Westchester Now

Westchester County’s political circles are still buzzing about the state’s decision last week to nix a plan to let Ferncliff, the Yonkers school for developmentally disabled children, move to county-owned land in Greenburgh.

“I was as shocked as all involved,” said Assemb. Amy Paulin (D-Scarsdale), who had been lobbying state officials to support the plan. “I was really shocked.”

A host...

1) Watch some local moms behave like NFL linemen! The first-ever Westchester County Suburbia Roller Derby match is slated for Saturday in Yonkers. Check out Newsday's video profile of the skaters, and grab your tickets early through the team's website. You can even knock back beers in double time -- VIP ticket holders get "skatetress service" during the inaugural match. 2) Need a job and...

1) Welcome, Pope Francis! It took the papal conclave just two days to elect Cardinal Jorge Mario Begoglio as the 266th pope after his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, stepped down Feb. 28. Next up: The papal inauguration Mass, when observers will closely analyze everything about Pope Francis, from his choice of raiment to the words in his homily, for hints about the direction he may take the Catholic...

Old-fashioned police leg work and paper files help Yonkers Det. John Geiss, the cold case detective for the Yonkers Police Department, crack cases that date back years -- like the probe of alleged serial killer Lucius Crawford who was arrested in December.

But Geiss and his supervisor, Yonkers Det. Lt. Joseph Monaco -- who has been working with Geiss since January 2012 --  have employed...

Yonkers Public Schools students soon will be heading to the mall after school, not to seek out the latest fashions but to participate in a new education model.

In an new partnership between the owners of Ridge Hill shopping center and Yonkers Partners in Education, students can take 10 seminars in as many weeks on management careers in the retail and shopping center industry.

Dubbed...

On Tuesday, the Yonkers City Council will be abuzz with a controversial pair of ordinances that, if approved, would allow residents to keep beehives and chicken coops in their backyards.

Council President Chuck Lesnick, a Democrat, is pushing the move, arguing that beehives and chicken coops, like organic gardens, are increasingly popping up in urban backyards and that the city should be encouraging...

People began lining up at 10:30 a.m. on Christmas Day for an annual community dinner at St. John's Church in Yonkers. 

As they filed in, volunteers in Santa hats passed out eggnog and apple cider to those seeking a warm place to share in a festive turkey meal. In its 29th year of offering the dinner, the Sharing Community Inc. again served a dinner with all the fixings and gave Christmas...

For a few hundred bucks you could have a piece of Yonkers history -- at the click of a mouse. The city has put the old clock tower from Getty Square up for auction, with bids starting at $660.

The 50-year-old clock -- which is about 19 feet tall and weighs nearly three tons -- was replaced as part of a $500,000 renovation project in the downtown square.

The clock is among the newest...

  Out of work? Need a new career? Just brush up on your LEGO stacking skills, like the enthusiasts who will compete for the position of master model builder for the LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester. This weekend, LEGO enthusiasts from throughout the region will compete in Brick Factor at Ridge Hill in Yonkers, a two-day search for the best snapper and stacker. The winner will nab a full-time...

Yonkers is waiving building permit fees until the end of the month for business owners and homeowners whose properties were damaged by superstorm Sandy.

“With power now restored and cleanup operations wrapping up, we continue to focus on making sure those who had damage to property receive the assistance needed to make repairs and return their lives back to normal as quickly as possible,”...