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Authors Posts by Donna Deedy

Donna Deedy

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Incumbent Susan Berland and challenger Hector Gavilla are vying for Suffolk County’s 16th Legislative District seat. Berland of Dix Hills is the Democratic candidate and has served on the Legislature for the past two years. She served on the Huntington Town Council as a councilwoman for more than 16 years prior to being elected county lawmaker. 

Republican hopeful Hector Gavilla is seeking political office for the first time. In 2017, he ran an unsuccessful campaign for the 16th District seat which he lost to Berland. Gavilla has been a licensed real estate broker since 2003 and has run Commack-based Long Island Professional Realty since 2010.

The candidates are concerned with the future of the red-light camera program, the county financial situation, affordable housing and public safety. 

Red-light camera program:

The incumbent says she believes red-light cameras save lives. 

“People need to stop at a red light, they shouldn’t run through it and stop appropriately,” Berland said. “If people did that then you wouldn’t have the ‘money grab’ argument because they wouldn’t be paying the fines for them.”

Berland said there is a need for improvements in the program. She proposed looking at individual camera locations and potentially moving cameras to other problem areas. 

The incumbent also said they want to make sure they can oversee the placement of cameras once they get a new contractor. 

Gavilla disagreed saying the red-light camera program is a scam.  He argued that the cameras are placed disproportionally in low-income areas. 

“The county has discriminated by putting red-light cameras in low income communities,” he said. “There are none in the affluent areas [on the Island].” 

Though he admitted that if someone runs a red-light they deserve a ticket. 

Suffolk’s financial future:

The county’s finances have been one of the main topics of discussion in this year’s election season. According to a recent state comptroller report, Suffolk was under the most severe fiscal stress of any county in 2018 for the second year in a row. Suffolk had an operating deficit of about $26.5 million in 2018 and a general fund balance deficit of $285 million. 

Gavilla said the county is spending money it doesn’t have. 

“The total [deficit] amount depends on who you speak to,” he said. 

If elected, the challenger would get rid of certain special taxes and fees. He would also look to consolidating services and making cuts in some departments. 

“We need to cut expenditures, we can do that very easily by going to department heads and employees and incentivizing them to find ways to cut their fees,” Gavilla said. 

Berland said when Bellone was elected to office, the county was $500 million dollars in debt. 

“There hasn’t been an increase in the property tax line and we have kept within the 2 percent cap,” she said.  

Berland said they are continuing to provide the services residents need, while acknowledging that the county has cut numerous government job position in the last few years. 

Affordable housing on Long Island/Town of Huntington:

The county legislator said there is a need to find affordable housing for everyone. 

“We need to be able to provide affordable housing, you have these [housing] developments built and then 20 to 30 years later it goes to market rate,” Berland said. 

The incumbent looked to the recent Ronkonkoma Hub project as a way they could provide affordable housing as well as keep working families and young people on the Island. 

Berland said she supports continued economic development in the town and giving more resources to schools. 

 The challenger on the other hand would look to bring back high paying jobs to the area. 

Gavilla said he wants to bring back Fortune 500 companies, mentioning that his own father worked for a subsidiary of Grumman when he was young. He also said he would work with state lawmakers to assist in bringing those jobs here. 

In addition, Gavilla said there is a tax problem that needs to be fixed. 

“Property taxes are too high and that affects everything,” he said. “ You have to keep business owners here.”

Public safety (opioids/vaping/gang violence):  

Gavilla said while visiting homes throughout the area people are happy that federal government officials are assisting in the fight against MS-13. 

“I’ve visited close to 5,000 homes … the Hispanic communities are happy the feds are involved,” he said. 

Gavilla said there is a need for increased police presence as he believes more can be done on the opioid epidemic as well. 

According to him, the Hispanic communities are against making parts of Suffolk County as sanctuary areas, saying “they want the bad guys out.” 

Berland agreed with Gavilla that more can be done with MS-13, but said the Suffolk Police Department is doing a good job. 

The incumbent said in terms of immigration, people that are committing crimes should be deported. 

Berland supports banning vaping in the county, saying it has created “a whole new generation of kids smoking.”

“We also need to crack down on the sale of opioids and increase Narcan training,” she said.

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Garrett Chelius is challenging incumbent William "Doc" Spencer for Suffolk County Legislative District 18.

Seasoned incumbent William “Doc” Spencer (D-Centerport) is vying for a fourth term in the Suffolk County Legislature, where he has served for the past seven years. Spencer, a practicing physician for 28 years, has his own Huntington practice. 

Since taking office, the incumbent has worked to ban the sale of powdered caffeine to minors, raise the age of selling tobacco products, helped passed a measure to stop companies from manufacturing energy drinks to kids and spearheaded a ban on flavored e-cigarettes and a fee on single-use plastic bags.  

If reelected, Spencer would like to work on lowering the cost of living for young people in his district. He also proposed the need for a wintertime economy on the Island and suggested an indoor water park or convention center. 

Tackling the opioid and vaping crisis will present another challenge for Spencer, who said he is committed to finding treatment and addiction solutions to those affected. 

In Huntington Station, Spencer has his eyes set on connecting areas to sewer systems to attract restaurants and other local businesses.  

His challenger Garrett Chelius (R) is running because he is concerned that his three children, as well as other children in the county, are not going to be able to afford to stay in Suffolk. He blames the current administration’s fiscal irresponsibility. 

