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Port Jeff Royals break Mattituck’s 12-win undefeated streak

by Bill Landon - October 19, 2022

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The Tuckers of Mattituck came knocking on Port Jeff’s door Monday, Oct. 17, sitting atop the League VIII leaderboard undefeated at 12-0.

Looking to make it 13 in a row, the Tuckers met their match as the second-place Royals had other ideas of their own.

Port Jeff got out to a slow start, dropping the first set 25-17, but battled back in the second set to edge the Tuckers 25-22. The two juggernauts wowed the crowd, sustaining numerous extended volleys showcasing both teams’ talent.

The Royals took the third set in convincing fashion, winning it 25-17. With their backs against the wall, Mattituck traded points with Port Jeff throughout the fourth set, then called timeout trailing 24-23.

But the Royals closed out solidly, putting the game away 25-23 and handing Mattituck its first loss of the season with just two games remaining.

Postseason play will begin Monday, Oct. 24.

— Photos by Bill Landon

Port Jeff and the spirit of incorporation: Local control and a vision for public education

by Raymond Janis - October 17, 2022

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LIPA-stacks-Lee_Lutz — Guiding the incorporation movement, in part, was a desire to extract value from the Port Jefferson Power Station, pictured above. File photo by Lee Lutz

On a snowy day, Dec. 7, 1962, Port Jefferson residents voted 689-361 to incorporate as a village. After court challenges, the vote was made official in April 1963.

But how did this vote affect public education in the village? Through the lens of the incorporation movement, village residents can better understand the local issues of their time.

In an exclusive interview, state Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) for Assembly District 4, which includes Port Jefferson, explores some of these themes.

A vision for better schools

Decades before incorporation, the educational landscape was quite different than it is today. Contrasting the great variety of school districts along the North Shore, residents once belonged to one central school district, the epicenter of which was Port Jefferson.

By the early 1930s, Port Jeff High School was accepting students as far west as Stony Brook and parts of Smithtown and as far east as Wading River and Yaphank.

But in the spirit of local control characteristic of the times, that central school district began to unravel. Fragments of the district started to break away, forming districts of their own, guaranteeing greater control.

Fearing dissolution of their school district, local residents considered incorporating to counteract the trend of declining student enrollment. “They were motivated to make sure that the school district was not further depleted by actions beyond their control,” Englebright said. “There was a good deal of emotion in that incorporation involving the school district and the concerns of parents for the well-being of their children.”

Englebright regards the desire for quality public schools as one of the principal factors driving the incorporation movement. He added that proponents of incorporating viewed education as a priority for the Port Jefferson community.

This, the assemblyman maintains, holds true even today. “The reality is the parents and the community of Port Jefferson care deeply about their school district and their children,” he said. “They don’t want to lose that brand of excellence and the well-being of that school district, which has always been a superb place for education.”

Extracting value

A power plant was located at the water’s edge of Port Jefferson Harbor. Contained within that plant, locals saw a promise for better schools, according to Englebright.

“I don’t think it was a singular motive on the part of Port Jefferson to capture the tax base of the power plant, but it certainly was seen as important to maintain the infrastructure of the schools in Port Jefferson,” the assemblyman said.

Port Jefferson has enjoyed a largely subsidized school district for over half a century thanks to the power station. But as the world comes to grips with the danger of combustible energy sources, so is the village affected and, by extension, the local school district.

“The changing technology of energy production has been very much a part of the people’s consciousness, particularly the leadership of the school board and the village board,” Englebright said.

Despite its pivotal place in the cause to incorporate, the long-term future of the Port Jefferson Power Station, which is operated by National Grid USA, is undecided. The village government is already seeing declining subsidies from Long Island Power Authority, which supervises transmission and delivery functions. Whether the plant goes dark in the coming years remains an open question.

Englebright acknowledges this uncertainty and its impact on certain public school districts on Long Island. For him, the trends in New York state and around the globe point to a phasing out of combustion energy.

“The trend is to move away from combustion as the source of energy,” he said. “I do believe that it is likely that the plant … will prove to be less used going forward. The question of when that will happen, I can’t tell, but that is certainly the trend.”

Despite a cloud of uncertainty over this tax-generating facility, Englebright sees opportunities for community adaptation. Though the power plant may someday shut down, he foresees Port Jeff emerging as a local leader in renewable energy, becoming a central hub for offshore wind.

“I have been very much involved with helping to advance offshore wind and, at the same time, to guide and nurture a relationship between a power-generating site that has been a part of our region for half a century now and more, and to the extent possible enable a sort of gas pedal and clutch transition to occur,” the assemblyman said.

Even in the face of possibly losing a significant tax base, village residents can be reassured that the transition of its energy economy is already underway.

Incorporation in context

Port Jefferson School District is nearing a public referendum scheduled for Monday, Dec. 12. This referendum, totaling approximately $25 million, may decide the future of facilities in buildings across the district, and possibly its long-term fate.

