The Silver Chords, a multigenerational community chorus, is welcoming new members. Tryouts to determine section (S, A, T, B) will be held at the Smithtown Senior Center, 420 Middle Country Road, Smithtown on Jan. 15, 22 and 29. All ages, voices and levels of experience welcome. For further information, call 631-235-3593 or email [email protected].
New York State Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) delivered her first State of the State address on Jan. 5. The governor outlined nine key points as part of what she called her New Era for New York plan.
During the address, she said the focus was on rebuilding the state’s health care economy; protecting public safety and addressing gun violence; investing in New York’s people; investing in the state’s communities; making New York’s housing system more affordable, equitable and stable; making the state a national leader in climate action and green jobs; rebuilding New York’s teacher workforce and reimagining higher education; advancing the state’s place as a national equity model; and making critical reforms to restore New Yorkers’ faith in their government.
“As the first woman to present a State of the State address in New York, I want to make it clear I am not just here to make history — I am here to make a difference,” Hochul said. “The time has come for a new American Dream. Today, we start building a better, fairer, more inclusive version that I call the New York Dream. We will create a ‘new era for New York’ by embarking on a bold, far-reaching policy agenda that advances our recovery and restores New Yorkers’ trust in government. And through all of this, I will continue to collaborate with others and deliver results for New Yorkers.”
Critics
U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY1), the presumptive Republican candidate in the 2022 governor’s race, posted a rebuttal on YouTube after Hochul’s address. Zeldin criticized “the Cuomo-Hochul administration” for “punishing taxes and a skyrocketing cost of living, out-of-control crime, suffocating attacks on our freedom and unending scandals” that he said “have resulted in New York leading the nation in residents fleeing.”
“Unfortunately, our current governor, Kathy Hochul, and one-party rule in Albany have continued the attacks on your wallets, safety, freedoms and kids’ education,” the congressman said.
Zeldin also asked why Hochul didn’t provide details about her plan to tackle rising crime. He criticized her talk about term limits that he said “were far behind the curve” and said she was following where the “political winds blow.”
U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY3) posted remarks to YouTube before the address. Suozzi is set to run in the Democratic primaries for governor against Hochul. In the beginning of the video, he said, “The state of our state is dismal.”
In a statement after the address, Suozzi said, “The governor today said she wanted a ‘new era for New York,’ yet she ducked fixing the bail crisis that is helping fuel crime, failed to fix the chaos due to her lack of a COVID plan, and won’t stop the pay-to-play mess that corrupts Albany. New York needs a common sense governor who has executive experience to manage COVID, take on crime, reduce taxes and help troubled schools.”
New York State Assemblyman Mike Fitzpatrick (R-St. James) sent out a statement after Hochul’s address also criticizing the governor.
“New York must move forward with a plan of recovery from COVID-19,” Fitzpatrick said. “Gov. Hochul has been reluctant to make progress on this issue, despite broad access to vaccines for those who want it. New York must find a way to begin living with the ongoing reality of this virus without hampering the livelihoods of residents, the education of children and the overall health of our economy. Residents are counting on our leadership to forge a path forward.”
State Sen. Anthony Palumbo (R-New Suffolk) issued a statement in response to the State of the State address. The senator complimented Hochul for the “welcomed change from the PowerPoint slides and oversized podiums of the previous administration. Her speech and its location were clearly meant to show a break from the past and a new leadership approach to meet New York’s myriad challenges.”
However, Palumbo said he was concerned that few of the positive proposals in the address “will create the systemic change needed to meet today’s challenges faced by my constituents in the 1st Senate District.”
“The hard fact is New York state continues to lead the nation in outmigration,” he said. “The cost of homes and property taxes in our region continue to rise. State and fuel taxes are up. The crime rate continues to grow and families I represent do not feel safe. Our electric rates are some of the highest in the country. The economy has been further crippled by the pandemic, and our hospitals and nursing homes are struggling. With record levels of state and federal spending, our region of the state is simply not seeing its fair share of funding allowing our economy to recover.”
Palumbo challenged Hochul and legislative majorities to revisit policies he called “unworkable and detrimental.”
Some highlights from the State of the State address:
Health care over the course of five years
Preventing and reducing gun violence and violent crimes
Invest in residents
Develop job opportunities
Boost investment in offshore wind infrastructure by $500 million
Limit governors, lieutenant governors, attorney generals and comptrollers to two consecutive four-year terms.
Entering a third year of the COVID-19 pandemic and the latest infection surge nationwide comes with many challenges. One of those is for a continued adequate supply of masks, including the often used N95 respirator masks for healthcare and other settings. A study led by Stony Brook University researchers discovered that a readily available method using dry ovens can be used to disinfect N95s for reuse, in settings where new masks may not be available. Their findings are published in PLOS ONE.
