SACRED GROUND
Jaysun Vodopija of Lake Grove trekked over to Lake Ronkonkoma in the snow on March 2 to get an up close look at the lake’s latest mural by local artist and woodcarver Todd Arnett. He writes, ‘This was the first time I saw this beautiful masterpiece in person.’
Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected].
By Donna Deedy
It’s Sunshine Week (March 10-16), time for recognizing and celebrating the importance of freedom of information laws and open government in our democracy.
Newsrooms nationwide are participating in the weeklong event, which specifically aims to help people better understand their everyday right-to-know under federal and state laws. Sponsored since 2005 by The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and the American Society of News Editors, TBR News Media is joining in for this year’s tribute.
We’re focusing on New York State’s Freedom of Information Law. First enacted in 1974, the law succinctly states: “The people’s right to know the process of governmental decision-making and to review the documents and statistics leading to determinations is fundamental to our society. Access to such information should not be thwarted by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.” The law applies to schools and all government entities within the state.
We’ve taken a look at the websites of towns and villages within our circulation area on Long Island’s North Shore to gauge whether or not the process is user-friendly.
What we’ve found is most entities acknowledge their obligation to respond to Freedom of Information Law, or FOIL, requests. The towns of Huntington, Smithtown and Brookhaven post their record access codes online, along with most incorporated villages. Rather than posting their FOIL codes, the villages of Huntington Bay, Nissequogue, Head of the Harbor and Port Jefferson simply provide a link to a one-page preprinted FOIL request form. Port Jefferson village online code explicitly directs the public to visit Village Hall during business hours to examine its record access policy.
It’s important to note that state legislators created a special unit within New York State to answer the public’s questions and render legal opinions about open government practices. The unit, known as the Committee on Open Government, has determined government entities should not mandate the use of record request application forms.
Villages that currently require the public to use their application forms to request records may need to revise their practices to align with state’s legal advisory opinions.
“There’s no obligation on behalf of the requester to travel to town or village offices to view records,” said Robert Freeman, the executive director of New York State Committee on Open Government.
Fortunately, requesting records in the electronic age is easier than ever. If documents aren’t already posted online, people can simply request copies of records via an email to the record access officer. Instructions can be found on the state department’s website: https://www.dos.ny.gov/coog/freedomfaq.html#howrequestemail. The record request template clearly outlines requesters basic rights within the form letter.
Christian Trejabal is the open government chair for the Association of Opinion Journalists. In a blogpost for Sunshine Week he opined on the need for journalists in this day and age.
“Thousands of newspapers have closed over the last 20 years,” Trejabal said. “Tens of thousands of journalists have lost their jobs. Without them, government is under less scrutiny, and that isn’t healthy for democracy.”
If you would like to know more, visit the New York Department of State Committee on Open Government website. It provides volumes of information about the Freedom of Information Law, the Open Meetings Law and the Personal Privacy Protection Law. The committee’s lawyers can also be reached by telephone at 518-474-2518.
Donna Deedy is currently a freelancer for TBR News Media, and has years of experience in the journalism field.
There were applause and cheers at the Town of Smithtown’s March 11 affordable housing lottery for seven new homes located at Country Pointe Woods at Smithtown.
Sixty people applied for the chance to qualify to purchase the owner-occupied, one- and two-bedroom units located on Route 111. The average projected purchase price is estimated to be $350,100. Twenty-one people attended the lottery, which was offered by the town together with Long Island Housing Partnership and 347 Building Company LLC.
The drawing of names was held at town hall. Applicants did not have to be present to be considered, and their housing applications were ranked and will be processed in the order in which their names were drawn.
Smithtown adopted a Municipal Workforce Housing Policy in October 2017, in accordance with New York State’s Long Island Workforce Housing Act. The policy requires developers who build subdivisions of five or more units to create 10 percent of the development for affordable housing.
