The following is a weekly column from Bronxville Mayor Mary C. Marvin:

On Saturday, Santa made a surprise visit to the Village arriving in a police car no less.  The faces of all the believers, myself included, were something I shall long remember.  Some little ones ran right to Santa while others danced around him like a moth near a flame.  And, you can rest assure, every youngster said they had been more than good all year. 

This wonderful afternoon was courtesy of our Village Chamber of Commerce, orchestrated by our very talented Executive Director Peggy Conway, Chamber member Tim McGrath who turns out to be “very close” to Santa and Chamber merchant Haagen Dazs who underwrote the event.

Saturday’s festivities were just another example of what makes our business district so special.  Our merchants are the kindest, most generous and most helpful anywhere – whether it is Gary at Gourmet to Go helping the Hospice, Florence Kooluris cooking for our police officers, the fellows at Lange’s feeding folks down on their luck, Continental giving over the entire salon to help the Bereavement Center, J. McLaughlin hosting nights for any charity that asks for their help and Claudio at Park Place Bagels who is generous beyond measure.  And this is only the tip of the iceberg. 

Every merchant goes the extra mile, whether it be a donation, a personal delivery, a special order or most importantly a sincere greeting inquiring about – and knowing your family.

This is the time of year when these folks now need your support more than ever.  Anywhere from 30% to 50% of a merchant’s sales are made in the next few weeks.

It is not an easy climate for a small merchant.  They cannot buy in bulk like the “big box” stores and reap the volume discounts.  They are not overcharging in any way, rather their final price points reflect the cost of rent, personnel and to a great degree, their share of Village taxes.  Our shopkeepers pay the second highest taxes per square foot of the 45 municipalities in the County, much of this money going directly to help fund our terrific school. 

Even if our merchants own their building, or in many cases, the condo in which they do business, they will never be able to use our schools because one must domicile in the structure, not simply be a property owning taxpayer of the Village.

A vital business district also has a direct relationship to home values.  Empty stores often beget more empty stores and a barren business district would permanently change the character of our Village and with it our property values.  Also, prolonged empty buildings would force a lowering of their assessed value.

So when you purchase something in the Village, you are not only buying a unique product but also supporting someone who has donated to our local charities and directly contributes to the financial health of our school and Village, as well as to the value of your home.  Compare this to what Amazon.com or Home Depot does for our community…..

As a further endorsement of our special, walkable business district, one of our second grade classes did a class project to recommend to me and the landowners ideas for stores that are most needed in the Village.

The children wanted to be able to buy everything they needed in the Village because they all agreed that one of their least favorite parts of a day is driving around in the car doing errands!

The Village is trying to do its part to stimulate local business as well.  On Saturday, Dec. 17 and 24, parking will be free in both the Kraft Avenue and Garden Avenue lots all day as well as on Pondfield Road starting at noon. 

The policy of all day free parking on Pondfield Road has been changed.  We found over the years that folks saw the free parking and left cars all day on Pondfield as they headed into the city for a show or a visit, thus defeating the desired result of a constant turnover of spaces for potential store customers. 

Please try to do your part because with every purchase you make in town, you are in many ways helping yourself and the Village even more than the merchant.

I do not ever want to see the scene from “You’ve Got Mail” replayed in our Village.  In the movie, actress Meg Ryan is forced to close her business due to lack of local support.  But everyone comes out for the sale of the deeply discounted items and gives her their condolences and wax nostalgia about the loss of small town business.  But where had they been before?

As you can see I am a bit passionate about our business district because I am privy to the quiet, wonderful things our merchants do for Bronxville every day.  I ask you to return the favor.