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Times of Smithtown

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Protestors hold up signs along Main Street in Smithtown on Saturday in protest of the Senate failing to vote on GENDA. Photo from Juli Grey-Owens

Activists took to the Smithtown office of state Sen. John Flanagan (R-East Northport) over the weekend to express their disappointment with the legislature’s failure to pass a state civil rights bill for the transgender community.

GENDA, also known as the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act, would have helped restrict discrimination against transgender citizens in areas of housing, employment or public access, which could include things like restaurants or cab rides. The bill, which made it through the state Assembly for nine years straight, died in the Senate when the legislative session ended last week, spurring the Long Island Transgender Advocacy Coalition to protest outside Flanagan’s office on Saturday.

“The transgender community has again been prevented from receiving the basic protections all New Yorkers enjoy” said Juli Grey-Owens, executive director of the Long Island Transgender Advocacy Coalition. “In the past, Sen. Flanagan had said he supported this bill to protect his transgender constituents, but now that he has the power to finally bring the bill to the floor for a vote, he seems to have forgotten his commitment to us.”

The Long Island Transgender Advocacy Coalition is a not-for-profit social justice organization dedicated to advancing the equality of transgender people through advocacy, teaching and empowerment. The group hosted a community forum back in March alongside other activist organizations calling for the Senate to step up and pass the legislation, or at the very least, move the conversation forward.

At that time, Flanagan spokesman Scott Reif said the Senate majority leader “prides himself on being open and transparent,” adding that Flanagan was listening.

“The senator routinely meets with all groups, as he has done for 30 years, throughout his entire public career, regardless of whether he agrees with them or not,” Reif said in an email to TBR News Media in March. “The decision to take a meeting is never influenced by a group’s position on an issue; it is dictated solely by what his schedule will allow.”

Grey-Owens said the transgender community was a constant target of discrimination, and Saturday’s demonstration came less than one week after a gunman opened fire at a gay club in Florida, murdering 49 patrons, in what quickly became the biggest mass shooting in U.S. history.

“The National Transgender Discrimination Survey showed that 26 percent of trans people lost a job due to bias, 50 percent were harassed on the job, 20 percent were evicted or denied housing, and 78 percent of trans students were harassed or assaulted,” Grey-Owens said. “We will continue to fight for our community and the rights that are being denied us.”

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Smithtown and fellow firefighters stop to salute 9/11 hero Lawrence Stack, whose remains were honored during a service at Saints Philip and James Roman Catholic Church in St. James. Photo from FDNY

All of Smithtown came to a stop on Friday as the community said a final goodbye to one of its own.

FDNY Battalion Chief Lawrence T. Stack of Lake Ronkonkoma was laid to rest at Saints Philip and James Roman Catholic Church of St. James nearly 15 years after his death on Sept. 11, 2001. The North Shore native, who died helping others in the horrific terrorist attacks of that tragic day, was never recovered from the rubble, forcing his family to hold out hope for a proper Catholic funeral ever since.

A bizarre twist of fate made Stack’s funeral and burial possible on Friday, on what would have been his 49th wedding anniversary with his wife Theresa. While his remains were never found, two vials of blood he donated to a bone marrow bank nearly six months before his death allowed his family to orchestrate a final goodbye in Smithtown.

Lawrence Stack, 58, received a full line-of-duty service on Friday as Smithtown shut down several streets surrounding the St. James church to accommodate the number of people who stopped to honor him, including Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D), New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) and countless more distinguished guests. It wasn’t until a year ago that his wife Theresa Stack said she remembered she and her husband donating blood about six months before 9/11 with hopes of matching a Long Island boy who was fighting cancer. Upon remembering and pursuing that blood, Theresa Stack said she found it in a Minnesota blood bank. That blood was buried on Friday.

“We’ve always honored him, respected him, loved him, and we never forgot him. But now he will rest with the members of the FDNY and the military at the Calverton National Cemetery,” wife Theresa Stack said. “I’m happy, and my family is happy, that we finally have some place to go to. I want Larry’s story to be out there so people don’t forget that there are families still suffering from that terrible day.”

Lawrence Stack’s son Michael, who is a lieutenant with the FDNY with Ladder 176, said he would remember his father as someone dedicated to helping others at any cost. In a statement to the FDNY’s Facebook page, Michael Stack detailed the accounts he received of his father’s last day.

“On Sept. 11, 2001, he was at the safety battalion at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, putting the finishing touches on the [fatal] Father’s Day fire report, when he heard about the plane hitting the north tower,” he said. “He went on the roof, looked through his binoculars, and saw the south tower get hit with the second plane. He put his binoculars down, looked to the other chiefs and firefighters and said, ‘Guys, I think they’re going to need us over there.’”

