Superintendent Jessica Schmettan. File photo by Kyle Barr
Port Jefferson Middle School and Earl L. Vandermeulen High School had to go fully remote this week, after parents begged the district to allow their children back in four days a week.
Up until recently, the district had students come to the high school and middle school twice a week. Parents, concerned about how the lack of in-person learning would have on their children, began asking why the district would not add more days.
Jae Hartzell, a parent in the district, said she was one of a dozen who voiced their concerns.
“We really worked, and fought, and emailed, and studied, and provided stats, and really researched to make sure we were fighting for the right and safe thing to do,” she said.
And their wishes were granted at the latest board of education meeting on Jan. 8, when the board agreed on a vote to let middle and high schoolers back in four days a week.
But just two days later, on Sunday, Jan. 10, the district sent out a notification that the four days will not happen, and instead, those two groups would have to go remote.
The notice said that as of that day, there were 26 staff members, including teachers and teaching assistants, who are subject to quarantine due to COVID-19, for a variety of reasons related to their own health, in-school and out of school exposures, and positive family members.
It continued that after careful examination of the school’s schedules and their available substitute coverage, they determined they do not have the staff to cover the middle and high schools this week. That being said, grades 6-12 will go remote Jan. 12 through Jan. 15, with no change to the Monday, Jan. 11 schedule as this is an asynchronous remote day in the district’s hybrid schedule.
The notice did not affect the elementary school, which will still be open for in-person learning, and staff coverage for the district’s 8:1:1 special education students have not been affected, as the in-person class schedules for these students remains the same.
“As a parent, you see your child go from super happy and over the moon to be able to go back to school, and then flattened a bit with that disappointment,” Hartzell said. “We all have to understand this is very complex and complicated and we don’t have the information, but it’s disheartening.”
Port Jefferson School District Superintendent Jessica Schmettan said the district understands this is difficult news to hear after the highly anticipated return to four days per week of in-person instruction.
“This determination is only for the remainder of this week and we expect to begin this next phase of our reopening plan on Tuesday, Jan. 19 – as long as circumstances permit – when we look forward to having all of our students back in our classrooms,” she said.
From left, Frank Franzese, Dr. Don Heberer and David Rebori are Comsewogue’s tech team responsible for transitioning the school into online/hybrid learning. Photo from Heberer
Sometimes it takes a village – sometimes it takes a whole district.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, workers in North Shore school districts had to buckle down and create a new game plan from early on. March saw the closure of schools and the introduction of distance learning. September brought a return to in-person, but a host of new issues.
With constantly changing guidelines, they had to reconstruct their plans. Superintendents had to lead their districts to continue learning and to keep their students safe, while teachers, librarians, custodians, librarians and so many more worked and sacrificed to do the best they could, often exceeding what was expected.
Gerard Poole, superintendent of Shoreham-Wading River school district, said it was a collaborative effort.
Superintendent Gerard Poole. Photo from SWR school district
“So much had to happen for all of this had to be in place for the start of the school year,” he said. “Administrators who didn’t take any time off this summer, to teachers who had to move around classrooms. There were a lot of things that had to be done.”
One of those things that were applauded by community members was the reopening of the vacant Briarcliff Elementary School in Shoreham, which helped increase social distancing and lower the class sizes.Poole said that in June, after they learned the 6-foot requirement between students and their desks was going to be in place, by opening up the formerly closed school they could have every student in five days a week.
But the superintendent stressed they couldn’t have done it alone. The school board was instrumental in making this happen, maintenance workers helped move supplies and nurses were there early on ready to work.
“It was an easy academic decision to make, but equally as important socially and emotionally,” he said. “This year seems now like a major win.”
And while SWR had to implement a plan to reopen a closed school, Cheryl Pedisich, superintendent of Three Village school district, said early in the spring the district formed a committee that would look at the narrative, and implement a school opening plan with the ultimate goal to go back to school, as normal, five days a week.
“The issue of health and safety was most important,” she said.
Pedisich said they initially developed a hybrid model, but the more she and her colleagues discussed it, they became concerned of the lack of continuity, also the mental, emotional and social impacts being on a screen would have on students.