Englebright has expressed support for the facilities improvements, citing that they will be necessary to maintain a proper educational venue for future generations of students. [See story, “Capital bonds: PJSD nears historic referendum over school infrastructure.”]

Compounding an already complex issue, PJSD, like many others throughout the area, is also experiencing a decline of student enrollment. “There’s no easy answer here, not just for Port Jefferson but for many school districts,” the assemblyman said. “The incoming population of youngsters entering first grade is significantly less than what the schools they are entering were built to accommodate.”

In the face of declining student populations, some are even suggesting the remerging of Port Jefferson with the Three Village School District, which broke away from Port Jeff in 1966, four years after the vote to incorporate.

Despite these calls, Englebright feels the overriding spirit of local control remains preeminent. If the community favors keeping its school district intact, the state assemblyman recommends making the proper investment in its facilities.

“At the moment, I just don’t see [merging with another school district] as a popular idea because people within their communities identify their sense of place through a mechanism of community and neighborhood identity, which is their schools,” he said. “It behooves the well-being of the children and the quality of the school district … to make the investments to keep that infrastructure in a condition that meets or exceeds all appropriate standards.”

Revisiting the village’s incorporation, we find that the issues of today are not unique to our time. Questions surrounding school infrastructure, energy subsidies and student enrollment have puzzled generations of Port Jeff residents. While these issues may seem problematic, public dialogue and an open confrontation with local history may offer a pathway to brighter days ahead.

This story is part of a continuing series on the incorporation of Port Jefferson.

On the edge: Coastal engineering experts discuss upper wall plan for village country club

by Raymond Janis - October 14, 2022

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Pending approval from the village's Board of Trustees, the East Beach bluff, pictured above, could soon undergo significant transformation. File photo by Raymond Janis

As the clubhouse facility at Port Jefferson Country Club dangles precariously upon the edge of the East Beach bluff, coastal engineers are discussing a proper course of action.

Coastal erosion has encroached dangerously near the clubhouse facility which, without intervention, could fall off the cliff within years. The Village of Port Jefferson Board of Trustees is working to curtail the issue in a two-phased effort. Construction of a toe wall at the bottom of the slope began in August and is ongoing [See video, below].

Now the village board is considering its upland options, deciding whether to preserve the clubhouse or retreat inland. One such option is a steel wall, estimated at $3 million, to be installed between the clubhouse and the bluff. [See story, “Port Jeff mayor estimates $3M for upper wall, trustees debate erosion mitigation strategy at village country club.”]

GEI Consultants is a Huntington Station-based consultancy firm that produced the engineering drawings for the upper wall. In a detailed email statement, Rachel Sa, GEI’s director of communications, summarized the plans for the project.

“The proposed wall at the top of the bluff will be effective at preventing further erosion and providing protection around the country club building,” Sa said. “The proposed wall consists of a new anchored steel sheet pile that is greater than 50 feet in vertical length and has been designed for an exposed height of up to 15 feet. The new steel sheet pile will be reinforced with new drilled soil anchors and a continuous wale system.” She added, “The proposed wall at the top of the bluff is, at minimum, designed to wrap around the perimeter of the country club building.”

If approved, the upper wall would be part of an integrated system, designed to work with the lower wall currently under construction at the toe. While critics have cited the limited shelf life of the upper wall, Sa contends the plan represents a long-term solution, even if the bluff erosion continues.

“The proposed Phase I and Phase II stabilization systems have been designed and are being constructed as a long-term solution to the observed erosion of the East Beach bluff,” she said. “If any further erosion does occur, the proposed wall system has the structural and geotechnical capacity to support and protect the country club building.”

But these plans are not without criticism. Ali Farhadzadeh is an assistant professor in the civil engineering department at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. He became familiar with the erosion issue near PJCC about a year ago when he and a team of colleagues met with village officials.

Over the last half decade, the East Beach bluff has lost considerable vegetation. Now coastal engineers are evaluating the village’s revegatation plans and how those plantings will work with the proposed upper wall. File photos from the Suffolk County Department of Information Technology, GIS Division

Farhadzadeh said the village is engaged in a two-front effort, with waves striking at the toe as precipitation upland generates substantial surface and internal runoff. While both forms of runoff contribute to the bluff’s erosion, his concerns center on the internal runoff, or water penetrating the soil and exiting through the bluff face.

“My engineering judgment was that [the bluff erosion at East Beach] is most likely because of the runoff water from the parking lot and the tennis court going to the bluff soil,” he said. “Based on what we see, there is a large parking lot on top, which will generate a lot of runoff. There might be some evidence of erosion from the toe, but based on the pictures of the failure, my engineering judgment tells me that this is happening from the top.”

Sa says GEI’s proposed stabilization initiative adequately addresses these runoff concerns.

“The proposed Phase II project (upper wall) also involves a significant landscaping scope,” she said, adding, “This proposed work involves removing most of the tennis courts and replacing them with soil, native grasses, wildflowers and shrubs. This will significantly reduce the amount of impermeable surface, improve site drainage, and therefore help reduce runoff over the top edge of the bluff.”

Farhadzadeh acknowledges that the revegetation work will slow the erosion of the slope. However, the internal runoff penetrating through the bluff face will likely continue, leading to continued loosening of the soil and further failure of the cliff.

“These are going to extensively improve the situation,” the SBU assistant professor said, referring to the proposed plantings. “If you do that implementation, if you take care of the surface erosion, the toe erosion and also the internal erosion, that steel structure could stabilize the soil — basically stopping the soil underneath the structure from moving naturally. But if the failure continues, then the wall itself is going to fail.”

‘The proposed steel sheet pile walls will address potentially detrimental permeability conditions at the locations where they are installed.’

— Rachel Sa

Responding to this argument, Sa believes that the vegetation work will be sufficient to prevent further erosion, citing this approach as standard industry practice.

“The proposed steel sheet pile walls will address potentially detrimental permeability conditions at the locations where they are installed,” she said. “It is common practice to use steel sheet pile structures to address these types of conditions — for example, constructing cofferdams to facilitate the dry construction of normally submerged structures/repairs. The remainder of the bluff slope will be protected against permeability conditions with the proposed vegetation and stabilization measures noted above.”

Given how close the clubhouse has come to the bluff’s edge, the village government is working with a sense of urgency. Mayor Margot Garant has stated that if the Board of Trustees favors the upper wall option, she would like to move forward quickly with a vote.

Farhadzadeh prefers a trial-and-error approach over rapid intervention. According to him, it would be wise for the village to install the vegetation and other mitigation measures, evaluate their efficacy in conjunction with the toe wall, and reassess the upper wall plans at a later time.

“From an engineering perspective, it doesn’t make sense to be rushing to the wall and building without making sure the recession [of the bluff] is reduced,” he said. “The wall is not going to stop the recession. The recession is going to be stopped by removing the water from the soil.”

On the other hand, Sa considers the upper wall a necessary measure that would act as a buffer to shield the clubhouse from further erosion. “In the event of areas of further erosion at the top of the bluff, the proposed wall will retain the soils beneath and around the country club building and protect this structure from the potential effects of this erosion,” she said.

‘The fact is you should stay away from the edge of the bluff.’ — Ali Farhadzadeh

In contrast to the upper wall plan, the village board is also contemplating whether to demolish the clubhouse and relocate the facility inland. Farhadzadeh prefers retreating away from the bluff.

“The fact is you should stay away from the edge of the bluff,” he said. “Based on what I’ve seen, it is probably too risky to maintain the existing facility.”

Sa disagrees with this assessment. Citing the village’s internal cost projections, she views the upper wall proposal as a cost-sensitive, viable alternative to managed retreat.

“The village is considering retreat/removal and replacement of the country club building at another inland location,” she said. “Rough initial estimates indicate that this may not be economically feasible. Therefore, GEI’s geotechnical engineers conducted bluff slope stability analyses and developed the double wall system as the best alternative given the site constraints.”

The village board will reconvene for a morning meeting on Monday, Oct. 17, at 9 a.m. Further discussion on the upper wall is anticipated during that meeting.

Port Jeff Fire Department, EMS join forces for intensive training

by Julianne Mosher - October 13, 2022

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Above, members of Port Jefferson Fire Department and the local EMS after their technical rescue training. Photo from Port Jefferson EMS

By Julianne Mosher

It takes a village – literally.

Located on opposite sides of Port Jefferson, the Port Jefferson Fire Department and Port Jefferson EMS recently converged outside the Village Center at Harborfront Park for a training exercise that was quite the spectacle.

A dozen volunteers from both agencies staged a scenario Sunday, Oct. 9, in which a person “fell” over the ledge of a nearly 40-foot wall, located on East Broadway, and said the “patient” could only be accessible by lowering a rescuer down to get them.

Christian Neubert, third assistant chief of the PJFD, noted a real-life example using this technique could be if someone were to fall into an open construction area with a finished basement but no stairs.

So, to train for an instance like this, the two groups strapped up individual rescuers from both the fire department and EMS, and lowered them down using a rope to the parking lot below to assess, package and retrieve the patient.

A look at the volunteers bringing their ‘patient’ to safety during the recent drill by Port Jefferson Fire Department and Port Jeff EMS. Photo from PJFD

Back above, other volunteers created a five-to-one haul system to pull both the patient and rescuer back to safety.

These specific agencies coordinate frequently on different types of calls, as many fire departments and EMS often do. But Michael Presta, deputy chief of the Port Jefferson EMS, said that the partnership between Port Jeff’s fire department and the separate EMS — which supports not only the village, but provides services to Belle Terre, Mount Sinai and Miller Place — has been ongoing for quite a few years, and this technical rescue training they practiced on Sunday is an indicator on how these two teams can work together.

