2008 NEWS ARCHIVES

Oceanside Goes “Wild” Over New Supermarket

Oceanside/Island Park Herald • June 12, 2008

Customers were strolling the new Wild by Nature, a full-size, full-service natural supermarket, when it opened its door on North Long Beach Raod in Oceanside last week.

The opening was celebrated at a joint press conference outside the store, attended by Wild by Nature Co-Presidents Joseph Brown and Joseph Forte, and Allen Rosenberg, whose real estate company, Alrose Group, owns the site at 2709 Long Beach Road. The others conducting the press conference were Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray, Senior Town Councilman Anthony Santino, and Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford.

“We are very excited to be here,” said Brown. “Now, Oceanside residents and their neighbors in the surrounding communities can enjoy the same fresh, healthy foods and environmentally sound products as shoppers at our Suffolk County locations.”

The new store totals over 20,000 square feet, is the fourth Wild by Nature on Long Island, and is the company’s first in Nassau County, said Brown.

Wild by Nature is part of the Town of Hempstead’s plan for the redevelopment and rejuvenation of the Oceanside shopping district. Councilman Santino and Supervisor Murray both stated that “Wild by Nature is an ideal addition to the community. We are proud of the efforts to bring desirable retail to this section of Long Beach Road. The Wild by Nature market complements the downtown beautification work that the town has executed in this vibrant business district.”

Councilman, East Rockaway Mayor Host Open Forum by Mary Malloy

Lynbrook/East Rockaway Herald • May 8, 2008

"Our community has won Round One of the fight!"

With that pronouncement, Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino opened his annual "Town Hall comes to East Rockaway" meeting, speaking to a packed house at Village Hall Monday night. The gathering was co-hosted by East Rockaway Mayor Ed Sieban.
Santino was referring to his recent battle against the proposed consolidation of Lawrence and Cedarhurst sewage into the county's sewage plant at Bay Park. The vote on the proposal in the Nassau County Legislature was 10-9, and 13 votes were required for it to pass, so the county was forced to withdraw it from the capital budget plan, Santino explained. "The Nassau County executive had no choice but to withdraw it so the budget would not be held up," he said, referring to Tom Suozzi. "We are waiting for their Plan B, but we're ready to fight."
In recent months, Santino - backed by Sieban, Legislator Fran Becker and many residents - has been vocal about his opposition to the sewage consolidation plan. "They tell us that eventually they will put in a $200 million ocean outfall pipe from Bay Park," Santino said. "We know that will never happen."
The cost of living
Resident Jean Mulroy voiced concerns about the cost of living in East Rockaway. "You tell us about your beautiful new senior complex," she said, addressing Sieban. "But the minimum rent there is $1,600. Suffolk County has offered its residents programs for its first-time buyers. Please help me find a way to stay here ... I can't afford to stay."

Sieban agreed with what he called the "brain drain" - young people leaving the area because of the cost of living - and said that the board is looking into the idea of a first-time buyer plan. "But," he said, "it won't happen overnight."
Santino said that the Town of Hempstead has a lottery in place for home buyers. "Town and village programs are a drop in the bucket," he said. "The root [of the problem] is the high cost of living and property taxes."

Skateboarding park

Boy Scout Thomas Collins, 14, a member of Troop 121, read a statement to the officials, asking them to consider building a skate park in the area, similar to those in Baldwin and Nickerson Parks. Collins suggesting the John Street Sports Complex as a possibility. "I am prepared to present this as my Eagle Project next year to benefit the East Rockaway Recreation Department and the youth in our community," he said, and suggested possible locations: the new parking lot at the waterfront, the John Street Complex area behind the basketball courts, or anywhere in Bay Park. "I am prepared to get petitions if needed, donations and volunteers to complete this project with the help of the Village and Town of Hempstead," Collins said.

Sieban responded that the village is currently looking into the idea, and that Tim O'Hagan, director of the Recreation Department, is also interested.

Litterbugs

East Rockaway resident Jim Cafferty said he is appalled by the litter in the streets, especially at the intersection of Main Street and Lawson Avenue. "More summonses should be issued, and the rules strictly enforced," Cafferty said.
Sieban said that code enforcement will remind businesses to take care of their immediate sidewalks, and that it is their responsibility to do so. "I worked in a deli years ago, and I was out there two or three times a day, sweeping," he said, adding that a summons is like a lightning rod. "They'll get the message."
Among the other concerns raised at the meeting were the sink holes along the Grand Canal in Bay Park, which, Sieban said, would be a "massive project" to fill. Until then, he said, village officials would be in the area once a week to check on the conditions.

