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Daniel Stratton (center) speaks at a press conference about a resolution to ban smoking at athletic fields with Legislator William Spencer, (left) and Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (right). Photo from Jennifer Mish

By Wenhao Ma

Huntington legislators want to clear the air.

Town Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D), joined by Suffolk County Legislator William “Doc” Spencer (D-Centerport), announced new legislation, on July 14, that would prohibit smoking on athletic fields across Huntington Town.

Smoking in town parks and beaches has been banned for years — but athletic fields have not been specifically addressed in any town laws. The new legislation, according to Spencer’s office, is a response to residents who have expressed concerns about being exposed to secondhand smoke at sporting events.

Daniel Stratton is one of those concerned residents, and he brought the proposed code amendment to Cuthbertson’s attention.

“I noticed some of my children’s coaches leaving the dugout to smoke a cigarette just outside the fence of the field,” Stratton said in an email. “Aside from this being an obviously unhealthy behavior to model for the children, it seemed very counterintuitive when we are trying to get our children outside to be active and healthy.

“Even a child becoming conditioned to see cigarettes out in public or out at a ball field has an impact. [The legislation] is something that in the long term will save lives.”
— William Spencer

Stratton, who is a former health teacher, said he started researching laws and regulations for smoking at athletic fields and that is how he got involved with Cuthbertson.

“I discovered [there] was already a ban at Huntington beaches and playgrounds and I saw that this was spearheaded by Councilman Cuthbertson. So I contacted him to find out if there was already a law that encompassed [athletic fields] and if not, how I could pursue a resolution to this situation,” he said.

According to the legislation, no person shall smoke a tobacco product, herbal product, marijuana, cigarette, electronic cigarette, pipe, cigar, vapors, e-liquids or other legal marijuana derivatives in an outdoor playground or athletic field that is town-owned property.

Cuthbertson said the legislation is meant to keep the lungs of Huntington resident’s as safe as possible.

“The goal of my legislation is to protect residents and their families from the health concerns related to secondhand smoke,” he said in a statement. “If passed, this will extend my smoking legislation to include playgrounds, beaches and athletic fields.”

Cuthbertson’s proposal is seen as the result of the cooperation between the Town of Huntington and the Suffolk County Legislature.

In 2012, the county legislature passed a law restricting smoking in county parks and beaches to parking facilities only. Smoking on county-owned athletic fields was also prohibited. But county laws do not apply to town properties, which leaves smoking on town athletic fields untouched.

Spencer thanked Cuthbertson for drafting the new legislation, which he called “a bold step” in helping to reduce the rate of smoking among the youth and ensuring clean air for all who visit the town’s sports fields.

“Everything counts,” Spencer said in a statement. “Even a child becoming conditioned to see cigarettes out in public or out at a ball field has an impact. [The legislation] is something that in the long term will save lives.”

According to the American Lung Association, tobacco smoke contains more than 7,000 chemical compounds and at least 69 of the chemicals are known to cause cancer. Secondhand smoke is also toxic, and causes more than 41,000 deaths per year. ALA’s website says more than 24 million children in the U.S. have been exposed to second-hand smoke, and it is responsible for between 150,000 and 300,000 lower respiratory tract infections in infants and children under 18 months of age.

“As a practicing pediatric ear, nose, and throat physician, protecting residents from the dangers of tobacco is a cause near and dear to my heart,” Spencer said. “This is why I stand here with my colleagues on the town level to advocate for these measures.”

A public hearing on this resolution is scheduled at a town board meeting on Aug. 16.

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Summertime provides an opportunity to slow down, renew our energy and get ready for the intensity of the fall. These summer days encourage us to relax and enjoy those beautiful summer breezes and those sunny days.

We all need time to renew and refresh our energy. However, we still must be vigilant when it comes to parenting our children and attentive to what is happening in our world. Too often during the summer parents relax their rules and give their teenage children a little slack. The challenge is to find the balance. Too often during this time, parents turn a blind eye to serious social circumstances. Underage teenage drinking escalates. There are more parties to attend, more opportunities to socialize at the beach, on the boat, at the park and going to concerts, just to name a few.

