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Fred Leute

Fred Leute (right) presented certificates of commendation to code officers during a general meeting of the Port Jefferson Board of Trustees on Monday, Feb. 6. File photo by Raymond Janis

Fred Leute, the code enforcement chief in the Village of Port Jefferson, has been suspended with pay.

In an email, Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden, the village’s public safety commissioner, confirmed Leute’s suspension. 

“Chief Leute has been suspended with pay until further notice,” Snaden said. “The department is running smoothly, and the village is safe and in good hands.”

The news comes just days after Leute delivered the department’s monthly report on public safety during a Board of Trustees meeting held Monday, Feb. 6. 

Mayor Margot Garant said in an interview that Leute “had the opportunity to resign, and if he didn’t resign, then he has been informed that he will be brought up on the [New York Civil Service Law Section] 75 disciplinary charges and potentially have a hearing.” 

When asked whether any particular incident precipitated the suspension, Garant declined to provide further details. “I cannot disclose anything that’s led up to this,” the mayor said. “He has rights. There’s a procedure to follow — being brought up on charges and having the hearing that he’s entitled to.”

Asked whether she or the village board had decided to suspend, Garant said, “The Board of Trustees was fully informed in exec session — and the labor attorney as well. There is no technical vote that has to happen until a hearing officer, after the hearing, makes a recommendation to the Board of Trustees.” She added, “Based on that recommendation, we will then take further action.”

Section 75

Village residents ‘have to assume that the person being charged is not guilty, and they shouldn’t expect any details until the hearing process has proven otherwise.’

— Ken Girardin

The state law requires that an employee covered under Section 75 “may not be removed or otherwise subjected to disciplinary penalty except for incompetency or misconduct shown after a hearing upon stated charges.” 

Ken Girardin, a fellow at the Albany-based Empire Center for Public Policy, has extensively researched the Section 75 disciplinary review process. In an interview, he said the guidelines have been in place for nearly a century, laying out the ground rules by which a public employee can be charged and disciplined.

Section 75 “sets a process where those charges can be laid out and answered in a court-like setting, where an employee can bring witnesses in his or her defense,” he said, offering elected officials “an opportunity to decide whether that discipline should be meted out.”

Girardin suggested a degree of confidentiality is embedded within the review process to protect the due process rights of public employees.

“With respect to the public, there’s always a tough balance between keeping the public apprised of what’s going on and respecting employees when charges have not yet been substantiated,” he said. “But with respect to transparency, the public has an absolute right to know whenever an employee is disciplined” following a Section 75 hearing.

Along with transparency is the matter of cost, which Girardin stated can quickly add up. Between the expense of paying a hearing officer, prosecutor, stenographer, potential witnesses and the suspended employee, he said municipalities must weigh the costs of going through with a hearing.

“The cost becomes a part of the calculation with employee discipline,” Girardin said, adding that mounting costs often increase the likelihood of a settlement, “the terms of which the public should know.”

Given the sensitive nature of the dispute, Girardin maintains that village officials are in a difficult bind, simultaneously weighing competing values of promoting transparency while respecting due process.

“To be fair, it puts them in a really weird spot,” he said. “Because it is a personnel matter, where someone is potentially still without fault here, it’s really hard for them to talk about it.”

For village residents who may wish to stay informed about a potential disciplinary proceeding, Girardin implored them to wait patiently and to respect the procedures put in place.

“They have to assume that the person being charged is not guilty, and they shouldn’t expect any details until the hearing process has proven otherwise,” he said.

A moment in village history

In Leute’s absence, deputy chief John Borrero has assumed the role of acting chief. Garant ensured that the transition within the code department was relatively smooth.

“Everything is pretty automated up there,” she said. “We’re… assuring the ladies and gentlemen of the code bureau that they’re going to continue to get the support that they have always gotten from the administration and from the executive team here.” 

Leute’s suspension also came shortly after Garant announced her retirement from public service. When asked if there was any connection between the two matters, she said they were unrelated.

“Unfortunately, this is the way the timing worked out,” the mayor said. “It is just a coincidence,” adding, “I wish that the timing had been altogether different.”

 

Graphic from the Port Jefferson Village website

The Port Jefferson Village Board of Trustees convened at Village Hall Monday, Nov. 7, for an evening packed with pressing public business. 

East Beach bluff

Mayor Margot Garant reported developments from the East Beach bluff construction site, stating buildout of the lower toe wall “has been moving along very nicely.”

“The steel wall is in, the concrete cap is about 100% in, there’s a lot of concrete rebar in there, and now they’re putting in the anchors through the wall and pinning the wall into the cliffside,” she said.

At the upland, the village must soon decide the fate of the clubhouse at Port Jefferson Country Club. The mayor said she has been gathering information from the village’s hired engineers and will provide the board with their findings later this month.

During the public comments, village resident Myrna Gordon inquired about Garant’s recent announcement regarding forthcoming informational meetings on the upland proposals. [See “A message from Mayor Margot Garant: A candid discussion about East Beach bluff,” The Port Times Record, Nov. 3.]

