Friday, September 22, 2017
Vol. 77, No. 28
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Town appoints team for Grumman case
MACARTHUR HS HOMECOMING
Members of the Levittown School District community lined the streets as MacArthur High School celebrated their annual homecoming festivities on Sept. 16. Above, members of the band had a great time performing in the homecoming parade.
Town adapts cellular equipment ordinance BY GARY SIMEONE Last Tuesday, the Town of Oyster Bay took a big step to limit the intrusion of wireless telecommunication equipment in our local communities. Town Supervisor Joe Saladino and members of the Town Board approved new regulations to protect residential communities from the equipment being placed on utility poles near homes. Supervisor Saladino said he has been one of the biggest proponents in fighting the installation of the cellular equipment in communities. “The Town’s new ordinance will provide us additional authority over where the obstructions
are placed in the future,” said Saladino. Earlier this year, when the idea for the cell phone adapters came up, Saladino petitioned for an amendment to a federal law that restricted a town’s ability to determine where these devices would be placed. “With this new initiative, new criteria includes detailed site plans, specification of equipment to be installed, placement of signage on the equipment to indicate radio frequency levels and contact information in the event of emergencies,” said Saladino. Town councilwoman, Michele Johnson, who has also been a proponent of preventing the spread of the cellular adapters, said the
new ordinance would help ease the burden on local residents. “There has been an increase in the placement of these mini cell towers and other telecommunication equipment in recent months and it should not be our residents responsibility to shoulder the burden of these intrusive devices,” said Johnson. She added that the Town’s new ordinance will establish stricter guidelines as to where the equipment could be placed. With the new ordinance, applicants will be required to get a building permit before installing the adapters. In some cases they’ll also be required to obtain a special use permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals.
Oyster Bay Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino and Town Councilman Tom Hand today announced that a team of experts has been assembled to hold Northrop Grumman accountable for polluting soil and groundwater in Bethpage. According to the town, the team will hold polluters accountable for the costs of remediation and alleviate costs to taxpayers. Additionally, the Town and the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) executed an Access Agreement that compels Grumman to test the Bethpage ballfields for soil contamination, including radioactive substances and other harmful materials. Supervisor Saladino stated, “Our residents have waited long enough for the responsible parties to do the right thing and once and for all remove these harmful chemicals from our groundwater and soil. Grumman must be held accountable for their actions and our taxpayers need protection from the financial burden associated with this massive cleanup. The public and taxpayers should not have to pay for the nuisance when billion dollar firms have gained fortunes at the expense of the health, safety, and welfare of this community. ”At Supervisor Saladino’s direction, the Town Attorney’s Office is assembling a group of experts to utilize all available legal remedies to successfully make claims against polluters violative of such regulations. The United States Supreme Court recently expanded a municipality’s right to assert claims in the Bank of America v. City of Miami decision for public nuisance, and the Town of Oyster Bay will be re-evaluating its potential claims and avenues for redress. “The Town is seeking all available legal remedies in pursuit of remediating Grumman’s contamination of our lands and aquifer,” said Councilman Hand. To accomplish these steps, the Town and DEC negotiated an Access Agreement with Grumman to test soil contaminants identified in 2009 on the ballfield, which had higher concentrated levels of contamination than the larger plume found in 1986 – both of which continue to threaten drinking water wells. For more than a decade, Grumman used the 19-acre park site to dump harmful chemicals, paints and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The site was transferred to the Town and became a park in the 1960’s. The site was closed in 2002 when elevated levels of PCBs were found in the soil. While the Town took the initiative to have much of the site fully remediated, the ballfield has not since reopened due to public health concerns as this site had contained hot spots of contamination.
Rotary Club donates school supplies PAGE 3 Putting the oysters back in Oyster Bay PAGE 6