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USDA extends free lunch waiver to local school districts

by Julianne Mosher - February 22, 2021

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School districts across Long Island have been offering free meals to children throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and the policy from the U.S. Department of Agriculture has extended the program to the end of the school year.

Over the summer, at the height of the pandemic, the USDA allowed school districts to apply for free meals for all students. Usually, districts only provide free breakfasts and lunches to students who qualify for free or reduced lunch.

But the coronavirus prompted the federal government to create child nutrition waivers based upon available funding at the time to end in June, then December and now throughout the 2020-21 school year.

And it’s benefiting hundreds of students, local school representatives said.

Mara Pugh, Elwood school district food services director, said when the pandemic started in March, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue gave schools the flexibility and waivers to be able to serve lunches to everyone in the community who were learning from home.

“Back then, we had a grab and go for any family,” she said. “No matter what the financial eligibility was, they would get a free lunch.”

Before the pandemic, families who were struggling or below the middle-class line were able to enroll their children in the free or reduced-lunch programs. The pandemic, however, affected everyone, and some students who came from middle-income households were now struggling.

When the waiver was passed again at the end of the 2020, Pugh said it was “a relief.”

“It definitely will help to ensure all the children in our district and community have access to the nutritious foods they need,” she said.

Whether the student is remote learning or in-person, everyone is eligible if they so choose, no questions asked.

“We have around 2,500 kids in our district,” she said, “And about 30% to 40% of them are taking advantage of it.”

Remote families are able to pick up their meals at the school, where the district packages meals for two or three days at a time, she said.

“There’s no enrollment needed,” she added. “With these times, people who were well-off last year may not be well-off this year.”

In a release last year, USDA stated that the challenges facing the country called for an effective way to feed children. The waiver allowed changes, like serving meals in all areas at no cost, permitting meals to be served outside of the typically required group settings and mealtimes, waive meal pattern requirements and allow parents or guardians to pick up meals for their children.

“As our nation recovers and reopens, we want to ensure that children continue to receive the nutritious breakfasts and lunches they count on during the school year wherever they are, and however they are learning,” Perdue said. “We are grateful for the heroic efforts by our school food service professionals who are consistently serving healthy meals to kids during these trying times, and we know they need maximum flexibility right now.”

Three Village school district also has taken advantage of the waiver. Jeffrey Carlson, deputy superintendent for business services, said that he thought it was “a great idea.”

“I’ve felt for a long time that school lunches should be free for all schools,” he said. “Either the district pays for it or the federal government pays.”

Carlson said the free lunches also have gotten better than when parents were in school.

“It used to be a lot more obvious as to which kids were getting free lunch and then the stigma comes along with it,” he said. “So, if every kid just got lunch in school then we wouldn’t have to worry about that anymore.”

While there are still snacks and extras that must be bought à la carte, he said that daily participation in the program has increased.

“I think it’ll go up even more after COVID,” he said. “People will be more comfortable with food being prepared for their children again.”

Beth Rella, assistant superintendent for business at Middle Country school district, said they are “thrilled” to be able to offer the program to all of their students — whether they attend in-person, virtual or hybrid classes.

“Although we began the year starting a little lighter than typical, which was anticipated due to COVID, we have noticed an increase in the number of meals served daily as the school year has progressed,” she said. “We see more and more students enjoying tasty breakfasts and lunches each day. We hope that students, who may have not tried out the food services program previously, use this as an opportunity to taste the various menu items.”

Carlson said that when USDA extended the program, there wasn’t a big announcement about it. Rella added that her district has “utilized ConnectEd messages, board of education meetings, printed flyers, the website and have even encouraged faculty and staff to spread the word about the program.”

Middle Country students even had the opportunity to design and compete in a “Free Meals for All” poster contest, where the winning poster was used as a promotional display.

Smithtown school district publicized the program via email to parents. Superintendent Mark Secaur wrote back in September, “The USDA recently announced that all school districts participating in the National School Lunch Program could temporarily serve free lunch to all students until Dec. 31, 2020. We have now also received approval from NYSED to participate in the free lunch offering.”

