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THE LEADER IN PROPERTY TA X REDUCTION

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APRIl 16 - 22, 2020

Real estate takes a hit Brokers, looking for ways to keep industry moving, offer advice will be fewer closings, and less income this summer. “I already applied for payroll protection for The housing market, locally all of our locations,” Gallagher and across the state, was set for a added. steady upswing this spring, but In East Meadow, there are that came to a screeching halt usually 20 new houses listed for when the coronasale in the first two virus pandemic weeks of April. began. Now the This month there real estate indushave only been try may see a lastthree, said Joseph ing ne g ative Brown, who works impact long after for Century 21. other businesses Brown spends are permitted to his winters, when reopen, according the market is usuto Lyndsey Gallaally slow, in Wilton gher, chief finanManors, Fla. As cial officer of Centhe pandemic tury 21 American spread, however, Homes in East he stayed there Meadow. because there is litG a l l a g h e r ’ s RoSS SChIllER tle to no business franchise, which locally. “If there’s includes 10 offices Real estate attorney no need to sell,” he across Long Island said, “I would tell and the five borclients to hold off oughs, is often busiest in April, for a couple months and see May and June, when her staff what’s happening.” routinely files 250 to 300 conAnother challenge, Gallagher tracts for home sales. Then, over explained, is that some banks the summer, many families move are changing their lending staninto their new homes before dards to prepare for the toll the school starts. virus will take on the economy. “If we put 20 or 30 [contracts] For example, JPMorgan Chase in now, we’d be lucky,” she said. Fewer contracts means there Continued on page 10

By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

Brian Stieglitz/Herald

ThE EAST MEADow Chamber of Commerce is matching community donations and sending meals to workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. Linda Walsh, the director of the NuHealth Foundation, picked up the first order on April 8, from Qdoba, on Hempstead Turnpike.

Amid crisis, a community effort Chamber fundraiser feeds front-line workers By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

After seeing their community reduced to blocks full of closed or diminished businesses and a public hospital inundated with new patients, the leaders of the East Meadow Chamber of Commerce were looking for a way to keep their neighbors afloat through the coronavirus pandemic. They recently launched a fundraiser to send meals from local restaurants to those on the front lines — like the staff

of East Meadow’s Nassau University Medical Center. Once or twice a day, the chamber sends community donations to a member restaurant, whose staff prepares and delivers platters of food to a local hospital, police precinct, fire department or other essential business. The chamber matches every donation up to $2,500. Its vice president, Richie Krug Jr., who first pitched the idea, explained that members had been taking part in virtual meetings with chamber officials, who helped them

access resources like the federal government’s Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loans. “This is really unprecedented times, and our businesses are still out there, so we were trying to figure out how to best support them,” Krug said. “Now we’re going to help the first responders and give businesses additional work.” The fundraiser kicked off on April 6, when the chamber posted its plan on its Facebook page. Krug spoke to the Continued on page 3

eal estate makes the economy go, and while people are scared to act, deals could still be done, and are being done.

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April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020 Photos by Brian Stieglitz/Herald

Qdoba donated burrito lunchboxes to health care workers on nine floors of the Nassau University Medical Center, in East Meadow, and one floor of the NuHealth Family Health Centers, a health care facility in Westbury.

Funding meals for essential workers continued from front page Herald the following day, and said it had raised $500 in less than 12 hours. As of Monday night, the total had risen to $1,700, which the chamber matched, doubling it to $3,400. The first order, for burrito lunchboxes from Qdoba, on Hempstead Turnpike, was delivered on April 8 to staff on nine floors of NUMC and one floor of the NuHealth Family Health Centers, a health care facility in Westbury. Linda Walsh, the philanthropic director of NuHealth — the public health care corporation that runs both NUMC and thd Family Health Centers — distributed the meals to staff members. “It [was] a wonderful reminder to the staff that they aren’t in this fight alone,” Walsh said, “and [raised] their spirits to give them the strength to continue.” Another donation came from the Bagel Place, on Bellmore Avenue, for staff at the Nassau County Correctional Center in East Meadow. Sheriff James Dzurenda sent a letter to Krug, thanking him and the chamber. “It is not often that the community recognizes the sacrifice and dedication to

public safety by the correction officers each and every day,” Dzurenda wrote. Thirty-seven restaurants remain open in East Meadow, and there is a growing list of recipients to which the chamber is willing to donate. “I called them all, introduced myself and said the chamber’s here for them,” Krug said. “A lot of people were so grateful just for the phone call and to have somebody to talk to.” This led to another idea: The chamber recently launched East Meadow Eats, a Facebook group dedicated to restaurants that remain open, which details the services or discounts they offer. Community members can post in the group for information and ideas on where to eat. The efforts of chamber members since the pandemic began have inspired Krug, he said. “Every day I would walk out the front door in high school — I was a 17-year-old punk — and my dad would say, ‘Richie, make a difference out there,’” he recalled, adding with a laugh, “I’d roll my eyes. But now I’m starting to see what he’s talking about.” To donate to the chamber’s fundraiser, go to https://bit.ly/39TZH1x.

Pietro’s Pizzeria, on East Meadow Avenue, sent an order to the East Meadow post office. the bagel Place, on Bellmore Avenue, made a donation to staffers at the Nassau County Correctional Center in East Meadow.

A Prospect Avenue professor By Dr. Scott EckErS In the previous column, I outlined some prominent residents of East Meadow living along Hempstead Turnpike at the turn of the previous century. This week, let’s explore a sleepier part of East Meadow around 1900: Prospect Avenue. In the 19th century, Prospect Avenue was known as Haycarter’s Lane. As its name suggests, local farmers would take the country lane to the hay fields. The fields were clearly not far from anybody’s homestead because the lane ended at Newbridge Avenue (now East Meadow Avenue). One of the most distinguished residents of Prospect Avenue was Dr. Frederick Grubé. Frederick W. Grubé, Ph.D., LL.D., was born in Germany in 1840 and earned two doctorates in Europe (at Bonn University and Trinity College) before settling in the United States in 1870. He married Ellen Gordon the same year and was then a professor in Vermont and at the University of Nebraska. Dr. Grubé was a public school teacher in New York City for over twenty years, a professor of languages at Boys’ High School in Brooklyn. He was also renowned for his works, “Dialogues in Latin,” “Latin Ode on Greater New York,” and various works in German, French, Spanish, and English. Grubé was appointed by New York City Mayor Robert Van Wyck as a member of the Commission of Statistics. Dr. and Mrs. Grubé had a daughter, Eulalia, who lived in East Meadow. She died at age 43 in 1919, leaving an estate of $4,128.41 to her sister, Lillian Johnson, who also lived in the community. A laudatory exposé in the Tammany Times called Grubé an “unsurpassed” orator and a dedicated member of his political party. Indeed, Dr. Grubé was an outspoken Democratic political activist who wrote passionately about the need to reform state government, which he thought to be bloated with corrupt legislative committees. “Who cannot see the danger to any man’s freedom from an Albany Legislative Committee,” he wrote in 1899, “in theory responsible to a majority, which is, in turn, obtusely and

wickedly responsible only to itself and oblivion.” Grubé believed that parliamentary committees threatened the intent of the Declaration of Independence and separation of powers as outlined in the Constitution. “If free government is to live,” he concluded, Legislative Committees must go!” He wrote fervently about honest and true Tammany men. The Tammany Society, of course, was notorious for its political corruption in the late 19th century under Boss Tweed. In 1891, Grubé married Emilie Daniel, an aristocratic Louisianan. The Grubés’ home on Prospect Avenue, which started out as a country estate during Frederick’s working years, was at current-day Coakley Street, where the Prospect Avenue Elementary School stood from the 1950s through 1970s. Evidence from genealogical records suggests that the house was named Gothic Cottage. Frederick and his wife Ellen were travelers and hosts: local newspapers accounted for their whereabouts (Taking a boat trip down the Saint Lawrence River! Participating in a grand march in a crowd of 4,000!) and house-guests (Hosting a wealthy miner from Colorado!) due to their status as mid-level “society” figures. In 1907-1908 the New York City Department of Education hosted a series of public lectures. Dr. Grubé gave two lectures in Ger man and English on Goethe’s “Faust” and Frederick the Great. He also gave an English-language lecture on the history of Holland. Dr. Grubé died in 1918 after a weeklong bout with pneumonia. Mrs. Grubé passed away ten years later. Frederick and Emilie had two daughters, one of whom lived in East Meadow. © Scott Eckers Dr. Scott Eckers is the author of East Meadow (in Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America series). He is a trustee on the East Meadow Board of Education and serves as a teacher and administrator in a nearby school district. He is also an entertainer and recording artist.

