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The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce

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A scene from a previous Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo by Kyle Barr
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC
A scene from last year’s Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival. Photo courtesy of PJCC

By Julianne Mosher

These dragons won’t need any slaying and will not be spitting fire. In fact, this might actually bring some good luck.

The 9th annual Dragon Boat Race Festival is heading back to Port Jefferson on Saturday, Sept. 16 and it will have something for everyone. 

Sponsored by The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce, this event is a way to foster community togetherness. It also serves to promote Asian and Asian American culture and customs while connecting with students at Stony Brook University.

Kicking off with a race in the Long Island Sound, it coincides with a full festival filled with fun, food and friends.

Barbara Ransome, the chamber’s director of operations, said that every year this particular festival brings in hundreds of people from across Long Island and even New York City.

“There’s nothing else like this around,” she said, “And we’re the only festival doing this in Suffolk County.”

Just a few miles away from Stony Brook University, which has a large Asian and Pan-Asian community, Ransome said the festival not only brings new people to the village every year, but also parts of these cultures that local residents might have not seen before.

“Not only is this festival entertaining,” Ransome said, “But it’s also educational and that’s a wonderful thing.”

This year, 21 teams are signed up — including two from the university and a group from Flushing, Queens. Each boat has about 22 people in it as they race for the win.

But it isn’t just a race for visitors to watch and cheer on. There are dance troupes, Japanese percussionists, singers and martial artists, plus retailers, cultural vendors and food trucks.

And you can’t forget the Bearded Dragon who will dance for the crowd — but don’t worry… it isn’t scary.

For centuries, the bearded dragon has had a significant impact on different cultures around the world. Specifically in Eastern cultures, including Chinese mythology, the dragon symbolizes power, strength and good luck. Similarly, in Japan, bearded dragons are associated with longevity and wisdom, as they are said to possess secret knowledge. 

Other fun activities for kids will include face painting, origami, crafts and reptile visitors from the Center for Environmental and Educational Discovery.

“This is a way to embrace diversity within our own backyard,” Ransome said. “It offers different things that you might have never seen before.”

The Port Jefferson Dragon Boat Race Festival will kick off its opening ceremonies on Saturday, Sept. 16 at 8:30 a.m. with a performance by the Asian Veterans Color Guard, singing of the national anthem by Samantha Reichers, a Blessing of the Dragon and the traditional “Eye Dotting” ceremony to awaken the dragon at Port Jefferson Harbor and Harborfront Park, located at 101A East Broadway. The race will begin at 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and will run alongside the entertainment schedule (see left hand page).

The event will be held rain or shine. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and come enjoy the festivities! For more information, call 631-473-1414 or visit www.portjeffdragonracefest.com

Schedule of Events:

7:45 a.m.  

Team Captains Meeting at Harborfront Park

8:30 a.m.  

Opening Ceremonies with Master of Ceremonies Suzanne Velazquez, Asian Veterans Color Guard, singing of the National Anthem by Samantha Reichers, and Blessing of the Dragon and  ‘Eye Dotting’ ceremony with Theravada Monks from the Vajiradhammapadip Buddhist Temple in Centereach

8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.  

Food Vendors, Cultural Crafts, Children Activities, Retail/Educational/Nonprofit Vendor Tables

9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  

Continual Dragon Boat Races in Port Jefferson’s Inner Harbor

9:45 a.m. 

Rebel Thaiboxing demonstration

10 a.m. to 10:45 a.m

The Sound of Long Island Chorus, Americana program and traditional Chinese songs

10:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.

Yixin Dance Center

11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Long Island Chinese Dance Group performance

12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.  

Lunch Break (no racing)

12;30 p.m. to 1 p.m.

Taiko Tides Drumming and Oroshi Drumming contest

1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Parade of the Team T-shirts Contest, Best Drummer Costume Contest

1:30 p.m.

Races resume

1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.  

Authentic Shaolin Kung Fu Lion Dance , Kung Fu  & Tai Chi demonstrations

2:15 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.  

Port Jefferson High School Music Group, Harbor Country Day School

2:45 p.m. to 3 p.m. 

