that a partial closure of Matteawan Road would create.

Beacon’s resolution would then be sent to Governor Kathy Hochul, State Senator Sue Serino, Assemblymember Jonathan Jacobson, DOCCS Acting Commissioner Anthony Annucci, and Fishkill Correctional Facility Superintendent Edward Burnett.

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Read This: Video Of The Drive On Matteawan Road Past Fishkill Correctional Facility That Is Partially Closed Now - The Experience >

Read This: Permanent Road Closure Of Matteawan Road At Fishkill Correctional Facility - Will Impact School Bus Routes >

What's Being Discussed At Tonight's City Council Workshop: Accessory Apartments; Good Cause Eviction; Highway Department Hire; Assessment Base Percentage; Zoning Board Appointment

Beacon's City Council will meet this evening 9/27/2021 at 7pm for a regularly scheduled Workshop meeting, which is when they discuss topics amongst themselves in public, but without opportunities for Public Comment. This type of meeting happens every other Monday.

On the agenda tonight are different topics, some of which were covered during last week's public City Council Meeting. When new information or public feedback emerges, sometimes these topics get put back onto the Workshop schedule for further discussion. Click here for the full agenda, plus links to supporting documents.

Tonight's Agenda Includes

Accessory Apartments

The City Council is perusing normalizing Accessory Apartments as a right for homeowners of single family homes in all R1, all RD and the T Zoning Districts to build and rent out without requiring a special use permit approval from the Planning Board. Mayor Kyriacou with the support of City Administrator Chris White is pursuing this in the name of renter and owner affordability during the current housing crisis throughout the nation. According to supporting documentation from the City's attorney: "The City Council is considering adopting amendments to the City Code to encourage the development of accessory apartments to promote renter and owner affordability in the City of Beacon."

This vision is led by Mayor Kyriacou and City Administrator Chris, who served on council together during the 1990s. Mayor Kyriacou is a property owner in Beacon who has renovated properties, and has served as a landlord for different properties.

Mayor Kyriacou is pursuing the right to build the Accessory Apartments bigger than they are now. City Administrator Chris is pursuing removing parking requirements for Accessory Apartments. Parking requirements can sometimes be used to stall a building project by those who disagree with a project.

For the past several years, Beacon has been unfavorable toward Accessory Apartments, even when someone wanted to build one for their parent-in-laws or caregivers required to care for an aging parent or person who required consistent medical care. This zoning edit would change that.

During tonight's meeting, the City Council will debate several changes to the existing code, including size of the unit, how any dwellings would be allowed per lot, the design scheme of the accessory apartment, increasing the maximum build, eliminating currently required inspections every two years, and removing the parking requirement.

It is not indicated how the increase in number of Accessory Apartments would guarantee lower rental prices, since the free market and current supply and demand are not yielding to lower prices in Beacon.

The City Council will also review code regulations from the Town of Cortland, the Town of Newburgh, the Town of Pound Ridge, and the Town of Wappinger.

Proposed Local Law Regarding Good Cause Eviction

Councilmember Dan Aymar-Blair proposed that the City consider a law making it more difficult to evict tenants, called the Good Cause Eviction Law. The City will also look at Albany's Good Cause Eviction Law during tonight's Workshop. During last week's public City Council Meeting, a handful of people from the public called in demanding that the City put on Dan's proposed Good Cause Eviction Law onto the agenda. People told stories of people they knew who had their rents raised by several percentage points, making it difficult or impossible for them to remain in Beacon.

Last February 2020, Councilmember Terry Nelson pushed to have the Emergency Tenants Protection Act (ETPA) considered by the City. This law would legalize a rent cap, but has several requirements that the city must meet, including vacancy rate and the age of buildings. This was discussed by the Council, and Mayor Kyriacou presented reasons for not pursuing it.

Proposed Hire of Motor Equipment Operator

The Highway Department is recommending the hiring of Andi Driza for Motor Equipment Operator.

Abandonment of Paper Streets

The City of Beacon is pursuing abandoning specific, very tiny areas in Beacon that are undeveloped and slipped through the cracks of ownership decades ago, which could put them into the ownership of neighboring homeowners. During last week's Public Hearing on the topic, some of those neighboring homeowners came to speak on the issue, to say if they wanted or did not want the property that was about to be absorbed by them. The council indicated that they were not anticipating the feedback, and appreciated the input. The matter has moved back into Workshop, where the council will discuss it again.

"The Official Map of the City of Beacon contains several undeveloped paper streets identified as Ryans Avenue, BeVier Avenue, Morse Street and Levy Street. A paper street is a street established on a filed subdivision map and is included on the Official Map of the City of Beacon, but which was never subsequently developed or used as a public way."

Proposed Appointment of Montos Vakirtzis to the Zoning Board of Appeals

Montos Vakirtzis is being recommended by Joe Galbo to be on the Zoning Board of Appeals.

Proposed Resolution to Certify Base Percentages and Proportions for the 2021 Assessment Roll Pursuant to Article 19 of the Real Property Tax Law

"Pursuant to Article 19 of the Real Property Tax Law, the City Council hereby adopts and establishes the Adjusted Base Proportions for the 2021 City of Beacon Assessment Roll as 69.10766% for Homestead parcels and 30.89234% for Non-homestead parcels, which are to be used for real property tax purposes;"

Summary of the 9/13/2021 Beacon City Council Workshop Meeting :: Housing, Meeting Time Off, Etc.lea

The September 13, 2021 City Council Workshop agenda and video recording of the meeting have been added to A Little Beacon Blog’s Easy Access City Government section.

In short, a brief summary of some of the items discussed on the agenda is below. Click here for links to the agenda items for any digital resources linked to the topics discussed, as well as the video recording of the meeting.

Housing Initiative Prioritization + Parking

The City Council discussed Mayor Kyriacou’s Affordable Housing Proposals, lingering on the Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) component. The Mayor, who is a landlord who has owned several properties in Beacon, wants to see the right to have an Accessory Dwelling Unit be approved as of right for homeowners to build and rent out. An Accessory Dwelling Unit is like a giant garage/studio, that is a stand-alone structure built next to someone’s home, that can have water and electricity flowing to it. There are restrictions as to how far it needs to be from the house, and how large it can be.

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Editorial Note 9/20/2021: The paragraph above originally included a line stating that Mayor Kyriacou “is married to a realtor,” which has since been deleted. Mayor Kyriacou submitted what can be taken as a correction during the City Council Meeting on 9/20/2021. While he did not email or phone in with this correction, as is standard with most publications, he included it after his public service announcements, leading with sarcasm: “I've been made aware that I am a bigamist, which I find interesting. My spouse of 30-some years is a professional and spent most of the last dozen years in higher education as a marketing and communication executive. The last 6 years at West Point, but before that at Fordham and at RPI. But apparently I have a second spouse who is a realtor. So, unbeknownst to me, I've been married twice. And I wanted to say, whoever you are out there, come say ‘Hi,’ and I'll learn a lot more. I could at least have some fun, right? Oh, and I learned that online, by the way.”

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Currently, Beacon’s zoning laws make building Accessory Dwelling Units difficult. In general, ADUs have not been popular with the public - rather - the public who is motivated enough to attend public meetings to speak out against them. Including when homeowners want to build an ADU for in-laws or caregivers. The fear by some of the public is that the ADU will be used by developers and homeowners as rentals. Which seems to be the goal of affordable housing.

The Mayor’s proposal encourages small residential units and more cluster housing. City Administrator Chris White projected his vision of who Accessory Dwelling Units was intended for: couples and single people moving from New York City who do not need large homes, he said, and move to Beacon without cars. He referred to this concept for the ADUs as “workforce units,” and stated that he did not think homeowners would build luxury Accessory Dwelling Units, similar to the expensive apartments on Main Street. He assumed homeowners would use low or moderate grade materials to keep costs down. Which does not indicate what the homeowner may then charge for that unit.