Superintendent Cheryl Pedisich. Photo from Three Village Central School District
“We wanted to bring our students back to school,” she said. “What we experienced during the spring were a lot of students’ mental health [issues]. The children felt very isolated — it was hard to connect. There was a lot of frustration in terms in the remote learning.”
By creating an education plan early on that opened the school up to five days a week head on, the district was able to hire more staff, and prepare for socially distanced learning.
“Even though they’re wearing masks, they’re happy to be there,” Pedisich said. “We’ve had cases like anyone else, but no more cases than districts that went hybrid.”
And schools that run independently also had to figure out how to cope with these unprecedented times, including Sunshine Prevention Center in Port Jefferson Station, a nonprofit that offers an alternative education program. The CEO, Carol Carter, said they had to work with staff to handle the change.
“We provided support to the staff and a strong leadership to the staff, so the teachers felt comfortable,” she said. “Then we did training on it. They had to learn along with us as we’re learning — they’re learning how to run classes online, how to put homework online and how to communicate with the students.”
While their school has a very small staff, they continued to help kids who were struggling at home.
“We would try and reach out to students and their families almost daily,” Holly Colomba, an English and science teacher at Sunshine said. “We were trying to check in, whether it’s with their mental health or educationally, just trying to keep in contact with them and let them know we’re still here — and that we were there to help them.”
And technology was huge in every district as the COVID pandemic was navigated. Joe Coniglione, assistant superintendent at Comsewogue School District, said the district wouldn’t be running smoothly without the help and initiative from the technology department.
“These guys made it possible with going remote and doing hybrid instruction,” he said. “They orchestrated training every teacher in the district and worked around the clock to make sure kids were learning. They went way above and beyond to help us operate in time.”
From left, Frank Franzese, Dr. Don Heberer and David Rebori are Comsewogue’s tech team responsible for transitioning the school into online/hybrid learning. Photo from Heberer
Don Heberer, Comsewogue district administrator for instructional technology, said he remembered the day well. It was March 13 and he was at John F. Kennedy Middle School, scrambling and making sure every student had a device to use at home. They delivered about 300 Chromebooks to families who didn’t have devices.
“I relied on my staff,” he said.“And our number one focus was how can we make learning possible.”
Heberer and his colleagues — Jan Condon, David Rebori and Frank Franzese — made sure that communication was getting out to members of the community, students and their families. Teachers were constantly being trained and students were able to access their work online.
“We were in the middle of a crisis,” he said. “We have to remember people are losing their jobs, their lives, their entire livelihood. It’s important to be empathetic to that and doing everything we can to make it a little easier — students, teachers, parents and the community.”
He said they kept people in the loop using the districts app, which has roughly 7,000 people logged in.
School librarians, too, had to change shape to keep kids reading.
Monica DiGiovanni, a librarian at Joseph A. Edgar Intermediate School in Rocky Point, said she and her colleagues focused this year on teaching students Sora, a reading app by OverDrive.
She said that Sora is an electronic version of their library, so kids would still be able to access books and read them on their Chromebooks.
Along with DiGiovanni, Rocky Point librarians Jessica Sciarrone, Catherine O’Connell and Bettina Tripp have been responsible teaching students how to use the system since the school library cannot be used due to the pandemic.
Monica DiGiovanni, the school librarian in the Joseph A. Edgar Intermediate School, was instrumental in getting kids e-books during COVID. Photo from DiGiovanni
“As librarians, we were like, ‘Oh gosh we can’t give them books?’ That was a huge issue,” DiGiovanni said.
After researching platforms to get them e-books, all four librarians decided to devote most of their library budget to the electronic reads.
“There’s so much that books provide that children get out of it,” DiGiovanni said. “They enjoy going to other places — fantasy worlds — so they can get that now with e-books.”
She said they’re definitely utilizing the service.
“Some kids prefer them,” she added. “They like to be able to finish a book and go onto something new right away.”
At Port Jefferson high school, the Varsity Club is traditionally a group that inspires a sense of community involvement in student-athletes. Teachers and advisers to the club — Jesse Rosen and Deirdre Filippi — said that what their students usually do to get involved with the community was altered or canceled because of the pandemic.
“As a result, some new events were created by our students and we found alternate ways of giving back to the community,” Filippi said. “We were especially impressed by the fact that our students saw this phase of their life as an opportunity, rather than an obstacle.”
Along with reading programs paired with the elementary school, Edna Louise Spear,and hanging of flags on 9/11 and Veterans Day, the club hosted a Halloween trick-or-treat drive-thru event at the elementary school.
“Oftentimes, when we feel somewhat helpless about our own situations, the best thing we can do is help those around us,” Filippi said. “This event was a perfect representation of our club´s mentality.”
A good part of the community came to the school to experience a unique and safe trick-or-treating experience.
Students from the Port Jefferson Varsity Club during their drive-thru trick or treat event. Photo from PJ School District
“The idea was simple, the communal impact was overwhelming,” she said. “This speaks to what we try to achieve as educators. Our students recognized an opportunity within our community and they developed and executed a plan perfectly.”
The impact the club and its students made was overwhelming for Rosen and Filippi.
“As educators, the actions of our students often inspire us,” Filippi said. “It is rewarding to see our students take the initiative and do whatever they can to put a smile on the face of their fellow students and community members.”
In the Smithtown Fire District, one seat is available on the board of fire commissioners, and incumbent Padraig O’Brien will face challenger Michael Clarke for that seat.
Padraig O’Brien
O’Brien is a lifelong resident of Smithtown and local businessman who has operated Chemex, the pool and chemical supply store across from the bull statue, for more than 30 years. He joined the fire department in 1973 and is a member of Rescue Company 9. He has held a seat on the board of commissioners since he was first elected in 2000.
In a statement, he said during this tenure calls to the fire department have increased more than 40%, but “we are better equipped and further ready to handle these requests than ever before.” He also credits the skills he has learned as a businessman such as strong planning, organizational and budgeting skills for maintaining a “fiscally sound approach to district operations.” He said modernizing systems and equipment has led to increasing efficiency and cutting waste.
He added that while on the board he has been pleased with state and county grants the district has procured to alleviate the tax burden on residents as well as maintaining the budgets below the tax cap.
“If reelected, I will use this valuable experience to further advance the goals we have set out to achieve and continue to fight for our paramount objective of providing exceptional service to those we protect,” he said in the statement.
Clarke has been a member of the fire department for 29 years. Prior to joining in 1991, he was involved in the Commack ambulance service, which he joined at 14 years old, for seven years. When he was in his early 20s and lived in Bethpage for a short time, he was a volunteer there.
A lieutenant with the Old Brookville Police Department, this is Clarke’s first time running for fire commissioner. He said part of his work responsibilities is administration which involves implementing and keeping to budgets. With the police department covering six villages, he is accustomed to dealing with several local officials as well as different budgets and working within financial constraints. He also has gained grant-writing experience at his job, which he said is valuable for procuring funds.
Michael Clarke
“We can see what money and resources are out there,” he said, adding that any financial assistance takes the burden off the taxpayers.
He said with being active in various roles in the Smithtown Fire Department, including company officer and being part of purchasing equipment committees, he’s been involved in many big decision processes. Through his career and volunteer experiences, he has worked with EMS workers, and he said he believes he can bring a better representation of what needs to be implemented for EMS workers on the district side.
Overall, he said he wants to continue with getting the proper equipment the fire department needs, work within the budget and in turn help the taxpayers, as he’s familiar with local taxes after he and his wife, Kim, have raised two children in the area.
“We have to be good stewards of the taxpayers’ money,” he said.
The Smithtown Fire District will hold its commissioner election Tuesday, Dec. 8, between 4 and 9 p.m. at the Smithtown firehouse located at 100 Elm Ave.
Matthew Mazza and Jerry Varrichio flank their instructor Walter Vendura as they receive their black belts Nov. 21. Photo by Julianne Mosher
They love coming to their martial arts classes on Saturdays.
“Matt can’t wait to go to karate,” his father Jim Mazza said. “He’s disappointed when he can’t come or if there’s no class that week.”
Jerry Varrichio and Matthew Mazza sporting their new black belts. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Matt Mazza, of Smithtown, and Stony Brook resident Jerry Varrichio are both 19 and on the autism spectrum. They began their martial arts journey a decade ago at Long Island Traditional Tae Kwon Do under the leadership of grandmaster Walter Vendura, owner and head instructor of the martial arts studio.
On Saturday, Nov. 21, both Mazza and Varrichio earned their first black belts.
