In New York’s third-largest city, a political dynasty holds sway in nearly every corner of government.

Now in his 14th year, Mike Spano is Yonkers’s longest-serving mayor. According to his 2023 financial disclosure form, 22 of his relatives held city jobs, including three brothers, a sister, 11 nephews, four nieces, and a cousin.

Yonkers political insiders have long whispered about how the Spano government interacts with a lobbying firm run by two other Spano brothers, which has made a killing since the advent of this Spano-run city government.

Last week, New York Focus published an investigation that for the first time shed light on concrete details of their interactions. Nick Spano denies wrongdoing, and no government entity has officially accused the brothers of anything nefarious.

Here are five key takeaways from our investigation:

As part of a broader effort to tackle a massive budget deficit, the Mount Vernon City School District announced in December a plan to close three of its K-8 schools.

Erica Peterson, Mount Vernon High School’s PTA president, worries the closures could demoralize an already economically depressed community.

“How are we going to get new families to come to our district with these three schools closing? It’s going to affect the community,” said Peterson, who is running for a seat on the school board. “It’s heartbreaking to see something like this.”

The Mount Vernon district was flagged as being in the worst “fiscal stress” of any in the state, according to a recent report from the Office of the New York State Comptroller.