East Meadow Herald

East Meadow

HERALD A look at Nassau’s bike trails

Island Harvest lends a hand

Pharmacist Bill Mantell dies

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Vol. 20 No. 18

APRIl 30 - MAY 6, 2020

It’s game over for spring sports

A scavenger hunt that rocks East Meadow residents have been painting messages of hope on rocks and hiding them around the community as part of a Facebook scavenger hunt called #rockthemeadow. Kaitlyn Donoghue, a fourth-grader at Bowling Green Elementary School, found one on a walk down Marlboro Street.

Despite season cancellation, coaches and students are optimistic athletes, Section VIII has made the difficult decision to cancel spring sports for our high bstieglitz@liherald.com schools and middle schools,” East Meadow School District said Pat Pizzarelli, the executive athletes were going into this director of Nassau County athyear’s spring sports season with letics. “Long Island is one of the their heads held high after suc- areas most affected by this terricessful seasons ble pandemic, so ended last June. both section VIII The East Meadow and Section XI have High School girls’ made this very diffisoftball team had cult decision.” made it to the Class Administrators AA state semifinals in both counties met for the third year in over the course of a row. T h e W. T. two days last week, Clarke High School and decided that it baseball team had was important to act captured its first sooner rather than Nassau County later. Even if public Class A title since STEw FRITZ school buildings 2013. reopen sometime Softball coach, But now it’s game after May 15 — Gov. over. Any hopes for East Meadow Andrew Cuomo has even a modified sea- High School yet to decide whethson were dashed on er the statewide cloApril 21, when sure will be extendhealth and safety concerns led ed — no sporting events will be athletic administrators and held. school superintendents in NasNassau County’s Athletic sau and Suffolk counties to Council, which includes superinannounce the cancellation of the tendents, principals and sports spring sports season. officials, met on April 20, and The Section VIII athletics con- was unanimous in its decision to ference governs Nassau County, cancel the season. District athletand Section XI, Suffolk County.

“For the safety of our student Continued on page 9

By ToNY BEllISSIMo and BRIAN STIEGlITZ

I

t’s a shame that these kids are never going to get this time back in their lives.

Photos courtesy Karen Stuart

Plans for post-pandemic life

Business leaders: We’ll rely on community support

By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

With Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s daily news briefings turning toward a plan to “reopen” New York, East Meadow business owners and customers alike are wondering how their favorite establishments will bounce back, and what to expect of their postcoronavirus social lives.

“What’s the new norm, and what does America 2.0 look like

in terms of dining — that’s what we’re trying to figure out,” said David Boller, owner of Garden Social Beer Garden and Kitchen in East Meadow. “It’s not about who make the best burger anymore. It’s about who makes the customer feel most comfortable.”

To answer such questions, Boller launched an online survey on his restaurant’s Facebook page last Sunday. Respondents are encouraged to answer a series of questions about their

fears, hopes and expectations when it comes to post-pandemic dining.

The survey is broad in scope, and Boller said he hoped many restaurants would share it, and work together to determine the best course of action in May. Some 600 surveys had been completed as the Herald went to press.

The East Meadow Chamber Continued on page 2

Virtual Creativity Because of our shelter-in-place Unexpectedly this has been a time for all requirements and the universality of our of us to see things differently and try technology, we can now see inspired peo- new things too.

In our everyday lives I can only point ple throughout the television, film and theatre communities express their love to a different kind of creativity: less perfor music, song, story and dance with the formance and more day-to-day practical.

The way we went from viewing digital entire world and it often feels like they platforms as limitations to now being are touching each of us individually. limitless. The way we are There are intimate contaking back the streets versations with inventive (okay, sidewalks) and filling minds like Stephen them with chalk drawings.

Schwartz and John BucchiConverting empty spaces no who have explained the and using 3D printers to craft of lyric writing to us sew masks, create face novices via an interview shields, and produce mediwith music director and cal gowns. From the innoconductor Andy Einhorn at vative weekly Zoom gather92Y.org. There are charity ing that our friend told us benefits supported by the takes place for all the parskills of great singers, late ents, grandparents and chilnight hosts, actors and dren of his family to the other performers taking to religious services connectthe airwaves and the web to auren ev ing all faiths and all ages. give us of their time and All kinds of roads and talent. And there are the conduits to foster new, fresh, original rest of us, not just learning from some of the finest artists of our time, but making and imaginative ideas. And that’s what our own artistic contributions, whatever creativity is really all about. and where ever they may be — simply to A contributing writer to the Herald since share.

In the Schwartz/Bucchino conversa- 2012, Lauren Lev is an East Meadow resition, these men described the phrase dent and a direct marketing/advertising “coronaissance” to express how this time executive who teaches advertising and is allowing artists to try new ideas, write marketing communications courses at the new material, even look at their art in a Fashion Institute of Technology/SUNY, different way while they are on pause on LIU Post and SUNY Old Westbury. their “regular” creative work endeavors.

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April 30, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

2

Brian Stieglitz/Herald

DaviD Boller, owner of Garden Social Beer Garden and Kitchen in East Meadow, launched an online survey on his restaurant’s Facebook page last Sunday to gauge what consumers expect of post-pandemic dining.

East Meadow prepares for life after Covid-19 continued from front page of Commerce is also working on a strategy to help businesses reopen. It recently created a committee, run by members Jim Skinner and Ted Rosenthal, which was set to meet for the first time on Wednesday.

For more on the committee’s plans, go to www.liherald.com/eastmeadow.

While businesses have been closed, Frank Camarano, chairman of the chamber’s board of directors and the manager of East Meadow’s World Gym, has been looking for ways to help his colleagues stay afloat. He regularly joined more than 40 other community leaders in virtual meetings hosted by Main Street Alliance, a branch of the economic development advocacy group Vision Long Island.

“We’ve been working for a lot of years as a downtown planning organization, and the planning right now is focusing on what people need and how to get resources for businesses that are open,” said Vision Long Island Director Eric Alexander.

According to Alexander, the group has surveyed 500 Long Island businesses over the past five weeks, and found that business was down by roughly 45 percent in mid-March, shortly before Gov. Andrew Cuomo began mandating closures. In April, that number soared to about 85 percent. And 30 percent of the shuttered businesses Vision Long Island surveyed are considering closing permanently. One of them is East Meadow’s Retro Fitness, which announced on its Facebook page on Monday that it would not reopen.

On April 3, Main Street Alliance launched a Facebook page called “We’re Open,” which profiles businesses — most of them restaurants — offering takeout, delivery or virtual service. “There are businesses in your community that need you more than ever,” Alexander said.

“Wendy’s will be there, Panera is fine, but

your local businesses may not.”

To succeed after the pandemic, Alexander said, businesses will need both government aid and community support.

The latter has proved promising, Camarano said, noting the East Meadow Facebook page “East Meadow Eats,” where residents have shared information about restaurants they have been patronizing that remain open.

But many business owners were less optimistic about government assistance.

“I’ve spoken to people who have gotten loans, but a lot more who haven’t,” Camarano said. “I’m sure the intent was good — I like to see the best in everybody — but maybe the planning of it wasn’t so hot.”