One 40-year resident, who had recently been to Florida, suggested that residents travel locally by golf cart to ease congestion and save on gas. "Only during the warmer months, of course," she said.
Early in the meeting, Santino explained that more than 60 percent of homeowners' taxes are school taxes, and he added later that everyone benefits from a good school district. "The Nassau County reassessment system is wrong, and it's broken," he said. "I would freeze reassessments for five years."

Sewage Proposal Riles Locals by Jennifer Smith

Newsday • March 20, 2008

At a raucous public meeting last night, East Rockaway residents who live near the Bay Park sewage treatment plant expressed opposition to a Nassau County proposal to divert sewage there from smaller plants.

Speakers complained of odors and pollution in Hempstead Bay, where the Bay Park plant discharges sewage. Residents said the plan would benefit Cedarhurst and Lawrence, whose sewage would flow to Bay Park under the proposal, at the expense of those who live near the plant, which treats nearly half the sewage in Nassau County.

At times the crowd of 200 or so at East Rockaway High School interrupted County Executive Thomas Suozzi’s defense of the plan with shouts and jeers.

Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino drew applause when he said the plan would lead to more beach closures saying, “Bay Park is not Nassau County’s toilet.”

Suozzi, whose team spent the previous hour trying to allay community fears about odor and pollution, called Santino’s remakrs “completely irresponsible,” adding, “what do you suggest? We close down the sewage plant?”

The plan was approved by the county legislature in January in a vote opponents said was not fully publicized beforehand.
RALLY CRY: Don’t Dump on Us
By Mary Malloy

Lynbrook/East Rockaway Herald
March 6, 2008

Amid cries of “don’t dump on us,” “we are not Nassau County’s toilet,” and “Toback, your plan stinks,” close to 200 protesters showed up at a Bay Park rally on Saturday to voice their outrage at a county Legislature-approved consolidation of Lawrence and Cedarhurst sewage into the county’s sewage plant in Bay Park.

Waving homemade signs, wearing masks and biochemical garb one participant was dressed as a toilet bowl residents from Bay Park, East Rockaway, Angle Sea, Oceanside, Island Park and Long Beach joined Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino who called the rally to protest the consolidation plan.

”Our message is simple,” said Santino. “Rather than shutting down the plants in Lawrence and Cedarhurst, and spending, by some estimates, $15 million to build a pipe ... that money can be used to rebuild a plant in Lawrence and Cedarhurst ... our cause is right and just.”

New York State Senator Dean Skelos reminisced about fishing for snapper in Reynolds Channel when he was a young man. “The reason we live here is quality of life for ourselves and our children,” Skelos said. We want to make sure that what you catch is safe to eat. I pledge to work with Councilman Santino to see that Bay Park does not get dumped on.”

Kristin Octera, spokeswoman for the residents, marveled at the size of the crowd. “Look around you,” she said as she scanned the small sea of people. “We are together on this. We want to tell the county that their decisions affect our lives. We will not be deterred.”

Legislator Fran Becker, who joined the protest, recalled the meeting at which the consolidation plan was passed. “I stood with all of you, and they shut the microphone off on me,” Becker said. “Look at all these kids,” he added gesturing toward the crowd. “Look at what they’re learning. I’m so proud of each and every one of you, and I was ashamed of the way the Democrats took the vote that day. I pleaded with them to table it. It was passed 9-10 along partisan lines. They have shut you and me out.”

Becker likened the rally to the Boston Tea Party, and jokingly suggested throwing something into the bay in protest. Someone from the crowd shouted “Throw Toback in!”

Village of Lynbrook Mayor Brian Curran attended the rally to show his support. “We in Lynbrook care about this issue, and we stand behind you 100 percent,” he said.

East Rockaway Mayor Ed Sieban said simply, “We will get our bay back again.”
In addition to writing to county officials on the sewage plan, Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray and Councilman Santino have commenced a petition drive against the plan to increase the sewage that Nassau will pump into Bay Park. To date, the town leaders have collected over 1,000 signatures.
“We’re hopeful that Nassau officials will be persuaded to listen to the united voice of hundreds of Bay Park and East Rockaway neighbors,” Santino said. “Indeed, there is only one thing worse than the stench emanating from Bay Park, and that is the foul aroma of government that refuses to address the concerns of the residents it represents.”

Neighbors of Sewage Plant Raise Stink by Timothy Robertson

Newsday • March 2, 2008

For many Bay Park and East Rockaway residents, Nassau County’s sewage plant just plain stinks.

With a toilet on the park’s grass, colorful protest signs in their hands and masks covering their faces, more than 300 of them yesterday called for Nassau to flush its new sewage plan.

The county legislature on January 14 approve the takeover of the Glen Cove, Cedarhurst, and Lawrence sewer districts in a move that Democrats praised for its environmental benefits and Republicans criticized as a bailout for a financiallt strapped Glen Cove. The move would close the antiquated plants in Cedarhurst and Lawrence and redirect at least 2 million gallons of waste water a day to the Bay Park plant.

“Instead of spending $15 million to build a pipe to bring the waste water hewre to Bay Park, use that money to rebuild the plain in Lawrence, rebuild the plant in Cedarhurst,” Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino said to vigorous applause.

Members of the grassroots organization against the plan, greenbaypackers.org, reported 300 new signatures on its anti-sewage plan petition, which already had 800 names.

Residents said the 2 million gallons would contribute not just to the horrid smell emanating from the plant, but the additional waste would threaten fishing and swimming in the bay.

“It would be unbearable,” said Stanley Lombardo, 54, of East Rockaway. “If they come in with more sewage, who’s going to even bother [to fish]?”

Many of the handmade signs and crowd’s chants criticized Legislator Jeff Toback (D-Oceanside), whose district covers both Bay Park and East Rockaway and who voted in favor of the sewage plan.

Toback said by phone yesterday that any plan to upgrade the two smaller plants would be “counterintuitive to the consolidation plan.” The county’s sewage system needs consolidation so that it can become eligible for federal funding for piping that would deposit the waste further out in the ocean, instead of the bay, he said.

In addition, the Bay Park plant can hold 70 million gallons of waste a day, he said, and another 2 million won’t “affect the quality of life.” The plant, according to both residents and Toback, processes around 56 million gallons of waste a day.

“I challenge anyone to show me that adding 2 million gallons, plus or minus, will change the impact the plant has on the community,” said Toback, who will hold a public meeting at 7 p.m. March 19 at East Rockaway High School.

Despite passage of the plan in January, Santino said the deal isn’t set, as any funding for the construction of a pipe would require a bond vote, which needs a two-thirds majority to get on the ballot.

“Bay Park residents shouldn’t be the toilet bowl for the entire South Shore,” Santino said.

GARBAGE IN…Sewer district consolidation OK’d
RESIDENTS SAY: Consolidation Stinks
By Anthony Bottan

Lynbrook/East Rockaway Herald • January 24, 2008

Residents’ pleas to table a decision to consolidate sewage districts were turned aside on Janury 14, when, in a 1o-to-8 vote, the Nassau County Legislature approved the consolidation of the Lawrence, Cedarhurst, and Glen Cove sewage districts with the county’s system at Bay Park.

Bay Park Civic Association Vice President Judy Caracciolo, who was at the legislative session when the consolidation was approved, spoke out against the decision.

“They listened to us, but they didn’t hear us,” she said. The odor that comes from the sewage plant, she said, is Bay park residents’ biggest concern. “There is a terrible odor and they want to add more sewage? We can not take any more. The odor is ruining our neighborhood.”

The county plants to install pumping stations at the sewage plants in Cedarhurst and Lawrence. These stations, expected to be in place in 2011 or 2012, will transport sewage to the county’s facility in Bay Park.

Though he would not be specific, Mayor Jack Levenbrown said the Lynbrook Village Board had a variety of issues to resolve before the deal was finally struck. One of those issues – raised by village employees and union representatives at a December village meeting – was the validity of the county’s job guarantee for current municipal employees.

The villages of Lawrence and Cedarhurst made a verbal agreement with the county to consolidate sewage districts in September. At the time, village officials said that the current sewage plants’ rising maintenance and upgrade costs factored into the decision to merge. Cedarhurst officials signed on with the county in December. With the January 14 vote, the county was authorized to begin the consolidation process for Lawrence, Cedarhurst, and Glen Cove.

In a press release dated January 18, Nassau County Legislator Jeff Toback (D-Oceanside) said, “This is a deal that will greatly improve the health of waterways we swim and fish in. We are eliminating two older plants that employ outdated technology and rerouting the sewage to our Bay Park facility, which is equipped to handle the additional workload.”

Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino (R-4th District) disagreed with Toback, saying he thought it was outrageous that Bay Park will be taking on more sewage. “I think it’s outrageous that the county Legislature, in a party-line vote, rammed through this proposal without taking into consideration the negative impact it will have on the Bay Park community,” Santino said. “Very frankly, the county should take this back to the drawing board.” He said that there would be a rally scheduled in the near future, to include Bay Park residents and other interested parties, to protest the consolidation.

Bay Park resident Kristina Ochtera said her fear is that legislators are not taking into account the plant’s peak flow days and the problems East Rockaway has with flooding. More sewage, Ochtera said, will only further impact the decreasing wildlife population in the nearby bay.

“We just don’t want more,” Ochtera said. “We’re not anti-consolidation, we’re anti becoming the toilet bowl for the South Shore.”

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