Virtual Roommates Whether you choose ZOOM, Microsoft at home, yet “outdoors” in the cyber world Teams or Blackboard Collaborate Ultra, with a click and password. there is always an added bonus to the virtuAnd since virtual meetings can’t be a al community meeting. It is the polite thing for long without spoofs take stay-atopportunity to see people in their homes, home New York Islander mascot, Sparky T. their true personal sanctuaries, to get a Dragon’s revealing square of personal deeper, kind of 360-degree glimpse into who space. Thanks to his “participation” I now they are and how they live. know he has a middle initial It’s not so much about (but I don’t know for what). being nosy but having a wonAnd just as a point of fact, it is derful opportunity to particiclear he has a cooler room pate in a kind of unexpected than I do: adorned with Isles social research. I am especialflag, hanging team jersey and ly fascinated by the place and scarf. I give him full props for manner people put up their his good judgment giving us a iPad, laptop or phone in order true peek into his world. to participate in a meeting. So Over the last few weeks we many comfy couches, desk have situated ourselves with chairs and dining room tables. earphones, microphones, So many dens filled with smart phones. We have tuned books and memorabilia. in, spoken up and maintained Unique glimpses into the art, our hygiene — at least from auren ev photos, even animals that fill the waist up. But nothing can their lives. That aforemenbe more telling than the view tioned 360-degree glimpse that of the space around us — the no daily interaction could ever have pre- places we are willing to reveal to each other dicted or provided. and the universe. After all. those are the There’s the university instructional honest-to-goodness backdrops in all of our designer with a wall shelf holding an origi- lives. nal Mac computer behind him. The mom and child who sit at the kitchen table with A contributing writer to the Herald since the refrigerator art tacked on the door just 2012, Lauren Lev is an East Meadow resident like the Simpsons. And the student who and a direct marketing/advertising execuused our virtual classroom chat feature to tive who teaches advertising and marketing acknowledge and admire my home’s “Prin- communications courses at the Fashion cess Diaries” movie poster. It’s all part of Institute of Technology/SUNY, LIU Post and the camaraderie that may keep us all safe SUNY Old Westbury.

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MAIN PHONE: (516) 569-4000 ■ WEB SITE: www.liherald.com/eastmeadow ■ E-MAIl: Letters and other submissions: emeditor@liherald.com ■ EDITORIAl DEPARTMENT: Ext. 234 E-mail: emeditor@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4942 ■ SUBSCRIPTIONS: Press ”7” E-mail: circ@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4942 ■ ClASSIFIED ADVERTISING: Ext. 286 E-mail: ereynolds@liherald.com Fax: (516) 622-7460 ■ DISPlAY ADVERTISING: Ext. 249 E-mail: sales@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4643 The East Meadow Herald USPS 336580, is published every Thursday by Richner Communications, Inc., 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Periodicals postage paid at Garden City, NY 11530 and additional mailing offices. Postmaster send address changes to East Meadow Herald, 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Subscription rates: $36 for 1 year within Nassau County. Out of Nassau County: $58 for 1 year. Copyright © 2020 Richner Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

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April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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the coronavirus effect on minorities

Sources: Nassau County, U.S. Census, American Community Survey. Illustration by Christina Daly/Herald

Governors get together over reopening the economy es,” referring to the possibility that Covid19 cases might climb again if people were to go back to work without adequate The governors of Delaware, Connecti- guidelines and insufficient preparation. cut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said the and Rhode Island gathered Monday in a coronavirus spread along his state’s Interteleconference to announce a regional sate-95 corridor, otherwise known as its panel that will study how best to reopen “commuter corridor.” The virus, he t h e e c o n o my a n d t h e appeared to suggest, was schools. spread by commuters in and Governor Cuomo, leadout of New York City. ing the effort, announced Pennsylvania Gov. Tom the creation of the panel, Wo l f s a i d a r e g i o n a l which will comprise three approach to reopening the representatives from each economy is vital. “We all state — a health official, an know we can do anything economic official and the better when we work togethchief of staff of each goverer,” he said. “We need to do nor. The governors are callthis right.” ing it a regional advisory He said he believes the council, which will not have Gov. andrew six-state approach will decision-making power, but become a model for reopenrather will help formulate Cuomo ing regional economies plans for a re gional across the country. approach to reopening that are subject to Delaware Gov. John Carney said the the governors’ approval. key question is, “How do we reopen “New York believes we have reached a things in a way that’s safe?” plateau” of new coronavirus cases, “The state boundaries,” he noted, Cuomo said. “This is relatively good news “mean very little to this virus.” in a world of bad options.” The objective, Rhode Island Gov. Gina With cases leveling off, he said, it is Raimondo said, is to “develop new guidetime to begin planning for the day when lines for this new normal.” businesses are allowed to resume operaAll of the governors are Democrats. tions and students may return to classes. The announcement came after PresiNew Jersey Gov. Philip Murphy said dent Trump over the weekend signaled the regional approach would help avoid that he believes he will be the arbiter of “inadvertent and unintended consequenc- when the economy will reopen.

By SCott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

ew York believes we have reached a plateau [of Covid-19] cases.

Herald file photo

Governor Cuomo Gathered five other Northeast governors to announce a regional advisory council to develop plans to reopen the economy regionally. In addition to New York, the council will include representatives of Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

Covid-19 has affected minority populations and densely populated areas more than others. The maps below show the correlation between coronavirus hot spots in Nassau County and population density.

April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

Cuomo calls for SALT repeal amid pandemic By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

In his Saturday address, Governor Cuomo called on Congress and President Trump to repeal the SALT provision of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to provide relief to residents of hightax states like New York and California amid the pandemic. The SALT provision eliminated all but $10,000 of the federal deduction for state and local taxes, known commonly as the SALT deduction, costing New Yorkers millions of dollars annually in federal taxes. “You want to help New York … you want to help the places that are affected [by Covid-19], then repeal the SALT provision,” Cuomo said. The provision “targeted” states like New York, the governor said. In a March 26 editorial, the Herald called for repeal of the SALT provision. For an excerpt from it, see box. Cuomo urged people not to play politics around Covid-19, particularly given that it is a presidential election year. President Trump, he said, has been responsive to New York’s needs amid the coronavirus crisis. “Keep politics out of the discussions,” Cuomo said. He noted that he does not plan to run for president, despite some pleas within the Democratic Party that he should jump in the race — Joe Biden is now the presumptive nominee after Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out last week. Some 783 people died of the coronavirus statewide overnight from last Friday into Saturday. The governor noted that was not an all-time high, which came three days earlier when 799 peo-

From the Herald’s editorial….

Gov. Andrew cuomo is asking Congress and President Trump to eliminate the SALT provision of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to provide financial relief to New Yorkers battered by the coronavirus. ple died. He also said the number of intensive care unit admissions and number of intubations were both down dramatically, which could indicate the state had hit a plateau of infections. Cuomo described the current phase of the pandemic in New York as the “end of the beginning.” He urged people to continue to “stay

the course” and practice social distancing. He noted that without it, a second wave of infection is possible. When New York’s economy should fully reopen is a subject of study and debate, the governor said. Reopening it, he said, “cannot be at the expense” of human life.

In high-tax regions like New York and California, the weight of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was already causing enormous fiscal strain for many homeowners, who lost all but $10,000 of the federal deduction for state and local taxes, known commonly as the SALT deduction. Loss of that single deduction in high-tax regions has cost people thousands of dollars. Many Long Island taxpayers reported that their federal tax bills rose $3,000, $5,000, $8,000 or more last year. Those bills are not expected to abate this year, unless Congress acts. It should immediately reinstate the SALT deduction. People here will certainly take $1,000 or $2,000 [in stimulus funds], but restoring the deduction would do far more for many homeowners who are suffering because of the coronavirus. For the full editorial, see liherald.com.