Alexander agreed, and said he had been writing letters to Congress, advocating for the Small Business Administration to prioritize those who are struggling the most. “We want to make sure they come first,” he said.

The SBA launched the first iteration of the Payroll Protection Program on April 3. However, $349 billion in funds ran out within two weeks, and left many small businesses empty-handed, while larger corporations came under fire for benefiting from the program instead.

Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse received $20 million, and Shake Shack and Potbelly Corporation each received $10 million.

After the SBA clarified its criteria for where the money should have gone, all three companies posted statements on their Twitter accounts that they would return the money.

The Los Angeles Lakers were the most recent noteworthy company to follow suit, pledging on Monday to return a $4.6 million loan.

The SBA launched another $320 billion program that day. “Hopefully big businesses don’t eat up all of it this time around,” Camarano said.

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OBITUARY

By Jill Nossa jnossa@liherald.com

As the coronavirus spread across New York City and Long Island, Bill Mantell continued to commute from his East Meadow home to his phar macy in Queens. Near the end of March, Mantell developed a fever, which spiked and persisted for more than a week. He was admitted to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, where he died two weeks later, on April 17, of complications of Covid-19 and pneumonia. He was 68.

During his hospital stay, Mantell’s family could not visit, but his wife, Carole, and daughters Gail and Jenna called and texted him daily. “By the second week, he was really weak and not answering texts,” Carole said.

Over the course of those two weeks, she said, there were times when his condition seemed to be improving. “It took us all by surprise,” she said of his death.

“We didn’t think it was going in that direction.”

The week that he got sick, Carole said, her husband was in the middle of selling his pharmacy in Rochdale Village, which he had owned for 31 years — as long as the couple had been married. He signed the papers on April 3, just three days before being admitted to the hospital, and was under contract to work for one year, with the possibility of continuing.

“His plan was to stay on,” Carole said.

“He wanted to work.”

She described her husband as hardworking, caring and generous, someone who made sure she and their daughters had what they needed, and never wanting for himself.

Bill was born in Poland on Sept. 14, 1951, the youngest of three children, and lived in Israel before his family moved to New Jersey when he was a child. He earned a degree in pharmacology from Rutgers University in 1975, worked at Brookdale Hospital after he graduated, and bought the store in Queens in 1988.

Carole met Bill through a friend and classmate when she was in graduate school at St. John’s University. They were engaged within five months and married several months later, in November 1988.

The family moved to Rockville Centre in 1998, where they lived until 2016, when Bill and Carole moved to East Meadow.

Both of their daughters attended Covert Elementary School in Rockville Centre and graduated from South Side High School. Both now live in Manhattan.

“He went above and beyond for his family and always wanted to give us more than he had,” Gail, 29, said of her father.

“He wanted to make our lives better and easier than what his was like growing up in Poland. He was the sweetest and funniest person we’ve ever known.”

Jenna, 26, recalled attending a University of Maryland-vs.-Rutgers basketball game in New Jersey with her father in December 2018 — her alma mater against his. “It was just the two of us, doing some-

Photos courtesy Gail Mantell

thing we love,” she said, “and it was a really good day.”

She described her father as “selfless, humble and caring,” and Gail added that he taught his daughters to “fight for what you deserve.”

Among those who reached out to the family when they heard about Bill’s death, the Mantells said, were many longtime customers and former employees whom his wife and daughters had never met. He knew all of his employees, customers and their families, Carole said, and she was comforted — though not surprised — to hear how he had touched their lives. The funeral service, at Beth Moses Cemetery on April 20, and the shivas that evening and the next day, were shared on Zoom by more than 160 people.

“I think it was better than a regular shiva,” Carole said, “because we got to hear all of the stories about Bill.”

Rabbi Marc Gruber of Central Synagogue-Beth Emeth, in Rockville Centre, described Mantell in his eulogy as an optimist. “Bill Mantell had a good eye,” Gruber said, “for he looked at life and at people and circumstances and saw opportunities for doing good.”

He also described him as “a good neighbor, good friend and a generous soul.” “Above all, Bill had a good heart,” Gruber said. “He was a warm, sincere and generous human being. He worked hard, loved his family, adored his daughters and cherished his wife.”

In addition to Carole, Gail and Jenna, Mantell is survived by two brothers, Boris (Rita) and Joseph (Pearl); a sister-in-law, Meryl Barrow (Rick), as well as his nieces, nephews and their children.

His nephew Jordan Barrow described him as a “selfless man.” “He went to work at the pharmacy every day because he knew his customers needed him and their medicine,” Barrow said, “because that’s how he was: selfless and always putting others first.

JeNNa, Gail, Carole and Bill Mantell on a family trip to California’s Big Sur in 2018.

Bill MaNtell, of East Meadow, formerly of Rockville Centre, died on April 17 of complications of Covid-19 and pneumonia. He was 68.

“It is unfair that a man as giving, kind and generous as he was has been taken from all of us too soon, and because he was doing what he always did — helping

others,” Barrow added. “But if he were here, he would no doubt tell us he … would only care about making sure that Aunt Carole, Gail and Jenna were OK.”

East Meadow

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MAIN PHONE: (516) 569-4000 ■ WEB SITE: www.liherald.com/eastmeadow ■ E-MAIl: Letters and other submissions: emeditor@liherald.com ■ EDITORIAl DEPARTMENT: Ext. 234 E-mail: emeditor@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4942 ■ SUBSCRIPTIONS: Press ”7” E-mail: circ@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4942 ■ ClASSIFIED ADVERTISING: Ext. 286 E-mail: ereynolds@liherald.com Fax: (516) 622-7460 ■ DISPlAY ADVERTISING: Ext. 249 E-mail: sales@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4643 The East Meadow Herald USPS 336580, is published every Thursday by Richner Communications, Inc., 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Periodicals postage paid at Garden City, NY 11530 and additional mailing offices. Postmaster send address changes to East Meadow Herald, 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Subscription rates: $36 for 1 year within Nassau County. Out of Nassau County: $58 for 1 year. Copyright © 2020 Richner Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

Bill Mantell, E.M. resident, dies of Covid-19

April 30, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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Courtesy North Shore Animal League America

norTh Shore animal League America’s campus in Port Washington is currently still doing, but pet-owner candidates must make an appointment to adopt.

North Shore Animal League still fostering adoptions

By Jennifer Corr jcorr@liherald.com

Tanner Callicutt of Manhattan had thought about getting a puppy for some time, but house-training one seemed daunting given his busy schedule as an actor and a restaurant host.

So when New York state shut down to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in mid-March, Callicutt thought, “‘When am I going to have six weeks of undivided attention to devote to training him and making sure that he’s house-broken?”

In December, Callicutt’s friend, Will Ganss, went through North Shore Animal League America, a no-kill animal rescue center in Port Washington, to get a puppy.

He noticed the amount of love a shelter pet can give, so he decided to go with North Shore Animal League for his new puppy.

Callicutt is not the only one to take advantage of the stay-at-home order to train and get to know a new pet.

“There are a lot, a lot of people who are inquiring about adopting animals,” Diane Johnson, North Shore Animal League’s vice president of shelter Operations, said. “Basically, all of the animals that we have on our website, someone has asked about, which is great because a lot of them are long-term animals that have been here a little bit longer.”

