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Supervisor Frank Petrone shows off the rain barrel that Huntington resident Claudia Liu painted, which one resident will win this Saturday at Family Earth Day Expo. Photo from A.J. Carter

Huntington is getting ready to go green.

This Saturday, April 23, between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., Huntington Town will host its annual Family Earth Day Expo at Town Hall, an event that helps residents learn about the many programs and businesses on the North Shore that are working to reduce their environmental footprint, as well as how the community members themselves can play a part.

“Each year the town tries to highlight how residents can help preserve the environment while saving themselves money,” Supervisor Frank Petrone (D) said in a statement. “Whether it’s … bringing e-waste for recycling or dropping off unneeded and unwanted medicines, residents will find a variety of ways they can get into the Earth Day spirit.”

One issue that will be highlighted at the expo is the risk pharmaceutical drugs have on the local water supply and marine life, such as when medications are flushed down the toilet or are present in human waste.

In a joint effort with the advocacy organization Citizens Campaign for the Environment, residents will be able to turn in medication they no longer need to the Suffolk County Police Department, which will dispose of it in an environmentally safe manner.

According to the World Health Organization, there is some discharge of pharmaceuticals into water sources, and Citizens Campaign said, “pharmaceutical drug contamination has been proven to adversely impact fish and aquatic life.”

According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, male fish have developed eggs when exposed to female hormones in birth control pills. Anti-depressants and beta-blockers reduce fertility or affect certain aquatic organisms’ reproductive systems.

Staying on the theme of safe ways to dispose of materials, the town will also, in sponsorship with Covanta, a global corporation that works on sustainable solutions to waste-management challenges, give residents the opportunity to properly dispose of electronic goods with a recycling event.

Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D) said it’s a day not only for adults to learn but also for kids to enjoy as well.

“Children and parents alike will definitely have the opportunity for a lot of hands-on fun at this event,” he said in a statement. “It is equally important to be able to show families across Huntington how easy it is to protect kids from harmful chemicals and pesticides, how to make homes and cars more energy efficient and how to save money in the process.”

There will be residential solar energy and organic garden demonstrations, as well as lessons for kids on how compost is made and how to plant a seed in a recycled pot.

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk, a nonprofit community education agency, will also provide a variety of sea specimens that kids are welcome to touch, to demonstrate the importance of protecting the marine environment.

There will be a raffle to win a custom-painted rain barrel, painted by former Huntington resident Claudia Liu. The 50-gallon barrel is both a decorative item and a utilitarian one, to be placed in a yard to capture and store rainwater for use with gardening, which helps conserve water. The winner will be announced at the expo.

Family Day Earth Expo will take place in the parking lot of Town Hall on Main Street, at Jackson Avenue, in Huntington.

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Huntington High School. File photo.

Huntington is investing in their students with a $123.1 million budget that the school board adopted at its meeting on Monday night.

The 2016-17 budget total is 2.25 percent higher than the current year’s budget, with the most significant cost increases coming from instruction and curriculum-related programs.

Superintendent Jim Polansky said the district is dedicated to offering the most effective tools it can for students.

“[Members of the board and community] don’t get a chance to compare what we have here and what is available in other districts, but I’ve had the privilege of working in, [for] over 26 years, more than one school district and I can tell you, what we do here is we pay for student interests and needs,” Polansky added. “We try to put something in place that will appeal to every student that goes to school in Huntington.”

Some of the expenses being added for 2016-17 include improvements to computer-assisted instruction, through equipment upgrades and repairs; programs for students with disabilities; additional funding for the district’s robotics program; and a new Advanced Placement research course.

“This works more like a process-oriented course,” Polansky said of the program. “We feel that this … program is going to add a dimension that we have not touched upon until now.”

Some of the budget increase can also be attributed to contracted salary raises and additional social security and health care costs.

However, even with those cost increases, the district will stay within the state-imposed cap on tax levy increases — the schools will only collect 1.61 percent more in taxes next year.

Polansky said throughout the budget process that the administration’s goal was to adopt a budget below that cap, and as a result residents will again receive a rebate check from New York State — if voters approve the adopted budget — under a state incentive program that encourages municipalities to comply with the cap in exchange for the tax rebates.

