County Legislator Judah Holstein

On Tuesday, October 15, the Board of Legislators formally received the 2025 Capital Budget for review and consideration from the County Executive. This budget includes plans for infrastructure maintenance and improvements, investments in housing and flood mitigation, and environmental initiatives. With the Capital Budget submission, the Board of Legislators has launched a series of committee meetings starting on Monday, October 21, 2024. During this period, representatives from all County departments and offices will present and take questions from the Budget & Appropriations Committee. All our meetings will be streamed live on our website at www.westchesterlegislators.com . Once we receive the 2025 Operating and Special Districts Budgets around November 7th, we will host two public input sessions across the County and hold a statutory public hearing in the Board of Leg...

This week, the county celebrates Italian American Heritage Month. In our district, festivities began with the Columbus Day Parade and carnival in Eastchester. At the county, we honored this heritage by raising the Italian flag in front of the Michaelian Office Building with our very own former Eastchester Italian teacher, Lucrezia Lindia, followed by a small celebration. On Monday, we will continue to recognize the rich cultural contributions of Italian Americans at our board meeting, and on Wednesday, New Rochelle will host a celebration at City Hall. The history behind Columbus Day is significant — it was made a national holiday in part to acknowledge the tragic lynching of 11 Italian immigrants in 1891. It's important to recognize both the heritage we celebrate and the histories that continue to shape our collective identity. Together, these mome...

Since my last message, I joined in honoring Gold Star Mothers, a local labor union, our Disability Employment Network staff, Hispanic Heritage, domestic violence victims, and clergy who've served for 35 years. I also celebrated the Jewish New Year with my family. One of the most profound moments was reflecting on the anniversary of Oct 7. I was inspired by Slava the Barber, who removed his Mezuzah from his Yonkers shop last year for fear of being attacked. Sadly, he was brutally assaulted anyway. After recovering from his injuries, he  proudly reinstalled his Mezuzah . At a Hillel event at Sarah Lawrence, a student shared that last year she would hide her Jewish Star pendant, but has since decided to wear it proudly. Both inspired me and reminded me just how vital it is to share and celebrate our heritage. We all have unique attributes, whether from culture, religion, nationality, ethnicity, or appearance. These differences should help us connect, not divide. This week, as we celeb...