Freeport Herald Leader

Freeport

HERALD Leader

More Covid-19 tests in Freeport

local marinas now open

Heart screenings at rec center

Page 10

Page 15

Page 13

Vol. 85 No. 17

APRIl 23 - 29, 2020

Freeport has third-most Covid-19 cases

By RoNNy Reyes rreyes@liherald.com

The Village of Freeport remains the third-hardest hit community in Nassau County by the Covid-19 strain of coronavirus, with about 1,091 confirmed positive cases as of April 21, according to county Department of Health records. Only Hempstead, with 1,504 confir med cases, and Valley Stream, with 1,404, have more.

The statistics come from the county Department of Health’s interactive Covid-19 map, which tracks the number of confirmed cases by neighborhood. The map

does not include cases pending confirmation by the New York State Department of Health.

The news came as the county was reporting a total of 31,079 positive Covid-19 cases since the outbreak began in early March, with nearly 2,000 Covid-19 related hospitalizations and 1,390 deaths attributed to the virus.

Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy said the high numbers in Freeport reflect the village’s density — Freeport is the secondlargest village in the state, with more than 43,000 residents, according to census data.

“We’re a very dense area, so it Continued on page 4

Courtesy Maria Jordan-Awalom

Happy birthday, from a social distance Freeporters decorated their cars and held up signs to celebrate Alexa Leguizamon’s 12th birthday on April 16. Story, Page 3.

District braces for longer closure School officials hope to launch live lectures

By RoNNy Reyes rreyes@liherald.com

Courtesy Nassau Department of Health

FReePoRt HAd NeARly 1,100 confirmed Covid-19 cases as of April 20, according to the Nassau County Department of Health. That was the third-most in the county.

With schools across New York state closed until May 15, Freeport School District officials held a Parent University online seminar on April 16 to inform mothers, fathers and other caregivers about a series of video lectures that students will be offered in the coming weeks.

District Superintendent Kishore Kuncham said that if

the video instruction initiative takes off, the 30-minute lectures would be uploaded daily at 10 a.m.

“Our teachers are busy training for this program,” Kuncham said, “and while we won’t mandate that they all take part in it, we will encourage this as we move forward in our e-learning program.”

District officials said they hope the lectures would provide some sense of normalcy for the

students, who have now been out of school for more than a month.

Glori Engel, the district’s director of English Language Arts, said that while the district’s e-learning program has been up and running since its launch on March 18, parents are still having trouble providing a schedule for their children. She urged parents and guardians to make use of the schedules proContinued on page 9

1085451

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

2

3

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020 Photos Courtesy Maria Jordan-Awalom

AlexA leguizAmon, fourth from the left, celebrated her birthday with a caravan from friends, family and the Freeport Fire and Police Departments.

The birthday party caravans continue Alexa Leguizamon, of Freeport, enjoyed a special surprise as friends, families and members of the Freeport Fire and Police Departments came out to celebrate her 12th birthday with a caravan on April 16.

Alexa’s mother, Claudia, said she felt grateful to the local community for coming out to commemorate her daughter’s birthday amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Under the circumstances we’re under, it was amazing to see so many people help out and make this day special,” Claudia said.

This was one of many birthday caravans the fire and police departments have taken part in since social distancing began about a month ago.

friends put up special birthday cards, above, for Alexa to enjoy at a distance. the leguizAmon fAmily, left, was grateful to those who came out. the fire depArtment dropped off a gift for the birthday girl, far-left.

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

4

Crime watCh Arrests

Criminal mischief

■ A male, 21, of Freeport, was arrested on April 14, on North Main and Leonard Avenue for menacing after he brandished a knife at a victim during a road rage incident.

■ Police responded to a report on April 16, at East Merrick Road and South Main Street, for criminal mischief. Police found a broken glass window at the storefront at the intersection. The Freeport Building Department proceeded to board up the window.

Larceny ■ Police apprehended a suspect on April 19 after a manager from a store on East Sunrise Highway reported that his alarm system was activated as the suspect left the store with unpaid merchandise.

Police later returned the merchandise.

Usecure premise ■ Police responded to a residential alarm at North Main Street and Queen Street. Upon arrival, officers noticed an unsecure front door and conducted a search of the home. The homeowner was notified and the home was re-secured.

AdemolA bosticK, left, and Rajah Mayo.

Courtesy Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office

Freeport alumnus charged with attempted murder A Freeport man was arrested and charged on April 17 with the attempted murder of a 23-year-old earlier this month, according to police in Little Egg Harbor, N.J..

Little Egg Harbor officers said they responded to reports of gunfire on April 3 when they found the victim lying on the g round with multiple gunshot wounds.

Police said an investigation led them to Rajah Mayo, 20, of Freeport, and Ademola Bostick, 24, of Bay Shore. Police alleged that while Bostick was the one to shoot the victim, he and Mayo acted

together in the crime.

Members of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force arrested the two early on April 17 at their homes. They were charged with conspiracy to commit murder and attempted murder.

Mayo was a basketball player at Freeport High School and garnered attention as one of the team’s most supportive members before graduating in 2017.

Both he and Bostick are being extradited to New Jersey, and once they arrive, they will be taken to Ocean County Jail pending their detention hearing, police said.

Officials see decline in new cases amid pandemic continued from front page stood to reason that we would see a larger amount of cases than other villages,” Kennedy said.

Studies across the country have shown the coronavirus has hit hardest in minority-majority communities, with the virus killing a higher percentage of African-Americans and Hispanics than whites. Among those who have died of the virus in New York, 34 percent have been Hispanic and 28 percent AfricanAmerican.

As of last week, Long Island Federally Qualified Health Centers — which operates in communities across the Island, including Freeport, to address the health care needs of vulnerable and underserved populations — had tested Herald file photo about 400 people for Covid-19, according fReepoRt mAyoR RobeRt Kennedy. to David Nemiroff, the organization’s president and chief executive officer.

About 65 percent of those tests, he said, getting 17 to 25 calls to now about three have come back positive. to four calls a week.”

Kennedy said he could not speak to Gov. Andrew Cuomo also said there how the coronavirus has affected people were signs that the number of new coroof different races, but he has noticed navirus cases had been levthat Covid-19 cases tend to eling off since April 13, but happen more often in housethe gover nor ordered the holds with many people of New York on Pause initiadifferent ages. He explained tive to continue until May that in homes occupied by 15. grandparents, parents, chil“New York believes we dren and grandchildren, the have reached a plateau of coronavirus had an easy new coronavirus cases,” time spreading from a less Cuomo said. “This is relavulnerable individual to tively good news in a world those who are most at risk. of bad options.”

Through the Freeport VilWhile local and state offilage Coronavirus Task Force cials see the declining num— which comprises officials ber of new cases as a good from the departments of sign, they urged people to RobeRt water, electricity and public stay home and abide by works, along with members KeNNedy social distancing practices of the fire and police depart- Mayor until the New York on Pause ments and village attorney initiative ends. and mayor’s offices — vil“We’ve made this f ar lage officials have stayed up to date on because of rules and regulations that the number of cases in Freeport, and were put in place,” Kennedy said. “The Kennedy believes the village is on the longer we do our job and stay home, the road to recovery. sooner this will all be over.”

“We’re finally starting to see the number of new cases go down in the Scott Brinton and Melissa Koenig conpast week,” Kennedy said. “I went from tributed to this story.

N

ew York believes we have reached a plateau of new coronavirus cases.

HOW TO REACH US Our offices are located at 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530 and are open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

MAIN PHONE: (516) 569-4000 ■ WEB SITE: freeport.liherald.com ■ E-MAIl: Letters and other submissions: freeporteditor@liherald.com ■ EDITORIAl DEPARTMENT: Ext. 328 E-mail: freeporteditor@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 Freeport Herald leader, USPS 307320 is published weekly, every Thursday, by Richner Communications, Inc., 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Periodicals Postage is paid at Garden City, NY and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Freeport Herald Leader, 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Subscriptions by qualified request in zip code 11520, $30 for 1 year within Nassau County or $52 for 1 year out of Nassau County. © 2020 Richner Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

County exec: School tax collection delayed so are looking for financial relief.

Delaying school taxes, however, could have serious financial consequences Nassau County Executive Laura for the county, Curran said.

She explained the county must Curran announced Monday that, by order of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the guarantee all school tax collections, school tax collection deadline has been meaning if the school districts come up short in their collecdelayed by three weeks. tions, then the county “At my request,” Curmust provide the funding ran, a Democrat from Baldto the districts — by law. win, tweeted Monday eveShe said the county is ning, “ [Governor Cuomo] hurting financially, as are is issuing an executive all municipalities, amid order that will push back the coronavirus pandemic. the May 11th property tax Sales and property tax colp ay m e n t d e a d l i n e fo r lections comprise 67 perschool districts in Nassau cent of the county’s more County. More details to than $3 billion budget. come soon.”

Sales taxes have plummetThe new deadline is during the outbreak, June 1.

Laura curraN ed starving the county of one Earlier in the day, the of its two primary revenue Republican-controlled Leg- County executive sources, Curran said. islature had voted to push She worries about counback the deadline to June ty employees, she said, and 10, but Curran contended the Legislature did not have the wants to ensure the county maintains authority to change the date, only the its force of first responders, including police officers and medics. governor.

The federal and state governments, Curran spoke at length on Saturday about the proposal before the County she said, must step in to ensure the county has enough cash on hand to Legislature to delay collection of school taxes that were to come due in meet its financial obligations, including to its employees, so it can continue May. to provide essential services.

Many residents have been laid off or have seen their hours reduced, and

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

By scott BriNtoN sbrinton@liherald.com

a

t my request, [Governor Cuomo] is issuing an executive order.

Christina Daly/Herald

Nassau ExEcutivE Laura Curran said she worries that if school tax collections were delayed, the county might wind up paying the bill.

Covid-19 deaths decline over the weekend In Nassau County, new hospitalizations declined for the third straight day, as did ICU cases and intubations, County For the first time since the Covid-19 Executive Laura Curran said Saturday pandemic struck more than a month ago, afternoon.

New York state saw sharp declines in the On Sunday, Cuomo appeared alongnumber of overnight deaths because of side Northwell Health President and the coronavirus, and Gov. CEO Michael Dowling to Andrew Cuomo was expressannounce plans to undertake ing cautious optimism over widespread, random antithe weekend that the state body testing to determine was past the peak of the dismore precisely New York’s ease. actual infection rate.

He noted, however, that Overnight from Saturday relaxing social distancing into Sunday, 507 people died could lead to a second wave of the coronavirus in New of infection.

York, Cuomo said at NorthThe number of deaths well’s Feinstein Institutes for because of the coronavirus Medical Research in dropped a little more than 14 Manhasset. That represented percent across New York an 8 percent drop in the overstate overnight from Friday night death rate. into Saturday, from 630 to New hospitalizations also 540, Cuomo said Saturday declined, from 2,000 the day afternoon. before to 1,300, a 35 percent It was the smallest numdrop. ber of overnight deaths the Gov. aNdrEW And new intubations, state had seen in a day since cuoMo whereby people are placed on early April, and represented ventilators to enable them to a 32 percent decrease in the breath, were down also. overnight mortality rate from April 9, If those statistics hold, Cuomo said, when the number of deaths from one day “we are past the high point,” and all indito the next peaked at 799. cations are the infection rate is “on the Cuomo noted, however, that the state descent.” still saw 2,000 new hospitalizations overStill, he said, “Thirteen hundred is a night, which, he said, was troubling. lot of people coming into the hospital

By scott BriNtoN sbrinton@liherald.com

W

e just pray to God [the infection rate] remains down on the other side … We still have a long way to go.

5

Governor: Marinas can open New York, Connecticut and New Jersey are allowing marinas, boatyards and marine manufacturers to open for personal use, provided they adhere to social distancing protocols and sanitize their facilities, Governor Cuomo announced Saturday afternoon.

