Yorktown and Cortlandt region

Knollwood Country Club’s Mike Miller of Brewster hits out of the trap at the 10th hole during the quarterfinal round of the Metropolitan Golf Association’s 108th Met Amateur Championship at Quaker Ridge Golf Club in Scarsdale July 30, 2010. Miller lost to Cameron Wilson of the Shorehaven Golf Club, 1 up in Match Play.

Attorney James E. Johnson, the court-appointed monitor in Westchester’s fair housing/False Claims Act case, will appear in an Editorial Spotlight interview 11 a.m. Wednesday on LoHud.com.

Over the next seven years, Westchester must build 750 units of affordable housing, most of them in overwhelmingly white communities that have long shunned or discouraged such housing. The obligation arises from a consent degree brokered last year by the Spano administration and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and approved by the U.S. District Court. HUD entered the case after the nonprofit Anti-Discrimination Center of New York, a fair housing group, successfully argued in a lawsuit that Westchester had failed to discharge its fair housing obligations, despite accepting millions of dollars in federal funds and pledging that it had.

Under the agreement, the county must affirmatively market the units in Westchester and nearby communities with large non-white populations, though the housing will be available to all income-eligible populations. Johnson recently told the federal court that the county’s most recent plan for implementing terms of the consent decree “falls short of a true plan to comply with either the stipulation’s specific terms or its overarching goal of building a more integrated Westchester.”

Watch the interview at www.lohud.com/editorialspotlight; to submit a question during the interview, engage the CoverItLive feature on the right side of your screen.

Peekskill police reported these recent arrests:

Peekskill police reported these recent arrests

Police headquarters: Colleen Moran, 28, of Peekskill was charged July 20 around 9:30 p.m. with first-degree unlawfully dealing with a minor, a misdemeanor, after Officer Chatoyer Woodland determined that she provided alcohol to an 18-year-old person. The 18-year-old flagged down the officer, reported being sick and was taken to the Hudson Valley Hospital Center for treatment of alcohol poisoning, police said. Woodland determined that Moran provided the alcohol. She is due in City Court on Aug. 5.

South Street: Clerks from the Stop and Go Deli, the South Street Market — both of South Street — and a clerk at the B & D Deli on Main Street were charged July 21 with selling tobacco to a minor, a misdemeanor, after an undercover operation by police into illegal sales of tobacco to minors. Officers Sam Kenan and Pam Sgroi made the arrests. Police did not identify the clerks.

Washington Street: Roger Mergendahl, 54, of Peekskill was charged July 20 around 5:15 p.m. with failure to appear in court on a misdemeanor vehicle charge. Officer Sam Kenan and Sgt. Joe Gomez also charged him with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, after finding a small amount of crack cocaine on him, police said.

Highland Avenue: Robert Verga, 54, of Peekskill was charged with petty larceny, a misdemeanor, after he stole several items from a clothing store. Officer Nick Franco made the arrest.

North Division Street: Jose Ramirez, 45, of Peekskill was charged July 21 around 7:30 p.m. with misdemeanor driving while intoxicated after he was in a minor accident. Officer Nick Franco made the arrest.

Monument Park: Juan Flores, 38, of Peekskill was charged July 22 around 11 p.m. with second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, a felony, after police found him passed out and intoxicated in the park and he gave them a fake driver’s license as identification. Officer Mike Agovino made the arrest.

Wells Street: Edgar Pumacure-Garcia, 33, of Peekskill was charged July 22 around 10 p.m. with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, after his car struck a utility pole. Officer Joe McGann made the arrest.

Brook Street: Jessenia Otera, 34, of Peekskill was charged July 23 around 6:30 p.m. with fourth-degree grand larceny, a felony, for stealing a car from the 1200 block of Pearl Street on July 22. Officer John Merritt made the arrest.

Constant Avenue: John Barnes, 51, of Peekskill was charged July 23 around 11:50 p.m. with second-degree aggravated unlicensed operation and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, misdemeanors. Officer Ed Lemp stopped him and determine there were eight suspensions on his license and later found him with a small quantity of crack cocaine, police said. He is due in City Court on Aug. 9.

Main Street: Crystal Gibbs, 27, of Peekskill was charged July 15 around 10:20 a.m. with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor, after she assaulted an employee of the Peekskill Housing Authority at the Bohlmann Towers apartment complex. The victim was treated at the Hudson Valley Hospital Center for face and head injuries. Officer Orlita Simmons made the arrest.

Washington Street: Jennifer Muniz, 25,of Peekskill was charged July 17 around 3 a.m. with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, after Officer Dan Labodin questioned her on an outstanding warrant and found her with crack cocaine, police said. She was also arrested on the warrant, although details on those charges were not available.

2nd Street: Ferby Acosta, 21, of Peekskill was charged July 19 around 4:15 a.m. with third-degree assault after a domestic dispute. Officer Joe Gorman made the arrest.

John Street: Darryl Brickhouse, 16, of Peekskill was charged July 19 around 3:40 p.m. with second-degree assault, a felony, resisting arrest, a misdemeanor, and disorderly conduct, a violation. He was taken into custody after creating a disturbance at a residence then fought with Officer Leo Dylewski, causing the officer to hurt his elbow. Detective Marcos Martinez assisted in the investigation.

