Mayor Bramson on WVOX: Did He Say the New Rochelle Post Office Will Go?

Mr Bramson -Historic building has no value , but I’ll take pictures. Thanks mayor.

Having heard the mayor’s radio show, I was impressed that he found a way to “preserve” the post office AND tear it down at the same time. Following up on a call from one of his last shows, the mayor showed due dilligence by noting the role the State Historic Preservation Office will play in the decision making process for the registered historic building. He went on to explain how one could record the building with video and pictures and that would be the same as saving the building thereby holding on to the culture and historical depth of the city. In agreement with a caller, he pointed to the capital improvement to the building around 1973(?) which removed any sense of what the building was, thereby minimizing any historical importance the building may have possessed. If capital improvements preclude a building from preservation, does neglect secure the preservation. Good news for the Armory. I’m glad the mayor said it.

Pictures. Why didn’t I think of that! If we just take pictures of everything we can then sterilize the city of anything in the way of new construction. Then we could just sit behind a computer screen and absorb the full depth of our history without ever leaving our Capellitown apartment.

Mr Bramson is very bright, savy and very eloquent when he makes a point. He is also very manipulative and effective at steering a conversation. Case in point. One of the callers expressed his concern about Mr Capelli’s decisions and how Bally’s and the ice rink closed rather suddenly, without much input from, or prior notice to, the public. Sort of, wow, someting this big happens and no one finds out until the last moment? Why does Mr Capelli seem to do what ever he wants ? It doesn’t seem fair from someone who claims to be a “partner with” the city. Can you, Mr Mayor step in to do something about this sort of thing ? With a very sincere voice and concerned overtones, Mr Bramson went on to say, and rightly so to some degree, the Bally’s thing was a bit of a surprise to all concerned as far as he(the mayor) could tell, however it probably had more to do with a Bally’s corporate decision than anything else (Mr Capelli), unfortunate as it is. That being said, if you look into Bally’s, they are indeed having issues, like everyone else these days. Convenient for the developer, sure, but not everything is a conspiracy.

So when the mayor talks about preserving things I would listen carefully to what he is saying since the definition of preserving is all relative. We can’t save everything, but some things are iconic when you think about the roots and culture of New Rochelle and the benchmarks that coincide with how our nation grew. European settlement, revolutionary war, Thomas Paine, growth of commerce, slavery,church building, civil war, Americana and the arts, WW1,Norman Rockwell, WPA, WW2, Korea, civil rights, motion pictures, vaudeville, Broadway, even September 11. New Rochelle is a part of all of this, and more. There’s no excuse not to hold all of this out for people to see, feel, experience. I myself am amazed with all of it. Have you ever been to a town or city that uses it’s history as a source of commerce ? We could put on a pretty good show right here I tell ya’. So listen to the mayor. Hear what he’s really saying when he gives you an answer. Smile for the camera and say cheesy. – Oh, that’s right, you know the guy who asked about Bally’s and the ice rink ? You know what Mayor Bramson said about the ice rink ? Nothing !