Responding to Gordon, the mayor said more information would be made available following the meeting later this month. 

“I’m still getting information from the engineers, looking at some of the drainage plans and alternative solutions for the upland project,” she said. “We put the [upper] wall out to bid. The engineer just got back to us with an analysis of the bid, so it’s coming together for the board to review with me.” 

She added, “Then, we’ll be setting a date and either making a presentation at the next board meeting or a special town hall, depending on which way the board thinks we need to go.”

Public safety

Representing the Suffolk County Police Department was police officer Sergio Möller. He stressed the need for drivers to lock their cars and take their keys with them when exiting their vehicles. 

“Fifty percent of the cars that get stolen within the 6th Precinct are vehicles that were already running with their keys in it, and that’s a problem,” he said. “Please take your keys with you. Shut the vehicle off. It [takes] only two seconds.”

Code enforcement chief Fred Leute underscored reasons for driving slowly on village roads. “It’s getting dark earlier now,” he said. “We have club and student athletes leaving the school late. It’s already dark, so just drive slow.”

Multiple residents pressed the board on pedestrian safety and walkability. Ana Hozyainova, who ran for trustee earlier this year, asked whether the board is considering a villagewide assessment to promote walkability, bikeability and pedestrian safety.

Responding on behalf of the board, trustee Rebecca Kassay reported she, Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden and village staff are exploring the possibility of conducting a study.

“We were pointed toward firms who would do a study, a villagewide study to look at what are the big issues in the village, and how in our particular village can we achieve the goals we want to, both with speed reduction and pedestrian safety,” Kassay said.

Snaden added there might be grant opportunities to subsidize the cost of the study. “It’s expensive, so we have to figure out a way to pay for it,” she said.

Information technology

Kevin Wood, the village’s parking administrator, director of economic development and communications committee head, delivered a presentation on the importance of securing the village’s information technology systems.

Wood’s report comes in the wake of a recent cyberattack against the Suffolk County government. He said municipalities are susceptible to ransomware and other hostile online events due to underfunding, understaffing and outdated systems. 

Based on meetings with Island Tech Services, the village’s network partner based out of Ronkonkoma, Wood said he is working to curtail these concerns.

“I live this every day,” Wood said. “I try to be ahead of the curve on this, of what our vulnerabilities are. I have met with ITS in person, and we think we’re on top of it in a lot of different ways.” 

He added, “If you look at my past reports, you’ll see why we’re ahead of the curve, but we still have to go forward and think about all of the ways we may be vulnerable.”

The village began enforcing two-factor authentication earlier this month, requiring village employees to pass through a second layer of verification to log into government accounts.

“You cannot sign onto your email with Google without having a way of authenticating [your identity], either through an authenticating app or through your cellphone,” Wood said. “It’s a little bit of a [pain], but we have to get through this because there’s been an indication that that’s how [hackers] are getting in.”

Wood also advocated the village upgrade to Municity 5, a multiplatform, cloud-computing municipal software program. He said this upgrade could make the Building Department “much more efficient and amazing.”

“Because of understaffing and other items, we have not gotten this done,” he said. “I just wanted to report that we have got to get this done.”

Wood further addressed how new technologies will affect parking. Namely, an automated license plate recognition system is already used to enforce parking limits on Main and East Main. This system, Wood said, is gradually supplanting the previous parking enforcement method.

Wood concluded his presentation by noting a villagewide software audit is ongoing to assess other vulnerabilities in the village’s various tech spheres.

Tax code

The night also included a public hearing to amend a section of the tax code. Explaining the measure, village attorney Brian Egan said the New York State Legislature sporadically changes its property tax exemptions for senior citizens. 

These changes, according to Egan, often do not correspond to the village’s tax schedule, creating an inconsistency between the state and the village’s tax laws. The motivation for the amendment was to automatically update the village tax code according to changes in state law.

“Instead of us missing that updated income, so a senior citizen can still qualify if that income level went up … we’re going to now set it automatically to whatever the state has,” he said.

Following the public hearing, the board approved the amendment unanimously.

Rental property code

Also on the agenda were two items to put out for public hearing amendments to the village’s rental property code. Kassay, who operates an inn, has helped inform the board of potential code changes, notably affecting Airbnb rentals.

Trustee Lauren Sheprow questioned this process. “I’m still unclear as to how — and I’m going to put out this disclaimer without malice — how a trustee can participate in creating a code and informing the board about a code that has direct impact on a business that she is vested in,” she said. 

Sheprow added, “I think there are guidelines and regs in [the New York Conference of Mayors] that say this has a perception or could be perceived as a conflict of interest.”

Responding to Sheprow’s concern, Garant suggested delineating a potential conflict of interest is complicated given how the code affects all board members in their capacity as residents.

“How I feel about this is everything we vote on impacts us because we’re all residents,” the mayor said. 

However, she expressed uncertainty regarding enforcing the code change, saying, “I think we need to figure out how we want to, as a board, grasp these issues from an enforcement perspective.”

