Mayor Mullen gavels in first Village Board meeting in new Municipal Center
On Tuesday, January 14th, the Village of Pelham Board of Trustees held their first Village Board meeting in the new municipal center, located at 200 Fifth Avenue. Elected officials in attendance included State Senator Nathalia Fernandez, County Legislator Terry Clements, Town Supervisor Dan McLaughlin (via zoom), Town Council Member Maura Curtin, and Pelham Board of Education member Sid Burke.
Prior to the first gavel, Mayor Mullen gave opening remarks to honor the occasion, noting the large number of local residents whose hard work made the project possible. “We did this,” said Mullen. “May all of our neighbors, those present and those yet to arrive, have a home here.” Similar appreciation for those involved in the project’s success was expressed by Deputy Mayor Carpenter and each of the Trustees. Mayor Mullen’s full remarks are available below.
Many past elected officials who contributed to the project were present to witness the inaugural meeting, including former mayor Michael Volpe and former trustees Kim McGreal, Lisa Hill-Reis, Pete Potocki, Ciro Greco and Xaira Ferrara. Volpe gave a heartfelt speech about the history of the project and the historical significance of the new municipal center’s location. Lead developer and local resident Patrick Normoyle, representing the private development team that financed the construction of the project, shared his excitement and pride, as well.
Thank you to all those who were in attendance, and to all those who contributed to this project over the last seven years. There will be a larger celebration and dedication in the Spring, once the municipal center is fully completed.
Mayor Mullen’s Full Remarks:
“In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt spoke to local residents in Asheville, North Carolina, and he emphasized that “we get in the habit of speaking of the Government as if it were something apart from us. [But] the Government is us—we are the Government, you and I. And the Government is going to do well or ill accordingly as we, with sanity, with resolution, with broad charity and sound common sense, make up our minds that the affairs of the government shall be managed.” He spoke those words in response to the growing cynicism that was taking hold throughout the country at the turn of the 20th century. A time that was not all that dissimilar from our own. He believed the antidote to that cynicism was reminding us that in America, our future will never be determined by one person or one party – or in his case, one president. Our future would be determined by us. That’s what makes American Democracy… American Democracy.
That is the same idea of American Democracy that made this municipal center – and tonight’s board meeting – possible. Over the last seven years, this project has come together thanks to the hard work done by 2 mayors, 13 trustees, 3 different village administrators, 2 police chiefs, 2 fire chiefs, 2 building inspectors, 2 DPW foremen, 1 village attorney (working with a host of other attorneys), 1 planner (working with a host of other planners), dozens of resident volunteers on the Architectural Review Board, the Planning Board, the Sustainability Advisory Board, the Arts Council, a team of engineers and professional architects, hundreds of local residents weighing in throughout to share what they wanted – and what they didn’t want – in public sessions, in emails, text messages, phone calls, frank asides at the grocery store. And even the lead developer himself is a local resident who didn’t want to miss the opportunity to build a landmark municipal center in his hometown that would be used by future Pelhamites for generations.
We did this. Us. You and I.
We’re gathered tonight in the almost-exact geographic center of the Village. Almost perfectly equidistant between our borders, north and south. And between our borders, east and west. For the first time in our Village’s history, the Board will do its work in a building that is truly accessible to everyone – in every sense.
This meeting hall was designed to be traditional enough to hopefully encourage respectful behavior, but modern enough to be comfortable. We are just neighbors meeting with neighbors, after all.
The goal is to use this space in lots of different ways. Tables stored in that closet can come out if we want to use it as a classroom. It’s equipped with a wireless microphone system, programmable lights, high-end speakers in the ceiling, screens and monitors that everyone can see. Even this dais was custom-designed and custom-built with wheels, so it can be removed if we want to host a book reading or performance.
And most notably, the large windows in the back were chosen so that from the outside, this room would appear, in the architect’s words, “like a lantern in the night.” Not just to invoke admiration, but to invite participation. Engagement. Welcoming all those who pass by.
In the last week, three different organizations have asked me if and when they’ll be able to start using this space. One looking to do an annual community event and fundraiser, another hoping to hold monthly business meetings, another group wants to use the room every Saturday morning to teach English to newly-arrived Albanian Americans. We did not pay for this building. But we’re here tonight because of us. In a building crafted by us. For us.
It’s humbling to imagine how this space might be used in the coming decades in a building that is likely to last well into the twenty-second century. The decisions our future neighbors will make here. The challenges they’ll face here. The arguments they’ll have and the speeches they’ll make here. Sometimes angry and passionate, sometimes celebratory and joyous. Some nights, they’ll be tired and frustrated, juggling other responsibilities, trying to clear their mind so they can focus on the work of the evening. And some nights, like tonight, they’ll be full of pride and accomplishment, knowing that they’ve done their very best for a community they love.
Whatever they face as the years pass by, may all of our neighbors, those present and those yet to arrive, have a home here – where together, we will ensure that our community does “well or ill accordingly as we, with sanity, with resolution, with broad charity and sound common sense, make up our minds that the affairs of our community shall be managed.”
It is January 14th, 2025, just after 8:00pm, and we are meeting for the first time in our new village hall, located at 200 Fifth Avenue. With respect for our history, an unwavering commitment to our future, and a heart full of gratitude and pride, I hereby call to order this Regular Meeting of the Village of Pelham Board of Trustees.”
Video of the first Village Board meeting at the new municipal center may be viewed on the Village’s website. Village Board meetings are held at 8:00pm on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month, unless otherwise noted. All are welcome to attend in person at 200 Fifth Avenue or via zoom (details are available at www.pelhamny.gov).