“There’s a lot of fire departments that provide technical rescue services in a confined space — different kinds of specialty disciplines — but there’s not a lot of patient care centered activity that goes on in a lot of these places,” Presta said. “We had a great conversation a few years ago and said, ‘Hey, it’d be really great to work together jointly with both departments and work on getting paramedic-level care down to these patients.’”

Presta said that not every scenario is the same when it comes to an emergency. People might be trapped somewhere for an extended period of time or have a complicated injury that requires care, pain management, airway management or bleeding control in a technical rescue environment.

“We thought, ‘What better way than to get the paramedics, train them in technical rescue and get them down to those patients?’” he said.

Neubert added this type of training is not easy. “There’s a lot of knowledge and skill that has to go into it, and you need to have the type of student that is ready to learn,” he said. “It’s different than basic firefighting skills.”

And Sunday’s training created an atmosphere allowing both firefighters and paramedics to work together as a team.

“It doesn’t matter what organization you were volunteering from,” Neubert said. “When we started that drill the other day, we gave the scenario, they found the job that needed to get done and they just did it.”

And once that patient is secured by whichever volunteer is first on scene, paramedics begin to administer the care that someone would find in the hospital emergency room right on the spot.

Technical service rescues might seem niche and relatively rare, but Presta said that one could really never know.

“In this small little community here, we have a couple of hospitals, we have a power plant, train station, major transportation, the ferry. So, there are a lot of opportunities, I’d say, for people to get injured in very tricky situations,” he said. “Whether you’re down in the engine room of a ship, or in a confined space in a power plant or injured on the roof of the hospital, in this community there could be a lot of opportunities.”

Neubert added, “Something as simple as a broken leg on the bluffs out in the cove … that’s not necessarily the same as a 40-foot wall, but it still involves rope, timing concepts and technical rescue.”

After a successful 90-minutes, and a spectacle for shoppers at the local farmers market across the park, Presta and Neubert were both satisfied with the day’s events.

“This type of training will give us the ability to help other agencies,” Presta said. “Now we’re able to provide a specialty resource like this, and they have the ability to call on us if they don’t have that training or ability or equipment. We can bring it.”

Port Jeff village board addresses PJCC, public safety, Station Street and East Beach bluff

by Raymond Janis - October 7, 2022

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Port-Jeff-Village-Hall_Suttonw-2-700x467 — File photo by Heidi Sutton/TBR News Media

The Port Jefferson Village Board met on Monday, Oct. 3, for an afternoon packed with important business.

Business meeting

For its first order of business, the board unanimously approved a bond anticipation note to finance construction for improvements at the Old Homestead/Oakwood Road recharge basin. The BAN will enable construction to begin without the village having to draw from its operating budget.

This project, according to Mayor Margot Garant, is primarily subsidized through a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Administration.

“We’re still waiting for the grant to come in from FEMA, but we have to pay the bill,” Garant said. “Hopefully, that money comes in before the end of the year.”

The board approved Garant’s appointment of Shane Henry to the Architectural Review Committee. Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden, trustee liaison to ARC, anticipated Henry’s expected contributions to the committee.

“He’s young, enthusiastic, and he wants to get more involved,” Snaden said. “I think he will be a great addition.” Garant added that she is looking forward to drawing from Henry’s contracting and historic preservation background.

With trustee Lauren Sheprow voting “no,” the village board approved a 4-1 resolution for the 2023 rate increases for the Port Jefferson Country Club. Stan Loucks, trustee liaison to the country club, said these rate increases are based upon a unanimous recommendation from the Country Club Management Advisory Committee.

The rate increases, according to Loucks, will enable the country club to make renovations to bunkers, improvements to cart paths and cover other unforeseen expenses.

“The rates that have been presented will increase our revenue by $100,000,” Loucks said. “That is an … increase in the overall budget, which I feel — I hope — is adequate.”

Defending her vote against the resolution, Sheprow expressed uneasiness about membership rate increases. She advocated exploring and exhausting other options for raising revenue before placing added costs on members.

“When I was the chair of the CCMAC, I did not agree with raising membership rates because I felt like there was an opportunity to find new revenue … without putting the revenue on the backs of the members,” Sheprow said. “We’re playing on this product that isn’t the A-plus product that it’s been. It’s kind of a C-level product, and we’re asking our members to come back next year and pay more for something that they don’t have yet.”

General meeting

After a brief interim for an executive session, the trustees moved upstairs for the general meeting. During that time frame, there were several exchanges between the public and the village government.

Chief of code enforcement Fred Leute reminded residents to drive carefully on village streets as schools are again in session. He also reported a speeding issue on Brook Road near the high school. “Brook Road is not a road you want to go fast on,” he said. “When you go down that hill, slow down.”

A Suffolk County Police Department representative told Port Jefferson residents to remain alert to the ongoing crime trends of catalytic converter thefts and phone call scams.