Fremont Street: John Meija, 22, of the Bronx was charged July 19 around 9:40 p.m. with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and resisting arrest, misdemeanors. He was arrested after an investigation into narcotics activity and violently resisted, police said. Detective Anthony Malfitano and Officer Joe McGann made the arrest.

North Division Street: Edward Kelly, 49, of Cortlandt was charged July 19 around 11 p.m. with driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor, and leaving the scene of an accident, a violation. The driver of a car that Kelly struck at Howard and North Broad streets followed him and notified police, who stopped Kelly on North Division Street. He is due in Town Court on Aug. 5.

Peekskill’s Deputy Mayor Donald Bennett sent out a statement to city employees, officials and friends on a memorial service for city Attorney Paul Scherwman, who died in a car crash last week:

On Monday morning , August 2nd  a Memorial service in honor of Paul Schwerman  will take place in the  Council Chambers at City Hall at 10 AM.  All City employees, officials and friends are invited to attend and participate in this service.  Father Vernon from Assumption Church will be present at the service to lead us in prayer and to provide some thought about Paul’s untimely death.  Those in attendance will be provided time to share memories about Paul.   Paul was not only a very knowledgeable municipal Attorney but he was a great person with a wonderful sense of humor.  Please come prepared to share some of your memories about our friend Paul.

Chris Botti’s instrument — a 1939 Martin Committee large-bore handcrafted trumpet — may be the best thing ever designed by a committee.

It’s the horn on which Botti (pronounced “BOAT-tee”) has recorded Grammy-winning music.

And it really was designed by a committee.

It’s the horn that has defied record-store pigeonholers. Botti can’t be classical, he recorded with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler. He can’t be rock, there he is with Yo-Yo Ma. Not jazz, he plays with symphony orchestras.

And it’s the horn Botti will bring to Peekskill’s Paramount Center for the Arts for an Aug. 6 concert. (Check out the Paramount Center for the Arts website.)

Laura Cleare of Yonkers, and her sons Dante 10, left, and Xavier, 7, were among the over 100 people who attended a public hearing tonight on Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino’s decision to cut funding for child care at the Westchester County Center in White Plains. Photo by Seth Harrison

Look for the story at Lohud.com and in tomorrow’s edition of The Journal News. View additional photos from the public hearing on child care cuts.

This is a busy weekend for summer-theater festivals, those shows that appear every late summer, populated by youngsters home from college or awaiting another school year. Below this is a sampling of theater offerings across the Lower Hudson Valley in the next few weekends, in Rockland, Putnam and Westchester counties…

A three-performance day?

Saturday is shaping up as one of those days that theater kids in Croton will be talking about for years to come.

“Remember back in 2010 when we did two performances of ‘Rent’ and one performance of ‘The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)’ in one day?” they might say. “That was a crazy day.”

Crazy.

At left, Devon Coleman, 17, of Peekskill sands planks to be placed at the back of a boat for the Peekskill Boatworks Project. The project involves youth from the community in boat-building techniques. James B. Taylor of Cortland Manor has been overseeing the teens’ progress and encourages them in learning to effectively use tools and paint to build a boat.

To see more photos from the Peekskill Boatworks Project, please visit our gallery at LoHud.com.

Omar Herrera presents the first annual Ossining Summerfest 2010 tomorrow night from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Market Square, corner of Main and Spring streets.

Admission is free for an event that will include live performances, children’s inflatables and games, along with downtown Main Street specials. The Melillo Brothers, The Stone Miracle, Taco Night, OJH Productions DJ, & Intermission Demo by Lizz Fitness will be among the performers.

Specials include: Main Street Deli, Pasta Dinner Night + Spend $10 Get a FREE Lotto Ticket; Meltia’s Home Furnishings,  30% off Ceramics & Linen + other store sales; Docas Restaurant, 10%  Off Meat & Seafood Entrees; Rays Deli, Buy any cold or hot sub & get a FREE bag of chips; Laur-Lee Sports, 40% Off the Entire Store; Westchester Tabacco & Stationary, Fresh Ice Cold Ice Cream; Dollar Store of Ossining, Buy 10 ($1 items) get one free.

Summerfest sponsors and supporters are: Village of Ossining, Greater Ossining Chamber of Commerce, Ossining Recreation & Parks Department, Ossining Police Department, Melta’s Home Furnishings, Main Street Deli, Lizz Fitness, Docas Restaurant, Ray’s Deli, Capri Pizza, Neviert Family, Herrera Family, Sneakers K & S, Westchester Stationary Store, River Side Laundromat, Leach & Thomas Funeral Home

The Editorial Board held an Editorial Spotlight interview with Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino on Wednesday. The discussion focused on Astorino’s announcement that he is seeking to merge the public safety and emergency services departments, the projected deficit for 2011, Astorino’s struggles with the Board of Legislators, the future of Playland and Astorino’s standing on affordable housing. Here are some highlight reels, followed by a complete version of the session.

On the merger of public safety and emergency services: