In a scene from the film, the Allman Brothers Band pose with Jimmy Carter at a benefit concert for the presidential candidate in 1975. Photo from PJDS
The Port Jefferson Documentary Series kicks off its 26th season on Monday Sept. 14 with an outdoor screening of “Jimmy Carter: Rock and Roll President” at the Harborfront Park, 101 E. Broadway, Port Jefferson at 7 p.m. This fascinating documentary charts the mostly forgotten story of how Jimmy Carter, a lover of all types of music, forged a tight bond with musicians Willie Nelson, the Allman Brothers, Bob Dylan and others. Director Mary Wharton assembles a star cast including Trisha Yearwood, Garth Brooks, Nelson, Dylan and Bono and fills the soundtrack with Southern rock, gospel, jazz, and classical. Bring seating and a mask. Rain date is Sept. 15. Advance tickets only are $10 at www.portjeffdocumentaryseries.com/ticketsvenues.
Suffolk County Legislator Tom Muratore (R-Ronkonkoma), 75, died Tuesday, Sept. 8, leaving behind a career of public service both in police and in local government.
His passing was announced by Suffolk officials Tuesday afternoon.
“For the last 10 years, he served his constituents with passion and unwavering dedication,” said Presiding Officer Rob Calarco (D-Patchogue) in a statement. “Around the horseshoe, he was a quiet warrior. He chose his moments carefully, and when he spoke, people listened. During the COVID crisis, Tom was there for his constituents in every way – even if that meant putting himself at risk – because that is the kind of public servant he was.”
Muratore was born Aug. 19, 1945 and graduated from Central Islip High School in 1963, according to his bio on the Legislature’s website. He has resided in Ronkonkoma with his wife Linda since 1970.
The 10-year legislator served the 4th District, which runs from the Brookhaven portions of Ronkonkoma through Centereach and Selden and as far north as portions of Port Jefferson Station. Before his start, Muratore was a Suffolk County police officer for close to 35 years. He would also become an instructor at the police academy and vice president for the county Police Benevolent Association, a position that he held for 18 years.
“In a changing world with new dangers threatening our families, Tom Muratore was a continuous, experienced protector of those he served,” Suffolk County Republican Committee Chairman Jesse Garcia said in a statement. “He was a one-of-a-kind gentleman who made the world a better place for all of us and cannot be replaced.”
The Ronkonkoma resident was elected to the 4th District in November 2009. He served as vice chair for the Public Works, Transportation & Energy Committee, and also sat on the Environment, Parks & Agriculture as well as the Veterans & Consumer Affairs committees.
Brookhaven town Councilman Kevin LaValle (R-Selden) got his start in public office under Muratore, becoming his chief of staff before deciding to run for office himself.
LaValle said the longtime legislator “had a heart of gold,” who would always put himself out to help both his friends and staff, though the line was often blurred between the two.
“He loved representing his district, he loved his residents — he absolutely was a dynamic man and great leader and more importantly a great mentor and friend,” LaValle said.
In 2014, he sponsored a bill to establish an Energy Utility Oversight Task Force. Among his other accomplishments, he was instrumental in helping get a bill passed to secure a 23-acre parcel on Boyle Road in Selden later developed into a Town of Brookhaven ballfield, park and walking trail called the Selden Park Complex. He also cosponsored bills to penalize illegal dumping and helped pass laws to monitor drones in county parks and to provide parking for veterans at county facilities.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) ordered flags at county facilities lowered to half-mast in his honor.
“Tom was the utmost professional, someone who was never afraid to reach across the aisle, especially when it came to working together to protect families, our veterans and our quality of life,” Bellone said in a statement.
In the community, he was known as a supporter of the Bethel Hobbs Community Farm in Centereach. The legislator was also known for his desire to secure funds for sewering in the Selden and Centereach communities. In his last election in 2019, Muratore secured his seat by almost 19 percentage points higher than his nearest opponent.
Hobbs Farm vice president Ann Pellegrino said that Muratore was more than supportive to the community farm that grows fresh produce for a network of food pantries and food programs.
“Without him being in our corner, I don’t know if it would have gone as far as we did, in fact I know we would have never gone as far as we did,” Pellegrino said, trying to talk through holding back tears. “I don’t know if anybody can fill his shoes, his passing is a great loss to our community … the flag has never flown half-mast at the farm, but today it flew half-mast.”
