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Friday, August 12, 2016
Vol. 92, No. 50
FOUNDED 1923
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LOCALLY OWNED AND EDITED
Big Box Challenge PAGE 20 n Sunday Funday PAGE 18
Nassau Umpires urge GCUFSD to bring back baseball coaches
HEADING FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIPS
BY RIKKI N. MASSAND The Nassau County Umpire’s Association has voiced its support of former Garden City High School Baseball Coach Rich Smith, who was not rehired by the Garden City School District for the first time in forty years. According to Bob Player, who leads the umpire’s association that officiates all high school baseball (public and private schools) county-wide, the district’s decision is “horrific”. In an exclusive interview with The Garden City News on August 4, Player explained the process the group of 200 officials goes through in selecting annual awards such as the Sportsmanship trophy and honors bestowed on Garden City High School’s team this past season. “All the varsity officials take a vote every year towards the end of the season. We tabulate our top three (school programs) with votes for Sportsmanship, with who we think displays the most sportsmanship on the field (a head coach plus assistant coaches) and also the behavior of the student-athletes. At the end of a certain spring date we calculate the ballots. At our annual umpires’ dinner, held in June, we call and invite the winners of the three levels – varsity, junior varsity and junior high baseball – we invite the coaches that won the award plus their school’s athletic directors to attend and be honored for their sportsmanship. They all receive a See page 51
The Garden City A Swim Team beat Newbridge with a score of 252-58 at its meet on August 7th. The team will compete in Division 1 championships on Saturday, August 13 at the Aquatic Center in Eisenhower Park. See page 56.
GCPL Board addresses A/C malfunction, elevator project still delayed BY RIKKI N. MASSAND
Despite being August, this month there’s unexpected heat bearing down on the village and residents from one of its most prominent and popular facilities (literally). With issues evident at the Garden City Public Library Board of Trustees’ meeting on Monday, August 8, thoughts from library leadership is proactive even if mechanical work at the building is not at the present time. First the
GCPL elevator project was slated to begin on August 2 but it has a new start date of August 15, bringing into question the eventual completion of the elevator project in time for fall. Now air conditioning at Garden City’s library is not “producing any cool air going through the vents” as one library trustee stated at the meeting August 8 while loosening his shirt collar. Others fanned themselves in
Federal lawsuit alleges excessive force by GCPD BY MEG MORGAN NORRIS
the first-floor administration room as the closed quarters and August weather accentuated the A/C problem. GCPL Trustee Lola Nouryan said she considered closing down the library due to the heat inside the building. That has not and hopefully will not happen this summer, as explained Monday night. Neither Village Trustee John Delany, the current GCPL Board liaison, nor
The Village of Garden City and the Garden City Police Department are being sued in federal court by a resident who says that he was wrongfully arrested and beaten by the Garden City Police Department. According to court documents, the plaintiff, age 25, suffers from a brain injury which he incurred in 2007 after an unrelated attack. The brain injury has caused him to have various mental and physical disabilities including mood disorders with psychotic features, the documents say. The plaintiff, who is not being named by the Garden City News due to the nature of his disabilities, was at his psychiatrist’s office on July 13, 2016, at the time of the arrest. According to court papers, the plaintiff was speaking to the psychiatrist “because of an unfortunate incident that had happened earlier in the day.” The plaintiff’s parents joined the session, and his father informed him that he had called the police to take the plaintiff to the hospital. After discussion, subsequently all four individuals agreed that
See page 50
See page 50
Swim Team B closes season with a victory PAGES 54-55 Friday Night Promenade: Luau, Garden City style PAGE 38