Apart from taxes, the district is funding its additional expenditures through additional state aid.

After years of deducting aid funds from school districts around New York through a cut called the Gap Elimination Adjustment, which was designed to balance the state budget, legislators this year restored the aid dollars — giving Long Island school districts a $3 billion boost, when added to other increases in state aid. Huntington received nearly $2 million in additional state funding for the upcoming school year thanks to that restoration.

Residents will vote on the budget on May 17, as well as a second proposition that would release money from the district’s capital reserves to fund upgrades across the district to make buildings compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act.

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Three dogs were rescued from a house fire on Clinton Avenue. Photo by Huntington Fire Department

Three dogs were rescued from a house fire on Saturday, April 16, in Lloyd Harbor.

Three dogs were rescued from a house fire on Clinton Avenue. Photo by Huntington Fire Department
Three dogs were rescued from a house fire on Clinton Avenue. Photo by Huntington Fire Department

Just before 8 p.m., Huntington Fire Department volunteers arrived at a house on Clinton Avenue in Huntington, where the fire had spread to the first and second floor, the attic and the detached garage.

Fifty firefighters using eight trucks had the fire under control within an hour, and during that hour three dogs were rescued, according to the department.

All the dogs are doing well, the department said.

Chief Jesse Cukro led the command and operations support of Deputy Chiefs Rob Conroy, Brian Keane and Scott Dodge. There were no injuries reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation by the Suffolk Police Arson Squad and Huntington Town Fire Marshal.

The Cold Spring Harbor, Huntington Manor and Melville Fire Department’s assisted Huntington Fire Department in putting out the flames. The Huntington Community First Aid Squad provided EMS support.

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Nicole Abbondandelo rounds the track in a previous meet. File photo from Huntington Athletics

It was a tough day for a meet, but the Huntington girls’ track and field team overcame last Saturday’s weather to turn in some solid performances at the Lindenhurst Relays.

Anna Gulizio leaps into the sand. File photo from Huntington Athletics
Anna Gulizio leaps into the sand. File photo from Huntington Athletics

“For the first time since 2013, we decided to open up the invite season at the Lindy Relays,” Huntington head coach Shawn Anderson said. “It was raining, windy and a tad cold. To be honest, the girls were a little apprehensive about competing, and performances were not exactly looking to be bests, primarily [due] to the weather. But, they competed very strongly, had some fun and took third overall, not far behind Bay Shore and Connetquot.”

Huntington’s highlights included Alexandra Koumas and Hadley Clayton combining for a time of two minutes, 25.9 seconds in the 2×400-meter hurdles. Koumas took second overall in 68.3 seconds. Clayton notched a personal-best time of 77.6 seconds.

The team of Anna Gulizio, Latoya Shand, Lexi Mills, and Nicole Abbondandelo took second overall in the sprint medley relay, with a time of 4:26.34. Rebecca Caballero, Mackenzie Joseph, Marina Ruzic, and Christie Reinersten ran a tough 4×200 race, fighting all the way to the line for third place in 1:58.47. Taking fifth in a time of 10:55.20 were Alexis Pastorelli, Alexandra McKenzie, Sophie Dellecave, and Niamh Condon in the 4×800.

Gulizio, Ruzic, Mills, Katie Seccafico, and Gulizio won the 4×400 relay in a time of 4:20.00.

Following the 4×400 win, a stacked distance medley relay team of Pastorelli, Shand, Koumas and Abbondandelo finished with a time of 13:12 to win by 22 seconds. Huntington’s “B” team of Condon, McKenzie, Dellecave and Clayton captured sixth place in 14:56.

Latoya Shand springs to the finish line. File photo from Huntington Athletics
Latoya Shand springs to the finish line. File photo from Huntington Athletics

The team of Erika Varady and Nicole Arenth took fifth overall in the race walk in 17:55.

Reinersten and Nicole Muzynski both cleared four feet and together combined for fifth overall in the high jump.

Blue Devils triple jumpers also performed. Caballero and Gulizio took first place with leaps measuring 63’8,’’ while Mills and Joseph were third with a combined effort of 58 feet.

