HARBOR MORNING
Jay Gao captured this serene image at Stony Brook Harbor on the morning of April 14 with his Nikon D750 camera. He writes, ‘It was a foggy morning, and many waterfowl flew in and out of the harbor.’
Send your Photo of the Week to leisure@tbrnewspapers.com
By David Luces
The Star Wars film series is well known for its depiction of the galaxy and space technology. For the many fans of the franchise, the Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium at the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum in Centerport will give them the opportunity to journey back in time to explore the Star Wars galaxy once again as part of a special event, Worlds Far, Far Away, on Saturday, May 4 — also known as Star Wars Day.
Lance Reinheimer, executive director of the museum, said the event will merge entertainment and education by showing participants that technology and planets shown in the films are not far from becoming a reality in the future. “The film series has been very popular, it’s something that spans generations,” Reinheimer said.
“I remember myself going to the theater to see the first Star Wars film. Not only is this an educational event, but it is also a tribute to the film series and will be appealing to a lot of people,” he added.
The evening will feature a Star Wars-themed lecture that will take the audience on a tour of the planets and famous locations seen throughout the franchise. After the presentation, guests will be divided into the light and dark sides of the Force and will compete during the event to win prizes by answering trivia questions.
“Our purpose is to develop programs that will spark interest and bring people not only to the planetarium but the rest of the museum’s grounds as well,” the executive director said.
Astronomy educators Matt Garber and Charlie Eder will be leading the lecture and act as “droids” as they take the audience on a tour of the Star Wars galaxy. “We will be talking about the science behind the spaceships in the films as well as showing them important locations,” said Garber. Though it seems that technology shown in these films will be hard to attain, he said it may well be a possibility in the future.
The astronomer said the event is timely as the franchise is widely popular and the teaser trailer for the next film, “Episode 9: Rise of Skywalker,” was recently released. Ultimately he hopes they can get the younger crowd in the audience interested in astronomy. “It would be great to capitalize on that — when you’re younger you sometimes dream about going into space.”
Reinheimer agreed, adding that everyone remembers their first visit to a planetarium and he hopes the upcoming event will renew their interest. The executive director said as time goes by, the Vanderbilt estate, which was built in the 1940s, has become more important. He also said the planetarium holds a special place in space history as it was built in 1971, during the height of the space race with the Soviet Union.
“We try to promote these events and get the word out that there is a true gem right in our backyard,” he said.
Visitors are encouraged to come 30 minutes before each showtime to enjoy the activities in the decorated planetarium lobby. Guests are also encouraged to come dressed as their favorite Star Wars character.
The Suffolk County Vanderbilt Reichert Planetarium, 180 Little Neck Road, Centerport will present Worlds Far, Far Away on Saturday, May 4 at 7, 8 and 9 p.m.
*This information has been updated from original article – Tickets are $20 for adult members; $25 for adult non-members; $14 for members ages 15 and under; and $16 for non-members ages 15 and under at www.vanderbiltmuseum.org.
For more information, please call 631-854-5579.
The Shelf at East Main officially opened its doors April 19 and welcomed an array of local artists, who all said they were happy for the rare opportunity to show off their work.
The new consignment-style shop is similar to the typical art gallery, since artists show their work and give a percentage of sales to The Shelf. But, Diane Walker, the new store owner, said that her operation is different, because it’s intended to be more encouraging to local artists.
Kyle Kubik, Walker’s son and an artist himself, said people were coming in at the last hour to get their work on display.
“There’s no out of pocket expense to them, and it’s up to us, and them, to promote the venue,” Kubik said.
Walker, a 25-year resident of Mount Sinai, opened the shop to try and give those artists the opportunity to really flesh out their passions in a noncompetitive space, something that gives local artists a leg up in an often cutthroat field.
Now that The Shelf is open, here’s a small helping of some of the artists who have their stuff on display. All had a similar frame of mind, saying that there are very few spaces like the Shelf where they can display their work without an upfront cost or upfront judgment.
The Shelf at East Main, located at 218 E. Main St., Port Jefferson, is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Walker said she expects she will soon start to open up the store for events outside regular hours. More information is available at www.visittheshelf.com.
Kyle Kubik
Walker’s son and an artist specializes in making video game and other pop culture inspired shirts and paraphernalia. He often ran the convention scenes and art shows from Long Island to New York City, and his mother saw the hustle that went into promoting one’s work as an artist. Kubik called it a gamble when one traveled to such events.