Chartered watercraft services or rentals will not be allowed, and restaurants at these sites will be limited to take-out or delivery.

system.”

State officials are taking a breather with the infection rate appearing to stabilize. Cuomo described the crisis “as a mountain that just kept building and building and building,” and he said, he had “no idea where the top of the mountain” was.

“We just pray to God,” he said, that the infection rate “remains down on the other side” of the mountain.

He also noted, “We still have a long way to go.”

The governor urged people to continue social distancing and practice sound hygiene. He worries that people will see the death and new hospitalization rates

“Throughout this pandemic, we’ve worked closely with our friends in neighboring states to implement a uniform regional approach to reducing the spread of the virus,” Cuomo said. “Aligning our polices in this area is another example of that strong partnership, and will help ensure there is no confusion or ‘state shopping’ when it comes to marinas and boatyards.”

–Scott Brinton declining, and then attempt to return to life as normal too soon. That, he said, would jeopardize the progress the state has made over the past 40 days in containing the virus.

In preparing for a reopening of New York’s economy, he said, the state needs greater testing, and it needs more federal funding. Cuomo estimated the state faces a $10 billion to $15 billion deficit. That money will have to be made up somehow.

Without federal funding, cuts are likely, he said, noting school districts across the state could see their state aid slashed by 50 percent in 2020-21 without federal assistance.

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

6

On the front lines with a Northwell ICU nurse

By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

Each time a patient comes off a ventilator in the intensive care unit at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset these days, the Beatles’ “Here Comes the Sun” plays over the loudspeaker, alerting all staff and patients that a life has been saved.

Elyse Isopo, an ICU nurse practitioner at North Shore, with 20 years experience, spoke of that moment during a 19-minute Facebook Live interview with Northwell Health video producer Rob Hoell on Thursday.

It is an important moment for all in the ICU, as staff members work around the clock battling the Covid-19 virus, which, Isopo said, is yet to let up in the ICU. People throughout the ICU erupt in cheers and clapping when that Beatles song sounds, Isopo said, noting, “We need those wins, because it keeps us going.”

The number of new hospitalizations across New York state, including in Nassau, appears to be declining, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and County Executive Laura Curran.

The number of ICU patients where Isopo is at, however, continues unabated, she said, “because people who are hospitalized are getting sicker.”

Working in the ICU, she said, “is scary, and real, and rewarding at the same time,” adding, “Everybody has been amazing. It feels like a family.”

Courtesy Northwell Health

northwell health icU nurse practitioner Elyse Isopo spoke with video producer Rob Hoell about what it’s like to battle Covid-19 on the front lines.

One of the hardest parts that patients must endure is the sense of isolation from their families, because visitors are not allowed into the hospital, Isopo said.

Patients receive iPads so they can connect with loved ones, but it is not the same as meeting face to face.

If a patient appears near death, only then is family allowed in, she said.

Isopo spoke of one recent case, a patient originally from Korea. The patient asked that Korean music be played in his

final moments, and so it was. “It was beautiful,” she said, “and we supported his dying process.”

Such images, however, can also be haunting. “I don’t sleep very well at night,” Isopo said.

She is married with children. Worried about potentially infecting her family, she is careful each night to remove her clothes and shoes and take a shower before entering her home. “After a long day,” she said, “it’s draining.”

Working in the ICU is tough, she said.

“It’s very challenging. It’s very difficult.

It’s very stressful,” she said. “Everybody is as critical as the next person and the next person.

“It looks like a MASH unit,” she continued. “It’s bed after bed after bed … You walk in there, and you’re in the trenches.”

Isopo said the community has come out in unexpected and welcome ways, showering the nurses and doctors with praise and parades and food. “Seeing everyone in the community looking at us like heroes is very overwhelming and very much appreciated,” she said.

She emphasized, though, that “I never thought of myself as a hero.” The first responders in the field, the police and firefighters, are the heroes, she said.

Isopo said she believes Northwell has provided adequate personal protective equipment to hospital workers throughout the crisis. At first, workers were limited to one N95 mask per week, but now receive a new one daily, she said. Many place surgical masks over their N95 masks as an extra layer of protection to keep fluids off them.

In addition to masks, all workers receive paper scrubs, goggles, face shields and gloves.

She ended by saying people should stay home to reduce the infection and hospitalization rates. “The more people stay home, that helps us,” she said.

For the full interview, see liherald.com.

Catholic Health Services taking part in clinical trials

By Jeff BeSSen jbessen@liherald.com

Catholic Health Services is taking part in two clinical trials designed to develop treatments for Covid-19.

A Mayo Clinic trial is using what is called convalescent plasma donated by recovered Covid-19 patents to treat individuals who continue to fight the coronavirus.

Convalescent plasma comprises parts of the blood of people who have had the virus and recovered.

The second study involves using the medication remdesivir, which was originally developed to treat the Ebola virus and has been successfully used for other coronaviruses, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

The convalescent plasma study is being offered at CHS’s six hospitals. The remdesivir trial is taking place at St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center® in Roslyn and at Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip, CHS officials said.

One 200 milliliters/6.8 ounces dose of the plasma has benefitted a portion of patients, according to the initial data. People who recover from Covid-19 do so, in part, because their blood contains antibodies that are able to fight the virus. Previous research of other viruses found that treating patients with plasma obtained from those who have recovered from the same virus leads to rapid improvement, CHS officials said.

Using remdesivir to treat COVID-19 follows limited testing in the United States, Canada, China and other countries that led to an improvement in the condition of some patients. The treatment regimen using remdesivir takes place over 10 days and includes a 200-milligram dose on the first day and a 100-milligram dose on days two to 10.

Herald file photo

catholic health ServiceS of Long Island, which includes Mercy Medical Center in Rockville Centre, above, is involved in two clinical trial seeking to develop a treatment for Covid-19.

“Catholic Health Services is excited to be on the front lines and participate in these clinical trials for Covid-19,” CHS Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer Dr. Jason Golbin, stated in a news release. “Our clinical teams have spent several weeks caring for Covid-19 patients. It means a great deal to everyone to take part in these two cutting-edge research efforts.”

Potential plasma donors must have a prior, verified diagnosis of Covid-19, but are now symptom-free and

fully recovered. Donors must also be at least 18 and weigh at least 110 pounds. The plasma can be administered only to a consenting Covid-19 patient or a patient whose family member offers consent. The treatment will be given to patients judged by a doctor to be at high risk of disease progression to severe or life-threatening.

To donate plasma and for more information on the two clinical trials, call Catholic Health Services at (855) 247-4500.

Cuomo extends N.Y. PAUSE to May 15 By scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

n

ew York PAUSE has worked, [but] we’re not there yet.

couple can now marry by video in new York state On Saturday, Governor Cuomo issued a directive allowing marriages to be performed via videoconference to help reduce the infection rate amid the coronavirus crisis.

Among other conditions, the order requires the following be met:

are present in the New York state jurisdiction where the marriage is to take place.

■ The couple to be wed must present valid photo ID during the videoconference.

Local town and city clerks may provide further guidance.

If a couple’s marriage license has or will expire during the Covid19 pandemic, the state is waiving the 60-day waiting period to obtain a new license. It is also waiving all fees to obtain a second marriage license.

■ The town or city clerk, the witness(es), the person to solemnize the marriage, and the couple must interact with one another. No pre-recorded ceremonies are allowed.

■ The couple must affirm that they

■ The couple must send a legible copy of the signed marriage document by fax or email to the town or city clerk, the witnesses, and the person to solemnize the marriage on the same date it was signed.

–Scott Brinton

State releases data on nursing home deaths

By James Bernstein jbernstein@liherald.com

The New York State Department of Health released a list of 22 nursing homes on Long Island, including homes in Long Beach, Glen Cove and Lynbrook, where residents have died from the coronavirus epidemic. The state said its list included only deaths that took place inside a facility or location where five people or more have died.

State health officials said 22 residents at the Long Beach Nursing and Rehabilitation Center had died of the virus; eight at the Glen Cove Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, and six at the Lynbrook Restorative and Therapy Nursing facility.

Across the state, a total of 1,135 nursing home or assisted living center deaths at 72 facilities, officials said. The Health Department lists say 128 deaths took place at a total of 11 nursing homes in all of Nassau County.

The Health Department released the list after numerous complaints from the families of residents at the facilities, legislators and members of the media.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo was asked repeatedly at his daily briefings about the coronavirus illness at nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the state.

The governor had said the figures were being compiled.

Cuomo ordered nursing homes to i m m e d i at e ly i n fo r m re l at ive s o f patients who test positive.

Herald file photo

the state health Department reported 22 cases of Covid-19 deaths at the Long Beach Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

Administrators at the nursing homes in Long Beach, Glen Cove and Lynbrook have not released information about Covid-19 cases. But most all facilities have listed on their websites that they are sanitizing all areas within the

homes, maintaining social distancing among staff members, and noting that they are closed to outsiders, to protect the health of patients.

Relatives have not been allowed to visit patients at the facilities, and many

told media outlets they had been unable to reach patients by phone.

Administrators at the Long Beach, Glen Cove and Lynbrook facilities did not return calls seeking comment.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

lion of them are workers.

New York on PAUSE — Policies Assure Uniform Safety for Everyone — Gov. Andrew Cuomo last Thursday has kept the infection and hospitalizaextended New York on PAUSE, a 10-point tion rates to manageable levels, the govplan that shuts down “non-essential” ernor indicated. “We slowed the infecbusinesses and schools and requires tion rate by our actions, and that’s why social distancing, through May 15. The we’re in a better position today,” he said. announcement came during Wi d e s p r e a d t e s t i n g , his daily briefing, when he including antibody blood also continued to lay out his sampling, is needed to better vision to reopen the economy track the infection rate and — and the challenges doing assure people that they are so will present. safe when returning to their Previously, New York on workplaces. Cuomo said the PAUSE was to end April 30. state would conduct 3,000 “New York PAUSE has random antibody tests in the worked,” Cuomo said, but he coming weeks. noted, “we’re not there yet,” Last Wednesday, Cuomo referring to the reduction in said he would like to see the Gov. andrew the Covid-19 infection rate economy reopen in phases, needed to allow all people to cuomo in close coordination with retur n to work and ease six other states — Delaware, social distancing requireConnecticut, Massachusetts, ments.

New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode The governor said the state does not Island. yet fully know what the infection rate is.

He asked on Thursday that employers To date, more than 500,000 people have begin to consider whether their workers been tested in New York, more than Cali- can continue to telecommute when their fornia, Florida and Michigan combined, workplaces reopen, as well as think Cuomo said. That figure, however, repre- about the configuration of their worksents a fraction of the state’s population spaces. How far apart might desks be — 19 million people live here, and 9 mil- spread apart, for example?

7

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

8

Senator freed from prison amid pandemic

By Jill nossa jnossa@liherald.com

Former State Sen. Dean Skelos of Rockville Centre has tested positive for Covid-19 and will serve the remainder of his prison term at home, according to court papers filed last Wednesday.

Skelos, 72, was reportedly in quarantine 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.

Prosecutors said that medical authorities at the prison have cleared his release. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons said Skelos is expected to be approved for furlough and home confinement once the U.S. Probation Department has approved his proposed residence. A release date had not been set as of press time Monday.

L a t e l a s t m o n t h , S ke l o s

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, saying that 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 has more than two years left on his 51-month sentence for extortion, wire fraud and bribery.

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.

Trump lawyer, Lawrence native, to be released from prison

By Jeff Bessen jbessen@liherald.com

Michael Cohen, a Lawrence native and former personal attorney for President Donald Trump, who was convicted of several felonies and sentenced to three years in prison in 2018, will be released because of the coronavirus pandemic after a 14-day quarantine period, prison officials said. He will serve the remainder of his sentence confined to home.