Brian Stack of Ladder 123 was 30 years old when his father died in the Sept. 11 attacks. He said he was thankful to have been able to spend as much time as he did with his father, and felt for the younger children of other heroes who died that day.

“I understood what happened on September 11 because it’s work, it’s the fire department. Danger is always right around the corner. It’s part of the job. I was 30 years old when he died, and I know that I’m lucky that I got more time with my father than some of the men and women coming on the job now,” Brian Stack said. “They were much younger when they lost their fathers. We were fortunate to have so many years with him in our lives.”

In a statement, the New York Blood Center said it was an honor to help bring peace to the Stack family.

“To every member of the FDNY, NYPD and to every rescue worker: We honor you all,” the center said in a statement on its Facebook page. “We honor those fallen in the line of service and those who serve. You protect life in our communities with determination, vision and courage every single day.”

Lawrence Stack worked with the FDNY for 33 years and was one of 343 FDNY members who died on Sept. 11th. He joined the department in 1968, first assigned to Ladder Company 107 and then Ladder Company 175 in Brooklyn. In 1981, he was promoted to lieutenant and assigned to Ladder Company 35 in Manhattan. Three years later, he was promoted to captain and assigned to Division 7 in the Bronx, and in 1990, he was promoted to battalion chief, working in Queens at the Bureau of Operations and the Safety Battalion. Prior to joining the FDNY, he served in the United States Navy for six years, including a tour of duty in the Vietnam War.

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‘Lily,’ Oil on Linen Board, by Daniel van Benthuysen of Huntington

By Talia Amorosano

On the sunny afternoon of Saturday, June 18, in conjunction with the beginning of summer, the juried art exhibition, Of a Botanical Nature, organized by the Smithtown Township Arts Council, opened at the Mills Pond House in St. James. For the first time this year, the general public was afforded the opportunity to immerse themselves in a gallery full of art representative of the intricacies of local and nonlocal flora. 

‘Camellia,’ Watercolor, by Lynn Kinsella of Brookhaven
‘Camellia,’ Watercolor, by Lynn Kinsella of Brookhaven

The exhibit, which will run through July 20, features 60 works of art from 49 artists, 22 of whom hail from various nonlocal areas of the country including Pennsylvania, Colorado, Texas and California. The remaining 27 represent the Long Island and New York City area. 

The artists
Mark Attebery
Ross Barbera *
Arthur Bernstein *
Stephen Brucker
Carol Ceraso *
Lisa Conway
Caryn Coville *
Debra Crawford
Audry Deal-McEver
Granville C. Fairchild *
Margaret Farr
Beverly Fink
Ingrid Finnan
Kathy Folino
Elizabeth Fusco *
Janice Marie Gabriel *
Kristine Gaier
Kelsey Gallagher
Vivian Gattuso *
Maureen Ginipro *
Patricia Greenberg
Stella Grove
Jillian Hauck *
Katherine Hiscox *
Kathleen Hollan
David Jaycox Jr. *
Lynn Kinsela *
Amanda Lebel
Katherine Lechler *
Madeline Lovallo
Patricia Luppino *
Louis R. Mangieri *
Lucy Martin
Kelly McLeod
Gary Mulnix
Lois Perlman
Pat Proniewski
Judith Scillia
Irene Paquette Tetrault *
Monica Ray *
Lynne Rivellese *
Robert Roehrig *
Alisa Shea *
Gisela Skoglund *
Gunter Stern *
Susan Tango *
Daniel van Benthuysen *
Camille Warmington
Sharon Way-Howard *
*Long Island artists

The works that appear in the show were chosen by Juror Wendy Hollender, a botanical artist, illustrator and author who currently instructs botanical drawing classes at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx. An accomplished illustrator, her work has been published in The New York Times and Good Housekeeping magazine and exhibited at the Royal Botanical Gardens in the UK and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. 

Regarding Hollender’s selection process, the executive director of STAC, Allison Cruz, said, “She really picked a broad range of artwork based in reality. She was looking more for realism, but she did take a couple of pieces that are more abstract.” Accordingly, Hollender awarded first and second place to artists whose works exemplify a command of a photorealistic style of portraying traditionally botanical subjects: respectively, Colorado-based artist Patricia Greenberg for her pencil drawing, “The Flower Loves the Rain,” and New York City-based artist Ingrid Finnan for her color illustration, “Blue Hubbard Squash.” These two artists will go on to participate in a winner’s show next year,  which will also be held at the Mills Pond House.

Honorable mentions were awarded to Margaret Farr for various botanical illustrations, Gary Mulnix for a larger-than-life wooden sculptural representation of “Lupine” and Lois Perlman for a richly saturated color illustration of a “Parrot Tulip.”