On the ethics question, Kassay offered that she would recuse herself from any future vote related to this matter. Her intended role was to inform the board, given her professional expertise.

“We all have expertise,” she said. “I gave my expertise and perspective because there’s a lot that seems strange and weird, and it’s an odd industry. For me, whatever comes of it comes of it.” The trustee added, “If you’re looking at it, it’s creating more competition. The way it’s written, for my personal business, there’s no benefit.”

Responding, Sheprow said: “Regardless of what you are telling us right now, your involvement in this process is a conflict.”

The board agreed to table the two items pending an ethics review from the New York Conference of Mayors.

To watch the full general meeting, including trustee reports and public comments, click here.

File photo by Heidi Sutton/TBR News Media

The Port Jefferson Village Board met on Monday, Oct. 3, for an afternoon packed with important business. 

Business meeting

Mayor Margot Garant

For its first order of business, the board unanimously approved a bond anticipation note to finance construction for improvements at the Old Homestead/Oakwood Road recharge basin. The BAN will enable construction to begin without the village having to draw from its operating budget. 

This project, according to Mayor Margot Garant, is primarily subsidized through a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Administration. 

“We’re still waiting for the grant to come in from FEMA, but we have to pay the bill,” Garant said. “Hopefully, that money comes in before the end of the year.”

The board approved Garant’s appointment of Shane Henry to the Architectural Review Committee. Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden, trustee liaison to ARC, anticipated Henry’s expected contributions to the committee.

“He’s young, enthusiastic, and he wants to get more involved,” Snaden said. “I think he will be a great addition.” Garant added that she is looking forward to drawing from Henry’s contracting and historic preservation background.

Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden

With trustee Lauren Sheprow voting “no,” the village board approved a 4-1 resolution for the 2023 rate increases for the Port Jefferson Country Club. Stan Loucks, trustee liaison to the country club, said these rate increases are based upon a unanimous recommendation from the Country Club Management Advisory Committee. 

The rate increases, according to Loucks, will enable the country club to make renovations to bunkers, improvements to cart paths and cover other unforeseen expenses.

“The rates that have been presented will increase our revenue by $100,000,” Loucks said. “That is an … increase in the overall budget, which I feel — I hope — is adequate.”

Defending her vote against the resolution, Sheprow expressed uneasiness about membership rate increases. She advocated exploring and exhausting other options for raising revenue before placing added costs on members.

“When I was the chair of the CCMAC, I did not agree with raising membership rates because I felt like there was an opportunity to find new revenue … without putting the revenue on the backs of the members,” Sheprow said. “We’re playing on this product that isn’t the A-plus product that it’s been. It’s kind of a C-level product, and we’re asking our members to come back next year and pay more for something that they don’t have yet.”

General meeting

Trustee Stan Loucks

After a brief interim for an executive session, the trustees moved upstairs for the general meeting. During that time frame, there were several exchanges between the public and the village government.

Chief of code enforcement Fred Leute reminded residents to drive carefully on village streets as schools are again in session. He also reported a speeding issue on Brook Road near the high school. “Brook Road is not a road you want to go fast on,” he said. “When you go down that hill, slow down.”

A Suffolk County Police Department representative told Port Jefferson residents to remain alert to the ongoing crime trends of catalytic converter thefts and phone call scams. 

During her report, Sheprow announced that she would present findings from her internal communications audit at a future meeting. She also reported that the Country Club Social/Hospitality Task Force has already met several times and is working with the restaurant management of The Waterview to “create a more welcoming, accessible and fun environment up at the country club.”

Trustee Rebecca Kassay reported that she is continuing to coordinate with Snaden on a “complete streets concept” for Port Jefferson.

Trustee Rebecca Kassay

“I am highly recommending that the village looks into investing into a study, which can be anywhere between $30,000 and $80,000,” Kassay said. “This would be something that benefits all residents. It would assess how to make the village more walkable and potentially more bikeable as well.”

Loucks gave an update from the parks department regarding removing vessels from village racks. “The vessels need to be removed by November 1,” he said. 

Snaden announced her effort to coordinate more closely with the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce and the Port Jefferson Business Improvement District.

“We’re going to have quarterly meetings moving forward just to make sure that everyone is on the same page with their activities and their events,” the deputy mayor said. “We can all collaborate and bounce ideas off each other, let each other know what we’re all doing.”

Garant gave a detailed report on several significant initiatives within the village government. There are ongoing discussions about giving a proper name to Station Street, a block in Upper Port opening later this month. 

Trustee Lauren Sheprow

“There will be a conversation about what we should call this new street as the new gateway to Port Jefferson,” the mayor said. “We do have a ribbon-cutting on the calendar for October 26 … It will be a great new start to a total revitalization of Upper Port.”

Bids for an upper wall to stabilize the East Beach bluff are due this Friday, Oct. 7. Garant announced that once the board has the final cost estimates, it will decide whether to approve the upper wall or retreat inland. For more on this local issue, see The Port Times Record’s story, “Port Jeff mayor estimates $3M for upper wall, trustees debate erosion mitigation strategy at village country club,” Sept. 29 edition, also tbrnewsmedia.com.