He was serving his sentence and expected to be released in November 2021 from federal prison in upstate Otisville, where 14 inmates and seven staff members at the facility tested positive for Covid-19, as of press time. A federal judge had previously rejected Cohen’s request for a sentence reduction because of coronavirus on March 24.

Cohen was found guilty of breaking campaign finance laws, tax evasion and lying to Congress, among other charges in 2018. He was also ordered to pay $1.39 million in restitution, forfeit $500,000 and pay a $50,000 fine. The guilty pleas to the federal felony charges resulted in his disbarment as a lawyer in New York state.

Serving as Trump’s personal attorney, Cohen, 53, arranged sixfigure payments to a por n star known as Stormy Daniels, whose

Jeff Bessen/Herald

lawrence native michael Cohen who was serving three years in prison on multiple federal charges will be released because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Above, testifying before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform last year. real name is Stephanie Clifford, and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, to buy their silence about their one-time affairs with the president.

Cohen testified multiple times in front of Congressional commit-

tees on Capitol Hill last year, including the public hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, before which he famously called his former boss a racist and a cheat, and admitted,” I am a fool.”

News brief Long Island Trauma Recovery Network to provide free therapy The Long Island Trauma Recovery Network will provide free therapy to health care workers, first responders, essential employees, their families, and those whose loved ones are facing or have died from the coronavirus.

All services will be provided remotely by trained and licensed eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapists. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is a form of psychotherapy in which a trauma patient is asked to recall a distressing image. It has been proven to help address the trauma symptoms that medical professionals and first responders face.

The Long Island EDMR Trauma Network will offer the Integrative Group Treatment Protocol, which provides individual EDMR therapy in a group setting. The program is administered to groups of people who have experienced the same type of trauma or who share a major life challenge.

There will be several groups weekly, and some individual appointments are available.

For more information, email LongIslandTrauma@gmail.com and contact Cathy Menzies, LCSWR Trauma Recovery Coordinator at (631) 466 - 7053 to register.

–Melissa Koenig

9

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020 Courtesy Freeport Public Schools

Freeport Union Free School District officials addressed parents’ concerns through a livestream on YouTube.

School officials prep for online meetings would hold events, but they might be vided on the Online Learning Resource held virtually, or in the summer and fall.

“We’re looking to set up virtual venCenter. ues for the Scholarship Night, Academic “There will also be instructional packAwards Breakfast and graduation,” Mille ets going out to families with that same said.

“We don’t want these moments to infor mation and resources,” Engel be lost, and we want our students to added. know that we can make up Residents can access the for these experiences.” schedules and additional Regent exams have been resources through the links canceled, he noted, but stuavailable at freeportschools. dents will still receive credit org/district/e-learning_plan. for them, and testing will Kuncham said he did not resume in September under expect schools to reopen guidance from the New York before the end of the school State Education Department. year. During the Parent UniThe NYSED issued a news versity seminar, he told parrelease on April 6, saying it ents and guardians to brace will “amend the commissionthemselves for a longer cloer’s regulations to provide sure period. that an alternative form of “There are a lot of things evaluation for students we need to figure out in the receiving home instruction.” upcoming weeks to see when Additionally, grades three schools might reopen,” Kunto eight state exams have cham said. “But we want to been canceled. do our best to stay in touch The SAT is still scheduled with parents and students, for June 6, but Mille said he which is why we’re hosting doubts it will be offered that our Parent University coursday, and expects it to be postes online to answer any quesponed. He urged juniors and tions and concerns our resiseniors to stay calm over coldents have.”

KiShore lege applications. Colleges Parent University is the are updating their admisdistrict’s workshop series KUncham sions requirements to reflect that provides resources to Superintendent the new realities. enhance students’ learning MaryAnne DeVivio, the at home.

During the April 16 Parent University, assistant superintendent of curriculum Joseph Mille, principal of Freeport High and instruction, also told parents and School, addressed students’ and parents’ guardians that the school would take a concerns over the possible cancelation “no-harm approach” when to grading of the school’s annual prom, graduation, students during the pandemic. She Scholarship Honors Night and Academic explained that while students would Awards Breakfast. Mille said the district receive a regular numerical grade on continued from front page

t

here are a lot of things we need to figure out in the upcoming weeks to see when schools might reopen.

But we want to do our best to stay in touch with parents and students.

Suggested Schedule For students in grades five to 12, the Freeport Union Free School District recommends the following minimal daily instructional time for each subject: ■ Math: 45 minutes ■ English: 45 minutes ■ Science: 45 minutes ■ Social Studies: 45 minutes ■ Music and Art studies: 60 minutes

For students in grades two to four, the district recommends: ■ Math: 60 minutes ■ Reading: 60 minutes ■ Writing: 45 to 60 minutes ■ Physical Education: 60 minutes For students in grades kindergarten to one, it recommends:

■ Physical Education: 60 minutes

■ Math: 45 minutes

■ Business/Techology: 60 minutes

■ Reading: 30 to 60 minutes ■ Writing: 30 to 45 minutes

their report cards for their work before the closures, the affected semesters would be graded more leniently and include comments from teachers about the student’s work.

“We don’t know what some families are dealing with right now,” DeVivio said. “Some might not have access to the work. Some might be sick or have family members that are sick. We’re trying to stay on top of our communication with parents and students, so I hope parents understand that our feedback is a means to see how the student is doing.”

Alice Kane, assistant superintendent for education and administrative services, assured parents that they do not have to worry now about filling out state-mandated annual physical exam requirements at the moment.

She also said that registration for the district’s pre-K program was still available.

Kuncham said that while the district was still hoping to be able to offer summer school, the program might be in jeopardy because of budget cuts after Cuomo reduced Foundation Aid for the 2020-21 school year, causing Freeport to lose $1.5 million from the state.

The superintendent said the district would keep residents updated on the situation through additional seminars and Parent University courses.

The district held five other Parent University courses this week, including one in Spanish. Links to all the courses and meetings are up on the school district’s website at freeportschools.org.

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

10

Local houses of worship go digital

By RONNY REYES rreyes@liherald.com

After Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered houses of worship to participate in social distancing in late March, congregations throughout Freeport have moved their operations and gatherings to the virtual world as they conduct services through YouTube and Zoom, a popular chatroom-based app.

Douglas Arcoleo, the pastor at the Our Holy Redeemer Church, said adapting to the times has proven to be both an exciting but difficult challenge. On March 24, the Diocese of Rockville Centre announced that no public liturgies were permitted until further notice. That includes funerals, weddings, baptisms and any other cause for gathering people together in Catholic churches, other than private prayer.

Arcoleo noted that the change to social practices was evident as he saw less than a dozen people enter the Our Holy Redeemer Church at a time.

“It’s strange to see this place so empty when it normally seats 1,100 people,” Arcoleo said.

Regardless of the physical population at the church, he said the congregation has been able to follow services that he livestreams on YouTube every Sunday. Although he was not accustomed to speaking for a digital audience at first, Arcoleo felt more at ease following each service, and he hoped his congregation shared that feeling in a time of growing anxiety.

The Centro Cristiano Renacer, a Spanish-speaking church in Freeport, has also found success in its move to a digital platform. Annie Martinez, one of the ministers at the church, said that the church has ramped up its social media presence, uploading services onto Facebook and reaching out to young parishioners through Instagram.

She added that the church was holding several bible study groups through Zoom and WhatsApp.

Courtesy Douglas Arcoleo

PaStOR DOuglaS aRcOlEO drives around Freeport to take photo of the village and help bring a semblance of normalcy to his followers on Twitter. He took this picture at Giblyn Elementary School last week.

Rabbi Stacy Sokol, of the Congregation B’nai Israel of Freeport, said her congregation has also found some sort of peace online amid the pandemic. The Congregation B’nai Israel has been around in Freeport for more than 100 years and currently holds a congregation of about 100 members.

While Sokol said that the congregation enjoys its regular services through Zoom, they have not been without incident, as a recent prayer service became victim to a “Zoombombing” event.

Zoombombing is a new type of prank where strangers enter into private chatrooms on Zoom and disrupt the meetings. On several occasions, Zoombomings have included bigoted comments and racial slurs.

“We didn’t know where it was coming from,” Sokol

said, “ but it was a disgusting thing with people saying awful things.”

Sokol added that the event has kept the congregation on their toes as they maneuver through online social gatherings.

With the New York State on Pause initiative continuing until May 15, the spiritual leaders in Freeport all asked residents to keep their faith and support their houses of worship during this time. They also urged residents to stay positive and avoid being overwhelmed by news of the Covid-19 virus.

“We often feed ourselves with negative feelings and anxiety with all the news online, but we can instead used social media to find strength and come together,” Arcoleo said.

Griffin hosts digital library story times

Courtesy Google Maps

cOviD-19 tEStiNg iS available at the South Ocean Health Center, at 101 South Bergen, in Freeport, behind the Freeport Memorial Library.

More testing available in Freeport The Long Island Federally Qualified Health Centers are conducting Covid-19 testing at their locations in Freeport and Hempstead.

Testing will be done by appointment only at the outdoor facility at Long Island FQHC’s South Ocean Care Health Center, at 101 South Bergen, in Freeport, and at Hempstead Health Center, at 135 Main Street. Tests are available from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

All patients are welcomed regardless of insurance or immigration status.

Testing is limited in the state, so patients should inquire if they exhibit symptoms related to the coronavirus.

Coronavirus symptoms include fever, cough and shortness of breath, according to the World Health Organization.

In more severe cases, it can become pneumonia.

State Assemblywoman Judy Griffin, who represents Baldwin, has been hosting digital story times with local libraries within Assembly District 21 beginning earlier this month.

The local political leader has read stories with the Baldwin, Freeport, Oceanside, Malverne and Lynbrook public libraries.

In the coming weeks, she will read to the following libraries at the specified date and time for children who wish to join and listen in: Thursday, April 23: Digital Story Time with Rockville Centre Public Library at 10:30 a.m.

Tuesday, April 28: Digital Story Time with West Hempstead Public Library at 11 a.m.

For more information about how to access each reading, please go to each library’s website or visit Assemblywoman Griffin’s Facebook page.

Courtesy Office of Assemblywoman Judy Griffin; compiled

by Briana Bonfiglio.

Courtesy Assemblywoman Judy Griffin

StatE aSSEmBlYwOmaN JuDY Griffin held one of the books that she has read thus far, which was one of her own child’s favorites when they were little.

11

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

GET ANSWERS YOU CAN TRUST WITHOUT LEAVING HOME. With so many questions about COVID-19, it’s hard to know where to turn for answers you can trust.

If you or a loved one is feeling sick, use Mount Sinai NOW to access all of our virtual care options.

TM

MOUNTSINAI.ORG/NOW

1085374

All of us, throughout New York City, Long Island and the entire tri-state area, are here for you.

Food pantry is open, feeding more than before

By Briana Bonfiglio bbonfiglio@liherald.com

The Island Harvest food pantry at Ark of Salvation Worship Center in Oceanside is continuing to operate and serving more people than usual, said Rev. Carlos D. Acosta, the church’s pastor.

“We’ve kept it active this whole time,” Acosta said, “but we’ve taken extreme-type precautions to ensure the safety and health of everyone going by for necessary food items.”

Normally, there are set days and times for individuals to pick up food.

However, to help prevent spread of Covid-19, food distribution is now by appointment only.

Those in need of food assistance can call the pantry coordinator, Thomas Ramirez, at (516) 492-1873 to arrange a pick up. The elderly or those caring for the sick, and unable to make it to the church, can schedule a food delivery with Ramirez, as well.

