2009 NEWS ARCHIVES

SANTINO AND MURRAY MOVE TO PROTECT BALDWIN APARTMENT DWELLERS AND NEIGHBORS

July 28, 2009

Hempstead Town Senior Councilman Anthony J. Santino and Supervisor Kate Murray instructed the Town's building department to board-up Tan apartment building in Baldwin that was "unfit for human occupancy."

"Families were living in a 12-unit apartment building that was a danger to their well-being," said Murray. "The landlord repeatedly failed to address safety concerns, and we will not tolerate landlords who put the safety of residents at risk."

Hempstead Town has ensured that the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management and the Department of Social Services have placed the families formerly residing in the building at 21 Edna Court into more appropriate housing.

"The conditions at this apartment building were not conducive to family life," Councilman Santino said. "With the assistance of the Department of Social Services' Housing and Homeless Prevention Division, these families will find accomodations that will help them to live in a safe and clean environment."

In addition to structural deficiencies, the apartment building was condemned for life-safety issues. The problems with the propety included a cracked foundation, a lack of emergency lighting and proper hallway lighting, roach infestation, no working smoke alarms or fire extinguishers, basement windows that had been knocked out, and a front door that was not properly secured to ensure the safety of the building's occupants. The landlord was presented with several summonses and is scheduled to appear in court on August 18.

In addition to the danger that the building posed to occupants, neighbors have complained about disturbances at this site. The local police precinct noted that there have been numerous responses and arrests at this location related to illegal drug sales and other issues.

"The landlord has allowed this site to endanger building residents," noted Santino. "What's more, the neighbors of this apartment building have had to tolerate police activity that has adversely impacted the neighborhood's quality of life."

"A safe and secure residence is a basic necessity for a person's well being," Murray concluded. "Councilman Santino and I will continue to aggressively pursue landlords who do not look out for the welfare of their tenants. We will also work with other agencies to ensure that tenants who are confronted with unsafe and unhealthy apartments are properly relocated."

Murray and Santino Urge IDA to Just Say "No" to Rockville Centre Avalon Bay

March 25, 2009

Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray and Senior Councilman Anthony J. Santino today announced that they are opposed to the application that has been filed by Avalon Bay Communities seeking financial assistance from the Town of Hempstead Industrial Development Agency (IDA) for the planned construction of a 349-unit market rate rental apartments in Rockville Centre.

The Industrial Development Agency is an independent entity, created pursuant to state law, which is separate and distinct from the government of the Town of Hempstead where Murray serves as chief executive and Santino is the senior member of its legislative body.

While Murray and Santino do not sit on the IDA board and have no jurisdiction whatsoever over the decisions of the IDA, the supervisor and the councilman want to make it clear that they "unequivocally oppose the granting of this application."

"The reasons for denying this application have been set out in compelling fashion by Rockville Centre Mayor Mary Bossart, members of the village board of trustees, and many residents of Rockville Centre," said Santino. "Granting the financial assistance sought from the IDA by Avalon Bay Communities would strain already overburdened village services while denying the village the tax revenue necessary for it to provide this large residential complex with such basic needs as sanitation, fire, police and EMS services." Murray added, "When weighed against the severe strain that the application's approval would place on village finances, the resulting six permanent jobs that Avalon Bay representatives admit would be created are woefully inadequate to warrant positive action by the IDA."

In closing, Murray and Santino noted that were they members of the IDA board they would hold to the highest standards of public necessity any proposed project that did not enjoy the support of the municipality in which it was located.

"Since the Rockville Centre Board of Trustees has formally voted its opposition to this project, and since the applicant has freely admitted that the proposed project will create only six permanent jobs, Councilman Santino and I see no compelling reason to grant the application," concluded Murray.

Keeping Grand Avenue Clean by Mike Russo
Baldwin Herald • February 5, 2009

Councilman Santino Announces Town Budget Surplus

Dear Neighbor:

Times are tough!! That’s for sure. With both New York’s Governor and the Nassau County Executive preparing residents for draconian service cuts, layoffs and tax hikes it’s certain that the next few months are going to require some tough choices by the leaders of our nation, state and county.

That’s why it is good to know that the Town of Hempstead, despite what many economists are calling the worst economic slowdown since the Great Depression, is in outstanding fiscal shape.

Supervisor Kate Murray and I are very proud that Wall Street recently upgraded the Town of Hempstead’s credit rating to TRIPLE A – that’s the highest ranking that any municipality can achieve.