Memos were sent out to residents within the Port Jefferson School District, too, and Deputy Superintendent Sean Leister said that while “around 10% or 15% of students are remote, this brings a level of normalcy to them.”

Leister added his district has also seen an increase in families participating.

“There’s always a gap of people who don’t feel comfortable with signing up for the reduced lunch program,” he said. “But the federal government, state and Port Jefferson School District all realize that not having a meal is important to keeping students engaged and attentive — and no one will know they got it for free.”

Rella said Middle Country offers a week’s worth of frozen meals so students can continue to enjoy hot meals during their time off.

“Having the USDA free meals for all program has not only allowed more students to participate in the program, it has helped to lessen the financial burden that was produced,” Rella said.

Smithtown West Bulls trample Newfield Wolverines

by Bill Landon - February 21, 2021

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The Bulls of Smithtown West were able to hold off Newfield despite a late game surge by the Wolverines, to cap a 55-45 road victory Feb. 20. The win lifts Smithtown West to 3-0, 4-0 overall for second place, one game behind Hills East for the League III title chase. Newfield falls to 0-3 in league in this COVID-19 shorted season.

Tyler Anderson topped the scoring chart for the Bulls with five field goals, a triple and three from the line for a team high 16 points followed by teammate Patrick Burke who banked 9 to go along with 9 rebounds.

Newfield senior Ziggy Hoe stood atop the leaderboard for the Wolverines with 12 points, Michael Agostino netted 9 and Jordan DeJesus tacked on 7. Teammates Isiah Brown the senior and junior Hamza Yousef banked 6 points apiece.

Both teams have three games left that they’ll play in five days-time before post season play gets underway Feb. 26.

Stony Brook resident helps restaurants stay safe with no-touch menus

by TBR Staff - February 21, 2021

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bagel express, kimberly brown — Bagel Express in Setauket is among the restaurants using the no-touch menus created by Chris Zenaty. Photo by Kimberly Brown

By Kimberly Brown

Restaurants are finding new ways to keep their patrons safe.

While many provide traditional plastic menus, which could potentially harbor unwanted bacteria, some customers find it one more reason to deter them from eating out.

However, Chris Zenaty, CEO of No Touch Orders, has found a solution to the problem — a no-touch menu to be viewed on one’s mobile device.

A resident of Stony Brook, Zenaty’s local business is based on ordering through QR codes, which have aided restaurants in promoting a safe dining experience.

The affordable, cloud-based POS system comes with everything an owner may need. All that’s required for setting up is one-to-two spare hours, a Wi-Fi printer and a kiosk.

“The technology that they’re using here hasn’t been changed in 10 years, so it’s up to small innovative companies, like ourselves, to come up with new ideas and technologies,” Zenaty said.

Customers need only to scan the unique QR code on the table with their cellphone camera, pull up the menu, order and even pay through the system. Zenaty’s ingenuity has given customers and businesses the option of a completely touch-free experience while dining.

“I thought maybe not everyone wants to touch the menus, and everyone uses smartphones for everything, so why not just look at the menu while you’re waiting there?” he said.

With the help of Jeremy Herrmann, a computer science major at Stony Brook University, and Bob Pearson, a physics teacher at Patchogue-Medford High School, Zenaty was able to bring his unique coding system to life in just two years. He plans to expand his company in the near future.

No Touch Orders QR readers can be found around New York City, and closer to home on the North Shore. Zenaty said that Bagel Express in Setauket and Pentimento Restaurant in Stony Brook Village have been utilizing his service.

“We started locally because we have a lot of support out here, but I’d like to bring this to different states,” he said.

Book Review: Philip F. Palmedo connects art and science in latest book

by TBR Staff - February 19, 2021

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Reviewed by Elizabeth Kahn Kaplan

St. James resident Philip Palmedo’s latest book, Deep Affinities: Art and Science, skillfully develops the premise that close observation and representation of the natural world, driven by “careful curiosity,” was the starting point of both art and science in the far distant past, and that their deep relationship — affinity — continues to the present.