Too many parents see teenage drinking as a rite of American passage. Unfortunately, my experiences document that more and more teenagers are under the influence of alcohol when they first try illegal drugs like heroin.

Heroin use within our community is escalating daily. Young people of privilege even have this drug delivered to their home. Parents need to be more vigilant. The local clergy have indicated that in their respective congregations they are burying at least one young person a month who has died because of a heroin overdose — that is tragic!

If we are going to turn the tide on this devastating health crisis, we need to form a coalition of concerned persons who are willing to demand change from our insurance companies and from our government leaders. We need more detox and long-term treatment beds today — not tomorrow, not next year, today! Enough with the political lip service to this serious life issue.

This summer we’re getting a real education in American civics. It is a very disturbing lesson! Both major parties have formally nominated their candidate for president of the United States. The money that is being wasted on negative campaigning is shameful. Attacking the character and integrity of each party’s candidate is a real distraction from the real issues that we as a nation must confront.

Our political landscape is wrought with land mines that do nothing but distract us from what is important and blur the real truth. This political season has been embarrassing. It seems to be more fixated on divisiveness than unity. We are a nation blessed with diversity; we need to work harder at building bridges instead of walls between us.

Both candidates should commit themselves to a language of respect, inclusiveness, human rights, social justice and equality for all Americans. Yes, this election needs to address our racial divide. It needs to address discrimination based on sexual orientation and socioeconomics, loss of respect for law enforcement, our broken and inhumane immigration system, our deteriorating schools, the cost of college education, our position on the world stage, international terrorism and the renewed violence in our nation.

Whoever we elect as president of the United States in November must bring us together as one nation founded on freedom and respect for all citizens no matter what our human circumstance. He or she must give voice to every American!

Fr. Pizzarelli, SMM, LCSW-R, ACSW, DCSW, is the director of Hope House Ministries in Port Jefferson.

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Narcan, a drug that stops opioid overdoses. File photo by Jessica Suarez

“[CARA] is the culmination of so many families that had to lose loved ones over the last several years.” —Steve Chassman

Help is on the way, as President Barack Obama (D) signed a multibillion dollar bill into law this week that takes aim at the growing drug abuse problem facing many North Shore residents and families.

The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 is an $8.3 billion plan to fight drug addiction in the United States, with a significant amount of funding for prevention and treatment.

Obama said in a statement last Friday though, that he feels the bill could have gone further with funding for prevention.

“This legislation includes some modest steps to address the opioid epidemic,” he said. “Given the scope of this crisis, some action is better than none.” However, Obama was critical of the amount of money allotted for treatment options.

CARA funding includes $160 million for the expansion of medication-assisted treatment options, including grants that will be awarded to state, local and tribal governments to provide opioid abuse services. These grants will help fund programs that could expand treatment alternatives to incarcerations — with consent of attorneys and participants — for individuals who meet the program’s criteria.

Funding will also help develop, implement and expand prevention programs and training for first responders to administer opioid overdose reversal drugs, like Narcan. It will also fund investigations of unlawful opioid distribution activities.

Obama said he is committed to ensuring that support continues for individuals and families who are struggling with drug addiction.

President Barack Obama said he wanted even more funding for treatment. File photo
President Barack Obama said he wanted even more funding for treatment. File photo

“I have heard from too many families across the country whose lives have been shattered by this epidemic … I’m going to continue fighting to secure the funding families desperately need,” he said. “In recent days, the law enforcement community, advocates, physicians and elected officials from both sides of the aisle have also joined in this call.”

U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley), who is a co-sponsor of the bill, has been vocal about asking the Senate and the president to pass the bill, after it went through the House of Representatives with a bipartisan vote of 407 to 5 in mid-July. It was passed by the Senate with a bipartisan vote of 92 to 2 the following week.

“Our communities and families on Long Island have been severely impacted by the rise of prescription drug abuse and the growing epidemic of heroin, and I will continue working with local elected officials, law enforcement, health professionals, community groups, parents, concerned residents and those in recovery to discuss and develop a more localized solution to address this crisis by increasing treatment and recovery services, education, and stopping the influx of illegal substances,” he said in a statement on Monday.

Steve Chassman, executive director of the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, said the law is “arguably the most comprehensive bill” out there concerning the combat against drug abuse.