“Some families are quarantined, or tested Covid-positive, or are taking care of a sick family member,” Acosta explained, “so we will make contactless delivery and get a box or two bags of groceries. We call ahead and leave it right on the doorstep.”

While before the coronavirus pandemic, the pantry fed around two to

three families each of the four days it was open, it now feeds an average of 10 to 12 — and sometimes up to 20 — families per day.

Acosta attributed the dramatic increase of those in need to the rising rates of unemployment as businesses are closing amid the pandemic. Most families in need come from Oceanside, and others come from surrounding towns such as Island Park, Baldwin, Freeport, Rockville Centre and Valley Stream.

Acosta emphasized that the food pantry is open to all in need, not just church members or locals, he said.

“The food pantry is there for everyone that is in need,” Acosta said. “We are not looking to check anyone’s background, history or income. We’re here to serve and will continue to function as long as we can. We are here for the community.”

The Island Harvest food pantry at Ark of Salvation is located at 3161 Royal Ave. in Oceanside, just across from the Oceanside Long Island Railroad Station. At this time, those in need must call (516) 492-1873 to arrange a pick up, as no one is permitted in the church building due to Covid-19.

For more information about Island Harvest food pantries, and how you can either receive food or donate, visit islandharvest.org.

JOIN US AS WE SALUTE

COVID-19

HOMETOWN

HEROES APRIL 30

Courtesy Ark of Salvation Worship Center

The ark of Salvation food pantry in Oceanside is feeding an average of 12 local families per day during the coronavirus pandemic, said Rev. Carlos D. Acosta.

NOW THERE’S AN EASY WAY FOR YOU TO SUPPORT OUR LOCAL HEROES Donate at www.liherald.com/heroes Every dollar donated will be used to provide food & other goods to doctors, nurses, patients and other frontline essential workers in the local community. All food & items will be purchased from locally owned and operated businesses so we can support our business community, too Look for the HERALD HEROES special edition in your mailbox April 30 The Herald and Richner Communications family thank our amazing heroes!

1086961

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

12

TO MAKE A DONATION PLEASE VISIT WWW.LIHERALD.COM/HEROES

13

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

REGISTER FROM APRIL 1ST TO MAY 31ST animalleague.org/sitstaywalk

Take A Walk And Save Lives

Heart testing for Freeporters heart attack.

“Mayor Kennedy, community leaders and I recognize the importance of providing healthcare access to communities that are disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Darling said. “In these times of great stress and uncertainty, it is more important than ever to ensure heart health.”

For more information, call (516)-6338013. To sign up for the testing, visit nassaucounty.youcanbook.me/.

Let us Know News Brief items including awards, honors, promotions and other tidbits about local residents are welcome.

Photographs may be emailed as well.

Deadline for submissions is noon Thursday, week prior to publication.

Send to rreyes@liherald.com

Register Today! With $20 registration fee receive: #GetYourRescueOn® Rescue Tag

Pet Bandana

Fun Contests and Activities

REGISTER TODAY: animalleague.org/sitstaywalk events@animalleague.org 516-373-3235

ʼ TS

A H W EN? OP

Let Your CommunitY Know!

FREE

Online Business Directory

liherald.com/whatsopen

1086152

List your business’ status and find out information about other local businesses.

1086854

State Assemblywoman Taylor Darling has partnered with Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy to host cardiovascular diagnostic screenings at the Freeport Recreation Center on April 24, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Dr. Perry Frankel will conduct the screening through a mobile screening bus that can tend to participants while maintaining social distancing guidelines.

Advanced cardiovascular testing can help reduce the chances of suffering a

REMEMBER: Be safe and practice social distancing along the way.

1086707

Christina Daly/Herald

AdvAnced heArt diAgnostic screenings will be available at the Freeport Recreation Center on April 24.

Participate in North Shore Animal League America’s virtual walk for a chance to do something positive and active, while raising crucial funds for homeless animals that need your support now more than ever. Walkers can participate anytime, from anywhere.

$500,000 IN GRANTS AVAILABLE NOW TO LOCAL BUSINESSES

SMALL BUSINESS MARKETING GRANT

Apply for your share of the $500,000 marketing grant available to assist locally owned businesses.

STUART RICHNER Publisher Herald Community Newspapers

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities. We are a small business ourselves, so we understand the pain that small business owners are going through right now. We at the Herald want to do our part to make sure that members of our small business community can continue to promote themselves during this trying period.”

Herald Team

WHO For all locally owned and operated small businesses on Long Island that have been negatively impacted by coronavirus.

WHAT A $500,000 grant program to support local small businesses. Each local business is eligible to receive up to $15,000 of matching grant funds, which can be used for Herald Community Newspapers print, digital and direct mail products in April through July 15, 2020.

WHERE Apply at www.liherald.com/grant.

WHEN Applications will be accepted until April 30, 2020 or until maximum grant funding has been distributed. Businesses will be contacted within two business days of submitting their application.

WHY Studies show that businesses that continue to market themselves during down times are the ones that fare the best long-term. This grant program will allow Long Island small businesses to continue promoting themselves and any new services they are offering during these unprecedented times.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS: • Every dollar that a grant recipient spends on marketing in Herald products will be matched with a dollar of grant funding, up to the award amount, to be applied towards marketing costs.

• Businesses must be locally owned and operated.

• Grants range from $300 to $15,000.

• Grants can be applied to any Herald Community Newspaper marketing product or service during April through July 15, 2020.

• Grants applied to direct mail products are net of postage/mailing costs.

RHONDA GLICKMAN VP Sales

LORI BERGER Sales Manager

rglickman@liherald.com

lberger@liherald.com

ELLEN REYNOLDS Sales Manager

AMY AMATO Executive Director

ereynolds@liherald.com

aamato@liherald.com

COURTNEY MYERS Media Consultant cmyers@liherald.com

For more information call Rhonda at 516.569.4000 ext. 250

APPLY TODAY AT

WWW.LIHERALD.COM/GRANT

A Special Collaboration With The Chamber of Commerce of the Bellmores

1087054

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

14

15

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020 Photos by Christina Daly/Herald

LocaL boaters can still work on and operate their vessels.

Marinas still open amid mass closures As part of the Governor’s “New York State on Pause” Covid-19 safety orders, the state had temporarily shut down marinas. But a new executive order issued by the governor over the weekend provides local governments with the ability to re-open them.

With the order, Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy allowed the marinas in Freeport to say open to allow boaters to prep and work on their vessels before summer arrives. Kennedy said that the marinas play a big part in the local culture, so he

was glad that locals would still be able to go to the marinas, even if it’s at a limited capacity, as residents would still have to adhere to social distancing.

“The marinas aren’t open to gatherings just yet, but at least everyone has an opportunity to prep their boats,” Kennedy said. “And with the order, businesses that tend to boating supplies and equipment can also stay open.”

While the marinas might stay open, other popular areas like Randall and Sea Breeze Park remain closed.

PubLic areas Like Randall Park, above, remain closed to the public. the ViLLage of Freeport’s Boat launching facility, left, was open for use on April 18.

WhiLe the marinas might be open, Freeport’s Nautical Mile, far-left, remains mostly vacant during the day.

16

Public Notices

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

LFRE1 0423

LEGAL NOTICE SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS Index No. 8516/12 SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NASSAU JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff, -vsRACHEL DUGAN; TODD M. DUGAN, JR.; UNKNOWN HEIRS TO THE ESTATE OF TODD DUGAN; CITIBANK (SOUTH DAKOTA), N.A.; DISCOVER BANK; GE MONEY BANK; MIDLAND FUNDING LLC D/B/A IN NEW YORK AS MIDLAND FUNDING OF DELAWARE, LLC; PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK; MIDLAND FUNDING LLC APO GE MONEY BANK; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA O/B/O INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; Defendants.

Mortgaged Premises: 430 ROOSEVELT AVENUE, FREEPORT, NY 11520 TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANT(S): YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the Complaint is not served with this Summons, to serve a notice of appearance, on the Plaintiff’s Attorney(s) within 20 days after the service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service (or within 30 days after the service is complete if this Summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York); The United States of America may appear or answer within 60 days of service hereof; and in case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the C o m p l a i n t .

N O T I C E YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home.

Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property.

Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action.

YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT.

NASSAU County is designated as the place of trial. The basis of venue is the location of the mortgaged premises.

Dated: JANUARY 13, 2020 SIMONE SEBASTIAN, ESQ. FEIN, SUCH & CRANE, LLP Attorneys for Plaintiff 1400 Old Country Road Ste. C103 Westbury, NY 11590 Telephone No. (516) 394-6921 QCHJN048 Premises known as: 430 ROOSEVELT AVENUE, FREEPORT, NY 11520 Tax Map/Parcel ID No.: Section: 62 Block: 156 Lot(s): 416, 742, 760 121422 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232

PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT. NASSAU COUNTY. L&L ASSOCIATES HOLDING CORP., Pltf. vs. KC REMODELING INC., et al, Defts.

Index #611000/2019. Pursuant to judgment of foreclosure and sale dated Feb. 24, 2020, I will sell at public auction on Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 11:30 a.m. in the Calendar Control Part (CCP) of the Nassau Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY prem. k/a District 9, Section 55, Block 364, Lot 10. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale.

STEPHEN FROMMER, Referee. LEVY & LEVY, Attys. for Pltf., 12 Tulip Dr., Great Neck, NY. #98482 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232

Search for notices online at: www.mypublicnotices.com

LEGAL NOTICE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS PUBLIC HEARING - May 5, 2020 NOTICE IS HEREBY given that a teleconference Public Hearing with the Zoning Board of Appeals is scheduled for Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 6:00 P.M., on the appeals and applications of cases as they appear on the calendar; residential applications that do not extend their prior nonconforming status may be called first; public comment invited. It is anticipated that the Board will adjourn the legislative session and teleconference into Executive Session until 6:30P.M. To view the meeting live please visit https://us02web.zoom.us/ j/81123454721. For audio please dial +19292056099, 81123454721# US (New York). The Meeting ID is 811 2345 4721.

All applications are nonconforming with zoning regulations herein specified for the districts in which they are located.

Application #2020-1 114 Church St., Business B - Section 62/Block 075/Lot 16 - South Shore Child Guidance Association, Inc. and Joseph Whaley - Proposed child guidance center with less than required parking.

Village Ordinance §210-6A, §210-172A(12) - Required Parking. 58.5 spaces required.

0 spaces provided.

BY ORDER OF THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS Pamela Walsh Boening, Village Clerk 121644 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232

LEGAL NOTICE TO BIDDERS B U L K H E A D REPLACEMENT AT PROSPECT PARK THE INCORPORATED VILLAGE OF FREEPORT NASSAU COUNTY, NEW YORK Notice is hereby given that the Purchasing Agent of the Incorporated Village of Freeport, New York will receive sealed proposals for “BULKHEAD REPLACEMENT AT PROSPECT PARK” until 11:00 A.M. on May 12, 2020 in the Main Conference Room of the Municipal Building, 46 North Ocean Avenue, Freeport, New York, 11520, at which time and place they will be opened publicly and read aloud.

Specifications, proposal and proposed contracts may be obtained by visiting the Village

website at www.freeportny.gov or at the Office of the Purchasing Agent, Municipal Building, 1st Floor, 46 North Ocean Avenue, Freeport, New York, 11520, from 9:00 A.M. on Monday, April 27, 2020 until 4:00 P.M. Friday, May 8, 2020.

There is no fee for a set of contract documents.

Each bid must be accompanied by a bidder’s bond in the amount of not less than five (5%) percent of the bid insuring to the benefit of the Village of Freeport, or a certified check of not less than five (5%) percent of the bid, made payable to the Village of Freeport, to assure the entering of the successful bidder into an acceptable contract.