Perhaps he has not seen the adorable tear-down renovation of the tired house with studio garage on Cross Street.

Parking Requirements Possibly Waved For Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)

Parking requirements for Accessory Dwelling Units is also under consideration to be waved. Parking requirements are the number of parking spaces a property owner must make available to tenants. Often, these requirements are used to stall a building project if street parking cannot be found.

Councilmember George Mansfield suggested that people are moving to Beacon without cars. City Administrator Chris stated his belief that generally, people moving to Beacon do not have cars, and therefore do not need parking spaces. Councilperson Air Nonken Rhodes suggested that people do buy cars after moving to Beacon in order to leave the bubble of Beacon for necessities, jobs and enjoyment.

City Administrator Chris stated that with people moving from New York City without cars, there is less of a need for parking. He stated that he feels that assuming someone would want to buy a car after moving to Beacon, and to park that car in one of the property’s parking spots that the building owner is required to offer, is a “social justice” issue, concluding that poor people do not want to own cars and absorb the burden of incurred expenses from car ownership, and instead can rely on existing public transportation as a better idea.

City Administrator Chris stated: “Where is the evidence that you need that level of parking that we require in our code? I felt like, as a planner, a lot of this was made up. 'You have this size unit, you need 2 cars or 3 cars.' There is no evidence that you necessarily need that. Also, just be aware that we have new technology and common solutions that we could implement. The new technologies...George rode here on an electric bike. We see the proliferation of micro-mobility through scooters. If you watch people whipping up Beekman from the train station, you'll see a lot of people are looking at these things as much cheaper than maintaining a car with insurance and repairs. Again, a social justice issue is that we shouldn't have to require every poor person to own a car to get around. The other part is the societal thing which is moving toward that micro-management where there is on-demand transit. The County seems to be moving in that direction, and I've talked to them about piloting something like that in Beacon. Because again, you have 5 square miles. It's a walkable, compact community. Particularly with the new e-bikes. It really makes it accessible to someone who never would have been able to ride a bike."

Councilmember Air reiterated: "The issue is getting out of town."

It should be noted that there is no requirement of a person living in a building or house to own a car, even if they have access to a parking spot from the building owner.

Additionally, for couples who move into these units, who start families and stay in these small dwellings because they cannot afford to buy larger homes, may eventually have kids old enough to go to soccer or ice-hockey practice. Getting the family to soccer practice in Beacon on an e-bike would be impossible, and getting the family to ice-hockey practice in Poughkeepsie would be very difficult on public transit.

No Discussion Of Families With Children

There was no discussion of families - parents with children - who have moved out of Beacon because they grew out of their small apartment or rental in a duplex, and cannot afford to buy a house in Beacon with a yard. Nor was it discussed how many families are living in cramped quarters in their current small apartments because they do not want to move out of Beacon, or move out of the Beacon City School District.

City Administrator Chris stated: “Now you see more people moving in who are single adults, empty nesters, younger people who maybe have a different...or are single or are just 2 people. We are building houses for these huge families...and I know I look a lot of the housing as someone who is single, and it doesn't fit. It would never fit. I don't need that much house. I think a lot of people think that way."

Several families have also left Beacon because they could not find a house to buy with several bedrooms with a yard in their price range.

Also not discussed was how many people of high and low incomes do buy cars after moving to Beacon from New York City. Leaving the bubble of New York City for any community outside of that island usually involves leaving the municipality for doctor appointments, different grocery shopping experiences, dining out in new locations, visiting family, going to the Dutchess County Fairgrounds, etc.

Some people who do not have cars hire taxis to get their children to school, to the public pool, to Girl Scouts. Some take the bus, however, getting children onto public transportation is work.

Recreation Needs Assessment Scoping

Parks and Recreation Director Mark Price was called to the meeting by City Administrator Chris to present Mark’s early vision of what the Recreation Study could look like. Now that the Recreation Department is done with the Kids Camp Program and the Public Pool Program, the City Administrator said that he felt that Recreation Director Mark had time to think about preparing the study.

In last year’s budget planning, where there was a groundswell of demands from the public for more money to be placed into the Recreation Department, which Recreation Director Mark voluntarily decreased. Mayor Kyriacou earmarked at least $50,000 for a Recreation Study to discover what people needed.

During this City Council Workshop, Councilmember Dan Aymar-Blair pointed out that he wanted to see the building of a new and larger Recreation Community Center be part of that study, and recalled that the budget earmarked two studies for $50,000, totalling $100,000: one for programs, and one for a building. He did not want to see the building left out.

Mayor Kyriacou and City Administrator Chris responded that they wanted to see programs first in order to see what kind of building to build. For instance, City Administrator Chris suggested that a theater program could happen in the Memorial Building, which has a stage and according to him, sits empty most of the time, he said.

It should be noted that the Memorial Building was dedicated to the Veterans, where Veterans are regularly requesting maintenance to it as it is in disrepair.

Councilperson Air Nonken Rhodes stressed their desire to see a space for “hanging out,” that is not structured with programming, but just is a place for kids to come hang out, in addition to programming going on around the space.

Hiring and Promoting City of Beacon Employees

In the hiring and promoting of City Employees, the Council has requested more information before they make hires, which they do by voting at public meetings. Spearheaded by Councilperson Jodi McCredo, who wants to see more information before the Council votes to hire people, she has made a suggestion to City Administrator Chris to see resumes before being presented with a candidate at public meetings. In past workshops, City Administrator Chris has responded to that concept that he did not want to “waste their time” with sending resumes, but could consider obliging.

It should be noted that the public is not regularly informed when city employees are terminated or quit, unless the position is in the the public eye, such as the City Administrator position last year, Police Chief, etc. Terminations or resignations of employees of Police Officers, Highway Department, Water Department, etc. are not regularly shared in public meetings or in Resolution documents that are uploaded to the internet. One usually needs to find out by submitting a FOIL request.

Proposed Amendment to 2021 City Council Meeting Schedule

Mayor Kyriacou would like to have less City Council meetings, similar to what was tried during the summer of 2021 when public City Council meetings were paired with Workshops where the public is not allowed to speak. The lighter summer schedule left some Monday nights open with no meetings scheduled.

Mayor Kyriacou consistently tells his constituents that he is a “part time” mayor while he is out chatting in the community, or even during his most recent testimony against the Damskammer plant, as reported by the Beacon Free Press.

City Administrator Chris referred to the preparation for weekly meetings as a “hamster wheel” that was a lot of work. Mayor Kyriacou positioned the proposed change of reduced meetings as not necessarily a reduction of meetings, but as a way to favor seasonally crowded meeting agendas, such as October’s budget season.

Councilperson Dan disagreed with the proposal, and cited that he saw this as a reduction in meeting times. Though he figured his kids would like to see him on Monday nights, Councilperson Dan felt it right to continue with the weekly meetings. Councilperson George Mansfield noted that while he has been attending the weekly meetings for 12 years, and would appreciate an open Monday, he also wanted to continue with regular meetings for consistency for the public.

The Council was not aligned with the Mayor’s vision of a reduction in meetings, so the Mayor suggested hiring an additional support person for the City Administrator, to which the Council agreed was a good idea.

Community Facilities Grant Applications

Movement has been made on the awarding of unused grant money that can be used to improve buildings owned or leased by non-profits or by building owners whose buildings have been designated historic, or are in the Historic District. The monies need to be used for permanent structures that cannot be removed. The first entities who look the most promising are the Beacon Historical Society for an accessible ramp, and the Howland Cultural Center for facade improvements.