“It is heavy in education, prevention and treatment,” he said. “We are not just going to incarcerate our way out of this. [CARA] deals with this crisis as the crisis is.”

Chassman has attended multiple drug forums, prevention talks and community meetings on this growing problem, and said the new law is “the culmination of so many families that had to lose loved ones over the last several years.”

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Congressman Lee Zeldin, joined by Suffolk County Police Commissioner Tim Sini, health professionals, community groups, parents, expresses his support for the package of bills coming to the House floor this week. File photo from Jennifer DiSiena

Major change may be coming to the North Shore, as a drug abuse bill is set to land on U.S. President Barack Obama’s (D) desk this week.

U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) is a co-sponsor of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016, which plans to spend $8.3 billion to help combat widespread drug addiction, especially addiction to heroin, on Long Island.

“As addiction and overdose deaths continue to climb, tearing families apart, it is essential that the President sign CARA into law to start delivering help to those suffering,”
— Lee Zeldin

CARA passed through the House of Representatives last week with a bipartisan vote of 407 to 5, and the Senate this week with a bipartisan vote 92 to 2.

Zeldin, who is a member of The Bipartisan Task Force to Combat the Heroin Epidemic, said he has been a proud supporter of this bill for more than a year now, and is happy to see Congress backing it.

“With both House and Senate passage of CARA, a bill that I proudly cosponsor, we are now only one step away from this bill being signed into law,” Zeldin said in a statement. “78 people [lose] their life every day as a result of an opioid or heroin overdose. Last year — on Long Island alone — 442 people died of a heroin or opiate overdose, up from 403 overdose deaths the year before. As addiction and overdose deaths continue to climb, tearing apart families and communities, it is essential that the President sign CARA into law to start delivering help to those suffering.”

The specifics of CARA include $80 million in funding to help prevent and treat addiction on a local level through community-based education, prevention, treatment and recovery programs; $160 million for the expansion of medication-assisted treatment options; and $103 million to establish a community-based competitive grant program to address and treat the problems of heroin and opioid addiction and abuse. Additional funding will help supply po lice forces and emergency medical responders with higher quantities of naloxone, known more commonly as Narcan, a medication that is proven to reverse an opioid overdose.

Another part of CARA’s funding focuses on pain management and prescription.

According to the bill, the Department of Health and Human Services is required to assemble a Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force, which will review, modify, and update the best practices for pain management and prescribing pain medication, and examine and identify the need for, development, and availability of medical alternatives to opioids.

The grant aspect of CARA is connected to the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968. CARA is set to amend that bill to authorize the Department of Justice to award grants to state, local and tribal governments to provide opioid-abuse services, including enhancing collaboration between criminal justice and substance abuse agencies; developing, implementing and expanding programs to prevent, treat, or respond to opioid abuse; training first responders to administer opioid overdose reversal drugs; and investigating unlawful opioid distribution activities.

The North Shore is not immune to the heroin crisis. According to a New York State Opioid Poisoning, Overdose and Prevention Report from 2015, Suffolk County has the highest heroin-related overdose fatalities of any county in New York.

Zeldin has co-sponsored several other bills in the House on this issue.

“While there is not just one piece of legislation that will solve this crisis, we must always continue our fight to provide our local communities with the resources necessary to help stop and prevent drug abuse through treatment, enforcement, and education,” he said.

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An aerial view of Plum Island. Photo from U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

By Wenhao Ma

The future of Plum Island, a government-owned isle located in Southhold Town, east of Orient Point, is still unclear, but one North Shore legislator wants to ensure it remains in the government’s hands.

U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) announced on July 7 that the House of Representatives passed another one of his legislative proposals to save Plum Island from being sold to private developers. It was his second piece of legislation passed on this issue since May.

Currently, the federal government owns Plum Island, but a 2008 law required that the government sell the property to the highest bidder.

Zeldin said he think this is the wrong path for the island, which has served as the site for the Plum Island Animal Disease Center for decades.

U.S. Rep Lee Zeldin, far right, listens during his visit to Plum Island. Photo from Zeldin's office.
U.S. Rep Lee Zeldin, far right, listens during his visit to Plum Island. Photo from Zeldin’s office.

