WCDO Radio News

IN LIGHT OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S REPORT ON GOVERNOR CUOMO, A DOWNSTATE ASSEMBLYMAN IS URGING ASSEMBLY COLLEAGUES TO JOIN HIM ON 2 PIECES OF LEGISLATION. ASSEMBLYMAN MIKE LAWLER FROM ROCKLAND COUNTY WANTS TO CHANGE THE NAME OF THE MARIO M. CUOMO BRIDGE BACK TO THE TAPPAN ZEE BRIDGE. AND HIS SECOND PIECE OF LEGISLATION WOULD ESTABLISH CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR RETALIATION AGAINST STATE EMPLOYEES.

A Portion of the Old Tappan Zee
Bridge was demolished into the Hudson River this morning.  The portion was imploded; remaining parts of
the old bridge will be removed from the site for recycling.

Governor Cuomo will deliver his 2019 STATE OF THE STATE AND Executive
Budget proposal this afternoon to a joint session of the legislature in
Albany.   The address will begin at 2:00
PM at the Egg in Albany.

Senator Fred Akshar announced the expansion of the “Ag in the Classroom” program from 5 to 10 schools across the 52nd Senate District. In January, Akshar announced a pilot program through 5school districts including Harpursville, & Windsor locally, this week, Akshar announced that Bainbridge-Guilford, Chenango Valley, Deposit, Greene also joined the program. The Ag in the Classroom classes and curriculum are administered by Cornell Cooperative Extension.

An online petition has been gathering names to keep the name of the new Bridge over the Hudson River as the "Tappan Zee" Bridge. Earlier this year, proposals were made by Governor Cuomo's political Allies to name the new bridge as the "Mario Cuomo" bridge after the former Governor, who of course was the current Governor's father. The petition is located at change.org; it received 40,000 signatures in the first week.

State Lawmakers have reportedly reached a deal to name the new Tappan Zee Bridge after the late Governor Mario Cuomo. A new bridge is currently being built to replace the old span over the Hudson River, which was originally named after Governor Malcolm Wilson, who served as Governor in the 70's.

The chairman of the state Thruway Authority resigned, saying he will return to focus on his business interests. Howard Milstein, the billionaire New York City developer, is leaving the board. The 570-mile highway faces financial problems and is building a $3.9 billion new Tappan Zee Bridge between Westchester and Rockland counties. Milstein's departure won't impact the agency's operations, and they are in the process of finding a replacement to fill the unpaid post. An analysis by a consultant to the Thruway Authority estimates the highway system's revenue will be $67 million short of its needs in 2015 under the current toll rates.