The long-time Huntington resident said his experience working in the banking and staffing industries for the past 25 years will help in getting the county back on track financially. Chelius also mentioned that the county has a junk bond rating due to seven straight downgrades.

The LIPA tax situation concerns Chelius. He said residents are fearful of how the upcoming LIPA court decision will affect them financially. In addition, congestion and overdevelopment in the town and safety issues related to the deployment of 5G technology are also concerns. 

If elected, Chelius would like to make sure beaches and waterways remain pristine for generations to come. He mentioned renovating Coindre Hall, a mansion and 33-acre park overlooking Huntington Harbor. Lessings Caterers currently uses the site as a catering hall.  Chelius believes it could be an amazing pier and harborside facility as well as a must-see family-friendly destination for residents and out-of-town guests. 

“Lastly, people are concerned about the water we all share, the water to drink, and the harbors and bays we enjoy,” Chelius said. “We need to make every effort to keep both our drinking water and our harbors and bays pristine.”  

Also, the challenger believes the red-light camera program is unsafe and biased toward lower income areas. 

Daniel West is also listed on the ballot running for the seat on the Conservative Party line. He was unable to be reached for an interview. 

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File photo

The town of Huntington operates with a four-member council and a town supervisor. Currently, the supervisor is a Republican and two of the four council members are Democrats. Six names are on the ballot for Huntington’s town council, and voters can choose two candidates to serve a four-year term. The outcome of this election will determine majority party rule. 

Two incumbents are running for reelection: Joan Cergol (D) and Eugene Cook (R). Cergol is cross-endorsed by the Green, Working Families and Independence parties. Cook is cross-endorsed by the Conservative, Libertarian and Independence parties. Challengers include Kathleen Cleary (D) and Andre Sorrentino (R), who is cross-endorsed by the Conservative and Working Families parties. Eleanor Putignano is running on the Green Party. Patrick Deegan is running as a Libertarian. 

Putignano and Deegan, though they are listed on the ballot, were unable to be reached and did not attend the candidate debate hosted by TBR News Media. Deegan later agreed to a telephone interview. 

In general, Huntington’s hot topics center on overdevelopment, water quality, parking and the high cost of living.  

Joan Cergol

Joan Cergol, after being elected in 2018 to serve a vacated one-year term seat, is running again this year for a full four-year term. A lifelong Huntington resident who has worked as a communications specialist, she is one of two Democrats on a four-member board. Cergol said that she considers herself an independent voice that works for all people in the Town of Huntington. 

“If you want someone with a steady hand and head, a warm heart, a strong work ethic, all driven by an overarching desire, in all decisions made and votes cast, to simply do the right thing for Huntington, I’m your choice for town board,” Cergol states in her public profile online.

Cergol’s top concerns include budgetary policies related to appointed positions in town government and the lack of affordable housing.  

“There’s no $1,500-a-month apartments anymore,” she said. 

She said the town can save money for cash-strapped taxpayers if it exercised greater restraint and followed a different process for town employees. People in appointed positions should be qualified and paid fair wages rather than excessive salaries, she said. She favors zero-based budgeting, a system that audits every job position to justify its value and necessity. She also thinks the town can do a better job tapping into available grants to offset expenses, rather than hitting taxpayers up for different projects. 

To address the housing concern, over the last year, Cergol successfully sponsored legislation that allows people, mainly the elderly, to rent out their own home, while living in their own smaller, accessory apartment on premises. The policy, she said, solves multiple housing-related issues, and she said it’s one of her proudest accomplishments during her first year as a legislator. Live-streaming and close-captioned viewing of town meetings were also her initiatives. 

Overall, Cergol considers herself a problem solver of issues big and small and knowledgeable on the mechanisms of government. She said she prefers watching other people cross the finish line, rather than being in the spotlight herself. 

The town, she said, is 95 percent built out. When considering redevelopment and revitalization projects, she said its important to evaluate the economic, social and environmental factors.

Eugene Cook

Eugene Cook has been elected to the town council for two consecutive terms and is running for a third and final term. He sponsored the new term-limit legislation and wants to be the first to leave after three consecutive terms. 

Cook was raised on Long Island and lives in Greenlawn. He’s a welder by trade and owns a building contractor business. 

The LIPA tax certiorari issue, he said, is the town’s greatest challenge and he is committed to pursuing all avenues to fight National Grid, who owns the Northport power plant. LIPA, he said, is out of control. 

Other pressing issues for Cook include overdevelopment. He’d like to see the Village of Huntington designate more areas as historic to preserve its charm. The best way to enhance the community, he said, is through the arts. He is committed to supporting cultural projects that keep Huntington vibrant. Quality of life issues, he said, is and should be a main consideration when evaluating development projects. These approaches, he said, place Huntington on the map as a destination. He opposed the proposed Villadom Mall project in Elwood. The site, he said, is now under consideration for open space preservation. 

To address ongoing need for additional parking, Cook sponsored legislation to purchase the old Chase Bank property at Gerard Avenue and Main Street, which will be leveled and converted to a 71-stall parking lot. The site is an asset, he said, that can always be sold if Uber and other shared drive services replace the demand for parking. Cook opposes the construction of what he called an unsightly, $30 million, multilevel parking garage, because the town may never need it and will likely mismanage the project. 