In a three-hour presentation, the two students presented their moves and skills to a small group of family and friends. They’ve been practicing two-to-three times a week, according to Vendura, since they were little kids.
Originally located in East Setauket, Vendura and his team chose to close their doors due to COVID-19 back in March, but that didn’t stop them from continuing the practice of martial arts elsewhere.
Matthew Mazza kicks a wood plant to earn his first-ever black belt. Photo by Julianne Mosher
During the summer, they began renting out space on the third floor of the Port Jefferson Village Center every Saturday. With masks on and limited in number, the students would continue to learn balance, find strength and break wood planks just as they did before.
Vendura said he has made it his mission to welcome and train individuals of all abilities. Over his 50-year career practicing martial arts, he recently earned his own 8th degree black belt, while also training students at various levels of skills. The instructor has taught people who are blind and deaf, as well as those on the autism spectrum.
“We care about the growth of the student,” Vendura said. “We hope we can encourage them to continue the leadership within themselves, not only in martial arts but in life.”
Both families of the new black belt holders said they originally had trouble finding a studio that was accommodating and welcoming to students with disabilities.
“They understand him,” Jim Mazza said. “It’s not just about the money — they care.”
Varrichio embraces his dad after receiving his belt. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Kathleen Mazza, Matt’s mother, added that the Tae Kwon Do studio was able to reach her son on an entirely different level.
“They have a unique skill that no one else has,” she said. “They have knowledge, patience and understanding about people on the autism spectrum.”
Josephine Varrichio agreed, saying her son has grown so much during his time practicing martial arts.
“Despite all the obstacles and his disability, we’re so proud of him and how far he has come,” she said. “No one here ever gave up on him.”
Mazza embraces his mom after receiving his belt. Photo by Julianne Mosher
And that hard work paid off. With the accomplishment of receiving their first-ever black belts, the two had fun all the way.
“Breaking the board was my favorite,” Matt Mazza said. “I like sidekicks and I like coming to karate.”
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Department chief Kevin Fitzpatrick presents a plaque to Hailee Hurtado July 6. Photo by Rita J. Egan
A 15-year-old’s heroic actions were recognized July 6 at Smithtown Fire Department’s main facility on Elm Avenue.
Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim talks about Hailee before he and councilmembers gave her and her sister Madison skateboards. Photo by Rita J. Egan
The fire department, elected officials and the Smithtown Children’s Foundation presented Hailee Hurtado with awards and presents for helping to save her entire family from a devastating house fire June 26. If her actions would have been delayed by a few minutes, the outcome could have ended in tragedy, according to the fire department’s public information officer Rick Torre.
“We can all agree today that Hailee’s quick instinct and fast actions define her today as a hero,” Torre said.
It was in the early morning hours of June 26 when Hailee thought she smelled smoke in her Stuyvesant Lane home. Her first response was to wake up her father, Jonathan Hurtado, who discovered there was a fire in the garage. As the father evacuated his wife, Evelyn, and younger daughter, Madison, Hailee ran downstairs for her grandmother. After getting his wife and younger daughter to safety, Jonathan Hurtado returned inside the house where he found Hailee downstairs assisting her grandmother who uses a cane.
When the family was all safe outside, the garage became engulfed in flames and the fire had spread up the exterior to the upper level. Despite the fire department responding in minutes, the home was left uninhabitable with the total destruction of all keepsakes, clothing and electronics.
Torre said while firefighters are trained and participate in drills, Hailee didn’t have that luxury.
“In the early morning hours of June 26, the skills of the classroom or drills didn’t come into play for Hailee Hurtado,” he said. “It was instinct.”
Department chief Kevin Fitzpatrick presented Hailee with a plaque, and she received accolades and certificates for her valor from Congressman Lee Zeldin (R-NY1), state Assemblyman Mike Fitzpatrick (R-St. James), Suffolk County Legislator Leslie Kennedy (R-Nesconset), County Comptroller John Kennedy Jr. (R) and Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim (R).
Hailee Hurtado, left, holds the plaque she received from the Smithtown Fire Department as Congressman Lee Zeldin (R) congratulates her on her bravery July 6. Photo by Rita J. Egan
Zeldin congratulated Hailee on her bravery and counted her among the town’s finest as several of the department’s firefighters were on hand for the event.