To be eligible to participate in the affordable housing lottery program, an applicant must be a first-time homebuyer and must meet all program requirements including a total household income not to exceed 130 percent of the area median income for Nassau and Suffolk counties. Applicants must have an acceptable credit history as defined by the program’s guidelines.
At the March 11 lottery drawing, LIHP executive vice president James Britz said housing lotteries help people who otherwise might not be able to afford to live in Suffolk County and specifically in the Town of Smithtown. Attracting these people to live and work in the area “is a critical component in helping municipalities continue to grow,” he said. Those who apply for the Town of Smithtown housing lottery are “a very good combination of different age groups and generations,” Britz said.
Susan Baldridge, 44, was No. 10 in the drawing, and she proudly proclaimed herself “Smithtown born and raised.” Baldridge currently is renting a place in Smithtown. She is a single mother with two daughters and said the opportunity to own a home in the town she loves “seems like fate.” The mother brought her brother Michael — “my good luck charm” — to the drawing, as well as her daughter Felicia.
People that benefit from affordable housing lotteries, said Town of Smithtown supervisor Ed Wehrheim (R), are young people who grew up on Long Island but can’t afford to live here.
“This is a very expensive place to live,” he said, adding he believes affordable housing “can work to keep our talented young people. It’s been proven to work in other municipalities.”
The town’s next housing lottery will be held March 26 at 10 a.m. at town hall. Applications must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. March 22. The housing to be offered will be three one-bedroom rental units and one two-bedroom rental unit at the 36-unit Hudson Place at Kings Park development.
The phrase has become oxymoronic. It’s like a bad riddle: What is something everyone needs, but fewer people on Long Island can have?
They call it affordable housing. The real question is, affordable to whom?
Smithtown just recently hosted its second housing lotto in a year for affordable housing developments March 11. Another lotto is coming up to bat March 26 for three one-bedroom units with a total monthly gross rent of $2,300; and one two-bedroom unit with a total monthly gross rent of $3,200.
The Suffolk County Legislature’s Welfare to Work Commission, which advises the Legislature on issues related to poverty in the county, released a report in 2018 that detailed the holes in affordable housing and government programs.
The report describes that if a family wants to rent, only 18 percent of available housing is rental, compared to the national average of 37 percent. Market rate for monthly apartment rentals in Suffolk was $1,589 in 2017, according to census data, meaning families in that market would have to earn $57,204 — 52 percent of the area median income — a year if they spent 30 percent of their income on the apartment costs. In Smithtown, average rental costs are upward of $2,500 for a one-bedroom apartment, according to online rent tracker RENTCafé.
It’s hard to call such options such as the lottos in Smithtown truly “cheap,” mostly because each is only cheap by comparison.
The Town of Huntington hosted a lotto for Harborfields Estates March 5 with 608 first-time home-buyer applicants entered in that drawing. It’s a staggering number of people all bidding on the hope of owning a four-bedroom home valued $350,125. Real estate taxes on the unit are estimated to be $9,700 annually and estimated HOA fees will be approximately $460 annually.
The county report noted the 2017 Suffolk yearly median income was $110,800, while the median price of a home in 2017 was $376,000, according to census data. If an individual or family spent 30 percent of income on housing costs, the national and suggested average, they would have to earn $125,000 a year to afford the median home price.
These lotteries are an opportunity for the average person looking for a home on Long Island to have the chance to start a life here, but there’s also something dystopian about the entire idea of gambling a chance to be able to afford something as basic as a residence, whether that means renting or owning. Not to mention, anybody who is making less than the area median income knows just how tough it is to find truly affordable living anywhere along the North Shore.
It’s not to say these lotteries aren’t helping those whose names are drawn, but one wonders at the state of some of the hundreds of people who apply for these lottos who then walk away empty handed. While certainly a few of those applying may already own homes or rent apartments and are just looking for a cheaper option, the very nature of a lottery draws upon the desperate.
Municipalities at every end of the Island are complaining about brain drain, of Long Islanders fleeing to seek cheaper housing options elsewhere. Their governments need to look at the issue holistically and take an approach that affects communities as a whole, rather than give it to select individuals.
