Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
Scene from the 2024 Santa Parade. Photo by Julianne Mosher
By Julianne Mosher
To prepare for the Christmas season, Santa Claus made his way down Main St. in Port Jefferson to ring in some holiday cheer.
On Sunday, Dec. 1, dancers from nearby schools dressed in their favorite holiday gear while they twirled, spun and danced to some favorite Christmas songs like “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” and marched from the Port Jefferson Rail Road up to the Village Center, for the annual Port Jefferson Santa Parade.
Brought in by a horse-drawn carriage at the end of the show, Santa was accompanied by local businesses, Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts and Mayor Lauren Sheprow, who also marched down Main St. Special guests included Disney princesses, Donald Duck and Goofy, who pranced through the streets, waving to all the good little boys and girls, who eagerly anticipated the man in red.
The parade also included characters from the upcoming Dickens Festival, which is scheduled for next weekend, Dec. 7-8.
Village of Port Jefferson officials addressed resident concerns over a new policy suspending village employees from carrying firearms in a statement posted on the village website on Nov. 9.
Officials also emailed this statement to residents on the village’s contact list.
The statement, issued by Mayor Lauren Sheprow and the board of trustees, follows an incident Sept. 27 when a firearm was found in a public restroom in the village hall. The firearm belonged to a Code Enforcement employee under their privately obtained concealed carry license.
In response to this incident, during an emergency meeting called Oct. 25, the board of trustees approved a measure 5-0 suspending firearms carry for all village employees, including Code Enforcement staff with personal concealed carry permits.
Several Code Enforcement officers resigned recently, presumably related to the firearms ban. The message clarified that the village does not issue firearms to employees, noting that Code Enforcement staff are not considered police.
“Code Enforcement personnel do not constitute or comprise a police force, nor do they possess police power or authorization to enforce the penal code,” according to the statement.
Village officials aimed to reassure residents that the suspension would not compromise public safety. The statement continues that, “the Suffolk County Police Department has agreed to increase patrols and tours in Port Jefferson to ensure residents feel safe and secure in light of any misrepresentation of intentions otherwise.”
TBR News Media was unable to confirm with the Suffolk County Police Department this increase in police coverage.
Code Enforcement
Code enforcement vehicles parked in Port Jefferson Village. Photo by Lynn Hallarman
Code officers’ scope is limited to actions related to the village code. Their duties include issuing tickets for parking violations, managing traffic during events, investigating code-related complaints and alerting Suffolk County police to possible crimes, according to Sheprow.
Code officers cannot detain or arrest citizens. They cannot issue summonses for moving violations such as speeding and are not authorized to respond to police alerts transmitted over police radios.
However, the 2023 Manual of Code Enforcement Bureau Rules and Procedures for the Village of Port Jefferson outlines a pathway for obtaining authorization to carry a concealed firearm.
“No employee shall be given such approval [to carry a firearm] unless documentation is provided indicating completion of a proper firearms training course accompanied by a valid NYS Pistol License,” according to the manual. The manual also requires a “village-approved annual firearms training and qualification course.”
According to Sheprow, inconsistencies between language in the procedures manual and the village code remain unresolved and tied to the union contract governing the hiring of code officers.
Code officer resignations
TBR News Media spoke with Andrew Owen, who recently resigned as chief code enforcement officer in protest of the firearms ban.
According to Owen, before the resignations, the code enforcement team included 38 officers, 20 of whom had concealed carry licenses; all who carry firearms are retired or current police. The village clerk could not confirm these numbers as accurate to TBR’s New Media by press time.
Owen, a retired New York City police officer, was hired by Code Enforcement about two years ago with 20 years of police experience and 14 years as a sergeant.
“I told the mayor at the meeting that I cannot, in good faith, enforce policies that I don’t agree with,” he said.
Five days after his resignation, Owen was placed on paid administrative leave until his final day of duty on Nov. 18. According to Owen, the mayor gave no reason for the administrative leave.
Owen believes carrying is essential as a safety measure for code officers who work in the community daily. He considers concealed carry a necessary aspect of employing retired or active police officers who bring valuable experience interacting with the public to the job.
“Everybody that carried [a firearm] had their qualifications. We went to the range once a year. We had the classroom once a year. It wasn’t that we were arbitrarily carrying firearms. We’re all licensed,” he said.
He believes Code Enforcement officers support the police department by acting as crime deterrents by patrolling village streets and adding to residents’ sense of safety.
“We would communicate with the 6th Precinct about what to look out for because there are gang elements in this area. Whether people believe it or not, that’s one thing we are on top of,” he said.
Perception vs. reality
According to former village mayor Mike Lee, the Village of Port Jefferson gave up its right to have its own police force when it was incorporated in 1977. The village receives its police protection from the Suffolk County Police Department, District 6. Two cruisers are assigned to patrol the village daily.
Decisions about the scope of duties for code enforcement occur at the hyperlocal level in Suffolk County. Some municipalities have recently moved to ban firearms, as Patchogue did, according to Sheprow.Other Suffolk County municipalities outside of the Town of Brookhaven have their own police force.
The Nov. 9 statement explains the recent firearm carry suspension was prompted primarily by liability concerns. The statement also clarifies misperceptions of the role of Code Enforcement officers, aiming to reinforce their duties as civil servants working to uphold village code.
Public reactions
This reporter spoke to several residents about the recent suspension. Concerns ranged from feeling “less safe” because of the suspension to several villagers expressing surprise that Code Enforcement officers carried concealed weapons and were in favor of the suspension.
Other residents felt the village benefitted overall from having retired police patrolling the streets, regardless of their limited scope of duties as code enforcement.
“I am 100% OK with having trained former police carry in our village,” said Fred Hoffman, a long-time village resident.
Lauren Sheprow, mayor-elect of the Village of Port Jefferson. File photo by Raymond Janis
At an emergency meeting of the Port Jefferson Village Board of Trustees on Oct. 30 the board voted unanimously to suspend the carrying of firearms by any and all Village employees, in furtherance of their duties and responsibilities as employees of the Village of Port Jefferson, including, but not limited to Code Enforcement Bureau personnel.
“This is something we as a board have been discussing since my first meeting as mayor, as one of many departmental deep dives,” said village Mayor Lauren Sheprow. “We have been working with a consultant on this particular issue among others and the board agreed that this was in the best interests for the health, safety and welfare of Village employees, residents and the public.”
The mayor explained at the meeting that the incident that perpetuated this emergency meeting was that a firearm was left in a public restroom in Village Hall, fortunately without incident. This resulted, she said, in this immediate action.
TBR is following this story closely. More information about this development will be covered in our Nov. 7 editions.
View the meeting on the village’s YouTube channel. The next meeting of the Board of Trustees is a work session on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at 5 p.m.
Capital projects fund review of East Beach bluff stabilization shows an estimated $800,000 budget overspend. Photo by Lynn Hallarman
By Lynn Hallarman
The final report reviewing the capital projects fund was presented to the public by CPA firm, PKF O’Connor Davies of Hauppauge, at the Village of Port Jefferson Board of Trustees Sept. 25 meeting, ending a year of uncertainty over the financial condition of the fund.
The most significant conclusion was an estimated $1.27 million in overspending on capital projects done without an identified funding source. The largest overage was the East Beach bluff stabilization project of about $800,000.
Why the review was done
One year ago, concerns were raised by then newly-appointed village treasurer, Stephen Gaffga, about the bookkeeping practices that track the village’s capital projects fund. This prompted village officials to hire PKF O’Connor Davies to give a full historical accounting of the fund’s financial recordkeeping. The review spanned from May 2016 to May 2023.
“I noticed shortly after starting my position as treasurer in September of 2023 that our capital projects fund looked like every expense account had a negative balance, which immediately raised red flags for me,” Gaffga said in an interview with TBR News Media.
Gaffga noted that best practices recommended by the Office of the New York State Comptroller were not being followed, making it difficult to track how money was being spent on individual projects.
Ideally a capital project fund ledger should give a granular view of how money flows though different projects and meticulously accounts for funding and payments related to each project, according to the OSC.
The village additionally enlisted Charlene Kagel, CPA — former commissioner of finance for the Town of Brookhaven and ex-Southampton village administrator — as an expert municipal finance consultant to assist the village as it corrects bookkeeping practices to comply with state guidelines.
Reports findings
According to PKF O’Connor Davies, the purpose of the capital projects fund review was to identify which projects have been funded, which have been overspent and what grant funds for specific projects have not yet been reimbursed to the village.
The report provided a clearer picture of the capital fund financial state, especially addressing the overall negative balance observed a year ago. PKF detailed 26 projects as having a deficit fund balance.