‘Cactus Flower,’ Oil on Canvas, by Louis R. Mangieri of Mount Sinai
‘Cactus Flower,’ Oil on Canvas, by Louis R. Mangieri of Mount Sinai

According to Cruz, this exhibit features a particularly wide range of artistic mediums. In addition to two-dimensional works in watercolor, acrylic, oil, wash on paper and colored pencil, the show includes six three-dimensional sculptural works made of bronze, black walnut wood, glass mosaic, steel and clay, among other materials.

Subject matter depicted ranges from close-up, scientific-looking views of individual flowers or plants with monochromatic backgrounds (Kelly McLeod’s “Wilted Alstroemeria,” Kathleen Hollan’s “Autumn Leaves”), to still life images of staged indoor plants (Katherine Hiscox’s “From the Garden,” Granville C. Fairchild’s “Reaching to Heaven”), to garden landscapes (Pat Proniewski’s “Morning Azaleas,” Carol Ceraso’s “Spring Affair”), to abstract representations of natural subjects (Lisa Conway’s “Grey Swan,” Arthur Bernstein’s “Sprout”).

However, all of the pieces in some way reflect the organic spontaneity of life in the natural world within the ordered structures of scientific classification, together forming a show that fosters an appreciation for the small examples of natural beauty that often go unnoticed in our day-to-day lives.

Cruz said, “There are a lot of watercolors by the nature of most of the flower illustrations, but it really is a broad range … I have everything in this show except photography and digital art. It’s a beautiful mix of media.”

The Smithtown Township Arts Council will present Of a Botanical Nature at the Mills Pond Gallery, 660 Route 25A, St. James through July 20. Gallery hours are Wednesday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. (closed July 3). Admission is free. For more information, call 631-862-6575 or visit www.stacarts.org.

‘Dahlia Sunrise,’ Transparent Watercolor, by Alisa Shea of Northport is on view at STAC’s Of a Botanical Nature exhibit
‘Dahlia Sunrise,’ Transparent Watercolor, by Alisa Shea of Northport is on view at STAC’s Of a Botanical Nature exhibit

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Photo by Alex Petroski Tom Suozzi speaks to voters. Photo by Alex Petroski.

Tom Suozzi (D-Glen Cove) is one of five candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in the 3rd Congressional District to win the right to face off against Republican Jack Martins (R-Mineola) in November.

The seat was previously held by U.S. Rep. Steve Israel (D-Huntington), who announced in January he would not seek re-election after 15 years in the seat. Suozzi will square off with Suffolk County Legislator Steve Stern (D-Dix Hills), former North Hempstead Town Supervisor Jon Kaiman (D-Great Neck), North Hempstead Town Board member Anna Kaplan and attorney Jonathan Clarke in the June 28 primary.

Suozzi served as Nassau County Executive from 2002 to 2009 and mayor of Glen Cove from 1994 to 2001, but has been out of politics for about six years. He is a certified public accountant and is currently of counsel to Harris Beach law firm in Uniondale. He lives in Glen Cove with his wife Helene and their three children. In his time in office, Suozzi said he fought to root out corruption in state politics and was named environmentalist of the year by the New York League of Conservation Voters, a statewide environmental organization.

The candidate spoke to voters from Kings Park last Thursday at a town hall at American Legion Post 944. He pledged to display two important traits to voters: a willingness to take on the status quo in politics and a desire to cooperate across the partisan aisle.

“If there’s one thing I’m convinced of, it’s that everyone is sick and tired of politics,” Suozzi said. “People have just had it with government. They’re frustrated. They see too many problems in their lives that are not being addressed in the political arena.”

“If there’s one thing I’m convinced of, it’s that everyone is sick and tired of politics.”
— Tom Suozzi

He vowed to take on corporations and special interests that have a stake in government policies remaining status quo.

A main topic of conversation at the town hall was affordable health care.

Suozzi said he would be in support of a voucher program that would create a hybrid health care system, allowing taxpayers to choose the best option for them, be it Medicare/Medicaid or a private insurance. In 2004 he fought to create a cap on local Medicaid expenses.

Suozzi also said he believes an ideal candidate is a moderate one that doesn’t swing too far to either side of the issues.

“To win a democratic primary you’ve got to go way to the left,” Suozzi said. “To win a republican primary you’ve got to go way to the right. So people end up in office who are at these two extremes and they won’t do anything in the middle to actually solve the problems. All they’re doing is yelling at each other. We have to figure out how we can get people of good will who actually care about doing these jobs, who also actually do something, not just get the job, but do the job, to come together and actually solve some problems.”

Care for veterans was another issue raised by a Kings Park voter at the event.

“I believe that the number one obligation that government has … is to take care of veterans,” Suozzi said. “We have to figure out how to create a program where there’s a transition from the armed forces back into society again and it has got to be made a priority.”

Suozzi was also pressed about drug addiction on Long Island.