New York coping with a rising death toll By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

Governor Cuomo said at his news briefing last Thursday that additional funeral directors would be brought in to aid with final arrangements for the hundreds of New Yorkers who are dying of the coronavirus. Overnight that day, he said, 799 people had succumbed to the disease, bringing the total who had died in New York to more than 7,000. That was the highest overnight death toll New York had seen to date, and at press time, it remained the highest. As of April 13, there were 846 Covid19-related deaths in Nassau County, and 23,553 people had been diagnosed with the illness. Cuomo spoke of the coronavirus as a “silent killer.” “9/11 was supposed to be the darkest day” for New York in a generation, he

Social distancing, he said, is about said. As of Wednesday, April 8, Covid-19 protecting the most vulnerable in socihad killed more than twice as many ety. The governor ordered all American people in New York than 9/11, when the flags to fly at half-staff in total number of deaths honor of the dead. statewide reached 6,268. By executive order, he As of Monday, nearly also declared that all New 9,400 were reported dead in Yorkers can vote by absenNew York. tee ballot for the June 23 “Our hospitals and primaries. health care workers continAnd all unemployed ue to be stretched to the New Yorkers will receive an limit,” Nassau County additional $600 payment, Executive Laura Curran and unemployment benesaid. fits were extended from 25 Cuomo, speaking in to 39 weeks. some of the strongest terms T here were positive he had used yet last week, Gov. Andrew s igns las t we e k. Both called Covid-19 a “vicious Cuomo and Curran said predator of a virus” that cuomo social distancing appeared preys on those whose to be working and was health has already been compromised because of underlying reducing the number new hospitalizations. medical conditions.

/11 was supposed to be the darkest day for New York in a generation.

To maintain the plateau, they said, people must stay at home unless they are essential workers. Rapid testing for the coronavirus on a mass scale could allow people to return to work, Cuomo said he believes. He warned, however, that the virus may come in waves. He noted that the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918 struck in three waves. And already, he said, there were scattered reports, including in The Los Angeles Times, that Wuhan, China, may be experiencing a second wave of infections. A secondary infection wave could come, he said, if the virus were to mutate into a new form, potentially infecting those with immunity to the first virus. There is an emotional toll the pandemic has had on many people, the governor said. Those in need of help can call the state’s Emotional Support Hotline at (844) 863-9314.

Officials: MSSN still performing surgeries sbrinton@liherald.com

Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital in Oceanside is still open for trauma and emergency cases, despite an influx of critically ill coronavirus patients in recent weeks. That was the message that Joe Calderone, MSSN’s senior vice president of corporate communications, and Dr. Rajiv Datta, the hospital’s chief of surgery, delivered to the public via a 15-minute Facebook Live session last Thursday. “We are still a trauma center,” Datta said. “We still take care of acute cases.” MSSN is the South Shore’s only trauma center, which treats the most urgent cases such as car crash and gunshot victims. An emergency patient, by contrast, might be suffering from an acute medical condition such as appendicitis. To remain a Level II trauma center, the hospital must maintain a trauma operating room and keep a trauma surgeon on duty at the hospital 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As of last Thursday, Calderone said, the hospital had 450 patients in total — 300, or 66 percent, were Covid-19 patients. All trauma and emergency patients are tested for coronavirus upon entering the hospital, Datta said, “so we can protect them, and we can also protect our staff.” The operating room is equipped with a

Facebook Live screenshot

Dr. rajiv Datta, chief of surgery at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital in Oceanside, and Joe Calderone, senior vice president for corporate communications, held a Facebook Live session in front of the hospital Thursday to let the public know trauma and emergency surgeries are still be performing at MSSN. HEPA filter to ensure the air remains pure, and all surgical tables and equipment are wiped down with bleach, he said. Surgical patients recover in the operating room, and then they are segregated in a non-Covid-19 section of the hospital. “The staff is very keenly aware of which patients are Covid positive and which are not,” Datta said. “That information is delivered to everybody.”

He emphasized, “The operating room is still functional, only doing trauma cases and emergency cases.” Follow-up care is provided in MSSN’s outpatient facility in Valley Stream and via telehealth video chat. “It’s a new way of practicing medicine,” Datta said. There is no longer visitation at the hospital. After patients are sufficiently recovered from surgery, family members or

friends must pick them up at the front entrance of the hospital on Merrick Road. They cannot enter the hospital. “This is an all-hands-on-deck situation at South Nassau,” Calderone noted. Several staff members from hospital’s surgical team, both surgeons and nurses, have been redeployed to medical wings of the hospital to help treat Covid-19 patients. Normally, the hospital might have 22 patients on ventilators. It had 80 as of last Thursday. “I’m amazed to see how our staff is helpful,” Datta said, noting that retired surgeons have called to volunteer their services. “So far we have been able to accommodate,” he said. “Everybody is stretched.” The hospital is still performing a small number of elective surgeries for cancer patients, said Datta, who is medical director of MSSN’s Feil Cancer Center in Valley Stream. Primarily, however, cancer patients are being treated with radiation and chemotherapy in cordoned-off wings — chemo at the front of the hospital, and radiation at the back. Both Calderone and Datta emphasized the importance of social distancing. “We are not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination,” Calderone said. To watch the full video, see liherald.com.

Northwell Health clinical trials under way By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

The Northwell Health medical system, with hospitals throughout the greater New York metropolitan area, has conducted clinical trials for a possible treatment for Covid-19 since March 18, and an effort that began with two patients now involves hundreds. That’s according to Dr. Christina Brennan, vice president of clinical research at Northwell’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in Manhasset. Brennan sat down with video producer Rob Hoell for a Facebook Live interview last Thursday in which she discussed the ongoing clinical trials that Northwell is engaged in. She noted Northwell was among the first health systems in the nation to undertake clinical trials for a treatment. Locally, trials are taking place at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset and Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens. Early on, Feinstein Institutes researchers teamed up with Gilead Sciences and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals to identify potential treatments for Covid-19 patients who are hospitalized with moderate to severe conditions. The goal, according to a Northwell release, is “to improve recovery and speed discharge from hospitals.” Brennan said last week that Northwell also undertook an additional study to gauge the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malarial drug that has been touted often by President Trump. With Gilead, the Feinstein Institutes is examining the safety and effectiveness of remdesivir (RDV), an investigational antiviral drug, to reduce the intensity and duration of Covid-19 in hospitalized patients. RDV, Northwell officials said, has “demonstrated positive effects” on other viruses such as MERS and SARS. The trial with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, which now involves 216 patients, is examining the safety and efficacy

Facebook Live screenshot

of sarilumab, a human antibody that may help prevent severe pneumonia in some Covid-19 patients. It is normally used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, Brennan said. “We’re really excited about the three opportunities and more to come of the trials,” she said. Northwell is not engaged in clinical trials to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, she noted. Brennan could not say how long development of a treatment drug or drugs would take, and if any of the drugs now in trials would ultimately be proven effective. Patients’ participation in all clinical trials is voluntary. Daily, Brennan said, clinical researchers are feeding data back to the pharmaceutical companies involved in the trials, and the companies are analyzing that information. When a sufficient data set is amassed, the companies will then approach the Food and Drug Administration for possible approvals. Northwell physicians on “the front lines” are selecting

Dr. chriStina Brennan, vice president of clinical research at Northwell’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in Manhasset, sat down with video producer Rob Hoell for a Facebook Live session last Thursday to discuss ongoing clinical trials for a Covid19 treatment at Northwell.

patients for the trials with Feinstein researchers. “It can be tough as investigators,” Brennan said. “You so desperately want to help patients and find the right treatment for them.” She said, however, “We’re seeing more discharges daily from our clinical trials, so we’re hopeful.” Speaking of the clinical researchers, Hoell said, “You guys are, to my mind, the unsung heroes … Every day we get closer and closer to maybe finding out what’s going to work and what’s going to knock out this virus.” Brennan did say clinical research appears to substantiate anecdotal evidence from physicians in the field that Covid-19 is potentially more deadly for older adults and those with pre-existing medical conditions, and that anyone, of any age, can be infected and suffer its effects, including older teenagers. To watch the entire interview, see liherald.com.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