During her report, Sheprow announced that she would present findings from her internal communications audit at a future meeting. She also reported that the Country Club Social/Hospitality Task Force has already met several times and is working with the restaurant management of The Waterview to “create a more welcoming, accessible and fun environment up at the country club.”

Trustee Rebecca Kassay reported that she is continuing to coordinate with Snaden on a “complete streets concept” for Port Jefferson.

“I am highly recommending that the village looks into investing into a study, which can be anywhere between $30,000 and $80,000,” Kassay said. “This would be something that benefits all residents. It would assess how to make the village more walkable and potentially more bikeable as well.”

Loucks gave an update from the parks department regarding removing vessels from village racks. “The vessels need to be removed by November 1,” he said.

Snaden announced her effort to coordinate more closely with the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce and the Port Jefferson Business Improvement District.

“We’re going to have quarterly meetings moving forward just to make sure that everyone is on the same page with their activities and their events,” the deputy mayor said. “We can all collaborate and bounce ideas off each other, let each other know what we’re all doing.”

Garant gave a detailed report on several significant initiatives within the village government. There are ongoing discussions about giving a proper name to Station Street, a block in Upper Port opening later this month.

“There will be a conversation about what we should call this new street as the new gateway to Port Jefferson,” the mayor said. “We do have a ribbon-cutting on the calendar for October 26 … It will be a great new start to a total revitalization of Upper Port.”

Bids for an upper wall to stabilize the East Beach bluff are due this Friday, Oct. 7. Garant announced that once the board has the final cost estimates, it will decide whether to approve the upper wall or retreat inland. For more on this local issue, see The Port Times Record’s story, “Port Jeff mayor estimates $3M for upper wall, trustees debate erosion mitigation strategy at village country club,” Sept. 29 edition, also tbrnewsmedia.com.

During the public comment portion at the end of the meeting, village resident Michael Mart advised the board to consider the future instead of the past when deciding upon the East Beach bluff.

“Rather than put all of our efforts into saving the past, please look forward to creating the future that we might want here,” he said. “And in doing that, I think it’s important the residents have an opportunity to express their views on the final decision, and maybe even, like with the school board [proposed capital bond projects], have an opportunity to vote on the final decision.”

To watch the full video of the general meeting, visit the village’s official YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bwpxXtRxmA

Sea shanty singers wash ashore for Port Jeff music festival

by TBR Staff - October 6, 2022

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By Aidan Johnson

Sea shanty singers from around the globe were called from the briny deep to perform at the 2nd annual Port Jefferson Sea Shanty & Maritime Music Festival on Saturday, Oct. 1.

Performer Monti Babson of “Pirates at Large”

While the event was due to be held outside at Harborfront Park, it was moved to inside the Village Center due to inclement weather. Yet this was no issue for the singers, as they still gave delightful and entertaining performances.

Amy Tuttle, program director for the Greater Port Jefferson-Northern Brookhaven Arts Council and creator of the festival, wanted to give sea shanty singers a place to share their talent.

“Last year, there were some sea shanty singers from Mystic Seaport [Connecticut], and Mystic had discontinued their sea shanty [festival], so those shanty singers were distressed and sad that they had no place to play,” Tuttle shared. “And I said Port Jefferson has a very rich and interesting shipbuilding history — come here.”

Over a matter of a couple of months, GPJAC was able to put together the inaugural Port Jeff sea shanty festival. After seeing that the event was successful, the arts council decided to hold it annually.

Performers Bob Conroy and Bill Grau of “Stout”

Shanty singers came from afar to participate in the festival, including Connecticut, New Jersey and England. “They’ve come from all over to perform in this festival,” Tuttle said.

The performers aren’t the only ones excited about sea shanties. TikTok has thrown the genre into the spotlight amongst the youth, especially with the song “The Wellerman.”

“I know during the pandemic it was a thing on TikTok, and a lot of the kids were experimenting with different things and writing their own music, which was fabulous,” Tuttle said. “We thought, how fun would it be to get some of the [original] singers to come and do sea shanties here.”

Many of the performers have had several decades of experience with sea shanties under their belt. Maria Fairchild started off playing the piano as a child before moving on to the guitar and eventually the banjo. She also has performed in multiple bands for more than 30 years. Adam Becherer, with whom Fairchild performed, grew up with the bluegrass scene in South Street Seaport in Manhattan thanks to his father being in a bluegrass band.

Performers Adam Becherer and Maria Fairchild

Both Fairchild and Becherer feel an attraction toward folk music. “I like the history of it,” Fairchild said. “I also like that the melodies are … different from modern music, and there’s something really ancient that I’m attracted to.” Becherer added, “I love the collaborative nature of it. I love getting together with people who you don’t necessarily know, but there’s like a common language of tunes that people can get together and play.”

Despite the weather, the music festival went off without a hitch. Tuttle, along with GPJAC, is planning on having a tavern setting next year, in which people can learn how to sing and play the songs.