“While some of our athletes had some individual bests, the weather really played havoc on the quality of performances,” Anderson said. “The meet just became one of competition and toughness, and our team proved to be able to rise to the occasion.”

Huntington is currently 2-0 in dual meet competition as the Blue Devils head into Thursday’s contest against West Islip. The meet at home is scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m.

The team will also be competing in the Suffolk Coaches Meet on April 9 at Sachem North.

— Huntington Athletics

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The Northport-East Northport Public Library’s budget was approved. File photo

The votes are in, and all library budgets in the Huntington area have passed.

The Harborfields Public Library $4.8 million budget passed with 244 votes in favor and 29 against, resulting in a 0 percent change from last year. Centerport resident David Clemens was also elected to the library’s board of trustees. Clemens is currently a trustee of the Suffolk County Historical Society and chairman of the library committee.

Huntington Public Library’ $8.8 million budget is also a 0 percent increase from the 2015-16 budget. There were 201 votes in favor to 34 against, and incumbent Trustee Charles Rosner was elected for another term.

Director Joanne Adam said the new fiscal year’s budget included expanding operating hours on Friday nights during the summer months so the library can be open until 9 p.m. on Friday nights yearlong. Another addition from the budget Adam touched upon is the library rejoining Partnership of Automated Library Systems.

“This will enable our patrons to pick up their hold items at any library in the county and will make the process of borrowing items from other libraries much easier,” Adam said.

Northport-East Northport had the highest vote count, with 408 votes in favor and 65 against for the nearly $9.8 million budget. The budget has a $21,100 overall increase in the tax levy.

Incumbent Margaret Hartough was re-elected as trustee there. She is currently the head of the teen services department at the Half Hollow Hills Community Library.

Finishing off the list is Cold Spring Harbor Library and Environmental Center, which passed the approximate $2 million budget, another budget with a 0 percent increase, with 143 votes in favor and 22 against.

Trustees Dana Lynch, Gayle Quaglia and George Schwertl were re-elected for another term.

“The residents of Cold Spring Harbor have continually demonstrated their commitment to the Library,” Director Roger Podell said in a letter posted on the library’s website.

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The Northport Public Library. File photo from library

It’s budget season for libraries across Huntington Town, and they’re looking to keep costs low.

The Northport-East Northport Public Library has proposed an overall lower budget, but with a slight increase in the tax levy. The total budget is an approximate $160,000 decrease from last year’s; however, the board is proposing to collect $21,000 more in taxes than the year before.

Among the reasons for this is the fact that the library had $165,000 in unrestricted fund appropriation for last year’s budget, but not this year. Compared to revenues collected last year, the library expects to collect about $181,000 less.

The biggest costs for this year’s budget include employee salaries, health insurance, books and electronic resources.

Northport-East Northport 30-year-resident Margaret Hartough is running for re-election as library trustee. She is currently the head of the teen services department at the Half Hollow Hills Community Library.

“The Northport-East Northport Public Library has always been a special place for me and my family,” she said in a statement. “My children spent many hours at the library, and benefited from all the great resources and wonderful programs. I believe the library is truly the heart of the community and strong libraries build strong communities.”

Over at Huntington Public Library, the board of trustees has proposed a 0 percent increase for the budget; asking residents to approve the same approximate $8.8 million budget as last year.

The Harborfields Public Library. File photo
The Harborfields Public Library. File photo

Compared to the 2015-16 budget, building renovation costs are less than half of last year’s, with a difference of about $540,000. This contributes to the 0 percent overall increase. Costs are also going down by 80 percent for printing supplies and 100 percent for bibliographic utility, which is a service that provides record keeping.

Library trustee incumbent Charles Rosner is running unopposed for re-election. He first joined the board in 2011. Rosner received an MBA from Harvard Business School and before retiring in 2002 was a CEO at Gemcoware in Hauppauge.

Harborfields Public Library is following suit with Huntington and proposing a 0 percent increase for its 2016-17 budget, with a $4.8 million overall total. Most of the library’s costs mirror last year’s numbers, with the biggest difference in retirement and health insurance. Retirement costs decreased by $83,000, and health insurance costs increased by $50,000.