“It is time for the United States Senate to act and pass my proposals, so that we can pursue a better direction for Plum Island that would allow for continued research, public access and permanent preservation of the island,” Zeldin said in a statement

Zeldin’s amendment to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act of 2017 prohibits any of the funding within the appropriations bill to be used to market or sell Plum Island.

Both of Zeldin’s proposals were passed with bipartisan support in the House. The May bill would reverse the 2008 federal law that mandated the public sale of Plum Island by the government to the highest bidder. Now, Zeldin is looking for support from the Senate.

“The Senate also must pass this legislation to ensure that Plum Island is not sold to the highest bidder, but rather is preserved for generations to come,” he said.

The congressman said he would work on providing alternative uses for the island, such as a transfer of ownership to another federal agency, the state or local government, a nonprofit, or a combination for the purpose of education, research and conservation.

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s website, Plum Island was “the nation’s premier defense against accidental or intentional introduction of transboundary animal diseases,” including foot-and-mouth disease, a viral illness most popular in children under the ages of five.

Homeland Security took over ownership of the island in 2003. Five years later, Congress passed Public Law 110-339, which allowed the General Services Administration to close the disease center and sell the island to the highest bidder in order to fund the building of the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kansas — the replacement for the existing center, due to the age and safety levels of the old facility.

Environment groups from both Long Island and Connecticut have been strongly opposing the law, saying that handing the island to private developers could bring damage to the natural environment and resources.

“The Neck” — A view of Plum Island. Photo by Robert Lorenz
“The Neck” — A view of Plum Island. Photo by Robert Lorenz

“Its location at the convergence of two major estuaries provides an essential habitat for a rich variety of resident and migrating wildlife,” said Kevin McAllister, founder and president of the Sag Harbor-based nonprofit Defend H2O, which protects and restores the environmental quality of groundwater, surface waters, wetlands and beaches on and around Long Island. “Selling the island to developers would open the gates to more water pollution. Giving it away would be a major blow to conservation efforts and be an unconscionable act by the government.”

Jason Garnett, program director of Soundkeeper, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting the Long Island Sound, agreed, saying that Plum Island is an important rest location for migrating birds and waterfowl.

“By preserving ecologically important, open coastal spaces such as Plum Island, we are doing the right thing for future generations of people and the creatures that depend on [the island’s] ecological services of clean air and water,” Garnett said.

Soundkeeper was among many organizations and individuals that filed a lawsuit in federal court on Long Island two weeks ago against the Department of Homeland Security and General Services Administration, that accused the department of violating federal laws and failing to protect endangered and threatened species by intending to sell Plum Island.

John Turner, spokesman for the Preserve Plum Island Coalition, is one of the plaintiffs in the suit.

“We think that the government needs to comply with the existing law,” he said.

Zeldin said he is supportive of the local groups’ efforts to prevent the sale of Plum Island.

Besides activist groups, Southold Town also took actions to save the island.

Three years ago, the town passed a zoning law that created two zoning districts on the island, making one a research district and the other a conservation district, where no housing nor any kind of development would be permitted. If the island is sold, a new buyer would have to follow those zoning laws. According to a 2016 Homeland Security report, Alternatives for Final Disposition of Plum Island, the new zoning “sets forth a limited number of allowed uses, restricting the development potential of the property.”

Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell (R) said the town has been working well with local environment groups to prevent an uncertain future for the island.

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Lee Zeldin. File photo by Victoria Espinoza

The fight against opioid abuse took a step further this week as U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) plugged new legislation. The freshman congressman is a co-sponsor of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, which plans to spend $8.3 billion in funding to help combat widespread drug addiction, especially to heroin.

CARA passed through the House of Representatives last week with a bipartisan vote of 407 to 5.

Zeldin, who is a member of the Bipartisan Task Force to Combat the Heroin Epidemic, said he has been a proud supporter of this bill for more than a year now.

“As a co-sponsor of CARA, I have been a vocal supporter of this bill since it was first introduced at the beginning of last year,” he said in a statement. “Over the past year … I have worked closely with our local community, hosting multiple drug task force round tables here on Long Island, to bring together local elected officials, law enforcement, health professionals, community groups, parents, concerned residents and those in recovery, to discuss and develop a more localized solution to address this crisis.”

