No one can accuse Michael Brown of being lazy. Or even taking a break.

Running to unseat New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson, Brown has issued a string of proposals for the city.

Here are a couple of that have come in recently. In one, Brown pledges to pursue the city’s Holy Grail of major downtown retail with a 123-day personal project. He says he’ll network at a retail conference, meet personally with major retailers and so on.

In another, he says he has called on Gov. Eliot Spitzer to remove the toll booth along the stretch of I-95 that runs through the city. What does this have to do with New Rochelle? Brown contends that truck traffic leaves the interstate and cuts through New Rochelle and Larchmont to avoid the tolls.

But rather than reading this explanation further, you can take a look at the press releases below…

123 Days of Retail
Mayoral Candidate Michael Brown Announces

Comprehensive Plan to Jumpstart Substantial Retail

New Rochelle, NY− Michael Brown, candidate for Mayor of New Rochelle today announced his plan to jumpstart retail development in the City of New Rochelle. Once elected, Brown plans to start this campaign for retail by attending a major conference on retail development to meet potential developers, meet with the Department of Development staff and Commercial Retail Professionals to inventory sites and plan a strategy. The next step would be to make appointments to meet retailers Additionally, he will work with the development staff and commercial real estate professionals to brand the City and plan and execute a major marketing campaign. â€Å“It is time for the City of New Rochelle to stop making excuses why we can’t get retail into the city and take an aggressive stance to get it,â€? stated Brown.â€? He went on to say that â€Å“we don’t need to burden taxpayers with more expensive superfluous studies, we need to take action.â€?

Brown plans to attend the 3 day International Council of Shopping Centers Conference (ICSC) in December at his own expense and time to see what options are available and to meet retailers. Once taking office on January 1, 2008 he plans to spend the first 20 days working with the Commissioner of Development, the Department of Development Staff and Commercial Real Estate professionals to identify and inventory parcels of land that are ripe for development. Then an assessment of relevant retailers would be made and an â€Å“attack planâ€? would be formulated. The partnering of pubic and private sector development resources will save City residents money. The real estate professionals would be incentivized to participate by the commission they would receive from the developers in the normal course of business. The next 100 days would be devoted to making appointments with 50 or more of the identified retailers and Brown would personally go to meet with the appropriate people in those entities. During this time a complimentary retail-marketing plan would be devised to aid in attracting the business.

Brown, a marketing professional who works on economic development initiatives with clients such as the Government of the Dominican Republic, will also attend the ICSC University of Shopping Centers held at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business in March to get further educated on the nuances of retail development. This will support help support the planning an execution of a long-term retail-marketing program for the City.

According to Commercial Real Estate Broker Lawrence Talt, the City of New Rochelle has not worked freely with brokers in the past. Talt has said that he believes that â€Å“a partnership effort with the City of New Rochelle and the commercial real estate industry would be incredibly beneficial to the city’s ability to bring in substantial retail and commercial development.â€?

Brown has stated throughout the campaign that he believes that a meaningful expansion of retail development will lessen the burden of running the city on taxpayers and tenants alike. Sales tax revenue will lower school taxes and allow the city to improve on services and upgrade its severely aging infrastructure. â€Å“The standard for uplifting moribund cities has always been bringing in retail first and then residential development, cities like White Plains have proven that this is the formula to follow,â€? said Brown. â€Å“A successful effort would stem any talk of real estate tax reassessment, which I am dead set against.â€?

Not only would retail alleviate the tax burden on residents, it would finally give them a place to shop in the city. Many elderly people who can no longer drive would not have to depend on the City’s sparse public transportation, as well as family and friends to shop.

Businesses like Barnes and Noble and Borders Books would bring in valuable sales tax, as well as a place for people to meet and build community. Right now New Rochelle residents need to go to Larchmont, Eastchester, White Plains or the Bronx to buy a book, music or study aides.

Once a major foothold in retail development is established an rigorous plan to bring in other commercial entities will be tackled.

Brown contends that â€Å“we need to be creative, innovative and proactive in our approach. When we I take office as Mayor, New Rochelle will be open for business.â€?

Michael Brown is a registered Democrat who is running for Mayor of New Rochelle on the Republican and Independence Party Lines.

And here’s the second one…

Governor Spitzer: Take Down Those Tollbooths

New Rochelle, NY− Michael Brown, candidate for Mayor of New Rochelle today called on New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer to remove the New Rochelle tollbooths on Interstate 95.

â€Å“The tollbooths are a menace to public safety, the environment and local traffic in New Rochelle and surrounding communities,â€? said Brown,â€? trucks get off the highway at exit 15 to avoid the tolls and snake through New Rochelle and Larchmont creating dangerous conditions and traffic congestion, they also use Lincoln Avenue to circumvent the tolls as well. causing hazardous conditions not only in residential areas of New Rochelle, but in Pelham and Mount Vernon as well. â€Å“

The additional truck traffic on New Rochelle roads taxes not just the police department, it is destroying on our roads and draining our public works department, as New Rochelle roads are torn apart by a flotilla of semi-trucks traversing our streets, and our crews need to repair them. The City of New Rochelle gets no direct benefits from the tolls and is forced to pay to maintain conditions directly caused by truck traffic that avoids paying the tolls.

In addition to being a safety matter and snarling local traffic; trucks and cars stopped at the tolls generate pollution while the vehicles idle, and some of the particulate matter drifts into residential areas and the Long Island Sound.

The tolls also cause a traffic hazard, backing up traffic and causing serious accidents that cost the taxpayers of New Rochelle money and emergency service resources. â€Å“Often our police, fire and ambulance services are monopolized with a traffic fatality on the highway, and that not only costs New Rochelle it hampers the emergency services to our residents,â€? stated Brown.

Tollbooth centers throughout the State of New York and in the Northeast have been eliminated over the last 30 years. The safety and environmental issues that surround these monoliths far outweigh the benefits.

Michael Brown is a registered Democrat who is running for Mayor of New Rochelle on the Republican and Independence Party Lines.