The River Pool of Beacon did apply for money to help with this temporary pool that it sets up in the Hudson River each year, but the City Administrator said that the grant rules state that the structure needs to be permanent, but that he was happy to see them apply and had not considered an entity like that. Applications are still open for this financial opportunity.

Executive Session Items

Personnel and Contract Negotiations

Details on what is talked about during the Executive Session portion of the meeting are never revealed. Only the City Council members, Mayor, City Administrator, Attorney, and if anyone else was in the meeting have access to this knowledge.

Beacon's City Council Masks Up For In-Person Public Meeting, And Other Highlights From Monday's Council Meeting

The City of Beacon has moved from digital-only City Council Meetings to in-person meetings weeks ago. The Council stated that they missed each other, and even welcomed their most staunched and harshest citizen critics when citizens stepped up to the podium during regular Public Comment session to deliver their thoughts, which usually results in the Council being a punching bag. Those who show up to deliver verbal thoughts, however, usually move a needle in the direction that they are advocating for.

When the City Council resumed in-person meetings several meetings ago, the national media said that COVID was on the run. Some people were getting vaccinated, Governor Cuomo hadn’t resigned yet, his nightly emails were pretty upbeat, and Beacon’s COVID numbers were on the lower end. Until the Delta variant.

Today, Beacon’s COVID numbers for Active Cases are at 29, Dutchess County at large is at 721, Sullivan County mandated masks for all County buildings, and Orange County is strongly recommending all residents to mask up in pubic indoor settings.

For the first time since their in-person meetings, the City of Beacon masked up for the in-person meeting this Monday night, as did several attendees in the audience. Neither the City of Beacon nor Dutchess County has issued a statement or guidance about masking up in public indoor spaces. ALBB reached out to Dutchess County on Monday morning, but has not heard back yet.

Meanwhile, the Council covered a lot of ground in the double Workshop/Regular Public Meeting combo this evening for the summer schedule, including:

Money transferred in the City of Beacon’s General Fund, including $66,418 transferred for “Employee Discipline.“

• Promotion of Police Officer Kelvin Grey to the Position of Detective and the Appointment of Stephen Donovan to the Position of Police Officer.

• Award of lifesaving action preformed by Beacon’s Fire Fighting crew.

• Continued Affordable Housing Discussion.

• Continued Employment Discussion about how the City Administrator could or should present potential hires to the Council. Councilperson Jodi McCredo has been asking for more information for the council to make more informed decisions about who they are hiring across all departments and positions, but the City Administrator Chris White is hesitant of “wasting the Council’s time” with hiring information, and is leaning toward only presenting the Council with detailed information about Department Heads, and not lower level positions. The Council needs to vote on any hire, regardless of how high or low the position is, and at times, is presented with a minimal amount of information on a new hire, or a promotion of an existing employee.

• Money transferred in the General Fund, including $66,418 transfered for “Employee Discipline.“ There is at least one Employee Disciplinary hearing going on now involving Highway Department Employee (and former Highway Superintendent) Reuben Simmons, who is currently on both paid and unpaid leave with the City of Beacon, during a labor shortage when the City of Beacon cannot fill all of their open positions, including Summer Help. The City of Beacon’s Labor Attorney, Lance Klein with Keane and Beane, has been representing the City for years on the case against Reuben. From when Reuben was stripped of his job title of Highway Superintendent in 2018, to now where he is on paid and unpaid leave as a Maintenance Worker since January 2021. Reuben is one of the few Black (mixed-race) employees for the Highway Department. Hearings to push him out of employment, during a national labor shortage, do cost the city money.

Beacon's City Council Takes A Vacay From Monday Meetings, Posts Summer Schedule With Combo Meetings

While everyone is headed to the pool or for a hike or for a vacation, Beacon’s City Council is also taking some time off. In the middle of July, when the corn was knee high, the City of Beacon posted their reduced meeting summer schedule for regular Monday meetings, with some Mondays merging both a City Council Meeting with a Workshop. A City Council Meeting is when the public can participate with comments at the beginning or end of the meeting, or to comment during an official Public Comment Hearing. The Workshop is when the City Council members discuss amongst themselves different topics on their agenda without public input, but in front of the public.

Since New York State lifted its Emergency Status for the pandemic, council meetings have begun meeting in person again at City Hall. Mayor Kyraicou has stated during recent meetings that they are considering trying to continue both the live meeting via video for those to attend and call in who cannot attend the meeting in person. Currently, public meetings are broadcast live on YouTube and Zoom, and during the last couple of meetings, council members met at City Hall with an open door to the public.

Agendas for the public City Council Meeting/Workshop combos have not yet been posted.

Summer Schedule:

July 19th: No Workshop/Meeting

July 26th: No Workshop/Meeting

August 2nd: Workshop followed by Council Meeting

August 9th: No Workshop/Meeting

August 16th: Workshop followed by Council Meeting

August 23rd: No Workshop/Meeting

August 30th: Workshop

Assistant to the Mayor Collin Milone has confirmed with ALBB that No Workshop/Meeting does mean that there is No Workshop and No Meeting for that date. The night is completely off.

Once Bitten, Twice Shy: 344 Main Street Building + Parking Is Back In The News

Once bitten, twice shy. The new construction building 344 Main that triggered the running and election of several board members and the current mayor is in the news again.

During a City Council meeting, the board members were presented with the parking dilemma that resulted in the revoking of a parking lease years ago, a delayed COI (Certificate of Occupancy, needed for renting to commercial businesses), the big drama between two developers, and now possible new litigation. The process of how this building came to be is why Mayor Lee Kyriacou pushed through so many zoning changes, and with more planned, like the designation of several buildings as a way, in part, to act as pawns in the chess game of what is allowed in the city planning of a city and the new construction and expansion of buildings now.

This is a huge deep dive. Be sure to pick up the Beacon Free Press for Mark Roland’s weekly column, Beaconomics (of the blog Wigwam Economy), and Jeff Simm’s @jeff_simms coverage in the @highlandscurrent. ALBB has several deep-dive articles on other topics ahead of this (including HDLO) and will be transcribing City Administrator Chris White’s summary last night of what happened years ago to bring us to our point today, and his subsequent parking proposal. Currently, residents of 344 Main have no official place to park and park in free municipal lots (do what you need to do!). Chris’s proposal is to monetize the parking by charging the current developer/building owner for spaces in the free municipal parking lot ($50/space). The developer may or may not pass that on to tenants. Parking is a problem in Beacon, and Chris’s plan is to earmark the money for parking development. But the council was burned so badly by these developers years ago, they are hesitant to set a new precedent. Tenants are caught in the middle.

More to come. Pick up your newspapers, and support local media everywhere.

No Fireworks Display In Beacon This July 4th, 2021

Several readers have contacted A Little Beacon Blog to ask if there are fireworks in Beacon, and we got a tip froma citizen reporter who reached out to the Mayor’s Assistant, Collin Milone, that there will be no fireworks this year in Beacon at Memorial Park, as there have been in years past.

Last year during the high cases of COVID-19 during the pandemic when New York was under a State of Emergency, the fireworks were “postponed,” then City Administrator Anthony Ruggiaro said. The hope was to light them later in the summer or for the Spirit of Beacon Day. Both of which did not happen.

New York’s State of Emergency has been lifted, as have several COVID-19 restrictions, but requirements for large scale gatherings remain for event venues. It is unknown at this time if this is the reason for no fireworks in Beacon. As New York State hit the 70% first-shot vaccinated milestone, Governor Cuomo scheduled fireworks at locations around the state.