A fascinating early chapter includes a reference to a work of sculpture dating from at least 50,000 BP (Before the Present), before Homo sapiens came to Europe. “A small stone that resembled a bird was collected by a Neanderthal and then modified to be more realistic. A hole was drilled for the eye, and the shape of the beak and tail was smoothed.” Palmedo offers evidence that this object and other stone carvings, as well as cave drawings created by our earliest ancestors, indicate that the origins of science and the starting point of art began with careful curiosity leading to observation of the natural world — the same influences that inspire the work of scientists and artists today.

As far back as 600,000 BP an aesthetic sensibility and a scientific instinct appeared in an ironstone hand ax found in South Africa; the early human who shaped it was concerned with form as well as function — with symmetry and balance, fundamental to both art and science.

Palmedo expands upon symmetry and balance as essential qualities in nature and in art. He calls attention to nature’s fractals — similar patterns that recur at progressively smaller scales. An example in nature is the branch of a fern with same-shaped pairs of leaves becoming progressively smaller as they progress up the stem. An example in art is a Japanese woodblock print known as The Great Wave, in which the artist, Katsushika Hokosai, incorporated the concept of fractals, painting smaller yet otherwise identical waves with identical yet smaller and smaller boats upon them. “Fractal patterns are broadly appealing” in their balance and symmetry.

The mathematically defined geometric shapes of Pablo Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (1907) abound in nature as well as art. A cutaway of a nautilus shell reveals a logarithmic spiral; Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty (1970) in Utah echoes the Whirlpool Galaxy in outer space.

‘The Great Wave’ by Katsushika Hokosai, 1830-32

The commonality of the circle in science and its aesthetic significance is spotlighted in the book’s cover art: a split image of the 13th century circular window in the north transept of Notre Dame de Paris is juxtaposed with a split image of the 21st century circular particle detector at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), near Geneva — the largest, most costly machine in the world, the most powerful particle accelerator, consisting of a 27-kilometre ring of superconducting magnets with a number of accelerating structures to boost the energy of the particles along the way.

Pairing images of the stained-glass window and this powerful machine is a brilliant visible support of Palmedo’s theme. Scientist and mathematician Albert Einstein was developing his breakthrough theory of the relativity of space and time during the same decades that Picasso and Georges Braque were developing their major breakthrough in art — Cubism — while Marcel Duchamp was illustrating movement through space in his Nude Descending A Staircase (1912).

Einstein said, “The greatest scientists are artists as well:” one might well say that “The greatest artists are scientists as well,” and cite only two of many: Leonardo da Vinci’s studies of anatomy, or Johannes Vermeer’s experiments with the camera obscura.

The cover of the book depicts split images of a 13th century window at Notre Dame de Paris, and the Compacy Moon Solenoid of the Large Hedron Collider, 2004

In recent decades, two New York art museums spotlighted works of art linked directly to science. In 2004, The Museum of Modern Art displayed the world’s largest jet-engine fan blade, manufactured by General Electric, “rising from a narrow black base, twisting and expanding into a fan shape while undulating slightly into a lean S-curve. In its clear abstraction it could have been inspired by Constantin Brancusi, connecting mathematics, efficiency, and art.”

Then, in 2019, The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s exhibit, “Making Marvels: Science and Splendor at the Courts of Europe,” spotlighted, among many other magnificent objects, a rotating mechanical celestial globe of partially gilded silver perched atop a silver horse, created by Gerhard Emmoser for the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II in 1579. Writes Palmedo, “The intersection of art, technology, outpouring of creativity and learning, gave rise to exquisite objects that were at once beautiful works of art and technological wonders.”

Palmedo’s undergraduate studies of Art History and Physics and a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering, followed by a lifetime of professional and personal activism in both fields, support this current work — a logical progression following the author’s beautifully written and illustrated earlier books.

The Experience of Modern Sculpture: A Guide to Enjoying Works of the Past 100 Years (2015) followed four books about the lives and work of noted contemporary American sculptors — Richard McDermott Miller (1998); Bill Barrett (2003); Joel Perlman (2006) and Lin Emery (2012.) In Deep Affinities: Art and Science, Palmedo has expanded his range, from the contemporary art scene back to the distant past.