To combat any shortages of N95 masks during the pandemic, many institutions were forced to search for other alternatives to protect health care providers and their patients. While some studies have evaluated the impact of various methods of decontamination on how well masks filter viral-sized particles, this study adds to such research and also addresses the equally important concept of maintaining proper mask fit after decontamination.
“Our study demonstrated that treatment of N95 face masks using dry heat was sufficient to inactivate COVID-19, while preserving the ability of these masks to filter aerosolized particles for potentially exposed workers,” summarizes Kenneth Shroyer, MD, PhD, lead author and the Marvin Kushner Professor and Chair of Pathology at the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University.
Since heat is potentially more readily accessible than other methods of decontamination in many healthcare facilities, the researchers used dry heat sterilization to disinfect the masks. They also used X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, contact angle, and electron microscopy collected at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials—a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science user facility at DOE’s Brookhaven National Laboratory—to test for changes in the material of N95 masks post decontamination.
By contrast, other methods for disinfection, including treatment with hydrogen peroxide vapor, may be equally effective in specially equipped facilities but are usually not available in most hospitals or outpatient clinical care facilities.
Dr. Shroyer and colleagues also tested autoclaving, which is widely available in most hospitals and is a proven method of sterilization but found that this caused the fit of the respirator onto the user’s face to fail. Thus, the researchers ruled out autoclaving as a safe method to decontaminate N95 masks.
The research involved experts from the School of Medicine, the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Institute for Electrochemically Stored Energy, and the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS), along with colleagues in the Interdisciplinary Science Department and the Center for Functional Materials at Brookhaven National Laboratory.
For additional details about the initial studies that served as the foundation for this study – which was launched during the first wave of the pandemic in April 2020 – see this story.
Dr. Shroyer emphasizes that the findings from the study highlight the importance of both optimal disinfection and mask fit and suggest that when no other decontamination alternatives are available, N95 masks can be reused after dry heat treatment to ensure the safety of health care workers.
The Art League of Long Island 65th Annual Members’ Exhibition invites current Art League members ages 18 and up to submit their entry for display in the Art League’s Jeanie Tengelsen Gallery February through April 2022. The entry deadline is February 7, 2022.
Artists from all walks of life, those just beginning their journey into the visual arts and established exhibiting artists, will put their best foot forward exhibiting their artwork in mediums such as painting, drawing, collage, photography, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, jewelry, fiber arts, glass art, wood, graphic art, and more. Due to the large number of works, the exhibit is shown in two parts. Part One (artist last names A-L) exhibits February 19 through March 11 and Part Two (artist last names M-Z) exhibits March 19 through April 8. Artists’ receptions and awards presentations are scheduled for Saturday, February 26 and Saturday, March 26 respectively, with time periods to be determined.
All member entries will be exhibited, subject to guidelines outlined in the prospectus posted at www.artleagueli.org/65th-annual-members-exhibition . Awards of excellence and honorable mentions of the art on display will be selected by guest juror Mary Cantone, owner-curator of the William Ris Gallery in Jamesport, NY. If you are not a member and wish to participate in the exhibition, join online at www.artleagueli.org/membership .
The gallery is open to the public, free of charge, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10am to 5pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 10am to 3pm. The Art League of Long Island, located at 107 East Deer Park Road in Dix Hills, is a not-for-profit visual arts organization serving Long Islanders since 1955. Learn more about the Art League at www.artleagueli.org .
Supervisor Ed Romaine has announced that the Yaphank Fuel Cell Park at the Brookhaven Landfill is now fully operational, generating 7.4 megawatts of energy from three SureSource 3000 carbonate fuel cell power plants. The fuel cell facility will provide continuous reliable electricity to the growing area of the LIPA system in Yaphank and will provide sufficient power for 7,500 homes.
Supervisor Romaine said, “The Yaphank Fuel Cell Park is the Town’s first step in our transition from landfill to an energy park. The fuel cells, along with solar fields and harvested methane gas, will repurpose the landfill when it stops accepting waste after 2024 and is capped and closed. Our forward-looking plan will establish Brookhaven Town as a municipal leader in alternative energy sources.”
In its simplest form, a hydrogen fuel cell creates electricity by combining hydrogen gas and oxygen to form water. The electricity is then used to power the grid. Electricity, clean water and warm air are the only byproducts, making hydrogen fuel cells a sustainable form of energy. The Yaphank Fuel Cell Park power generation facility is located on approximately 0.93 acres in the southern portion of the landfill. FuelCell Energy, Inc. developed, installed and will operate the facility.