Cook said he is proud of everything he does as a town council member. Helping veterans, he said, is particularly rewarding. He recently connected the Hispanic community with the police to enroll 250 kids in a new PAL soccer program. The experience, he said, was heartwarming. He also likes helping all mom and pop shops address building issues or whatever their concern may be. 

“It’s my pleasure to serve the community,” he said. 

Kathleen Cleary

Kathleen Cleary is an East Northport resident with experience as a contract manager for Fortune 100 companies. Like Cergol, she said the town is bloated with patronage positions. Her experience overseeing projects to meet time and budget constraints, she said, will help bring transparency and ethical reform to Huntington. Her business administration degree, she said, will also help her streamline town operations through departmental and personnel efficiency assessments.

The lack of adequate parking in downtown Huntington is an ongoing problem. To address issues, Cleary’s ideas include implementing employee parking shuttles. She has no spot in mind, only a concept. Overdevelopment is also a top concern.  

Cleary opposes settling the LIPA suit.

“You can’t just sit back and let them walk all over us,” she said. 

She is impressed with community activism about the issue over the last few years. Because the Northport power plant is not an isolated case in one town, she said state government needs to offer remedies. 

Overall, Cleary said her people skills, experience with government contracting and navigating bureaucracy makes her a good candidate for better efficiency and cost-cutting in town government.

Cleary also has a background in horticulture and is a Cornell certified master gardener. These skills, she said, provides insights into how to address water quality issues. She’s been involved with Long Island Native Plant Initiative, the Huntington League of Women Voters and Keep Islip Clean Project Bloom. 

Andre Sorrentino

Andre Sorrentino is also a lifelong Huntington resident and owner of PAS Professional Automotive Services. He promises to bring the small businessman perspective to town council. He loves Huntington and said he believes in getting things done. He’s proud to be a family man. 

“I want to be the guy people go to,” Sorrentino said. 

Sorrentino has insights into the town’s highway department, where he has been director of general services since February 2018. In that post, he’s helped to beautify parks. As an automotive inspector, he said that he sees firsthand that the poor state of the town’s highway equipment needs to be addressed.   

Sorrentino said he feels a strong obligation to give back. He’s serving his fifth year as Huntington fire commissioner. He has gained a reputation in the community for his work handing out turkeys to families in need around Thanksgiving. Last year’s drive donated 2,660 turkeys. 

As a tradesman, Sorrentino said that he would like to see the town promote apprenticeship programs, an idea that both Cergol and Cleary also see as important. 

Patrick Deegan

Patrick Deegan is running a grassroots campaign with no money, no fundraising and just relying on support from neighbor to neighbor.  He’s running on issues of water quality and soil contamination that can potentially cause a health crisis.

He said he’s worn four hats in life: semiprofessional distance runner, business man, a talent agent and for the last 17 years an unpaid advocate.  

Deegan suffers from a connective tissue disorder that prevents him from physical labor but allows him research issues. Deegan said that he has been operating as a lobbyist, but since he’s not paid, he’s really an advocate.  

He said he has researched topics and has worked behind the scenes to address issues such as opposing the Villadom development project and raising awareness statewide on fentanyl. 

“This is what I’m doing with my free time now, “ said Deegan.  “I want to help people.”  

The job as town representative requires mental challenges.  

If elected, Deegan will strive for more community-based leadership. He praises the work of civic organization and people who band together like the Fort Salonga Property Owners Association, which opposes the golf course development.

“If a tree falls down, we don’t need to wait three days for the town to come,” he said. “We can get it taken care of.”

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Margot Rosenthal (D) is challenging incumbent Leslie Kennedy (R) for County District 12. (photo right to left)

The Times of Smithtown circulation area includes two Suffolk County legislative districts: 12 and 13. The 12th District encompasses Nesconset and Lake Grove and extends west through portions of St. James into Commack. The 13th District extends from Fort Salonga east to St. James. 

Currently, two Republicans represent the areas, Leslie Kennedy and Robert Trotta, respectively. Overall, the Democrats with an 11-7 ratio, have a majority rule in the county, as it has for the last 13 years. Republicans held the majority for 33 years prior to that. 

Many analysts say that this year’s election could potentially see a shift in power or perhaps tie the representation. So a lot is at stake.

District 12: Parts of Smithtown, Nesconset, Hauppauge, Village of the Branch, Lake Grove, parts of St. James, Commack, Lake Ronkonkoma and Centereach

Smithtown resident Margot Rosenthal, a nurse-practitioner, midwife and a Smithtown Democratic Committee person is challenging incumbent candidate Leslie Kennedy.  Rosenthal did not attend the debate hosted by TBR News Media. According to her online profile, she seeks to address health care, housing, education, environmental causes and improve access to mental health care.  She is committed to combating the opioid crisis and teen vaping. She has worked for 39 years with underprivileged patients. 

Kennedy, a Nesconset resident, has worked for 13 years as a legislative aide to both Donald Blydenburgh and her husband John Kennedy. She was elected to her seat in 2015, when her husband became the county’s comptroller. 

In a one-on-one interview, Kennedy said that she loves government and policymaking but hates politics.  Her background in the medical field, she said, provides the county with useful insights that contribute to the county’s response to the opioid epidemic.  She is opposed to the county’s current cesspool/septic system replacement initiative to reduce nitrogen. The systems, she said, are ineffective.  Peter Scully, Suffolk County deputy executive, who is addressing the county’s water quality issues, said that nothing can be further from the truth. 