By Bill Landon
Mount Sinai lady Mustangs had it all on the line March 9, and they walked away from the 2019 post season with their heads held high.
Nassau county champions, Sewanhaka Central High School of Floral Park, took on Suffolk title holders Mount Sinai in the Class A regional Long Island championship finals at Farmingdale State University March 9. It was a five-point game at the half, at 25-20, but Sewanhaka stretched their legs outscoring the Mustangs 41-28 over the final 16 minutes of play to clinch the title game 66-48.
Atop the leaderboard for Mount Sinai was senior guard Brooke Cergol who concluded her varsity career with a team high 21 points, followed by fellow senior Gabby Sartori who netted 10 despite coming back from an injury in the fourth quarter.
During the regular season Sartori averaged 21.7 points per game with 163 field goals, 38 triples with 124 points from the free throw line, ranking her fourth in Suffolk County. The Mustangs entered the postseason as the No. 5 seed where they picked off West Babylon in the opening round, upset Hauppauge the Class A No. 1 seed, went on to defeat Westhampton then followed with a victory over Pierson/Bridgehampton/Shelter Island. Mount Sinai finished their 2018-19 campaign with a solid 21-5 overall record.
By Beverly C. Tyler
Part one of two.
I have always been interested in discovering the history of our ancestors, the stories of the people in our families who came before us. I wanted to learn about where they came from and why they left the places they lived and came to America. The more I learned, the more curious I became.
I also wanted to find out more about the people, places and events that surrounded their lives. In the cartoon “Peanuts,” Sally, Charlie Brown’s sister, once said, “I don’t know much about the past, I wasn’t there.”
“I enjoy learning about the past by searching through the records left by the people who were there.”
— Beverly C. Tyler
I enjoy learning about the past by searching through the records left by the people who were there. I enjoy putting together the pieces of our families’ history and telling their stories. I hope you will enjoy their stories, too, as shared with my grandchildren.
Two of Setauket’s early settlers, the Rev. Nathaniel Brewster, your ninth great-grandfather on your grandmother’s side, and William Jayne, your eighth great-grandfather on your grandfather’s side — my sixth great-grandfather — were both born in the port city of Bristol, in South West England. Their family lines have crisscrossed through British and Setauket history for more than 300 years. Their stories show how the actions of kings and rulers in England helped to shape the early history of Setauket and the Town of Brookhaven.
Brewster accepted a call to be the first minister of the new settlement at Setauket in 1665. The settlement was only 10 years old and had about 30 families — the minimum they felt was necessary to support calling a minister. I know he came here then because the Town of Brookhaven records for that year indicate that a Setauket resident named Mathew Prior sold his home and property, including his young apple and other fruit trees, to the officers of the town for the minister’s accommodation.
Some 10 years later, William Jayne together with 11 other families, came to Setauket from New Haven, Connecticut. Land was being opened up here for settlement, and they all received home lots and were welcomed into the growing community.
Brewster’s grandfather, Francis the elder, was the resident steward of Bristol Castle for Sir John Stafford, a knight and leader of the city of Bristol. His son, the young Francis, served as an apprentice to a barber surgeon and was admitted to the guild of surgeons around the same time he was married. The first child of young Francis with wife Lucy was Nathaniel. When Stafford died, King Charles I leased Bristol Castle directly to Brewster the elder. The son, Dr. Francis Brewster, wife Lucy and their family were also living inside the castle grounds. After the elder Brewster died, the castle was sold to the city of Bristol. Three years later, in 1637, Dr. Brewster and his family left London with the Davenport party on the ship Hector bound for Boston and eventual settlement in the colony of New Haven.
After the family arrived, Nathaniel Brewster was admitted to Harvard College. On the 1641 list of New Haven families, Francis Brewster is listed as having a family of nine and an estate worth 1,000 pounds. The only wealthier settler was the governor, Theophilus Eaton.