Reviewers also noted that “recordkeeping varied by project” — or in other words, the bookkeeping lacked a consistent approach across the ledgers.
Overall, the review revealed an $8.1 million total deficit as of May 31, 2023. “Most of this deficit, an estimated $5 million, is due to grants expected but not yet received by the village,” Gaffga said.
The estimated $1.27 million shortfall comes from spending on a few large projects, most of which, $800,000, is attributed to the bluff stabilization project.
Gaffga explained that the additional spending on the bluff project occurred incrementally over several years starting in 2017, with board members approving these expenses without first identifying a funding source.
Recommendations
Recommendations to the village boil down to one improvement: Follow bookkeeping guidance outlined by the OSC.
The report also identifies the absence of a long-term capital projects fund plan for the village.
Kagel told TBR that an excellent capital plan should include a list of proposed projects by department heads and for municipalities to assign each project a “priority ranking” year by year.
“The board ranks what projects are most important and then figures out how they are going to pay for it,” she said.
Gaffga added, “There will need to be an identified funding source to correct that $1.27 million deficit in the capital fund.”
Gaffga pointed out, however, that this amount is an unaudited estimation. The village has hired a new accounting firm, R.S. Abrams & Co. of Islandia, to finalize the numbers cited in the report before village officials will move forward with a financial plan to reimburse the capital projects fund, as required by municipal law.
“Bottom line, it’s just bad bookkeeping. The village didn’t follow the recommended practice and accounting procedures that are set forth by the state and this is what happens when you don’t,” Kagel said.
Moving forward
The treasurer for a municipality is the custodian of all capital funds, responsible for tracking the finances of each project and developing financial reports for the board and the public.
“At the same time, the board is ultimately responsible for the oversight of the village financials,” Kagel said. “It’s pretty clear that municipalities aren’t supposed to overspend their budget, according to general municipal law in New York State.”
“Stephen [Gaffga] has implemented an OSC best practice, tracking each project financial detail to be sent to the board monthly, so the board can say, ‘Hey, how come we’re in the red on this project?’” she said.
“I’m glad we are now through the most difficult part of the capital projects fund review process and we now know exactly where the village stands,” Mayor Lauren Sheprow said in an email statement to TBR News Media.
“Now the village can proceed to develop a truly transparent capital project plan with guidance from our new Budget and Finance Committee and our incredible treasurer, Stephen Gaffga,” she added.
The full report can be viewed on the Village of Port Jefferson website at www.portjeff.com, and the next Board of Trustees meeting will be held on Oct. 9, as a work session.
Scene from the Port Jefferson Yacht Club’s Village Cup Regatta. Photos coutesy Port Jefferson Yacht Club
Scene from the Port Jefferson Yacht Club’s Village Cup Regatta. Photos coutesy Port Jefferson Yacht Club
Scene from the Port Jefferson Yacht Club’s Village Cup Regatta. Photos coutesy Port Jefferson Yacht Club
Scene from the Port Jefferson Yacht Club’s Village Cup Regatta. Photos coutesy Port Jefferson Yacht Club
By Ava Himmelsbach
This past Saturday, Sept. 7, the Port Jefferson Yacht Club and Village of Port Jefferson held their annual Village Cup Regatta to raise money and awareness for Mather’s Palliative Medicine Program and the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research. Anyone interested was allowed to be a crew member on the sailboats, with no experience required.
The event included multiple activities throughout the day, with two main parts: a parade followed by a race. The parade ran from the outer harbor on the west across to the waterfront on the east. In the race, participants from the Village of Port Jefferson and Mather Hospital competed as part of the Village Cup Charity Fundraiser.
The parade allowed teams to circle the port on their boats, all of which were decorated with flags and banners, and wave to the large crowd of guests as a prelude to the race. Families gathered on the docks to view the parade, which was managed by Port Jefferson Yacht Club staff and accompanied by bagpiper Marty Sexton. The parade lasted about 45 minutes and helped the sailors adjust to sporadic wind patterns throughout the day.
Despite overcast weather and sudden rain, sailors and guests had a great time, creating memories of a lasting tradition likely to continue in years to come. Rain began shortly after the parade and continued lightly for a couple of hours. Fortunately, the showers did not interfere with the race, and sailors proceeded as planned.
