NEW ROCHELLE, NY (May 25, 2025) — A series of Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests filed with the City of New Rochelle have faced significant delays, prompting accusations of stonewalling and lack of transparency from local journalist Robert Cox, publisher of Talk of the Sound.
Cox’s requests, spanning from August 26, 2024, to May 19, 2025, cover a range of topics including community events, administrative records, and governance processes, but dozens remain unfulfilled, with some labeled as “constructive denials” by Cox due to the city’s failure to produce records within statutory timelines.
Below is the list of all 30 FOIL requests, sorted chronologically by request date (oldest to most recent), with each entry including the request name, date made, and days pending until May 25, 2025:
• CNR – Masons
• Date Made: August 26, 2024
• Days Pending: 273 days
• Employee Luncheons
• Date Made: August 28, 2024
• Days Pending: 271 days
• Jazz Under the Stars
• Date Made: August 28, 2024
• Days Pending: 271 days
• Keane & Beane Internal Audit
• Date Made: August 30, 2024
• Days Pending: 269 days
• Noam-Council Sustainable Westchester Emails
• Date Made: September 6, 2024
• Days Pending: 261 days
• Sustainable Westchester Opt-Out Letters
• Date Made: September 25, 2024
• Days Pending: 242 days
• Ethics Board Meeting Invites
• Date Made: September 25, 2024
• Days Pending: 242 days
• Kingdom Community Consultants
• Date Made: October 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 211 days
• Council – Staff Sustainable Westchester Emails
• Date Made: October 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 211 days
• Summer Sizzle
• Date Made: November 3, 2024
• Days Pending: 203 days
• PMG97LLC
• Date Made: November 6, 2024
• Days Pending: 200 days
• Arch Street
• Date Made: December 17, 2024
• Days Pending: 159 days
• Soulful Synergy
• Date Made: December 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 149 days
• Juneteenth
• Date Made: December 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 149 days
• Pipeline 2 Prosperity
• Date Made: December 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 149 days
• Generations Church
• Date Made: December 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 149 days
• NAACP New Rochelle
• Date Made: December 27, 2024
• Days Pending: 149 days
• New Rochelle Judgeship
• Date Made: January 1, 2025
• Days Pending: 144 days
• Kwanzaa 2024
• Date Made: January 2, 2025
• Days Pending: 143 days
• Youth Bureau KCC Tax Payroll
• Date Made: January 6, 2025
• Days Pending: 139 days
• CE-200s
• Date Made: January 12, 2025
• Days Pending: 133 days
• City Manager Contract
• Date Made: February 12, 2025
• Days Pending: 102 days
• LINCing Futures Bids
• Date Made: March 3, 2025
• Days Pending: 83 days
• Ethics Disclosure Forms
• Date Made: March 3, 2025
• Days Pending: 83 days
• LINCing Futures Records
• Date Made: April 3, 2025
• Days Pending: 52 days
• 211 Waivers
• Date Made: May 8, 2025
• Days Pending: 17 days
• Stanley Bernstein Emails 2020-2025
• Date Made: May 9, 2025
• Days Pending: 16 days
• NRPD Event (Vision) at Generations Church
• Date Made: May 17, 2025
• Days Pending: 8 days
• Music of the African Diaspora
• Date Made: May 17, 2025
• Days Pending: 8 days
• Planning Fees 2015 to Present
• Date Made: May 19, 2025
• Days Pending: 6 days
Under New York’s Freedom of Information Law (FOIL, NY Public Officers Law § 87 and § 89), agencies must acknowledge FOIL requests within five business days and provide responsive records or issue a denial within 20 business days after acknowledgment. If additional time is needed, agencies must specify a reasonable timeframe for compliance. Cox defines “stonewalling” as requests where no records or complete records are provided within one calendar month (approximately 30 days) from the filing date. According to Cox’s analysis, requests filed before April 24, 2025, with a “NO” (no records provided) or “DENIED” status are considered stonewalled unless valid exemptions or extensions were provided.
Cox’s 30 FOIL requests, all associated with New Rochelle, include 28 marked as “NO” and two marked as “PARTIAL.” The partial responses involve issues with Ethics Board Meeting Invites, missing a key invite from March 25, 2024, and Ethics Disclosure Forms, which had an improper redaction of Mayor Yadira Ramos under marital status on March 3, 2025. The requests span from August 26, 2024, to May 19, 2025, and cover categories such as community events (e.g., Kwanzaa, Juneteenth), organizations (e.g., NAACP New Rochelle, Generations Church), administrative tasks (e.g., emails, audits, contracts), community initiatives (e.g., Pipeline 2 Prosperity, LINCing Futures), and governance (e.g., New Rochelle Judgeship).
The oldest request, filed on August 26, 2024, for records related to CNR – Masons, has been pending for 273 days as of May 25, 2025.
