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A solar farm is still being proposed near the Shoreham nuclear power plant. Currently, there are plans near the Pine Barrens in Mastic for a solar installation. Photo by Kevin Redding

In response to a proposed solar farm in Shoreham, members of the Brookhaven Town Board urge state legislators to not only stand with them in opposition, but grant them “a seat at the table” to have their voices heard and taken seriously.

Since it was first submitted last June, National Grid and NextEra Energy Resources’ proposal to build a large-scale solar energy facility on the wooded property that surrounds the abandoned Shoreham nuclear power plant, and clear 350 acres of the 800-acre land made up of cliffs, rolling hills and a variety of wildlife species, has sparked an outpouring of local opposition, from elected officials to environmentalists, civic associations, teachers and parents in the community.

The proposed solar farm in Shoreham could look like the one seen here at Brookhaven National Lab. File photo

Those against it share the belief that “renewable energy is important but not at the expense of another section of the environment.” As recently as Feb. 27, the Shoreham-Wading River school board voted unanimously against endorsing the project, despite a considerable financial offer from National Grid, which owns the Shoreham site, and NextEra.

According to the companies, the proposal, developed in response to a PSEG Long Island request to help New York meet Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) renewable energy goals, would generate upwards of 72 megawatts of solar energy, provide power for more than 13,000 homes, and create between 125 and 175 construction jobs and millions of dollars in tax benefits.

It’s currently being considered by LIPA, which would purchase the electricity generated by the joint companies for a period of 20 years under the contract, and New York State.

Town Supervisor Ed Romaine (R), a leader in the charge against the solar farm, said he thinks the companies involved are making a mistake, and wants it to be known that Brookhaven is going to do everything it can to prevent it from happening and protect the environment.

In addition to the proposed site falling within Shoreham’s A-10 residential zoning code — the most restrictive in Brookhaven — which was put in place more than 25 years ago to specifically protect the “coastal forest preserve,” he said, the proposal directly violates Brookhaven’s solar code adopted last year that opposes cutting down trees or removing native forests to build solar farms or facilities.

“You can build [solar arrays] on clear land, on rooftops, and in parking lots, but you’re not cutting down trees,” Romaine said. “Brookhaven needs to stay green and we do not need to deforest the few uncut forests we have in this town.”

The proposal by National Grid could clear 350 acres along the Long Island Sound. Photo by Kevin Redding

When Romaine and the rest of the town board first heard rumors of the solar farm plan more than a year ago, they dismissed it, confident local opposition and town zoning would be enough to prevent it from going anywhere.

However, the supervisor got word that National Grid and NextEra could get around the zoning restrictions and potentially strip away any of Brookhaven’s say in the matter under Article X of the Public Service Law — a provision allowing “an applicant seeking approval to site a major electric generating facility to obtain a final decision from the New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment, waiving all local zoning requirements, if the Siting Board finds them to be burdensome in terms of technology and costs.”

The Siting Board is composed of five members appointed by the governor.

The town board sprang into action, writing and submitting a letter to nine state senators and assemblymen requesting that the law be amended to allow local municipalities to serve as mandatory parties to the proposed facility “application proceeding.”

“To allow the overriding of local zoning without allowing the local community a significant voice in these proceedings is wrong,” reads the end of the letter, which was signed by Romaine, Councilwoman Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station), Councilwoman Jane Bonner (C-Rocky Point), Councilman Kevin LaValle (R-Selden), Councilman Michael Loguercio (R-Ridge), Councilman Neil Foley (R-Blue Point) and Councilman Daniel Panico (R-Center Moriches).

“We understand there’s a need for Article X and we’re not saying you can’t decide against us, but we just feel the locality should have a seat at the table, which would give us a voice,” Romaine said, admitting he decided to write to the legislature to be on the safe side, not knowing if the proposal will get that far. “Right now, we have no voice.”

Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine, has previously spoken out against a solar farm in Shoreham. File photo

According to a fact sheet provided by National Grid and NextEra, a poll to determine the attitudes of the residents of the Town of Brookhaven was commissioned, asking what they would like to see developed on the Shoreham property — “they chose ‘solar energy project’ above any other use,” it said. When residents were given information about the solar farm project, the sheet stated “level of support grew to 75 percent.”

Conversely, the proposal is an environmental nightmare as far as Sid Bail, president of the Wading River Civic Association, is concerned.

“This is just a horrible use of the land,” he said. “It’s not just cutting the trees with the thought that ‘They’ll grow back in 50 years,’ it’s the hills, the gullies, the wildlife, the plants and the fauna that would have to be destroyed. I can see why the owners of the property, National Grid, would like to do this, they can make a bundle of money from it … however the idea of deforesting several hundred acres of very special forest land in order to achieve a worthwhile goal isn’t a good trade-off.”

Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket), chairman of the Committee on Environmental Conservation, deemed the proposal a bad idea, stating the Shoreham site is worthy of being preserved as part of our natural history.

“This is a native forest in essentially pristine condition … it’s a museum piece of natural land,” Englebright said. “I am the original New York State legislator who sponsored what are now the laws that enabled solar energy to begin to take off. I’m a pro-solar, pro-renewable energy person … [but] it was never my intent to see environmental atrocities committed in the name of renewable energy. I’m offended, as the father of solar energy in this state, that they are attempting to so thoroughly abuse the premise of what solar is meant to be.”

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By Nancy Burner, ESQ.

Nancy Burner, Esq.

Being hyperfocused on avoiding probate can be an estate planning disaster. First, what exactly is “probate”? Probate is the legal process whereby a last will and testament is determined by the court to be authentic and valid. The court will then “admit” the will to probate and issue “letters testamentary” to the executor so that the executor can carry out the decedent’s intentions in accordance with the last will and testament.

That usually involves paying all funeral bills, administrative expenses, debts, settling all claims, paying any specific bequests and paying out the balance to the named beneficiary or beneficiaries. Avoiding probate can be accomplished by creating a trust to hold your assets during your lifetime and then distributing the assets at your death in the same manner and sequence as an executor would if your assets passed through probate.

Typically, this would be accomplished by creating a revocable trust and transferring all nonretirement assets to the trust during your lifetime, thereby avoiding probate at your death. Retirement assets like 403Bs, IRAs and nonqualified annuities are not transferred to revocable trusts as they have their own rules and should transfer after death by virtue of a beneficiary designation.

Retirement assets should not be subject to probate. The designation of a beneficiary is vital to avoid costly income taxes if retirement assets name the estate or default to the estate. The takeaway here is that you should make sure that you have named primary and contingent beneficiaries on your retirement assets.

If you name a trust for an individual, you must discuss that with a competent professional that can advise you if the trust can accept retirement assets without causing adverse income tax consequences. Not all trusts are the same.

Avoiding probate can be a disaster if it is not done as part of a comprehensive plan, even for the smallest estate. For example, consider this case: Decedent dies with two bank accounts, each naming her grandchildren on the account. This is called a Totten trust account. Those accounts each have $25,000. She has a small IRA of $50,000 that also names the grandchildren as beneficiaries. She owns no real estate. Sounds simple, right?

The problem is that the grandchildren are not 18 years of age. The parents cannot collect the money for the children because they are not guardians of the property for their minor children. Before the money can be collected, the parents must commence a proceeding in Surrogates Court to be appointed guardians of the property for each child. After time, money and expenses, and assuming the parents are appointed, they can collect the money as guardian and open a bank account for each child, to be turned over to them at age 18. The IRA would have to be liquidated, it could not remain an IRA and the income taxes will have to be paid on the distribution.

I do not know of a worse scenario for most 18-year-old children to inherit $50,000 when they may be applying for college and seeking financial aid, or worse, when deciding not to go to college and are free to squander it however they want.