During the public comment portion at the end of the meeting, village resident Michael Mart advised the board to consider the future instead of the past when deciding upon the East Beach bluff.

“Rather than put all of our efforts into saving the past, please look forward to creating the future that we might want here,” he said. “And in doing that, I think it’s important the residents have an opportunity to express their views on the final decision, and maybe even, like with the school board [proposed capital bond projects], have an opportunity to vote on the final decision.”

To watch the full video of the general meeting, visit the village’s official YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bwpxXtRxmA

File photo by Heidi Sutton/TBR News Media
By Aidan Johnson

The Port Jefferson Village Board of Trustees held its monthly meeting Tuesday, Sept. 6, to discuss current plans and issues throughout the village.

The meeting started with a reminder from code enforcement chief Fred Leute to drive carefully down the streets. Now that school is back in session, more wet weather and leaves will likely be on the ground.

Trustee Rebecca Kassay announced that she and Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden have been working together to make the village more walkable and bikeable. These efforts will make it easier to travel around Port Jefferson without using a vehicle.

Kassay also shared that she and Snaden have worked to replace dead street trees this fall with more aesthetically pleasing and ecologically friendly ones.

Kassay said they have been meeting to discuss issues regarding uptown parking. “We’ve been looking at hopefully partnering with some of the medical office space uptown so that we don’t have to pave any additional space uptown — and take it from there,” she said.

After concerns were brought up to the trustees about ticks a few months ago, Kassay has been discussing the issue with the Stony Brook University disease center. The village will be putting information on its website and working with local media to spread awareness about the issue, as well as reaching out to schools to see if they can give the items to nurses and coaches. The village has also been offered tick handbooks, tick identification cards and tick removal kits.

Next meeting, Kassay intends to discuss the timeline and action plan for the village to work on flood mitigation.

Kassay also announced that the Beach Street Community Garden program scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 7, has been rescheduled due to inclement weather. The new date is to be determined.

Trustee Stan Loucks announced that the drought Long Island has faced has started to impact the golf course, which has had 300,000 gallons of water put into it every night. 

“Our conditions up there have gotten to the point where some of the fairways were turning brown, so this rain we’re getting today is kind of a godsend,” Loucks said. He added, “All of our water comes out of on-site wells. The wells up at the country club have reached the level where we’ve been put on restricted watering. We’ve only been able to water our greens and tee boxes for the last 10 days or so, so this rain is coming at a perfect time.”

The golf course will be closed this week on Thursday and possibly Friday while the aeration process takes place.

The country club’s early bird program starts on Saturday, Oct. 15. However, the membership rate fees are to be determined.

Loucks also asked that nobody walks down to East Beach, due to the Bluff Stabilization project. Still, he assured everyone that considerable progress had been made already. Snaden would later add that drone footage of the progress is available to view, provided by Charmaine Famularo.

Tennis courts 7 and 8 are still open and will stay open through September and possibly through October.

Loucks said there are plans to build a permanent barbecue on the patio behind the scoreboard on the golf course.

Finally, Loucks shared that the annual village golf outing will be taking place on Thursday, Sept. 22. The outing is open to all village residents, along with anyone who works in the school district, is a member of the fire department or a business owner in the village. The cost of the outing is $50.

Trustee Lauren Sheprow announced the first meeting of the Recreation and Parks Committee would take place on Thursday, Sept. 29.

The next meeting of the Country Club Social/Hospitality Task Force will take place Wednesday, Sept. 14, at Port Jefferson Country Club at 6:30 p.m.

Concluding her report, Sheprow shared that the village’s internal communication audit is still underway. She looks forward to meeting with the other trustees individually to discuss it.

Snaden reported that the Port Jefferson high school homecoming game has been moved to Saturday, Oct. 22, due to an issue regarding the number of football players on the team. The parade will now take place on Oct. 21 at night. Instead of floats, the students plan to decorate their vehicles with lights. Due to scheduling conflicts, there will not be the Caroline Field events that have been held in the past, but Snaden hopes to bring them back next year.

Snaden went on to report that code union negotiations are continuing. Also, the Architectural Review Committee is looking into an application for a new “Sea Creations” sign to be put on the front of the Harbor Square Mall on Main Street. Additionally, St. Charles Hospital wants to build a retaining wall in its parking lot for expansion. 

Mayor Margot Garant reported that the trustees, with members of the planning and zoning boards, attended a walkthrough of the Port Jefferson Crossing Apartments at 1615 Main St., and were very happy with the amenities that they saw. There is also a 3,000-square-foot retail space. 

Station Street is expected to be installed sometime in mid-September. Overall, Garant is happy with the direction Upper Port is taking.

File photo

Incidents of vandalism in Port Jefferson village targeting both public and private property have sparked debate among residents. 

During a public meeting held at Village Hall on Tuesday, July 5, Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden reported that newly renovated bathroom facilities at Rocketship Park were vandalized just four days after opening. During the incident, a toilet paper dispenser was kicked off the wall.