Because the animal rescue can no longer allow walkins, potential adoptees can look for adoptable cats and dogs on the organization’s website, www.animalleague. org. On the website, Callicut found a lab-mix puppy named Otis. “I saw his picture online and immediately fell in love,” Callicut said.

Callicutt then contacted North Shore Animal League and was able to filled out his adoption application over the phone and made an appointment. On April 3, he sat down with Otis at the rescue. “By the end of it, I was like ‘Yeah, he’s mine,’” he said. “I want to take him home.”

Johnson said now is a good time to adopt a pet. “People are home and they have the time to devote to an animal,” she said. “This is a great time for training and spending time with them. We had an outpouring, before this happened, of people who wanted to foster. So we have 40 animals in foster homes that are getting attention 24/7 rather than being here.”

Fostering has been the alternative option, Johnson said, for pets whose owners died from Covid-19. She said there were two cases that the shelter handled. In one, the animal was supposed to be housed at the shelter, but at the

Courtesy Tanner Callicutt

Tanner CalliCuTT adopTed his lab-mix puppy, Otis, from North Shore Animal League America in Port Washington. last minute a relative stepped up to take the animal in.

In another, a neighbor of an individual took in the animal as a foster pet. The neighbor is now working independently to have the animal adopted. “Rather than the animal coming to the shelter, where it’s new for them, and it’s scary, they’re with a foster in a safe and loving environment,” Johnson said.

North Shore Animal League could not name the foster owners for privacy reasons.

For animals that do currently live at the shelter, staff members and volunteers have provided care for them too.

Adoptable dogs are walked three to four times a day and are able to go outside and play. Volunteers have also been taking them to the beach.

“Our front line has been unwavering,” Johnson said.

“We’ve been here from the start. Our staff and volunteers are still here providing care and enrichment for the ani-

mals, and you can’t ask for more than that. Our staff is so dependable when it comes to the animals.”

Also dependable, Johnson said, has been the emergency veterinary service provided by North Shore Animal League’s Pet Health Centers, which are now doing a curbside service for which the animal is brought in and the owner stays in the car.

“Veterinary medicine has been deemed an essential service, so we have remained open to some degree,” Dr. Mark Verdino, a veterinarian with North Shore Animal League, said. “We have, at this point, closed what we would consider non-critical services. So we’re not doing annual exams for the most part. We’re not doing elective procedures, like if a dog needs dental cleaning...”

Verdino and his team have also worked to inform the public on the relationship between Covid-19 and companion animals. As of April 22, only two companion animals had tested positive for Covid-19, and the chances of humans spreading the disease to animals are low, officials said.

“There have been, globally, very few cases where they have tested animals in the home of Covid patients and they have gotten positive tests,” Verdino said. “Does that mean they are infected, or does that mean they are just picking it up on the test? That’s what we really don’t know.”

As of now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending that those who are sick with Covid19 stay isolated from their pets, along with anyone else in their household. The CDC has also recommended keeping pets away from situations in which they could interact with other animals and humans outside the household.

However, Verdino said, people should not be paranoid.

He has heard of cases in other shelters and rescues in which people have tried to drop off their pets out of fear they could contract or spread coronavirus, or that owner would be unable to care for the pet if quarantined. This is has not happened at North Shore Animal League to date, however, he said.

“What we’re trying to do is tamper that paranoia out a little bit,” Verdino said. “Again, there’s no evidence that companion animals are playing any roles whatsoever in the transmission of this disease.”

Go to North Shore Animal League’s website at animalleague.org to browse adoptable pets and contact (516) 8837575 to become a pre-approved adopter. Adoptions are done by appointment. The organization is also accepting donations.

Letter from Covid-19 victim’s wife to the governor

Dear Governor Cuomo, I am writing to share the story of my husband, William Mantell, who died from Covid-related pneumonia on April 17.

Bill was a health care worker on the front lines. He wasn’t a nurse or physician working in a hospital, but a pharmacist at a small community pharmacy that he owned for 31 years, in Rochdale Village, N.Y. As you know, retail pharmacies are deemed essential businesses by New York state and are expected to remain open. Bill did as he was instructed. His exposure to the public was not optional, and he kept his pharmacy running to serve his patients and community.

Within the first week of this crisis, he sold out of hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, disinfectant sprays, masks, gloves, alcohol, thermometers and Tylenol.

There were no cleaning supplies left on the shelves, and it was becoming nearly impossible to replenish those items. Not only did Bill have limited product to sell to his patients and customers, but also there were very few supplies to clean the pharmacy with, and he had zero personal protective equipment to keep himself and his employees safe.

Bill was running a small business, and he wasn’t in a position to quickly install plastic barriers at cash registers and other protective measures throughout the store that large corporate pharmacies had the resources to do.

In the beginning of this crisis, I was glued to the news. I heard news stories about the nurses and physicians in hospitals who were begging for PPE to protect themselves. I listened to your news conferences in which you asked President Trump for help obtaining equipment and PPE for those on the front lines in hospitals. I don’t recall the push for PPE for the workers on the front lines who were not in hospitals: the retail pharmacists, delivery people, grocery store employees and workers in essential factories. If New York state was having difficulty procuring these items, how were small businesses supposed to? I feel like my husband was left to fend for himself. If Bill had the PPE earlier, would it have changed his outcome?

I want to bring to your attention the difficulty Bill went through to try to have a Covid-19 test scheduled. He called the testing hotline on March 28 and was told someone would get back to him within two days. Two days later he called again and was reassured he was “still on the list.” Three and a half weeks later, on April 22, the New York State Department of Health called to schedule a test. This was five days after he died.

Is it acceptable to have a person who is sick wait almost a month for a test? Why wasn’t his personal physician allowed to order a test? How did those waiting on lines at the drive-through sites have their tests scheduled? If Bill had been tested and treated earlier, would it have changed

his outcome?

It was extremely difficult for my family and me (and I am sure for every other family who has a sick loved one) to know that Bill was in the hospital suffering alone, with no family or friends by his side to support him. I understand the reasons why, and I understand that the nurses have such a high patient load that they are often unable to extend the extra human elements they normally give those in their care.

I know Bill was anxious, scared and exhausted trying to take care of his needs on his own. If even one family member was allowed at their own risk, gowned from head to toe, to be there with him, to ensure that he laid on his stomach, did his breathing exercises, helped with the side effects caused by his medications and let him know that he wasn’t alone, would it have changed his outcome?

My story is one of nearly 17,000 in New York state. I am helpless in a time when there is so much uncertainty in the world.

I have lost my best friend, and my daughters have lost their father. I am calling on you, Governor Cuomo, to continue leading our state through this challenging time. Small businesses on the front lines need PPE to safely serve people during this pandemic, and our loved ones need someone by their side to fight and survive.

In loving memory of my husband Bill, Carole Mantell

Island Harvest offering food across Nassau

Food bank partners with county to feed 1,000 families in need amid the pandemic

By BRIAN STIEGLITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

“No one should have to question where their next meal is coming from,” wrote Nassau County Executive Laura Curran in a Facebook post on April 23. Her sentiment echoes the goal of Island Harvest Food Bank, with which the county recently partnered to distribute food at nine local sites.