“It really says a lot about what Hailee did when you have hometown heroes calling you a hero,” he said.
John Kennedy said his office has internships and then handed Hailee his business card and said she was welcomed to call at any time if she were interested in interning in his office.
Wehrheim joked that Hailee asked her parents if she really had to attend, he said, “Now you know why you had to come.”
“The Hurtado family have lost their home, their memories and their keepsakes, but they still have each other thanks to Hailee doing the impossible,” Wehrheim said. “It’s a privilege to honor her today.”
After his speech, Wehrheim and councilmembers gave Hailee and her sister skateboards. Mario Mattera, who is running for State Senate in November and is the business agent for Local Plumbers Union 200, presented four bicycles for the whole family.
Christine Fitzgerald, co-founder of the Smithtown Children’s Foundation, said an iPhone 11 was on the way for Hailee. The foundation has provided relief for the family after the fire and neighbors have started a GoFundMe page to help.
While Hailee was too shy to speak, her father Jonathan Hurtado said the tragedy has been surreal, and he thanked his neighbors and the community, especially the firefighters for their quick response.
“It was apparent in that moment I didn’t know what to do with myself and my family,” he said.
The father said the family appreciated the help they have received and neighbors reaching out to check up on them.
“It was truly a blessing to see how everybody pitched in,” he said.
People wishing to help the Hurtados can visit GoFundMe.com and search Help the Hurtado Family.
Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad detectives are investigating the drowning death of a woman in Fort Salonga.
Fourth Precinct officers responded to a Fort Salonga home June 24 at approximately 6:10 p.m. after a resident called 911 reporting a woman floating in his backyard pool. When officers arrived, they found Carol-Jean Werkstell unresponsive in the water.
Werkstell, 76, was transported to St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown where she was pronounced dead.
This week’s shelter pet is Sonic,a 2-year-old female domestic shorthair waiting at the Smithtown Animal Shelter for her PURR-fect soulmate.
Sonic was found as a stray scavenging for scraps of food at a local Sonic restaurant. She can be very shy, but she also has a very sweet personality and is not aggressive at all. It will take some time and patience in order to get Sonic to open up, but it’ll be very worth it when she purrs for you as her stamp of approval! She would prefer to live in a quiet and calm household with a lot of love to give.
All of the felines at the shelter are current on vaccines and have received a full workup (blood work, Feline HIV & Leukemia tested, physical exam etc) by a board certified veterinarian.
If you are interested in meeting Sonic please fill out an adoption application online at www.townofsmithtownanimalshelter.com.
The Smithtown Animal & Adoption Shelter is located at 410 Middle Country Road, Smithtown. For more information, call 631-360-7575.
Even as Suffolk County prepares for the second phase of the economic reopening to begin next Wednesday, which could include outdoor dining, officials are discussing the possibility of bringing graduations and minor league baseball back.
The Long Island Ducks, a minor league team, have come up with a safety plan with protocols in place that the county plans to submit to New York State.
“The plan is incredibly thorough and has all sorts of different protocols in place to keep people safe,” County Executive Steve Bellone (D) said on his daily conference call with reporters.
If the county is able to reach the fourth phase of reopening in the middle of July, the Ducks could conceivably return to the diamond in front of a crowd of 25 percent of the normal capacity, which would enable attendees to be socially distanced in the park.
At safe distances, people could remove face coverings, the way they do when they go to beaches or are in the water. When walking around or going to the restroom, guests would need to wear face masks or coverings to protect themselves and their fellow baseball fans.
“We’re looking forward to getting this to the state,” Bellone said. “This is something that can happen.”
Additionally, while the Empire State has only permitted virtual and drive-through graduations, officials have left open the possibility of that they would review the possibility of a limited-seating graduation in July.
“I do believe we will be in a position to do this safely,” Bellone said.
The county has also worked with the Suffolk County Superintendents Association to develop a plan to create a safe, life graduation.
“I’m hopeful that will be able to happen later this summer,” Bellone said.
Viral Numbers
The viral figures continue to move in a favorable direction. Over the last day, an additional two people died from complications related to COVID-19, bringing the total to 1,918. This follows a day when one person died, so the pace of deaths, which have cast a pall over a county that was at the epicenter of the pandemic, has dramatically slowed.