“There’s a lot of competition out there, and there’s a high barrier to entry,” he said. “In my experience with conventions, I’ve walked out of events with a few thousand dollars in your pocket. I’ve walked out of events where I’m a thousand short, because I had to travel somewhere. Because of that hot and cold aspect, that’s what’s difficult for artists.”
He added that in some cases, even with quality work, some people simply don’t believe their work is good enough to be on display.
“We have macramé, we have knitted pieces,” he said. “You could put it up and be in a huge pool of people, or you can be in a local place with people in your community.”
More of Kubik’s work can be found at: www.kylevonkubik.tumblr.com/.
Crystal Wyllie
Wyllie, a Setauket resident, has been doing ceramic pottery since her college days, and opened up her own small workshop in her parent’s garage. She first learned about The Shelf from her aunt, the owner of Cardinal Realty in Port Jefferson, just next door to the new shop.
“There aren’t many places where local artists can show their work in a noncompetitive atmosphere,” Wyllie said. “And I think it’s incredible to see what our community is capable of creating.”
To find more of Wyllie’s work, visit: @crystalmariepottery on Instagram or her website at www.crystalmariepottery.com.
Paul Cammarata
Cammarata is a local photographer, taking his inspiration from the idyllic sights of Port Jefferson, nearby Stony Brook and beyond. His photographs feature alluring destinations, images of classic cars, still lives and nature.
A graphic designer by trade, Cammarata got back into photography in the last few years after being convinced by a friend and watercolor artist.
“Galleries can cost an artist a fortune — or you don’t get the right exposure sometimes,” he said. “Hopefully with the way [Walker] worked it out it’s a win-win for everybody.”
Cammarata’s work can be found at: www.fineartamerica.com.
Tracey Elizabeth
Elizabeth’s day job is photography, but she said her true passion is painting.
To her, the new store is an opportunity not just for her, but for the community of small-town artists who are still looking to break out. It also gives the chance for the local community to see the creativity of their community.
“I live in Port Jeff, so I like that [Walker’s] using local artists,” she said. “It’s helping local artists, and it being a small town it really needs those small-town artists to be represented.”
Elizabeth’s photography can be found at: www.traceyelizabeth.com.
Paul Motisi
Motisi works in graphic design, producing designs for shirts, album covers and more. He started doing freelance work out of college, and recently he started creating spray-painted stencil portraits and selling them on Etsy. He has portraits of characters from Rocky Balboa to The Dude from “The Big Lebowski.” Now his images sit in person inside The Shelf in Port Jefferson. He said many art shows and conventions can be hard to work with.
“Usually those people are very standoffish — they usually want you to jump through hoops, but these people were just so ready to have people involved,” Motisi said. “These places are in short supply.”
Motisi’s work can be found at his website: www.paulmotisi.com, or at his Etsy page at: www.etsy.com/shop/motisistencilart.
By Heidi Sutton
At 80 years young, it is an exciting time for the Long Island Museum. With a collection of mostly 19th- and early to mid-20th-century art and artifacts, the museum has recently turned its attention to building on its small but growing selection of contemporary art.
Enter internationally acclaimed silver artist Michael Izrael Galmer whose career includes collaborations with Tiffany & Co., Gorham and Lenox, as well as creating his own designs that have been exhibited at museums including the Cooper Hewitt, Renwick Gallery and Newark Museum of Art.
Galmer, who emigrated to the United States from the former Soviet Union in 1981, specializes in sculpture, jewelry and decorative pieces carved in silver using repoussé, a technique in which metals are shaped and adorned by hammering and pressing the reverse side of the piece. He then decorates the front of the piece using a technique called chasing or engraving.
In addition to enjoying a challenge, the artist, who works out of his studio in Queens, chose to work with silver “because it is identified with both a sense of fineness and the idea of tradition. Of quality, there is no more beautiful material to see, touch or feel.”
Examples of Galmer’s work were first viewed at the museum last fall as part of the Shaping Silver: Contemporary Metalsmithing exhibit. The artist then decided to donate two of the handcrafted pieces, a silver pitcher titled “Hops Blossom Pitcher” and a 41-inch tall silver sculpture titled “Lust for Life,” to the museum’s permanent collection.
A special unveiling and reception was held at the museum’s Visitors Center on April 11. The event was attended by Galmer’s family, friends and the museum’s staff and board.
“Wow, it looks better than in my studio!” exclaimed Galmer as he viewed the display. “I want to thank all the members of this wonderful institution who gave me a chance to share my artwork with all the future visitors to this museum. I am so honored.”