Kennedy opposes the red-light camera bill, stating that it mainly targets and enforces questionable violations of right turns on red.  The affordable housing issue, she said, is one of her top concerns. 

Some of her proudest accomplishments include the preservation of the Nissequoque River’s headwaters.

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Smithtown Town Hall

The Town of Smithtown is run by a four-member Town Council and a town supervisor. Two seats are open for this year’s election with five people running for office. Smithtown’s council is currently all Republicans. Two incumbents are running for reelection: Thomas Lohmann and Lisa Inzerillo. Their challengers include two Democrats, Richard Guttman and Richard Macellaro, and Libertarian candidate Patricia Shirley. 

Patricia Shirley (L)

Patricia Shirley

Kings Park resident Patricia Shirley is running a grassroots campaign to institute change. She said she would like to see the town’s system of government shift to include more transparency and citizen engagement. She’s noticed that at meetings council members tend to talk too technically without engaging residents. She said she has been going door-to-door and business-to-business mainly in Hauppauge, Smithtown and Kings Park to find out what’s on the minds of Smithtown residents. A native Long Islander, she’s noticed a declining state of the Kings Park business district over the last eight years. She wants to see the community thrive, so it offers a promising future for children.

Shirley takes pride in her entrepreneurial background. Her expertise lies in budgeting and grant writing. She expects to be able to help Smithtown improve its planning, auditing and budgeting. She’s been in the health care field for 25 years and has worked at Developmental Disabilities Institute, also known as DDI, in Smithtown over the last 11 years. The group home has grown tremendously during her tenure there, she said. She has also founded the Shirley Academy, a school that trains people on medical billing practices. 

If elected, Shirley’s priorities include promoting entrepreneurship. She promises more round table discussions with community members.

New tools are needed, she said, for a new generation. Residents, she said, need to regain control. 

“I am a woman and an African American,” she said. “I’m black and I bring diversity to the town.”

She wants to make sure that people get out and vote to bring the count up. This is her first time running for public office.

Richard Guttman (D)

 Richard Guttman

Richard Guttman is another Kings Park resident running for a seat on the Town Council in part because of the decline in the Kings Park business district.

He blames overdevelopment as the underlying cause of many of Smithtown’s issues, whether it’s water quality, traffic jams, cut throughs or the lack of sidewalks and proper street crossings. Overall, he said, it creates safety concerns. 

“Trying to go into a store in Kings Park, you put your life on the line,” he said, referring to the parallel parking situation on Main Street. 

Guttman wants quality of life to be a main consideration to improve Smithtown communities. Projects, he said, are pushed through.

“When you put up a building, there’s more to consider than tax revenue,” he said.

Guttman is local attorney with 20-years’ experience. He operates his general law practice from his home. He handles immigration, tax and some criminal cases. Lately, many of his cases pertain to foreclosure, he said. He helps people file for bankruptcy to avoid losing their homes.

People, he said, are overtaxed. “Maybe, with a different president, that will change,” he said. As a council member, Guttman promises to advocate to keep costs down. 

With regard to economic development, Guttman recognizes the need for better infrastructure, such as sewers. He’d also like to see the Kings Park Psychiatric Center, where he regularly runs, move forward with plans to preserve the grounds as parkland. 

“I know it’s in the works, but I’d like to get it moving,” he said. 

Guttman is currently taking care of his mother, who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. If elected, he hopes to help institute programs to help other people in similar situations. 

“I am honest, earnest and promise to do a good job for all the hamlets, to listen to constituents and to come up with solutions that benefit the people.” 

Richard Macellaro

Richard Macellaro

Kings Park resident Richard Macellaro is running for Town Council, but has not been actively campaigning. However, he said in a telephone interview that he wants to win. Macellaro, one of two Democrats in the field for Town Council seats, is also calling for more openness and transparency in Smithtown government. He said that the public needs to more informed about the rights of taxpayers. Agencies and departments need to meet with council members on a more regular basis, he said.

Macellaro is semi-retired and currently works part time for the county’s Traffic and Parking Violations Agency. For 30 years he worked as a director of a home health care business in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

For nearly 60 years, Macellaro said, the town has lacked a master plan to guide the town’s development. If elected, he will make sure one is implemented and reviewed every five years to make sure the town stays focused. Macellaro has previously run for Suffolk County Legislature and New York State Assembly. 

Tom Lohmann

Thomas Lohmann

Tom Lohmann is running for reelection. He was originally voted into office in 2017 and wants to continue what he said he started — reinvigorating the town. His priorities include seeing through the implementation of a master plan for the town’s development. 

“The last time we had a master plan was in the ’60s and we’re doing it, it’s underway,” he said. 

The job requires full-time service and should not be part time, Lohmann said. The retired New York City police officer will take the $75,000 a year for the Town Council position and, combined with his police pension, he said he’s committed to do the work.

“It’s not about the money,” Lohmann said. 

Since he’s been elected to office, Lohmann said he’s spearheaded projects to reinvigorate parkland and beaches, including Gaynor Park and Flynn Memorial Park. The town has three sewer projects underway in Kings Park, Smithtown and St. James. The Kings Park sewers are moving ahead, he said, he’s currently looking for a location for the wastewater treatment plant for Smithtown and expects the St. James sewer to become a combined venture with Gyrodyne, in St. James, in the very near future. 