Port Jefferson Yacht Club Village Cup Regatta Committee member Dianna Stackow managed the setup process for the post-race gathering. “We are here to set up for the party that happens after the race,” she said. “They have speeches, raffles, food, wine, beer; Ralph Macchio will be here, and some government representation.” The party began around 3:30 p.m., welcoming guests and participants as they finished the race and celebrated another year of the tradition. “This is our 15th year, and we are going to break $1 million [in donations]. We’re very proud because we’re such a small club, so it’s such a large thing for us to do. It’s just such a good feeling, all around, everyone, our little club, you know, close together, and it’s nice to see what we accomplish.”
After an exhilarating race, participants, families, and guests gathered at a party in the Port Jefferson Village Center to celebrate their efforts and the successful fundraising brought by this year’s regatta. Celebrity ambassador Ralph Macchio has supported the regatta — along with the two programs funded by it — for the last 10 years. He was present at the event this weekend, along with many returnees who have helped uphold this tradition for the past decade and a half.
The friendly competition ended with the Village of Port Jefferson team winning.
The Memorial Parade of Boats can be viewed from Harborfront Park in Port Jefferson. File photo by Bob Savage
View Memorial Parade of Boats at Harborfront Park prior to race
It’s time once again to sail for a cure as the 15th annual Village Cup Regatta, a friendly competition between Mather Hospital and the Village of Port Jefferson, returns on Saturday, Sept. 7.
Presented by the Port Jefferson Yacht Club in partnership with the Village of Port Jefferson, the Regatta raises funds for Mather Hospital’s Palliative Medicine Program and the Lustgarten Foundation, the largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research in the world. Last year’s Regatta raised more than $100,000, which was divided between Mather Hospital and the Lustgarten Foundation. The event has raised almost $960,000 over 14 years and is poised to reach $1 million in donations this year.
The Regatta consists of Yacht Club-skippered sailboats divided into two teams representing Mather Hospital and the Village of Port Jefferson. Employees from the Hospital and Village, along withvillage residents, help crew the boats, which race in one of three classes based on boat size. The festivities begin in Harborfront Park in Port Jefferson Village at 10 a.m., where you can purchase shirts,commemorative hats, nautical bags and mugs. The Memorial Parade of Boats begins at 11 a.m. at the Port Jefferson Village dock. All sailboats participating in the Regatta will pass by the park dressed in banners and nautical flags on their way out to the racecourse on Long Island Sound.
Actor, director and local resident Ralph Macchio will once again serve as Village Cup Regatta Celebrity Ambassador for the event. Macchio has helped to publicize the important work of the two programs funded by the Regatta for the past 11 years. Macchio’s wife, Phyllis, is a nurse practitioner in Mather Hospital’s Palliative Medicine Program.
Following the Regatta, a celebratory Skipper’s Reception and presentation of the Village Cup will take place in a restored 1917 shipyard building that today serves as the Port Jefferson Village Center.
To sign up as a crew member for the Mather Hospital team, contact Cindy Court at 631-476-2723 or [email protected]
To sign up as a crew member for the Port Jefferson Village team, contact Sylvia at 631-473-4724, ext. 219 or email [email protected].
Businesses, organizations and individuals can support the Regatta and the programs it funds by sponsoring, donating, or purchasing tickets to attend the Skipper’s Reception or view the Regatta on a spectator boat. For more information and to purchase tickets please visit http://portjeffersonyachtclub.com/community/village-cup/ or www.facebook.com/villagecupregatta.
Former Port Jefferson Village Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden. File photo
ByAidan Johnson
Former Port Jefferson Deputy Mayor Kathianne Snaden has announced her candidacy for the village mayor position in 2025.
In a July 8 press release, Snaden stated that “with a year of extensive reflection and growth behind me, I return to the political arena with renewed vigor, authenticity and a stronger connection to the community I love.”
Snaden first ran for trustee in 2018, losing by just four votes. She then went on to be elected in 2019, reelected in 2021 and was appointed as deputy mayor by Mayor Margot Garant.
After Garant did not seek reelection in 2023, Snaden had an unsuccessful bid for the mayoral position, losing to current Mayor Lauren Sheprow.
Snaden’s announcement comes early, with the mayoral election being nearly a year away.
“The reason I decided to announce now is because I want the time … to be able to build relationships with people that I might not otherwise have that opportunity later on as we get closer to election time,” she said in a phone interview, specifying that she is not yet campaigning but has instead only announced her intention to run.
Snaden also discussed why she’s running, along with the issues facing the village.