In 1642, Nathaniel Brewster graduated from Harvard together with eight other “young gentlemen,” the first graduating class from the first American college. In 1647, Francis Brewster was lost at sea when a ship in which he had a financial interest went down while on a voyage to England.
In England in 1649, King Charles I was executed and Oliver Cromwell came to power. Cromwell was a fanatical Puritan, and his influence was spread well beyond the borders of Britain — England, Ireland and Scotland. These events may have had a great influence on the young Rev. Nathaniel Brewster, a minister in the Puritan colony of Massachusetts. About 1650, Brewster returned to England and served as minister of various churches in Norfolk, East Anglia, on England’s east coast. He was married after 1650 to a daughter of John Reymes of Edgefield, Norfolk, and they had two children, Abigail, born about 1655, and Sarah, born in 1656.
Cromwell took the oath as lord protector of the Commonwealth of England and Wales, Ireland and Scotland in December 1653. He made Presbyterianism the national religion, and he purged the Anglican bishops while at the same time promoting a new freedom of worship. If you think it is strange to have freedom of religion and at the same time have a national-sponsored religion, you are right. It happened here, too, when the pilgrims in Plymouth Colony and the Puritans in the Massachusetts Bay Colony kicked Roger Williams out for practicing his own form of religion.
“What do you think? These two men meet in Setauket. Is it the first time or had they known each other before?”
— Beverly C. Tyler
In 1655, the Rev. Nathaniel Brewster made a trip to Ireland in the company of Henry Cromwell, fourth son of Oliver Cromwell. Brewster also served for a time as minister of Christ Church, Dublin, Ireland. When Oliver Cromwell died of malaria and typhoid fever in London in September 1658, his son Richard tried to carry on as lord protector, but was forced to resign in May 1659. In 1660, Charles II, who had fled England after his father’s execution, was proclaimed king. Suddenly Presbyterianism was no longer the national religion of England, the Anglican Church was restored to power, and the harassment of the nonconformists — anyone not belonging to the Anglican Church — started again. Brewster fled back to America. He came to Boston where he preached for several months at the First Church in Boston. I’ll bet he was glad to get safely out of England.
About the same time that Brewster left England, another nonconformist, William de Jeanne, came to America to escape persecution. When he arrived in New England, he changed his name to Jayne to hide his identity. The lives of these two Englishmen from Bristol were about to cross again. Jayne had been born Jan. 25, 1618. He was the son of Henry de Jeanne, a lecturer of theology and divinity at Oxford University. Jayne was admitted to Oxford but was expelled as a dissenter. He became a Presbyterian preacher, eventually joined Oliver Cromwell’s army and was appointed as one of Cromwell’s chaplains. After the restoration of King Charles II, Jayne fled from England.
Leaving England must not have been easy for Jayne. He left behind a wife and three sons. We don’t know his family’s situation or why he emigrated alone, but his three sons could have easily been in their 20s. He shows up in American records when he is married to Anna Beggs in 1674 in New Haven, Connecticut. The next year the couple moved to the Setauket settlement. It is most likely that Brewster encouraged Jayne to move from New Haven to Setauket.
What do you think? These two men meet in Setauket. Is it the first time or had they known each other before?
Beverly C. Tyler is Three Village Historical Society historian and author of books available from the society at 93 North Country Road, Setauket. For more information, call 631-751-3730 or visit www.tvhs.org.
By Christina Coulter
This year’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade grand marshal has enough Irish in him to go around.
Thousands will line the streets of New York Avenue and Main Street in Huntington Village March 10 for the 85th iteration of the community’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the most time-honored celebration of the holiday on Long Island. This year, full-blooded Irishman and longtime Huntington Hibernian Timothy Rossiter, 72, will lead the parade as grand marshal in a traditional morning suit tuxedo and a dyed-green boutonniere. It will also be his 25th year participating.