Both inspired by nature, the handcrafted pieces are stunning. The pitcher, designed in the classical style, is adorned with delicate flowers. “My goal was to create something that, when displayed on a table, makes you feel like a garden is all around you,” Galmer explained.
“Lust for Life,” which the artist calls “a speaking sculpture,” depicts a large stone with a small seed that has sprouted underneath and, finding the tiniest cracks in the rock, breaks free, grows strong branches and, as a grand finale, blooms. It is based on the philosophy that good things can come from even the direst circumstances.
“It’s talking, it wants to say something,” said an emotional Galmer in describing this piece. “Life is full of ups and downs. I want to encourage people to never give up … I want them to be strong. I survived, I came here with nothing, and I made something of myself for my family, my community, for America. To be successful you have to be strong, you have to fight. Never give up, ever. Try, try and you will always find an exit from a bad situation. It is important to remain optimistic.”
Both pieces will be prominently displayed in the Visitors Center through 2019.
“The museum is so pleased with this significant gift,” said Neil Watson, executive director of the LIM, after the unveiling. “For the most part, a museum is built over time. This is our 80th anniversary and it started with the generosity of Ward and Dorothy Melville … and how these collections grow is through that generosity and it all comes back to the makers. What Michael has given to us here is so beautiful … our collection is better for this and now we can go in a new direction.”
Joshua Ruff, chief curator at the museum, agreed. “Michael Izrael Galmer has gone through journeys in his life. The Long Island Museum is going through a journey right now. We have, in our 80 years, changed our name on numerous occasions. We were once the Suffolk Museum. We were once a small collection of natural history items and carriages and William Sidney Mount paintings and we have grown to be able to include contemporary art and the future is boundless for us.”
“We’re looking to, in the next 5, 10, 15 years down the road, really growing on what we are but [also] growing in new directions and making this place successful going into the next 80 years and beyond,” he added.
The Long Island Museum, located at 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook is open Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 adults, $7 seniors and $5 for students ages 6 to 17. Children under 6 and museum members are free. For more information, call 631-751-0066 or visit www.longislandmuseum.org.
The Stony Brook University women’s basketball team welcomed a special top recruit to its ranks April 24 as Amelia Garcia, of Centereach officially became a member of the team through the school’s Team IMPACT program.
Team IMPACT is a national nonprofit organization based in Boston that connects children facing serious or chronic illnesses with college athletic teams, forming life-long bonds and life-changing outcomes.
The 11-year-old Centereach native was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2012 and is an avid fan of the Seawolves.
Joined by her family and friends as well as members of the basketball team, Amelia took part in a special draft day celebration where she signed an official letter of intent to join the team and received a customary team jersey, T-shirt and basketball shoes.
“It’s a special day for us, as we welcome Amelia into our Seawolves family,” said Caroline McCombs, head basketball coach.
Sophomore forward Oksana Gouchie-Provencher said when the team found out they had been matched with a die-hard Stony Brook women’s basketball fan, they were all excited.
“We are so happy to welcome you to our team and be a part of our journey,” she said.
As a member of the team, Amelia will attend Seawolves practices, games, team dinners, events and more.
Since 2011, Team IMPACT has matched more than 1,700 children with more than 500 colleges and universities in 49 states, reaching over 50,000 participating student-athletes.
We can’t help but notice while commuting to work or on the road to cover a story that many people aren’t yielding the right of way to emergency vehicles which race to help our neighbors. It’s a complaint we’ve heard from our fellow drivers as well as the men and women who dedicate their time to making our communities a safer and better place to live.
Whether on a congested road or one where traffic is flowing freely, not yielding to a fire truck, police car or ambulance with their lights flashing and sirens blaring could lead to firefighters not being able to rescue the occupants of a burning house or a heart attack victim not being saved.
For decades, the main rules have remained simple — slow down and pull to the right of the road parallel to the curb and stop when you see an emergency vehicle with its lights and siren on near the vicinity of your vehicle. Don’t merge back into traffic until all emergency vehicles have passed, unless a police officer if present tells you otherwise. Of course, rules suggest motorists keep clear of any intersection and not tailgate a fire truck in hopes of bypassing all the other drivers who are trying to merge back into traffic.
For years now, in New York state, drivers must also be mindful of emergency or hazard vehicles, such as tow trucks, that are parked, stopped or standing along the side of a road. Called the Move Over Law, drivers are required to slow down and move over a lane away from the vehicle if it’s safe to do so.