By Scott Brinton

April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

Three MSSN employees die of coronavirus By mike smoLLins msmollins@liherald.com

Three employees at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital have died after contracting the coronavirus. Dr. Jesus Zambrano, 54, an attending pediatrician who worked in Freeport, died on March 29, while Mario Salonga, 59, a per diem physical therapist in home care, recently died, and Ferdinando Moretti, 73, an MSSN painting crew foreman, died on April 4. The hospital did not disclose the date Salonga died, and an inquiry was not returned. “They exemplify what makes every Mount Sinai South Nassau employee and medical staff member special, the willingness to be present during a time of unprecedented crisis with a special commitment to the patients we serve,” MSSN President and CEO Richard Murphy said in a statement. Zambrano was a Brooklyn resident and joined the MSSN medical staff in 2012. He worked with Dr. Luis HerreraAcevedo at a Freeport practice. He previously attended medical school in Santo

Christina Daly/Herald

three empLoyees of Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital died after contracting the coronavirus. Domingo, Dominican Republic, and trained as a pediatric resident at Lincoln Medical Center in the Bronx. He was board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics, and many of his patients and

colleagues saw him as a beloved figure. Salonga had been a part of MSSN’s inhome patient care staff for five years and worked for the Visiting Nurse Service. He was described as a kind, gentle soul and

an upstanding father, husband and friend. He provided compassionate and professional care for patients and his daughter, Katrina, said he was dedicated to his profession, according to a news release from the hospital. She added she was raised by the motto “always put others first,” and her father exemplified it. In addition to Katrina, Salonga is survived by his wife, Cecilia, and their son, Joseph, in Valley Stream. Moretti retired from MSSN in 2014 after 31 years of service. He returned to work per diem in 2015 to support the hospital’s various expansion projects. His colleagues recalled that Moretti was lighthearted and quick with a joke, and that he was well versed in topics ranging from construction to cooking. He is survived by his daughter, Andrea, son, Mario, and four grandchildren. His wife, Olga, predeceased him. “I cannot sufficiently express my appreciation and respect for the contribution each of them has made to the life of Mount Sinai South Nassau,” Murphy said. “We extend our prayers and deepest sympathy to their families.”

Judge to decide if L.B. boardwalk can reopen By James Bernstein jbernstein@liherald.com

A Nassau County Supreme Court judge was to hear to hear a case filed Friday by an attorney who wants the City of Long Beach to reopen its 2.2-mile boardwalk, which was closed March 26 to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. At press time Monday, no decision had been reached. Scott Cohen, who filed the case on behalf of Francis McQuade, an unsuccessful candidate for Nassau County District Attorney last year, said Long Beach acted improperly in closing the boardwalk because it did not have the permission of the New York State Department of Health to do so. “I have a problem with the boardwalk being closed,” Cohen said Monday. “It wasn’t done in the right way.” McQuade called the city’s decision “arbitrary.” Long Beach officials said the city does not comment on pending litigation. But city officials had noted that the Nassau County Department of Health had not overturned Long Beach’s decision to close the boardwalk. The suit was filed against the five elected city council members, interim City Manager Donna Gayden and her assistant John McNally. Cohen said the closing left Long Beach residents with only two ways to enter the beach, at Pacific Boulevard and New York Avenue. He said this created a hardship for people who want to walk on the beach, as well as for residents of those two streets. An excess of cars could be parked on those streets, Cohen said. “I’d like the decision to be overturned,” Cohen said. He said the boardwalk was closed at a time when fewer people were aware of the dangers of the coronavirus. “People are now more aware” of social distancing and other measures, he said. The boardwalk was closed, city officials had said, because large crowds had been gathering there and few were observing social distancing. The boardwalk is an iconic part of Long Beach, attracting thousands during summer holiday weekends. It is also a favorite spot for joggers and cyclists. The boardwalk has bathroom facilities and a large food stand. As of April 7, Long Beach City Council President

John Bendo said the number of confirmed cases in the city stood at 285, a large jump from the previous ago, when there were about 200 cases. “We’ve been informed that some of this increase is attributed to increased testing and ramped up processions of tests,” Bendo said on the City’s website. “But officials are also projecting that this and next week will see Nassau County reaching its peak epidemic. While this may be welcome news of sorts, please know that now is the time to double down on our social distancing efforts, not to relax them.” Bendo also said that Long Beach police are following up on complaints by some residents that some restaurants and bars are not adhering to social distancing and have stepped up patrols to enforce the guidelines. The city has also temporarily suspended recycling. The boardwalk close had the support of Nassau County Executive Laura Curran and State Sen. Todd Kaminsky. a Long Beach Democrat, as well as by some civic organizations. Sam Pinto, president of the Eastholm Civic Association, said, “Right now, under the current pandemic situation, having the boardwalk closed will help flatten the curve. Closing it is a benefit.” The case is to be heard via Skype.

Photos by Christina Daly/Herald

a Long Beach lawyer filed a lawsuit against the City of Long Beach to reopen the boardwalk, which was closed in March because officials say people failed to adhere to social distancing.

Friends Who Give donate snacks to hospital workers mferremi@liherald.com

A once-a-year community event that was originated by a Mineola resident during the holiday season of 2016 has spread to donating goods to medical workers in the frontline of the coronavirus. Denise Heckelman founded Friends Who Give in December 2016 as an effort to raise money for local families in school districts that were in need of additional financial help around the holidays. Heckleman would accept donations of cash and gift cards at her home. Since the Covid-19 pandemic began rapidly spreading across Nassau County, Heckelman and others involved began thinking of ideas to help out others. “I’ve always been an advocate in giving back to others,” Heckelman said. “Since we started Friends Who Give in 2016, we’ve raised roughly $13,000 for those in the Mineola School District.” Lea Hennelly is a Garden City South resident who has been involved with Friends Who Give since 2016. She lives in the Franklin Square School District and has donated money and gift cards to families in the district. She also serves as the leader of the Girl Scout Troop 1754 in Franklin Square. Hennelly gave out her Venmo account username on the group’s Facebook page on March 28. Since then, roughly $3,500 has been donated to her Venmo account,

which Hennelly has used to deliver snacks and goods to three hospitals: NYU Winthrop in Mineola, Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park and North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset. “We felt like it was an opportunity we couldn’t pass up on since people just want to help during a time like this,” Hennelly said. “My Venmo was blowing up left and right. I bought about $800 worth of snacks as a thank you to our frontline workers.” One of the frontline workers is New Hyde Park resident Jen Marsella, who works as a nurse at NYU Winthrop. Marsella helps with Friends Who Give in New Hyde Park and was “touched” by the delivery of snacks to the hospital. “It was amazing to find out that Lea was doing this,” she said. “It brings a smile to my face and that’s important because there is not a lot of smiling going on in hospitals right now.” Marsella added how grateful she and her colleagues were for the donations “At night there’s not much to choose from when it comes to food,” she said. “To come in and see this food, all you can is thank you.” Heckelman said the response from residents has been heartwarming. “We were put on this earth to do good things,” she said. “What we’re all doing such as donating masks to medical workers are all wonderful things that come from the heart.” For more information on Friends Who Give, go to https://bit.ly/3e92Xty.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

By Matthew FerreMi

Courtesy Lea Hennelly

Lea henneLLy Began collecting donations to give to hospital workers on March 28. She received more than $3,500 in donations and then bought nearly $800 worth of snacks.

E.M. resident gives out Easter treats for a cause By Brian stiegLitZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

Diane Radtke has already filled 800 plastic eggs in February to prepare for her 23rd annual Easter egg hunt before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Rather than let her tradition go uncelebrated, however, Radtke decided to continue with a plan to spread Easter cheer while complying with social distancing orders. She cancelled the egg hunt and, instead, filled goody bags with plastic eggs and candy. She put the bags on her

front lawn for residents to stop by and take in exchange for a nonperishable food or household item to donate to the food pantry at St. Raphael’s Roman Catholic Church in East Meadow. In the hunt’s first year there were just six children searching for 300 eggs and each year after it has grown in attendance and activity. For its third year, Radtke began collecting food and household items to donate to the St. Raphael’s food pantry. As her hunt grows, she donates more goods to stock the pantry.