In Curran’s social media post, she announced the county had joined with the Bethpage-based food bank to provide enough meals to feed roughly 1,000 families in one day.

This continues Island Harvest’s efforts to help the growing number of Long Island residents who were furloughed or lost their jobs because of business closures or stagnations.

The food bank first launched an emergency response program on March 9 to help residents who were financially impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. This included its Emergency Contingency Business Plan to put in place specific measures to ensure the health and safety of its staff members, volunteers, clients and food.

Through its emergency response plan, the organization has purchased 50 percent more food than it usually does. Staff members surveyed 124 school districts and identified 32 that needed support providing meals to students. For such districts, staff members and volunteers created pop-up, drive-through food distribution centers.

It ran a mobile food pantry to distribute food to about 300 nonprofits, and delivered food to roughly 1,700 people who could not leave their homes, including seniors, veterans and the immunocompromised.

Brian Stieglitz/Herald

ISLANd HARvEST Food Bank partnered with Nassau County to distribute food at nine different county sites on April 23.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

Editor’s note: Carole Mantell recently lost her husband, Bill, to Covid-19. He was a pharmacist, working on the front lines.

Carol wrote to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, urging him to provide protective equipment to essential employees like him to protect them from the virus.

“I needed to write a letter to Governor Cuomo regarding our family’s experience with Covid-19,” she said. “I want this to be a call to action to make changes in how this terrible disease is being handled.”

The Mantells lived for many years in Rockville Centre before moving four years ago to East Meadow.

Here is Carole’s letter to the governor:

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April 30, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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Hempstead adds tax-collection sites for May

By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

The Town of Hempstead has set up three drive-thru tax-collection booths at points across the town, including one in front of Rock Hall, the stately, two-story 1767 mansion in Lawrence.

Supervisor Don Clavin and Tax Receiver Jeanine Driscoll came there Thursday to announce the new collection locations, which are intended to reduce traffic at the main collection office in Hempstead and reduce the risk of Covid19 infection for taxpayers and town employees.

The main collection office is at 200 North Franklin St., Hempstead.

Rock Hall is at 199 Broadway in Lawrence.

The two other new drive-thru sites are: ■ Echo Park, 399 Nassau Blvd., West Hempstead.

■ Seamans Neck Park, 2700 S. Seamans Neck Road, Seaford.

The next tax-collection deadline is June 1, said town spokesman Mike Caputo. The main drive-thru collection office in Hempstead will open May 1. The other three will open May 18 and remain open through June 1.

All sites will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays, except for Memorial Day on Monday, May 25, when they will be closed. The sites only accept tax payments by check or money order.

“During this pandemic, we want to do everything that we can to reduce the

Courtesy Town of Hempstead

town SuperviSor DonalD Clavin and Tax Receiver Jeanine Driscoll came to Rock Hall in Lawrence to announce three additional drive-thru sites where town residents can pay their taxes. The sites will open May 18 and will remain open through June 1. stress and anxiety for our taxpayers,” said Town Councilman Bruce Blakeman, who joined Clavin and Driscoll at Town Hall for the announcement. “The establishment of additional drive-thru payment offices in communities some distance from the tax office in Hempstead will provide greater convenience for taxpayers who wish to pay their school taxes

in person.”

“Thousands of our residents prefer to pay their property taxes in person,” Driscoll said. “These drive-thru payment offices will accommodate our constituents in a safer manner.”

By executive order on Monday, Governor Cuomo pushed back the payment deadline for second-half 2019-20 school

taxes by three weeks to June 1. The deadline was previously May 11. Clavin said he was pleased the governor delayed the payment, a move that he had called for to provide taxpayer relief for those suffering amid the coronavirus pandemic.

In addition to the booths, property owners may pay their tax bills by credit or debit card or electronic check (e-check) online or by telephone.

To pay online, visit the Receiver’s Online Payment Portal at https://hempsteadny.gov/view-pay-tax-bills-online.

To pay by telephone, call (833) 378-1236 and follow the prompts.

Payments by credit card, debit card and e-check will incur a service fee, charged by eGov Strategies, the company that processes the transactions. Hempstead Town receives no portion of the service fees, officials noted.

To pay by mail, checks should be made payable to “Jeanine C. Driscoll, Receiver of Taxes,” signed and dated. Numerical and written amounts should agree, and school district, section, block and lot numbers should be written on the check.

Payment stubs should be enclosed with checks or money orders and sent to: Town of Hempstead Receiver of Taxes, 200 North Franklin St., Hempstead, N.Y. 11550.

Payments submitted by mail must have a U.S. Postal Service postmark dated no later than June 1 to avoid penalty.

Taxpayers who need help with property-tax matters should email the Hempstead Town Receiver’s Office at tohtaxquestions@tohmail.org or call (516) 812-3600.

Study: 1 in 6 L.I. residents infected by Covid-19

By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

An estimated 16.7 percent of residents on Long Island, in Nassau and Suffolk counties, have been infected by the coronavirus. That translates to 1 in 6 people.

That’s according to a random statewide survey of 3,000 people conducted by New York state health officials, Governor Cuomo said Thursday.

Nassau and Suffolk had the second-highest infection rate after New York City in the state, according to Cuomo. The five boroughs of the city had an infection rate of 21.2 percent, or about 1 in 5 people.

Statewide, the rate averaged 13.9 percent, or 1 in 7 people.

That figure, however, was heavily skewed by the downstate totals. Outside of New York City and its surrounding counties, the infection rate was 3.6 percent, or 1 in 28 people, Cuomo said.

The antibody tests were conducted in public, at places like supermarkets and box stores, he said.

Thae infection rate was disproportionately high among African-Americans and Latinos, for whom the infection rate averaged 23 percent.

Among Asians, it was 11.7 percent, and whites, 9 percent.

According to the study, some 2.7 million New Yorkers have been infected by Covid-19, which translates to a death rate of .5 percent.

The death rate, however, does not accurately portray the toll the pandemic has taken on New York, the governor said, noting that 15,500 people have died in hospitals and nursing homes to date. That figure is expected to rise when at-home deaths are accounted for.

Additionally, the governor said, the coronavirus may have been in the United States, and New York, longer than thought, according to a new Northeastern University study. That means people may have died of the disease as early as January, but it was unknown at the time those people had the coronavirus.

Conducting the study was critical to developing the state’s plans to reopen the economy, the governor said. He spoke of a regional approach to reopening, based on the infection rate seen in different parts of the state.

“The facts should dictate the action,” he said, speaking of the regional approach.

He noted, however, that reopening must be wellcoordianted throughout the state to prevent any one region from being overwhelmed by people from other regions whose areas have not yet opened.

Courtesy Diana Robinson via Wikimedia Commons

roughly 1 in 6 Nassau County residents have been infected by the coronavirus, according to a new study undertaken by New York state, Governor Cuomo said Thursday.