Other early requests include Employee Luncheons and Jazz Under the Stars, both filed on August 28, 2024, pending for 271 days, and Keane & Beane Internal Audit, filed on August 30, 2024, pending for 269 days.
The most recent request, for Planning Fees 2015 to Present, filed on May 19, 2025, has been pending for six days.
Cumulative Unfilled FOIL Requests (by month)
Cox’s correspondence with city officials, including former City Clerk Michelle Oliveros, current City Clerk Kim Jones, Corporation Counsel Dawn Warren, and City Manager Wilfredo Melendez, highlights ongoing disputes over the city’s handling of these requests. In a May 14, 2025, email to Melendez, Cox expressed frustration over the city’s response to his request for Generations Church records, which the city claimed yielded approximately “11,000 records and counting.” Cox sought clarification on how this figure was determined, the search methodology, the time period covered, and when a definitive count would be provided. He noted that he had not received a response to these questions, stating, “To date, I have not received a response to these questions, which suggests a lack of interest in engaging constructively to resolve this matter.”
Cox detailed his concerns about the city’s broader FOIL response pattern, writing, “In the past year, my experience with the City of New Rochelle has been marked by what I perceive as delays, vague responses, and a lack of transparency, which has eroded my confidence in the City’s commitment to fulfilling its obligations under FOIL.” He offered to narrow the scope of his Generations Church request but emphasized that without clear information on the number of records and search methodology, he could not reasonably refine it.
In a February 19, 2025, email, Warren responded to Cox’s appeal regarding the Generations Church request, stating, “Your request is exceptionally broad and has yielded over 10,000 potentially responsive documents, which remain under review for relevance and disclosure. Given this volume, compliance within twenty business days from the acknowledgment of your request is not feasible.” She noted that Cox’s other pending FOIL requests involved over 80,000 records, further straining the city’s processing capacity, and requested an additional 90 days to respond. Warren invited Cox to narrow the scope to expedite the process but denied his appeal on February 21, 2025, citing the “undue administrative burden” of his requests.
Cox’s appeal for the Generations Church request, filed on February 2, 2025, argued that the city’s failure to produce records or provide a valid extension constituted a “constructive denial.” He also challenged Warren’s involvement in adjudicating his appeals, pointing to a clear conflict of interest due to her prior legal actions against him, including a cease-and-desist letter and threats of litigation related to an October 28, 2024, article. Cox wrote, “I do not believe it is appropriate or legal for Dawn Warren to be involved in any way in adjudicating any FOIL Appeal made by me because she has a Conflict of Interest and so would be in violation of New York State Public Officers Law.”
Another significant case involves Cox’s request for Summer Sizzle concert series records, filed on November 3, 2024. Acknowledged on November 5, 2024, the request was due by December 5, 2024, but on December 17, 2024, Oliveros informed Cox that the search yielded 13,000 emails, requiring an additional 90 days. Cox appealed this as a constructive denial on December 18, 2024, arguing, “Last year, during my Bramson & Kaye ethics case FOIL, I was told one delay was because a search resulted in 20,000 emails. That proved to be untrue. What I ultimately received was a small fraction of that – and the records were sent in a proprietary format I was unable to open for six months.” He contended that the 90-day delay was not justified under FOIL, as the city failed to provide a specific reason or a “date certain” for compliance. The 90-day period ended more than two months ago and still no records have been produced.
Cox’s request for PMG97LLC records, filed on November 6, 2024, and acknowledged on November 7, 2024, also faced delays. On December 17, 2024, Oliveros requested a two-week extension without providing a reason or a specific date, which Cox argued violated FOIL requirements. He filed an appeal on December 18, 2024, which went unacknowledged, and by January 16, 2025, he noted that the extended deadline of January 3, 2025, had passed without records or further extensions. Cox wrote, “Regardless of what pretext you all care to choose, the fact remains that my request for public records pertaining to PMG97LLC was made on 11/7/24 and it has now been more than two months, you failed to meet the state-mandated deadline under FOIL.”
The city’s response to Cox’s request for Ethics Board Meeting Invites, filed on September 25, 2024, was marked “PARTIAL” due to a missing key invite. Cox challenged the city’s claim that no emails or invites existed for a March 25, 2024, ethics meeting, writing to then-Ethics Board Clerk Michelle Oliveros on December 7, 2024, “As you know personally, there WAS absolutely an ethics meeting scheduled on 3/25/24 because you got a call from David Blumenthal that morning that he would not attend.” Cox requested specific records, including calendaring entries and e-invites, and demanded a written denial if the city continued to claim no such records existed. He received no reply.
For the Ethics Disclosure Forms request, filed on March 3, 2025, Cox received a partial response with an improper redaction. On May 7, 2025, he wrote, “In this form, the box for married is checked, but beneath that there is some redacted word and I’m wondering why that’s redacted. I appreciate that maybe somebody’s being sensitive here but as a legal matter, I don’t see any reason for this redaction.” The redacted word appears to be Mayor Ramos reporting to the Ethics Board that her marital status is now “separated”.