“I know this time of year they don’t collect as much as they do around Thanksgiving and Christmas,” she said. “And this year it’s gonna come in handy because of how many people are out of work.” The mock egg hunt was a success, Radtke said, and she roughly four 30-gallon bags with donations for the church. “We had a good turn out,” she said. “It was a nice way for people to get out and just have something to do . . . it was amazing the response we got.”

Photos courtesy Diane Radtke

Lucas MarteLLo, 1, far-left, had his own personal Easter egg hunt in his backyard. DaMian Deriggi, 4, of East Meadow, left, and his grandma Kathy Lauro stopped by Diane Radtke’s house to donate to her annual food drive for St. Raphael’s Roman Catholic Church. another participant was Hunter O’Leary, 1, above, who gathered a collection of eggs on a couch in his home in Lindenhurst.

April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

Real estate goes virtual to push past pandemic continued from front page recently announced that it would require anyone looking for a home loan to make a 20 percent down payment. Banks usually require a down payment no larger than 10 percent. “That’s hard, because a lot of first-time home buyers don’t have that,” Gallagher said, “and they’ll have to find another bank to get the money.” “People have to be careful that the deal they first made is still there,” advised Ross Schiller, a real estate attorney and the founder of Ross L. Schiller & Associates. “So always ask questions to your agent and your attorney — that’s the takeaway from this.” As an attorney, Schiller’s job is to protect clients looking to buy or sell. That includes adding provisions to account for the pandemic — which mostly means adding time to the selling and buying process. “The most important thing that people should know is that during this time, be patient, be calm and stay safe,” Schiller said. “Real estate makes the economy go, and while people are scared to act, deals could still be done, and are being done.” To keep moving forward, Gallagher’s company has been training its staff members with virtual presentations on videoconferencing platforms like Zoom. Its marketing department has created graphics to help buyers and sellers navigate largely uncharted waters. And some

Brian Stieglitz/Herald

The local real estate market is slumping amid the coronavirus pandemic. There have been only three listings this month in East Meadow, where there are usually around 20 in the first two weeks of a typical April. agents are coordinating FaceTime calls, on which sellers offer virtual open houses, walking buyers through their available homes. In addition to taking the home-buying process virtual, some real estate agents are completing some of the steps of that process earlier, to ease the burden on the buyer. For example, Richie Krug Jr., an agent with Century 21 American Homes, said that he was completing home inspec-

tions for sellers before they put their houses on the market. “I do believe that we’re an industry that’s going to bounce back,” Gallagher said. “There’s always demand for someone to move into a new neighborhood.” Some people want to move now more than ever, Krug added. He explained that one of his clients said that the self-isolation the pandemic necessitated had affirmed her eagerness to get out of her

apartment permanently. “Every situation is different, though,” he said, “and some don’t want to be on the market until this is over.” Gallagher’s advice for people looking to sell is to slow down and take the time for spring cleaning. “This is the perfect time for them to prepare their home … so they could have the house in pristine condition,” she said, “and hit the ground running when this is over.”

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

Hempstead Town Is Here For You! During this challenging time, we want residents to know that employees and the Town Board are working hard to keep your essential services running.

NEED HELP FROM A TOWN DEPARTMENT? Email the following departments at: Building Department:

tohbuildingquestions@tohmail.org

Town Clerk’s Office:

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Parks Department:

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Have Questions About COVID-19? Join Supervisor Don Clavin, Councilman Anthony D’Esposito and Dr. Dave Neubert for three Facebook Live sessions:

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New York State (NYS) Coronavirus Hotline .........................................................................(888) 364-3065 New York State (NYS) Coronavirus Website .................................................... coronavirus.health.ny.gov Nassau County Coronavirus Call Center .............................................................................(516) 227-9570 CDC Coronavirus Disease Hotline ........................................................................................(800) 232-4636 CDC Coronavirus Disease Website ...................................................................................coronavirus.gov NYS COVID-19 Emotional Support Hotline ..........................................................................(844) 863-9314

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Photos courtesy Patsy Mustafich

AIdEN MuSTAfIch, of East Meadow, was with his teammates on the Mineola Portuguese Soccer Club. Although games are cancelled, they are still practicing on their own from home.

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For Aiden Mustafich, of East Meadow, the end of the Covid-19 pandemic will mean the chance to be reunited with his teammates on the Mineola Portuguese Soccer Club. The team of 13-year old boys from across Long Island regularly trains three to four times a week and have games yearround on weekends. While playing as a team has come to a halt, the athletes have been doing as much as they could do to train on their own from home. Coach Scott Knight has hosted group calls three to four times a week, during

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which they watch games and learn more about the sport. He also has given Aiden and his teammates work to do from home so they could record their soccer moves. As a thank-you to their coach, the team made a compilation video showing off their skills. Watching it brought some of the parents to tears, said Aiden’s mom Patsy. “We are blessed to have a great coach and I think when the warmer weather comes, these soccer boys can do what they love a little more,” she said. “It gives you a sense of how this group of boys is connected in many ways and we are very grateful to their coach for trying to do his best at keeping them going.”

Have a great story? Call our editors today 516-569-4000 or email bstieglitz@liherald.com 1085992

April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

www.liherald.com

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS â€” April 16, 2020

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$500,000 IN GRANTS AVAILABLE NOW TO LOCAL BUSINESSES

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Apply for your share of the $500,000 marketing grant available to assist locally owned businesses.

STUART RICHNER Publisher Herald Community Newspapers

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities. We are a small business ourselves, so we understand the pain that small business owners are going through right now. We at the Herald want to do our part to make sure that members of our small business community can continue to promote themselves during this trying period.”

Herald Team

WHO For all locally owned and operated small businesses on Long Island that have been negatively impacted by coronavirus.

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WHEN Applications will be accepted until April 30, 2020 or until maximum grant funding has been distributed. Businesses will be contacted within two business days of submitting their application.

WHY Studies show that businesses that continue to market themselves during down times are the ones that fare the best long-term. This grant program will allow Long Island small businesses to continue promoting themselves and any new services they are offering during these unprecedented times.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS: • Every dollar that a grant recipient spends on marketing in Herald products will be matched with a dollar of grant funding, up to the award amount, to be applied towards marketing costs. • Businesses must be locally owned and operated. • Grants range from $300 to $15,000. • Grants can be applied to any Herald Community Newspaper marketing product or service during April through July 15, 2020. • Grants applied to direct mail products are net of postage/mailing costs.

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April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

EMHS music earns national recognition

–Brian Stieglitz

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

The East Meadow School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation, for the second year in a row, by the NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education. For the past 21 years, the NAMM Foundation has awarded the designation to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in their efforts to provide music access and education to all students. To qualify, the district answered detailed questions ab o u t f u n d i n g , g r a d u at i o n requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities and support for its music programs. “The East Meadow School District and surrounding community provide tremendous support and enthusiasm to ensure that our students have access to an exceptional and comprehensive music program,” said Kelly Gelfer, the district’s director of music and art. “This honor affirms that the East Meadow music department, our staff and our programs are at the forefront of music education nationwide. Great truly happens here in East Meadow.”

Courtesy East Meadow School District

The easT Meadow School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation by the NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education. The band is above at homecoming this past fall, led by Director Gregory Sisco.

Spread the news(letter) not the virus!