Currently, the arts council is presenting its Port Jefferson Documentary Series, with screenings taking place throughout the fall. For more information, visit www.gpjac.org.

— Photos by Aidan Johnson

Editorial: ‘Tis the season of precaution

by TBR Staff - October 5, 2022

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EmergencySuppliesHC1506_source — Disaster Emergency Supplies. METRO photo

Once again, Suffolk County residents find themselves in the midst of hurricane season.

Hurricanes Fiona and Ian recently reared their ugly heads. While Long Island was spared, the headlines featuring the wreckage left behind in places such as Puerto Rico and Florida remind us of how devastating these storms can be.

In the Atlantic and Caribbean, hurricane season officially begins June 1 and lasts until Nov. 30. The height of the season is typically August, September and October.

Many Long Island residents remember the wrath of Gloria in 1985, and while it was downgraded to a superstorm once it hit our shores nearly 10 years ago, Sandy started as a hurricane, leaving damage and death behind, from the Caribbean to Canada.

Though we are well into hurricane season, it’s never too late to take precautionary measures.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends preparing before a storm hits by programming all emergency phone numbers into cellphones, writing down the numbers and placing them on the refrigerator or near home phones. CDC officials also advise locating the nearest shelter and researching different routes to get there. Pet owners should also find pet-friendly shelters and hotels or an out-of-town friend or relative who can take in pets during the case of an evacuation.

The CDC suggests having emergency supplies handy in case of a weather emergency. People should keep in mind that water and electricity could be cut off, and it’s imperative to have a supply of items such as batteries, bottled water, flashlights, medications and important documents that are easily accessible.

All family members should know where the fire extinguishers are in the home and how to use them. And, most importantly, families should go over their emergency plan regularly.

When a storm is predicted, the CDC says to clean up any items outside of the house that could potentially blow around and cause damage. Installing storm shutters or putting plywood on windows can prevent shattered glass coming into a home. Carbon monoxide detectors should be checked to prevent CO poisoning.

The most important tip various agencies give is to follow the advice of government officials and first responders regarding evacuating or sheltering in place at home. When evacuating, take only what you need as well as your emergency kit. Drivers should travel on roads they are instructed to use even if there is traffic, and avoid any downed wires.

Those staying at home need to remember not to go outside, even if it seems calm, until news that the hurricane has finally passed. Also, stay away from windows and, of course, always be prepared to leave if responders tell you that it’s necessary.

For those who have a trip planned, AAA cautions travelers to be proactive when a storm is predicted to hit by monitoring weather conditions of one’s departure city and destination before leaving. When traveling after a weather event such as a hurricane, it’s imperative to call hotels to get an update on the storm’s impact and to confirm if flights are scheduled to leave on time. Remember that even if an area wasn’t directly hit by a storm, it could still be negatively impacted.

A bit of preparation and caution can help a person and families navigate most storms. Hopefully, Long Islanders won’t need the advice this season.

Port Jefferson post office: Serving residents for over 200 years

by Kenneth Brady - October 1, 2022

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United States Post Office — The Port Jefferson post office, west side of Main Street, today the site of The Pie pizzeria, is decorated for Old Home Week. Postmaster John M. Brown is pictured on the right. Photo courtesy the Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

Port Jefferson’s first post office, known as “Satucket,” was established in 1801 with Zachariah Hawkins as its postmaster.

About 1806-7, Hawkins moved from Setauket to Port Jefferson, settling near the southeast corner of Myrtle Avenue and Main Street in a building that was to be his house and store, as well as the post office. The site is now occupied by Infant Jesus Roman Catholic Church. By 1811, the “Satucket” post office had been renamed “Drown Meadow.”

Archival records do not indicate where the village’s post office was located when Port Jefferson’s second postmaster, dock owner and merchant James R. Davis, held the position, but “Drown Meadow” was changed to “Port Jefferson” in 1836 during his tenure.

The site of the post office is also not identified in government files relating to the administration of the village’s third postmaster, shipbuilder John R. Mather, but during the early 1800s post offices often operated out of local businesses and private homes.

With the 1845 appointment of Henry K. Townsend as the village’s fourth postmaster, Port Jefferson’s post office was based in the Townsend House at Hotel Square, the intersection of today’s Main and East Main streets.

The dwelling on the right once served as the house and store of Port Jefferson’s first postmaster, Zachariah Hawkins, as well as the post office. Located on the southeast corner of Myrtle Avenue and Main Street, the building was moved to allow for the construction of Infant Jesus R.C. Church. The Catholic rectory is on the left. Photo courtesy the Kenneth C. Brady Digital Archive

After being named postmaster in 1861, Holmes W. Swezey established a post office in his Main Street drugstore, today the home of Billie’s 1890 Saloon.

