Have you ever wondered who provides the podium at the Veterans’ Day ceremony, sets up the tents and chairs at the 9/11 Memorial, and aerates and fertilizes the city’s sports fields? One super organization, Rye Recreation, does all three — and more.

The City Council is wrestling with several unattractive options in settling on a budget for 2012. The City Manager’s final proposed budget is a bare bones one: no money for capital expenses, no money for union contract arbitrator’s judgments, and no extra money for the library to remain open six days a week.

When residents heard the news last week that the County Board of Legislators had restored the curator positions at the County nature centers in the 2012 budget, there was an outpouring of good feeling.

In the next six to eight weeks, the County Executive will choose the company that will renovate Playland. Sustainable Playland Inc. (SPI), the Rye-based group that is one of the three finalists in the County RFP process, is pushing hard to be the winner.

Plastic checkout bags, or the majority of them at least, will be a thing of the past come May 7, 2012. At their December 7 meeting, the City Council voted 7-0 to adopt a local law banning the ubiquitous consumer item in Rye.

“It’s great to have all the major players together in the same room” was one of the most commonly voiced sentiments at the Affordable Housing Forum held December 6 at the Rye Free Reading Room.