See Hudson Valley Magazine’s roundup of where to watch fireworks, including Fishkill, Cornwall, and Dutchess Stadium.

A Brief Historical Refresh on Beacon’s Fireworks

The City of Beacon does not fund or organize the city’s fireworks, but they do need to approve the use of Memorial Park. Traditionally, the firework show was undertaken by volunteers with Kiwanis Club of Beacon, who disbanded in 2018, and some organizing from I Am Beacon. When the Kiwanis Club disbanded, there was no formal passing down of the organizing of the fireworks. When this was realized, the people of Beacon began to chatter, and LT Sherpa, owner of Beacon Natural, stepped up to fill the shoes.

LT put the word out seeking funding, and businesses in Beacon stepped up to pitch in. You can read all about it here. This year, according to his wife, Kitty Sherpa, LT had reached out to ask the City of Beacon for permission to hold the event again. LT waited for an answer, and eventually “got a hard no from the City, who said that they were not going to hold the fireworks,” Kitty said. LT was prepared to do the fundraising again for 2021, but is not for this year.

Other Events The City Wants To Greenlight

The first event that the City of Beacon approved was called the Modern Makers Market from Hops on the Hudson down at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park in May 2021. That event encountered some resistance from City Council, as people were still wary of coming out for a public event. While the event promised masks would be worn by vendors and ticketed guests, several were not, as seen in the Highlands Current. Masks were still mandated at the time.

The park was also stated by Beacon’s City Administrator Chris White at the 5/24/2021 to be open to the public, or “not fully closed” and open to people who people who want to walk along to go fishing, but there was a police barricade at the park entrance, and public access was not easy, if it was possible. The markers market was a ticketed event, as mandated by state requirements at the time.

At its 5/24/2021 Workshop Meeting, the City of Beacon’s City Council discussed potential upcoming events that were to be considered, including a Brew Fest, the Beacon Sloop Club Strawberry Festival (but the organizers stated they did not want to have it), Taco Festival, Family Fun Day at Springfield Baptist Church, Beacon Sloop Club Corn Festival, Spirit of Beacon Day, Bike Safety Day on Catherine Street, and other events.

The 4th of July Fireworks at Memorial Park were not on that list.

Annual Reading of Declaration of Independence To Be Read On July 4th

Dennis Pavlov, host and organizer of the annual reading of the Declaration of Independence for the past 11 years in Beacon, announced during a Community Segment at the 6/21/2021 City Council Meeting that the reading would take place at the usual time of 11am at 1 Municipal Plaza.

Said Dennis: “I started it in Steve Gold's administration. Why did I start it? There is more to these patriotic holidays than parades, fireworks, cookouts and BBQs. Our forefathers, I don't believe, should be left out. That's the reason I started doing it. Regardless of what is said and how it is said, the forefathers are some of my heroes. July 4th looked different last year, maybe we will have more people this year because of different circumstances.”

This year, Dennis stated, there is no longer a committee, refreshments or copies of Declaration of Independence handed out. Former Mayor Clara Lou Gould had also served on the committee.

Beacon's City Council Meeting Agenda: Department Appointments; Raises, Traffic; Juneteenth: 7/21/2021

This week, Beacon’s City Council will discuss the following at their weekly meeting.

The full agenda has been published here at ALBB, and the accompanying video of the meeting will be available there as well. The City usually publishes that video one day after a meeting.

You can also view the City’s original agenda at their website for all agendas and minutes.

Reports: City Council and City Administrator

1. Proclamation in Honor of Juneteenth Local Laws and Resolutions

Mayor Lee Kyriacou has been adopting a national holiday at the local level for the City of Beacon. As with mirroring proclamations such as these, he will speak on his feelings about the holiday.

Local Laws and Resolutions

1. Resolution Approving the Appointment of Kyle Sackett to Heavy Motor Equipment Operator
2. Resolution Approving the Appointment of Steven Brescia as a Motor Equipment Operator

Current employees will be given the indicated job title designation.

3. Resolution Adopting Proposed Salary Increases for City of Beacon Management

Employees who work at the management level of the City of Beacon but not covered by collective bargaining agreements with the CSEA union (which represents other City employees in departments like Highway and Water) are proposed to get a 2% raise (Building Inspector II, Adm Assistant to City Admin, Superintendent of Streets, Secretary to City Mayor, Recreation Director, Assistant Recreation Director, City Clerk, Director of Finance, and Fire Chief). New employees hired within the past year would not receive the raise, “also consistent with past practice,” according to the resolution.

4. Resolution Setting a Public Hearing on July 6, 2021 to Receive Public Comments on a Proposed Local Law to Amend Chapter 211, Article II, Section 10, Subsection B of the Code of the City of Beacon Regarding Vehicles and Traffic

This authorizes new Stop signs to be placed in specified intersections of side streets with Main Street, as recommended by the Main Street Access Committee from their strategic work months ago, and approved by the Traffic Committee. The list of Stop signs can be seen here.

Smoking Of Cannabis Can Be Permitted Where Tobacco Is Not; Municipalities Can Adopt Favorable Regulations

From the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) presentation from Beacon’s retained law firm Keane and Beane, which prompted the report that Beacon was considering banning cannabis, tobacco and vapor in public parks, a note about allowing the smoking of cannabis in locations where smoking tobacco is prohibited was noted in print, but lingered upon as an option for the City Council. The City Administrator Chris White brought the reverse to the Council, for them to consider prohibiting tobacco, vapor and cannabis in Beacon’s public parks. Banning tobacco can be done, however, minus the ban on cannabis.

Since the MRTA legislation is written so favorably towards selling it, growing it and using it, to regulate open air public spaces seems counter-intuitive to the intent. Restricting that amount of land could have the effect of corralling people into tighter locations. It also has the possibility of new laws against smoking cannabis in the open, without fear of charges or judgement, which is again part of why the law was written.

Additionally, while smoking tobacco is banned from trails, City Administrator Chris implied his favor with discretionary application of the regulation, stating that he simply wanted to give people more teeth when asking people next to them to stop smoking at soccer games. He implied that if people were smoking “way up in the woods, we are not going to see,” regarding an action that is now legal, where people can smoke marijuana and be seen.

From Keane and Bean'e’s presentation, here are the guidelines on smoking cannabis effective immediately:

• Adults 21 and older can generally smoke cannabis anywhere it is currently legal to use tobacco.

• Smoking cannabis is prohibited in schools, workplaces, and in cars.

• Municipalities can also adopt regulations to allow the smoking of cannabis in locations where smoking tobacco is prohibited.

Beacon City Council Considers Smoking Ban In Public Parks, As Marijuana Is Legalized (Tobacco Would Be Included In Ban)

As Beacon’s City Council considers its new obligation from New York State to respect marijuana smoking in public, the Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act (MRTA), a law passed after much delay prior to the racial reckoning of 2020 and into 2021), Beacon, along with all municipalities, is required to decide if it wants to opt out of retail sales tax revenue from Adult-Use Retail Dispensary stores (a store that sells cannabis that a person takes away from the store), or an On-Site Consumption Establishment (like a bar for alcohol that a person consumes on site and cannot take away). When signing the law, New York State declared that it became the “15th state to legalize cannabis with commitment to social equity.” So far, after the 6/14/2021 City Council Workshop meeting discussing the development, Beacon’s City Council is leaning in the direction of remaining opted-in to profiting from revenue from cannabis sales generated from within Beacon’s city limits.

Along with this retail choice, as presented in detail by Beacon’s retained law firm, Keane & Beane from attorney Drew Victoria Gamals, Beacon’s City Administrator Chris White brought to the Council the consideration of prohibiting smoking or vaping tobacco and marijuana in public parks to the Council, separate from the state-mandated retail decision. During the meeting, he said doing so was in the name of public health.