Zeldin has held heroin events in Smithtown and Brookhaven to meet with community members and keep the discussion open.

The specifics of CARA include $80 million in funding to help prevent and treat addiction on a local level through community-based education, prevention, treatment and recovery programs; $160 million for the expansion of medication-assisted treatment options; and $103 million to establish a community-based competitive grant program to address and treat the problems of heroin and opioid addiction and abuse. Additional funding will also help supply police forces and emergency medical responders with higher quantities of naloxone, known more commonly as Narcan, a medication that is proven to reverse an opioid overdose.

“We must always continue our fight to provide local communities with the resources necessary to help stop and prevent drug abuse through treatment, enforcement and education.”
—Lee Zeldin

Another part of CARA’s funding focuses on pain management and prescription.

According to the bill, the Department of Health and Human Services is required to assemble a Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force, which will review, modify and update the best practices for pain management and prescribing pain medication, and examine and identify the need for, development and availability of medical alternatives to opioids.

The grant aspect of CARA is connected to the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968. CARA is set to amend that bill to authorize the Department of Justice to award grants to state, local and tribal governments to provide opioid abuse services, including enhancing collaboration between criminal justice and substance abuse agencies; developing, implementing and expanding programs to prevent, treat or respond to opioid abuse; training first responders to administer opioid overdose reversal drugs; and investigating unlawful opioid distribution activities.

CARA currently has 44 co-sponsors and is set to go to a vote in the United States Senate.

The North Shore is not immune to the heroin crisis. According to a New York State Opioid Poisoning, Overdose and Prevention Report from 2015, Suffolk County has the highest heroin-related overdose fatalities of any county in New York.

Zeldin said he hopes the Senate will act fast to approve the bill.

“I implore the Senate to act quickly to pass this bill, so that we can start providing the necessary resources to those in need,” he said. “While there is not just one piece of legislation that will solve this crisis, we must always continue our fight to provide our local communities with the resources necessary to help stop and prevent drug abuse through treatment, enforcement and education.”

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Setauket native David Calone, left, was defeated in the Democratic primary for the 1st Congressional District by Anna Throne-Holst, left, Friday.

This post was updated at 11 a.m. on July 13 to include an official vote count.

After more than a week of waiting, it is now known which Democrat will square off against freshman U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) in the race for the 1st Congressional District seat this November.

Former Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst defeated Setauket native David Calone after nearly 1,800 absentee ballots were counted last week. After the June 28 Democratic primary the candidates were separated by just 29 votes. In the end, Throne-Holst was left standing. She defeated Calone 6,479 to 6,162.

“I am deeply grateful to all who placed their trust and support in me, and I am truly humbled by the privilege it has been to get to know, share the concerns, and my message with so many,” Throne-Holst said in a statement through a public relations representative Friday. The Suffolk County Board of Elections confirmed Throne-Holst’s victory but couldn’t give an exact vote count on the absentee ballots as of Friday afternoon.

Throne-Holst, wasted little time turning her attention towards Zeldin Friday.

“Lee Zeldin has shown in every way how out of step and wrong he is, not only for Long Island, but for the country,” she said.

Zeldin’s campaign made a statement after the results of the Democratic primary were known Friday.

“Despite the shameful narrative that the Democrats have been desperately attempting to deceive voters into playing along with, First Congressional District voters are smart enough to sort fact from fiction and reject all of the false, negative and partisan attacks on our Congressman being spun up by the Democrats,” they said. “He looks forward to continuing his work for Long Island and our nation in his second term.”

Throne-Holst commended Calone for his efforts during the campaign.

“I want to congratulate Dave Calone on a spirited race, and I share in the respect and support he garnered in the district, as demonstrated by the very close margin and the strength of his candidacy,” she said.

Though he was disappointed by the narrow margin of defeat, Calone quickly supported his party’s candidate in a statement from his campaign Saturday.

“We were outspent by nearly $1 million and fell short by around 300 votes,” Calone said in an email through a press representative. “That’s a testament to the great Democratic volunteers supporting our campaign across the district. We cannot continue being represented by Congressman Lee Zeldin, one of Donald Trump’s loudest advocates in Washington…I urge people across eastern Long Island to join me in supporting our Democratic nominee, Anna Throne-Holst, to replace him this November.”