For 62 years, Lohmann has lived in the Town of Smithtown, currently in the hamlet of Smithtown. He said he is a third generation Smithtown resident. As farmland has turned to shopping malls and highways, Lohmann said he’s seen the change. 

The key to overdevelopment, Lohmann said, is smart development. A master plan, he said, takes care of that. He notes that the town lacks affordable housing. The younger generation, he said, doesn’t want a house. They want to be near a train line to the city and travel by Uber place to place and walk the town. It’s different, he said, from when he grew up. 

The 2 percent tax cap, which state lawmakers have made permanent, Lohmann said, is restrictive. Going forward, he’d like to have more interaction with the school districts. As far as combining services with other branches of government to trim the tax burden on residents, Lohmann said the town is already doing it. 

“We’re doing more with less,” he said. 

Prior to taking office, Lohmann worked as an investigator with insurance crime bureau of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. He also worked part time as a Head of the Harbor police officer. 

Lisa Inzerillo

Lisa Inzerillo 

Kings Park resident Lisa Inzerilla has been serving as Town Council member since 2015. She said she focuses on common sense initiatives to deliver efficient services, save tax dollars and protect suburban quality of life. She’s committed to making Smithtown user-friendly and has helped the IT department launch a new website this year. Inzerillo initiated the town’s Animal Shelter reform. She serves on the Labor Management and the Risk Management committees. Inzerillo is proudest of amending town code to prohibit hookah lounges and vape stores near schools, playgrounds and day care centers. 

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The Lofts at Maple and Main is the first commuter oriented aparatment complex planned for Smithtown.

Developers have broken ground across from Smithtown Town Hall at the former site of Nassau Suffolk Lumber and Supply Corp., where a new three-story, 71-unit apartment complex with 15,000 square feet of new retail space will be constructed over the next year and a half.

The private project, called The Lofts at Maple and Main, sits one block from the Smithtown commuter train platform and is one of the first transit-oriented developments in the town. The concept expects to offer affordable places to live along the NYC commuter lines to help retain and attract young people, which will also help grow the economy. The units, also an option for empty nesters looking to downsize, are modeled after similar downtown rental projects constructed in Patchogue and Port Jefferson. It’s expected to generate $250,000 in tax revenue and result in 50 new jobs. 

“This is what we need to be doing all over Long Island,” said County Executive Steve Bellone (D).

State Assemblyman Michael Fitzpatrick (R-Smithtown) called the project Smithtown 2.0. He explained that first shopping malls and now online retailers have drawn people away from downtown areas. The apartments, situated on 3.6 acres, are expected to help eliminate the blight to create a more vibrant downtown area.

Revitalization projects generally await the approval and state funding for new sewers. But the apartments have interim plans for handling wastewater. The town expects public sewer construction to follow the timeline of the Kings Park project, which will likely start in April 2021 with completion in Oct. 2023.

“We are going to proceed with the project even though the Smithtown sewer project is still pending,” said Anthony DiCarlo, the son of VEA 181 Realty Corp. principal, Salvatore DiCarlo. “When the sewers are ultimately installed, we will be required to hook up.”

The town supervisor’s spokesperson Nicole Garguilo has said that the project is totally private and has received no government subsidies.

Over the last 12 years, the project has been entrenched in controversy. After the East Hampton-based developer bought the site in 2008, it violated a Smithtown stop work order and in 2009 illegally demolished the building. After piles of debris and concrete were hauled away, the situation became the subject of a 2011 Suffolk County Grand Jury investigation alleging that an unnamed town official recommended demolishment to save taxes. Ultimately, no charges were filed, but board members voted in July 2014 to tear down the already demolished structure and adjacent buildings and approved the site plans for The Lofts at Maple and Main at its August 2018 meeting.

Smithtown’s planning department reports that the project has a site-work-only permit and still lacks a building permit.

Anthony and his brother Jared DiCarlo said that the one-bedroom units will rent for under $2,000 a month and the two-bedroom units will likely cost under $3,000. The 80-minute commute to Manhattan and the projects proximity to I-495, Route 347 and the Smith Haven mall, they predict, will be appealing. The retail space is expected to cost about $25 per square feet. Details, though, are still preliminary.

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After 50 years of trials and tribulations, the Commack School District is forging ahead with a plan to use the Marion Carll Farm on Commack Road for educational purposes, but some activists are not happy with the decision. 

Since July, the district has been renting its barns to Long Island University. The site is expected to become the region’s first veterinarian school of medicine by September 2020.

“We expect animals to be on the site by February,” said Superintendent Donald James.

But, Cynthia Clark, a concerned citizen, who formed the Marion Carll Preserve Inc. said she has asked the New York State Attorney General’s Charities Bureau to intervene. Her goal, she said, is to acquire, restore and sustainably run the site in perpetuity according to benefactor Marion Carll’s wishes. 

“For 50 years, the district has squandered this gift,” Clark said. “It’s a crime! A cultural and ethical crime.” 

Clark said that she has commitments with Harbor Harvest to buy organic produce grown on the 9-acre site and can secure grants to restore all buildings. But the district unanimously chose the LIU proposal over her application earlier this year. 