However, it should be noted, that in Keane and Beane’s Adult-Use Marijuana presentation, municipalities are able to “adopt regulations to allow the smoking of cannabis in locations where smoking tobacco is prohibited.” This option was not discussed during the Workshop where this topic was first breached.

New York’s lifting of the prohibition of marijuana smoking has brought new aromas to the city, which you may have noticed while walking down the sidewalk where bar patrons gather to smoke outside. Or someone driving in their car in front of you may be openly smoking cannabis while driving (which, according to Drew Victoria Gamils with Keane & Beane is not legal, nor is sitting in your car smoking cannabis while the car is off).

Is It The Aroma That Is Bothersome?

While it is a new aroma for some, it is making others uncomfortable. Yet one thing is known: the Black community is disproportionately penalized for even carrying cannabis, let alone smoking it, as was pointed out by Councilmember Air Nonken Rhodes during the presentation of the ban on smoking in Beacon’s public parks during the meeting.

City Administrator Chris White responded to Air’s concern by stating that “enforcement would need to be closely watched.” Which would require data collection and review of each citation. Something which Beacon’s City Council is new to acquiring in the aftermath of the spotlight on criminal justice. It is also not clear if the City Council or the City Administrator is in the habit of regularly reviewing the data that the City of Beacon Police Department collects.

During this City Council Workshop, City Administrator Chris White equated publicly smoking marijuana to smoking tobacco, as he brought to the council the consideration to ban it from public parks and “soccer games.” Chris stated that on Beacon’s trails, there is a ban on smoking, but he was unclear as to why that was, and not banned in parks. He wondered if it was because people are walking in a “linear” path. In his pursuit of a policy to be able to enforce, he expanded: “If you're way up in the woods, we are not going to see. However if you are at a soccer game, and not being respectful of others, I'm sure you are going to be reminded of that,” he stated, explaining that a person complaining to their fellow parent would have new legislation supporting their complaint to a person sitting next to them.

Not that soccer games need more opportunities for conflict among overly aggressive parents, who continuously need their own refereeing by the professional hired to ref the kids and enforce rules of the game in play.

(The no-smoking rule on trails could be for fire prevention, like that time when Breakneck caught on fire in 2020.)

Soccer Games and Smoking

Having been to many soccer games and practices, as well as those for flag football, I have not encountered folks smoking tobacco or cannabis. While that is a broad statement, people usually step away when smoking, out of respect for others. As for Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park, that area is so spacious and windy, most aromas don’t linger - unless it is the regular aroma of charcoal burning for burgers and hot dogs.

Meanwhile, New York State considers cannabis a potential thriving business that it can regulate and profit from, while encouraging agricultural involvement from traditionally oppressed groups. Expanding limitations on where it can be smoked is counter to that intent.

From New York’s new Office of Cannabis Management, the new law “Establishes a robust social and economic equity program to actively encourage members from communities disproportionally impacted by the policies of prohibition to participate in the new industry. … [It] encourages small business and farmers to participate in the cannabis industry with the creation of microbusiness, cooperative and delivery license types.”

Proposed Penalties For Smoking In Beacon’s Public Parks

A majority of Beacon’s City Council leaned toward accepting the sale of cannabis in Beacon, but banning smoking in public parks. The penalties, they agreed on, could be light. The financial penalty by default, City Attorney Drew said, has a maximum fine of $1,000 per day. City Attorney Drew confirmed that the penalty would be settled in Justice Court between the City and the Defendant. City Administrator Chris attempted assurance: “It’s usually much less than the maximum penalty.“

City Attorney Drew added: “If you go to trial, you could get $40,000. Working with the police and the defendant, you might end up settling for $9,000. That's a high example. You might end up settling for $500 in Justice Court.”

Councilmember Dan Aymar-Blair requested that the financial penalty be light, so as to not impact anyone’s rent. He and other Councilmembers agreed that jail time would be not ideal, and they would want to specifically exclude that penalty from Beacon’s legislation.

City Attorney Drew recommended that the City Council hear from residents before moving forward with drafting legislation on how to regulate the sale of cannabis in Beacon.

Agenda Posted For The 6/14/2021 City Council Workshop Meeeting

Beacon’s City Council meets tonight to discuss the following issues that are on the agenda. During a Workshop meeting, the public can listen, but not participate. The purpose of these meetings is to workshop a concept before bringing it formally before the public for a vote, if it reaches that point. Topics that have already made it to the public are sometimes brought back to Workshops status to be further discussed, after receiving feedback from the public.

Click here for the agenda at the City’s website.

ALBB publishes the agenda here, plus the video when it is released. All meetings are published here in ALBB’s Easy Access Local Government section.

1. Notice of Change in Meeting Location June 14, 2021

2. Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act Presentation by City Attorney

3. Proposed Local Law to Create Chapter 155, Article III of the Code of the City of Beacon to Prohibit Smoking in City Parks

4. Participatory Budgeting Discussion

5. Recommendations from the Parking and Traffic Safety Committee

6. Police Advisory Committee

7. Proposed Historic Property Nominations Pursuant to the Historic District Landmark Overlay (HDLO) Zone

8. Proposed Abandonment of City Paper Streets: Morse Street, Be Vier Avenue, and Ryans Avenue

Topics Of Discussion For Tonight's City Council Workshop Meeting 5/24/2021

Tonight, Beacon’s City Council will meet for a Workshop meeting to discuss the following Agenda topics. As a “Workshop” meeting, this means that the public cannot call in, and the Council does not make legal decisions. A list to the full agenda with links and future video of the meeting is here in ALBB’s Local Government section.

Discussion of 2021 Public Events with City Administrator Chris White and Recreation Director Mark Price

After Beacon’s first shopping event happened at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park this past weekend, it looks like Beacon is considering the pre-pandemic lineup of events, according to this list posted with the Agenda. Several police officers were on duty this weekend to direct traffic down past the train to where parking was available. The market this past weekend was ticketed, but many events and parades on this list are free.

Food Security Update

There is no detail posted with the Agenda packet on this Food Security Update. Perhaps they are updating the public with whether or not the $25,000 granted from the CARES ACT in December 2020, administered through Dutchess County, was spent yet. The granted was earmarked for free groceries. Recreation Director Mark Price told A Little Beacon Blog on April 13, 2021: “We have completed income survey and submitted to Dutchess County CDBG. We have an open purchase order with a local food distributor and are currently selecting items for a weekly delivery to begin in the next couple of weeks. To be distributed alongside the weekly Hudson Valley Food Bank distribution on Wednesdays.”

Affordable Housing Presentation with Cea Weaver of Housing Justice for All

After a presentation last Workshop with Dutchess County, Councilperson Dan Aymar-Blair wanted more perspectives that sounded less restrictive of solving the problem of rising rental and home purchase prices.

Proposed Abandonment of City Paper Streets: Morse Street, Be Vier Avenue, and Ryans Avenue

This is a funny topic about streets that were put on paper, but never paved. They are gumming up homeowner surveys when they go to sell their homes. The proposal is to dissolve them and was discussed at a meeting prior. Got an eraser?

