HomeMy WebLinkAbout08.09.2020 S. Malkinson Comments1
Alex Marshall
From:Stephen Malkinson <stephen@malkinson.org>
Sent:Sunday, August 9, 2020 1:51 PM
To:Alex Marshall
Cc:Christopher Bradbury; Mayor Paul S. Rosenberg; Nancy Barr; Virginia Wolff
Subject:Two Significant Concerns and Associated Questions with regard to the 900 King Street
Project
I am currently a resident of the Village of Rye Brook living at 213 Treetop Crescent in the Arbors. I am also a
member of the Rye Brook Airport Council and Technology and Communications Commission.
I have two significant concerns and associated questions with regard to the proposed project at 900 King Street
as it relates to potential stress on the Villages Emergency Services and the potential for future spread of
infection through out the village should we have another epidemic like we are facing today with Covid 19.
1. Independent Living Center, Stress on Emergency Services:
The developer has stated that by utilizing the one nurse and regular staff members such as doormen and
janitors there will not by any additional stress created on the village emergency services. The
representative of the developer claimed at one of the recent public meetings that I attended that staff
members will be available to pick up residents who have fallen down and as such no additional calls to
911 will be required. My own personal experience in a similar independent living facility in NY State
with a family member directly contradicts the claim of the developer. Staff members in this facility where
not allowed to pick-up fallen residents due to liability concerns and lack of EMT training of the staff
members and as such 911 emergency responders where always called to the facility for issues such as
simple falls that required emergency services to help a resident stand up.
My concern is around the existing residents of Rye Brook not being able to get the emergency services
that they need because the limited resources we have will be attending to the residents of 900 King Street.
Adding more resources to our existing services will increase costs to the village and taxes to the residents.
Question:
Can the developer be required to mitigate these additional costs that will be born by the village so
as not to add additional taxes to the village residents?
2. Assisted Living Center, Potential for widespread infection in the Village.
Some background information on recent experience that is informing this concern. Professionally I am
the CTO for a major US based IT services provider. As part of the companies Covid-19 response we
developed a Telehealth communications system specifically for LNF’s (Licensed Nursing Facility) and
elder care facilities. While we where testing the solution in a LNF in Hayward California the facility was
struck with a Covid-19 outbreak . This particular facility had 74 rooms with 68 of them occupied at the
time. Within a few days 11 nurses where either infected or did not turn up for work and local EMT’s had
to replace them, in addition the manager of the facility also became infected and had to be isolated from
his family. In all 46 residents contracted Covid-19. The entire outbreak was traced to a single nurse who
refused to wear their mask correctly.
2
My concern is to do with the next infectious viral epidemic and a potential outbreak in the 900 King
Street Assisted Living Facility and the possibility of people who staff that facility then spreading the
disease around the village of Rye Brook as they run errands etc.,
Questions:
Does the developer have a pandemic preparedness plan and can they be required to share their
pandemic preparedness plan with the residents of Rye Brook?
Additionally will the Village Board of Trustees be reviewing the developers preparedness plan for
adequacy and completeness?
Respectfully submitted,
Stephen Malkinson
+1-914-462-1047
stephen@malkinson.org