The 2009 Murray/Santino town budget is a straightforward, honest, fiscally conservative spending plan with no one shot revenues, no gimmicks and none of the other smoke and mirrors that some municipalities resort to in tough economic times.

In fact, the Town of Hempstead has a solid budget surplus – a rainy day fund – that is enabling our town to continue to deliver every one of the fine municipal services that residents have come to expect from America’s largest township.

Supervisor Murray and I are very serious about our stewardship of the town budget.

We work hard to cut costs, eliminate waste and make sure that Hempstead Town delivers the best municipal services at the lowest possible cost!!

In 2009, overall town spending increased just 1.2 percent. That’s nearly five times below the rate of inflation.

Supervisor Murray and I are very proud that our 2009 budget represents the 13th time in the past 14 years that the Town of Hempstead has NOT INCREASED the town’s general fund tax rate.

As your town councilman, making sure that Hempstead Town remains in solid financial shape has always been my top priority. That’s why I’ve worked hard to make government “do more with less.”

I am very proud that during my tenure as your town councilman – and working with three different town supervisors – we’ve been able to reduce the size of the town’s full-time workforce by 24 percent. That’s saved town taxpayers millions of dollars over the years.

Here at town hall Supervisor Murray and I are facing this global fiscal crisis just the way you are at home…we’re tightening our belts, watching every penny we spend, and working overtime to put every one of your hard-earned tax dollars to the most productive use possible.

Serving as your town councilman is a great honor. If I can ever be of assistance to you please don’t hesitate to call on me.

Sincerely,

ANTHONY J. SANTINO
Senior Councilman

P.S. Supervisor Kate Murray and I are proud that Hempstead Town is in rock-solid fiscal shape with a budget surplus and a Triple A Wall Street credit rating. By cutting costs, improving efficiency, and aggressively managing the town budget we’ve made sure that Hempstead Town is financially strong and ready to weather the worst of the current economic crisis.

Still Fighting For Baldwin by Mike Russo
Baldwin Herald • March 5, 2009

Baldwin resident Natalie Crowe expressed her concern over dangerous traffic conditions on Stanton Avenue.
The economy has taken its toll on Baldwin on everything from the downtown revitalization project to the proposed Toyota dealership to state aid for education, but at the Legislative Forum hosted by the Baldwin Council of PTAs, lawmakers insisted that they would continue to fight for the struggling community.
Nassau County legislators Joe Scannell, Kevan Abrahams, Town of Hempstead Councilman Anthony Santino, Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby, state Assemblyman Bob Barra, and representatives from the offices of state Sen. Charles Fuschillo, Sen. Dean Skelos and U.S. Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy were present to field questions from community members at Baldwin High School on Feb. 26.
Goosby and Santino recapped the state of the Grand Avenue project, for which a developer had planned to create a downtown area with nationally-recognized businesses before the downturn in the economy forced many interested retailers to back out at the last minute. Despite the setback, Santino said, town officials are in the process of negotiating with another developer, the Blumenfeld Group, which the town says is interested in bringing in one or two national chain businesses.
"It's a tough economic environment, but there are some companies out there that are making money," said Santino. "[The project] will go forward in one way or another. We're going to persevere, and we're not going to do anything less than the best for Baldwin."
Santino briefly discussed the proposed Toyota dealership, saying that the dealer has downgraded its proposal from a full dealership to car storage as a result of its own economic troubles. While Santino said he could not comment further, as the case is still being heard by the town board of appeals, he said the dealer has offered to make the site - proposed for the corner of Sunrise Highway and Harrison Avenue -visually appealing, and left open the possibility of constructing a showroom if economic conditions improve in the future.
Santino and Goosby also announced that the town is working to renovate storefronts on Merrick Road, just east of Grand Avenue. The town has entered into agreements with three stores and is currently negotiating with another three.
Representing the county, Scannell and Abrahams explained County Executive Tom Suozzi's three-point plan to close an expected $130-million budget gap that could become even larger if county sales-tax revenue continues falling. Abrahams said that Nassau is very different from other counties, even neighboring Suffolk, because the county has been developed so much, and there is really nowhere else to spread out the tax base.
"We've gotta find ways to revitalize our tax base because Nassau can't expand anymore," said Abrahams.
Scannell said that the county is still negotiating with the Rosen family on moving the First Precinct into the Rosen Shopping Center on Grand Avenue, just steps from Baldwin High School.
Barra said that fast-tracking projects such as the Lighthouse Project and the Belmont revitalization would bring Long Island the commerce necessary for economic growth. While Barra said he reluctantly supports Suozzi's proposed revenue enhancers such as a cigarette tax and traffic ticket surcharges, which must be approved by the state - calling them "sin-taxes" but better than raising property taxes - Barra said he feels that more needs to be done to curtail government spending and not put the state's problems on the backs of taxpayers.
"We can't tax our way out of this," said Barra. "We have to grow out of it."
Barra suggested planning for spending over a five-year period, while prioritizing necessary expenses such as education. Speaking generally, Barra said there are definitely situations in which government is running ineffectively, such as the state still paying a capital defender when there is no death penalty and keeping open the office of lieutenant governor while the position is vacant. Hard times are ahead in Albany, Barra said, and tough choices will have to be made.
"The next few weeks," Barra said, pausing briefly, "the battle line is drawn."