He said he’d like to see addiction to substances like heroin treated more as a disease than a crime, with an emphasis on prevention at younger ages, rather than simply treatment after the fact.

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File photo

A man was electrocuted while working in a tree on a residential street on Sunday.

According to the Suffolk County Police Department, victim Oscar Diaz, identified as a 39-year-old employee of GA Island Landscaping Corps and a Brentwood resident, was killed while working in a tree in a Commack home’s front yard around 10:30 a.m.

Police said Diaz came into contact with power lines at the Roberta Lane home and was electrocuted. A physician assistant from the Suffolk County medical examiner’s office pronounced him dead at the scene.

According to police, both the Commack Fire Department and utility PSEG Long Island also responded to the scene on Sunday.

SCPD Homicide Squad detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding Diaz’s death, police said.

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Brig. Gen. Richard Sele speaks on the importance of treating veterans with care. Photo by Alex Petroski

In Suffolk County, veterans who have found themselves on the wrong side of the law now have a rehabilitation resource in a peer setting.

Veterans returning home from military service abroad often struggle assimilating into everyday civilian life. Suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder and other emotional difficulties, some land in prison — for crimes such as those related to substance abuse — because of difficulty coping with the transition.

Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco (C) announced the Incarcerated Veterans Re-Entry Initiative at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Yaphank last week. DeMarco spearheaded the new initiative along with Suffolk County Legislator Bill Lindsay (D-Holbrook), Judge John Toomey of the county’s Veterans Treatment Court, and veteran mentors from the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 11.

A block of cells, also known as a pod, within the correctional facility will now be comprised completely of veterans, who will have access to mentors and other services provided by the Northport Veterans Affairs Medical Center and others, as well as the added benefit of being around others with similar backgrounds and experiences.

“I don’t know of any population of citizens that we would rather have reintegrated into our communities and into our society.”
—Thomas Croci

According to the sheriff, about 8 percent of inmates in the United States have served in the military. And there are about 174,000 military veterans living on Long Island alone.

DeMarco said in an interview after the event that Vietnam veterans have been approaching the sheriff about establishing a dedicated jail pod for many years, similar to what has been done for the adolescents who are separated from the rest of the jail population, but the county’s overcrowded facilities made it a challenge.

“Veterans who have served our country and have been honorably discharged, the lowest point of their lives [is] if they get incarcerated,” DeMarco said, adding that the program will focus on getting incarcerated veterans treatment through various nonprofits for PTSD, addictions or any other mental health problems their experiences in the service contributed to.

“I think we owe that to them. They put their lives on the line for us.”

Brig. Gen. Richard Sele was the keynote speaker and said it is important to treat these veterans with sympathy.

“As soldiers, in addition to the wide range of regulations and policies that we follow, we hold our soldiers accountable to values — very high values,” Sele said. “As a leader and someone who has commanded at various levels, I’ve done so in a very firm and fair manner. But one thing I’ve learned over the years is that you also have to show compassion. You can still be firm and fair and show compassion.”

Ralph Zanchelli, of the Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 11, has been visiting jails on Long Island to serve as a mentor to veterans for about 16 years, and he spoke on behalf of the group.

“Housing veterans together is so very, very important,” he said. “They will be able to communicate with each other and support each other. We should never forget, when someone serves the country they sign a blank check, pledging to protect and serve the people of the United States of America, willing to give up their lives — and many have.”

“Veterans who have served our country and have been honorably discharged, the lowest point of their lives [is] if they get incarcerated.”
—Vincent DeMarco

New York State Sen. Thomas Croci (R-Sayville) spoke about the importance of rehabilitating returning soldiers with mental health issues.

“I don’t know of any population of citizens that we would rather have reintegrated into our communities and into our society,” he said. “These are exactly the people that we want back in our communities, running our businesses, sharing their experiences in school as teachers, and in law enforcement.”

DeMarco addressed the possible criticism that everyone should be held accountable for breaking the law without preferential treatment.

“They’re being held accountable for their crimes, there’s no doubt about that,” he said. “They have to go to court. They’re going to be charged. They’re going to be sentenced. They’re not getting off easy. We’re just giving them a better place and services while they’re incarcerated.

DeMarco likened this jail block to a similar one established in 2011 for 16- to 22-year-olds, which included rehabilitative efforts and mentoring. He said the incarcerated population from that demographic has dropped 75 percent since then.

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Daniel Claxton gets over the bar. Photo from Kathie Borbet

Junior high jumper Daniel Claxton’s track and field career has already come full circle.

As a freshman at Smithtown East, he qualified to compete in the state championship, where he finished fifth in Division I and eighth overall, which includes public, Catholic and city schools. Last weekend, he was back at the state championship for the third time, but found himself back at the same Cicero-North Syracuse High School track he competed on two years ago.

“It felt pretty good to come back to this meet two years later,” he said. “The end of the season couldn’t have gone more perfect. It was a whole different story.”

