Friday, January 7, 2022
Vol. 99, No.9
FOUNDED 1923
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Wishing You a
$1
Happy New Year
LOCALLY OWNED AND EDITED
Michelle McA rdle
Lic. R. E. Sale
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son O 516.307.940 6 | M 516.306.4 134 michelle.mca rdle@elliman.co m
Garden City Office 130 7th Street
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POA meetings
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Scout trips
elliman.com
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110 WALT WHI TMA N ROA D, HUN TIN GTO N STATION , © 202 2 DOU GLA NY 11746. 631.549 S ELL IMA N REA L .7401. ESTATE . EQUAL HOU SIN G OPP ORT UNI TY.
Traffic Comm to resume discussion of master plan
DRIVEN TO HELP
BY RIKKI N. MASSAND
Members of the Garden City Public Schools Transportation Department were driven to help the needy with a food drive to benefit LI Cares to make the holidays brighter. Photo courtesy GC Public Schools
MTA begins replacement of bridge BY MEG MORGAN NORRIS
The Metropolitan Transit Authority began work this week on replacing the Long Island Railroad Bridge at Denton Avenue after a state appeals court judge ordered the village to provide a permit to the MTA. The MTA had sought to replace the bridge as part of the Third Track project because the bridge is too narrow. The MTA also sought to change the roadway beneath the bridge to a one-way road with a sidewalk.
The Village of Garden City is currently in litigation against the MTA due to the placement of 90 foot tall utility poles on the south side of the railroad line, close to homes in the area. The Village lost the case in July 2021, but filed an appeal in December. According to court documents, the Village had originally agreed to issue a permit that would allow the streets around the bridge to be opened so that utilities could be moved. However, according to the MTA’s court filings, on March
9, 2021, Village Administrator Ralph Suozzi informed the MTA, “The Village is in pending litigation with the MTA/ LIRR regarding the Third Track Project and as such will not be issuing a permit regarding Denton Ave/ Tanners Pond Rd until such litigation is resolved.” The Village also argued that since the permits being sought involved redesigning the Village-owned roadway that the Village has the legal discretion to review the changes before deciding See page 42
Immediately preceding the first regular Village Board of Trustees’ meeting of 2022, scheduled for next Thursday January 13, the Village Traffic Commission will convene for the first time of the new year and return to discussing several items from its November meeting. When the commission last met on November 18 it discussed studying traffic on local streets. Trustee Louis Minuto, a Central section resident and the current chair of the Traffic Commission, and his fellow trustees examined the latest proposal for consulting firm Creighton Manning Engineering LLC to study village-owned streets in a “Satellite Traffic Calming study.” At the time the Commission concurred on the need to formulate a Master Plan and process to receive resident feedback. The plan will include details and information that can be available as a reference, when the Commission receives requests for stop signs, speed humps and road/curb adjustments or even traffic lights. Trustee Mary Carter Flanagan was discussing the scope of work for Creighton Manning with her fellow Commission members and Frank A. Filiciotto from the firm, and she noted it would be nice for Garden City to have a Master Plan. “We get all sorts of requests, and while I see benefits of conducting studies in neighborhoods and sections of the village, there is also a benefit to creating a Master Plan for the village, as a start to addressing any particular issues and complaints for certain areas. We need this as a resource and to handle resident requests in the same way,” she said. During that discussion Trustee Minuto stated “traffic is like water – if you stop it at one spot, it kind of drains and flows it way through at another spot. What we don’t want to do is fix one problem and end up causing another problem elsewhere in the village.” Among the specific requests the Commission commented on during the November 18 meeting was one for Oxford Boulevard, stemming from Elizabeth deLaricheliere, for the village’s consideration to amend the existing sign, “No Left Turn 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. EXCEPT BUSES” located on the corner of Oxford Boulevard nearby Garden City High School updated to include timing of between 2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Trustee Minuto noted that while in the mornings drivers can’t make a left turn at the crosswalk there, the issue would exist again See page 42
Athlete helps with hurricane recovery PAGE 6 Rotary remembers Maureen Clancy PAGE 3