Like Palmedo’s previous books, Deep Affinities is printed on thick glossy stock enriched by more than 100 color illustrations. Palmedo leaps into his subject, proves his thesis with definitive clarity, and expands our thinking about artists and scientists as equal partners in their achievements. It is also, with its carefully chosen and extensive bibliography, a worthy addition to the bookshelves of both.

The book is available at Amazon.com and from the publisher, Abbeville Press.

‘A Sense of Place’ at Mills Pond Gallery reflects local artists’ unique connections to our Island

by Tara Mae - February 18, 2021

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'Along Great River' by Catherine Rezin — Winter Scene, Frank Melville Park

By Tara Mae

Art is an expression of personal inspiration, and the Smithtown Township Art Council’s latest exhibit at the Mills Pond Gallery, A Sense of Place, examines how Long Island acts as a muse to local artists. The show opens Feb. 20.

The beautiful exhibit fills four gallery rooms and the center hall gallery on the first floor of the historic 1838 Greek Revival mansion in St. James. A mixed media display, it includes book art, sculptures, acrylic, oil, and watercolor paintings. With 62 works by 48 artists from 32 communities across Long Island, the exhibit is a cross-section of local culture and influences, capturing scenes of nature and community.

“Long Islanders will see art about Long Island … places they see daily or places of their memories. We think the exhibit will help people reconnect with this place where they make and live their lives and hopefully inspire them toward ongoing care and interpretation of these places,” said Executive Director Allison Cruz.

‘Walks Through Avalon’ by Loretta Oberheim

Increasing awareness about the environment was a goal for both Cruz and a number of the artists. Galvanized by the natural world and forged by remembrance, the art encompasses genres including realistic landscape vistas and abstract or surrealist renderings. How nature and memory intertwine is a recurring theme of the show, expressed through individual perspectives.

“People will see beautiful forms of art and how artists felt in that time and that space and maybe it will get them to appreciate those places. Maybe this will make them want to venture out. It’s the little places that have been preserved … and the county parks, little gems that need more appreciation. The more that they are highlighted in exhibits, the more people will get to see them” said artist Loretta Oberheim, of Ronkonkoma.

Her abstract expressionist piece, Walks Through Avalon, is a sculpture mounted on canvas and made of alcohol inks on yupo paper. It is Oberheim’s homage to Avalon Nature Preserve in Stony Brook, which she cites as one of her “happy places.”

The exhibit explores the myriad ways Long Island informs artistic development and depiction.

“I’m always on the lookout for an interesting or beautiful scene and feel fortunate to live in an area with such picturesque beaches, farms and woodlands,” said artist Robert Roehrig of East Setauket. His two landscape oil paintings, Facing the Sun and Winter Scene, Frank Melville Park, are tributes to local vistas: Cupsogue Beach County Park in Westhampton Beach and Frank Melville Memorial Park in Setauket, respectively.

More than just imagery, the show incorporates the artists’ descriptions of their art and what inspired them, details that add insight into the impact of the installation, according to Cruz. “Artists couldn’t just submit the art; they also had to explain the connection they have to Long Island. [I asked them to] tell me what gives you a connection to this island that we live on,” she explained.

‘Winter Scene, Frank Melville Park’ by Robert Roehrig

It is the second exhibit for which Cruz utilized this process. She previously included written testimonials of the artists’ motivations for the Celebrating Creativity exhibit back in November and was encouraged to do it for this installation after the positive response from visitors.

During the era of COVID-19, the gallery has striven to remain a respite for individuals seeking an escape into artistic beauty. The effort is a continuation of the gallery’s ongoing commitment to engaging the public and providing an escape from the doldrums and despair of the pandemic for both the artists and audience.

Nesconset artist Catherine Rezin’s piece, a watercolor and gouache painting, Along Great River, is a rendering of a photograph her husband took of the bank of the Connetquot River at Bayard Cutting Arboretum in Great River.

“From the perspective of an artist, it is important to be seen, to allow other artists to see my work and to be inspired by their work. For the rest of the public, it is important to be able to go somewhere and retreat from reality, to connect with nature through art and to connect with Long Island through art,” said Rezin.