Former Sen. Dean Skelos to be released Former State Sen. Dean Skelos could be returning to his Rockville Centre home as early as this week, according to a court filing. Skelos tested positive for Covid-19, and is expected to be released to home confinement from federal prison in Otisville on or around April 30, according to officials from the Bureau of Prisons.

A letter sent to a federal judge overseeing Skelos’s case did not state the location of his new confinement, but traditionally prisoners are sent to their homes and are electronically monitored, with restrictions on leaving the premises.

His request for release had been in question last week because of a change in government policy.

Earlier this month, officials said that Skelos, 72, had been cleared for medical release and would likely return to his Rockville Centre home. On April 21, however, prosecutors said a recent shift in the Bureau of Prisons policy meant he was no longer eligible for compassionate release, which can be ordered by a judge for inmates facing extraordinary circumstances, including illness.

According to prosecutors, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons advised prison officials to revert to its pre-coronavirus policy that inmates are not eligible for home

release unless they had served 50 percent of their sentence. Skelos has more than two years, or around 30 percent, left on his 51-month sentence for extortion, wire fraud and bribery.

The federal prosecutors sent a letter to U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood, who is overseeing the case, saying the Bureau of Prisons had not yet decided whether to approve Skelos for furlough and home confinement. Skelos had reportedly been in quarantine for 10 days at the federal prison in Otisville, according to documents filed in federal court in Manhattan by Southern District prosecutors, and has been symptom-free since April 8.

Late last month, Skelos requested early release, citing fear of contracting the virus after another inmate tested positive. The motion, filed under seal, was opposed by federal prosecutors in papers filed publicly, stating an application for release must first be filed with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, which can better assess his health situation. His medical condition was not made public at that point.

Skelos was convicted in July 2018 of using his political power to secure roughly $300,000 in jobs and fees for his son Adam, also of Rockville Centre.

They were each convicted on eight counts of conspiracy, extortion, and bribery. Adam Skelos was sentenced to four years in prison.

Herald file photo

Former state seN. Majority Leader Dean Skelos of Rockville Centre has tested positive for Covid-19 and is expected to be released early to home confinement.

Learn. Grow. Explore. GIRL SCOUTS. See what Girl Scouts do at our upcoming virtual information nights!

Register at gsnc.org/programs for an information session in your area. Once registered, you will have the opportunity to sign your daughter up for a “New Daisy Discovery” virtual program via Zoom!

BALDWIN Thursday, 5/21/20, 8:30pm

FLORAL PARK Tuesday, 5/12/20, 7:30pm

BAY (Oyster Bay and surrounding areas) Monday, 5/11/20, 7:30pm

FRANKLIN SQUARE Wednesday, 5/13/20, 7:30pm

BELLMORE Monday, 5/18/20, 7:30pm CARLE PLACE Thursday, 5/14/20, 7:30pm CENTRAL PARK (Bethpage and Plainview) Tuesday, 5/12/20, 7:30pm EAST MEADOW Monday, 5/4/20, 7:30pm ELLM (East Rockaway, Lakeview, Lynbrook, and Malverne) Monday, 5/4/20, 7:30pm ELMONT Tuesday, 5/19/20, 7:30pm

FREEPORT Monday, 5/11/20, 7:30pm GARDEN CITY Thursday, 5/14/20, 7:30pm GREAT NECK Monday, 5/4/20, 7:30pm HARDSCRABBLE (Farmingdale and N. Massapequa) Thursday, 5/7/20, 7:30pm HERRICKS Monday, 5/18/20, 7:30pm HICKSVILLE Tuesday, 5/5/20, 7:30pm

ISLAND BEACH (Island Park PLAINEDGE and Long Beach) Tuesday, 5/19/20, 7:30pm Wednesday, 5/20/20, 7:30pm PORT WASHINGTON JERICHO/SYOSSET Wednesday, 5/6/20, 7:30pm Wednesday, 5/20/20, 7:30pm ROCKVILLE CENTRE MANHASSET Wednesday, 5/20/20, 7:30pm Thursday, 5/14/20, 7:30pm SEAFORD MASSAPEQUA Thursday, 5/7/20, 7:30pm Wednesday, 5/6/20, 7:30pm SHORE (North Shore/ MERRICK Glen Cove and surrounding Wednesday, 5/13/20, 7:30pm areas) Monday, 5/18/20, 7:30pm NORTH BELLMORE Thursday, 5/7/20, 7:30pm THE PLAINS (Island Trees and Levittown) OCEANSIDE Thursday, 5/21/20, 7:30pm Tuesday, 5/5/20, 7:30pm If you do not see PARK (New Hyde Park, your area listed, Garden City Park, and parts please contact of Floral Park) customercare@gsnc.org Monday, 5/11/20, 7:30pm for more information.

New Daisy Discovery

VALLEY STREAM Thursday, 5/21/20, 7:30pm WANTAGH Wednesday, 5/6/20, 7:30pm WARM (Williston Park, Albertson, East Hills Estates, East Williston, Old Westbury, Roslyn, Roslyn Estates, Roslyn Harbor, Roslyn Heights, Mineola) Wednesday, 5/13/20, 7:30pm WEST HEMPSTEAD Thursday, 5/21/20, 7:30pm

Her next step, powered by Girl Scouts.

1086625

jnossa@liherald.com

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

By Jill Nossa

7

April 30, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

8

Photos by Scott Brinton/Herald

The WanTagh ParkWay bike trail from Cedar Creek County Park to Jones Beach State Park is one of a handful of such trails in Nassau County. At left and above, riders on the trail last Saturday.

Cycling, social-distancing style Nassau County has fewer than 50 miles of bike trails, compared to New York City, which has 450, and Suffok County, which has 370. So Nassau residents have long had a hard time finding a place to ride freely, unconcerned about the presence of cars. With the Covid-19 pandemic hitting, and people unable to work out at their gyms, many are turning to cycling for their regular dose of exercise.

What happens, however, when so many people must make do with a relatively small number of bike trails? Are they able to abide by current social-distancing requirements when riding? Heralds Executive Editor Scott Brinton rode the Wantagh Park bike trail from Cedar Creek County Park to Jones Beach State Park Saturday to find out, and for the most part, he found, cyclists, runners and inline skaters were keeping a safe distance — at least six feet apart. On this page you will find his photos from his 10-mile round-trip.

For more photos, see liherald.com.

a number of roller bladers and cyclists, left and top right, wore masks as they made their way to and from Jones Beach, while also keeping a safe distance from those around them.

The neW york State Parks Department, center, warned park-goers at Jones Beach to stay at least six feet away from others.

CyClisTs on The trail at Jones Beach, right.

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Every life matters to us …

Dear neighbor:

Seniors, coaches react to spring sports cancellation ty are most important, but this is difficult ic directors met the following day, and news to share. I’m heartbroken for the coaches and our kids.” agreed.

“With everything going on, you could “At first I didn’t want to believe it, and I see it coming,” said Tom Abruscato, didn’t believe it,” said Jenna Laird, a coach of the W.T. Clarke varsity baseball senior on the EMHS Lady Jets softball team. “It’s definitely still disappointing. team.

Laird has been playing since she was 5, I have 13 seniors, and almost everybody and hopes to continue her softball career is back from a county championship.”