Fuel Cells are an electrochemical power generation technology that convert the energy in directly to electricity without combustion. There are no combustion-related pollutants such as NOx, SOx and particulates. The project will be interconnected to LIPA’s existing transmission system via a new dedicated distribution feeder from the site. The electrical connection is being provided by PSEG- LI and natural gas is being served by National Grid. Electric and gas service to the site by the utilities is complete.
In an effort to expand access to testing, Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone today announced the opening of three new community based testing sites. Rapid Antigen COVID-19 tests, which will be administered by Baseline Health and Reef Technologies, will be on a first come, first served basis.
The first testing site at Hecksher State Park will open on Wednesday, December 29th, the second testing site at Red Creek Park, which was formerly located at Francis S. Gabreski Airport, will open on Monday, January 3rd, and the third testing site located at Cathedral Pines County Park will open on Tuesday, January 4th.
“What we have learned so far is that the Omicron variant is highly transmittable and causing a spike in our daily positivity rate,” said Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. “Testing is one of the best tools we have when it comes to containing the spread of this virus. As we approach the New Year, these three new sites will provide quick and convenient results for our residents so that they can protect themselves and their loved ones.”
Rapid Testing sites include:
Hecksher State Park, Field 8 (Opening on Wednesday, December 29th)
1 Heckscher State Parkway
East Islip
Open every Monday through Thursday from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Testing Capacity: Up 1,000 tests a day
Red Creek Park (Opening Monday, January 3rd)
102 Old Riverhead Rd
Hampton Bays
Open for school-required testing and community testing
Open on Mondays only from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Testing Capacity: Up to 500 tests per day
Cathedral Pines County Park (Opening on Tuesday, January 4th)
116 Yaphank Middle Island Rd
Middle Island
Open on Tuesdays and Fridays from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Testing Capacity: Up to 500 tests per day
Residents with any questions can contact Suffolk311.
According to the National Weather Service, this morning residents along the North Shore of Suffolk County woke up to approximately 6 inches of snow.
East Northport in the northwestern part of the county came in at 6.5 inches of snow, while Mount Sinai out east at around 6 a.m. was reporting 5 inches.
Many school districts announced Thursday night that schools would be closed. The following districts are closed in TBR’s coverage area:
Cold Spring Harbor Central School District
Commack School District
Comsewogue School District
Elwood School District
Haborfields Central School District
Hauppauge School District
Huntington School District
Kings Park School District
Middle Country School District
Miller Place School District
Mount Sinai School District
Northport-East Northport School District
Port Jefferson School District
Rocky Point School District
Shoreham-Wading River Central School District
Smithtown Central School District
Three Village Central School District
Supervisor Ed Romaine has announced that the Town of Brookhaven Youth Bureau will hold its Annual Interface Coat Drive from January 10 to February 11 to help residents in need stay warm this winter. Donations of new or gently used clean coats, scarves, hats and gloves in infant to adult sizes can be dropped off at the following locations:
“Many of our residents are going through hard times and may not have proper clothing to keep warm during the winter months,” said Supervisor Romaine. “I thank our Youth Bureau for organizing the Coat Drive and I encourage residents to make a donation to help their neighbors in need.”
For more information, please call the Town of Brookhaven Youth Bureau at 631-451-8011.
The current weather forecast indicates up to 4 to 6 inches of snow across Brookhaven on Friday, January 7. The Town urges residents to take these “common sense” precautions to ensure their safety during this and future snow events:
In anticipation of the Friday, January 7 snow event, the Town of Brookhaven residential garbage collection will start at 8 a.m. The town will continue to monitor the weather conditions and advise of any additional changes.
Residents should call 451-TOWN to report snow related issues. Call 911 for police, fire and ambulance emergencies only. To report a power outage or downed wires, call PSEG at 800-490-0075 or go to www.psegliny.com to file a report online.
Please go to the Town’s website for up-to-date snow related news, information, weather updates and emergency contact numbers.
The Town may also send out e-mail alerts to residents who have registered on our e-mail list. If you are not on the list, you can sign up today at www.brookhavenny.gov. Residents can also sign up for countywide Code Red alerts at www.suffolkcountyny.gov.
MEET YETI!
This week’s shelter pet is Yeti, a 2-year-old female shepherd mix who was recued from a high kill shelter in Georgia. She is now safe at Kent Animal Shelter and ready for her furever home. This sweet girl is friendly to all people and dogs and loves to go for long walks.
Yeti shows best outside of her current kennel and would love to have the opportunity to meet you! She comes spayed, microchipped and is up to date on all her shots.
Kent Animal Shelter is located at 2259 River Road in Calverton. The shelter is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information about Yeti, call 727-5731, ext. 1 or visit kentanimalshelter.com.
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