Claxton finished first in Division I and second in the federation.

“You put your time in as a coach and to have the athletes who buy into the sport and are of that quality and come through every week is pretty amazing to see,” Smithtown East head coach Kathie Borbet said. “It makes you feel good as a coach to have some succeed that well.”

Liam Hendricks winds up to hurl the discus. Photo from Kathie Borbet
Liam Hendricks winds up to hurl the discus. Photo from Kathie Borbet

Teammate Liam Hendricks, a shot put and discus thrower who placed first in every dual meet and invitational in discus, placed third in Division I and sixth overall. Although capable of throwing 178 feet, which is the new school record he set this season — breaking his own previous marks — he threw 168 at the state tournament.

“You don’t always throw your best at the opportune time,” Borbet said. “But he was pretty close to the 178-mark all season. He had one throw that was just foul that would’ve been like a 180 throw. It just missed the mark.”

But throwing coach Mike Schilling, who joined the team just for this season since retiring after 41 years with Half Hollow Hills, said Hendricks was a bit nervous, adding he’s a really good thrower when he can keep calm.

“My job was not really to get him to set records, although he did, but it was more to get him to be able to compete consistently,” he said. His reputation preceded him. I knew who I was going to be able to coach this year and it was really good. He was there every day, he’s a hard worker, and he does all the things he’s supposed to be doing to get to where he is. He’s very talented.”

His team of throwers, including Dominik Oramas, Chris Perrier, Shaun DeGennaro and Kevin Murphy also helped the Bulls excel this season. Especially shot-putter Oramas, who won every dual meet and just missed going to states. The group never lost a meet, according to Schilling, and didn’t give up more than 10 points total the entire season, when throwers can garner a total of 18 points at each meet.

Claxton also finished first in all but one meet this season. According to high jump coach Kurt Margraf, new plyometric training was introduced to help him reach his goal of seven feet.

“When he hits for higher heights, you have to get your hips up at a certain points and kick your legs over,” Margraf said. “Your head has to be positioned in a certain way and your shins have to hit your chest at a certain point. It’s really technical.”

Although he didn’t reach 7 feet, he reached 6 feet and 11 inches this season, to break his own school record. He finished the state meet with a 6-foot-8 mark, so while Margraf said he may be a little disappointed knowing he could do better, he’s adapted well to his new training and he’s focused on continuing to strive for greater success.

“He was that determined back in his freshman year, when he wanted to reach 6 feet and ended up with a 6 foot-4 mark during the state tournament,” the coach said. “And it’s carried over without a doubt. He’s still determined, and that’s huge. He’s focused on getting the higher heights.”

Claxton is hoping to reach his target his senior season, and said his coaches have been providing him with ways to strengthen his body and mind to do it.

“It’s an honor to see my hard work pay off,” he said. “I will continue to strive for goals — ones I have set, others I haven’t set yet, and others I will try to break. The sky’s the limit.”

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Did you see the news

On June 12, a 24-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested at Andrea’s 25, a restaurant on Route 25 in Commack, after police said he stole more than 100 copies of Newsday throughout the course of three months. He was charged with four counts of petit larceny.

Over exposed

A 43-year-old man from Riverhead was arrested on June 12 after police said he exposed himself at the Smith Haven Mall in Lake Grove. He was charged with lewdness for exposing his body in public.

How’s it hanging

Police said a 20-year-old man from Inwood was hanging from a water pipe inside Hypnosis 8.0, a nightclub on East Main Street in Smithtown on June 12, and caused water damage inside the business. He was arrested and charged with criminal mischief with reckless property damage.

Apartment swiper

A 30-year-old man from Smithtown was arrested on June 11 after police said he entered an apartment in Kings Park and stole a laptop and a television, then drove a 1996 Ford Sedan with a suspended license west bound on Motor Parkway in Hauppauge. He was charged with second-degree burglary and second-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Leggo my Legos

On June 11, a 26-year-old man from Smithtown was arrested after police said he stole multiple Lego sets from stores on Middle Country Road and Veterans Highway in Commack. He was charged with two counts of petit larceny.

All for some detergent pods

Police said a 27-year-old man from Miller Place stole detergent pods from ShopRite on Garrett Place in Commack on June 11. He was arrested and charged with petit larceny.

Knock knock

A 31-year-old woman from Kings Park was arrested on June 10 after police said she kicked in the front door of a residence on Commack Road and entered without consent. She was charged with criminal mischief intent with intent to damage property.

Caught with cocaine

On June 10, a 30-year-old man from Islandia was arrested after police said he was in possession of a clear glass pipe with cocaine residue in it while on Veterans Memorial Highway. He was charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Weed is whack

A 19-year-old man from Kings Park was arrested on June 10 after police said he had marijuana in his possession while in a 2015 Nissan on Indian Head Road in Kings Park. He was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana.