The Board reserves the right to reject any or all bid proposals received and subject to these reservations, shall award the contract to the lowest qualified and responsible bidder. Bids which in the opinion of the Board, are unbalanced, shall be rejected.

In submitting a bid, bidders agree not to withdraw their bid within forty five (45) days after the date for the opening thereof.

Kim Weltner Purchasing Agent Village of Freeport VILLAGE OF FREEPORT Issue Date - April 23, 2020 121643 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT: NASSAU COUNTY. ELM LIMITED, LLC, Pltf. vs.

ABRAHAM ZUNIGA, et al, Defts.

Index #608335/2019. Pursuant to judgment of foreclosure and sale dated Feb. 24, 2020, I will sell at public auction at the Calendar Control Part (CCP) Courtroom of the Nassau County Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Dr., Mineola, NY on Tuesday, May 5, 2020 at 11:30 a.m. prem. k/a School District 9, Section 55, Block 251, Lot 264-265. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale. LISA SEGAL POCZIK, Referee. LEVY & LEVY, Attys. For Pltf., 12 Tulip Drive, Great Neck, NY #98478 121485 PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.mypublicnotices.com TO PLACE AND AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232

Courtesy MSSN

Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital officials said there has been a flattening of the curve in coronavirus cases, however, the community must still be vigilant in practicing social distancing.

MSSN sees Covid-19 curve flattening

By Briana Bonfiglio bbonfiglio@liherald.com

The curve of coronavirus cases at Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside is flattening, according to Joe Calderone, the hospital’s vice president of corporate communications.

As of Friday, the hospital had 290 patients being treated for Covid-19, down from 383 on April 13, which hospital officials said they believe was the peak.

“The good news is the number has been steadily flattening,” Calderone said.

“The social distancing that people are doing, as difficult as it is, is definitely producing results. We are really urging people to not let up.”

Of those patients, 64 were on ventilators. MSSN has more than 100 ventilators available. In addition, Calderone assured that the facility has enough personal protective equipment, or PPE, for all hospital staff.

“We purchased some [ventilators] ourselves and were able to get some through Mount Sinai Health System,” Calderone explained. “Our partnership with them has been incredibly helpful through this pandemic, supporting both in a clinical standpoint in terms of new drugs being tested and plasma therapy. They also have a very good, robust supply chain operation.”

As of Friday, the hospital had 238 Covid-19 deaths, while 357 patients who were previously diagnosed with the virus were treated and discharged. When cases began to climb last month, Department of Medicine Chairman Dr. Aaron Glatt spoke of the importance of social distancing during a Facebook Live session at the hospital.

“I want to stress the single most important thing that everybody can do is really understand what social distancing means,” he said at the time. “That’s the

buzzword of 2020. That will be the word of the year.”

One month later, Calderone urged residents to continue to heed that advice, even as the numbers continue to improve.

While the toll the virus has taken is unprecedented and beyond what most hospital workers have ever seen, Calderone noted that there is still much they are grateful for. The hospital has received food donations from more than 50 local businesses.

“Many have come forward and funded food for the staff,” he said, “which is really helpful because they’re working 16-hour days and barely have time to take a break. This way, [the food] is readily available and they don’t have to think about it.

“But really, it’s not about the food,” he added. “It’s the message that it sends to the staff that people on the outside recognize what’s happening inside this hospital and the incredible challenge the front-line workers have faced during this pandemic, putting themselves and families at risk to care for often critically ill Covid patients.

It sends a great morale boost.”

Nurses at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital are also spreading positivity with their “message board of hope,” which they debuted in the hospital lobby last week.

Nurses Teresa Ebehart, Angelica Hoyos and Christine Doud handcrafted the board, which displays the number of Covid-19-positive patients that have been discharged from the hospital, and how many coronavirus patients have been taken off ventilators at the facility.

As each patient is discharged from MSSN, “Here Comes the Sun” is played as the board is updated. Each time a patient is taken off of a ventilator, the staff plays “Breath.”

Mike Smollins contributed to this story.

Nassau County is child care desert: official

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

By TimoThy DenTon tdenton@liherald.com

Much of Nassau County is a child care desert, resulting in billions in lost revenue, according to a study released on Friday by Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman.

The lockdown due to the Covid-19 virus has highlighted the issue, showing that many Nassau County families depend on schools to provide daycare for their older children. Care for younger children, however, has always been a challenge for many families.

“Nassau County is a patchwork, varying widely from district to district,” Schnirman wrote in the study. “Despite nearly $9 billion in public school tax levies, only 10 percent of 4-year-olds have access to publicly funded pre-K programs, compared to universal access in New York City,” Schnirman wrote in the report.

Both Seaford and Wantagh are considered child care deserts — any census tract where more than 50 children are without providers, or where providers are so scarce that they are able to serve less than one-third of the total need, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

More than 60 percent of New York State is considered a child care desert.

Nassau County has a total of about 43,650 pre-K places, where more than 138,000 are needed, the study found, with minority and low-income families having the least access to pre-K programs.

Averaging more than $15,000 per year, infant care represents about 12 percent of a median family’s income of $116,300. For a family earning $52,400, or 200 percent of the official federal poverty level for a family of four, infant care for one child represents nearly 29 percent of the family’s pretax income.

According to the Census Bureau, “c=Child care is critical. It either propels or stalls the local economy.”

Locally, “child care has one of the highest economic multipliers, with a return of $1.95 for every dollar invested,” Schnirman wrote.

Of those who work part-time, lack of child care is

Herald file photo

nassau CounTy shows a wide disparity in access to affordable child care. the most commonly cited reason for not accepting fulltime work. Women make up 94 percent of the involuntary part-time workforce, due to child care concerns, Schnirman wrote, and 46 percent of Nassau County

families have no reliable child care.

Child care is an $800 million industry on Long Island, employing roughly 9,000 workers.

Belmont Park delays horseracing season The opening of the Belmont Park’s spring-summer horseracing season will be delayed because of the Covid19 pandemic from April 24 to June 6, when the 152nd running of the Belmont Stakes is to take place, said New York Racing Association officials last week.

The date of the Belmont Stakes is subject to change, however.

“The Belmont Stakes is a New York institution and American tradition,” NYRA CEO and President Dave O’Rourke said. “We are committed to running the race in 2020 and aim to deliver an announcement in the very near future.”

The racing season normally runs 51 days.

“We are working closely with the New York State Gaming Commission and public health officials to determine a timeline for the resumption of live racing at Belmont Park,” O’Rourke said. “The

17

health and safety of our racing community is paramount, and any decisions or necessary adjustments to the racing schedule and operations must reflect that priority. I’d like to thank New York’s horsemen and the backstretch community for their dedication and patience as we navigate these uncertain times together.”

The Belmont backstretch, which is home to 585 workers who tend to the essential daily care of the more than 1,300 thoroughbreds stabled there, has remained open to the horses’ caregivers and operational for training. Owners are not permitted access to the backstretch until further notice.

NYRA posted coronavirusrelated signs in English and Spanish across the backstretch, noting key information about social distancing and hand washing, and a hotline to call for workers feeling the onset of symptoms.

Herald file photo

BelmonT Park’s sPring/summer meet will not open April 24 as originally scheduled.

HERALD

Employment

CLASSIFIED

To pLACE your AD CALL 516-569-4000 - press 5

Fax your ad to: 516-622-7460 E-mail you ad to: ereynolds@liherald.com E-mail Finds Under $100 to: sales@liherald.com DEADLINE: Monday, 11:00 am for all classified ads.

Every effort is made to insure the accuracy of your ad. Please check your ad at the first insertion. Credit will be made only for the first insertion. Credit given for errors in ads is limited to the printed space involved. Publisher reserves right to reject, cancel or correctly classify and ad.

JOB OPPORTUNITY

Homes

HERALD

To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5 1080712

$18.50 P/H NYC • $16 P/H LI CDPAP Caregiver Hourly Pay Rate!

Under NYS CDPAP Medicaid program you can hire your family or friends for your care.

Phone: 347-713-3553 OUTSIDE SALES

Administrative Assistant:

Must be able to embrace a fast paced environment, with a diverse range of duties including sales order entry, and sales and marketing. .

Computer proficiency is a must!

Excel (including formulas).

Word and Outlook.

Strong writing, math and verbal skills necessary.

Eligible for health benefits, 401k, and paid time off.

Will consider part time.

Qualified candidates should sent cover letter and resume to rglickman@liherald.com

COMBINED INSURANCE EXPANDING Long Island operation! Full time W2 sales agent opportunity full company benefits and leads provided. Call Bob (516) 567-7733 for immediate interview.

DISPATCH WANTED

No Experience Needed, we will train!!!!!

F U L L T I M E M O N D AY - F R I D AY 11:30- 8:00 5-20 HOURS OF OVERTIME!!

MEDICAL, DENTAL, 401K. 2 WEEKS VACATION, HOLIDAY PAY. $15.00 PER HOUR PLUS OVERTIME. APPLY IN PERSON AT: CALLAHEAD C O R P. 3 0 4 C R O S S B AY B LV D , QUEENS NY 11693 APPLY MONDAY- FRIDAY 12:00- 7PM JOB OPPORTUNITY $18.50 P/H NYC $16 P/H LI Up to $13.50 P/H UPSTATE NY CDPAP Caregiver Hourly Pay Rate!

Under NYS CDPAP Medicaid program you can hire your family or friends for your care. Phone: 347-713-3553

OFFICE HELP WANTED FULL TIME

Woodmere

Amazing Academy Delight

Richner Communications, one of the fastest growing media, event and communications companies on Long Island is seeking a Sales/Marketing candidate to sell our digital, events, sponsorships and print media products.

Salary, Commission, Eligible for Health benefits, 401k and paid time off.

Will consider part time.

Please send cover letter and resume with salary requirements to rglickman@liherald.com PARKING ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: PT, Various Shifts, Retiree's Welcome.

Duties Include: Patrols Throughout The Village, Issuance Code Violations Citations.

Qualifications: HS Graduate Or Equivalent, Valid Driver's License With A Satisfactory Driving Record. Willing To Work Evenings, Weekends, Holidays & Inclement Weather.

Contact: Incorporated Village Of Atlantic Beach 516-371-4600

Child/Eldercare Offered A LOVING PERSON Will Care For Your Loved Ones. 20+ Years Experience, CPR Certified, Good References, Own Transportation. 347-205-3554

Child/Eldercare/Help Wanted

T

his sunny, light filled 4 bedroom, 3 full bath Colonial has walls of windows and is located on a quiet, beautiful street in SD 14. On the first floor you are greeted by a large entry foyer, living room, formal dining room, oversized eat-in-kitchen, sunroom/bedroom

Rent Your Apartment

*(private party only) JUAN JARA Licensed RE Broker Associate Cell: 516-318-0142 Juan@AllStarRealEstateBrokers.com CAMILLE GIARDINA Licensed RE Broker/Owner Cell: 516-318-1392 Camille@AllStarRealEstateBrokers.com

We’re Keeping the American Dream Alive. www.AllStarRealEstateBrokers.com

516-946-3565 • Masch@CoachRealtors.com 1315 Broadway Hewlett, NY 11557 516-374-0100 • coachrealtors.com

Robert Lewis

through the Herald and PrimeTime Classified section. Call us for our great *specials.

516-569-4000, press 5 for Classified Dept.

2949 Long Beach Road, Suite 8 • Oceanside, NY, 11572 Phone 516.766.8200

plus additional bedroom and full bath. On the 2nd floor there is 3 bedrooms plus 2 new full baths with new master walk-in closet/nursery. This home boasts hardwood floors throughout, finished basement with mechanics/ generator and massive amounts of space. $888,000

Malka Asch

CAREGIVER WANTED: Experienced, Oceanside. 9am-8pm, Must be Certified and have References. Must Drive, Clean License. Becky 929-248-2272

CENTURY 21 ® Global Rebrand

For Order Taking, Phones, Light Data, Commission, Entry, Will Train! $800.00 Per Week, Medical, Dental, 401K, 2 Weeks Vacation, Holiday Pay. Please Apply In Person MondayFriday Bet: 9AM and 7PM At CALLAHEAD CORP. 304 Cross Bay Blvd.