This post was updated Sept. 9 to include quotes from Ann Pellegrino and Kevin LaValle.
Donald Harrison, of PJS, was reported missing by police Sept. 8. Photo from SCPD
*Update: Police reported Sept. 8 that Donald Harrison, the Port Jefferson Station man who was reported missing Sept. 7, has been located, unharmed.*
Original story:
Police have issued a silver alert for a Port Jefferson Station man they said had dementia and may be in need of medical attention.
Suffolk County Police said Donald Harrison, 62 left a residence on Route 112 in Port Jefferson Station Sept. 7 at around 8:15 p.m.
Harrison was described as white, 5 feet 11 inches tall, 200 pounds with greying hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing blue jeans and a grey sweatshirt.
Detectives are asking anyone with information on Harrison’s location to call 911 or the 6th Squad at 631-854-8652.
Official sources said constables and a small group of young men got into a physical confrontation in the alleyway beside Chase Bank. Photo from Google Maps
A small group of young people got into a physical confrontation with Port Jefferson constables Wednesday, Sept. 2 after blocking traffic on Main Street. Officials said one code enforcement officer later required a visit to the hospital because of injuries sustained during the incident.
Witnesses said a group of around a dozen young people, some with bikes and some without, stopped at the Starbucks along Main Street sometime after 3 p.m. When some young people went in to get drinks, one got into the middle of the street, stopped traffic and performed a few feats of acrobatics such as a backflip, cheered on by his friends on the sidewalk. Shortly after, the young man then sat “indian style” in the double yellow median in the middle of the busy street.
Bystanders, fearing for the young man’s safety, called code enforcement, who arrived shortly after to confront the young men and get them to move from the street and their bikes from the curb.
In response to a request for details on the incident, Suffolk County Police said a group of teens on bicycles were blocking traffic on Main Street in Port Jefferson just before 4 p.m. Sept. 2 when they were told by code enforcement officers to move out of the roadway. Police said that the teens allegedly did not immediately comply and one of them pushed a code enforcement officer.
Witnesses said the confrontation on Main Street moved to the alleyway beside Chase Bank, where some described that the confrontation became physical between constables and the young bikers. Details from witnesses on what transpired were imprecise, but official sources did confirm there was some kind of violent contact between at least one young man and code enforcement officers.
Deputy Village Attorney Richard Harris said Code Enforcement Chief Fred Leute went to a hospital later that Wednesday night for injuries sustained during the encounter. Harris added that police told the village they were looking into charges. The village is still awaiting any further details from Suffolk County Police.
Village Trustee Kathianne Snaden, the liaison to code enforcement, said the altercation took place between just a few of the young men and code officers in the Chase Bank alleyway. Po
“[Police] have this case now under investigation,” Snaden said.
Police said that 6th precinct officers are still investigating, though they did not reveal if there were any arrests or charges filed.
For months residents have complained about groups of young bikers all across Suffolk County, either them doing tricks in the middle of busy roads or playing chicken with cars. Police have encouraged parents to talk to their children about the dangers of blocking traffic and riding in the middle of roads, but there have been more violent confrontations.
In early August, a large number of young bicyclists numbering around 30, according to witnesses and a now-removed video published to social media, harassed members of the Crossfit DHP gym in Port Jefferson Station. Shortly after that incident, police said two young men, both 15 years old of Centereach, were arrested later at their homes for violent actions during the August altercation. Police withheld the individuals’ names as they are both minors.
Mike Napoli, the owner of Gourmet Burger Bistro on Mill Creek Road, said he has personally had to deal with these young bicyclists on a regular basis throughout the summer. At one point, he said he confronted a group of about 20 who were outside his business when they were hosting outdoor dining.
“There’s families with young children, and [these young bicyclists] are doing wheelies, screaming, cursing in front of these people while they’re trying to eat,” Napoli said. “It’s a bad situation that needs to be stopped. The biggest problem is these kids know they can get away with things.”
Stony Brook University said the 17 students who were positive with COVID-19 were spread across campus with limited possibility of contact. File photo by Kyle Barr
Stony Brook University unveiled it is currently tracking 17 positive cases of COVID-19, with officials saying all are asymptomatic and have been quarantined.