Participating artists include:

Marsha Abrams (Stony Brook), Lucia Alberti (Smithtown), Tina Anthony (Northport), Shain Bard (Huntington Station), Ron Becker (Deer Park), Joyce Bressler (Commack), Jean Marie Bucich (River Vale NJ), Carol Ceraso (Hauppauge), Rocco Citeno (Sayville), Donna Corvi (Montauk), Gráinne de Buitléar (Belle Terre), Lou Deutsch (Stony Brook), Michael Drakopoulos (Port Jefferson), Karin Dutra (Port Jefferson), Paul Jay Edelson (Poquott), Ellen Ferrigno (Port Jefferson), Dorothy Fortuna (Smithtown), Donna Gabusi (Smithtown), Jan Guarino (East Northport), Margaret Henning (Sayville), Libby Coker Hintz (Blue Point), Irene Ruddock (Stony Brook), James Kelson (Stony Brook), Lynn Kinsella (Brookhaven), John Koch (Port Jefferson Sta.), Lee Ann Lindgren (Breezy Point), Olivia Mathon (Smithtown), Eileen P. McGann (Island Park), Carissa Millett (Setauket), Hillary Serota Needle (Dix Hills), Loretta Oberheim (Ronkonkoma), Eileen W. Palmer (St. James), Catherine Rezin (Nesconset), Robert Roehrig (East Setauket), Lori Scarlatos (Saint James), Gia Schifano (New Hyde Park), Anita Schnirman (Kings Park), Faith Skelos (Smithtown), Paul Speh (Ronkonkoma), Mike Stanko (Valley Stream), Madeline Stare (Smithtown), Barbara Stein (Port Washington), Nicholas Valentino (North Babylon), M. Ellen Winter (Northport), Mary Jane van Zeijts (Stony Brook), Mary Waka (Ronkonkoma), Patty Yantz (Setauket) and Theodora Zavala (East Meadow)

The Mills Pond Gallery, located at 660 Route 25A, St. James, will present A Sense of Place from Feb. 20 to March 20. The gallery is open Wednesdays to Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 4 p.m. Admission is free. Mask wearing is mandatory and social distancing protocols are strictly observed. For more information, call 631-862-6575 or visit www.millspondgallery.org.

D. None of the Above: Skiing provides a refreshing break from the routine

by Daniel Dunaief - February 18, 2021

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cross-country-skiing-3020748_1920 — Photo from Pixabay

By Daniel Dunaief

If you can do it, I highly recommend getting away from your life, even if it’s just for a day or a weekend.

Despite the ongoing threat from COVID-19, we took a weekend ski trip. We called the small inn where we hoped to stay and asked if they required masks of their guests.

“When you get here, you’ll see that there’s almost no common space,” the innkeeper said. “You’ll be in a small hallway.”

That was music to our ears and, as it turned out, exactly as he described. We only saw two other guests that weekend and that was in the parking lot.

Upon check in, we called the family that ran the inn, who directed us, unseen and contactless, to our room, where an old fashioned key, not a key card, awaited us on the kitchen table.

After we emptied the luggage from our car, we raced up a foggy mountain filled with hairpin turns to the ski slope after 9 p.m. to pick up our equipment. I had read that the ski slope recommended getting the gear the night before to save time the next morning. With only two other customers at the rental center that night, we maneuvered through the process quickly.

Something about getting away from the sameness of the last year was incredibly liberating. We woke up later than usual, had a light breakfast and headed to the slopes. Assured that the three parking lots were full, my wife suggested driving to the closest lot, where a friendly parking attendant suggested we could take our chances and circle the lot. Sure enough, my wife spotted someone pulling out of a spot just as we arrived.

The only remaining obstacle between us and blazing a trail down the mountain was a lift ticket.

Clearly, we weren’t the only ones pining for an outdoor sport, as an enormous line awaited. My wife discovered that the line was for rentals and that the ticket line had only two other people.

Grateful for the time we saved procuring equipment the night before, we put on our skis and shuffled towards one of the closest lift lines.