Queens NY 11693

• To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5

© 2018 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. All rights reserved. CENTURY 21® and the CENTURY 21 Logo are registered service marks owned by Century 21 Real Estate LLC. Century 21 Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each office is independently owned and operated. It is your responsibility to ensure that the marketing materials you choose or create are compliant with real estate and other local laws in your area.

Help Wanted

HOME Of tHE WEEK

Real Estate Broker American Homes The Gandolfo Team

Phone: 516-551-0796 Email: BobLewisNY@gmail.com Instagram: @BobLewisNY 2911 Long Beach Road Oceanside, NY 11572

Interested in selling your home, buying, or investing?

An experienced Realtor, former Baldwin High School Business Educator, & local resident for 35+ years, I’m an expert in helping people buy, sell, & invest in residential and commercial real estate on Long Island and in New York City.

Contact me today for a free, confidential consultation and a free market appraisal.

75 SEAMAN AVENUE, ROCKVILLE CENTRE o: 516.766.7900 | signaturepremier.com 5.17.18

81

THINKING OF BUYING OR SELLING? Contact one of our hardworking professionals today for all of your real estate needs!

We look forward to providing home buyers and sellers with the highest level of personalized service and support.

1086951

EMPLOYMENT

1078172

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

18

*If your property is currently listed with another brokerage, please disregard. It is not our intention to solicit the listings of other brokerages.

One phone call, one order, one heck of a good price to run your ad in any state, or across the country.

1081833

Call the

USA Classified Network today!

1-800-231-6152

things can become so complicated? On one hand, your mother simply changed her mind and didn’t have the porch built, and on the other hand, the building department simply wants paperwork from you that seems simple enough to get but isn’t that easy.

I’m concerned that none of the children was given authority to act on your mother’s behalf, and you should seek an attorney to resolve the matters of her estate. As for the voiding of the permit, building departments are run by human beings with a heart, and you should write a letter so there’s a document on record explaining the situation. Sign it in front of a notary, and arrange to meet with a senior official before having more discussions with the building inspector.

The premises will still need inspecting, to verify the work was never done. To prove the home has no more issues with permits required, to satisfy the bank and the buyer, a new building department search sheet should be requested, showing no open permits. The biggest problem is time, and this isn’t a real situation. In most cases it’s a made-up bank or buyer timeline, because your closing is dependent on another closing, and so on and so on.

Because the search and a site review weren’t done early in the sales process, and because most people don’t really believe you need a permit to make changes to a home, great sleepless stress sets in and everyone is pointing fingers. It’s not unusual to get calls from people who need an ambulance architect — you know, the ones with the rotating light on the roof of their car and the siren blaring as they race to your home to start the process of satisfying the bank, their lawyers, etc. We see it all the time, and it’s avoidable if the seller calls an architect to check the home code compliance against recorded permit plans well before the sale has begun. Good luck. © 2020 Monte Leeper Readers are encouraged to send questions to yourhousedr@aol.com, with “Herald question” in the subject line, or to Herald Homes, 2 Endo Blvd., Garden City, NY 11530, Attn: Monte Leeper, architect.

947101

Professional Organizing

www.organizewithalice.com

1084894

We’re All In This Together.

Stay Home, Stay Healthy!

Wishing you all well.

516-578-3590

TREE SERVICE fREE REE ESTImaTE ma maTE

Commercial/Residential

Est. 1985 Vincent Esposito

Emergency Service 516.312.9866

10% OFF

5% OFF

inc.

Vet’s Seniors & All Mail Services

$50 OFF

First Responders & Armed Forces

$100

OFF • Tree removal Jobs Under • land Clearing $1,000 $500 Minimum • STump grinding USE COUPON CODE HER2020 USE COUPON CODE HER2020 Cannot be combined with other coupon Cannot be combined with other coupon • pruning We Care More Than The ResT for Less Jobs Under $1,000

Owner/Operated • residential/COmmerCial

516-216-2617 LANDSCAPING SERVICES Suff.

Lic # 5-4512-H

Nass.

Lic # H2904450000

Ph: 516.561.9866 Fx: 516.599.2539 • Cell: 516.312.9866

FRANCISCO’S TREE SERVICE

* Weekly Lawn Maintenance * * Planting * Seeding * Sod * Trimming * Free Estimates

& lANdSCApINg • Tree Removal • Stumps • Fertilization • Planting • Land Clearing • Topping

OAFnF-UP 10% c G LE ERS

SPRin cUStOm nEw OnLy

CALL OR TEXT

(516) 587-3971

FREE ESTIMATES

1083952 re esp

*Power washing sPecialist*

Chimney King, Ent. Inc.

(516) 766-1666 FREE • Chimneys Repaired, Rebuilt & Tuckpointing ESTIMATES • Stainless Steel Liners Installed

Chimney Cleaning & Masonry Services Done By Firefighters That Care chimneykinginc.com

Fully licensed and insured Nassau • Suffolk • NYC

Lic# H206773000

Office: 516-546-4971 Cell: 516-852-5415

LONG ISLAND BUILDING & MAINTENANCE CORP.

LicS/inS H2082290000

1083587

We’ll meeT & beaT any priCe guaranTeed

1085480

A. Isn’t it amazing how seemingly simple

Organize With alice

Residential and Commercial - All Surfaces Call Anthony Romeo “The Local Guy” “Anthony & J Home Improvement, Inc.” Also specializes in ★ Deck Renovation ★ Driveways ★ Siding ★ Masonry ★ Fences ★ Roofing ★ Interior/Exterior Painting.

(516) 678-6641 - Licensed & Insured

1084810

L

To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5

Free estimates...Best Price For High Quality service

ALFREDO’S CONSTRUCTION Specializing

at

Se Habla Espanol

Licensed & insured

the

in

BLACKTOP

BeSt priceS in town

senior Citizen Discounts

Call For Spring Specials

• ConCrete • BriCk Patios • stooPs • stuCCo • Belgium BloCks • sidewalks • drainage ProBlems • Cellar entranCe • waterProofing • driveway sealing demolition • dumPster serviCe • Powerwashing • handyman rePairs

516-424-3598

1086290

M

To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5

1076858

Ask The Architect

Market Place •

1082954

Q. My mother was admitted to a Florida nursing home and we have to sell her house. She has Alzheimer’s and is incapable of communicating. Our attorney had a title company prepare a report, and the title search showed that there’s an open permit for a porch, which my mom never had done for financial reasons, from about 10 years ago.

When my brother and I, separately, called the building department and asked about it, we were told different things about canceling the unused permit. One person said to call a building inspector and have onte eeper them cancel it, but then I heard that I have to get my mother to write a letter saying she didn’t do the porch, and have it notarized. She isn’t able to understand or sign her name, and never gave us power of attorney to take care of things for her before her illness.

What can we do?

HERALD

Free estimates

&/877(5 GULYLQJ \RX J\

CRAZY?

6HOO \RXU PHUFKDQGLVH LQ QR WLPH OO K GL L L

NEED A CAR? Find it in the HERALD Classifieds.

(PDLO \RXU $G WR WKH +HUDOG DQG 3ULPH7LPH &ODVVLÀ HG 'HSDUWPHQW DW VDOHV#OLKHUDOG FRP WR UXQ D )5(( )LQGV 8QGHU WR UXQ D )5(( )LQGV 8QGHU

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

Is the permit valid, or not?

19

Stuff

To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5 REAL ESTATE

MERCHANDISE MART

Real Estate

Miscellaneous For Sale

Sebastian, Florida (East Coast) Beach Cove is like paradise; 55+ Community with maintenance-free living, where friends are easily made. Sebastian is an "Old Florida" fishing village: quaint atmosphere, excellent medical facilities, shopping, restaurants. Direct flights from Newark to Vero Beach. Custom manufactured homes from $114,900. 772-581-0080; www.beachcove.com

Privacy Hedges -SPRING BLOWOUT SALE 6ft Arborvitae Reg $179 Now $80 Beautiful, Nursery Grown. FREE Installation/FREE delivery, Limited Supply! ORDER NOW: 518-536-1367 www.lowcosttreefarm.com

Apartments For Rent

Appliance Srvc./Repair

CEDARHURST APARTMENTS PRIVATE HOUSE First 3Bds, 2 FBths, EIK Granite/ SS Appls, Finished Basement, W/D, Driveway Parking. $3400 Second 3Bds, 2 FBaths, EIK Granite/ SS Appls, W/D $3000 516-660-2944 See virtual ad at www.greenroomre.com/258-washingtonave

APPLIANCE DOCTOR HOUSE CALLS!!

CEDARHURST NO FEE Pr ivate Entrance, Modern 1BR, 2BR, 3BR, CAC, W/D, Storage, Wall To Wall Carpeting, Indoor Parking Space. Starting At $1450 For O n e B e d r o o m W h e n Ava i l a bl e.

(516)860-6889/ (516)852-5135/ (516)582-9978

Space For Rent HEWLETT: FOR RENT 500 Sq.Ft. For Storage. Near Fire House. $350 Plus Electric. 516-297-6535

SERVICES

*Washers *Dr yers *Ovens *Ranges *Dishwashers. CFC CERTIFIED REFRIGERATION/ AIR CONDITIONING. INSURED. One Year Guarantee.. "Established 30 Years" Consumer Affairs LICENSE #HO21719000. **$10 OFF Repairs/ $12 Seniors** FREE Service Charge With Repairs. Call The Original Ronny 516-764-7011; 516-536-8664 theappliancedoctorrx.com EMERGENCY SERVICE TODAY...

• To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5 • To place an ad call 516-569-4000 press 5 Home Improvement

HANDY DANDY NO JOB TOO SMALL! *Kitchens/ Baths *Painting *Sheetrock *Taping/ Spackling *Installations Ceramic/ Vinyl Tile *Carpentry *Alterations *Repairs/ More. FREE ESTIMATES. Dan 516-342-0761

Miscellaneous DISH TV $59.99 For 190 Channels + $14.95 High Speed Internet. Free Installation, Smart HD DVR Included, Free Voice R e m o t e . S o m e r e s t r i c t i o n s a p p l y.

1-888-609-9405 GET DIRECTV! ONLY $35/month! 155 Channels & 1000s of Shows/Movies On Demand (w/SELECT All Included Package.) PLUS Stream on Up to FIVE Screens Simultaneously at No Additional Cost. Call DIRECTV 1-888-534-6918 SAVE ON YOUR NEXT PRESCRIPTION! World Health Link. Price Match Guarantee!

Prescriptions Required. CIPA Certified.

Over 1500 medications available. CALL To d a y F o r A F r e e P r i c e Q u o t e .

1-866-569-7986 Call Now!

Electricians

Plumbing

E-Z ELECTRIC SERVICES, INC. All Types Residential/Commercial Wiring, Generators, Telephone/Data, Home Entertainment, Service Upgrades, Pools, Spas.

Services/Repairs. Violations Removed.

Free Estimates Low Rates. 516-785-0646 Lic/Ins.

PLUMBER! PLUMBER! PLUMBER! FREE ESTIMATES! Heating, Repairs, Installations. $25 OFF New Customers.