Keeping Grand Avenue Clean by Mike Russo
Baldwin Herald • February 5, 2009

Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino has called on Nassau County to reinstate a schedule for street sweeping that the county and the town had agreed upon back in 2003 to help keep Grand Avenue clean. Santino claims the county has gone back on its end of the deal, resulting in the accumulation of littler on one of Baldwin’s main roads.

The arrangement, in which the town suspended parking on Grand Avenue from 4:00 – 7:00am on Tuesdays and Thursdays so that a county sweeper could clean from the Southern State Parkway to Atlantic Avenue without a problem, has been ignored as of late, says Santino. In a letter written to County Executive Tom Suozzi, Santino expressed his concern that they county’s sweepers were cleaning on an irregular schedule that often took place during hours when cars were parked on Grand Avenue, making it difficult for the sweepers to do their jobs.

According to letters obtain by the Herald outlining communication between the town and the county on the issue, Suozzi asked Ray Riberio, commissioner of the county Department of Public Works, to look into the matter. A letter written back to the town from Riberio stated that the county had investigated the complaint and that “the street will be swept as weather and scheduling permit.”

Santino said he was “appalled” when he heard Riberio’s response to the town’s request. The whole point of the designated sweeping times, Santino said, is so the trucks can do their jobs while cars aren’t parked on the street.

“That’s a totally unacceptable answer,” said Santino. “This is definitely going to have an impact on the tidiness and cleanliness of Grand Avenue. It runs count to everything we’re trying to do in Baldwin.”

Jerry Browne, commissioner of Sanitary District 2, which does curbside garbage pickup in Baldwin and other surrounding communities, said the arrangement served not only to clean up garbage, but to preserve the quality of life among residents. Browne recalled a study done in 2002 that showed similarities between crime rate and litter, as people tend to become more disobedient while in the presence of litter and graffiti. He said that the arrangement worked very well until late last year, when suddenly the sweeper stopped coming during the designated hours.

“If someone comes into an area that has litter and graffiti or broken windows, they are more apt to [commit] petty crimes, and that’s what we’re trying to avoid,” said Browne. “Criminals have a tendency to stay out of a place that looks like it is maintained and well kept, and people look like they care about the area.”

Browne said that he has been in touch with the county, who he says claimed that they didn’t have the machines or manpower at particular times. Other than that, Browne said, he has heard nothing else from the county on what they might do to solve the problem. Browne is in touch with different school groups to help clean up the area as well as improve education on quality of life issues pertaining to their local environment. He said he is prepared to organize the community and contact local legislators if they don’t get an answer back from the county.

The county did not return a call for comment as of press time.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Condos Don’t Fit the Property
Baldwin Herald • February 5, 2009

To the Editor:

As you may be aware, Baldwin American Legion Post #246 made an application to the Hempstead Town Board to rezone their property on Grand Avenue from Residence B Zone to Condominium Zone. They sought to construct 28 condominium units on the property.

The town board previously heard this application in July. I am happy to report to you that at its January 6 meeting, acting on my motion, the town board unanimously denied the American Legion’s request. While this decision ends this application, the applicant, under the law, has the right to appeal the town board’s decision to the Nassau County Supreme Court.

During the hearing, many Baldwin residents vigorously voiced their opposition to this project. I wish to thank all of those residents for their civic advocacy in ensuring that the town understood their position on this proposal.

The area of Baldwin that was the subject of this application is characterized by large, old homes on very large parcels. This type of real estate is the prime target for developers. Many residents feared that granting this application would adversely change the character and quality of life for this neighborhood. I share their fear, which is why I put forth the motion to deny the application.

Supervisor Kate Murray and I will continue to fight to preserve the character of our suburban residential neighborhoods and to protect the quality of life that we enjoy. If I can be of assistance to you or your family in the future, or if you have a concern regarding your neighborhood, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Anthony J. Santino
Senior Town Councilman

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