If the grandparent had created an estate plan that created trusts for the benefit of the grandchild, then the trusts could have been named as the beneficiaries of the accounts and the entire debacle could have been avoided. The point is that while there are cases where naming individuals as beneficiaries is entirely appropriate, there are also times that naming a trust as beneficiary is the less costly option, and neither should be done without a plan in mind.

When clients have a large amount of assets and large retirement plans, the result can be even more disastrous. Consider the case where a $500,000 IRA names a child as a direct beneficiary. If a properly drawn trust for the benefit of the child was named as beneficiary, there would be no guardianship proceeding and the entire IRA could be preserved and payments spread out over the child’s life expectancy, amounting to millions of dollars in benefits to that child over their lifetime. If payable directly to the child, there will be guardianship fees and the $500,000 will likely be cashed in, income taxes paid and the balance put in a bank account accruing little interest and payable on the 18th birthday of the beneficiary.

The concern is that individuals are encouraged to avoid probate by merely naming beneficiaries but with no understanding of the consequences. At a time when the largest growing segment of the population is over 90, it does not take long to figure out that the likely beneficiaries will be in their 60s, 70s or older when they inherit an asset.

Thought must be given to protecting those beneficiaries from creditors, divorcing spouses (one out of two marriages end in divorce) and the catastrophic costs of long-term care. Whether the estate is large or small, most decedents want to protect their heirs. A well-drafted beneficiary trust can accomplish that goal.

Nancy Burner, Esq. practices elder law and estate planning from her East Setauket office.

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Present the above “coupon” to Buffalo Wild Wings in Miller Place March 10 to donate 10 percent of your total bill to On Kevin’s Wings. Image from Tracey Farell

On March 10, beginning at 11 a.m., Buffalo Wild Wings in Miller Place will be donating 10 percent of each patron’s bill to On Kevin’s Wings, a nonprofit organization that funds airfare or transportation for those seeking drug or alcohol rehabilitation away from home.

After losing her son Kevin to an accidental overdose in 2012, Tracey Farrell began North Shore Drug Awareness, a Facebook page that provides information and assistance to those asking questions wanting to learn more about how to help a loved one battling addiction or looking for rehabilitation centers.

Farrell began to try to help other families who were also dealing with addicted children, while still dealing with one of her own: her daughter. She sent Brianna out of state and claimed it saved her life.

This prompted her to begin her new venture.

In addition to the funds raised March 10, the location is then, for the following 30 days, donating the same 10 percent of each customer’s bill who presents the Home Team Advantage Teammate Card. It’s good for dining in and take out and  can be presented straight from a cellphone.

On March 10, On Kevin’s Wings will also be doing raffles and 50/50 from 6 to 9 p.m.

Buffalo Wild Wings in Miller Place is located at 385 Route 25A.

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MELTology owners Nick Mauceri and Kevin Muller. Photo by Kevin Redding

With the newly opened MELTology in Mount Sinai, two young business partners and former Friendly’s employees bring their fresh, experimental take on a classic comfort food to the North Shore.

The cafe-style sandwich spot, serving variations of grilled cheese, among other standard items like burgers and chicken sandwiches, marks co-owner Kevin Muller’s fourth — and most ambitious — venture in the restaurant business.

Menu options at MELTology include various grilled cheese mash-ups. Photo from MELTology

After his first restaurant in Selden, Simple Smoothie Cafe, buckled under the pressures of surrounding competition in 2012 — with nearby Tropical Smoothies and Red Mangos making his “no-name brand” obsolete — the 30-year-old Patchogue resident drove up and down North Country Road to get a grasp of what foods were most popular among locals, while brainstorming what new flavors he could bring to the area.

“I was losing big time, and I had to figure something else out,” Muller recalled, saying he had to go back to his old job at Friendly’s just to pay rent month after month while his first business went under. “I was just thinking ‘what can I do differently?’”