Rebel Thaiboxing Demonstration

3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Stony Brook Youth Chorus

3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Yana Dance Group – Chinese Traditional Dance

4 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. 

Galante Martial Arts demonstrating Tai Chi, Arnis (Filipino Martial Arts) and Jiu Jitsu

4:15 to 4:45 p.m.

Long Island Modeling

4:30 p.m.

Last Dragon Boat Race

5 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Closing Ceremonies and Awards

 

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Not even the rain could keep Santa from coming to town on Sunday, Nov. 27, during this year’s annual Santa Parade in Port Jefferson village.

Amid a steady downpour, dozens lined the village streets in rain gear and under umbrellas. Marchers along the parade route walked the duration of Main Street, starting from the Port Jefferson train station to the intersection of East and West Broadway, then ending at the Village Center. 

Port Jefferson Fire Department featured several of its vehicles. Dancers twirled and fairy princesses trotted along, avoiding the puddles. Santa Claus, the rock star of the evening, rode in a stylish stagecoach pulled by a horse.

The festivities finished in the warmer, dry Village Center, where Santa greeted the children in attendance, asking them what they would like for Christmas. A children’s choir on the second floor filled the hall with songs.

The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce hosted the event, which coordinates the parade annually. Barbara Ransome, the chamber’s director of operations, explained why the event was held through the rain.

Sunday was the only possible date for the event to be held, and Ransome decided that hosting the parade in the face of bad weather would be preferable to complete cancellation. “I’m glad we didn’t cancel in spite of the rain,” she said.

The chamber director of operations added, “We’ve been doing this for as long as I know. I was very surprised to see so many umbrellas on Main Street — it really worked out pretty well.”

Two elected officials representing the village government, Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden and trustee Rebecca Kassay, joined the parade procession. Snaden also expressed a pleasant surprise at the sizable turnout despite the conditions.

“Having the weather the way it was, I really thought it would just be empty streets when we walked down,” she said. “I was really impressed to see so many families brave the conditions to see Santa.”

Kassay described the experience as bringing together the various facets of the community’s heritage. 

“To see so many people coming out in their raincoats and under umbrellas to celebrate this tradition in Port Jefferson was a truly heartwarming thing to be a part of,” she said.

— Photos by Raymond Janis

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Offerings from the breakfast crawl in Port Jefferson Village March 24. Photo from Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce
Offerings from the breakfast crawl in Port Jefferson Village March 24. Photo from Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce
Offerings from the breakfast crawl in Port Jefferson Village March 24. Photo from Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce
Offerings from the breakfast crawl in Port Jefferson Village March 24. Photo from Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce
Offerings from the breakfast crawl in Port Jefferson Village March 24. Photo from Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce

Port Jefferson turned breakfast into a special occasion over the weekend.

Sponsored by the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce and Pro-Port Jefferson Association, an organization that works on behalf of the food service industry in the village, the first-ever Walkabout Spring Breakfast Crawl was a success on a number of levels.

Breakfast crawl participants

Barito Tacos & Cocktails

C’est Cheese

East Main & Main

The Fifth Season

Kilwins

Local’s Cafe

Nantuckets

Pasta Pasta

Roger’s Frigate

Schafer’s

Slurp Ramen

Toast Coffehouse

The Steam Room

Wave Seafood Kitchen at Danfords Hotel & Marina

Brewology295

Fifteen establishments participated in the crawl March 24, offering special breakfast items and standing-room access during the three-hour event. Initially 200 tickets were made available for the event, but they sold out so quickly it was opened up to 100 more guests, according to chamber director of operations Barbara Ransome. She called the event super and very well attended and added if the restaurants are interested, they would bring it back again next year and would likely offer more tickets.

“There was this camaraderie and fellowship among the different groups waving to each other and using their maps,” Ransome said. “I don’t think there was anybody disappointed.”

Tickets were sold for three different tiers, a $20 ticket that allowed access to six of the participating stops, $30 for nine stops or $40 for access to all 15. The funds raised will go to Pro-Port Jefferson Association likely to be used for marketing, according to Ransome, except for a $500 donation being given to Port Jeff-based Welcome Friends Soup Kitchen.

