Tuckahoe Village Departments

TUCKAHOE TALK
With Mayor John Fitzpatrick

Alternatives to Crisis

Sept. 2, 2008

Some days the world appears to be a remake of a 1970's movie that I didn't particularly like the first time. There are new actors and new costumes but the same old set and script: a turning point presidential election, unemployment, a president viewed by some to have overstepped executive power, even a type of gas crisis. Granted the 70's version gas crisis had the sheiks of OPEC as the well-played villains, but for my money these flannel-suited speculators of the mercantile exchanges appear to be just as scary. I normally don't like remakes because I know the ending. I hope I am not giving anything away but - we survive. However, this time, in order for that to play out, I believe it will require a new plot twist.

Some countries took the time succeeding the 70's gas crisis to change their way of life. Many now ride bicycles or scooters. For America, that may be a little far reaching. In fact, one of the many intriguing things about America is the fact that we don't change our way of life even if it kills us. I am not casting any stones here because I am probably just as guilty of living this philosophy as the next American. But I think that mindset will all be changing.

How does any of this relate to Tuckahoe you might be asking? Well obviously the gas pricing has affected us all. Not that long ago the village was buying gas at $2.10 per gallon. That price is now $2.95 per gallon. The current price is based on the fact that we pay no tax and buy in bulk with a contract. This is still inexpensive compared to what the non-government world is paying.

With all of this in mind you'll be happy to know Tuckahoe has been adapting for quite some time in order to save money. We began investing this year in many ways to cut our energy consumption. That goes for heating and car fuel. This year all village trucks were moved to a twenty percent bio-diesel fuel. While this reduces carbon emissions, no savings are actually realized directly at the pump since it costs us 17 cents per gallon more. However, in addition to its environmental benefit, we are also getting better gas mileage per vehicle, thus mitigating the slightly higher fuel price. We have also purchased a kit to convert one garbage truck to operate solely on used vegetable oil. This by-product of neighborhood restaurants will now fuel one vehicle for free. The one important report we have is that when the truck goes by it smells like French fries. For those who don't like the smell of French fries or even those who feel any smell is unacceptable, I apologize in advance. However, remember it is saving us money.

Innovation is taking place in the police department as well. They have been issued a hybrid Ford Escape for temporary use in anticipation of our purchase in January. This demo is to familiarize our force with the technology and assure them that they can still be effective in this kind of vehicle. Also, the donation of a battery operated Segway from the Pope Foundation is moving officers around quite quickly and without gas. For those who feel this machine is even more than unusual, I assure you it saves us money and allows for police officers to get close to the public.

At Village Hall installation has finished on new heating and cooling controls giving us better management of distribution. This, together with the completed energy audit of all buildings, has allowed us to cut any wasteful excess. This week we added a film to several windows designed to cut air conditioning consumption in the summer and reduce heating bills in the winter. The testing of this material is free and will help us make an informed decision on any future investment. This investment, by the way, is considerable to the tune of over $30,000, but should be recovered in less than three years. All plans must be judged using a timetable of recouping cost. For now, the jury is still out on whether this investment is in our best interest or whether alternatives will see quicker returns.

While pointing out all of the initiatives that have been brought forward this year I wouldn't want to give the impression that no one in the past thought about our energy consumption. Take for example the solar panels on the roof of the library. Now albeit they haven't worked for a decade and have plants growing on them, but at least someone had a momentary thought. Unfortunately, an outside company recently declared them unusable garbage. A new solar investment is definitely in our future.

Since this is real life and not a movie the bad guys responsible for the gas crisis will probably get away. But that doesn't matter because we have been preparing. We are thinking globally and acting locally, not only to be environmentally conscious, but also to save money. Our dedicated Environmental Committee continues to collect the valuable data necessary to keep us on the cutting edge. Deputy Mayor Steve Ecklond and Trustee Clare Gorman continually meet with the group and coordinate all initiatives. This group chaired by Charles Cinquimani consists of Bert Baldassara, Pete Costa, Ginger Crosby, Elaine Garry, April Maron, Roseanne O'Toole, Sandra Reyes-Guerra, Seth Schultz and Richard Frischmann. Thankfully, these residents give their professional expertise and time to assure we are making the best decisions for our village. If you have either time or expertise I encourage you to attend a meeting because lets face it - we are all in this together.