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April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

EAST MEADOW FIRE DEPARTMENT

EMFD installs its 70th new chief: James Walsh By John J. o’Brien Sr. jobrien@eastmeadowfd.com

In another chapter in the history of the East Meadow Volunteer Fire Department, James Walsh, of Hook & Ladder Company #1, proudly became the 70th Chief of the Department in our rich 90-year history. Normally a day of honor set aside for such outstanding achievement in our organization, 2020 will be remembered for the Covid-19 pandemic, and everything our org anization has endured in working to prepare for, and protect our community. But on this night, EMFD’s Department Election Committee, donning masks, gloves, and practicing social distance rules, worked to complete the election process. A short time after the vote counting was completed, a brief ceremony attended only by the election committee, the chiefs and commissioners, would be conducted. In compliance with our “no group gathering” policy, it would instead be live streamed via Zoom internet video technology for all members, and their families to enjoy at home. The time had come to mark the new leadership of the East Meadow Fire Department. The ceremony, led by Commissioner James Surless, is a tradition, one of many, within the organization for as long as those can remember. Only this year, on the smallest of scales. With words of gratitude, Commissioner Surless spoke from his heart about the dedication of our organization, and the work of our leaders, particularly our outgoing Chief Eric W. Becker. Eric, a leader on every level, had just completed his third four-year term in the chief ’s office for an unprecedented 12 years as a Commanding Chief Officer. A feat that will likely never be duplicated. In his final year, it was Chief Becker leading us through the toughest of times, first, with several dear senior members passing away in the year. Then the pandemic. Chief Becker and his assist Chiefs hit the ground running, setting policy after policy to address the emergency needs of our residents while equally working to maintain the safety and health of our emergency responders. Together, with the Board of Fire Commissioners, the Chiefs worked to secure additional stock of critical protective EMS equipment while keeping the membership well informed. So much planning done, with so much more on the table.. For nearly two months prior to the election night, Chiefs were already involving our newest candidate for Third Assistant Chief Philip Fertitta into meetings to ensure a seamless transition. With no further delay, one by one,

Asst Chiefs Paul Kosiba (1st Asst), Peter Cheswick (2nd Asst), and Philip Fertitta (3rd Asst), were sworn in by Commissioner James Surless, and Commissioner William Neill. But now, the time had come . . . The moment many firefighters dream of, as long time friend and Fire Commissioner John J. Priest approached the podium calling up newly elected Chief James Walsh. With heartfelt words, Commissioner Priest spoke of the man before him and their friendship of more than 30 years. With his right hand raised, Chief Walsh repeated the words of Commissioner Priest in reciting the oath of office to EMFD’s highest level of command. To his surprise, as he lowered his hand, lights flashed, and sirens blared outside fire headquarters. Across the street EMFD’s bravest, along with their fire apparatus, separated by distance, let their support be known. With the live stream video technology, there was no need for a queue… Looking out the second floor window of Fire Headquarters, waving to the firefighters Chief Walsh, now saw his family and friends holding signs of support directly below. An emotional moment as he waved his approval from a distance. A time in EMFD history where our department will refuse to be denied the show of respect and support a leader of this magnitude deserves. A proud moment for James, son of the late Ex Captain James Walsh who gave more than 30 years of service in Hook & Ladder Co # 1 before his untimely passing. A proud moment for the members of Hook & Ladder Co # 1 as they announced their 90th year of service to our community on April 3rd, now with one of their own as Chief of Department. In his first action as Chief of Department, Chief Walsh announced the new command to his 30 plus Company line and staff officers that will fill out his administration. With the new 2020-2021 leadership now in place, we would like to take this time to congratulate all new officers of the East Meadow Fire Department. All the very best for a safe and successful year. Rest assured this department is ready to protect and serve as always because of you. We have all the confidence in the world that each of you will perform your duty to the best of your ability, and with the help of our community in strictly following mandated precautions, we will put this Pandemic behind us sooner than later. John J. O’Brien is an active Ex Chief of the East Meadow Fire Department. He is the District Supervisor of the Jericho Fire District and has over 40 years of Dispatch and Supervisory experience.

Courtesy John J. O’Brien Sr.

JameS WalSh WaS recently installed at the 70th chief of the EMFD. Chief of Department James Walsh First Assistant Chief Paul J. Kosiba Second Assistant Chief Peter S. Cheswick Third Assistant Chief Philip Fertitta Rec. Secretary John J. Priest Corr. Secretary Keith J. Hoffman Treasurer Robert G. Salvesen Sergeant-at-Arms David Paganini

engine Company #1 Captain Brian McGee First Lieutenant John A. Priest Second Lieutenant Joseph Giuffre Rec. Secretary John Malik Corr. Secretary Vincent Nocella Treasurer Michael Mongello Sr. Sergeant-at-Arms Christopher Mongello

engine Company #2 Captain Michael Moniello First Lieutenant Kurt Becker Second Lieutenant Matthew Hermann Rec. Secretary Steve Narine Corr. Secretary Angel Aracena Treasurer Raymond L’Hommedieu

engine Company #3 Captain Rocky Ritter First Lieutenant Daniel Wood Second Lieutenant Michael Wood Rec. Secretary Frank Pollicino Corr. Secretary Robert P. Grigonis Treasurer James Aspenleiter Sergeant-at-Arms Craig Euler

engine Company #4 Captain Atik K. Mehta

First Lieutenant Thomas E. Tergesen Second Lieutenant Edward Licciardo Rec. Secretary Michael Vosseler Corr. Secretary Brian Messina Treasurer Richard Cardozo Sergeant-at-Arms Vincent Lombardo

engine Company #5 Captain Sebastian Janiec First Lieutenant Robin Fitzpatrick Second Lieutenant George Choy Rec. Secretary Laura Zaso Corr. Secretary Susanne Mongello Treasurer Joseph Krilov Sergeant-at-Arms Max Solomon

ladder Company #1 Captain John J. O’Brien III First Lieutenant John M. McGee Second Lieutenant Daniel Rec. Secretary Richard Nunez Corr. Secretary Vince Wiscovitch Treasurer James Callahan

ladder Company #2 Captain Damian Chin-Sang First Lieutenant Charles McNulty Second Lieutenant William Harrison Rec. Secretary Joseph Packard Corr. Secretary Joseph Sicurella Treasurer Terence Reilly Sergeant-at-Arms Jose B. Fuentes

6155 Squad Captain Keith J. Hoffman

6199 Squad Captain Michael Strauber Lieutenant Joseph Krilov

By TIMOTHY DENTON denton@liherald.com

Courtesy PSEG Long Island

Osprey cams offer respite from Covid-19 PSEG Long Island has installed two webcams to offer a peek into the daily lives of local ospreys. Employees work throughout the year to balance PSEG Long Island’s commitment to deliver power for its customers with its commitment to being a good environmental steward, utility officials said. Providing a safe nesting area for the osprey away from vital electrical infrastructure helps PSEG Long Island maintain strong electric service reliability. Ospreys often use utility poles and transmission structures for nesting, which jeopardizes system reliability, causes outages and equipment. “The osprey have made a triumphant comeback here since the 1970s, and PSEG Long Island works to make sure that they can continue to flourish,” said Dan Eichhorn, president and CEO of PSEG Long Island. “Especially now, with so many of us remaining inside our homes for the sake of public health, these webcams offer a much-needed front-row seat to the comings and goings of these majestic

birds.” PSEG Long Island has installed 24-hour webcams at two of the nests that were relocated by line workers during the time of year when the birds are not raising young. The first shows a live feed of a nest in Oyster Bay; a second webcam has gone live from a nest in Patchogue. At the Oyster Bay location, the osprey pair returned late last month. Since the resurgence of the osprey population, PSEG Long Island and its team, with the guidance and support from environmental partners, have identified best practices for when to move a nest, and when to create alternative safer nest locations for the ospreys, utility officials said. PSEG Long Island workers have relocated two-dozen osprey nests to ensure the birds are out of harm’s way from high voltage systems. View the cameras online at https:// www.psegliny.com/wildlife/ospreycam.

ToH earmarks $40M for road improvements By J.D. FrEDA and TIMOTHY DENTON jfreda@liherald.com; tdenton@liherald.com

Town of Hempstead Supervisor Donald Clavin announced a $40 million stimulus package last week “in an effort to get people back to work once it is safe to do so.” Clavin said the money would be used for roadway improvements. With more than 1,200 miles of roadways in the town, the investment could “help workers recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, while enhancing quality-of-life and driver and pedestrian safety.” The town’s 2020 approved budget allocated roughly $150 million to fund the highway department and its various duties. Which new projects will be undertaken with the allocation remains to be determined. Some of the repair work has already

begun, according to Town Councilman Christopher Carini, whose district encompasses Wantagh and Seaford. Repaving the stretch of Beltagh Avenue between Forest Lake School and Old Mill Road began on March 23. “The road surface will be replaced, and, in addition, new concrete curbs, driveway aprons and handicap ramps will be provided,” Carini said. “Being near an elementary school, it’s an important improvement that will increase safety for residents. I look forward to its planned completion in the middle of May.” Clavin said the stimulus package represented a movement toward a return to normal life, following the Covid-19 virus. “This major capital investment symbolizes a significant step toward economic recovery … as we face the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic together,” he said.