Sitting on a lift for the first time, dangling above skiers and snow boarders who did everything from carving their way down the mountain to sliding on their backside as their skis popped off, we shed the sameness of home life, home responsibilities and home entertainment.

The first time down the mountain, we reminded ourselves to keep our weight forward. My feet and legs, which have spent far too much time tucked underneath me in a chair at home, appreciated the chance to set the pace and direction.

My ears delighted at the shushing sound and my eyes drank in the magnificence of mountains gently piercing through a blanket of clouds that changed from white and grey to orange and pink during the approaching sunset.

We had a few challenging moments. Numerous skiers went maskless until reminded by a lift attended, while some people seemed genuinely disappointed when I didn’t agree to share a lift with them. When I explained to one of them that I was being, “COVID-safe,” she said she was already vaccinated. I told her I hadn’t and was being careful.

A few errant snowboards passed perilously close to my legs before colliding into a tree, while lift lines were sometimes too crowded for comfort.

Still, the ability to get away from a life that, as my daughter describes, “remains on pause even as it moves forward,” provided a refreshing and memorable change to our routines.

Between You and Me: Where did COVID-19 come from? What role did China play? A Super Vaccine?

by Leah Dunaief - February 18, 2021

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corona-5002341_1920 — Photo from Pixabay

By Leah S. Dunaief

Leah Dunaief

A year ago, most of us were going about our usual lives, shopping for food, carpooling our children, occasionally eating out, going to a movie or a play, traveling with our families during Presidents’ Week, entertaining friends in our houses, and working at our job sites.

Today the only pursuit still left on that list is shopping at the supermarket. We didn’t know that within two weeks, our lives would start to change, and that a month later the entire world would be altered.

The change agent? The novel coronavirus was the villain, otherwise known as COVID-19. Seemingly out of nowhere, the virus launched itself onto the human population. Where did it come from? How did it start? Was China somehow at fault?

A World Health Organization team of scientists returned last week from Wuhan, China, considered to be the first place with a coronavirus outbreak. Dr. Peter Daszak, who has worked with the Wuhan Institute of Virology and is president of EcoHealth Alliance in New York, was a member of the team, and was interviewed about their findings by The New York Times.

They walked around the Huanan Seafood Market, which is regarded as the source and is still blocked off to all but disease investigators. According to Daszak, the Chinese are “absolutely petrified of this virus catching hold again.” They were following severe protocols of testing, isolating and quarantining even as they were working closely with the W.H.O group.

The market was closed on December 31 or January 1, and a team of Chinese scientists then went in and swabbed every surface, collecting over 900 samples. Many were positive, including some animal carcasses. “A farm with rabbits [that was at the market] could have been really critical,” Daszak said. Or bats, stray cats, rats, live snakes, turtles and frogs, all of which were there. There were 10 stalls that sold wildlife, some peopled by vendors from South China provinces where the virus is found in bats. Some of the earliest patients with the disease had links to other markets as well, and some had no links to the Huanan market at all.

The final hypothesis of the W.H.O. team, and the Chinese scientists who worked with them throughout their visit, was that the viral pathway was wildlife, through a domesticated wildlife link, into Wuhan. In particular, Daszak suspects bats, from Southeast Asia or southern China, of getting into a domesticated wildlife farm. The viruses then jump from infected animals on the food supply chain or from their handlers to the dense population of humans that buy the animals at the markets.

There are actually many strains of this abundant family of coronaviruses, and bats and other mammals carry them. The SARS and MERS versions are just a couple that spilled over the species barrier and infected humans. So inevitably there will be more after COVID-19, and they could even cause future pandemics. Aware of that reality, some infectious disease scientists are working to produce a vaccine that will nullify all coronaviruses. Researchers are calling for a global effort to develop such a one-shot vaccine or a super vaccine. There have even been some promising early results.

Coronaviruses were first identified in the 1960s, but were initially thought only to cause mild colds. Then in 2002, a new coronavirus appeared. That was SARS-CoV, named for severe acute respiratory syndrome, and it was deadly.

In 2012, a second species of the coronavirus spilled over from bats, causing MERS, which stands for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, first reported in Saudi Arabia, and today we have SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19.