Each death extinguishes a life and creates an irretrievable loss for each family, which is why the county and executive like Bellone are hoping that number soon falls to zero.
The number of people infected with the virus was 86. The total number of people who have contracted the virus is now 40,239, which is more than Singapore and Colombia, but is 2,700 less than Sweden, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
The infections don’t include antibody testing. A total of 15,080 people have tested positive for antibodies.
Bellone urged residents to provide information if contact tracers reach out to them. When people limit the possible transmission of the deadly virus, as they did during the economically painful and costly New York Pause, they will save lives.
“We are still in this,” Bellone reminded residents. “We need everybody to continue to follow the health guidance and do the right thing here, so we can recovery as a community and get our small businesses back open.”
Hospitalizations, meanwhile, continue to drop. Through the 24 hour period ending on Wednesday, the number of people with COVID-19 in hospitals declined another 12, to 213.
The number of residents in the Intensive Care Unit fell by two to 54.
An additional 24 people left the hospital over the last day.
Small businesses that are struggling to meet the new supply demands for face coverings and sanitizer can submit a request starting on Monday through the suffolkcountyny.gov web site. Interested businesses should go to the Department of Labor section and submit a request. The first 1,000 people will received two reusable face cloths and a gallon jug of New York State Clean.
Brookhaven’s single-stream recycling facility in Yaphank. File photo by Clayton Collier
Suffolk County is looking to tackle a pressing environmental issue on Long Island with the creation of a Regional Recycling Assessment Task Force.
The legislation, sponsored by Legislator Kara Hahn (D-Setauket), was passed at the end of 2019. The task force going into 2020 will lok to address the recycling burden found throughout the county.
Hahn said towns and villages throughout the county are struggling to handle the increased recycling burden.
“Recycling and waste management is a global problem not just a regional one,” she said.
Since China’s 2018 decision to ban the import of most plastics and other materials used by its recycling processors, a number of municipalities have altered programs and in cases have reduced or eliminated recycling.
Hahn said currently recycling in Suffolk County is handled through a patchwork of programs.
“We need to come together to help each other, and come up with ideas and encourage other solutions,” the legislator said.
In Brookhaven as a result of the market crash and the town’s recycling contractor, Green Stream Recycling voiding its contract, the town has switched from single-stream to dual-stream recycling and has asked residents to drop glass off at 21 points in the town instead of picking it up at curbside.
Ed Romaine (R), Brookhaven town supervisor, said he applauds Hahn’s and others efforts to solve the current recycling issue.
“It is a very good idea, we have to do something to solve the solid waste crisis in the near future,” he said.
Romaine said with current plans to close the landfill in 2024, and there being no market to send glass, only compounds the issue the town and municipalities face.
“I wish the DEC would be more involved but I’m glad someone is looking into realistic solutions to this problem. We look forward to participating [in the task force],” the supervisor said.
Similarly Smithtown was also affected by the departure of Green Stream Recycling, as it had a recycling contract with Brookhaven. Smithtown had an agreement to sell all its recyclables through Green Stream for a $180,000 annual profit. In January 2019, Smithtown residents were told to separate their recyclables when the town switched back to dual-stream recycling.
Hahn, the chairwoman of the Legislature’s Environment, Planning & Agriculture Committee, plans to put together a 17-member advisory group made up of municipal recycling professionals, county agencies and environmental advocates. Members have not been officially announced and meetings are scheduled to begin sometime later this year.
The task force’s aim would be to review existing recycling programs, develop strategies for increasing the efficiency of recycling regionally, and to develop mechanisms to encourage the streamlining of the local recycling process.
Hahn stressed the continuation of educating the public on the benefits of recycling and reducing plastic waste in their everyday lives.
The 5-cent minimum fee for plastic bags in stores, which took effect in January 2018, has been successful — with reports showing a 70 to 80 percent reduction in the use of the bags. Hahn also sponsored a bill that would create a plastic straw ban in restaurants that took effect last month. In addition, the Styrofoam bill bars businesses from using items such as cups, trays and containers that are made from polystyrene, as well as ban retail stores from selling those products. It will require businesses in the county to use biodegradable products.
“They go hand in hand — the success has been apparent in reducing plastic waste in the county,” she said. “I’m hoping we can work with Brookhaven and other municipalities in finding a way to properly handle this and do the right thing for residents.”
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