Building Department - Mount Vernon Civic Integrity Project

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March 14, 2026

Building Department

Had Trouble With Mount Vernon’s Building Department?

The city posted an online 'customer satisfaction' survey. Make your experience count.

Mount Vernon's Building Department has been plagued by permit backlogs, lost paperwork, and state warnings of a takeover. If you've dealt with it, your experience matters — take the survey.

February 7, 2026

Building Department, Planning

What Does Civic Power Look Like?

Public Pressure Stops Bronxville Field Club Settlement

How public pressure and community organizing stopped a backroom settlement, and what this moment reveals about civic power, transparency, and accountability in Mount Vernon.

January 11, 2026

Building Department, Comprehensive Plan, Planning

Planning Didn’t Prevent the 214 Gramatan Project — It Enabled It

The 214 Gramatan Project and Why It Matters in a City with a Newly Adopted “Comprehensive Plan

The 214 Gramatan project shows how planning failed to stop harm and instead enabled it. A Comprehensive Plan that relies on broken review and record keeping cannot deliver meaningful protection to residents.

December 21, 2025

Building Department, Planning

The House Next Door

How Mount Vernon’s “nothing we can do” culture turned a historic home into collateral damage

Mount Vernon loves big speeches about “equity” and “revitalization.” But the paper trail at 214 Gramatan Avenue tells a different story: warnings ignored, approvals allegedly missing, and a city government that said “nothing can be done.”