In a release on the university’s website published Sept. 2, SBU said the 17 cases were as a result of testing of more than 3,000 students on West Campus since Aug. 11 by Student Health Services. The new confirmed cases, as of Wednesday, were in addition to the one other confirmed case officials identified Aug. 28.
All 18 positives are being retested to identify any false positives. The students have been asked to go into quarantine, along with any close associates who were asked to self-isolate.
The fall 2020 semester started Aug. 24 for undergrads.
On Aug. 27 Gov. Andrew Cuomo updated the state’s guidelines for universities and colleges reopening. If colleges have 100 cases or if the number of cases equal 5% of their population or more, they must go to remote learning for two weeks. After that time if things do not improve, the school could potentially be closed to in-person learning for the rest of the semester.
On Thursday, Sept. 3, SUNY Oneonta announced they were cancelling in-person classes for the rest of the Fall after close to 390 students were tested positive for COVID-19.
Stony Brook said the 17 positive cases were spread all throughout the campus, and that none were roommates and there was at least one positive case in each resident hall. Six of the students who tested positive for COVID-19 are taking only online classes and of the 12 students who tested positive and were attending in-person classes, the university said none were in the same classroom environment. According to the University’s COVID-19 dashboard, only 19% of students are registered for in-person classes.
The university said in the news statement it was continuing to test.
“If there is a need to shift to an operating status of fully online instruction for a 14-day period or longer, we will communicate with the community directly and promptly,” the statement read.
People from as far as Manhattan and as close as Centereach have been taking their vacations on Long Island, such as at the Fox & Owl Inn in Port Jefferson, instead of other states/countries where travel restrictions make it difficult. Photo from Rebecca Kassay
Residents of both Suffolk County and New York City have turned to local hotels and bed and breakfasts to enjoy time away from home amid limited travel options during the pandemic.
With out-of-state guests from numerous states limited in their travel to the area, corporate travel down considerably, and sports teams either shut down or playing without any fans, area hotels have still attracted guests from nearby towns and villages and from city residents disappointed with ongoing urban closures and eager to enjoy a natural setting.
People from as far as Manhattan and as close as Centereach have been taking their vacations on Long Island, such as at the Stony Brook Holiday Inn Express, instead of other states/countries where travel restrictions make it difficult. File photo
“It’s very different now,” said Jamie Ladone, sales executive at the Holiday Inn Express Stony Brook. “We’re not getting as many out-of-state guests,” but the hotel is finding people who are eager for a staycation.
Indeed, Emilie Zaniello and her family recently spent a weekend at the Holiday Inn, just 20 minutes from her home in Centereach
“We needed to get out of our element, to take a break from everyday life and the stresses right now,” said Zaniello, who stayed during a weekend with her husband John and their two children, 8-year-old Abigail, and 6-year-old John Robert.
The family felt “cooped up in the house” as their children didn’t have as much of an opportunity to do “normal, everyday things,” Zaniello said.
Abigail and John Robert enjoyed playing on the baseball field and the basketball court, while the family also booked time to go swimming.
“It just felt like a mini-vacation, where we didn’t have to go too far,” said Zaniello, who drove back and forth to her home to take care of the family’s two miniature dachshunds.
At the Holiday Inn, Suffolk residents have also enjoyed the indoor pool, outdoor patio, and volleyball and basketball courts, which families can use while maintaining social distancing, Ladone said. The hotel also has a putting green, horseshoes, and a baseball field and basketball court.
“We have people looking to spend quality time together like a family outdoors,” Ladone said.
The Holiday Inn has a meeting space upstairs with a seating capacity, under non-pandemic conditions, of 100. The hotel is hosting baby showers and corporate events outdoors on their patio.
The Holiday Inn has booked about 30 percent more outdoor parties than usual, Ladone said.
The Stony Brook hotel has also partnered with Spa Exotique, which offers massages or facials, and kayak packages with Stony Brook Harbor Kayak and Paddleboard.
Bed and Breakfast
Bed and breakfasts in the area are also attracting attention from residents of Suffolk County and New York City.
At the Fox and Owl Inn in Port Jefferson, people are booking their rooms one to three weeks before they need them, reflecting the uncertainty about plans that might need to change amid fluid infection rates.