6. Proposed Appointment of Eleanor Peck to the Conservation Advisory Committee

7. Proposed Appointment of Pastor Daniel Blackburn to the Commission on Human Rights

Some Public Bathrooms To Open In Beacon Parks. Why Now? A Response To The Fall 2020 Protests Of Beacon's 2021 Budget

The public bathroom at Memorial Park. It is normally closed to the public, and is treated as a mural space for community art commissioned by Wee Play, who maintains and fundraises for equipment in the Memorial Tot Park and the Wee Woods behind it.
Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin

An 18-year-old Beaconite who grew up in a relative’s house in Beacon near Green Street Park recently moved with her family to Newburgh, as they could only afford to buy a home in Newburgh. The teen and other family members continue to work in Beacon, so she is on this side of the bridge daily. The 18-year-old Beaconite couldn’t remember when, if ever, the Green Street Park bathroom was open when she lived nearby.

Said a longtime Beacon resident, Danielle Soto-Eckert: “The bathroom at Memorial Park has been closed literally my whole life. I’m 30 years old and can think of less than 5 times that it’s been open while I was there as a child, and now an adult with kids. I take my kids to Bowdoin Park (in Wappingers Falls) because their bathroom is always open.”

The Beacon park bathroom issue is not new. People who use the public parks, including teenagers, caregivers and parents, have lived with them for the most part closed, with some people having access to a key maintained by the Recreation Department for a birthday party or volunteer clean-up day.

The Bathroom At Memorial Park Is So Pretty - But It’s Been Closed? It’s Just A Mural Space?

A celebration of the painting of the mural at Memorial Park in August 2019, commissioned by Wee Play, to cover the public bathroom, which had been closed for years, and continued to be, closed after the community painting project, which included special guest, then Mayor Randy Casale.
Photo Credit: Wee Play

The grassroots organization Wee Play Community Project has been maintaining the public tot parks, mainly Memorial Park, in a volunteer capacity for a number of years. Wee Play is instrumental in fundraising for, purchasing, and designing the play structures at the parks like Memorial Park. In fact, they are working right now on their biggest fundraising event of the year - the Ree Play Sale - an affordable way to buy used kids clothing and gear.

In August 2019 while Raquel Verdesi, Margaux Lange and others were on the Wee Play Board, Wee Play commissioned artist Joe Pimentel to paint the closed bathroom at Memorial Park. Everyone got in on it, as Wee Play sought out volunteers for a community contribution experience.

Then Mayor Randy Casale painted as well, and was a Special Guest at the Celebration unveiling event. But his administration, which included then City Administrator Anthony Ruggiero, cited vandalism as the reason why the bathrooms couldn’t be re-opened. Beacon’s current Mayor Kyriacou was a City Councilmember then, as were several current Councilpeople George Mansfield, Amber Grant, Terry Nelson and Jodi McCredo.

While the mural project was happening, Wee Play Board Member Raquel Verdesi told A Little Beacon Blog that they got several inquires about using the bathroom: “Wee Play gets a lot of, ‘hope this means they'll open the bathrooms!’ whenever we are working on a new project at the park. Wee Play would like them open, too! We encourage folks to write letters to their representatives on the City Council if they want open bathroom hours.”

The Key To The Bathrooms - The Literal Key

Because Wee Play maintains the Memorial Park tot park, they were given a key to the bathroom by Recreation Director Mark Price. Wee Play could open the bathroom during the commissioned mural project so that the artist could use running water, for example, said Board member and artist Margaux Lange. During regular, volunteer-based cleanups of the park, the bathrooms might be opened then for all to use, while the volunteers are there.

Says Wee Play Board Member Raquel about bathroom key procedure: “The Beacon Recreation Department has opened the bathrooms for tournaments, park events, and parties. The City cites the expense of having them cleaned and repaired due to repeated vandalism as to why they are closed, except by appointment. They would have to hire someone to monitor them. It would make sense for the City to hire more help to be able to maintain the bathrooms.”

The bathroom at Green Street Park, which has been closed for years. Before opening in 2021, it will undergo repairs to fixtures, City Administrator Chris White said during a City Council Meeting.
Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin

Over at Green Street Park, some people who have booked birthday parties have spoken of a key they get so that their guests could use the bathroom. Said Pheobe Zinman, who writes a column for A Little Beacon Blog, had experience organizing use for the key for more people to use. Pheobe told A Little Beacon Blog: “In 2017, I did a fundraiser for trees in Green Street. Beacon’s Recreation Director Mark Price helped me plant them. One is still there, the other was damaged by careless mowing and then vandalized.”

She continued: “Then I threw a big party to celebrate with music and potluck and a lot of neighbors came out. At that time, I scrubbed both bathrooms, which were filthy despite not ever being unlocked unless someone got a permit/key for a birthday party or gathering. We made a big list of things everyone would love to see in the park. I passed it on to City Council. There were supposed to be murals painted on the bathrooms, but that never happened. Mark said anyone could get a bathroom key as long as they signed up and made sure it got locked up etc... I tried to publicize it, but I don’t know if anyone signed up. I used to have a key, and then someone in the Recreation Department couldn’t find theirs, so I gave mine back. Everyone is still peeing outside behind the bathrooms, which is pretty unfortunate.”

In 2017, then Highway Superintendent Reuben Simmons proposed a plan to have the Green Street bathroom regularly cleaned by Beacon staff. Nothing happened with that proposal. Reuben was later stripped of his job title and salary due to a Civil Service technicality in Job Titles, and is currently a Maintenance Worker, who is on paid leave since the end of January 2021, as he fights to keep his job with the City of Beacon after receiving repeated complaints made about him by his supervisor, Michael Manzi, who replaced Reuben as Highway Superintendent of Streets.

Who Cleans The Bathroom, Anyway?

Beacon’s current and new City Administrator, Chris White, explained during a City Council Meeting on 4/26/2021 that he approached City staff to clean the bathrooms for overtime, but only 1 person said they were interested. The Highway and Parks Department work the City’s public parks to maintain the grounds and facilities. “We tried to figure out a system to use our own staff to clean them, but our hours were weird. We had staff who did not want the overtime. Only 1 staff [showed interest] and that is not sufficient.”

It is unknown at this time who the 1 interested staff person was, who was denied the overtime opportunity. Reuben Simmons, a longtime employee of the Highway Department who started working for the City of Beacon’s Parks department in 2002 as Summer Help, says he remembers cleaning the bathrooms: “In the past, I cleaned park bathrooms as Summer Help when assigned by then Park Foreman Dave Eraca.”

Reuben later served City of Beacon staff as the CSEA Union President for staff. He had this response to A Little Beacon Blog’s inquiry regarding job assignments: “I didn’t know employees had options to choose what work they would like to do and what they don’t want to do. What does CSEA (Union) say about all this? As a Union Leader, I was never a fan of contracting out work. Contractors tend to not take pride in public service. They seek financial benefit from public dollars. I'd look at the numbers and consider the option to pay our everyday hard working employees overtime before paying an outsider. You might just find it to be cheaper.” Paula Becker is the current CSEA Union President for Beacon, and works in the City of Beacon’s Finance Department.

Since the City Administrator Chris White said that Beacon’s staff wasn’t interested, he has hired Millers Touch Cleaning Service, “a minority-owned business” out of Newburgh, he described them, who he said cleans his own condominium during the 4/26/2021 City Council Meeting. Chris confirmed: “The contract is for $14,500 for 6 months. Maintenance of the facilities will be through Beacon’s own staff.” Chris said that he hopes cleaning can start the first week of May. “Then we’ll implement it as soon as Latreece Miller [of Miller’s Touch] can get his crews here.”

When Councilperson Dan Aymar-Blair asked when the bathrooms would be open, City Administrator Chris responded: “7am or 8am ‘till 5pm or 6pm. They will start at one of the parks and then shift over. Will be clearing some of the garbage from pavilion areas as well.” Additional collection of trash and recycling was an issue raised at City Council meetings in previous years as well.

It is not clear at this time what days of the week the bathrooms will be open on, and what the cleaning schedule is.