24 Hour Emergency Response.

516-599-1011

HErald

Crossword Puzzle

Power Washing

Autos For Sale

POWERWASHING ALL SURFACES: H o u s e s , Fe n c e s , C o n c r e t e / B r i ck , Decks/Sealing. . ANTHONY & J HOME IMPROVEMENT, INC. 516-678-6641

Services COMPUTER ISSUES? FREE DIAGNOSIS by GEEKS ON SITE! Virus Removal, Data Recovery! 24/7 EMERGENCY SERVICE, In-home repair/On-line solutions . $20 OFF ANY SERVICE! 844-892-3990

Sprinkler Syst./Irrig.Wells

• Spring Turn-Ons

Autos Wanted DONATE YOUR CAR to breast cancer research recovery. 501c3 charity. Free towing. Receipt upon pick-up. 631-988-9043

Motorcycles For Sale

DONATE YOUR CAR to Wheels For Wishes, benefiting Make-A-Wish. We offer free towing and your donation is 100% tax deductible. Call 631-317-2014 Today!

MOTORCYCLE: BMW R1200 MONTAUK, 2004. Pristine, Like New Condition, Low Mileage, Light Blue, $5,500.

516-313-3425

Benefiting

Make-A-Wish ® Suffolk County or Metro New York

Certified Backflow Tester Joe Barbato 516-826-7700

HIGHEST CA$H PAID

All Cars Bought, 24/7 FREE Pickup, Serving Nassau County 41 Years.

No Title, No Keys=No Problem ID Required. CALL US LAST! Call us at 516-766-0000

Wheels For W ishes

• Installations/Renovations Service • Repairs Free Estimates Licensed and Insured

VOLKSWAGEN, PASSAT, 2002. 1.8 Turbo, Leather, 95K Miles. Good Condition, Needs Engine Work. $1,300Neg. 917-446-0124

Junk Cars Wanted

• 100% Tax Deductible

We ’r ac e still don cepting atio n pick s and ups

• Minimal To No Human Contact

• Free Vehicle Pick Up ANYWHERE • We Accept Most Vehicles Running or Not

Your Car Donations Matter NOW More Than Ever!

Suffolk County Metro New York Call:(631)317-2014 Call:(917)336-1254

Tree Services

W h e e l s Fo r W i s h e s . o r g

1085502

HERALD

1082363

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

20

* Car Donation Foundation d/b/a Wheels For Wishes. To learn more about our programs or financial information, call (213) 948-2000 or visit www.wheelsforwishes.org

FRANCISCO'S TREE SERVICE

AND LANDSCAPING: Tree Removal, Stumps, Fertilization, Planting, Land Clearing, Topping. Free Estimates. Lic# H206773000. Office 516-546-4971, Cell 516-852-5415 T&M GREENCARE TREE SERVICE *Tree Removal *Stump Grinding *Pruning *Roof Line Clearing. Residential and Commercial. "We Beat All Competitors' Rates."

Lowest Rates. *Senior Discount. Free Estimates. *516-223-4525, 631-586-3800 www.tmgreencare.com

Deals on Wheels

Wanted To Sell FREON WANTED: WE pay CA$H for cylinders and cans. R12 R500 R11 R113 R114. Convenient. Certified Professionals.

Call 312-361-0601 or visit RefrigerantFinders.com

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

Careers/Training TRAIN AT HOME TO DO MEDICAL BILLING! Become a Medical Office Professional online at CTI! Get Trained, Certified & ready to work in months! Call 855-543-6440. (M-F 8am-6pm ET)

Education COMPUTER & IT TRAINING PROGRAM! Train ONLINE to get the skills to become a Computer & Help Desk Professional now!

Now offering a $10,000 scholarship for qualified applicants. Call CTI for details!

(844) 947-0192 (M-F 8am-6pm ET)

Health & Fitness VIAGRA & CIALIS! 60 pills for $99. 100 pills for $150. FREE shipping. Money back guaranteed! 1-855-579-8907

Legal Services LUNG CANCER? AND Age 60+? You And Your Family May Be Entitled To Significant Cash Award. No Risk. No Money Out Of Pocket. For Infor mation Call 877-225-4813

AUTOMOBILE & MARINE

Autos For Sale MERCEDES BENZ E350, 2006: 4-Matic, 70K Miles, Excellent Condition. Must See! $12,000. 516-603-8697 SUBARU OUTBACK LTD, 2012: Sunroof, Leather, All Power, Excellent Condition. Must See& Drive! $9,500.

516-445-1770

Want to sell your car, motorcycle or boat?

Have we got a deal for you! You can advertise your vehicle in the

Classifieds All for an amazing price! Your add will run until you sell your vehicle. Just call one of our expert classified account executives today and you will be on your way to making a great deal on your set of wheels!

516-569-4000 press 5, then 2

Answers

to todAy’s puzzle

21

opinions

s the nation emerges from the coronavirus lockdown and begins to return to a semblance of normalcy, many of our cherished institutions will face some harsh realities. Nowhere will this dose of reality be starker than for America’s colleges and universities.

While our public school system will go through some wrenching times as it comes back to life, K-12 parents and students will not face the prospect of crushing debt and soaring costs that have been inflicted on consumers of Alfonse higher education. d’AMAto College students, in contrast, will return to campuses not only having missed most of a semester of classes; they will also struggle with exorbitantly high costs that will financially burden many of them for the rest of their lives.

How did we come to this sad turn of events, in which college degrees that should create a pathway to opportunity and prosperity instead present a long road of debt and possible financial ruin? Today, tuition and costs at some private colleges hovers in the range of $50,000 to $70,000

M

per year. College grads carry debt that can run from tens of thousands of dollars for undergraduate degrees to over $100,000 for post-graduate degrees. As they struggle to cover this debt, buying a home often becomes a distant dream. Even buying a new car often gives way to making the monthly college debt payment.

Total college student debt today exceeds $1.5 trillion.

With the added burden of the current financial crisis, much of this debt is unsupportable. Student loan defaults on a large scale are likely unavoidable. And while the just-passed national financial rescue legislation provides some relief by postponing debt payment and interest for a time, the overall financial burden will remain.

Predictably, some in Washington are calling for forgiving much, if not all, college debt. But like the other emergency financial measures passed by Congress, such relief couldn’t go on indefinitely.

Future college students will continue to face high costs and mountainous loans.

The cycle of debt and default will continue to loom on the financial horizon.

The leaders of our higher education system have a moral obligation to break this vicious cycle. Just as the Federal Reserve system has taken extraordinary

C

measures to shore up the nation’s finances, colleges and universities should also take emergency action to ease the financial burden on their students. College administrators shouldn’t cry hardship and shirk from this responsibility.

Nationwide, colleges are sitting on endowments of well over half a trillion dollars, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. They should seriously consider making these funds available to students to help pay down their current loans and reduce future tuition costs. If the Fed can tap into the national treasury for “quantitative easing” to lessen strains on our national economy, higher education treasuries can likewise tap into their great wealth to help ease their students’ money crisis.

And going forward, it’s long past time for colleges and universities to get real about not just containing, but lowering their stratospheric spending. Too many campuses have become islands of extravagance and excess amid a sea of hardship in their surrounding communities. In just one glaring example here in New York, a college president makes $5.1 million a year, 35 times what the school’s professors make, on average, and equal to the tuitions of 99 students, according to the Chronicle

an’t colleges use their vast endowments to help students pay down debt?

of Higher Education. Yet the community in which the school is located is one of New York’s poorest, with finances so precarious that it hovers near bankruptcy. In that town, as in so many others, the college is literally the shining, distant fortress on the hill with the surrounding town languishing below.

This college, and others like it, should take a hard look at themselves. Every expense should be examined, every bit of excess wrung out. The goal should be to reduce tuition and keep costs manageable over students’ academic careers.

In the future, public policy in Washington and Albany must be to stop rewarding higher education’s financial excesses and incentivize affordability instead. Federal and state aid should increase only for schools that bring their costs down. That means fewer top-heavy college administrators tripping over each other, more professors teaching more than only 10 or 12 hours a week, and fewer extravagant campus building sprees.

When students return to college this fall, they’ll return to a world changed by nature and hard times. If colleges want students to succeed, it’s time for them to lead.

Al D’Amato, a former U.S. senator from New York, is the founder of Park Strategies LLC, a public policy and business development firm. Comments about this column?

ADAmato@liherald.com.

A loving tribute to my irreplaceable elders

y aunt Sylvia Gentile Brownstein died April 11 in a nursing home in New Jersey, of Covid-19. She was 97 years old, and lived in a room at the facility with her husband of 74 years, Murray Brownstein. He was my mother’s older brother.

The last time I saw him was seven years ago, when I visited him in Florida, and he insisted we go to a pub nearby because they were serving free ice cream to World War II veterans. A proud Navy vet who lied about his age to get into the service when he was 16, Uncle MurRAndi ray served on a kReiss minesweeper in the Pacific.

Aunt Sylvia died alone, because Uncle Murray had become sick and unable to comfort her.

Before the pandemic, which precluded visitors, they were cared for by their daughter, my cousin, who has shepherded them through these last difficult years.

But only the ending was sad.

Murray met Sylvia in Brooklyn just after the war. He fell in love, and defied

his Jewish family by marrying an Italian Catholic girl. Smart guy. She was a gem, loving and mildly crazy, so she fit right in, seeing as how everyone in our anxious, highly emotive clan is a notch off plumb.

When I was a kid, Aunt Syl and Uncle Murray lived in Valley Stream and we lived in Cedarhurst, so the visits were frequent. Murray was a Garment District wheeler and dealer who won big and lost big over the years. Aunt Sylvia was a homemaker extraordinaire.

She cleaned that house until it sparkled, every single day. And she was an outstanding cook. Her specialty was Italian food, and an invitation to their table was a gift.

When she hosted Thanksgiving, the meal started with homemade minestrone, and was followed by eggplant parmesan, spaghetti and meatballs and veal cutlet parmesan. I don’t recall seeing anything green, as in a string bean, on the table.

The last entry was the turkey, an afterthought, a gesture to the new world, fully dressed but largely ignored because we were all so stuffed from the Italian feast.

I confess, I didn’t know Aunt Sylvia as

i

a woman. I have no idea what her dreams or joys or disappointments were. I do know she raised her kid sister, Madelaine, when their mother died very young. Madelaine joined Murray and Sylvia’s family, big sister to their own two kids.

I wish I had gotten to know Aunt Syl better, but in those days, people kept to their roles: She was the elder aunt and I was the young niece. Uncle Murray was difficult, but she would never talk about anything as personal as her marriage. She had a twin sister, Anna, and I suspect that that was her most emotionally intimate relationship.

They had a brother, too, Johnny, who went to the Naval Academy and was the pride of the family.

Every Christmas of my childhood, we went to Aunt Syl and Uncle Murray’s for an event that was part celebration and part child abuse. As dinner drew to a close, we would hear someone stomping up the basement steps and the loud jingling of bells. Eight little kids immediately dived under the dinner table and began screaming, which sent the adults into fits of laughter. Not normal, right?

ndelible memories of holidays and birthdays with Aunt Syl and Uncle Murray.

The stomping came closer, our screaming got louder, and suddenly Santa burst through the basement door. We kids were traumatized. He was a terror in his wild white wig and garish Santa mask. None of us noticed that Uncle Murray had disappeared from the dinner table some time earlier. This intruder was the Santa from hell, and we were scared out of our socks.

The elders, however, were greatly entertained, and so this became a cherished tradition, and we did it every year. I think I was finishing my junior year in college when I realized that Uncle Murray was Santa Claus.

All of our childhood birthdays were occasions for big parties. Aunt Syl and the other aunts and uncles would raise a glass or three, and before long the women were dancing on the table and the men were telling stories about the war and the old Brooklyn neighborhood. It was a rich experience for a little kid who was all eyes and ears.

I don’t know if Aunt Syl was a religious woman, but wherever she went, she wasn’t alone for long. The day after she passed, Uncle Murray died. He was 98.

