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Friday, February 4, 2022
Vol. 7, No. 5
Port WashingtonTimes VALENTINE’S DAY GUIDE
REDISTRICTING PLAN SHAKES UP L.I.
SUOZZI BLASTS HOCHUL AGAIN
PAGES 31-42
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PAGE 6
PORT PRIDE
Indoor masking may stay until March 2 Mandate granted a reprieve by court BY R OB E RT PELAEZ New York’s mask mandate, issued by Gov. Kathy Hochul, was granted a reprieve by a state appellate court on Monday, which could result in protective face coverings remaining in schools and indoor settings until March 2. Officials said the mandate, which expires Feb. 10 for indoor settings and Feb. 21 for schools, can stay in effect until at least March 2, the deadline for the state to file documents for its appeal of a lawsuit filed
by a group of 14 parents. The lawsuit, filed on Jan. 24, claims Hochul’s mask mandate was unconstitutional. “I commend the Appellate Division, Second Department for granting a full stay to keep our masking regulations in place for the duration of our appeal,” Hochul said in a statement following the court’s ruling Monday. “My primary responsibility as Governor is to keep New Yorkers safe. Mask regulations keep our schools and businesses safe and open, protect vulnerable New Yorkers, and are critical tools as we
work to get through this winter surge.” On Jan. 24, Judge Thomas Rademaker of State Supreme Court in Nassau County ruled that the mandates violated the state Constitution, resulting in a handful of school districts on Long Island making masks optional on Tuesday, Jan. 25. The next day, Appellate Judge Robert J. Miller’s verdict forced the school districts that chose to make mask-wearing optional to go back to following Hochul’s guidelines. Nassau County Executive Continued on Page 65
Manhasset’s David Chiang named county treasurer Ex-Wall St. banker ran for North Hempstead Town Board in 2019 PHOTO COURTESY OF PORT WASHINGTON ATHLETICS
Port Washington’s Ben Krefetz takes a corner jump shot in the Vikings’ 54-48 win over Farmingdale.
BY R OB E RT PELAEZ Manhasset resident David Chiang was appointed county treasurer by Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman last week. Chiang, 52, a Republican, ran an unsuccessful campaign to represent the Town of North
Hempstead’s 4th District in 2019, losing to current Councilwoman Veronica Lurvey. Before his appointment and campaign for town councilman, Chiang served as a research analyst and a Wall Street investment banker for almost 20 years before becoming a stayat-home father. Before his work on Wall
Street, Chiang worked at a Manhattan sweatshop at 9 years old, then worked another three jobs to put himself through NYU’s Stern School of Business. Chiang has also been president of the ChineseAmerican Association of North Hempstead. Efforts to reach Chiang for Continued on Page 12
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