Fred Leute, chief of code enforcement, outlined the long history of vandalism at this site. He said the bathroom has been targeted several times in recent years. 

In the past, vandals tampered with the paper dispensers, tearing out towels and throwing them around. The renovations made to the bathroom were intended to limit such behavior. 

Leute attributes the vandalism of the bathrooms primarily to boredom. “They’re there and they’re very bored,” he said.

In an exclusive interview, Snaden detailed the precautions undertaken by the village to safeguard the facility from such vandalism. 

“The bathroom was built solid, using materials and concepts that are even done in prison bathrooms,” she said. “Even having done that, there was vandalism in the bathroom.”

This prompted the village board of trustees to institute a closing time of 7 p.m. for both bathrooms at Rocketship Park. The stated purpose of this measure, according to this month’s edition of The Port eReport, is “to protect our valuable asset and ensure that the families visiting Rocketship Park can use our village amenity worry-free.” 

Snaden added that the bathrooms are easy targets for vandalism given the conditions of privacy and seclusion that are inherent to any restroom facility.

“The bathrooms are out of sight,” she said. “As much as people say, ‘Code is out there. Why isn’t code preventing this?’ Well, code cannot follow people into bathrooms.”

Both Snaden and Leute said that efforts to monitor vandalism in the bathrooms and counteract this problem remain ongoing.

Vandalism downtown

Along with the vandalism of the bathrooms, several storefronts have been hit in recent weeks by vandals. Leute said that his department has received three reports of vandalism since June 24. 

Debbie Bowling, owner of Pasta Pasta, said that her restaurant was targeted by three individuals one night who pulled flowers from the flower boxes and tossed them in the street.

“It wasn’t a big financial cost, but it was very disheartening,” Bowling said. “It’s not the first time, unfortunately. We have had Christmas lights pulled off. We have had other plants pulled out and damaged.”

Christine Nyholm is the owner of the Port Bistro and Pub, a location that was also vandalized recently. She had to replace two of her outdoor tables after they were damaged overnight. Nyholm said these acts of vandalism interrupt her business operations. 

“It disrupts us the next day because we have less tables,” she said. “Because the tables are totally broken and we can’t use them anymore, we can’t put them out to feed people.”

Village response

Leute maintained that incidents of vandalism must be reported in a timely manner and to the proper authorities first.

“Call Suffolk [police department], make a report, write down the field report — the central complaint number — and then call us immediately after you have done that,” he said. “We have investigators here. We’ll immediately investigate it.”

These procedures were followed properly after the vandalism of Pasta Pasta, according to Leute. Because of this, two of the three vandals have already been identified by his department. He urged village residents to follow this example during future instances of vandalism.

By holding off on reporting these matters to police, Snaden said the village is limited in its ability to gather the necessary information to investigate the incident.

“We do have cameras throughout the village and that footage is only held onto for so long,” she said, adding, “If we find out about it within a day or two, that footage can be grabbed and we can then start to look to identify and hand that over to Suffolk police.”

On the whole, Leute does not view vandalism as a critical public safety concern, saying that this is not supported by the data provided by the Suffolk police department. The police department could not be reached for comment for this story.

To the business owners who may be at risk of future vandalism, Leute said they can protect their storefronts by moving equipment indoors before closing.

“They really should put away any movable objects, such as small tables or chairs or umbrellas,” the code chief said. “If you put it away and put it under lock and key, they can’t destroy it or turn it over or do any of those things.”

Despite these added precautions on the part of business owners, Snaden reiterated that vandalism is a disruptive behavior that will not be tolerated in the village.

“That being said, we don’t want to minimize this behavior … or any type of behavior that damages anybody’s property,” she said. “We all have to work together and I think step one is putting things away.”

File photo by Heidi Sutton/TBR News Media

The Village of Port Jeff Board of Trustees held its monthly public meeting on Monday, June 6, addressing a number of issues.

Public safety

Chief of Code Enforcement Fred Leute reported that while the village has not noticed a recent spike in automobile break-ins, this is a crime trend occurring in other nearby areas. He reminded villagers of the importance of locking their cars and not leaving key fobs inside the car when they are away.

“If you lock your car, there’s no incidents of anyone breaking into the cars,” he said. “It’s not worth it to them … If you lock your stuff, lock your windows and lock your cars, you’ll be safe.”

Suffolk County police will conduct training programs for village constables, “and that includes an active shooter certification for all of our employees,” Leute said.

He also highlighted his office’s ongoing efforts to monitor speeding through radar enforcement and officers posted near stop signs. Through these activities, he noticed a startling phenomenon.

“The interesting thing that came from that is that once they did that for the past week and a half, they’re finding that it’s mostly village residents that are speeding,” he said. 

Leute stressed the importance of calling his office rather than reporting incidents on social media. “If you’re of good heart and you want to help this village, call us,” he said. “Don’t go on Facebook, call my guys. We will listen, we will figure out what the problem is and we will fix it.” He added, “Going on Facebook and demeaning either the village or the constables or the highway department … whoever, it’s not productive.”