Last June, the Rams had a dominatthis fall at the University of ing 7-0 win over Division Missouri. Her last game was Avenue High School in the the state semifinals in South Class A county finals at Glens Falls last spring, and at SUNY-Old Westbury. “You the time, she believed she could argue this was one of would have another season the best teams we’ve ever with her teammates to try to seen at Clarke,” Abruscato capture the state championsaid. ship.

Nonetheless, he shared Nevertheless, Laird said, Laird’s optimism. Clarke’s she and the other players underclassmen players have remain optimistic. “After we used the free time to make heard the season was canvideos demonstrating their celed, we tried to make the skills. And with NCAA best of it and not just be games also canceled, more upset,” she said. “My friends college coaches have had and I are all going to college to time to focus on recruitment. play softball, and we could use JAnnA LAird “We’ve set up a bunch of this time to get stronger and Senior, conference calls for juniors,” better on our own.”

Abruscato said. “We were Laird said that the Lady East Meadow able to make a lot of contacts Jets have been checking in High School and network for our underwith one another every day. classmen.”

Softball Coach Stew Fritz also Clarke is still planning to hold its promised to reunite the team over the signing day at the end of May, with a summer for a senior send-off.

“It’s a shame that these kids are never video tribute to seniors who will contingoing to get this time back in their lives … ue their athletic careers in college. “It doesn’t replace having a season, but it’s that they’re not going to have the joy of competing,” Fritz said. “The team bond- still a good way to honor them,” Abrusing and interacting is what we’re going to cato said, adding, “As disappointing as miss most.” this is — and it is — the majority of us East Meadow Athletic Director Kevin have our health, and we don’t take that Regan added, “Everyone’s health and safe- for granted.” continued from front page

A

fter we heard the season was canceled, we tried to make the best of it and not just be upset.

COVID-19 has taken far too many, far to soon. Let us help you commemorate the life of your loved one with a story and photo celebrating their life. Contact our Executive Editor Scott Brinton, sbrinton@liherald.com or call 516-569-4000, ext 203, if you would like to memorialize a loved one in the Herald, regardless of their cause of death.

Stuart Richner Publisher srichner@liherald.com 1087105

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We live and work in this community. The lives of each and every one of you is important to us and we are here to tell your stories — from beginning to end. That includes the final chapter. At this difficult time, I want to remind you that obituaries in all Herald Community Newspapers are, and have always been, completely free.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

JennA LAird, A senior on the East Meadow High School girls’ softball team, was disappointment when she learned that the spring sports season had been canceled.

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A. Well, not being a moth, I don’t know the threshold for when I could fly back to continue munching on that wool sweater, but the sap-producing odor of cedar does diminish after seven to 10 years. Also, for anyone who has ever actually smelled mothballs, I wonder how you got their little legs apart.

I think the former owner must have had a really bad experience with moths and/or lost a lot of clothing to them. The natural smell of cedar diminishes over time, as the oils in the wood dissipate into the air. In a closed space it may take longer, but the natural moth-repelling scent comes from the cutting of the wood and exposing the sap in the fibers. After you remove the cedar panels from the former closet and set up a new space, the cedar smell can be revived by lightly sanding the wood, which could have saved investing in mothballs altogether.

Mothballs are toxic to most pets, and although people think they can kill animals that intrude into attics or basements, they’re not recommended for this purpose. Mothballs, made from poisonous naphthalene or para-dicloro-benzene, not only are noxious smelling, but can cause serious illness to any animal, including humans. The more noticeable effects are eye and skin irritation, headaches, nausea and breathing problems, with nose and throat irritation that can cause continuous, unrelenting coughing. If you’re around the mothballs in that closet long enough, you may develop liver and kidney damage as the body struggles to deal with filtering the toxin.

The best and safest way to protect natural-fiber clothing, which is what moths and silverfish are after, is to store the garments in tightly closed containers that moths can’t pry open. Since I’ve never seen a moth flying around with a crowbar, this should be easy to do, and much safer than the toxic solutions previous generations used. I once measured a home to produce renovation drawings, and it had a large walk-in cedar closet. I was in that room for less than two minutes when I began to feel an extreme headache and coughing, so I know that it doesn’t take much to become ill from the scent.

With so many container types and shapes available, I recommend the less toxic method to store clothing. Good luck.

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Q. We have an old Victorian that has a large closet, almost the size of a bedroom, next to the master bedroom. The closet is covered in cedar wood, which we were told can protect clothes from moths.

We wondered why the previous owner did that, since they also spread mothballs Ask The all around the closet. We want to make the master Architect bedroom bigger by using part of the closet and taking out the cedar. Can the cedar be reused if we put it in the basement? We wonder whether cedar loses the ability to discourage moths and why the former owner also used mothballs? Any thoughts?

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

Cedar closets and mothballs

11

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opinions

s we suffer through pandemicmandated home confinement, the media becomes more and more important to us each day.

We follow it for information, for comfort, for life-saving advice and for ways to keep us from having nervous breakdowns.

In every time of crisis, some figures emerge that either capture our attention or stand out because of their impact on our lives, one way or another.

President Trump and Gov. Andrew Cuomo have commanded the continuous attention of us JeRRY New Yorkers, kReMeR because both have our fate in their hands in different ways. Obviously, the president has a major role at the national level, and as a state, we look to the governor. Both have traveled bumpy roads, but as time now shows, there are more differences between the two than similarities.

Knowing both men fairly well, I think back over the years on how each followed a chosen path to get to where they are

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today: in our face on a daily basis. The political world and the business world are like two different planets, and they presented different challenges to Cuomo and Trump. The president was born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, and the governor came from a family of modest means.

They’re both from Queens.

Trump struggled over the years to prove that he wasn’t just his father’s son, and Cuomo had an uphill fight to prove that he was a worthy heir to the Cuomo family name. When Trump made a lot of mistakes in the real estate business, he turned to his lawyers and family to bail him out.

Andrew Cuomo had a brilliant mentor in his father, and made only one political mistake, which was his misguided decision to challenge State Comptroller Carl McCall for the Democratic nomination for governor in 2002.

Those headaches briefly held both Trump and Cuomo back from their goals to get to the top of their respective mountains, but not for long. After their setbacks, each one decided that he would keep pushing, and nothing would get in the way. Trump was determined to

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emerge from his financial failures and make the world believe he was a business genius. With the smart use of public relations and a lot of lucky breaks, he became a household name thanks to the wildly popular television series “The Apprentice.” And, over the years, he managed to put his name on countless buildings and projects.

Cuomo didn’t have the benefit of a money machine behind him, but he always had a fierce determination to win, and understood the political world a lot more than any adversary. Time heals all wounds — even political ones — and in 2006, he decided to run for attorney general. He ran a highly professional office, and proved that he was his own man. Four years later, he turned his attention to mounting a campaign for governor, and, now in his third term, he has emerged as a national figure.

So today, Trump and Cuomo are in the spotlight at the same time, and the differences between them have emerged for all to see.