“The main reason I’m running again is because I feel like my goal in running initially and being involved in politics in the village has never gone away, which is to be the voice of the community for the people who feel they don’t have a voice,” she said.
She further explained that she is running to represent the people and “not because I have my own agenda,” adding, “It’s always to listen to what the community wants and represent them in Village Hall.”
She sees the East Beach bluff and uptown revitalization as major issues, along with public safety as a more recent concern.
“Residents have been discussing different incidents that have not been brought out in the news or by the government, that are happening but aren’t being discussed publicly … and people are not feeling safe,” she said.
Snaden specified that she will no longer be running on the Unity Party line, which was created by Garant and shared with village trustee Stan Loucks, saying that the line “became something that people gave a tag to, that it represented the old guard, it represented the Garant administration, that it was Mayor Margot’s way of thinking,” but it’s “not how I do things.”
“Was I her deputy mayor for two years? I was. That doesn’t mean that Mayor Garant and I thought the same on many issues. It doesn’t mean that we agreed on many issues,” she said, elaborating that her voting record shows her differing views from Garant. However, she said that they still had a mutual respect for each other and a good relationship.
Join us as Governor Kathy Hochul brings big bucks for clean water initiatives, tackling outdated septic systems in Suffolk County. Port Jefferson celebrates 60 years as an incorporated village, and we explore the grand opening of a regional veterans museum in Rocky Point. Turn the page with us for a quick dive into the week’s top stories on The Pressroom Afterhour: Keeping it Local with TBR.
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Conversations over ethics are ramping up in Port Jefferson, where the village board of trustees is nearing sweeping changes to its Code of Ethics.
A public hearing on the code changes took place on Nov. 20, with the village’s ethics counsel, Steven Leventhal, presenting a draft code that would repeal and replace the existing ethics standards within the Village Code. The proposed code changes include three main categories: a code of conduct, disclosure requirements and administration. [See story, “Port Jeff village board, residents mull over ethics code revamp,” Nov. 25, TBR News Media.]
The board reconvened Tuesday night, Dec. 5, for a work session spanning over four hours.
“The primary purpose of tonight’s meeting is to give you, the board, the opportunity to address any questions that you might have to me and to have a discussion and deliberation on any points that need to be resolved,” Leventhal said.
Leventhal and the trustees walked through the code line by line, clarifying and amending various sections of text along the way.
The board will meet again Monday, Dec. 11, for its monthly general meeting. Leventhal pledged to supply the board with a revised version of the draft code, along with a redline version of the text, before the meeting begins.
Residents can continue submitting written testimony to the village clerk until Thursday, Dec. 7.
To view the entire work session, see the above video.
Barry L. Warren, age 79, of Port Jefferson, former village attorney, passed away on Friday, Nov. 17.
Barry was born in Brooklyn and grew up in a close-knit, loving and gossipy family with a flair for melodrama that both adored and annoyed him. He was a die-hard New York Yankees fan as a kid and worshiped the dirt that Mickey Mantle kicked up with his cleats.
He was voted “Most Sophisticated” during his senior year of high school and claimed to have been on every other page of his yearbook (unverified as of this writing).
Barry came into his own during his college and law school days at Dickinson College, where he met the closest and longest standing friends he would have in his life. Most importantly, it is where he met his wife of 54 years, Laura, with whom he traveled the world, ate their way through the Zagat’s guide, golfed (she was better), shopped for antiques and spent hours in the garden finding new and innovative ways to kill thousands of innocent plants. He completely adored her.
He practiced law at his namesake firm, Cohen & Warren, for over 40 years, served as president of the Suffolk County Bar Association, was a member of the Ethics Committee, taught classes at Touro Law Center, was a member of the Port Jefferson Royal Educational Foundation, served as village attorney and was a former president of the Port Jefferson Historical Society (sometimes referred to as the Hysterical Society).
He is survived by two children, one brilliant, one good-looking, David (married to Beth) and Abigail (married to David Gutierrez). He was a very much adored grandfather — “Pop” — to two granddaughters, Shelby and Adelaide. He was also the cherished brother of Linda Grodin (late husband Jay) and brother-in-law of Marty VanderLind.
Memorial services were held Nov. 21, at O.B. Davis Funeral Home. Donations may be made in Barry’s memory to the Port Jefferson Historical Society, 115 Prospect Street, Port Jefferson, NY 11777.