As we now know from the graphic of the virus shown by the media, the virus has spikes, which are proteins on its surface. If an antibody can be formed that sticks to the spike, it can prevent the pathogen from entering human cells. A genetic molecule, created by BioNTech called messenger RNA, works that way in the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines against COVID-19.

Now we need a pan-coronavirus vaccine. It’s on the way.

Nuts and Bolts of Color: Atelier at Flowerfield presents free webinar Feb. 18

by Press Release - February 18, 2021

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The Atelier at Flowerfield in St. James continues its online webinar series with Nuts and Bolts of Color: Practical help on employing modern and traditional knowledge of color in painting, with artist Christian White on Thursday, Feb. 18 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

As a follow-up to his most recent lecture “Manet and Modernism” (viewable on the Atelier’s website), White will address color as a practical matter in painting, with some demonstration of approaches to pigments, mixing colors, and developing color composition and color harmony. He will attempt to show how the artists he spoke of as influences helped develop his use of color in both figurative and abstract ideas. Free. To register, visit www.theatelieratflowerfield.org and choose workshops/events. For more information, call 631-250-9009.

Town of Smithtown and neighborhood coalition clash over comprehensive plan ideas

by TBR Staff - February 18, 2021

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Gyrodyne-March-2-Protest_regan — A proposed sewage treatment plant on the Gyrodyne property in St. James has been the topic of rallies in the past, such as the above in March of 2020, and is still a concern for residents. File photo by Rita J. Egan

By Chris Cumella

Future ideas and recommendations being made for Smithtown’s Master Comprehensive Plan by town officials and residents have been public and viewable on the town’s website, but there is still miscommunication occurring on both ends.

Open recreational spaces, private lands for sewage treatment facilities, and renovation of outdated structures only scrape the surface of the expansive vision that the Smithtown government sees for the numerous town hamlets that the plan is expected to partake in. To display full transparency of the plan’s elongated efforts and strategies of achieving them, gaining public feedback was essential to the process of a collaborative effort of compromises between the town government and residents alike.

“In 2019, we began these public meetings in each hamlet,” said Smithtown Public Information Officer Nicole Garguilo in a phone interview. “We had maps, interactive sessions, we also did an online questionnaire.”

Smithtown officials began their public outreach through questionnaires created on publicinput.com, a community engagement software creator, which allowed the town to extend requests of feedback and concerns or questions from the residents.

However, while public information sessions have managed to keep the town up to date, it has also created problematic tensions for one group of residents in particular who are actively opposing certain aspects of the plan. Garguilo commented that the mentioned opposition is primarily against the waste-water management facility proposed for the Gyrodyne property in St. James but that the real issues stem from people “fearing what they don’t understand.”

The Head of the Harbor Neighborhood Preservation Coalition represents one of the groups of town citizens criticizing and opposing specific sections of the plan unless favorable compromises can be reached between the coalition and the town government. The coalition is a volunteer organization based in Head of the Harbor. It is composed of neighborhood residents in Head of the Harbor and St. James dedicated to the preservation of their environment, heritage and history.

The middle-ground between these two groups is uncertain, especially amid claims that there is improper regard to the community’s voices speaking out against the plan.

“They receive [our] letters, but we don’t receive any acknowledgment from the town that there are community concerns,” said Judy Ogden, trustee of the Head of the Harbor Neighborhood Coalition. “When the draft Comprehensive Plan came out, it was supposed to be a chance to speak of the conflict in some of the points being made.”

Ogden, along with other members of the coalition, attended the St. James hamlet meeting to raise questions. Their most recent attendance during a Zoom conference held Jan. 28 about St. James found familiar questions and ponderance directed toward the details of the plan for the hamlet.

One topic of conversation was the Gyrodyne sewage treatment plan proposed for the commercial property in St. James.

All over Suffolk County, according to Garguilo, various places are operating off of outdated sewage systems. If the town had to build even one sewer treatment facility with taxpayer money, the total amount of required finances would roughly estimate $157 million, according to the PIO. Even if the funds were acquired federally, the debate of where it should be placed would supposedly cause further complications and delays for set-up.