As the wizards of finance begin to g rapple with the fallout from the Covid-19 crisis, it is clear that sales tax revenue — a major component in Nassau County’s 2020 budget — will drop off by at least 4 percent, according to a New York Association of Counties study. The study, cited in Moody’s Investors Service’s commentary on the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, estimated the loss “could punch a sizable hole of at least $50 million” in Nassau County’s 2020 budget, according to Moody’s Senior Credit Analyst Robert Weber. Because the county had already estimated a year-over-year increase of $33 million in sales tax revenue, the loss will likely be more than $80 million, or 2.5 percent of the budgeted general fund revenue for the year, Weber wrote. Citing the same NYAC study, however, Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman said the sales tax losses could be as high as $180 million, or 12.7 percent of the budget. “No one knows how long this will last or how deep the hole will be,” Schnirman said. The one bright spot was the strength of NIFA’s credit quality, Weber wrote. The authority is rated Aa1; Nassau County has a rating of A2

Courtesy Nassau Interim Finance Authority

ADAM BArskY, cHAIrMAN of the Nassau Interim Finance Authority since 2018. — still solidly investment grade. But NIFA’s higher rating will enable the county to borrow money at lower interest rates — critical in the coming recovery, Weber wrote. Finally, the 2021 budget for New York State includes provisions for restoring NIFA’s bonding authority. It also extends the Authority’s oversight of county finances to 2051 from 2025, enabling the county to continue to benefit from NIFA’s stronger credit.

Comptroller to launch study of post-Covid recovery to crisis-related expenses, the modeling is complex and challenging, he added. Schnirman said the Covid-19 crisis Nassau County Comptroller Jack more closely mirrors the economic Schirman announced late last week that downturn of 2008-09 than the aftermath his office will begin conducting an in- of Hurricane Sandy. “We need to know a depth analysis of the impact the Covid- range of potential impacts on county 19 virus has had on the counrevenues so we can ensure ty’s finances. The analysis essential government servicwill provide “a series of proes will continue unimpedjections on critical revenues, ed,” he said. so that Nassau can best preThe financial impact pare for recovery,” Schniranalysis will provide projecman said in a news release. tions of models relating to “Covid-19 is an unprecesales tax and various fees, to dented threat to the health project the county’s finanand safety of our communic i a l t re n d l i n e s i n t h e ty, as well as our fiscal months ahead, Schnirman health,” Schnir man said. said. Jack schnirman The difficulty in making any On the expense side, projections is that “we do direct purchases have not not know how long his will yet had a critical fiscal last or how deep the hole will be,” he impact relative to previous crises, said. because only a few million out of a Economically dependent sales tax “is multi-billion dollar budget have been key to plan for the immediate future” spent thus far, Schnirman explained. “It and what comes after that, Schnirman is the revenue side that will take longer said. Because revenue losses take longer to materialize and is of greater concern to materialize than potential increases at present,” he said.

By TIMOTHY DENTON tdenton@liherald.com

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

Sales tax losses ‘punch hole’ in county budget

PsEG LONG IsLAND has installed two osprey cameras — one in Oyster Bay and the other in Patchogue — so people can watch the daily lives of these birds.

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his 11 Room, 2 story home is completely renovated, inside and out. Grand open living room with gas fireplace has custom cabinetry, shelves and archway to family room. This home boasts a beautiful formal dining room, eat-in-kitchen with Italian Carrera marble countertops, Thermador professional series appliances with oversized cast iron Kohler farm sink, Monogram Advantium micro/convection oven, double electric ovens, pantry, custom cabinetry including dishwasher and refrigerator, gas heat and 175’ deep lot. The bath-

Kevin Leatherman Real Estate Broker Direct Line: (516) 362-1828 | Client Text: (516) 271-2236 Leatherman Homes 25 S Village Ave. Rockvile Centre, NY

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rooms are high-end white and red onyx, Travertine flooring, paver walkway and driveway with power gates leads to 4 car garage used as 3 with 10’ wide doors. It also has brown wave stone, custom coco Andersen windows, barrel gutters and is professionally landscaped..A legal 2 family home with highest and best use as a single-family is located in the South Incorporated Village. a prime location for being in the heart of the village, just 3 short blocks to LIRR and in the Riverside Elementary School District Near All! $1,350,000. Taxes $18,529.50 © 2018 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. All rights reserved. CENTURY 21® and the CENTURY 21 Logo are registered service marks owned by Century 21 Real Estate LLC. Century 21 Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each office is independently owned and operated. It is your responsibility to ensure that the marketing materials you choose or create are compliant with real estate and other local laws in your area.

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Interested in selling your home, buying, or investing? An experienced Realtor, former Baldwin High School Business Educator, & local resident for 35+ years, I’m an expert in helping people buy, sell, & invest in residential and commercial real estate on Long Island and in New York City. Contact me today for a free, confidential consultation and a free market appraisal.

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April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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A. Unfortunately, no onte eeper one knows the answer to your question. We’ve heard many ideas from the medical community, but nothing is certain other than keeping a distance to avoid transmission. I just learned that I now have to stay at least 6 feet away from Bengal tigers as well. The theory and observation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health is that the coronavirus lives and multiplies in cooler and drier environments, and not as well in warmer, more humid environments. The rate of death has us all concerned for our safety and health. I’m beginning to hear of the deaths of people I either knew or who are related to friends, so it’s becoming more and more alarming as it becomes more personalized. I’m not sure what’s best in your particular circumstance, because absorbent finishes such as carpet, drapes and clothing require more effort to clean than hard flooring and furniture, for example. It is speculation, however, to think that these materials hold the virus longer than 24 hours, assuming that it is capable of latching onto surfaces, but people keep sending me bulletins about how it can live on hard surfaces, like metal and plastic, for that long. We can learn from the past, and 100 years ago, when the Spanish influenza struck, the equivalent of the surgeon general told the public, in the middle of winter, to keep their windows open. He believed that getting a breath of fresh air could keep the illness at bay. I can only tell you that it would have gotten pretty cold pretty quickly indoors. That’s the reason why, even for decades afterward, steam-fed radiators were so large and overdesigned — and why people regularly kept the windows open. Just under 30 million people died worldwide, and everyone knew of someone who was laid out in the parlor of their home, since funeral parlors were overburdened. In 1920, when the pandemic had ended, Ladies Home Journal made the uplifting suggestion that the parlor, a place of bad memories and sadness in the home, be renamed the living room. Room-unit air conditioners aren’t specifically made to filter viruses, so get some fresh air and keep a safe social distance.

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I’m concerned about the coronavirus getting into my home. We live near a shopping strip where a lot of people come and go. We only use our single- room air conditioners when it’s absolutely necessary. I’m noticing that in warm-weather states, they’re still contracting the virus, so I doubt it will go away just because it’s getting warmer outside. Will my room air conditioners be enough to filter the air, and should I rely on them instead of opening my windows? We like the fresh air and need to save money by not running the units if we don’t have to.