Centerport resident David Clemens is running for a seat in the Harborfields Public Library board of trustees. He previously served as a trustee for the Huntington Historical Society and the Greenlawn-Centerport Historical Association. Clemens is currently a trustee of the Suffolk County Historical Society and chairman of the library committee there.

Finishing out the Huntington area is Cold Spring Harbor Library, with a proposed budget of about $2 million and an overall 0 percent increase. By far the biggest item on the budget is salaries for employees, which comes in at just over $1 million.

According to the library’s website, highlights of the budget include supporting vital programs like free e-books and homework help.

Residents can cast their votes on Tuesday, April 5, at their respective libraries.

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Xavier Palacios file photo by Rohma Abbas

Huntington school district may soon make ramps and restrooms more accessible to people with disabilities.

The school board approved the addition of the capital reserve proposition to the May 17 ballot with a six to one vote at a meeting on March 21.

If passed, the proposition would use almost $2.5 million of the district’s building improvement fund, or capital reserve, to update eight Huntington schools and make them compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Superintendent Jim Polansky said the desire to become compliant with the ADA was not mandated, but it’s possible the state could block other capital improvement propositions if ADA requirements within a district are not met.

“There are some needs that really should have been addressed as far back as 20 years ago,” Polansky said at the meeting. “We’re not looking to refit the entire building. We’re looking to just put the basics in place. Those basics are ramps and at least one bathroom.”

Polansky said there are contingency plans in place for emergencies that might arise during the course of a school year which would require a ramp in or out of a Huntington district building, but this proposition would provide permanent solutions.

J. Taylor Finley Middle School, Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School and Flower Hill Primary School are among several of the buildings that would be equipped with ADA-compliant restrooms. ADA-compliant ramps would be added to a few schools, including Woodhull Intermediate School, Jefferson Primary School and Huntington High School. The high school would also get an ADA-compliant wheelchair lift and a compliant locker room restroom.

Xavier Palacios was the lone board member against adding the proposition to the ballot.

“These ADA requirements or suggestions have been around for almost two decades and we’ve submitted several capital proposals and they’ve never been stopped in the past, have they?” Palacios asked prior to the vote.

Polansky called it a roll of the dice to submit a different capital proposition to the state prior to making the ADA-compliant upgrades. “Aside from the fact that I think it’s the right thing to do,” he added.

“How do we prioritize this over needing a new roof?” Palacios asked.

Another board member, Jennifer Hebert, weighed in on the discussion.

“We don’t want to have a student showing up needing these kinds of accommodations and have to be retrofitting it as they’re in the building,” Hebert said. “We should do it now, so that if and when we have students that have these needs, we’ve already got everything equipped for them in the building.”

The state comptroller’s office released an audit report in March, which concluded Huntington exceeded the amount of money legally allowed in capital reserves for the previous three school years. By law, a district cannot have more than 4 percent of the ensuing school year’s budget saved in capital reserves, according to the report. Any money over that limit must be used to make improvements in the district. Thus, this proposition would help the district use the money currently sitting in its reserve fund.

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Huntington’s 4x400-meter relay team won the state championships for the second straight year. Photo from Huntington athletics

Forget about being county and state champions, the Huntington boys’ winter track 4×400-meter relay team raced a nation-best 3 minutes, 16.09 seconds at the New Balance Nationals Indoor.

At the Armory in Manhattan, the team topped its previous best mark for the third fastest time ever in New York, and ninth fastest ever nationally. The time also set a new Suffolk County record.

Kyree Johnson ran his quarter in 48.887 seconds, Shane McGuire finished in 49.701 and Lawrence Leake finished the third leg in 49.802, to put the Blue Devils in a position to win. And Infinite Tucker made it happen, turning in a blistering-fast time of 47.708 seconds on the fourth and final leg.

“We won because of hard work and dedication,” Johnson said. “We did it as a family and as a team.”

track_nb_nationals_3wHuntington’s time was slightly more than one second off the fastest mark ever at the New Balance Indoor Nationals and three seconds off the national record of 3:13.06 set by North Carolina’s New Bern High School in 2009.