When Civil War veteran George W. Kinner became postmaster in 1866, he set up headquarters in a small building approximately where Kate and Hale’s clothing store now stands at 227 Main St., but later worked out of the front room of his Main Street home near Wynne Lane.

Following Sidney S. Norton’s appointment as Port Jefferson’s eighth postmaster, the post office opened in a building at a site currently occupied by The Pie pizzeria at 216 Main St., remaining there through a series of postmasters.

In December 1911, during John M. Brown’s term as postmaster, the village’s post office began operations on the ground level of the brick, brand-new Port Jefferson Post Office Building, now Regency Condo at 202 Main St.

After a ferocious fire gutted the Post Office Building in winter 1948, postmaster John J. Cassidy established emergency quarters in the Odd Fellows Hall on East Main Street. The post office then moved to American Legion Wilson Ritch Post on East Main Street, remaining there until summer 1948 when it returned to its old location at 202 Main.

Under the supervision of postmaster Donald W. Floyd, the present Port Jefferson post office opened on Nov. 29, 1965, in the Sil-Flo Building at 407 E. Main St., one of a succession of locations in downtown Port Jefferson that have ably served customers for over 200 years.

Kenneth Brady has served as the Port Jefferson Village Historian and president of the Port Jefferson Conservancy, as well as on the boards of the Suffolk County Historical Society, Greater Port Jefferson Arts Council and Port Jefferson Historical Society. He is a longtime resident of Port Jefferson.

Capital bonds: PJSD nears historic referendum over school infrastructure

by Raymond Janis - September 30, 2022

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Graphic from the district website

Port Jefferson School District residents are confronting a major public referendum on Monday, Dec. 12.

Earlier this month, the district’s board of education passed two resolutions to put the combined $25 million in capital bonds projects out for a public vote.

Now district officials are making their pitch to the general public, with three bond tours scheduled for October and November. Approaching this weighty decision, the community is evaluating its options.

Highlights

Capital bonds vote to be held Monday, Dec. 12

Proponents of Proposition 1 say facilities improvements are necessary to draw families into the district and maintain property values

Critics question the environmental risks and cost effectiveness of artificial turf in Proposition 2, district stands by the measure

Proposition 1

The lion’s share of the two ballot measures will go toward Proposition 1, a $23.1 million infrastructure package to modernize the district’s aging and outdated facilities. Such improvements target heating and ventilation systems, renovations to the locker rooms and team rooms, and relocation of art, technology and music rooms, among other reconfigurations.

In an email statement from Jessica Schmettan, superintendent of schools, she outlined how infrastructure improvements will help the district meet its academic standards.

“Many of the existing items are original to the buildings, most dating back to the 1960s,” she said. “Our mission in Port Jefferson has always been focused on academic rigor and personalized instruction for all students. … In order to focus on these areas, we need to modernize and renovate aging facilities.”

Mayor Margot Garant expressed support for these investments. For her, it is prudent to invest now while district taxpayers are still subsidized by the Long Island Power Authority.

“We are in a position right now where we have five years left on our glide path,” Garant said, referring to the gradual decline of LIPA subsidies in the coming years. “For every dollar that we spend, LIPA is still picking up 50 cents on that dollar. These facilities need to be protected, and they need to be invested in.” The mayor added, “If we don’t make those investments, that’s going to start to have impacts on property values and on whether people want to come and live here.”

New York State Assemblyman Steve Englebright (D-Setauket) has followed the matter closely. In an exclusive interview, he likened investments in school facilities to an oil change on a car: Residents can either pay now or pay in the long term.

“I think the mayor is right,” Englebright said. “This is a moment. If you miss that moment, then the buildings deteriorate and they become less appropriate for the next generation of students going into them.” He added failing to recognize these needs is “short-sighted thinking.”

‘There is still an open question as to whether these artificial fields are a) without biohazards and b) cost effective.’

— Steve Englebright

Proposition 2

The second ballot measure varies widely from the first in terms of scope and cost. It has also drawn significantly more opposition from the public and even members of the Board of Education.

Proposition 2 concerns the $1.9 million proposed crumb-rubber artificial turf field for athletic competitions. This proposal also comes with continual costs for replacement every eight-to-12 years, a sticking point for some.

Paul Ryan, a district resident and former BOE candidate in 2022, is among the most vocal opponents of this measure. “My position on Prop 2 is that it is financially irresponsible in this economic climate of high inflation,” he said. “It’s a heat sink and will fill our harbor with microplastics, less safe than grass and less enjoyable for most of our community to play on.” He added that the process to put out the turf field for public referendum was “conducted in an ethically dubious manner.”

Ryan is not the only one against the turf field proposal. During a special meeting of the BOE on Tuesday, Sept. 13, numerous other residents raised objections to Prop 2 on similar grounds.

Citing the potential for environmental or ecological harm, Englebright, a geologist by training, expressed in his interview reservations about using artificial turf.

