Abandoned railroad cars causing nuisance for village

Abandoned railroad cars causing nuisance for village

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The abandoned train cars on the railroad line along the west side of Main Street are covered in graffiti. Photo by Alex Petroski

In the midst of a massive beautification process in upper Port Jefferson, village officials and residents have voiced displeasure over two abandoned train cars sitting on the railroad line on the west side of Main Street between Linden Place and Wilson Street. The cars are no longer in use on the Port Jefferson Long Island Rail Road line and have sat near the train station since January, according to Mayor Margot Garant.

In an email, Garant called the abandoned cars a nuisance, a “complete and total eyesore,” and an “invitation to deface public property.” The cars are covered in graffiti, including some profanity, and Garant said she and the village board are concerned the area might be an attractive spot for homeless people or “individuals possibly involved with drug use.”

Port Jefferson resident and business owner Barbara Sabatino voiced concerns about the cars during a village board meeting April 3.

“There’s a lot of vulgarities on there, and when I walk back to my car I’m looking at the sign for Mr. Gitto’s property that says he’s taking applications for the apartments, and they’re looking directly at these cars that have a lot of ‘F’ words on them,” she said. The Gitto Group, a real estate development company, constructed The Hills at Port Jefferson, which are two apartment buildings in upper Port that opened in 2016 and overlook the train tracks.

Another resident, Marge McCuen, spoke out during the meeting about the cars.

“You’re getting the grant money to make all of these improvements, and then they come and dump that garbage here — it’s a disgrace,” she said.

In January, the village received a $250,000 grant from Suffolk County’s Jumpstart program to improve parking at the railroad station and other cleanup efforts. They also received $500,000 from New York State through Empire State Development, the state’s economic development arm, as part of the Restore New York Communities Initiative, which was created to support municipalities in rehabilitating blighted commercial properties. That money will be used to beautify businesses near the train tracks. In addition, Garant said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) has dedicated about $1.8 million in funds to contribute to the train station’s main parking lot.

Garant said representatives from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority have told her the plan is to take the cars to a “scrap yard” in Yaphank.