Representatives from both parties commented on the primary and November’s general election.

“Long Islanders are ready for a change,” Democratic Congressional Committee Chairman Ben Ray Luján said in a statement. “I congratulate Anna Throne-Holst on her hard-fought win, and know she has the background and wide-ranging experience to bring desperately needed leadership to this district.”

At least one Zeldin supporter was encouraged by the tight race in the primary.

“That was a very expensive and underwhelming Democratic Primary for Anna Throne-Holst with such a poor voter turnout showing an incredible lack of enthusiasm for her,” Brookhaven GOP Chairman Jesse Garcia said in a statement. “The choice is clear; Lee Zeldin understands what is right for New York’s First Congressional District, and knows how to fight and produce results for our values and our families. We look forward to Brookhaven’s own Congressman Lee Zeldin serving another term next January.”

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U.S. Congressman Lee Zeldin, Brookhaven Town Councilwoman Jane Bonner and town Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro at Sills Gully Beach following the revitalization. Photo from Town of Brookhaven

Brookhaven Town Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro (R), U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Shirley) and Councilwoman Jane Bonner (C-Rocky Point) announced the completion of repairs intended to protect, restore and strengthen Sills Gully Beach in Shoreham, after it was severely damaged during Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

“The revitalization project at Sills Gully is one of a dozen North Shore surface water quality protection projects the highway department has undertaken since I took office,” Losquadro said. “I want to thank Congressman Zeldin for expediting the federal funding necessary to complete this project and ensure the resilience of our shoreline.”

“Preventing storm water runoff from entering the Long Island Sound this is a victory for the residents of Shoreham and the environment.”

— Jane Bonner

In order to reduce risk of damage from future storm events, members of the Brookhaven highway department completely removed the ineffective gabion basket walls, replacing them with 160 feet of steel bulkhead with stone-toe protection to prevent scouring. The bulkhead — which now protects areas of the bluff that have experienced significant levels of erosion in the past — has a longer life span than the gabion walls and will better protect from future disasters.

“The completion of restoration at Sills Gully Beach is an excellent example of different levels of government working together for the benefit of our community,” Bonner said. “I have been diligently working on this issue since the damage was caused by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, and I am extremely happy to see these necessary repairs come to fruition. By preventing storm water runoff from entering the Long Island Sound, this is a victory for the residents of Shoreham and the environment. I want to thank Congressman Zeldin and Superintendent Losquadro for working with me to make this happen.”

Brookhaven Town Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro points out the new improvements his department made to protect the area. Photo from Town of Brookhaven
Brookhaven Town Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro points out the new improvements his department made to protect the area. Photo from Town of Brookhaven

As a result of these mitigation measures and to comply with Tidal Wetlands and Clean Water Act permits, the department included upgrades to the existing storm water system by installing a new bioretention area where storm water naturally collects. This bioretention area consists of two, 12-foot deep leaching basins and an 8-foot wide trash rack to capture storm water and transport it through nearly 400 feet of 48-inch, smooth, interior-corrugated polyethylene pipe for natural dissipation. Additionally, a rock-lined drainage swale was constructed along the length of the parking lot to collect any remaining runoff. These upgrades will ensure that polluted storm water is not directly entering the Long Island Sound.

The project was funded with an $875,000 federal grant secured by Zeldin through FEMA.

“Once Brookhaven Town received the necessary federal funding to make repairs at Sills Gully Beach and Gully Landing Drainage Facility, the town was able to complete this important project,” said Zeldin, who is also a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “This revitalization project will help protect, restore and strengthen Sills Gully Beach in Shoreham and the overall quality of water in our local area, and I am proud to join with Superintendent Losquadro and Councilwoman Bonner to announce the completion of this project.”

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Poquott town board swearing-in ceremony draws a crowd. Mayor Dee Parrish, left, takes the oath of office as Trustee John Mastauskas looks on. Photo by Kevin Redding

By Kevin Redding

On Tuesday, July 5, following an unusually tense and complicated election, the dust seems to have finally settled within the Village Hall of Poquott.