LIU’s proposal, according to an LIU spokesperson, met both the wishes of Marion Carll’s Last Will and Testament along with the Commack School District’s standards for financial viability. The district stated the plan will include providing valuable educational programs to the children of the district. James said that the district expects to implement a shadowing program that will provide an opportunity for students to look at career options that they might not otherwise consider. Animals on the premises will include cows, goats and chickens. The district also expects to offer lessons on beekeeping to the students. 

The site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has not been adequately maintained.  Carll’s will, granting the property to the district, stipulates maintaining the buildings as historical museums for educational purposes. Clark sounded the alarm this past summer, she said, when the property was being cleared without appropriate permits and as work commenced to replace the barn’s roof. The state Department of Education has since issued a stop work order.

The home on the Marion Carll Farm in its current condition.

In an interview on the Marion Carll Farm, James said that he expects to have all needed permits before the year’s end. LIU’s rent of $15,000, he said, will fund the stabilization of the house and barn and be used to properly catalog and preserve the contents of the building. After that, the district said it will remove the antiques within the farmhouse while restoration occurs.  

The house is not part of the lease with LIU, but the district is counting on the rental income to finance repairs. LIU, James said, has already spent $700,000 repairing the historical red barn and replacing its roof and clearing dead trees and overgrowth. The university will also cover expenses related to installing historically correct fencing, complete repairs to the barn and other buildings and lend labor to restore the historic home. Over the next 10 years, LIU is committed to spend $175,000, James said, and the district is committed to spend $350,000, which is the savings associated with LIU maintaining the entire property. 

Clark, who is a preservation specialist for leather clothing and furniture, estimates that the restoration project will cost $2.5 million plus another $1.5 million to restore the furnishings in the house. The preserve, she said, applied for nonprofit 501(c)(3) status last year, but the application is still pending. She said that she’s already spent thousands of her own money on the project, but expects to be able to secure the funds she needs through grants and said in a telephone interview that she is aligned with a successful grant writer with a “100 percent track record.” She could not provide the name. 

Clark’s plan was one of several options that the district considered earlier this year. The district ultimately chose the Long Island University lease, largely because of its long-term economic viability.  

Long Island University’s College of Veterinary Medicine spokesperson Mary  Studdert stated in an email that it has received a Letter of Reasonable Assurance from the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Council on Education (AVMA-COE) enabling LIU to immediately begin accepting applications for the fall 2020 semester. At full enrollment, the veterinary school will serve 400 students, with 100 in each graduating class and will be the first College of Veterinary Medicine in the New York Metropolitan area.

The conflict with Clark arises just years after the district was sued by the Carll heirs to revert ownership back to the Carll heirs because of the district’s failure to fulfill the will’s obligations. The district ultimately won the 2012 case in summary judgment on statute of limitation grounds, stating that the heirs were 12 years too late. Restrictions on the district’s obligations were lifted to clear title, according to board member Jarret Behar. James said that the district could now legally sell the site, if it wanted to, but said the board is committed to its preservation and use as a historical museum with educational purposes. 

The house, according to the district, is structurally sound, but part of the building is still taking on rain. The main structure is covered with a rubber membrane to control leaks, but James said in an email that more leaks formed in different places and need to be fixed. The stop work order, he said, is now yet another hurdle that interferes with the district’s efforts to properly maintain the site.

One of many structures on the 9-acre Marion Carll Farm.

Clark said that she can reveal no details about her conversations with the attorney general’s office but said that she is hopeful. 

The Carll family was one of Huntington’s earliest settlers and Marion Carll was Commack’s first teacher. She died in 1968 and willed the site to the district. The site was occupied by a Carll family member until 1993, as stipulated in the will. The district leased part of the site to BOCES from 1990 to 2000 and sought to sell the farm to developers for $750,000 in 2010, but the public referendum failed. 

Over the years, different school boards have had different ideas on how to use the property. James, who grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania, said that the board is committed to doing what’s best for the district. 

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The Commerdinger home in Nesconset, as seen today, was expected in 2006 to become a living museum.

Instead of selling their property to a developer for nearly $2 million, the family of Walter S. Commerdinger, Jr. sold to Suffolk County in 2006 their property on the north side of Lake Ronkonkoma with its historic home, circa 1810, for a reported $1.2 million. The idea, said Commerdinger’s heir, Paul Albert, was to turn the site into a living museum to honor the legacy of the family, regarded as one of Nesconset’s earliest settlers.

The home, which was in pristine condition when sold, has sat vacant for more than a decade now and has been repeatedly vandalized. Despite being awarded $100,000 in grant money for repairs from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation, the county has allegedly not yet followed through with its end of the bargain.

The Commerdinger home in 2006, when the county purchased the site.

Both parties aim to renegotiate the agreement. 

Marie Gruick is a member of Nesconset Chamber of Commerce and she’s been helping Albert navigate the situation he’s facing with the government.

“They keep saying they’re broke,” Gruick said. “It’s been a bunch of empty promises. They just gave other communities $500,000 for a parking lot.”

The situation, though, highlights the challenges of preserving history on Long Island and in New York in general. Commerdinger Park and Marion Carll Farm, in Commack, are two examples of families hoping to preserve history with gifts of historic homes and properties to public entities. Both sites have historic homes that have fallen into a state of disrepair. 

Sara Kautz is the preservation director of Preservation Long Island. The not-for-profit organization works with Long Islanders to protect, preserve, and celebrate cultural heritage through advocacy, education, and stewardship of historic sites and collections.  The organization offers many services for free.  She said that more and more places are at risk.