Just a few months later, after crafting his own spin on his grandmother’s Italian crepes recipe, Muller found great success with Crazy Crepe Cafe, bringing all variations of the traditional treat to four different locations: Selden, Mount Sinai, Smithtown and Lake Ronkonkoma. In the midst of that, he also opened up an East End food truck business in 2016.

Alongside Crazy Crepe manager and former Friendly’s co-worker Nick Mauceri, 25, Muller recently decided to convert his Crazy Crepe in Mount Sinai into MELTology, to try and reach a different market and more of the general public.

“We paired up the grilled cheeses with the dessert crepes and it works really well together, and [in a few weeks] we’re going to bring our burgers from our food truck and combine that to make grilled cheese burgers … we love seeing the place packed and everyone enjoying the food,” Muller said.

MELTology is located at 5507 Suite 16 Nesconset Highway in Mount Sinai. Photo by Kevin Redding

Mauceri, who said the MELTology idea started back when they worked at Friendly’s and were experimenting with the food chain’s super melt sandwiches, can’t believe how quickly the community has taken to the new restaurant — even despite its Friday the 13th opening in January.

“Luckily, everything went off without a hitch [opening day],” he said. “It’s something that’s catching on really quickly, but we couldn’t have known that it was going to be this fast. We get a great sense of pride from it, especially when you get to talk to people who say they’re really enjoying what they just ate.”

According to the owners, such menu picks like the “Chicken Parm Melt” sandwich, made up of melted mozzarella, chicken strips and marinara sauce on parmesan-crusted sourdough bread, and the “Sweetness Melt,” which features applewood smoked bacon and maple syrup, sets MELTology apart from similar sandwich spots in the area.

Kevin put himself through college at SUNY Polytechnic Institute while working, climbing the ladder from employee to general manager, and saving money to start his own business, he said, and has utilized his business degree well. With Crazy Crepes, Muller did all his own training, made his own menus and even did all the marketing.

John Muller, Kevin’s father, called his son a “workaholic.”

MELTology will still have Crazy Crepe desert options on the menu. Photo from MELTology

“I’m very proud of him, obviously, and for someone who started with only a couple thousand dollars and is now running and owning four restaurants, he’s doing really well,” John Muller said. “He’s entrepreneurial — owning a business is something he’s always wanted to do.”

MELTology, located at 5507 Nesconset Highway Suite 16, is open 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Menu items range frlom a classic grilled-cheese sandwich ($4.95); chicken parm melt ($6.95); and “Kitchen Cinque” sandwich, a multilayered melt of Parmesan-crusted sourdough, melted Cheddar, Gruyère, American, pepper jack and apple-wood smoked bacon with a slice of tomato ($6.95). Sides like mac & cheese ($2.50) and soup ($3.99/cup, $5.99/bread bowl) are coming soon. Crazy Crepe sweet crepes that have made the menu include the Dirty Banana, Oreo Crepe, S’mores Crepe, Peanute Butter Cup Crepe and Apple Pie Crepe. Prices Range from $6.95 to $7.95. Milkshakes in vanilla, chocolate, nutella, oreo and peanut butter cup are also available ($4.50).

Takeout can also be ordered online.

For more information, call (631) 509 0331 or visit www.meltology.

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Attention job seekers! Middle Country Public Library, 101 Eastwood Blvd., Centereach will host a Job Fair on March 7 from 1 to 4 p.m.

Presented by the Suffolk County One-Stop Employment Center, representatives from over 40 businesses are scheduled to attend, including ACLD, Amneal Pharmaceuticals, BJG Electronics, Castella Imports, Catapult Staffing, Comfort Keepers, Developmental Disabilities Institute, DiCarlo Distributors, Dollar Tree, East End Bus Lines, East End Disabilities, Eastern Suffolk BOCES, EOC of Suffolk, Express Employment Pros, FREE, FJC Security, Goodwill, Home Depot, Home Instead Senior Care, HW Staffing, Ideal Home Care, Interim Healthcare, LI Cares, LIRR, Lowes, New Vitality, NRL Strategies, NY Life Insurance Co., NYS Civil Service, Options for Community Living, Precious Lambs Childcare, Prudential, Right at Home, SCO Family of Services, South Shore Home Health, Suffolk County Water Authority, UCP of Suffolk, Urban League Mature Workers Program, US Postal Service, Utopia Home Care and Windowrama.