The president has his bully pulpit, with his nightly TV coronavirus brief-

governor and a president share the spotlight, but in very different ways.

ings. At the same time, however, Cuomo has become a national celebrity with his daily briefings. The president holds forth in two-hour sessions laced with insults of the media and repeated insistence on being thanked for everything he has or hasn’t done. Cuomo presents facts and statistics, and gives viewers the feeling that he really cares about who lives or dies. There are 49 other governors, but at this point Cuomo leads the pack.

There is no doubt Trump believes that his daily pronouncements will help his re-election chances. But there is such a thing as too much exposure, and too much of the same wears on the average voter. On the other hand, Cuomo’s daily sessions have attracted a legion of new followers, and his prominence may play an important role in his political life years from now.

Unplanned as it was, the competition between the two guys from Queens has been a clear win for Cuomo.

Jerry Kremer was a state assemblyman for 23 years, and chaired the Assembly’s Ways and Means Committee for 12 years. He now heads Empire Government Strategies, a business development and legislative strategy firm. Comments about this column?

JKremer@liherald.com.

Having the ‘best words’ never mattered more

am reading so many good words these days, but sadly, none of them are coming from the president.

That’s a shame, because throughout history, words have inspired people to resist tyranny, to slog through depressions and to find their better selves in times of crisis.

What leaps to mind? “We have nothing to fear but fear itself,” or “Give me liberty or give me death” or “No taxation without representation.”

Sober and inspiring, right?

Last week, I’m pretty sure I heard Donald Trump RAndi spewing nonsense kReiss about ultraviolet light and disinfectants curing Covid-19. He said he was just putting it out there; he was just thinking out loud.

What’s the harm?

The terrible harm is that he is a font of abysmal ignorance, and his advice is taken to heart by many people who believe what he says because he is, unfortunately, the president of the United States. I know some of you read these words and want to remind me of the

respect due a president. I say to that: Respect is earned. Trump has trampled every opportunity to speak truth to the American people, to support the scientists who are on the front lines and to create an organized federal response to this pandemic. His lying has always been disturbing, but now it has become lethal.

If you believe what he says and you also hope to live a full life, just check with your doctor before you inject any disinfectant.

Two weeks ago, Trump used the word “liberate” to rally the know-nothings who see social distancing, a proven life-saving strategy, as some kind of infringement of their right to go back to work or out to the local bar. That particular word, “liberate,” was intentionally used to foment protest among Trump’s base.

New York Times columnist Tom Friedman said it with his own excellent prose: “Think about the use of that word.

We were not in jail! We were not doing something wrong! We were doing what our president, governor, mayor and national epidemic experts told us to do: behave responsibly and shelter in place . . . Trump was cynically trying to curry

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favor with his base by implying that the Democratic governors … were unfairly locking people up. Is there anything more irresponsible that this president could do?”

That was before Doctor Trump started free-associating about disinfectants and ultraviolet light.

Fortunately, the best words are also being offered by thinkers and writers who choose to lift us up. Mindfulness expert Jack Kornfield wrote in the Times magazine: “The feeling that we have so little control over how death could touch us in this instance — that’s what a lot of these current anxieties come down to, right? We’re worried about ourselves or the ones we love dying from Covid-19 . . . It’s wild that we have our personalities and our bodies and full lives and families and then, poof, they’re gone. We look for a story . . . What I know from 50 years of meditation and doing hospice work is that we’re not just this body. You are made of spirit. And the spirit makes it so that even if people have died, we’re still profoundly connected to them in love. In that sense, they haven’t exactly died. They are in us, not

hose words are coming from thinkers and writers who choose to lift us up.

only in our hearts but also somehow in our very being. Knowing this doesn’t take away the power of that grief to shake us to our roots, but it lets us know something bigger than all of that: Who I am is not just this body. We are consciousness.”

Seeing the beauty in Kornfield’s words gives me faith that we will also understand this time more fully when our fiction writers begin using this global pandemic as grist for the literary mill.

Writer Sloane Crosley reminds us that things are moving too quickly now to have any perspective, but with the advantage of time, we may find ourselves reading another “Don Quixote” or “The Grapes of Wrath” or “The Plague,” all inspired by historic tragedies.

Time is the critical ingredient. As Crosley said in a Times article, the sensational, get-it-while-it’s-hot treatment of world events often disappoints. Fiction writers, she said, are only now getting World War I right, which may be a bit of an exaggeration.

We can only hope that our best writers are busy taking notes so that someday they can summon their own best words to explain this crazy time to the rest of us.

Copyright 2020 Randi Kreiss. Randi can be reached at randik3@aol.com.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

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Cuomo puts the other guy from Queens to shame

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To Congress: Fund the states — now

side from the slings and arrows thrown more sparingly than usual by President Trump, the nearly two-month-long coronavirus crisis has been largely free of the bitter partisan politics that have roiled our nation in recent years.

Until last week, that is.

Yes, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, perhaps unsurprisingly, went there even now, as families across the country have been reeling amid a steadily mounting Covid-19 death toll.

After offering desperately needed financial relief to small businesses, Congress began debating whether to fund states whose annual budgets have been decimated because of the coronavirus. McConnell’s pathetic response: Fund yourselves or declare bankruptcy, saying he would have no more “blue state bailouts.”

That clearly angered Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who for weeks had called on Congress to fund the states, noting that New York is staring down a historically high $10 billion to $15 billion gap in its budget.

Without federal intervention, New York

How to write your U.s. representative Go to these websites to reach your local congressional representatives: ■ U.S. Rep. Peter King, 2nd District, peteking.house.gov.

■ U.S. Rep. Thomas Suozzi, 3rd District, suozzi.house.gov.

■ U.S. Rep. Kathleen Rice, 4th District, kathleenrice.house.gov.

■ U.S. Sen. Char les Schumer, schumer.senate.gov.

■ U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, gillibrand.senate.gov. might be forced to cut 20 percent of aid for essential services like fire, police, hospitals and schools.

Such cuts would mean steep, across-theboard staffing cuts, Cuomo warned, but

there would be no choice. With income tax collections halted at the moment and sales taxes bottoming out, the state is now essentially broke, when only two months ago it was solvent.

Cuomo fired back at McConnell, arguing that, year after year, New York contributes more than any other state than it receives in federal aid. Meanwhile, McConnell’s home state of Kentucky is among the states that contributes the least to the federal coffers, but among those that take the most in aid.

“Just give me my money back, Senator,” Cuomo implored McConnell.

If Congress were to refuse to fund the states to make their budgets whole again, then “you will see a collapse of this national economy,” Cuomo said.

We urge New Yorkers to write to their congressional representatives to show support for swift action to fund the states and avoid an economic catastrophe of even greater proportions than we have already seen. Local representatives’ websites are listed in the box.

Keep extending the Ocean Parkway bike trail

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ith most people confined to their homes by the coronavirus pandemic and itching to get out into open space, it becomes abundantly clear that Nassau County is lacking when it comes to bike trails.

The county has fewer than 50 miles of bike trails, compared with New York City, which has 450, and Suffolk County, which has 370. So Nassau residents have long had a hard time finding a place to ride freely, unconcerned about the presence of cars.

Now, as the weather (finally) warms, and with people unable to work out at their gyms, many are turning to cycling for exercise.