Huntington’s 1600 sprint medley relay team captured All-American honors as well. Johnson, Leake, McGuire and Tucker finished in a time of 3:30.94 to place sixth in a strong field of 22 behind elite teams from Virginia, Michigan, Louisiana, Massachusetts and North Carolina. The Blue Devils All-American performance marks a new Suffolk County record in the event and is the fastest time in New York State this year.

Johnson and Leake ran the first two legs consisting of 200 meters each, followed by Tucker handling the third leg of 400 and McGuire running the anchor leg of 800.

The school also finished 11th in a field of 45 in the 4×200 relay. The squad’s time of 1:29.68 tied the Suffolk record set by Amityville in 2003. Johnson, Leake, Tucker and Exzayvian Crowell ran the race for the Blue Devils.

“What can you say about these four young men that have been blessed with a rare talent?” Huntington’s head coach Ron Wilson asked of his 4×400 relay team. “They gave this race everything they had and look at what they were able to accomplish. They have made our school and community proud and put Huntington track on the national map.”

Weeks prior, at the New York State Indoor Track & Field Championships at Cornell University, the Blue Devils kept Huntington track on the state map.

The quartet successfully defended its state title from last season with a time of 3:24.02, well off its previous season best before nationals, which was 3:17.36, notched in February at the Millrose Games, but it was still faster than any other relay team in New York.

“From the bus ride up, the only thought in my head was to win,” Johnson said. “Everything was strictly business from then until it was over. Coming home as a two-time state champion was definitely a major goal, but I also wanted to win the 55-meter dash because it was all up to me in that race. After coming in a close second in the 55, I knew I had to let go of that and give all my focus to the 4×400 relay. Seeing your team cross the finish line first again at the state championships is one of the best feelings around.”

Johnson was nipped by 1/100th of a second, clocking in a 6.40 just behind Rochester’s Wilson Magnet senior Kelly Brown.

Johnson wasn’t the only Blue Devil that Brown challenged.

Brown also raced Tucker to try and claim gold. This time, the Blue Devils came out on top, as Tucker won a gold medal in the 55-meter hurdles after clipping the final hurdle and sending it flying before he dove over the finish line. He outraced Brown by 2/1000ths of a second, and his time of 7.38 was seconds off his best of the winter, but good enough for the crown.

Tucker also claimed a silver medal in the long jump. Seeded sixth, the Blue Devils star leaped 23-01.75 feet on his fifth and final jump to finish behind Beacon senior Terrel Davis, who won by soaring 23-07.00 feet.

“Individually we are like a drop of water, but together we are an ocean,” Tucker said. “If there’s one thing that I learned from Coach Wilson and [assistant coach Eli] Acosta, it’s that hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

During a March 21 board of education meeting, Superintendent Jim Polansky recognized the boys’ track team for all of its success.

“These kids continue to perform at the highest of levels,” he said. “What really makes us excited about the four of them, if you listen to the interview following the race, what they have to say about all of their experiences in Huntington and their coaches and the staff and just the humility they display, it really makes it all worthwhile.”

With multiple medals around their necks, it’s been worthwhile for the Blue Devils, too.

Alex Petroski contributed reporting.

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The Huntington-Harborfields swimmers display their league championship award. Photo from Huntington athletics

It was a championship season worth celebrating.

The combined Huntington-Harborfields boys’ swimming and diving team captured regular season and postseason championships while solidifying its roster for future campaigns.

Swimmers, divers and their parents celebrated the winter campaign during a three-hour party at the Halesite Fire Department.

The season marked Meg McConnell’s first as head coach, after she assumed leadership of the program following the retirement of Huntington’s founding swim coach, Gil Smith. McConnell had been Smith’s assistant for many years. Blue Devils alum Kaitlyn Larkin was named the new assistant coach this season.

The dinner was a festive gathering. Michael Greaves, of Harborfields, created a slideshow of season highlights.

Huntington senior and team co-captain Matthew McBride and seniors Jackson Spector and Burak Toprak were among those who spoke about the season and their teammates and coaches. Those who notched All-League, All-County and All-State honors were acknowledged.