For the past two months, the Fox and Owl has been booking about 90 to 95 percent of their capacity, with a majority of the guests coming from New York City and Long Island rather than the usual far-flung locations across the country and world.
The bed and breakfast derived its name from “The Lord of the Rings” book series, which husband and wife owners Andrew Thomas and Rebecca Kassay enjoys. They each picked an animal that was native to the area and hoped to create a place that was akin to the respite the main characters felt when they visited an inn.
Kassay said the Inn has “kept up to date as far as the recommendations for cleaning and the response to the COVID-19.”
“It just felt like a mini-vacation, where we didn’t have to go too far.”
— Emilie Zaniello
The Fox and Owl is located in an 1850 Victorian home, which has large windows that Kassay keeps open as often as she can. Kassay and Thomas also use Lysol on surfaces regularly and ask their guests to wear masks in public.
While guests sit on sofas that are six feet apart, they have shared stories about their quarantine experiences and make predictions about what will happen next.
The Fox and Owl has three guest suites. Some family groups have booked the entire bed and breakfast, which is “really nice for families that are coming to visit other family members,” Kassay said. Groups of friends with similar quarantine habits who feel comfortable interacting with each other have also booked the entire Inn.
The Fox and Owl offers guests the use of a jacuzzi, which is complimentary with any booking. For an additional fee, the Inn provides S’Mores near the fire pit.
Kassay said she and Thomas appreciate that they can offer people an “escape and relief from the stress that everyone is handling.”
As the owner of a bed and breakfast, she said she has reflected on the challenge of remaining personable to guests even while wearing a mask. The daughter of a Sicilian mother, Kassay was raised to speak by using body language and by communicating with her hands as well as her words.
She noticed how guests have become “more expressive,” she said. “If you stop and look at people talking, there is more physicality to American’s interaction with one another.”
A resident of midtown, Mey, who preferred to use only her first name, said she and her boyfriend came to Port Jefferson to escape from the city and enjoy nature amid all the urban closures.
They planned to visit Port Jefferson for the day and wound up spending the night at the Fox and Owl Inn when they weren’t ready to drive back to Manhattan. Mey and her boyfriend enjoyed sitting on the porch, visiting a nearby park and eating ice cream.
“Port Jefferson has a lot of nature and the feeling of a vacation,” Mey said. The experience was “very chill.”
The Manhattanite enjoys attending Broadway shows when she is in the city, which are still closed.
The urban couple traveled to Long Island because they were “looking for something peaceful” and they “found it. Seeing green is better than seeing buildings.”
Though the Setauket Patriots said their Fourth of July parade held in Port Jeff was an a-political event, a few cars like this military-style Jeep rolled down Main Street bearing “Trump 2020” paraphernalia. Photo by David Luces
The Setauket Patriots, a sometimes-controversial online conservative group, announced they plan to hold a 9/11 parade in Port Jefferson, even though this time they lack the village’s approval.
The planned march, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 12, would take people from the train station all the way down to the 9/11 memorial across from Port Jefferson Village Hall, next to the marina parking lot. The village has not granted a permit for the march, but the group plans to go anyway.
“This is about trying to follow the mandates.”
— Margot Garant
The Facebook page for the event states the event is planned because New York City, along with Suffolk and Nassau counties, have declined to hold public 9/11 ceremonies because of the pandemic. The patriots, a known pro-Trump group, said the event “is not a Trump rally but a 9/11 never-forget-our-first-responders event.” Organizers said they expect anywhere from 150 to 200 participants.
This is not the first event the group has decided to host in Port Jeff. When hundreds marched down Main Street in Port Jefferson for a Black Lives Matter march in June, the Setauket Patriots hosted a Fourth of July car parade in response. Both the protest march and Patriots parade received permits after discussions with village officials, which created changes of time and place for both events. This time, the conservative group filed for a permit but they claim their request was denied Friday, Aug. 28.
Village Attorney Brian Egan said an executive order signed July 6 by Mayor Margot Garant effectively stopped the village from signing any new permits for marches or protests. The order was enabled by the village’s previous declaration of emergency because of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time it was signed, Garant said the permits for such protests and parades had been “a mistake” because of the ongoing pandemic.