Of course, many people are familiar with the laws, and others may not necessarily be breaking them on purpose. Car cabins today are made to keep outside noise to a minimum, so it was no surprise to us when we learned that many local fire departments are using horns with a deeper bass feature so drivers can feel them in addition to hearing them — if they hear them.
Sometimes, it comes down to being more mindful while sharing the road with both other vehicles and the people in the big red-and-white trucks with lights flashing.
Not hearing these sirens can also be attributed to car stereos or from people enjoying their music with earbuds. There is also the case of drivers distracted with their cellphones or when texting, even though it’s illegal.
As the weather gets warmer, and more people will be out on the road trying to enjoy all the Island has to offer, we encourage our readers to reacquaint themselves with the rules of the road or pay closer attention to other vehicles. If you’re already well versed in the laws, have a conversation with others in your life, especially younger ones who are not as familiar with the rules.
The main goal is to make it easier for our emergency workers because if it were our house or life they were saving, or that of a loved one, we would want them to get to us as quickly as possible.
Every day, Brookhaven residents walk or ride bikes along the Setauket-Port Jefferson Station Greenway Trail, a paved path surrounded by nature that easily could have been taken over by cars and trucks.
On April 18, the Three Village Community Trust kicked off its spring Join the Conversation series with a walk and talk presentation dedicated to the nearly 3.5-mile trail. A little more than a dozen participants joined Herb Mones, TVCT trustee, and Charles McAteer, Friends of the Greenway chair, at the Limroy Lane entrance in Setauket to learn about the trail’s history.
The walk and talk was held in anticipation of the greenway’s 10th anniversary in June, as the first phase of the trail opened between Gnarled Hollow Road and Sheep Pasture Road in 2009.
Mones and McAteer said those who travel the greenway can experience a variety of landscapes, including an old-growth forest, a centuries-old woodland with a variety of trees and species; a field of rhododendrons that nursery owners once grew for Gold Coast estate owners; a sandpit; and the former Lawrence Aviation Industries property.
In 1999, residents began discussing what to do with land acquired in the 1960s by the New York State Department of Transportation that ran from East Setauket by the site of what is now the headquarters of hedge fund Renaissance Technology to the park and ride on Hallock Road in Port Jefferson Station. Mones said the state’s original intent was to create a bypass to Route 25A during an era when transportation departments were looking to move as many vehicles as possible as quickly as possible.
During the 1980s and ’90s, the state was under pressure to move people not only by cars but with different modalities of transportation, according to Mones.
“What better way did New York State have in fulfilling its mission to create an alternative to vehicles than having a greenway built,” he said. “So, it became not only an advantage to this community but also something the state could hang its hat on and say, ‘We’re doing something other than building bigger and better roadways.’”
Mones said the residents first met in 1999 to discuss the trail in the office of Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket). Mones and McAteer said the meeting included different members of the community with various opinions, including those who were against the trail.
“It was the biggest disaster ever,” Mones said, adding that many residents weren’t familiar with greenways and were apprehensive about the idea.
One of the biggest concerns of residents was people walking behind their property and potentially stealing from their homes.
Mones said it took a whole year before the community reengaged and organized a task force, and it took about 10 years until its opening in 2009. Earlier meetings were held at Renaissance Technology with the support of the hedge fund’s founder Jim Simons, and there were also smaller neighborhood meetings on Saturday mornings in cul-de-sacs and on corners to have discussions about concerns with residents, which McAteer said had more positive outcomes than the initial meeting at Englebright’s office.
Eventually, Englebright secured more than $2 million for the initial build-out and, on the federal level, former Congressman Tim Bishop (D) was able to obtain $5 million for the remaining sections of the trail. Mones added, due to the state and federal grants, the Friends group didn’t have to raise millions on their own.
While the Setauket-Port Jefferson Station Greenway Trail had a rough start, McAteer said it inspired the future county project Rails to Trails that will run from Mount Sinai to Wading River. McAteer said Rails to Trails, which will be approximately 3 ¼ miles from the end of the greenway, had it’s opponents who at first didn’t want a trail running behind their backyards.
“They now have seen how well this trail is utilized, and how we keep it up with the Friends of the Greenway and working with our municipalities,” he said. “So now they see what can be done. So, another trail will become because of this.”
The Three Village Community Trust will hold a 10th anniversary celebration of the Setauket-Port Jefferson Station Greenway Trail opening June 8 at 11 a.m. at the greenway on Lynx Lane just east of Old Town Road in East Setauket. For more information, visit www.threevillagecommunitytrust.org.