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

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

A

For American higher education, it’s time to lead

22

Herald editorial

Freeport

HERALD April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

Leader

Established 1935 Incorporating the Freeport Leader

Ronny Reyes Editor Michelle AuclAiR Advertising Account Executive

office 2 Endo Boulevard Garden City, NY 11530 Phone: (516) 569-4000 Fax: (516) 569-4942 Web: www.liherald.com E-mail: freeporteditor@liherald.com Copyright © 2020 Richner Communications, Inc.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS Robert Richner Edith Richner Publishers, 1964-1987 ■ cliffoRD RichneR sTuART RichneR Publishers MichAel bolognA Vice President - Operations ■ scoTT bRinTon Executive Edtitor JiM hARMon

Copy Editor chRisTinA DAly Photo Editor Tony bellissiMo Sports Editor KARen blooM Calendar Editor ■ RhonDA glicKMAn Vice President - Sales ellen ReynolDs Classified Manager loRi beRgeR Digital Sales Manager ■

JeffRey negRin Creative Director cRAig WhiTe Production Coordinator cRAig cARDone Art Director ■ DiAnne RAMDAss Circulation Director ■

l

Small businesses need more federal help

et’s not mince words: The federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program, which was supposed to hurry loans to small businesses so they can make payroll and stay afloat, has been troubled from the start.

With $349 billion in its coffers, the program, administered by the Small Business Administration, ran out of money last Thursday, leaving tens of millions of employers in the lurch, wondering whether they will be able to meet payroll at a time when so many small businesses are limping along because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Small businesses are the lifeblood of Main Street America, employing 48 percent of our national workforce. In total, there are 28 million small businesses across the U.S., according to Forbes. They desperately need — and deserve — better, particularly in the hardest-hit regions like the Northeast.

According to a CBS News analysis of SBA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, New York, which has by far the greatest number of cases of Covid-19 of any state, was fourth on the list of states to receive PPP loans. Meanwhile, businesses in Texas received more such loans than any other state, even though the Lone Star State has the 10th-largest Covid-19 caseload

in the U.S. Apparently, Texas processed loans faster than New York, as the money went from the federal government to banks on a firstcome, first-served basis, creating a race for funding. But that was unfair, because in places where need was greatest, like New York, businesses were struggling most to run their daily operations, and so were hamstrung in their ability to file for loans.

The federal government should have set a date by which all loan applications were due, and then divided the money thereafter based on need.

At the same time, some very big businesses received loans under the program.

The owner of the Ruth’s Chris Steak House chain nabbed a $20 million loan, despite having more than 5,000 employees and $468 million in revenue last year. The PPP was supposed to have been limited to businesses with fewer than 500 employees, but Congress included an exception for hotels and restaurants.

Most big-name chains did not apply for PPP loans, but others, including Potbelly, Kura Sushi and Shake Shack, did. (Shake Shack announced Sunday night that it would return its $10 million loan, citing confusion over the program’s regulations and

Thanks for all you’ve done, Governor Cuomo

W

e have offered high praise to our first responders and medical workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, and no doubt, they deserve every bit of it. Check out our story this week on Elyse Isopo, a North Shore University Hospital Intensive Care Unit nurse practitioner. Her determination to save lives is evident in her every word, and her fear of spreading Covid-19 to her family at her home is palpable.

Good people like her are truly heroes.

We must also acknowledge a hero of a different sort: Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who, despite finding himself in the center of this unfolding international disaster, has provided levelheaded, science-based leadership that has served as a model for governors across the U.S. Cuomo quickly realized the magnitude of the pandemic and acted decisively, without political rancor. For the most part, he has been careful not to mix up it with President Trump, despite repeated the president’s repeated goading.

heRAlD coMMuniTy neWsPAPeRs Baldwin Herald Bellmore Herald Life East Meadow Herald Franklin Square/Elmont Herald Freeport Leader Long Beach Herald Lynbrook/East Rockaway Herald Malverne/West Hempstead Herald Merrick Herald Life Nassau Herald Oceanside/Island Park Herald Oyster Bay Herald Guardian Rockaway Journal Rockville Centre Herald South Shore Record Valley Stream Herald Wantagh Herald Citizen Seaford Herald Citizen MeMbeR: Local Media Association New York Press Association Published by Richner communications, inc.

2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530 (516) 569-4000

saying that other businesses needed the money more than it did.)

There were other problems with the program. Big banks, for example, lent money to their own customers first, and then to others. Many required borrowers to already have an established line of credit with the bank to receive a PPP loan. The thing is, this was a federal government program, and no loan applicant should have received preferential treatment.

At press time, Congress was negotiating a $310 billion extension of the program, which would bring the total expenditure to $649 billion. One Forbes analysis, however, estimated the PPP really needs as much as $850 billion to fully fund all of the small businesses now in dire need.

We commend Congress for making money available to small businesses quickly. Sadly, however, the program has become another of many political footballs amid the coronavirus crisis. What’s lacking is national leadership. President Trump and Congress should be united in their desire to aid small businesses — now, not later.

If the federal government doesn’t act fast, with one voice, our downtowns could soon become ghost towns, and that would be terrible for us all.

letters The hypocrisy of stimulus checks To the Editor: All conservatives and Republicans across the country should return their federal relief checks so they do not become “unproductive, lazy welfare recipients” who are accepting “government handouts” and “something for nothing” — “parasites” who are being “subsidized” by the federal government.

It would be hypocritical for conservatives and Republicans to accept help from the federal government when they constantly oppose such assistance for the middle and lower classes who truly need it, and whom they look down their noses at. Now, many of them are in the shoes of those in need.

Our allies in Western Europe and Canada have federal governments that do more to help their people than ours does.

To quote Al Pacino in “And Justice for All”: “I have now concluded

Cuomo has not used this crisis to further his own brand. Rather, he has acted in the best interests of all New Yorkers, and this week we are seeing the results of his actions. The Covid-19 death toll is, as predicted, beginning to drop, as are the new hospitalization rate, the ICU admissions rate and the number of new ventilator intubations.

Governor, thank you. We will surely need your steady guiding hand in the weeks, months and years ahead as New York recovers from this unexpected catastrophe.

23

oPinions

rime Minister Winston Churchill offered those words as he led Great Britain during World War II, when citizens became accustomed to nightly bombings by the Nazis. We are in the midst of a different kind of war, against an invisible enemy known as Covid-19. And when people ask me when this grim period is going to end, unfortunately, the answer is that we don’t know.

But as we in the Town of Hempstead continue to follow federal and state mitigation measures, such as social distancing, Don we appear to be CLaVin “flattening the curve.” By staying at home, you are doing your part to fight the spread of this virus. Those who have “essential” jobs, however, do not have that option. Indeed, those people are integral to winning the war on the coronavirus.

Please be mindful of the rules and stay safe. At Town Hall, we have implemented a social media campaign urging residents

to practice social distancing and proper handwashing, and to wear masks and gloves. We are also providing information on sanitizing techniques. We proactively closed facilities to the public, including town offices and certain parks and public gathering spots. I’ve been working daily with my Town Board colleagues and our Coronavirus Task Force, led by Town Medical Director Dr. Dave Neubert, to make decisions that best promote public health.

We’re also in constant contact with village officials, coordinating best practices and monitoring updates from state and local health officials.

Rest assured, our dedicated CSEA Local 880 team of coworkers are working hard every day to serve residents and provide essential services safely. The town Building Department is still accepting paperwork via a drop box at Town Hall, sanitation workers are continuing to pick up garbage throughout our township, and many other departments are conducting day-to-day business on behalf of our residents. We encourage neighbors to contact the town via our

C

hurchill’s words ring true for Town of Hempstead residents in a difficult time.

Letters my opening statement.”

STEWART B. EPSTEIN Rochester, N.Y. Epstein is a retired college professor who lived in North Bellmore from 1960 to 1972. He graduated from Mepham High School in 1968 and Hofstra University in 1972.

It’s a good time for bird watching To the Editor: Why not bequeath a lifelong appreciation for bird watching to the next generation? We teach our children wood shop, pottery and contemptible games like dodgeball, but bird watching can give them a greater appreciation for our threatened environment.

I’ve done the math, and it would only cost each taxpayer $10 to send every sixth-grader to the Cor nell School of Ornithology for two weeks.

There, eminent cultural historians and acclaimed or nitholo gists would instruct them on bird-centric environmental discrimination and inculcate a profound respect and admiration for the avian world. When you consider the frivolities our town spends money on, this would be money well spent.

Now well into my retirement, I still derive tremendous satisfaction from spotting the odd hummingbird on my afternoon walk. There is a comforting

public hotline, (516) 812-3600, to set up phone appointments with some of our departments. Other departments can be accessed via email. Please visit hempsteadtownny.gov for updates and how you can connect to town services. You can also call our Helpline, (516) 489-6000, from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday for assistance.

We are doing everything in our power to make life a little easier for residents of America’s largest township during this difficult time.

We waived all late fees and penalties for town water customers, and we’ve called on New York state to extend the second-half school tax payment deadline by 30 days, to June 11. And in preparation for getting people back to work in the near future, the town adopted a $40 million economic stimulus plan to undertake road improvements across our communities.

I encourage you to join us for our series of Facebook Live sessions. Along with Dr. Neubert, a certified Emergency Department physician, and Councilman Anthony D’Esposito, a former fire chief

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

P

‘Nourish your hopes, but do not overlook realities’

a

and NYPD detective, we answer many of your questions and concerns about Covid-19. Our next session is scheduled for Friday at 2 p.m. Please check our Facebook page, @HempsteadTown, for ished i realitie future Facebook Live sessions and for be star town updates.

I thank all of our first responders as univer Whi well the front-line workers in the fields of health care, law enforcement, government, media, public transportation, grocery, pharmacy, postal, delivery, food service and so many more. I also commend Dr. Dave Neubert and the town’s emergency management team for their continued work and dedication to the town work force, as well as to our residents.

And I offer my condolences to all of the families who have lost loved ones during this pandemic. Let’s keep them all in our thoughts as we continue to do our part to stop the spread.

Working together, we will continue to loosen the grip of Covid-19, from both a health and economic perspective. Please es not o semest be safe and healthy, and know that the Town of Hempstead is here for you dur- with ex financi ing this challenging time. rest of How Don Clavin is the Town of Hempstead events, supervisor. should and pro of debt tuition hovers

Framework by Christina Daly

sense of accomplishment in knowing that you can see what others cannot.

Why deprive the next generation of this feeling of intellectual triumph?

The beauty of birds is all around us, and once you learn more about them, your experiences with nature become so much richer. During this lockdown, I have noticed our ecosystem responding positively to reduced human inference, and more exotic birds flying out and about. What joy.

m

and liv her hu stein. H The las ago, wh

ALWYN STANHOPE Bellmore

MTA ‘lock box’ isn’t really locked To the Editor: Governor Cuomo recently included in the approved state budget a provision that amends the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s $15 billion Congestion Toll Mitigation Revenue “lock box.”

This provision was originally included to ensure that all proceeds would be used to help fund the MTA’s $51 billion 2020-24 Five-Year Capital Plan. Now these funds can instead be used against any future deficits in the MTA’s annual $17 billion operating expense budget.

Language buried in the state budget also allows $10 billion in real estate mansion and internet sales tax revenue to be used for operations rather

At Sagamore Hill, one captivating reason to get out of the house — Oyster Bay

than capital expenses. Combined, these total $25 billion of the $51 billion Capital Plan funding.

Cuomo has become the great train robber of capital transit funding. He has taken billions of this funding. His picture should be hung on a wanted poster at commuter and subway stations. Commuters can collect their reward by not electing him to

another term in 2022.

died al becom LARRY PENNER Before Great Neck visitor Penner is a transportation historian, writer daught ed them and advocate who worked for the Federal But Transit Administration Region 2 New York Mur Office for 31 years. after th

1084625

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

24