Tool stealing tools

On June 9, a 34-year-old man from Deluca was arrested after police said he stole tools from Pep Boys Auto Parts & Car Repair on Middle Country Road in St. James. He was charged with petit larceny.

His future is sealed

Police said a 43-year-old man from Farmingville refused to listen to officers who told him to freeze after attempting to arrest him for stealing three envelopes filled with cash from a business on Middle Country Road, on June 9. After he was caught, he struggled with officers and tried to resist arrest. He was charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and resisting arrest.

Razor rift

Police said an unknown person stole two Razor Scooters from a residence on Washington Avenue in St. James on June 12.

Picking a fight with police

A 23-year-old man from Coram screamed at and made threatening movements and gestures toward multiple police officers during an incident at about 1 a.m. on June 12 on North Street in Mount Sinai, according to police. He was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for violent behavior.

Hello, officer, my name is John Doe

At Sylvan Avenue Park in Miller Place at about 8 p.m. on June 9, a 23-year-old man from Holtsville possessed heroin and hypodermic syringes, police said. When questioned by police, he provided a false identity and birthdate to avoid arrest for violating his parole, according to police. He was arrested and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and false impersonation.

Gun and drug charges

On June 9 at about 2 a.m., a 23-year-old man from Mastic Beach was found to possess a loaded 9-mm semiautomatic handgun without a permit outside of a home on North Washington Avenue in Centereach, police said. He was also in possession of cocaine, according to police. He was arrested and charged with second-degree and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and fourth-degree possession of a narcotic.

No one wants to see that

A 61-year-old man from Port Jefferson Station exposed himself in the woods near a public park on Route 25 in Selden at about 3 p.m. on June 4, and again while seated in a Nissan Sentra in the parking lot of People’s United Bank on Route 112 in Coram at about 7 p.m. on June 9, according to police. He was arrested on June 9 and charged with public lewdness and exposing his body in public.

Liar, liar

Near Sam’s Club on Horseblock Road in Medford at about 9 a.m. on May 20, a 47-year-old woman from Mastic Beach filed a police report stating her 1996 Toyota had been stolen, according to police. She was arrested on June 10 when it was discovered that her car was on the side of Horseblock Road in Medford and she knew that was where it was, yet still filed the false report, police said.

Toothbrush bandit

On six occasions in 2016 — at CVS Pharmacy on West Main Street in Smithtown, CVS Pharmacy on West Jericho Turnpike in Huntington Station and CVS Pharmacy on West Main Street in East Islip — a 36-year-old homeless man stole multiple electronic toothbrushes, according to police. He was arrested on June 9 and charged with six counts of petit larceny.

Dump truck driver dumps license

A 32-year-old man from Port Jefferson Station was driving a Ford dump truck on Oakmont Avenue in Selden at about 1:30 p.m. on June 9 when he was pulled over, police said. They discovered he was driving with a suspended license. He was arrested and charged with second-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. His license had been suspended 10 times prior to the arrest, according to police.

Front runner

On June 8 at about 2 p.m., a 30-year-old man from Ronkonkoma stole two New York Yankees jerseys and one New York Giants jersey from Bob’s Stores at College Plaza in Selden, police said. He was arrested and charged with petit larceny.

Pills pilfered

At a home on Overton Street in Sayville, a 47-year-old woman stole various prescription pills on June 2, according to police. She was arrested on June 10 in Selden and charged with petit larceny.

Pizza parlor patron’s passport pick-pocketed

Cash and a passport were stolen from a 2008 Chevrolet parked outside of Port Jeff Pizza on Main Street in Port Jefferson at about 9 p.m. on June 11, according to police.

Missing mailbox

A mailbox was stolen from outside a home on Sheep Pasture Road in Setauket at about 8 p.m. on June 11, police said.

Covert operation

Headphones for the video game Call of Duty on the Playstation 4 system were stolen from Walmart on Nesconset Highway in Setauket on June 12, according to police.

Shoplifting at Kohl’s

Clothing, four picture frames and three necklaces were stolen from Kohl’s on Nesconset Highway in Setauket at about 1:30 p.m. on June 12, according to police.

Knife-y situation

A 45-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested on June 13 after police said he held someone up in Manor Park in Huntington Station with a knife and stole their black wallet with a credit card and cash inside. He was charged with first-degree robbery with use of a dangerous instrument.

In need(le) of some help

On June 13, a 32-year-old man from North Massapequa was arrested on Hauppauge Road in Commack after police said he had a hypodermic needle in his possession. He was charged with possession of a hypodermic instrument.

Hit and run

Police said a 20-year-old man from Dix Hills struck the rear passenger side door of a 2008 Lexus and fled while driving his 1996 Mercedes Benz on Bagatelle Road in Dix Hills on June 13. He was charged with leaving the scene with property damage.