With a newly elected member and all that political turmoil behind them, the mayor and board of trustees can now get things done.

Incumbent Mayor Dolores “Dee” Parrish’s re-election came in the form of 239 write-in votes, after opponent Barbara Donovan launched a heated lawsuit to remove her name from the ballot.

Trustee John Mastauskas holds his hand up as he is sworn in. Photo by Kevin Redding
Trustee John Mastauskas holds his hand up as he is sworn in. Photo by Kevin Redding

After her swearing in, Parrish led a very brief meeting that began with Three Village resident, and fellow write-in candidate, John Mastauskas being sworn in as a trustee.

Following the meeting, Mastauskas said that he’s proud and excited to stand by Parrish. Together, their main focus for the future will be the building of the community dock, which has been in high demand by the beach community’s residents, but ignored by past administrations,

Another issue to be dealt with is making sure that speed limits on the roads are controlled, by way of heightened resident awareness and enforcement.

“That’s been a big issue, for me especially,” Mastauskas said. “I watch people flying up and down my street daily. We’ve got kids playing, A lot of our driveways are on hills. Kids go chasing a ball down to the street.

“All it takes is one person driving a little bit too fast, looking at their phone, changing their radio station, and then that’s it. Then we got a big problem on our hands. We want to try to eliminate that [altogether].”

With a lot left to be done, Parrish is hopeful. “[Mastauskas] is a new energy in the Village,” she said. “Now it’s time to move forward and do what the residents want, and keep doing all the good things that we’ve accomplished the past two years.”

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Brookhaven Supervisor Ed Romaine and Councilwoman Jane Bonner. File photo

Long Island residents who go to National Grid for their gas may be paying more come January 2017, but not if the Town of Brookhaven has anything to say about it.

The Brookhaven town board passed a resolution, with a unanimous vote June 30, opposing the company’s proposed rate increase that was announced in January. Brookhaven Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) sponsored the resolution, though all six board members asked to be added as co-sponsors prior to voting.

“This is an outrageous rate hike — it will impose a burden,” Romaine said in a phone interview last week. “We think it’s far too great.”

The increase would cost National Grid’s approximately 570,000 Long Island customers about $160 annually on top of what they already pay, according to a statement from the company in January. The increase would be about 12 percent.

Wendy Ladd, a spokeswoman for the company, responded to the resolution in an email Tuesday.

“We feel our proposals and the costs associated with them are essential to provide customers with safe and reliable gas service, enhance storm resiliency, expand the availability of gas service, help reduce methane, support our neediest customers, and to make the investments required to upgrade and modernize aging infrastructure and grow the system to meet the needs of a 21st century clean energy economy for years to come,” Ladd said.

Romaine said there is a precedent for the town intervening in battles over costs with utility companies. Last year, Brookhaven took on Long Island Power Authority in a similar case.

“LIPA now knows that we, if nothing else, will be watchdogs for the citizens of Brookhaven,” Romaine said.

National Grid New York’s President Ken Daly commented on the matter in January.

“National Grid has invested more than $4.5 billion over the past decade to modernize and build a safer and more reliable natural gas system for our customers. During this period of time, we have also maintained stable delivery rates for our customers,” he said in a statement. “Now, as we respond to the need to invest even more into our aging gas networks and prepare for the future needs of our customers, the investments required to provide this service have increased. The proposals will allow us to accelerate our gas main replacement program, improve critical customer service, and ensure that we have a modernized and technologically advanced natural gas system for our customers and the communities we serve, now and in the future.”

The Brookhaven town board is not against a rate hike altogether, though members said they would like to see it greatly reduced.

The resolution read in part: “the cost of living on Long Island is already astronomical partly due to high utility costs, placing a heavy burden on the residents of Long Island … residents are leaving Long Island in search of better opportunity and a lower cost of living.”

The resolution concluded with the board’s intention to “send a letter in opposition to the proposed rate hikes by National Grid and the Department of Public Service.”

National Grid’s January statement said the rate increases would allow them to significantly increase the gas main replacement program and improve technology in flood-prone areas, among other benefits.

The proposal will be reviewed by the New York State Department of Public Service before it is approved.

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