Trustee reports

Trustee Rebecca Kassay announced she had a productive meeting last weekend with the Beach Street Community Garden, a group of gardeners and community volunteers. She said that she also hopes to have a meeting with Elizabeth Hornstein, of the Long Island Sound Study, to explore ways in which the village can secure possible funding for certain projects.

Kassay said Hornstein specializes in assisting “villages like ours, municipalities who have goals concerning flooding and other environmental issues, to connect us with grant money that is available on the state and federal levels.”

Trustee Stan Loucks said there are still available job openings within the recreations department. 

“We’re looking for junior counselors, senior counselors, lifeguards — these positions are still open, so you can apply through the Village Center,” he said. 

Loucks also reported positive news on the country club, whose membership this season has exceeded 600 members. “This certainly indicates that we have an exceptional facility,” the trustee said. “However, golf courses can only handle so many golfers. We may be having discussions in the very near future about putting a cap on our membership.”

Loucks concluded his report by reminding residents that the restaurants at the country club are open to the public, not requiring a membership to eat at them. “The eating facilities up at the country club, they’re not private,” he said. “They’re public places — The Turn as well as The Waterview. These are public restaurants and many people are not aware that they can go up there and go to these places.”

Trustee Bruce Miller provided an update on his recent deliberations with the executive staff of planning and training at Long Island Rail Road. Miller said there was “a lot of movement, but I don’t know if you would call it in a positive direction.”

During the conference, the LIRR presented several alternatives to the village. The parties discussed the idea of having two tracks, that is, a second track between Port Jefferson and Huntington stations. LIRR also proposed fixing the bridges. When the idea was pitched for electrification of the line, LIRR responded with the need to purchase more land to accommodate the two tracks. 

Miller questioned if LIRR’s numerous alternatives may overcomplicate the planning of this project, dooming it to failure from the start.

“I’m just thinking to myself, have they put so many bells and whistles onto this project that they then can say, ‘Well, we’d like to do all of this but we just can’t. It’s just not economically feasible,’” Miller said. “Part of my issue is the fact that we have a lot of residents who live in Port Jefferson … but commute to the Ronkonkoma line. That to me is very ‘ungreen.’”

Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden announced a number of upcoming events in the village, including the upcoming Maker Faire on Saturday, June 11, at the Village Center.

“I’ve been working with the museum about coordinating with our code department for security, for road closures, for parking,” she said. “That’s shaping up to be a great event, as it always is. We’re glad to have it back after the COVID years and get back to the fun with the kids.”

Mayor report

Mayor Margot Garant reported that a fireworks display will be held on Sunday, July 3, at East Beach with a rain date of July 8. 

The mayor also congratulated the high school baseball team and girls lacrosse team on their successful seasons. 

To watch the full meeting, click here.

File photo

During the most recent Village of Port Jefferson Board of Trustees meeting, a representative from Suffolk County Police gave an update to residents about what has been happening locally and across the county with crime.

On Monday, March 7, chief of constables Fred Leute joined the officer clarifying statistics from Feb. 7 through March 7 comparing 2021 to this year. The officer noted that across Long Island, catalytic converter thefts have skyrocketed, as well as car thefts.

“Please lock your cars,” Leute said. “A continual problem across Suffolk County and across New York State are people targeting residential areas, checking doorknobs on cars and taking what is inside.”

Both Leute and the officer agreed that keeping a close watch on one’s personal vehicle is important, especially if the car has a garage opener. “If you have a garage opener and they break into your car, then they have access to your home and you,” Leute said. 

The police representative added that across the county, they are seeing an uptick in people leaving their keys in a running car, allowing people easy access to the vehicle.

“Don’t leave the keys in your car,” she said. “We’re seeing an uptick in people leaving their cars running at locations such as gas stations and 7/11’s with people hopping in and going for a joy ride.”

More locally, Leute mentioned calls about vehicles illegally parking in handicap spots down Main Street, particularly in the spot on the corner next to Starbucks. 

The officer added that in the past year, there has been an uptick in general calls for service, but a decline in assaults (zero in this time period). She reported there is an active investigation on one burglary, one criminal mischief charge and one larceny that was cleared by an arrest. 

She added that ambulance calls have gone up slightly, with one overdose ambulance call during this time period. She was happy to report that motor vehicle accidents have decreased significantly from 15 to just one. 

Recent shooting

Residents at the meeting were concerned over events that occurred early Monday morning Down Port.

“We did have a shooting occur just two buildings over [from Village Hall] over by the town parking lot across from SaGhar restaurant,” the officer reported.

While details were unavailable due to the active investigation, she said that the village cameras have been instrumental in helping and that she was, “pleased to tell you we have a suspect identified and we are currently seeking that suspect.”

Officer James Murdocco. Photo Julianne Mosher

The code officers were preparing to head home for the night.