The Revised 2021 Budget submitted by Mayor Kyriacou states: “There will be $14,000 for trash and recycling collection from parks on Saturdays and Sundays. Park bathrooms will be open, maintained and cleaned regularly from March to November thanks to $25,000 in new funding.”

City Administrator Chris says there will be a delay at opening Green Street Park’s bathroom because “we are still working on fixtures,” he told the Council.

“Remind Me Where We Are At With A Bathroom At Loopers Park / South Avenue Park?”

After the Memorial Park and Green Street Park bathroom discussion, City Council Member Air Nonken Rhodes followed up with a question about the bathrooms (or lack thereof) in their ward, at the Loopers basketball court, tennis court, and kids park at Loopers/South Avenue Park. “Remind me where we are at with having a bathroom at South Ave. Park?” Councilperson Air asked City Administrator Chris. He responded: “I don’t think we have public restrooms. Just portajohns.”

John Galloway Jr., current Beacon City School District Board of Education Member and frequent basketball player at Loopers, confirmed to A Little Beacon Blog that there have not been accessible bathrooms at Loopers/South Avenue Park: “For as long as I have lived here (all 24 years), there has never been an accessible bathroom for the kids at the Loopers basketball courts at South Avenue Park. We always had to pick a tree or use the one in Sal’s Pizza. He always lets us use it even if we aren’t a customer because he indeed also knows that there isn’t a bathroom provided for the community that uses the basketball court.”

The new porta potty at Loopers Park/South Avenue Park. According to John Galloway Jr., there has not been an accessible bathroom at Loopers in the 24 years he has lived in Beacon.

Councilperson Air persisted: “Was cleaning the portajohns part of that schedule? Just an update on where we are at with that process.” City Administrator Chris confirmed that he would check and get back with an answer. Councilperson Air responded: “I don’t want South to get left out.” City Administrator Chris reminded Councilperson Air that a new retaining wall was getting put in for Loopers. Councilperson Air responded: “Bathrooms too.”

City Administrator Chris responded: “I wish we had more bathrooms in place. Starting from scratch is diffilcult. Portajons I know we can have clearned more frequently. I know they are not the best choice.” Mayor Kyriacou responded by suggesting that City Council looks at the “fancy ones” used by Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. “The Shakespeare Festival has some really cool ones,” the Mayor stated. “Maybe we'll take a look.”

The porta potty at Loopers arrived last week, as reported by City Administrator Chris during this week’s 5/3/2021 City Council meeting. “We did put a portajohn at South Avenue Park and it is being cleaned 2x/week. We did get that installed.”

The video of the new porta potty at Loopers Park / South Avenue Park is below.

Why Now? Why Are The Bathrooms Opening Now?

Beacon4Black Lives Summer and Fall Protest Budget Demanded Investment In Community Services

After decades of not being regularly opened and cleaned, with known complaints and longing by constituents, why open the bathrooms now? During a COVID-19 semi-shutdown?

In the summer of 2020, Beacon4Black Lives consistently organized protest marches down Main Street, followed by educational sessions at Memorial Park. On October 19, 2020, when the 2021 budget was being presented to the public to be discussed and transparent, Beacon4Black Lives organized a protest of Beacon’s 2021 budget, as it earmarked an increase for Police Department, and a decrease for the Recreation Department. This protest was demonstrated on Wolcott Avenue, outside of Mayor Kyriacou’s house.

In response to the protest, Mayor Lee Kyriacou, then-City Administrator Anthony Ruggiero, and the city’s Finance Director Susan Tucker defended the budget by saying that there was planned increase to the Police budget. Collective bargaining with the Police Union (PBA) conducted earlier had guaranteed raises for the Police Department.

Reversely, the Recreation Director, Mark Price, had on purpose cut the Recreation budget in order to stay slim during the pandemic. The cuts came from the After School Program, which was not operating due to the shutdown, and he did not feel it necessary to financially plan for an opening in 2021. However, when he hired back his staff for an opening in 2021, he did so with a raise to those After School Program employees, he told A Little Beacon Blog at the time of he budget protest.

Public Comment In Defense Of Funding Community Services

Public Comments about Police funding and cuts to the Recreation Department was not lost on the City Council or Mayor Kyriacou. During the 2020 budget protest, one of the organizers with Beacon4Black Lives, Justice McCray, emphasized the importance of investing in the community. Justice called in on the Public Comment line to the City Council meeting from the protest on the street, and stated:

This increase to the Police Budget has been a slap in the face to all of us, to this entire community. (Justice called back to other attendees: "Can you guys shout for me?” They respond: “BLACK LIVES MATTER!”) We are asking you to invest in the community. The last thing that we need is for you to spend more money in policing. We need you to put the $24,000 that you took out of the Recreation Department and put it back into the Recreation Department. We need you to fund community safety programs that focus on community’s actual safety, rather than having the police department outside of your house right now having police circling around your community as if they are going to attack? We want to feel safe in this community, and we don't feel that right now. (Another person shouted over the phone: "You are being protected against us right now!") This entire summer, all we have been asking is for our Black lives to matter. That means investing in community safety options, that don’t shoot us, that don’t kill Black people. We are asking you to invest in community wi-fi, community housing, community food, community fridges. Invest in your community, not in the police.”

Justice McCray has taken their protest to the ballot box by way of putting their name on the ballot. Justice is currently running for Beacon’s City Council.

Community member Tina Bernstein, who does serve as Secretary on Beacon’s Commission on Human Rights, but was calling in as a citizen, was the next caller during Public Comment to contribute a reaction to Beacon’s 2021 budget presentation. Tina stated:

I want to express very significant concerns about the proposed budget for the City of Beacon. A city's budget should be determined with serious consideration of the needs of the entire community. It should prioritize much-needed services, and should be based on a vision for maintaining equity and quality of life for all of its residents.

It should be responsive to concerns that have been expressed for several months now, by Beacon4Black Lives as was just expressed, Mutual Aid Beacon, as well as a variety of community members. The current budget includes an increase for police funding, while it calls for a net shortfall in recreational programming.

Our mayor has, in defending the budget, cited the rationale that we pay less for police services than other municipalities in the Mid-Hudson region. In addition to the fact that it ignores the express sentiment that no more money should be spent on policing, this is the same rationale that has been stated before in response to concerns for the need for more affordable housing options.

It is irrelevant what other municipalities are doing. Beacon's budget should reflect what matters to the residents in the community, and the services we need… We no longer have a community center…. We haven't invested in an expansion of programs, pavilions, or open spaces that protect youth from the elements... There is no money in this budget to support such efforts.

At this point, Mayor Lee Kyriacou cut Tina off, as callers have a 3-minute maximum. Mayor Kyriacou stated: "Her time’s up, come on."

Future Spending

The protest and the number of residents calling in their reactions in defense of the Recreation budget during subsequent City Council Meetings outlining details of the budget in different departments was enough to push the Council and Mayor to allocate funding to the opening of existing bathroom facilities.

In his Revised Budget published in the City of Beacon’s website, Mayor Kyriacou said, “This year’s budget involved greater scrutiny and community participation than any in past memory. I’d like to thank all those involved – city staff, the council and many residents who came and voiced their views. I believe this budget properly uses city reserves to keep any tax increase to a minimum, while funding needed one-time programs for these difficult times, as well as continued improvements in quality of life community programs.”

Other financial allocations included, as stated on the City’s website:

• “$25,000 for emergency supplemental grants” from the CARES ACT managed by Dutchess County “to strengthen Beacon’s food distribution programs and provide groceries to hundreds of families.“

• “Another $70,000 were earmarked for alternative policing – which can be used for community mental health services.”