All are welcome and no registration is required. Bring copies of your resume and dress to impress. For more information, call 631-585-9393.

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A woman enjoys a bite at Our Table. Photo from Stacey Wohl.

Farm to table dining has become a popular trend, and one Fort Salonga spot intends to bring an even more localized experience to residents with Our Table.

Owner Stacey Wohl is recreating the space that has been known for the last year as Cause Café, a restaurant that offered jobs to young adults with cognitive and developmental disorders, such as autism. Our Table is not doing the same. Wohl said it was time for a change, and that change came in the form of Northport-native chef Michael Heinlein.

Heinlein came in as a guest chef while Wohl was still running the business as Cause Café, and brought up the idea of working together and creating an organic, healthy menu.

Stacey Wohl is trying a new venture, leaving Cause Café behind. Photo from Stacey Wohl.

Wohl loved the idea. “I eat organic, I eat healthy food and it’s very difficult if you’re trying to eat gluten free or organic to take your kids anywhere to go out to eat — there’s very few places to go,” she said. “What we’re trying to do here is offer a nightlife place where you can meet a friend or go on a date while also having a healthy meal — instead of going to health food stores to eat clean.”

Heinlein, a Northport High School graduate, said the menu is more than just farm to table because of where the company will get its ingredients.

“Everybody uses the term farm to table and I think it’s kind of overused — I think it’s more local to table than anything,” Heinlein said in an interview.

And Our Table intends to bring local products, currently getting produce from farms on Eastern Long Island, but planning to buy from the Northport Farmers Market once the season begins. All the seafood is wild caught instead of farm raised, and the beef is grass fed. Wohl said the pair also intends to offer biodynamic local wine, meaning wine with grapes that are grown organically without the use of pesticides.

Wohl said Our Table’s menu is diverse and offers something for everyone.

“Michael is very eclectic and creative, he draws from a lot of different global influences,” she said. “There’s so many flavors going off in your mouth at once — he’s just using a lot of creative foods and ingredients. It’s food that’s going to make you feel good.” Items include jumbo lump crab cakes and deconstructed chicken tamales.

Heinlein agreed he thinks people will enjoy his menu.

“It’s a good mix of the healthy grains and other ingredients, while still getting that fun fine-dining experience,” he said.

Wohl said Our Table also has an in-house pastry chef to make fresh desserts.

“You’re not coming in here and getting a frozen piece of cheesecake,” she said.

Our Table is set to launch this weekend, with hours from 5 to 10 p.m. daily and Sunday brunch. The restaurant is located at 1014 Fort Salonga Road.

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The Shard Art Shoppe’s owner, Anna Fenimore, presents a piece from her Hearts Collection, to Suffolk Heart Group’s Dr. David D’Agate. Photo from Anna Fenimore

GIVING BACK: On Feb. 1, The Shard Art Shoppe’s founder, American artist, Anna Fenimore, donated a piece from her shoppe’s Hearts Collection to the Suffolk Heart Group in honor of American Heart Month. The Suffolk Heart Group has been preventing and treating heart disease for over 50 years and understands the importance of screening for heart disease.

“The physicians and staff at the Suffolk Heart Group appreciate the beauty and meaningfulness of Anna’s art,” said Dr. David D’Agate, who is a partner at the Suffolk Heart Group. “It is important to remind people that heart disease is the number one killer of men and women in the United States and the Hearts Collection helps convey this very important message,” added D’Agate.