But too many are forced to ride on

streets, unprotected from the vehicles around them. True, there are fewer cars on the roads, but it’s still much safer to ride on trails, away from traffic. It’s also better for motorists. Many drivers now find themselves navigating among pedestrians, runners, cyclists, inline skaters and skateboarders.

What cyclists need are safe places to ride, removed from suburban streets.

Historically, Nassau lawmakers have not seen the importance of bike trails, as those in New York City and Suffolk County have. The thinking has been, people drive, so why bother with bike trails?

Those trails give people a place to exercise and enjoy themselves in a safe setting.

That’s all the reasoning needed. The coro-

letters A phased reopening To the Editor: As we look to the months that lie ahead, we must ask the question: How can we build back better? There is no returning to yesterday — there is only moving forward.

In the months ahead, employers will need to rethink how workplaces can be safer. Our health care system

will have to become harder and more resilient. Our technology must improve. This pandemic has altered New York, and we have been through hell, but we must learn the lessons of this crisis in order to reimagine a better society.

Last Sunday, I outlined a phased plan to safely reopen New York at the appropriate time, taking a regional approach. Phase One will be to

navirus crisis only further illustrates how important they are.

The five-mile-long Wantagh Parkway bike trail, which leads down to Jones Beach, was crowded last weekend, but most users managed to keep a safe distance from one another (see story inside). It is one of just a handful of bike trails in the county. The only other major trail loops for 10 miles around the Hub, in the center of the county.

New York state has committed to a 10-mile, $16.2 million extension of the existing three-mile-long Ocean Parkway bike trail, itself an extension of the Wantagh Parkway trail. Let’s hope, given the current economic crisis, the state is still able to build it.

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opinions

mid a global pandemic, colleges nationwide have indefinitely shifted classes online. With students no longer using campus facilities and resources, they have created petitions and filed class-action lawsuits calling for tuition reduction and reimbursement. This discontent arises against the backdrop of a turbulent economy, historically high tuition costs and record levels of student loan debt.

Now is the time to take definitive action on higher education reform to best position our next generaoLiver tion of students. roberts But the current mainstream reform proposals — like free college and debt cancellation — engender uncompromising, hyperpartisan reactions, which inevitably lead to inaction. If we truly want to improve our higher education system, we must pursue a bipartisan approach that reduces tuition costs and student loan debt, expands college opportunities for high school students, and requires no increase in taxes.

Currently, there is only one proposal that adequately fulfills these goals: Degree-in-Three reform. It calls for tran-

sitioning the college system away from the traditional four-year degree model to three-year degrees. Tuition would be reduced by 25 percent, students would have fewer loans and interest to pay back, more could afford college degrees, and they could seek employment and start earning salaries a year earlier.

According to Paul Weinstein, director of graduate programs at John Hopkins University, colleges could eliminate a year by shifting to a trimester system, adding a winter term, removing redundant class requirements, focusing on early declarations of majors, offering crossover master’s classes for students pursuing graduate degrees, and accepting more A.P. credit equivalents.

One criticism of Degree-in-Three reform is that reducing the length of a college career could potentially compromise the quality of education. But many universities — more than 30, according to Weinstein — already offer three-year degree programs. In addition, most colleges now allow students to substitute internship experience for classroom credit, and some even allow internships to fulfill a full semester’s worth of credit.

So colleges could eliminate a year by creating formal summer internship programs-for-credit that buttress classroom

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egreein-Three reform presents a bipartisan solution to a divisive issue.

Letters reopen low-risk construction and manufacturing businesses in parts of the state that have experienced a 14-day decline in the hospitalization rate. Phase Two will open certain industries based on priority and risk level. (Businesses considered “more essential,” with inherent low risks of infection in the workplace and to customers, will be prioritized.) Officials are closely monitoring the hospitalization rate, the infection rate and other key health indicators, and will make adjustments to the plan based on this crucial data.

There will be a two-week waiting period in between phases of this plan, to monitor the effect. This will help ensure that the hospitalization and infection rates do not increase as some workers begin to return to work.

Businesses and industries will create plans that include new measures to protect employees and consumers.

The physical workplace will have to be reimagined to be safer, and businesses must implement processes that reduce the risk of infection. The state is consulting with local leaders in each region and industry to formulate these plans.

Multi-state coordination is key, especially in downstate New York,

instruction.

With colleges already recognizing the interchangeable nature of classroom instruction and internship experience, students earning employment opportunities and gaining real-world experience earlier could hardly be viewed as compromising their education and development. And with incoming freshmen now face uncertain economic futures, maximizing work experience through internships could best prepare them for, and significantly improve their competitiveness in, future job markets.

Underscoring its bipartisan political appeal, Degreein-Three reform wouldn’t require a single dollar of additional taxes, and would deliver wide-ranging economic benefits. With lower tuition costs, less student loan debt and an additional year of salary, the improved financial posture of college graduates would enable greater economic investment on their part — the purchase of cars and homes. Entering the workforce one year earlier, college graduates would also bolster our Social Security System through additional payroll taxes.

Further, by allowing students to graduate in three years, colleges could open up more seats in their incoming classes, which would mean more opportunities

Ever upward, GOv. ANDREW M. CUOMO

Ready for their YouTube moment — Salisbury

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for high school students to attend competitive colleges and pursue their desired career paths. By doing so, colleges would be able to offset any potential profit losses from the transition to three-year degrees. We foll for life Degree-in-Three reform presents a bipartisan solution to a divisive national us from In e issue. Republicans have long proposed reducing the government’s role in admin- emerg istering loans in favor of private-sector lending, while Democrats have advanced free college and debt cancellation. Given these opposing approaches, bipartisan action would seem highly unlikely.

But Degree-in-Three Reform caters to both parties’ interests, while still preserving the opportunity for each party to tout its preferred solutions to the problems it sees with the college system. With a three-year degree model, college tuition and loan debt would decrease, and more students would be able to attend college, making Democrats happy. And those benefits would accrue without raising taxes, and reduce government’s role in adminis- ways. O tering student loans, which would please major state, w Republicans. travele In the meantime, Degree-in-Three shows, reform would have already cut tuition costs by 25 percent, reduced student loan betwee Kno debt and delivered wide-ranging macroback o economic benefits. a chose Oliver Roberts, who lives in Massapequa, is a second-year student at Harvard Law School. Comments about this column?

Oroberts@jd21.law.harvard.edu.

FrAmework by Laura Lane

where the outbreak has been more severe. We will work with neighboring states to ensure safe and consistent policies. Downstate, special attention will be taken to ensure the safety of low-income communities.

Last Saturday, the total number of hospitalizations fell to 13,839 — returning to the level of March 31.

This is a positive trend, but it is still far higher than we would like to see. I am very saddened to say we lost 367 New Yorkers that day, down from 437 the previous day. Every day, this is the worst, most devastating news that I must give to New Yorkers.

The state’s essential workers were to be honored with an air show on Tuesday. The U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels and the Air Force Thunderbirds were set to fly over the metropolitan area as a tribute to all the workers on the front lines of this pandemic. “This is our way of showing that we are all in this together and that America’s spirit will prevail,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein and Navy Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday noted in a joint statement.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 30, 2020

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