To The Community:

Sep. 2, 2020: I write this with such bittersweet emotions as I announce the departure of truly one of our finest Village Trustees, Mark Wood, who is leaving the Village in early September.

As a recap, Mark brought to the Village Board his experience as a real estate investment and management professional, having spent the majority of his career with the world’s largest private pension system.

This skill set was invaluable to the Village as we negotiated the purchase of the Avalon parking lot and finished up work at Villa BXV. Among other initiatives, Mark played an active role in the development of our recently updated Village Comprehensive Plan and galvanized the current discussions about the refurbishment and revitalization of the area near the paddle courts along Paxton and Milburn Avenues.

Apart from his obvious skill set, in my mind, most importantly, Mark brought an incredibly non-political, rather stewardship approach to his view of Village governance. For Mark, it was all about what was best for the Village.

Mark has a BS from Georgetown and is a native Oklahoman, having lived in Bronxville for 28 years and raised his four children here, all of whom graduated from the Bronxville High School.

He is currently a board member of the Bronxville Historical Conservancy and served the Village so well as a member of our Planning Board before becoming a Village Trustee.

Mark, speaking on behalf of your fellow Trustees, I send thanks and gratitude for all you have given to the Village and to us as a trusted friend and respected colleague.

So desirous of following in the character and style of Mark and treating the role of a Village Trustee not as a politician, but as a steward who loves Bronxville and has prior experience in Village government, it was not a difficult choice for me to appoint Bill Fredericks (the current chair of the Village’s Zoning Board) to fill the temporary vacancy resulting from Mark’s departure.

Bill grew up in Bronxville (and his mother Anne remains an active Villager), attended the Bronxville School for nine years, and then chose to return to the Village in 1997 with his wife Ivy and two children here.

Bill is a graduate of Swarthmore College (and former vice president of its alumni association), Oxford University, and the Columbia Law School. After clerking for a federal judge, Bill has spent the last 30 years specializing in commercial and securities litigation in New York City.

Most important to the Village has been his service to our Zoning Board. In addition to presiding over Zoning Board meetings and preparing the final drafts of Zoning Board opinions, as Chairman, he has spearheaded efforts to significantly update and revise our code to meet the realities of land use in 2020.

There are few in Village government service who have spent more time in leadership roles on one of our boards than Bill, who joined the Zoning Board in 2009 and has chaired it since 2013.

Among other local activities, Bill has been the Treasurer of the Bronxville-Tuckahoe-Eastchester Nature Preserve and recently joined the Bronxville Historical Conservancy as a board member.

His dedication to the Village over the years is greatly appreciated, and I am truly honored to have him join as a colleague as he continues the tradition of dedicated residents who just care about the Village with no aspirations but to be of service to their beloved hometown. I thank both of these gentlemen for their incredible service.

You both have given so much. My job is so enhanced by the interaction with colleagues of such character and dedication.

Thank you, Mark and Bill.

Mary C. Marvin, Mayor, Village of Bronxville

Editor's note:  MyhometownBronxville does not fact-check statements in letters to the editor and letters to the community, and the opinions do not necessarily reflect the thinking of its staff. Its objective in publishing letters is to give air to diverse thoughts and opinions of residents in the community.