The Shard Art Shoppe just recently celebrated its grand opening with the start of the new year. Located inside The Atelier at Flowerfield of St. James, the studio offers individual and group classes by appointment, teaching a mosaic-like technique — Shard Art — in which one applies pieces of glass to a prepainted and prevarnished canvas to create his/her own masterpiece.

In addition to classes, The Shard Art Shoppe also hosts unique parties for both children and adults. The Shoppe’s gallery features stunning mosaic glass art created by Fenimore, along with a variety of other fine gifts available for purchase. Fenimore will be donating 5 percent of all of the proceeds obtained from the sale of her heart pieces this month to the American Heart Association.

To learn more about The Shard Art Shoppe, please visit its website www.theshardartshoppe.com or call 917-217-3958. To make an appointment for a heart screening visit the Suffolk Heart Group at www.suffolkheartgroup.com or call 631-265-5050.

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John Cronin smiles with a pair of socks from John’s Crazy Socks. Photo from Mark Cronin

By Victoria Espinoza

For one father-son duo, the secret ingredient to success is socks. John Cronin, a 21-year-old Huntington resident diagnosed with Down syndrome, was trying to figure out what he wanted to do with his life after he graduated from Huntington High School, when John’s Crazy Socks was born.

The two-month-old business venture has already seen success, and Cronin and his dad Mark Cronin are continually coming up with new and unique ideas to set John’s Crazy Socks apart.

“We opened the store Dec. 9 and expected a trickle of sales,” Mark Cronin said in a phone interview. “Instead we were flooded with sales. It turns out John is a social media star.”

The co-founders shot and uploaded a variety of videos to the company’s Facebook page, starring the 21-year-old who has become the face of the business.

John and his father Mark Cronin smile. Photo from Mark Cronin

“Those first couple of videos we put up, which were spur of the moment, had 30,00 views,” the elder business partner said. “People were spreading them all around Huntington. So people flooded us and in fact on our first weekend we ran out of inventory.”

John’s Crazy Socks now ships nationally and internationally, and for local residents shipping may be the most enjoyable part of ordering from the company. Cronin hand-delivers local orders, which his dad said is an extra treat for customers.

“Word spread through social media that John would show up to a house to do a delivery, and whole families would come out to greet him and take photos,” he said.

Cronin said it’s one of his favorite parts of the business.

“I really like going to do home deliveries,” he said in a phone interview.

Aside from a friendly face with a new order of socks, patrons also receive a hand-written thank you note from Cronin as well as some Hershey kisses.

“We’ve learned a lot and saw there is a real opportunity here,” his father said. “We’re spreading happiness through socks, and it’s a way of connecting with people. The more people we can make happy the better off we will be.”

The team also gives customers two coupons with each purchase.

“We want to make it a great experience for people to buy from us,” Cronin’s father said.

John Cronin smiles with a customer during a home delivery. Photo from Mark Cronin

He said the duo has high hopes for John’s Crazy Socks, as they intend to become the world’s largest sock store, offering more sock styles and designs than anyone else. When the company started in December, they offered 31 different styles of socks. Today they offer more than 550 different styles.

It’s not just different colors and concepts customers can find at John’s Crazy Socks. They also sell socks with meaning behind them. Cronin designed an autism awareness and a Down syndrome awareness sock, as well as a breast cancer sock, and a Special Olympics sock. Cronin’s father said a portion of the proceeds from each specialized sock goes to national and local charity groups working towards finding a cure or to advocating for the groups, depending on the cause.

A blue whale sock was created for the Cold Spring Harbor Whaling Museum, and there are many other personalized socks to come.

For Cronin, socks represent self-expression.

“I really like socks,” he said. ‘They’re fun and they can fit your own personality.”

The elder Cronin said he’s enjoyed many aspects of starting the business with his son.

“I love bringing joy to people, the little things we get to do to just wow people,” he said. “We live in this increasingly complex world, and we can connect with people and say we hear you and we can make you happy, and that’s awesome. And it’s great to be able to do something with my son.”

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Public hearing at Town Hall will be Farmingville Feb. 6 at 4 p.m.