In regards to any further action taken by the village, Egan said nothing would be enforced by Port Jeff’s constables, and it would instead fall on the Suffolk County Police Department. In response to whether the village plans any further action against the group if it does host its parade, he again reiterated that Port Jeff’s clerk would no longer be issuing permits for any kind of march.
Garant said that beyond the moratorium on permits, the application the group filed had been incomplete and was rejected for that as well. She added the purpose of no longer allowing groups of more than 50 to gather is an attempt to comply with state orders trying to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
“It has nothing to do with who they are and what they’re doing,” she said. “This is about trying to follow the mandates.”
The mayor said the village has contacted Suffolk County police as well as state police about the planned march. They have also contacted the Town of Brookhaven, since the 9/11 memorial is technically on town-owned land. She advised that the group should try and communicate with the town instead to devise some kind of ceremony.
A spokesperson for the Setauket Patriots, who asked he not be named because of fear of being outed online, called the village’s decision to not allow any more parades unfair, considering the village has started hosting its Harborfront Park movie nights once again, though these are hosted by the village itself and therefore do not require permits.
“We’re helping Mr. Dooley, and it’s the only reason we’re having it in Port Jeff.”
— Setauket Patriots
The Setauket Patriots leader reiterated that the planned march was planned to be apolitical. He said it was planned after conversations with Daniel Dooley, a New York City Fire Department lieutenant who helped construct the Port Jeff 9/11 memorial. Dooley normally hosts a vigil at the memorial site to commemorate 9/11. He was also described as a member of the group.
“We’re helping Mr. Dooley, and it’s the only reason we’re having it in Port Jeff,” the Setauket Patriots rep said.
Efforts to contact Dooley went unsuccessful as of press time.
A few other 9/11-based events usually happen within the village to commemorate that fateful day in 2001. The Port Jefferson Fire Department normally hosts its own ceremony, and last year the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America hosted a candlelight vigil in Harborfront Park.
Tom Totten, the PJ fire district chairman of the fire commissioners, said they plan to host an in-house ceremony that’s not open to the public. Discussions are still ongoing whether the vigil will be recorded or livestreamed.
Other 9/11 events on the North Shore have been postponed or changed to meet the challenges of the pandemic. The usual Setauket Fire Department 9/11 event will not be open to the public and will instead be livestreamed. Other events, like the 9/11 memorial hosted in Shoreham by the Rocky Point Fire Department, are still up in the air.
Members of the Setauket Patriots group also took the lead in several controversial May protests in Commack calling for the end of the COVID-19 shutdowns. Their Facebook normally posts conservative and pro-president news, but their page also shares more posts that could well be described as inciting violence, such as videos of pro-Trump car paraders in Portland, Oregon, driving into and through counterprotesters and spraying them with pepper spray with captions like, “Bear spray is the new bug spray!”
EXIT Realty were with Comsewogue officials delivering over 200 backpacks for kindergarteners. Photo from EXIT Realty
A backpack for every incoming kindergartener. Supplies for every fresh face to the Comsewogue School District. It may seem like a tall order, but a local realty office and donations from the community helped make it happen for the second year in a row.
EXIT Realty’s Jason Furnari, right. Photo from EXIT Realty
Last year, EXIT Realty Island Elite in Port Jefferson Station started a fundraising drive to buy every incoming kindergartener a backpack for the upcoming school year. Doing it again this year, the realty office helped facilitate the donations of 246 backpacks, enough for every incoming student starting their K-12 journey. The backpacks are also filled with a number of school supplies such as pencils, colored pencils, erasers and markers. While it won’t be everything the student needs throughout the year, it’s a good start.
Jason Furnari, the broker owner of the PJS realty office, said upon opening just a year and a half ago he knew he wanted to support the community in some way. He himself is a Comsewogue alumunus, having graduated in 2003. He also said it’s a continued legacy of Joe Rella, the popular former superintendent who passed away this year in February. Rella was Furnari’s chorus teacher in middle school.
“I really like the area we’re in, so we decided to give back to the Comsewogue School District,” he said. “It’s always about giving back to people and doing good for people, and that’s what the community’s about, it’s really family based.”
The realty office set up an Amazon wish list and posted it to community social media groups and in notices around their office and elsewhere in the local area as well. All who participated would go online and order the items they wanted for delivery to the Port Jeff Station office. Some community members also donated some lightly used backpacks from students who have already aged past the early grade levels.