John Kennedy Jr. (R) served as Nesconset’s county legislator in 2006 and helped facilitate the initial transaction for the Commerdinger site. Kennedy now serves as county comptroller and is running for county executive. His wife Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset) now serves as county legislator for District 12. She said there are no new updates.

“There’s a contract that everyone is reading through, so Commerdinger can join up with Smithtown Historical Society,” Leslie Kennedy said. “But it’s all in the talk stage.”

Gruick said the park is the last green space in Nesconset and its trails stretch to Lake Ronkonkoma. If the county isn’t interested in maintaining the home, she said, they should give it back. The family formed a 501(c)3 nonprofit, W.S. Commerdinger Jr. County Park Preservation Society, in 2008 to serve as stewards for the site but have been unable to accomplish what needs to be done for the house and its buildings. They say they feel like they’re on a merry-go-round.

“How long is the county going to dangle carrots,” Gruick said. 

The most immediate task, Gruick and Albert said, is to get PSEGLI to hook up the electricity to the site, so they can install security cameras to prevent further damage and to get county water hookup. What Gruick doesn’t understand, she said, is why the county is telling them that hooking up to electricity needs to go to bid if PSEGLI is the business that connects electricity. 

The county said in response to our inquiries that the order is in with PSEG, which needs to schedule the work. They could not provide a time frame for electric hookup and could only say that the request has been in for a while. 

Albert said that he has collections of antiques, including pottery crafted in the first kiln brought to America. He had hoped to move the pieces into the site by now. Formerly a banker, Albert said that he needs a lawyer that specializes in preservation but is unsure who has that expertise.

Crolius family heirs hope to exhibit a rare pottery collection in the Commerdinger home museum.

Kathryn Curran is the executive director of the Gardiner Foundation, a philanthropic group that supports historic preservation projects for 501(c)3 organizations with an education mission, but not for schools. 

The foundation offers $5 million in grants annually and said that some projects go more smoothly than others. When a municipality owns a building, she said, they typically have a contract in place with a “friends” group to manage the property. 

“The money is allocated to the friends group, not the municipality,” she said. 

Because of the “friends” agreements with government, she said the group needs town approval for the work and the contracts it hopes to secure. For some reason, towns or government entities don’t always feel comfortable with the process.

“We’re trying to give historic educational experiences to enhance a community,” she said. “It’s a downtown revitalization gift.”

She said that local businesses benefit when these projects are completed, so she doesn’t always understand herself why governments are reluctant. She said that many people are willing to volunteer as part of a friends group. These people, she noted, are also a precious gift. 

“It appears they don’t want to be beholden to private money,” she said. 

Gruick and Albert said they are frustrated but remain hopeful. They plan to meet with officials in the Town of Smithtown in the upcoming weeks for help. 

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2019 boys and girls participants in Boys and Girls State from Greenlawn American Legion.

The American Legion Greenlawn Post 1244 each year selects  high school juniors to send to a weeklong summer camp called Boys and Girls State. The educational program’s instruction on government is regarded as one of the best for U.S. high school students. 

Last week, the organization received a $5,000 grant from state Sen. Jim Gaughran’s (D-Northport) office and has become a significant source of funding that expects to help grow the local program. 

“We’ve been receiving typically $50 and $100 from people to sponsor kids,” said Legionnaire Charlie Armstrong, who organizes the program for the Greenlawn post on a volunteer basis. It cost about $500 to send each student.

The post funded 22 kids last year, 20 boys and 2 girls from local high schools. They are currently in the process of talking with principals and guidance counselors at 10 to 12 local school districts and expect to identify candidates for the 2020 season in the upcoming months. The additional revenue means the post can likely fund more students to attend. 

“The American Legion Greenlawn Post 1244 is committed to ensuring students are exposed to how government is supposed to function,” Gaughran said. “These are critical teachings which allow students real exposure to the fundamentals of government and encourage young adults to be active, engaged citizens. I am proud to provide funding to allow them to expand this great program and thank the Greenlawn American Legion for their unwavering commitment to creating meaningful opportunities for our youth.”

William Floyd student Damian O’Malley participated in the 2019 session, which he said taught him about leadership and the benefits of teamwork. He said it was by far one of the best experiences he’s ever had. He engaged in county, city and party caucuses, which, he said caused him to speak out for which position he wanted. 

“I also got to step out of my comfort zone, when I stood in front of everyone in my county and ran for county judge,” he said. “During the week, I met so many people who I would have never gotten the chance to meet, had it not been for this experience.” 

The program dates back to the 1930s, but the Greenlawn Post has been running its program since 2009. Each year more and more students from the area are participating, though more opportunities are available for Boys State than Girls State, which is organized through the American Legion Women’s Auxiliary. 

“When we saw the positive effect this program had on the students we sent, it became our goal to give as many more young people as possible the opportunity to have this experience,” Armstrong said. “After all, they are the future of our country.”

The program aims to objectively expose students to the rights, privileges, duties and responsibilities of a franchised citizen and includes practical training with fictitious local city, county and state governments created by students who are elected and appointed to various offices.  Some of the program’s more prominent graduates includes U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, astronaut Neil Armstrong and television reporter Jane Pauley. Locally New York State Supreme Court Justice Jerry Asher and Suffolk County Legislator William “Doc” Spencer (D-Centerport) are graduates of the program. Former President Bill Clinton, who famously shook the hand of then President John F. Kennedy as a Boys State/Nation candidate, is memorialized in an iconic photo that reveals the aspiring glance of a future world leader. 