By Daniel Dunaief
Something about a posed picture brings out the prankster in me. I realize, of course, that posed pictures can and do capture a moment when a group of people come together.
In fact, I recently visited the athletic center of one of the colleges that admitted my daughter and stared, for hours, at the faces of athletes over the decades who took time out from their sports games and practices to have a picture taken. Without the uniformity and decorum, these pictures would have been a free-for-all with little structure.
And yet, in my own life, I can’t help seeing the camera and the formal process as an invitation to assert my individuality or, at the very least, to force the formality off someone’s face.
I can trace this back to formal extended family photo sessions we had when my brothers and I were young teenagers. Every so often, the aunts, uncles and cousins would get together. When they did, someone inevitably wanted to capture the moment for people to revisit years later, which, I guess, is around now, given how long ago the younger versions of ourselves forced a smile on our faces for those pictures.
So, anyway, I remember this one picture, when I was standing between both of my brothers, which made sense at the time because I am the middle child and my younger brother hadn’t decided I stopped way too early in the height department. As the photographer was getting ready to take the picture, I reached down as subtly as I could and pinched my older brother’s thigh, causing him to grin broadly at just the right moment, if you’re me — or the wrong moment, if you’re the photographer.
To her credit, my mom kept that goofy picture because, unknown to me, the photographer had taken a head-to-toe shot that clearly showed my fingers pinching my brother.
When my younger brother got married, I recall my father’s extended family all trying to line up for a family photo or, as my aunt said at the time, a fa-mi-lee pho-to, as she enunciated each syllable in a way that would cause poets to cringe. She accented all of the syllables and spoke so loudly that the camera picked up her demand to get everyone in their place.
Later, as we watched my brother’s wedding video, the whole family discovered an unknown treat. At some point, the videographer had clearly asked my uncle, one of the more serious and least playful people I ever met, if he had any marital advice for the newlyweds.
Seated in a chair by himself, with the music playing in the background and plates of hors d’oeuvres passing in and out of the frame, he paused for a moment before looking straight at the camera.
“It’s a sense of humor,” he said, cracking the smallest of wry smiles.
As my daughter and nephew prepare for their high school and college graduations, I can’t help wondering what the young men and women in the photos will be thinking when the many amateur photographers insist that they move a step to their left, lean to their right, stand up straight or open their eyes wider, no, less wide, no, wait, wider.
Hopefully, my daughter and nephew will be able to look back at pictures and see something more than a group of people celebrating one moment as they prepare for the next one. Hopefully, the camera will capture something, small though it may be, that brings a smile to their faces months or years later. Maybe the perfect imperfection will transport them back to the moment someone insisted that they “give us a natural smile” on cue.
By Leah S. Dunaief
Celebrations are a beautiful thing. Besides being festive, they tell us who we are, where we come from and maybe even where we are going. For example, the Fourth of July reminds us that we are Americans, Thanksgiving Day prompts stories about our history and that we have aspects of our lives to be thankful for. Religious holidays strengthen our beliefs and traditions. And the best part of celebrations can be that they bring us together — as a nation, as sports fans of a winning team, as members of a particular block or just as a family.
My family looks to ceremonialize as much and as often as we can. The month of May has been especially kind to us in that regard this year. For starters, my oldest grandson will be graduating from college in Boston in May. My granddaughter will graduate from high school in Charlotte, North Carolina, later in the month. Both have earned their next stage in life. To continue the party, my youngest son will celebrate a big birthday at the beginning of July. We try to get together for some of the Dunaief birthdays each year. And any other excuse — new job, acceptance to college, a new success at work, an honor bestowed on a member — any occasion serves. A triumph by one can be an opportunity to rejoice by all.
Celebrations can establish traditions, and traditions can provide structure for each year. With such framework can come togetherness and the security of a community. The community can be as small as a family coming for Sunday dinner to eat the tomato sauce that’s been cooking slowly on the stove in grandma’s kitchen much of the day. Or it can be as large as one of the world’s great religions that transcend national and international boundaries. A community can be of one’s sex, or age, or station, or nationality, or village, or school district or neighborhood. There is great power in community — a defining and anchoring identity, a sense of inclusion.
So how do most people celebrate?