• “The Council dedicated $30,000 for a study of municipal broadband.”

• “The Recreation Department will issue income-based fee waivers for programs thanks to a budget dedication of $20,000.” While this is unclear at this time in how it is intended to be used, residents may want to ask for payment plans or financial assistance on childcare programs like Camp @ The Camp or the After School Program.

Meanwhile, the City of Beacon is considering a years long renovation project of the dilapidated Tioronda Bridge for over one million dollars, which may double if the Council agrees to renovations required to keep the bridge on the National Registry. In 2017, the City of Beacon was granted $500,000 towards the project from the New York State Department of Transportation.

The City of Beacon has entertained plans for various bathroom renovations at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park and the Settlement Camp, but those fall by the wayside and have not been put to bid for construction estimates.

One of the Beacon residents who spoke during various Public Comments during budget season was James Case-Leal, a former Board of Education Board Member, who was commenting as a resident. A Little Beacon Blog followed up with him to confirm that he asked specifically for the opening of public bathrooms. His response in part is below:

I was definitely one of the voices calling for opening the bathrooms as part of Beacon's reinvestment in community services and reimagining public safety. That was part of a set of demands put together by a collective of community organizers that I'm involved with working on the city budget. This issue was something I had heard numerous times from parents as something that would make their park time feel more accessible.

There are so few places to safely be in public, so it's really great that the city is finally providing sanitary bathrooms for parents and children. It's a small step, but a little bit of proof of how good we'd have if the city spent even just half of the $5.5million dollar Police budget on services we actually need.

We could expand the summer camp so parents aren't scrambling online the second slots become available. We could have an indoor All Sport style rec center where kids and seniors cool off during the summer. We could give residents priority for reserving University Settlement for parties. We could keep our bathrooms clean all year round. I really hope this trend continues.

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More Bathrooms

The bathroom issue is big in Beacon, as there are several public bathrooms that are used on different days, at different time. In Memorial Park, there are 2 more bathrooms: one at the baseball field and one at the football field. At Sargent, there is one at the soccer field that is opened during some soccer game weekends and possibly maintained by the soccer league.

The bathroom at the Visitors Center on Wolcott and Main Street is maintained by a volunteer with the Chamber of Commerce.

The bathroom at the Settlement Camp pool is maintained by the pool staff, and as a structure, is more like an out-house. Plans have been designed to improve it, but they were shelved, as they were connected to a larger renovation.

There is a row of porta potties at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront park. That park also has a renovation planned, which includes bid-ready drawings. It is earmarked in the Capital Plan, but has not been sent out to bid, as the Recreation Department is waiting for the right time to get the best price.

Public Comment Caller Speaks Derogatory About Transgender People; Council Member Amber Grant Shut It Down

During Monday night’s City Council Meeting, which was a combo Workshop/Regular Meeting, a person called in during the Public Comment session to speak his mind about how the City of Beacon should handle kids in school with progressing transgender acceptance in bathrooms and school sports. The caller, Stosh Yankowski, wanted the City of Beacon to be a Sanctuary City for females, thereby making transgender people invisible. Stosh stated: “I have nothing against transgender people. I don't think it's fair for a biological male to compete. I don't know if Beacon can make a Sancutary City for females. If it can be done or not, I wanted to propose that.” In 2017, Beacon became a “Welcoming City” for people moving here from other countries. The City was seeking to become a Sanctuary City for but wanted to avoid financial threats from the federal level during the 45th administration.

Normally during this period, the public can speak for up to 3 minutes each, and the Councilmembers don’t respond, they just listen. However, Stosh’s comments were so harmful, hateful and rude, they won’t be repeated in this article. Councilmember Amber Grant stepped out of the silence to interrupt Stosh and stop him from causing further verbal harm. “Where is the boundary on this?…This is wildly innapropriate.” Unlike during a Zoom call, when text appears on the screen that is a racial insult or harmful, moderators shut the intruder down. This is commonly referred to as “Zoom Bombing.” In terms of free speech, it is the equivelent to fake-calling “Fire!” in a crowd. There has not been a precedent set yet for live City Council calls.

During Councilperson Grant’s verbal objection, Mayor Kayriacou interrupted Councilmember Grant in favor of allowing Stosh to continue, which Stosh did, and addressed Councilmember Grant to encourage her to continue debating him. Normally, the procedure during a meeting like this is that the public can speak on anything they want, and the Councilmembers sit silent. Later in the meeting, the Councilmembers have a designated time called “Reports” where they can speak on anything they want. Usually this time is used to report on issues from their Wards (aka areas of the city they represent) or to give a PSA, and they usually do not respond to callers. This year, however, they have started to.

At the beginning of the Reports section, Mayor Kyriacou apologized for “cutting off any members,” stating the situation was “difficult.” He then decided which order of Councilmembers to start with to give their Reports (he often plays alphabet games to decide which order to go in). He selected Councilperson Terry Nelson to go first, who responded: “I would like to defer my time to Amber Grant.” To which Mayor Kyriacou responded: “I should have started at the other end.”

Air Nonken Rhodes was next, who passed on their time, stating: “I am going to pass this call. I have too much to say. Thanks.” The rest of the Councilmembers reported on previously planned items, such as a business update from Councilperson George Mansfield to encourage businesses on Main Street to apply for (free) parklets, and Dan Amar-Blair who alluded to wanting more discussion on Order 203 (the Police Reform order for municipalities) as well as voicing his support for fellow Councilmember Nelson’s call for opting into the Emergency Tenants Protection Act (ETPA), a form of rent regulation available in New York State.

The caller, Stosh Yankowski, is a regular Public Commenter, calling in almost every every other week during the Public Comment portion of the meeting, usually to protest and educate about 5G technology. He delights in delivering comical, sarcastic speeches. At times, he calls to apologize for previous statements he has made. It is unknown on if he has been reprimanded by the City for previous offensive remarks.

When Councilperson Grant responded during her Report, she stressed the danger in rhetoric like that being heard. She stated: “Obviously I reacted very strongly to that public comment. I think it's important that poeple take the time to understand situations, and the speaker doesn't undersrand that gender is a social construct…I don't need to be protected in a sports arena. Trans people are simply poeple just like the rest of us. If there is something you find scary, then you should look at resources... I think that comments like that are very dangerous, where we are seeing people being violently attacked and hurt, and I don't want to see that.”

Mayor Kyriacou made note to comment that this issue resides with the Beacon City School District, stating: “I have a lot of faith in our school districts. It's not a City issue, and I have faith in our school district.” Last June, during Pride Month, the Mayor designated June to be Pride Month, alongside the national designation, and personally bought a pride flag and had it fly from City Hall’s flag pole during the month.

As a female writer, bathroom user, and former basketball player, I will agree with Councilperson Grant, about not needing protection in sports or in bathrooms. I welcome playing with any person on the court, even in a scholastic competition. The best game is when you play with people who are really into it, and make you shine. My best year of high school basketball was when I spent the summer playing in camp with all boys. Inhibition was lost, and the aggression was fabulous. I won Best Defense that year.

People looking to think about men and women, or males and females, or all people playing sports together, could consider two things in their explorations:

• Lusia Harris, the first female drafted by the NBA in 1977. My 9-year old son found this for me as we started discussing it weeks ago, to see how he felt about it.

• That bodies are made differently. If you were born with brothers, and you watch those brothers grow up - one brother may be built very differently than the other. One might be a Hulk, and one might be a Spiderman. Has nothing to do with gender or body parts. I have just described my two sons. Girls I played sports with were all designed differently than me. Some with naturally stronger muscles than mine. We all had spirit, and drive, and smarts, and a love for the game and the team.