Rendering of the shopping center. Image from Brookhaven Town

Setauket developer Parviz Farahzad applied to the Brookhaven Town Planning Board for site plan approval to construct a 24,873 square foot retail center, known as Stony Brook Square LLC. The proposed shopping center is located on Route 25A near the Stony Brook railroad station. The plan includes site improvements for parking, lighting, drainage and landscaping.

J. Timothy Shea Jr., a partner in the real estate group of Certilman, Balin, Adler & Hyman LLP, represented Farahzad and Stony Brook Square at a Zoning Board of Appeals hearing Dec. 14. The developer requested front yard setback variances for three of the proposed buildings as well as an addition to an existing building, from the required 25 feet to 11.5 feet; and a height variance for one of the buildings, from a permitted 35-foot height to a 60-foot height. The extra height will be used to raise a clock tower in the middle building at the rear of the center.

“We thought it was a nice feature,” Shea said during the proceedings.

A list of 10 recommendations made by the 25A Corridor Citizens Advisory Committee were read into the hearing record.

Eight homeowners or residents spoke in the public comment portion of the hearing. They expressed concerns regarding traffic safety on the busy road, environmental issues and the viability of adding retail space when there are so many unoccupied stores in the area.

“My first concern is safety,” Professor Erez Zadok of Stony Brook said. “On this stretch of road … people drive fast; over the limit. It’s dark. Additional traffic will make things worse.” He spoke of environmental concerns as well and questioned the need for additional retail space. The nearby Three Village Shopping Plaza currently has four available spaces according to Kristen Moore, spokesperson for Brixmor Properties, and there are three vacant units just down the street.

Several people spoke out against the granting of a variance that would nearly double the permitted height of the proposed clock tower.

Michael Vaeth viewed the tower as a marketing ploy.

“Currently, especially in the winter months, I have a view of the university and the train station,” he said. “I’m objecting to the 60-foot height. That would be the tallest building in all of the Three Villages — including Ward Melville High School.”

Vaeth’s neighbor Maureen Bybee said she didn’t see the need for the clock tower.

“I want to express my objection and opposition to the clock tower. It doesn’t seem to add anything … and it certainly will have an effect on the neighbors,” she said.

David Pauldy also asked the board to reject the height variance for the tower.

“It would have an effect on the neighborhood behind it,” he said. “It would be extremely visible and it would change the character of the neighborhood.”

The zoning board is allowed 62 days to rule on the request for variances, which gives the board until Feb. 14 to make its decision whether or not to grant the variances.

A public hearing is scheduled Feb. 6 at 4 p.m. at Brookhaven Town Hall in the board meeting room for residents and business owners to continue to voice their opinions on this development.

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From left, Chamber of Commerce Directer Christopher Brivio, 2nd Vice President Ayman Awad, Executive Director Barbara Franco, Chamber Secretary Susan Hughes, Dr. Jessie Chusid, President and CEO of Northwell Health Michael Dowling (with scissors), Suffolk Country Legislator Robert Trotta, Dr. Jason Naidich and Dr. David Seligman in front of the new facility. Photo courtesy of Northwell Health

RIBBON CUTTING

Members of the Greater Smithtown Chamber of Commerce and Suffolk County Legislator Robert Trotta (R-Fort Salonga) recently hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for Northwell Health’s latest venture, a $12.8 million, state-of-the-art radiology center named Northwell Health Imaging, located at 226 Middle Country Road in Smithtown. Northwell Health leadership and staff were on hand to mark the momentous event.

The 10,000 square foot facility offers a full range of diagnostic testing services for the community including MRI, low-dose CT, ultrasound, image-guided biopsies, bone densitometry and digital X-ray. It also offers comprehensive breast imaging services such as 3D mammograms, breast ultrasounds, breast MRIs and breast biopsies. Open 5 days a week, the facility has early morning and evening appointments. For more information, call 631-775-3456 or visit www.northwell.edu.

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