“It’s a grand tradition of the Irish people and it gives one the opportunity to express your heritage to the community,” said Rossiter. “It’s just a very, very fun day — everybody wishes they were Irish on Saint Patrick’s Day. It brings the community together, and that’s probably the most important thing.”
Rossiter, who was born in Brooklyn, said he was appointed to the dignified position during the group’s Halfway to Saint Patty’s Day dinner in September of last year. He joined Division 4 of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the largest Irish Catholic fraternal order in the U.S., in 1994. Since then, he has been involved in countless St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, annual turkey drives and other charity efforts. A regular hospice volunteer, he also serves on the Visiting Nurse Service and Hospice of Suffolk, is acting treasurer of the area American Legion Post 360 and serves on the Hibernians’ charity fundraising arm, the board of Taispeain Charities. He said he uses his business connections as president of the Rossiter Financial Group to help raise funds. A golf enthusiast, Rossiter heads up the Hibernians’ Paul Costello Memorial Golf Outing, which supports local food pantries annually.
“I was asked to join the Hibernians way back when — I was interested in community service and this was a way to give back to the community,” he said. “I love the aspect that [Huntington] is relatively small, it’s very community-driven. Mostly, people get along with one another extremely well. It presents a good environment to bring up your children and it’s also a very vibrant business community.”
Rossiter said that the Hibernians attend a 10 a.m. Mass before marching, followed by a breakfast of scrambled eggs and Guinness. After years of participation, he will finally be able to rest his feet in a reviewer’s booth, where he will sidle off to early in the procession.
Beginning at 2 p.m. at the Huntington train station, the parade will include 2,000 participants and feature performances from a slew of bands and drum corps, including the New York Police Department’s The Emerald Society along with local high school marching bands and pipe bands. After turning west onto Main Street, the procession will funnel into Saint Patrick’s Church at 400 West Main St.
A parade route and further information can be accessed at https://www.huntingtonhibernian.com. The preceding annual Grand Marshal’s Ball will be held at The Larkfield Restaurant in East Northport at 6 p.m. on March 8. Raffle tickets cost $175 at the door, and the grand prize is a trip for two to Ireland. Proceeds will go toward parade costs.
“I’m so excited I’m ready to jump out of my skin,” said Rossiter. “I’m very humbled and it’s quite an honor to be chosen to lead the parade.”
By Richard Murdocco
I want to share my thoughts regarding the recent efforts to update the Town of Smithtown’s long-standing comprehensive plan, which was first adopted in 1961.
As part of the research process for its award-winning body of analytical and reported work on Long Island’s land use and development issues, The Foggiest Idea regularly reviews the planning efforts that directly impact communities throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties.
Located in the heart of western Suffolk County, Smithtown was at the forefront of the post-World War II suburban developmental boom, experiencing rapid suburban expansion up through the 1980s. In recent years, the town finds itself needing to balance its suburban landscape with the economic, environmental and social needs of the 21st century.
As policymakers, it is critically important to be cautiously skeptical when it comes to the ambitions and motivations of those who will seek to use this process to transform the town. As you’re well-aware, Smithtown has been unchanged for decades. While partly due to political inertia, there is some merit to the municipality’s long-standing maintenance of the status quo -— from the planning perspective, the town has been essentially built-out for decades.
In 2015, I argued this point on the pages of Long Island Business News, writing that “…with its road network overburdened, water quality declining, and limited vacant open parcels that would allow for transformative development, Smithtown isn’t so much the ‘town that time forgot,’ but rather, the ‘town that has reached its limits.’”
Community-based plans should be driven by policy solutions that are both data backed and grounded in public input, not shaped by those who have something to gain by advocating for strategies that allow for additional growth. It is my hope that the document eventually adopted reflects the realities Smithtown faces, as well as some of the still-relevant recommendations that were made in the 2015 Draft Town of Smithtown Comprehensive Plan Update that was never formally accepted.
Smithtown’s latest road map will be an opportunity to strike the right balance between maintaining the community’s quality of life, while charting sustainable and viable solutions for the area’s future.