In a telephone interview Asher said that the program for him was formidable and a very positive experience. Asher attended in 1958 and met two college friends during the training, one that became his college roommate and a lifelong friend. 

“It was a very structured environment, a bit like the military,” he said. “We learned about local governments and the issues of the day and held elections for town, county and state governments and had time for sports competition and music.”

He said the lesson to be learned is:  Be involved in your community and public service. 

The funding will allow 11 Long Island high school students to attend the program. It is the first year Greenlawn is receiving money from the New York State Senate for the program. 

Students interested in applying must be in their junior year of high school and should contact either their guidance counselor or Charlie Armstrong at 917-337-2234 or by email at [email protected].  

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Gaughran holds roundtable discussions with village, town and county elected officials. From left: N.Y. State Sen. Kevin Thomas (D-Levittown), Jim Gaughran (D-Northport) and Assemblyman Fred Thiele (I-Sag Harbor).

New York State Sen. Jim Gaughran (D-Northport) represents Huntington and its surrounding communities with his seat in Albany but also speaks for all New Yorkers as chair of the Local Government Committee, which is responsible for looking at issues that impact the villages, towns and counties.  

Over the last month, Gaughran has organized roundtable discussions with many elected officials in his district, on Long Island and in upstate New York. Two common threads continue to surface: environmental concerns, such as water quality and sewage treatment, and high taxes.  

Many elected officials, Gaughran said in a telephone interview, were frustrated and feel restricted by the permanent 2 percent tax cap. Gaughran said his feeling is that all elected officials represent taxpayers. If you can imagine how much higher taxes would be without the cap, which was previously temporary, the costs would be even higher. 

The following Q&A summarizes some of the ongoing discussions taking place that aim at reducing people’s tax burden:

Why are Long Island taxes so costly?

I’ve been a state senator for nine months and pay property tax, and as a citizen I’ve seen taxes go up and up and up. One of the reasons I ran for office was to address this concern. Before the 2 percent tax cap became permanent this year, municipalities could raise taxes to whatever level they saw fit. Also, the federal government’s elimination of the state and local tax deductions is essentially a tax increase for Long Islanders. 

Long Islanders regularly complain about high taxes. Can that reality change? What are some of the best ideas that can be implemented to address concerns?

We are looking at ways to allow villages to build clean energy. There are certain provisions in certain laws that need to be tweaked to remove impediments. Towns and villages already have the authority to initiate projects.  

What ideas hold the strongest potential for reducing costs?

Consolidation of services holds the greatest potential. We’d like to make changes to create more opportunities to share or consolidate services such as road repair and police and water districts. It’s not my job to tell local governments what to do. There’s reluctance, so we need to maintain independence. We want to give people the tools they need and provide incentives and take away impediments so governments can share services such as road repair and snow plowing. Villages can combine services with other villages, towns can consolidate services with villages. A simple example: When it snows the Town of Huntington sends out its plows, the Department of Transportation has its plows and villages have plows. You have three different plows in the same area. It’s silly to have plows take care of some roads and not others.  

The many different election districts for fire, schools, libraries, villages, towns, county, etc. make it hard to monitor expenditures. Are there any discussions about changing that?

My jurisdiction as chair of the Local Government Committee pertains to village, town and county governments. There’s an education committee that addresses school issues. But, for the 2020 primary elections, state and local primaries will be combined and held in September, which will save tens of millions of dollars over time. The problem is that budgets are on different cycles and it’s been a tradition, but its worthy of investigation. 

Our newspaper has noticed that a $2 million home in Southampton pays $6,000 a year in taxes, while a house in Fort Salonga valued at half the value pays more than twice the amount in taxes. Is there any way to address the inequities?

In Suffolk County, tax assessments are done by town. It’s always been done on the local level. I would be against the state imposing local control. One of my big fights is to increase state aid for schools. The most important investment to make is education. Perhaps the money can come from economic development funds. 

High property taxes often are attributed to school spending. Education is important, but is there a way to consolidate services?

School districts dictate their own fate. There’s nothing stopping two districts from combining. It’s not a board issue, it’s the voter. Last time it was tried, I think it was on the North Fork, the referendum failed. Long Islanders are reluctant to lose local control. It’s a fact of life. More funding for school and state aid will help.  

It’s often stated that increasing costs for retirement benefits in the public service sector (teachers and police) is one of the main reasons for high taxes. Is that true?

The fact is that the vast percentage of costs when you look at a pie chart in any government anywhere is to pay the people that provide the services. We’re fortunate to have many dedicated volunteer fire departments on Long Island. The people offer protection and it’s a tremendous savings. Some communities pay for fireman and it’s a huge cost. 

Generally speaking, a lot of people in the public health sector, whether its teachers, police or city health employees, work because it’s something they want to do. Salaries are often lower than the private sector. Their pension benefits are protected. It’s something they’ve invested in. It’s their money. The State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli administers the system. Most years it’s the number one or a top investor in the bond market. Are there abuses at different levels of government? Perhaps, but it’s often caught. 

What steps can people personally take to address the situation?

Everyone should participate in local government: village, town, school. People need to pay more attention. Everyone should vote. 

 

Photo from Gaughran’s office

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