The backpacks are a great boon, but especially in a time like this where so many have been financially hit by the pandemic, having to not worry about at least one kid’s school supplies can be a big help.
Comsewogue superintendent, Jennifer Quinn, said the backpacks do a world of good for incoming students.
“We live in such a great community — we have so many businesses willing to help our school district and EXIT Realty is one of those,” Quinn said.
The realty office has also supported two graduating seniors with $1,000 scholarships both last year and this year. 2020 graduates and siblings Tricia Sandhala and Arav Sandhala were recipients of this year’s awards.
Furnari said the office will continue with their backpack and scholarship donations into the future.
“We’re really excited to start the school year and end the year helping out the young generation coming in and those on their way off to college,” he said.
The parking lot along Barnum Avenue in Port Jeff is finally coming together. Photo by Kyle Barr
The long awaited Barnum Parking lot finally has shovels in the ground.
Crews started digging up the trees and other shrubs at the corner of Caroline Avenue and Barnum Avenue Aug. 25. The full construction process is expected to take around two months, weather permitting.
The new parking lot includes 46 new spaces oriented diagonally. There is planned to be a one-way ingress and egress onto Caroline Avenue. The site plans show the 32,000-square-foot lot will also include two bioswales bordering the entrance onto Barnum Avenue to aid in flood mitigation. The bioswales will look like two dips in the ground with plantings overlaying them.
The village also plans to include two electric vehicle charging stations just like the two currently in the parking lot next to Rocketship Park. Costs for the charging are paid by the vehicle owner through the Chargepoint app.
Parking and Mobility Administrator Kevin Wood said there will be screening in the form of thick bushes on the south side that will line the entire parking area facing south.
“We are also working on a design that will let the parker know how many spots are available before they even drive into the lot via a small digital system,” Wood said.
The $814,069 project is funded in part by $200,000 in Suffolk County Jumpstart grant money. The rest comes from a $300,000 bond and $314,069 in parking funds set aside for this project.
In February, Connecticut-based F&F Concrete won the bid against five other companies to create the new parking lot.
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. File photo by Alex Petroski
A Confederate flag displayed on the side of a Brookhaven Fire Department truck has caused outcry from multiple levels of government and many in the surrounding community.
This photo has gone viral on social media showing a Brookhaven Fire Department ladder truck sporting the Confederate battle flag.
A picture of the Confederate battle standard draped on the side of a ladder truck from the Brookhaven hamlet, showed up on social media where it went viral Sunday, Aug. 30. Many who saw it complained that it was a display of racism, especially in light of recent national dialogue about its use by white supremacists and the history of the Confederacy’s promotion of slavery.
In a statement, Brookhaven FD Chief of Department Peter Di Pinto said that the action was not authorized by the department and was done without its knowledge. The statement says the incident involved one firefighter acting alone during a non-response event. Di Pinto said the matter is currently under investigation, and therefore couldn’t release any further details.
“We can assure our community that ‘Racism has no home in our firehouse,’” the statement read.
That event was reportedly a fire truck parade in Patchogue to support a firefighter with cancer. Other department vehicles were present at the event though none other than the Brookhaven truck reportedly appeared with the Confederate flag.
While the The Town of Brookhaven and the Brookhaven Fire Department are separate entities, the town was also quick to condemn the flag.
“The Town Board condemns the display of this symbol of racism and hatred in the strongest possible terms and is calling for this fire department to launch an investigation into this matter and take immediate and serious action in response,” the town said in a statement. “Brookhaven town has been built upon a history of inclusion and diversity. Our cemeteries contain the graves of men who gave their lives fighting against this flag. This flag is a symbol of hatred, and there is no place for it, or the racism it displays, in our town.”
While on Facebook County Executive Steve Bellone (D) thanked the fire department for looking into the matter, he said that he was calling on the Suffolk County Human Rights Commission and New York State Division of Human Rights to also investigate the incident.
“The public also must have confidence that any review of this matter is handled independently to ensure a fair and impartial outcome,” Bellone said in a statement. “Hate and bigotry have no place in Suffolk County and we must demonstrate that we take these matters seriously.”
Prev