I applaud the municipality for undertaking a renewed comprehensive planning effort and look forward to following the progress that is made in the coming months.
Richard Murdocco is the founder and president of The Foggiest Idea Inc.
By Tim Small
The Town of Smithtown has begun efforts to expand its town hall. Specifically, conceptual plans are being developed to add wings to the existing building. Most recently, the town sought appraisals for four satellite, or annexed, buildings as a first step in consolidation. No doubt consolidation of office space will increase efficiency and improve external user’s interaction (regarding “one stop” vs. being shuffled from one building to another). A vacated annexed building can consequently be used for redevelopment (e.g., further redevelopment of old Nassau Suffolk Lumber property), transit-oriented development (e.g., Long Island Rail Road adjacent apartments) or parking.
The Smithtown United Civic Association supports efforts and has advocated for consolidation and resulting efficiency for some time, but expansion of the existing town hall is not the only option. Specifically, utilization of the existing New York Avenue School must be formally explored. Proper business cases must be developed, become completely transparent and the best option for Town of Smithtown taxpayers (e.g., town vs. school tax) selected.
The Smithtown school district can function without the New York Avenue School building, as best evidenced by its recent attempt to sell the property. Not much has changed, except the school board membership. The school district had only informal discussions with the then town leadership, and as legend goes, was told to seek dense redevelopment. The bid by Southern Land Development was met with very strong opposition, forcing it to withdraw its bid offering. Leadership was embarrassed, in a he said, she said situation between town leadership and the school district. Consequently, no trust and no open communication has subsequently transpired, only legal posturing.
Clearly, an opportunity for the school district to reduce operating expenses exists, especially valuable during times of declining enrollment, increased labor costs, reduced state aid and increasing taxes. Yes, school district relocation costs must be understood and properly funded in the process. Clearly, an opportunity for town consolidation exists, arguably enabling redevelopment and launching the long overdue downtown revitalization. Yes, the New York Avenue building needs some remediation work, but let’s not lose sight of the fact that people are currently occupying the building. We need to call upon our elected officials and school board to seriously consider this option.
The school building, also known as the Joseph M. Barton building, sits on 13 acres, was built in 1924, and is about 76,000 square feet in size. It was built as a secondary school, used as a junior high school and became the district’s administrative offices in 1986. Today it serves its function as the district’s central office, adult education programs and board of education meetings. The site also includes athletic fields used by many, such as the Smithtown Kickers Soccer Club. The grounds are the last available green space within the downtown business district. It sure seems like a great opportunity exists to repurpose this historic building, while preserving open green space.
The concept of a town buying a school building is not new to Long Island. We need only to look to our neighbors in the towns of Huntington, Islip or Babylon. As an example, the Huntington Union Free School District sold its building on Main Street in 1978 to the Town of Huntington for $1.
Before moving forward we need transparent business cases developed for each option so that the right decision for a Town of Smithtown taxpayer is selected. We need to hold all of our elected officials accountable. The Smithtown United Civic Association is committed to creating the necessary visibility, driving accountability and facilitating the necessary dialogue. Maybe we need to start by getting everyone in the same room. Any objection from either town or school board?
We live in a wonderful community. We love our schools, local businesses and our beautiful homes. Please help and show support by attending town board meetings. If you can’t go, call or write our council members and let them know you share the Smithtown United Civic Association vision. We need to explore the New York Avenue School purchase and preservation of the last available green space in downtown Smithtown. Together let’s make Smithtown an even better place to live.
Tim Small is president of the Smithtown United Civic Association.
THE MATING GAME
Jay Gao captured this gorgeous image of a pair of wood ducks at the Duck Pond in his hometown of Stony Brook on March 3 using a Nikon D750. A frequent visitor to the pond and adjoining Avalon Park and Preserve, he commented, ‘This is the first time I’ve seen them at this pond.’
Send your Photo of the Week to [email protected].
Prev