It’s clear to all

A 29-year-old woman from Huntington was arrested on June 12 after police said she had a clear bag of marijuana in her possession while on Milton Place in Huntington. She was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana.

Weed on wheels

On June 10, a 19-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested after police said he had marijuana in his possession while inside a 2004 Honda Accord on East 2nd Street in Huntington Station. He was charged with fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana.

Hide your bike

On June 9, a 19-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested after police said he was in possession of a stolen 2008 Yamaha mini bike while on Old Country Road. He was charged with fifth-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

Not egg-zactly legal

Police said a 41-year-old man from Huntington Station threw an egg at a residence at 2 a.m. on Broadway in Greenlawn on June 10. He was arrested and charged with second-degree harassment with physical contact.

Heroin hand out

A 26-year-old man from Dix Hills was arrested on June 10 after police said he was selling narcotics, including heroin, on Dix Hills Drive in Melville. He was charged with third-degree criminal selling of a controlled substance narcotics.

Shady situation

Police said a 24-year-old woman from Centerport stole Ray Ban and Wildfox sunglasses from Lord & Taylor on Walt Whitman Road in Huntington on June 10. She was arrested and charged with petit larceny.

iDon’t think you can do that

On June 10, a 46-year-old man from Smithtown was arrested after police said he stole an iPhone 5S and an iPhone 6 Plus from Target on Veterans Memorial Highway in Commack. He was charged with two counts of petit larceny.

No king in King Kullen

A 29-year-old woman from Huntington Station was arrested on June 10 after police said she stole various grocery items from King Kullen on West Jericho Turnpike in Huntington Station. She was charged with petit larceny.

You can’t have that Yamaha

A 16-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested on June 9 after police said he was in possession of a stolen Yamaha ATV while on Park Avenue in Huntington. He was charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property valuing more than $1,000.

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A satellite view of the Steck-Philbin Landfill site that the County plans to repurpose in cooperation with the Suffolk County Landbank. Image from Suffolk County Landbank Corp.

A former landfill in Kings Park has been transferred into the hands of a nearby developer with the intention of rehashing the site into a solar farm.

The site of the former Steck-Philbin Landfill on Old Northport Road in Kings Park has withstood 30 years of tax delinquency but was selected as part of an effort from the Suffolk County Landbank Corp. to be revitalized along with seven other brownfields across the county. Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D) signed the transfer of the property into law on June 2, allowing Landbank — a not-for-profit — to begin revisioning the parcel with developer Powercrush Inc., of Kings Park, with the goal of reusing the site for solar farming.

Powercrush Inc. did not return requests seeking comment, but Bellone heralded the deal as a turning point for blighted spots on Long Island.

“These properties have been a burden on our taxpayers and a blight on our communities,” Bellone said.  “The inactivity at these locations dragged down neighboring property values and served as magnets for criminal activity.”

The site in Kings Park is still owned by Richard and Roslyn Steck of Steck & Philbin Development Co., though penalties and interest bring the total owed in property tax on the roughly 25 acres of land to nearly $1.5 million. The property has been tax delinquent since Steck & Philbin Development Co. was found to be using the site to dispose of waste for which they did not have a permit in 1986. It is located less than a half mile east of the Sunken Meadow Parkway and about a half mile west of Indian Head Road.

The property is next to the future location of a multisport complex being developed by Prospect Sports Partners LLC. The $33 million plan for the 44-acre site was approved in July 2015.

A property is classified as a brownfield if there are complications in expansion or redevelopment based on the possible presence of pollutants or hazardous materials, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

The Suffolk County Landbank was established in 2013 after its application was approved by the New York State Empire State Development Corporation. Some of the other brownfields included in the request for proposals include Hubbard Power and Light and a gas station on Brentwood Road in Bay Shore, Lawrence Junkyard in Islip and Liberty Industrial Finishing in Brentwood, among others. The group issued a competitive Request For Proposals (RFP) to the public for redevelopment of the eight specific sites and selected three developers to take title to four sites.

The four sites, on average, have been tax delinquent for 21 years and cumulatively owe over $4 million in back taxes. Once back on the tax rolls, the properties would pay a cumulative property tax of more than $175,000 per year.

The developers selected “possessed the qualifications and expertise to clean up the properties and reuse them in a way that benefits the community, stabilizes the tax base, and protects Suffolk County’s soil and groundwater,” the county said in a statement.

Amy Keys, executive director of the Landbank, said Powercrush was selected based on a number of qualifications, including design, impact and feasibility. Its partnership with BQ Energy LLC, which has worked on several solar projects across the region.

“[Smithtown] was clear they were supportive of solar happening there,” Keys said. “When reviewing solar proposals, we were looking for experience in developing solar on that scale, and a proposal that seemed feasible.”

