From the Office of the New Rochelle City Manager
New Rochelle City Manager Wilfredo Melendez
Dear Neighbors,
Happy New Year! This column highlights two important news stories- the adoption of our budget and a new Quality of Life initiative now underway.
Last month, the New Rochelle City Council last month unanimously adopted a City budget for 2025 which stays within the New York State tax cap and reflects the City’s ongoing commitment to public safety, infrastructure modernization, climate change preparedness, community engagement, and economic development. The budget invests in community development and emphasizes job training, placement, and housing assistance programs.
Included in the proposed budget is a $100K investment in a new Quality of Life Initiative I introduced in December; and at the direction of City Council, an increase in the budget line for Summer Youth Employment to accommodate 500 youth next year.
The 2025 budget additionally reflects an updated Ten-Year Capital Plan extending the plan through 2034 which invests nearly $294 million in capital projects, including Year 2 of City’s Ten-Year Flood Mitigation Plan, improvements to Quaker Ridge Road, continued street resurfacing and traffic calming citywide, parks improvements, and continued upgrades to the City’s sanitary sewers and storm drains, replacement of aging vehicles and equipment in multiple departments, and the creation of a Citywide Waste Management Plan.
The Quality of Life initiative recognizes community concerns both on a personal/human level – public safety, vagrancy, homelessness, mental health, addiction, smoking/vaping- as well as a physical level- cleanliness, lighting, pet waste, massage parlors, smoke shops, and rodents. The initiative outlines a road map forward beginning with a series of immediate actions, followed by data collection and review for further implementations.
Immediate actions included the closure of six smoke shops illegally selling cannabis by OCM and the closure of massage parlors by the Quality of Life Task Force of Buildings and NRPD. In 2025, there will be increased traffic and parking enforcement as well as ongoing street paving/road repairs. New legislation proposed for 2025 includes the creation of a smoking chapter in the City code, a codification of rules for pedestrian plazas, and new initiatives that will address community and economic development as well as homelessness and mental health issues. Finally, the City will introduce a mobile app that will streamline issue reporting, allow users to receive updates on the status of their submission, and allow the City to use the reported data to analyze trends and allocate resources effectively. On a related track, the City’s new Vanguard Initiative for downtown New Rochelle provides for improved aesthetics and functionality of our downtown public spaces.
The 2025 budget reflects our obligations as well as our priorities, and a robust Capital Improvement Plan ensures that our critical infrastructure gets the attention it deserves both in the short and long term. Our new Quality of Life Initiative addresses ongoing concerns, and introduces protective measures to foster a safer and more welcoming community. We look forward to advancing all of this important work in the coming year. Please contact my office with any concerns at (914) 654-2140. I wish you all a peaceful and prosperous 2025.