“The event went very well,” doughnut shop East Main & Main owners Lisa Harris and Robert Strehle said in an email. “We would definitely be interested in participating again.”

Some of the offerings included chorizo hash at Barito Tacos & Cocktails, French toast skillets and Bloody Marys at Brewology 295, triple crème-filled croissants and mimosas at C’est Cheese and many more.

Ransome said she heard feedback from some attendees who enjoyed being able to participate on what is essentially “off-hours” for the various restaurants, thus not having to compete with typical restaurant business crowds or battle for parking. Initially planned as a standing-room event, Ransome said many of the restaurants had space to allow sit-down meals, and that aspect might be revisited in future years. She also said she’s working on an analysis of which attendees patronized which restaurants based on their ticket choice to help improve future incarnations.

 

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Port Jefferson Mayor Margot Garant shows attendees at a public hearing Sept. 26 plans for the revitalization of Port Jefferson Station. File photo by Alex Petroski

By Alex Petroski

Port Jefferson Village is looking to bring Uptown Funk to Port Jefferson Station, but it’ll need some help.

The Port Jefferson Village board of trustees plans to submit a funding proposal to the Empire State Development Corporation to breathe new life into upper Port Jefferson.

The plans are part of the Restore New York Communities Initiative, which was funded in the 2015-16 state budget for the sole purpose of supporting municipalities in rehabilitating blighted commercial properties.

If awarded, the funding proposal would grant the village up to $500,000 to be used to clean up five adjacent parcels near the intersection of Perry Street and Main Street, about a block north of the Long Island Rail Road station. The village is calling the multiphased project Uptown Funk.

Mayor Margot Garant said during a public hearing on the matter Sept. 26 that the village plans to apply for the grant yearly in the hopes of redeveloping multiple areas in upper Port over time. The grant will also require the village to match at least 10 percent of the $500,000 toward the project, according to Garant.

“The $500,000 can be used for sidewalk restoration, demolition, redevelopment, parking lot improvements — all the things that would be necessary to help a developer make an improvement to this area.”

— Margot Garant

The location was selected following a blight study in May, which targeted several areas in Port Jefferson Station in need of attention. The buildings named in the funding proposal were ultimately chosen because of the village’s belief that the property owner will cooperate. The grant requires a willing participant from the private sector. Currently the buildings on the property are vacant.

Village grant writer Nicole Christian said she expects to hear back regarding the application by the spring of 2017, and at the moment no concrete parameters have been established for how exactly the money would be put to use.

“The $500,000 can be used for sidewalk restoration, demolition, redevelopment, parking lot improvements — all the things that would be necessary to help a developer make an improvement to this area,” Garant said. “The $500,000 is sort of loosely prescribed, and what I mean by that is we’re not told we have to put it into sidewalks, or told we have to put it into one aspect of the project. So as far as we see it, it enables the village to bring $500,000 to the table to help incentivize a project that will give back to the village perhaps more of what it would like to see, which is a strong, anchor retail establishment on the main floor, or a restaurant with housing above.”

Trustee Bruce D’Abramo expressed his excitement to get the project started.

“I’m really happy to see the village moving forward on this particular issue,” he said of the revitalization of Port Jefferson Station. “It has been a clear goal of mine since I became a trustee to do something about upper Port, and this is one of the mechanisms that I’m happy we can embrace.”

Trustee Larry Lapointe also voiced support for the plan.

“I think this particular corner is perhaps the worst corner uptown,” he said. “The two buildings that are on site were deemed to be so unsafe that we had to vacate and board them up. Two of the lots behind are magnets for homeless people, and we’re constantly working with the owners to get camps moved out of that area when they spring up. It’s sorely in need of redevelopment.”

Barbara Ransome, director of operations for The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce, addressed the proposal during the hearing.

“The Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce certainly supports this potential funding and really feels it’s very important, especially in upper Port, in our business community there, and as a gateway coming into the village,” she said. “It’s critical for this type of development to continue.”

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