After patrolling Port Jefferson village’s busy streets, the group was finishing their night shift — to end at 2 a.m. Saturday, June 19.

But four minutes before they were to get into their cars and drive home, shots were fired.

“We heard shots — you know, pop, pop, pop, And we were, like, that’s not fireworks … you could tell,” said code officer Wayne Bohm.

Code officer and detective James Murdocco, who has been with the village since 2013, headed to where the noises had come from. He was alone in his vehicle.

“I was flagged down,” he said. “I noticed the group — a gentleman came over yelling and screaming that somebody was shot.”

Murdocco parked and secured his car, quickly approaching the young victim. His partner, Brent Broere, tended to the second victim. 

Murdocco said that upon arriving, he saw a male on the floor, shot twice — severely in his leg. 

“The right leg was in pretty bad shape. He didn’t look good, and he lost a very good amount of blood,” he said. 

He noticed that someone attempted to put a tourniquet on his leg, but it wasn’t working. 

“I took it apart, redid it and made sure it was tight above the bullet wound,” he said. “At that point, I assessed him again. He was a little bit of in and out of consciousness — I believe because of either shock and the loss of blood.”

He, along with village chief of code, Fred Leute, decided then and there that time was of the essence and the man needed to get to the hospital right away. 

“It decided to put him in a patrol car and take him to Stony Brook Hospital,” Murdocco said. 

With Suffolk County police assisting by closing intersections, he said he drove as fast as he could along Route 25A, getting the bleeding victim in his back seat to safety. 

“It felt like forever,” he said. “It was almost like an eternity in that car … it was a really tough car ride.”

Murdocco added that if it wasn’t for the training he has received on the force, along with Leute’s advising, he might have not been able to help save the victim’s life. 

“The doctors pretty much said that if we hadn’t driven them, the likelihood is he wouldn’t have made it,” Leute said.

On the other side of the lot, Bohm began tending to the second victim, a young man shot in the abdomen with internal injuries. 

Officer Wayne Bohm. Photo by Julianne Mosher

“He was bleeding internally,” he said. “So, he was in kind of grave shape, but he was alert.”

While waiting for the ambulance, Bohm sat with the victim and helped him into the vehicle. 

“Time is of the essence, especially internal injuries,” he said. “He needs surgery, that’s the only way you’re going to be able to control the bleeding.”

Relatively new to the constable team, Bohm has 20 years of law enforcement experience with the New York City Police Department. A 20-plus volunteer with the local fire department and EMS, he also worked at the emergency rooms of bothMather and St. Charles hospitals for a decade.

“I like to help people,” he said. “That’s why the joined the fire department, police department, worked in the emergency rooms. I’ve always helped people. That’s my goal in life.”

Officer Broere helped tend to his victim and, once he was stable, he noticed the fleeing car leaving the parking lot. 

“I called in the description of the vehicle and the direction of where it was fleeing to,” he said. 

“I heard Suffolk County PD officers start pulling cars over off the radio from that description.”

Broere, a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who joined after the September 11 attacks, said anything can crop up while on the job.

“You take your shift off knowing that anything can obviously, possibly happen,” he said. But I mean, it’s a surreal experience.”

But he, along with his team who tended to the two victims, said thinking about the horror isn’t an option when a job has to be done.

“You go through the motions, what you’ve been taught, and your muscle memory,” he said. “And you don’t really think about it until after it’s over.”

Leute added that both victims are now stable, while the alleged shooter, 20-year-old Port Jefferson Station resident Ethan Ladd, was charged with two counts of assault in the first degree, a felony. He was arraigned at the First District Court in Central Islip on Monday, June 21, and released on $25,000 bail.

For a shift that was supposed to end early Saturday morning, the officers didn’t get home until a little past 6 a.m. 

“They are true heroes,” said trustee Kathianne Snaden. “Not a lot of people would run toward gunfire, and they did. They put their lives in danger every single day and are always there to help.”

Murdocco noted that he and his code officers do more than what makes the news. Over the course of his tenure, he has assisted in seven Narcan saves when overdoses happen in the village.

Always working closely alongside the SCPD, when a call comes in through 911 — and code officers knowing it’s in village boundaries — they rush to the scene to assist. 

Murdocco said just over three weeks ago another overdose happened on Main Street. He administered the Narcan, and luckily the young woman survived.

“And we’re within under a minute to get there,” he said. “It’s not like we’re waiting, looking with binoculars for somebody to park illegally and write them a ticket. We’re really responding to what we’re trained for.”

File photo from Kathianne Snaden

In light of the recent shooting that happened in Port Jefferson village early Saturday morning, local officials said an increase in police presence and an extension of code officers’ hours will begin immediately.

On June 19 at 1:56 a.m., shots were fired in the parking lot of the bar located at 109 Main St.

Two men, a 22-year-old and a 20-year-old, were hit, causing serious injuries.

According to Fred Leute, village chief of code enforcement, code officers were getting ready to end their shift at 2 a.m. when they heard the sound of gunshots.