“It was a fun, funny and a great night,” Huntington parent Patti Weber said. “They are a great group of boys who really have become one team.”

The Blue Devils finished with a 4-1 league mark and went 4-4 overall, easily winning the Suffolk County League II championships by outdistancing runners-up Northport and Connetquot, 309 and 257, while Lindenhurst (187), Central Islip (140) and North Babylon (98) trailed in the distance.

Huntington-Harborfields defeated Lindenhurst (61-39), Connetquot/East Islip (95-88), Central Islip (100-77) and North Babylon (95-54), and dropped meets to Northport (51.5-49.5), Ward Melville (93-89), Hauppauge (107.5-77.5) and Half Hollow Hills (92-86) leading up to the League II win.

In addition to McBride, Spector, Toprak and Javier Vias, the Blue Devils team included seventh-graders Kyle Kennelly and Thomas Rosselli, eighth-grader Christopher Weber, freshmen Henry Cartwright, Nathaniel Gamboa and Thomas Peer, junior Keegan Dunne and senior Ryan LaBella. Juniors Noelle Harvey and Camille Stafford were team managers.

Three Huntington swimmers were presented with special team awards at the dinner. Gamboa was named MVP, Weber earned Most Improved honors and Dunne garnered the coaches award.

Huntington’s highlights at the League II championships included Gamboa swimming the second leg on the 200-yard medley relay that placed second and capturing third place in the 100 breaststroke, Weber placing second in the 500 freestyle, Peer finishing fourth in the 200 freestyle and the first leg of the 200 freestyle relay that finished fourth, and McBride placing fourth in the 100 backstroke.

At the Suffolk County championships, Gamboa swam the second leg of the 200 yard medley relay that placed ninth, and Peer swam the fourth leg of the 200 freestyle relay that finished 13th.

With eight underclassmen returning next winter, the Blue Devils hope to put another competitive team in the pool.

— Huntington Athletics

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The rock is from the Huntington class of 1966's 40th reunion and it sits at the high school campus outside the back entrance. Photo from Lucille Buergers

Huntington High School’s past is raising money for its future.

On a night in September, the Huntington High School class of 1966 will be coming together for two very good reasons. They will celebrate the 50th anniversary of their graduation, but they will also be raising funds that will go to the class of 1966 reunion scholarship, which will award a current senior $1,966.

Lucille Corcoran Buergers, a member of the class and one of the organizers of the event, said the recipient of the scholarship won’t necessarily be an honor student, but rather a student who has overcome obstacles and has ambitious plans for the future. The scholarship winner will be selected later this year.

The Huntington class of 1966 reunion cap and t-shirt, which will be sent to those that make a $66 donation. Photo from Lucille Buergers
The Huntington class of 1966 reunion cap and t-shirt, which will be sent to those that make a $66 donation. Photo from Lucille Buergers

Huntington High School students are in the process of crafting essays, with the winner to be selected by the high school’s general scholarship committee.

In 1966, the world was just being introduced to the Beatles, the United States was still coping with the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and the Vietnam War was in full swing. Buergers, who attended Woodstock, said in a phone interview that the tumultuous events of the 1960s impacted the lives of people who were growing up at that time forever.

“People I know started to question the establishment,” Buergers said. She said that she went into social work to help people endure with life’s stresses.

The reunion will be at the Huntington Country Club. Buergers said the committee organizing the reunion believes about 150 of the 526 graduates from the class of ’66 will be in attendance so far. They are still working to locate more graduates.

“Our classmates have gone on to become successful businessmen/women, educators, entrepreneurs, other professionals, and overall good citizens,” Buergers said. “Overall the consensus is that Huntington was an ideal place to have grown up and those that have moved away are eager to return and revisit the many places that hold special meaning to them…many fond memories that we have of a time that we will always cherish.”

There will also be a silent auction at the event with works from the class of 1966. Buergers said three painters, a stained glass artist, a photographer, a basket weaver, a jewelry maker, a quilter and an author have all agreed to donate works for auction.

Tickets will be $95 at the door, though they will be less expensive if purchased in advance. Any members of the class of 1966 who have not yet purchased tickets are advised to visit huntingtonhighalumni.org.

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