On May 9, 2025, a FOIL request was submitted for Stanley Bernstein’s emails from 2020 to 2025, aiming to uncover communications believed to be significant for understanding certain activities in New Rochelle. The City Clerk responded on the same day, claiming no such records exist—a swift reply that stands in sharp contrast to the typical delays or stonewalling often experienced with similar requests, where responses are frequently absent or evasive. This immediate denial has raised concerns, particularly because evidence suggests these emails likely do exist, given Bernstein’s known involvement in municipal matters during that period. The unusually quick response, paired with what appears to be a false claim, has led to suspicions of intentional obstruction, highlighting potential issues with selective transparency in New Rochelle’s handling of FOIL requests.
Cox’s analysis of the city’s FOIL responses revealed a pattern of delays, particularly for requests filed before April 24, 2025, which he considers stonewalled. For example, his request for Keane & Beane Internal Audit records, filed on August 30, 2024, received a response on October 4, 2024, stating, “There’s no additional records,” despite Cox’s reasonable expectation of financial documentation for a $5,460 payment. He wrote on October 29, 2024, “There has to be SOME records, at the very least a record confirming that $5,460 came out of Account 1710MS1 -46000.” He received no reply.
The data shows peak activity in December 2024, with six requests (Soulful Synergy, Juneteenth, Pipeline 2 Prosperity, Generations Church, NAACP New Rochelle, Arch Street). February and April 2025 had only one request each.
Cox’s investigation into Kingdom Community Consultants (KCC) records, received under a FOIL appeal on December 10, 2024, revealed significant issues. On January 4, 2025, he wrote to Dawn Warren, “Based on the records provided to me by you, KCC were given over a million dollars in no-bid contracts, primarily through Adam Salgado and the Corporation for Local Development.” He found no records of competitive bidding for contracts exceeding the $20,000 threshold, including six KCC Booker T. Washington Vocational Institute contracts ranging from $100,000 to $120,000. Cox also noted missing documentation for events like the 2024 Juneteenth Celebration, for which KCC was paid $74,000, stating, “I was not provided any KCC records such as a Transmittal Letter, a Non-Collusive Bidding Certificate, a Vendor Responsibility Form, a Price Proposal or an Award Letter.”
Cox’s investigation into Kingdom Community Consultants (KCC) records also uncovered issues with Youth Bureau-related documentation for students employed in KCC’s training program. In a January 5, 2025, in an email to Corporation Counsel Dawn Warren, Cox noted that flyers for KCC’s Booker T. Washington Vocational Institute indicated students were paid $15 per hour, with payroll checks issued by the City of New Rochelle. He requested “copies of all the tax forms, paychecks and related paperwork from 2021 to present,” arguing that these records should have been included in the 1,432 pages provided on December 10, 2024, under his FOIL appeal for KCC records. Cox emphasized that Warren’s claim of providing all responsive records was “obviously not true,” as critical payroll and tax documentation for the student workers was missing, highlighting further gaps in the city’s FOIL compliance. He received no reply.
Cox’s concerns extend to the city’s overall transparency, particularly regarding a December 10, 2024, resolution under which the city would fund a private lawsuit by Warren and Salgado against Cox, that he believes involves an individual with a conflict of interest in the FOIL process. He wrote, “This resolution, combined with the City’s handling of my requests, raises serious questions about impartiality and transparency.” He requested that any individual with a conflict be recused from handling his FOIL requests.
The city’s responses often cite the “voluminous nature” of Cox’s requests as a reason for delays. In a February 21, 2025, denial of Cox’s Generations Church appeal, Warren wrote, “Your exceptionally broad request has generated nearly 11,000 (and counting) potentially responsive documents. The scope of your request necessitates a substantial diversion of staff resources, thereby impairing the agency’s ability to fulfill its obligations to the public and its taxpayers.” Cox countered that FOIL does not allow denials based on volume, citing Public Officers Law § 89(3)(a), which states, “An agency shall not deny a request on the basis that the request is voluminous or that locating or reviewing the requested records or providing the requested copies is burdensome.”
Cox’s recommendations for the city include prioritizing resolution of the partial issues with Ethics Board Meeting Invites and Ethics Disclosure Forms, planning adequately for the high volume of December 2024 FOIL requests, and monitoring 2025 administrative tasks to avoid delays.
As of May 25, 2025, Cox’s FOIL requests remain a point of contention, with many still pending and no records provided for most. His persistence highlights ongoing challenges in New Rochelle’s FOIL process, raising questions about compliance with state law and the city’s commitment to public accountability.
This article was drafted with the aid of Grok, an AI tool by xAI, under the direction and editing of Robert Cox to ensure accuracy and adherence to journalistic standards.