Leute, along with three other officers, ran to the scene where one of the code enforcers used his belt to create a tourniquet for the man whose leg was severely injured by the bullet.

“We realized he was going downhill quickly,” Leute said.

Two of the officers tended to one victim, while the other two brought the man with the leg wound to the Stony Brook Trauma Center.

At the time of the shooting, the village’s Suffolk County Police Department Whiskey Unit was at Mather Hospital with an individual they transported there earlier for a medical condition.

Since the two Whiskey Unit officers were tending to another person, village officials have decided to have code enforcement extend their hours until 6 a.m. and will increase their police presence Down Port.

On Tuesday, June 22, trustee Kathianne Snaden and Mayor Margot Garant spoke with SCPD 6th Precinct Inspector Patrick Reilly to request more officers patrolling the village. They also spoke to Legislator Kara Hahn (D-Setauket) and a representative from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) office.

“After speaking with Legislator Hahn, Inspector Reilly and the governor’s office, and exploring all avenues of enforcement, we can confirm that we will have an increased Suffolk police presence in the village,” Snaden said.

Additionally, the village has extended code hours until 6 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays to keep an eye on the popular local bar scene post-COVID.

“We are taking a zero-tolerance stance on establishments serving alcohol to minors,” Snaden said.

Garant said during Monday’s board of trustees meeting that she was “deeply disturbed” by the incident.

“But we’re grateful that the two young men are still with us,” she said.

Garant added that this type of behavior will not be tolerated in the village.

“We are working with all our state agency partners to bolster police presence, enforcement and proactive measures to prevent underage drinking at our establishments,” she told TBR News Media on Tuesday. “We are committed to doing what we can as a village and local authority.”

While the investigation is still ongoing, just 30 hours after the incident, 20-year-old Port Jefferson Station resident Ethan Ladd was charged with two counts of assault in the first degree, a felony.

He was arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip on Monday, June 21 and released on $25,000 bail.

 

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An outside building at 49 Sheep Pasture Road is filled with debris. Photo by Kyle Barr

Two homes in Port Jefferson have caught the eye of both neighbors and village officials, and not for any positive reasons. 

The blighted homes on 49 Sheep Pasture Road and at 101 Nadia Court have received several complaints from residents, who said the properties are dangerous and need to
be remediated. 

The boarded-up house at 49 Sheep Pasture Road. Photo by Kyle Barr

Code enforcement officers confirmed at the May 20 village board meeting that they had been looking at these particular properties as part of the village’s zombie home task force. Acting chief of code enforcement Fred Leute Jr. said there were bottles littering the site, evidence of drug use and used needles. Human refuse was strewn in one section of the house. Officers displayed images of the inside of the home on Sheep Pasture Road during the board meeting.  

Leute added that people occupied the home in the middle of the day and had likely used the abandoned home as a drug den. 

The Sheep Pasture home, which is now boarded up, will soon be demolished. The board voted unanimously May 20 in favor of the proposition. 

Code enforcement said they had previously investigated the house on Nadia Court, where they saw the door had been left open. There was mold in the basement, and the pool was filled with stagnant water, something neighbors who attended the meeting said was of a larger concern with children and pets in the area.

Ray and Linda Hawkins, who live on Nadia Court, said the owner has been largely absent from the location.

“He hasn’t lived there for several years,” Ray said. “His car hasn’t been used there.”

Leute said upon entering the home the house “looked like someone just got up and left,” as things were left on the stove and plates left on the tables. He added the house did not seem to be built to a good standard, with water damage already causing major issues to the ceiling, though engineers hired by the village had not identified major structural damage that would necessitate demolition.

The owner of 101 Nadia Court is David Ferguson, a Stony Brook University professor of technology and society and applied mathematics and statistics. Ferguson has worked on several projects with the National Science Foundation regarding computer science, including developing computer science courses for liberal arts students and innovating on human-computer interfaces.

Through email, Ferguson said his bank, Teachers Federal Credit Union, has plans to take over control of the property, and that a contract is currently being developed to take over control.

The house at 101 Nadia Court. Photo by Kyle Barr

He also said the village has been in contact with him over making the “repairs.”

“It was my understanding that the village would make the repairs and add to my taxes,” he said over email.

A spokesperson for TFCU relayed that the credit union was in talks with Ferguson.

“We are aware of the issue and is in contact with the member on a resolution.”

At the May 20 meeting, the board voted to remove the conspicuous decking from the rear of the property on Nadia Court and to cover the pool so it would be inaccessible.

The zombie task force has identified 27 homes within the three-square-mile village that need remediation, and five have already been reclaimed. Comparatively, the Town of Brookhaven has a list of nearly 2,000 derelict homes.

One such home in the village that has already been demolished was on California Avenue, and a contractor has puchased the lot who Leute said plans for a new house at the site

“Now it’s going to be a nice family there, hopefully, who will be a good component to the community,” he said.

While neighbors have said these complaints have gone on for years, Mayor Margot Garant said the village has to be cautious when going after blighted property, as the system has been built to make sure municipalities could not simply take over people’s homes.