Garguilo said that it is a matter of a 20-to-30-year option vs. a three-year option. The latter being a route that costs the taxpayers of Smithtown nothing since the said sewer treatment facility would be developed in a private sector of land.

“Gyrodyne has owners that want to do right by the community,” Garguilo said. “Most of the representatives are St. James residents, and they care about the community and pay attention to what the concerns are. I think that when it’s all said and done, people will be pleased.”

In addition to sewage treatment, Smithtown officials had reached a deal that H2M, the multi-disciplined professional consulting and design firm, whose hired land developers stated if ten homes were built in a single square mile, a plot of land within a square mile would have to be preserved for open space.

Garguilo affirmed that this action followed part of the town’s decision to make certain areas of the town more family-oriented by associating outdoor-recreational environments that all age-demographics can enjoy.

Smithtown’s famous monument, a bull statue named Whisper, has remained across from developments that have come and gone for over a century. Across the street from the statue is currently the gentlemen’s club Oasis, among other outdated developments, which the town envisions as future open recreational spaces for the general public to use.

It is a mission statement of the town of Smithtown and a drive behind the Comprehensive Plan to preserve as much wildlife space and to never build on it if possible. That is where the town’s “Open-Space Fund” can take effect — renovating the land inside the town instead of constructing new developments on the other side of the Nissequogue River, which are primarily untouched wetlands and marshlands home to various species of wildlife.

The need to connect with the community follows a hope of Garguilo that there can be common ground between the opposition and the town as the Comprehensive Plan continues to unravel and expand.

Others like Ogden say they hope there will be a win-win for everybody, “If we can reconsider some parts, then it would feel like we’re being listened to.”

9/11 first responders now eligible for COVID vaccine

by TBR Staff - February 18, 2021

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Healthcare cure concept with a hand in blue medical gloves holdi — Photo from Deposit Photos

By Kimberly Brown

The first responders of 9/11 have officially been put on the list as eligible to receive the vaccine this past Monday, but some feel the responders have been left on the back burner throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the coronavirus vaccine slowly becomes more available to Long Islanders, John Feal, founder of the FealGood Foundation who is also a 9/11 responder and advocate, explained how he thinks compromised 9/11 responders who have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, among other long-term illnesses, should not only receive eligibility but be a priority for the vaccine as well.

John Feal, a 9/11 responder and advocate, said first responders should be a priority regarding the COVID-19 vaccine. Photo from John Feal

“Yes, absolutely, compromised responders should get priority for the vaccine,” Feal said. “On September 16, [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency head] Christine Todd Whitman said the air was safe to breathe and the water was safe to drink. It created a relaxed atmosphere where people didn’t feel the need to wear their masks anymore. If they weren’t lied to, then I wouldn’t see them as a priority, but definitely see them on the list. However, these men and women were lied to, and they got very sick.”

Weeks ago, Feal began urging members of Congress, Gov. Andrews Cuomo (D) and state senators to help the 9/11 responders who have not been getting vaccinated.

He doesn’t believe responders should be able to jump the line or take away the vaccine from others who need it. However, there are still affected responders who are sick from two decades ago and are too afraid to leave the house as they are already in danger from their previous illnesses.

“All of these responders who have debilitating illnesses from the toxins left in the air after 9/11 deserve to be included in the 65-and-up group,” Feal said. “The fact that they haven’t been included, is proof that America has tried to move on from that horrific day.”

Despite what the foundation has been able to accomplish throughout the years, not everything can be accomplished without some help from the federal and state governments. Feal explained how he’s spent more than a decade talking to elected officials who haven’t shown much urgency when it comes to aiding the 9/11 responders in the aftermath they have had to face.

His passion and determination for 9/11 responders is shown through his work. So far, 13 pieces of legislation have been passed in various legislatures, according to him, and a memorial park built in Nesconset. The foundation has also donated over $5 million to 9/11 responders and organizations.

“My mother raised me to never back down from a fight, but to also be respectful,” Feal said. “When we got our first bill passed we were like the little engine that could, and now 13 bills later we’re like that big engine that did.”

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