“The underpinnings of the artificial turf is rubber, and it usually comes from waste tires,” he said. “That has proven to be a source of contamination.” The state assemblyman added, “In the universal sense — I don’t mean specifically for this school district — there is still an open question as to whether these artificial fields are a) without biohazards and b) cost effective.”

On the other hand, during the Sept. 13 meeting, many parents and students showed support for the turf proposal, contending that it would foster school pride and bolster a sense of community identity.

Regardless of the mixed reaction, the school district remains supportive of Proposition 2. “The district is equally supporting both propositions on the ballot that represent a variety of needs,” Schmettan said.

Long-term uncertainty

During this year’s trustee election for the Board of Education, candidates debated the topics of declining student enrollment and the chance that PJSD will merge with another school district in the coming years. [See “Port Jeff BOE candidates tackle the issues,” The Port Times Record, May 12.]

Though these debates remain unsettled, Schmettan holds that the capital bonds will help draw families into the district while meeting its academic aims.

“There is no doubt districts across Suffolk County are experiencing a decline in student enrollment,” she said. “However, merging with another school district erases our unique opportunities and increases school tax rates.” The superintendent concluded, “We need to improve facilities to match our outstanding academic programs and explore ways to attract families with children to the area.”

Garant spoke in similar terms. She believes Port Jefferson remains a desirable location to raise a family. However, preserving a high standard of living and quality public schools comes at a price.

“When you go for a bond initiative, it’s a project of significant proportions,” the mayor said. “I’d rather see us make an investment and secure the quality of life that we have. And that will be up to the voters.”

Local hill climb tradition revs up in PJV

by Raymond Janis - September 29, 2022

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Beneath the morning sun and chilled by a light breeze of the early fall, a crowd of spectators gathered on East Broadway outside the Village Center for this year’s Port Jeff Hill Climb on Saturday, Sept. 24.

Among others, dozens of vintage automobiles, sports cars, racers, trucks and utility vehicles converged on Harborfront Park to join the spectacle. Mayor Margot Garant, the emcee, kept the crowd awake as she sent the cars jetting up the hill.

“For the last four hill climb events, I have been the announcer or the emcee,” she said. “I always appreciate a really nice looking car. … These are beautiful vehicles, and I can’t help but appreciate the time and care that has gone into them.”

Port Jefferson Harbor Education & Arts Conservancy, the nonprofit fundraising arm of the Village Center, sponsored the event. Bob Laravie, a conservancy board member, was involved in the planning. He said that to recruit so many novelty car owners to the village, he joined several Long Island car clubs, circulated promotional information online and even wrote to museums.

“People like the event because you get to do something with your car, other than just sitting in the vehicle or talking about it,” he said. “You get your little glory moment while going up the hill.”

Laravie got a glory moment of his own Saturday, ascending the hill in a tribute electric race car he constructed himself. Built in 2015, Laravie recreated the 1903 Baker Torpedo Kid with a modern twist.

“It maintains all of the dimensions of the original car, but it’s all modern components inside,” he said. “So it’s internally modern, externally pretty close to the shape and form of the original car.”

The Port Jeff Hill Climb is a local tradition dating to the early 1900s. Now, auto racers and car enthusiasts get an opportunity to reimagine and reenact the village’s primordial races from a century ago.

Village historian Chris Ryon was among the many onlookers lining the street. He explained this event’s place within the local history. “In 1909, 1911 and 1924, they raced cars up this hill,” he said. “In fact, my grandfather raced cars up this hill.”

At the time, there was great automotive diversity, with cars varying widely between models. While hill climbing is among the earliest motorsport traditions, it also performed a valuable function for auto manufacturers.

“Back then, there were a lot of different kinds of cars, different kinds of engines and different shops,” Ryon said, adding that hill climbs helped to demonstrate a particular car’s strength and endurance. “Manufacturers were trying to prove what their car was worth, and how well it could climb up a hill for instance.” The village historian expressed elation at seeing an activity his grandfather participated in being reproduced for a contemporary audience.

Betty Ann Marangiello, a conservancy member since the program’s founding in 2005, described how this local tradition brings community members together while advancing the conservancy’s organizational ends.

“To me, it’s an exciting thing to watch these cars make it up and come down that hill,” she said. “It’s amazing what the community does for us and what we can do for the community.”

Making this event possible were the coordinated efforts of several code enforcement officers. Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden, who assisted Garant in officiating the event, discussed the complicated juggling act that the code department managed by blocking off streets and directing traffic throughout the morning.

“Whenever we need them for an event, we’ll have a meeting ahead of time to make sure the event organizer and code are on the same page,” she said. “This one was particularly difficult, but they handled it beautifully and seamlessly.”

Snaden also spoke about celebrating local history, arguing that these traditions connect community members to their past, keeping their heritage alive. “One of the great things about this village is our tradition,” the deputy mayor said. “It’s a great event. It’s fun for everybody. And it’s great to see these historic vehicles.”

— Photos by Raymond Janis

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