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Vol. I No. XXXVII | www.StandardLI.com | News@standardli.com | Ph.# 516-341-0445
DEC. 2-8, 2011
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MANGANO IN STANDOFF WITH COUNTY UNIONS OVER LOOMING LAYOFFS By Jonathan Walter
Standard Staff Reporter
Lawrence Fights, But Comes Up Short Ryan Fredericks tries to move the pile and keep Lawrence’s Long Island Championship hopes alive to no avail as the Golden Tornadoes lost to Sayville 78-61 as both teams went on to break or tie 17 Long Island Championship records on Saturday at Stony Brook University. The Long Island Championships are title games played between the best teams in both Nassau and Suffolk. Check out our complete coverage of the big game and Lawrence’s winning season on page A6 and see Editorial on page A8. Photo by Jonathan Walter
Local Yeshivas Create Child Safety Plan By Susan Varghese
Standard Associate Editor
After nine-year-old Leiby Kletzky was kidnapped and brutally killed in Brooklyn this past summer, Five Towns moms and local Jewish community members wanted to take action. Sarah Bergman, Lawrence resident, founded MAGEN LI a few months ago, which is a group that is trying to teach a safety curriculum in local Yeshivas. The program was originally developed by Safety Kid, a program started by Debbie Fox and based in California. It requires mandatory teacher training, parent workshop, and separate educators and mental health pro-
fessionals who go into classrooms and teach kids. Bergman said that MAGEN LI in Hebrew means ‘protect me,’ and that she was inspired to start the program here because of the Kletzky tragedy. “When that child was abducted and killed within the [Jewish] community, it kind of shook everyone up,” Bergman said. “Many people started talking at that time about how to talk to our children about this and about safety, or what to do if they’re lost. And I felt that it was very important to bring in some kind of program to go into schools and teach them.” About 40 women who are “doers” came together to formulate the program, Bergman said. “We can’t assume that our kids
won’t know about it.” The program is geared towards Jewish day schools, explained Bergman, because there’s also Orthodox Jewish based examples and teaching. They’ve reached out to over a dozen schools in Far Rockaway and The Five Towns, including a school in West Hempstead and Long Beach. The kid-friendly program teaches children the “ABCDs” of safety, Shoshana Karasick, Ph.D., a volunteer in the MAGEN LI group explained. “ A stands for ‘ask for help,’ either in an emergency situation or if they get lost. It teaches them how to identify a
December 15th is the deadline for Nassau unions to work with County Executive Edward Mangano on concessions to achieve the $73.2 million in savings required by the 2012 budget before triggering 400 countywide layoffs and over 200 demotions. If no agreement is reached by that date, the legislature will have to vote to approve the layoffs in accordance with the budget. Thus far, no union has made the concessions asked for by the County Executive. Cuts will come to the police department, which will face 115 layoffs through retirements and non-uniformed personnel. Some other departments facing major cuts include social services, parks, recreation and museums and public works. District Six Legislator Francis Becker said that a special legislative meeting might take place before the vote for layoffs occurs. In a statement issued by the County Executive’s office this week, compensation packages for Nassau’s police officers were released. “With the average compensation package reaching $285,692 for Superior Officers, $246,668 for Detectives, $198,357 for PBA Officers, $155,005 for Sheriff Officers and $109,461 for CSEA em-
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CSEA Local 830 President Jerry Laricciuta
County Executive Edward Mangano ployees, there is room to help Nassau County government through this tough economy,” the statement said. More layoffs are expected to take place next year if an agreement can’t be reached by Feb-
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Mornings Don’t Start Until Commuters Have Their Coffee By Scott P. Moore
Standard Staff Reporter
Wooot-wooot! The sound of the 8:03 a.m. train from Hewlett heading into Penn Station breaks the otherwise normal quiet of suburbia like an opening gunshot at Belmont Park. Commuters, mostly dressed in business attire, break out from their “hide out” in Dunkin Donuts on Franklin
Avenue in a power walk, dashing to the train pulling into the platform. Minutes before the train broke the air, the scene inside of the coffee and donut shop was peaceful and calm. A woman in heels calmly reads the latest New York Times at a table, sipping her coffee every few seconds as she turns the page. “This place became one of my hangouts for the winter,” said
Commuters dash off in the morning from their favorite coffee shops to catch the train, much like the LIRR’s old mascot – Dashing Dan.
Gina Tramboni, a South Valley Stream commuter, noting the shops’ abundance of warmth. “I like it because its so close to the station – the other stations nearby don’t have this kind of convenience.” “I just need my coffee,” joked her friend Amy when they made their way to the platform, donning a black business suit and thin briefcase. She sipped her cup and smiled at Gina. “I’m a
grouch when she picks me up until we finally get here.” Standing nearby in the path of the doorway, a few men in business suits and newspapers neatly tucked under their arms stood looking out the floor-to-ceiling windows eyeing the intersection between the tracks and Franklin Avenue for any hint of the guardrails coming down to
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Residents See No Changes, Hear No Changes with New JFK Flight Paths By Scott P. Moore
Standard Staff Reporter
Local residents complained that airplane noise has not improved since the Federal Aircraft Aviation and New York TRACON changed the way airspace around New York is handled. TRACON representatives made a presentation that stated the organization would try to limit the number of aircraft during the overnight hours, roughly between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., to passing over 3,000 feet above
most of the areas represented by TVASNAC in accordance with the new aircraft space changes. However, officials and residents had many questions and comments about the current conditions. “What would be the situation if they flew below 3,000 feet?” asked Saul Klausner, the Lawrence TVASNAC representative. TRACON spokesmen responded that only two planes had gone below in the last week and that cargo aircraft would also be effected by this new rule in place.
Atlantic Beach representative Carl Baessler asked representatives about using an alternative runway as opposed to 22L, the closest runway to The Five Towns and other areas affected. “It’s not very easy to move flight paths,” responded Jeff Clarke, New York TRACON Branch Manager, who said moving flight paths would require research for environment impact. “We’ll also upset another whole
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Bob and Randee Block, owners of The Jewelry Showroom in Cedarhurst, were presented with the Cedarhurst Merchant of Distinction Award for 2011 on Wednesday. Cedarhurst Mayor Andrew Parise was on hand to present the Blocks with the award. The Blocks have run their family jewelry business together since 1975, and Bob has also devoted his time to many local charities including The Five Towns Community Chest, of which he is currently the Director, as well as the Cedarhurst Business Improvement District. Photo by Jonathan Walter
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