Lead Stories

Building Department analysis goes to bid

With Mamaroneck’s Building Department coming under increasing scrutiny, the village will send out a request for proposals seeking a consultant to evaluate the department’s processes and protocols.

According to Assistant Village Manager Dan Sarnoff, an RFP was sent out on June 26 and will conclude on July 27.

The decision to bring the initiative out to an RFP process will mark the first major step in a revamp launched earlier this year that was spurred by several controversies related to the Building Department’s misclassification or mishandling of several local businesses.

Among the most notable business-related controversies arose over the Westchester Sandbox Theatre and Ralph’s Italian Ices & Ice Cream, the latter of which is facing potential a potential shutdown because of a retroactive review from land use boards. According to Trustee Leon Potok, a Democrat, the village hopes to find a firm that can help retool the department to be more effective. “We want a consultant to tell us how [the Building Department] operates, and how it can operate better,” he said. “We want to look at current processes and protocols and how they can be more effective.”

Trustee Keith Waitt, a Democrat, said the review will help determine where exactly the problem lies.

“When you have a problem, you look to see if it was people, policy, or procedure, that caused the hiccup,” he said. “Until we know which one, we can’t make a judgment.”

While the department’s efficacy has come under fire throughout the past year—especially from disgruntled residents proximate to Ralph’s and Sandbox Theatre—Potok reiterated that the Building Department analysis isn’t a performance based assessment.

Trustee Keith Waitt, a Democrat, said that despite claims that Building Inspector Dan Gray has been responsible for the failures of the department, it’s still too early to tell. “A lot of people have attacked [Gray] and blamed him for a lot of things,” he said. “Until we know [the circumstances] we can’t make those accusations.”

Yet in May this year, Building Inspector Dan Gray, after declining a job offer from the village of Tarrytown, was the recipient of a raise from $123,239 to $133,000 to stay with Mamaroneck.

Gray’s near departure would have come in rapid succession with former Village Manager Richard Slingerland and former Village Attorney Charlie Goldberger, both of whom have already been replaced.

In tandem with the move to reassess practices in the Building Department, the Board of Trustees has also pledged to analyze current zoning laws in an attempt to update and revamp sections of the land use code.

Driving increased scrutiny on the Building Department has been fervor over Ralph’s, the popular ices shop which was found to be misclassified by Gray as a retail establishment.

After a zoning appeal launched by residents, Ralph’s was processed as a fast food establishment, and now faces the likelihood of a shutdown as the zoning board positions itself to deny the business’ application for a special permit.

Sandbox Theatre’s lease will expire this month after press time, following which they are expected to leave their current location at 931 E. Boston Post Road.