Shawn Nuzzo, president of Ecological Engineering of Long Island, had also submitted a proposal for the site that he said had the potential to pump renewable energy into the Island’s power grid almost immediately. His proposal included a 6-megawatt solar farm as the largest landfill-to-solar project in New York State that could generate nearly 8 million kilowatt hours of solar electricity in its first year. The plan received support from various North Shore elected officials, including state Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) and others.

In an interview, Nuzzo said he was disappointed to learn of the county’s selection of Powercrush Inc. and accused the county of playing politics.

“This is the exact sort of ‘pay-to-play’ system that politicians like to say that they are against, but at the end of the day willingly corroborate, or at least turn a blind eye to. The seemingly endless series of Suffolk political scandals only serves to affirm that there must be a lot of blind eyes in Suffolk County politics,” Nuzzo said. “Despite the fact that the Suffolk County Legislature voted on the proposal and County Executive Bellone announced it at a press conference more than two weeks ago, the details of the proposal remain secret to the public. Our most recent [Freedom of Information Law] attempts have been thwarted by the Suffolk County Landbank. I can only speculate that the winning proposal was so inadequate and incomplete that the county is embarrassed to share it. It’s a shame, because our proposal to build Long Island’s first community-owned solar farm could have been a landmark moment for Suffolk County. Instead what we got was politics as usual.”

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Kings park residents and their elected officials stand opposed to any plans to build a bridge or tunnel across Long Island Sound. File photo

By Phil Corso

North Shore boaters are making waves over a lack thereof.

Members of the Smithtown Bay Yacht Club and the Stony Brook Yacht Club have been kicking up sand for weeks with hopes that county and town officials would throw them a lifesaver and dredge the waters where the Stony Brook and Porpoise Channels merge on their way out into Smithtown Bay along the North Shore. And while there has been some support vocalized via elected leaders, action is still pending.

Members of both yacht clubs, though fierce competitors when the two cast off in interclub fishing contests, came together in the name of public safety this boating season when they penned a letter on June 2 to Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone (D). Using urgent language, commodores for both groups, including Mike Kozyrski and Kevin Rooney of Smithtown and Denis Lynch of Stony Brook, asked for a quick dredging of the channel leading out to Smithtown Bay in the name of boater safety.

“At dead low tide, there is oftentimes less than a foot of water in the channel leading out into the Long Island Sound,” Kozyrski said. “Should a boater experience a serious medical emergency out on the water, the bay constable or other emergency personnel may be unable to transit the channel in order to assist them. In our opinion, this is a personal tragedy simply waiting to happen.”

Rooney, coordinator of the dredging project for the Smithtown Bay Yacht Club, said the low-tide and low-water situation has reached a “critical stage” due to the continued shifting of sand and bottom material into the channel.

“It is not an overstatement to say that the very lives of our members, their families and all other boaters are potentially in serious jeopardy due to inaction by various government agencies to prioritize and complete the necessary dredging of the Smithtown Bay channel,” he said. “The situation is dire. And it is totally unacceptable.”

In their letter, the commodores said the area in question was mostly limited to where Stony Brook and Porpoise Channels merged. Navigation buoys turn in a northwesterly direction there, leading into the bay and out into the Long Island Sound. If not dredged properly, the boaters argued that personnel could be unable to reach someone in need of assistance from the shorelines of Port Jefferson or Eaton’s Neck.

“By the time they arrive, it may be too late,” Lynch said.

Bellone, who has put his administration at the forefront of the fight to improve water quality on Long Island, expressed the importance of dredging earlier this year when his administration announced the completion of a project at Champlin Creek in the Town of Islip. A spokeswoman from his office said the Town of Brookhaven submitted a formal request this week before the county’s dredge project screening committee, which will consider making the area a part of the dredging program.

Earlier this month, Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine (R) requested that Suffolk County dredge more than a dozen spots across the town for the 2016-2017 dredging season, including the waters of Stony Brook.

“Dredging our waterways is essential for both the economic and ecologic health of our region,” said Romaine, who is a past member of the Suffolk County Dredge Project Screening Committee. “Keeping these channels safe, open and usable on a consistent basis is essential for the health of these waterways, and for boaters to safely enjoy during the summer months.”

The commodores said they hoped lawmakers would put the channel on a regular maintenance dredging schedule in order to allow unlimited access to the Long Island Sound for both boaters and emergency personnel. They, along with other activists across the North Shore, have started a grass roots lobbying campaign with the goal of expediting that kind of schedule.

“This is not about boater convenience,” Kozyrski said. “This is simply about the health and safety of all boaters from our two towns — something clearly needs to be done and we hope that our county and town officials feel the same sense of urgency that we do for the safety of our club members, friends and neighbors.”

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