The answer is usually with food, but not always or only that way. For my grandson’s graduation, we will all come together in the bleachers of Fenway Park and variously cheer or boo the Red Sox, depending on our individual intelligence. We will stay in the city a couple of days and perhaps visit one of the many terrific museums. Maybe we will even take a duck boat ride on the Charles River or a swan boat ride on the Boston Common or a historic walk through the many hallowed neighborhoods. Any and all of those will make for lifetime memories that will encourage us to further celebrate by making them into traditions and perhaps repeating them or recalling them with amusement whenever we get together. Common stories are part of what unite us, as a people and as a family. Oh, and there will surely be lots of seafood throughout our stay in Beantown.
In Charlotte, we will be newcomers eager to explore the new hometown for one of my sons and his dynamic family. Before they moved, we were already acquainted with how long the flight was from here to there, and which airlines made the trip. It is inherently exciting to explore a new region of the country, with its different festivities, histories and traditions — and regional foods. By now you have surely gotten the correct impression that my family enjoys traveling and celebrating on its stomach.
For my youngest son’s birthday, there is always a baseball game involving us. He gets to stay up at bat as we take turns pitching to him, and he typically knocks the ball out of the park. Other times we get to chase it all over the field. Such is the privilege of the birthday kid.
They are completing one stage and entering the next one, members of my family, and that is so significant as to be noticed and marked with congratulations and optimism. By celebrating together, we are saying, “Well done! And we are with you all the way.”
Project part of near-decade-long attempt to revitalize area
Beginning at the end of April, Port Jefferson Station residents will start to notice new rustic lights being installed along Route 112 near Joline Road as part of the early stages of a long-awaited project.
The installation of the rustic lights is part of the main street project, which dates back to a 2008 hamlet study done by Louis Antoniello, a former Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Civic Association president and Lee Koppleman, a longtime Suffolk County planner. When the first phase of the project is complete, the lights will be installed at various points throughout Main Street in Terryville on Route 112 between Bicycle Path and Route 347.
Antoniello, who co-chaired the initial hamlet study with Koppleman, said the idea to install these rustic lights came about due to answers from a questionnaire put to residents several years ago.
“They told us what they liked about the area and what they didn’t,” he said.
Antoniello, a Terryville resident, said many residents expressed the desire for the preservation of important buildings in Port Jeff Station, more open space and, most importantly, they wanted an identity. That identity would start with improving Main Street.
The former civic president also said people in the community wanted places to go on Main Street where they could go shopping, eat and enjoy the area.
“The area [Port Jeff Station] has a lot of history and landmarks,” Antionello said.
Another factor in the project is to repair buildings and get businesses to come that will benefit the community.
Antoniello said the process to get the funds needed to begin the lights installation took a long time to come about.
He first spoke with Sen. Ken LaValle (R-Port Jefferson) about the proposed lights project and with his assistance was able to get approved a $150,000 grant from New York State in November 2016 to help purchase the lights.
Despite being approved, Antoniello said the money was not received until almost two years later.
“I contacted the governor’s office on my own and asked for assistance,” he said “This began the process of getting the money released.”
The former civic president said the state holds on to grant dollars for months, sometimes years. This, he was told, by elected officials is common practice. Once the money was released, he worked with engineers and the Town of Brookhaven Street Lighting Department in preparation for the lighting structures to be installed.
The $150,000 grant will cover the Nesconset Highway/Joline Road section installation. This comes after the installation of the lights on the eastern side of Route 112 by the new ShopRite center. Antoniello said he plans to try to get another grant from New York State and will be applying to the Downtown Revitalization Grant Program to get additional funding for the Main Street project.
This won’t be the first time Port Jefferson Station has applied for the downtown revitalization grant.
“They said we aren’t a true main street, we have too much traffic and we don’t have enough buildings,” Antoniello said. “It’s a lot of excuses — hopefully this time it will be different.”
Brookhaven town Councilwoman Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station) said the antique lighting project is a long-standing community project connected to the revitalization of Route 112 and promoting and enhancing the existing “main street corridor.”
“Many current and past members of the civic association were very involved with supporting and championing this project,” Cartright said. “Main street is the heart of any downtown community and the antique light project helps create a sense of place in the community. This in turn helps to attract additional businesses to the area.”
Some of the lights are already installed near Uncle Giuseppe’s Marketplace and residents are already taking notice.
“Somebody told me it looks great and are glad that they are finally up,” Antoniello said.
The Terryville resident also had ideas for other proposed projects in the area, including putting a historic marker on Patchogue Road, as it served as the road for stagecoaches back in the 19th and 20th centuries.
He also plans on helping with the construction of a community park located at the intersection of Route 112 and Nesconset Highway where the Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce-owned train car resides. Antoniello said once funding becomes available they will move forward with constructing the park.
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