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

Keeping the coronavirus outside

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516-569-4000 press 5, then 2

Answers

to todAy’s puzzle

opInIons

t’s good news that Congress was able to reach agreement on a financial rescue of our economy at a moment of grave national emergency. More than $2 trillion will pump oxygen into an economy that’s gasping for life. Along with the extraordinary measures the Federal Reserve has adopted to help keep businesses and financial institutions alive, the rescue legislation represents for our economy what respirators and ventilators are to those suffering from Covid-19 itself: a life-saving intervention to give them a chance to aLfonse survive. d’amato It’s particularly heartening that the legislation wasn’t held up for narrow political purposes. Partisanship has no place here. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has shown that kind of nonpartisan leadership. As he has pointed out, the coronavirus doesn’t play politics. It kills Democrats and Republicans alike. Congress didn’t play politics with the economic life of the nation, either. In a period of just three weeks, bills to help our health care system fight the virus and strengthen social safety net programs like unemployment insurance, Medicaid and

food stamps were sent to President Trump and signed into law. Language added to the rescue legislation provided greater transparency and accountability in the disbursal of $500 billion it set aside for loans to help American businesses meet their cashflow shortfalls and keep workers on their payrolls. The legislation stipulates that none of the funds can be used by corporations for stock buybacks or executive pay raises. And like the GMChrysler rescue bill passed during the Great Recession in 2008, the bill provides that once companies recover, they must repay as much of the money as possible. If more billions or even trillions of dollars are needed in the next few weeks or months to deal with this crisis, Congress should pass additional appropriations bills and send them to the president, who has signaled that he would sign whatever necessary spending legislation the lawmakers pass. That legislation should provide more help to state and local governments and our hospitals to help them meet the extraordinary costs they face. The ongoing emergency also presents Washington with a challenge to address some of the underlying problems the spreading virus has highlighted. America can no longer afford to be reliant on China

or other countries to produce drugs or medical equipment. That critical production must be brought home to America. Another thing this crisis has taught us is that the government and business can accomplish more when they cooperate in public-private partnerships. Witness how quickly our auto industry converted to the manufacture of desperately needed ventilators, and how the pharmaceutical industry is working with the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and our academic research facilities to fast-track new treatments and an eventual vaccine. Cutting bureaucratic red tape has been central to getting these things done, and this flexibility should continue to guide government as we move forward. There are other areas where our government must take a new view. Our unemployment insurance system is proving woefully outdated when it comes to handling an unprecedented flood of jobless claims. Congress should look carefully at replacing unemployment insurance with employment insurance like that offered in Germany, where, in times of economic contraction, the government pays part of workers’ wages to keep them on company payrolls. We’ll also ultimately need to do some-

awmakers cut bureaucratic red tape to get people the help they need.

thing to assure that American workers’ health insurance isn’t interrupted by business downturns, and that they have adequate paid medical leave so they can stay home when they’re sick. The emergency bills move in this direction on both fronts, and that progress should continue. Our education system needs to learn a lesson from this crisis, too. Families have been getting a crash course in distance learning. In the future, our schools should fully embrace online education to allow students to more seamlessly do their schoolwork at home. That will require making sure that all students are equipped with the computers and internet connections they need. And for our higher education system, as I’ve said before, that also means discarding an outmoded teaching model that is bankrupting students with crushing debt and inadequate preparation to enter the workforce. When colleges and universities open this fall, they will face a drastically changed landscape, and they will need to change with it. The emergency measures Congress has taken are bold, life-saving ones that can help get our economy out of this emergency. America has stepped up to battle a crisis. Let’s keep it up. Al D’Amato, a former U.S. senator from New York, is the founder of Park Strategies LLC, a public policy and business development firm. Comments about this column? ADAmato@liherald.com.

Living through Covid-19, in bits and pieces

’ve been thinking about wagon trains; I’ll tell you why later. If I remember. Yeah, a serious side effect of the pandemic is definitely attention deficit disorder. It is increasingly difficult to focus and concentrate. Composing a sentence, which requires a grabby subject followed by a lively predicate, is challenging. Putting together 750 words is work. So I gave up. This week I will share the fragments that have been ricocheting around my brain. * * * My family is now the husband and me, and we seem to have shed RandI all the amenities of kReIss civilized life and regressed to our prehistoric roles. Example: He, the hunter-gatherer, risked his life this week to raid the local market in search of baking yeast. My hero. As the tender of the hearth, I decided to bake bread. Apparently, baking bread is an activity that fires all the endorphin receptors at once. * * *

I had a nightmare that dogs could carry the virus. That scenario would have terrible implications for Lillybee and all beloved pets. Real life is tough enough; why does the imagination offer up even more horrific iterations of the catastrophe? * * * How quickly we revert to basic survival mode. My friends and I are bartering: two rubber bands for a spool of thread, matzo ball soup for homemade muffins, hand sanitizer for a printer cartridge. * * * After years of railing against the dangers of too much screen time, my eyeballs are basically falling out of my head from looking at screens all day, my phone, my computer and my iPad all vying for my attention. * * * My husband has a bra on his face. It’s mine, and it’s nothing weird; we’re just following orders. We saw a website that explained how to make two masks from one bra, so I made the ultimate sacrifice and we now have two “brasks.” * * * There’s something about a global pandemic that flushes people out of hiding. I’ve been contacted by two long-lost rela-

tives, one I haven’t seen for 19 years and the other I haven’t seen for 27. They didn’t care if I was dead or alive for decades; now, suddenly, they want to say hello. * * * I’ve learned something about myself during this siege. I’ve always been fond of social distancing. I don’t mind time alone, and I don’t need to fill it up with phone calls or constant Zooming gettogethers. I’m composing a book about cooking through Covid-19 called “The Last Supper?” Everyone in the family is required to submit recipes and photos. I’ll trade you a copy for 5 Ziploc bags. * * * Our Seder was a table for two. We didn’t want to miss the fun part, so we hid the matzo (a Passover tradition) from Lillybee. She never found it, although it was hiding in plain sight on the carpet. This proves for all time that matzo is more cardboard than food. Lillybee can sniff out a peanut across the room, but matzo, not so much. * * * I stop in my tracks three or four times a day because I can’t believe something I’m reading or seeing in the news. There was the mother whose daughter had just died in her arms after contracting Covid-

19 while working in a nursing home. She had no protective gown. There were no masks. Then there was the doctor, a Kuwaiti refugee, who traveled on his own dime and at his own risk to work alongside the doctors in New York. He looked into the camera and said, “Don’t worry. We’re here. We’ll take care of you.” * * * I miss my kids and my grandkids, and I have no plans to see them. All these open-ended questions of contagion and immunity and pressing mortality preclude any planning at all. Enter the wagon train, last night’s epiphany. Our kids are out West. We won’t fly or drive in the foreseeable future. We aren’t great drivers, so an RV is out of the question. The obvious solution is to buy a wagon and a horse and rumble across the country in a convoy with other like-minded travelers. It could be OK. We could social distance. The only problem I can foresee is hitting the Rockies just as winter sets in. Come November we could get stuck in Donner Pass, and we all know how that ends. Copyright 2020 Randi Kreiss. Randi can be reached at randik3@aol.com.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

Congress steps up to battle the coronavirus crisis

Herald editorial

East Meadow

April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

HERALD

Established 2001 Incorporating: Meadowbrook Times 1963-2001 East Meadow Beacon 1950-2020 brian stieglitz Editor audrey cohen robert cummings Advertising Account Executives office 2 Endo Boulevard Garden City, NY 11530 Phone: (516) 569-4000 Fax: (516) 569-4942 Web: www.liherald.com E-mail: emeadoweditor@liherald.com Copyright © 2020 Richner Communications, Inc.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS Robert Richner Edith Richner Publishers, 1964-1987 ■ clifford richner stuart richner Publishers michael bologna Vice President - Operations

Students, educators need to know what’s next

ew York City Mayor Bill de Blasio probably overstepped his authority when he decided late last Friday that he would keep the city’s 1,800 public schools closed through June, and he certainly bungled the decision politically. For starters, he didn’t tell Gov. Andrew Cuomo first — but he did tell Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, according to The New York Times. And when de Blasio did inform the governor, he did so by text. That led Cuomo to argue Saturday that only he has the authority to make such a decision, and he wanted to take a coordinated regional approach to school closings. Nassau County Executive Laura Curran immediately backed Cuomo, saying

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she, too, would like to see a regional approach. We agree. Lost in all the rhetoric, however, was an important point that de Blasio was making: He wanted to provide greater certainty to students, educators and parents about what they could expect over the next two and a half months. The governor has taken a wait-and-see approach to school closings, shutting them down two weeks at a time. We understand the need for such an approach. We shouldn’t be hasty in deciding to close the schools. Everyone wants children back in the classroom as soon as possible. That approach, however, leaves all parties involved in limbo, wondering what will come next. What educators and children need is certainty.

Don’t wait — fill in your census forms

pril 1, Census Day, came and went, but if you didn’t fill in your census forms, it isn’t too late to do so, and we urge you to complete them. With the coronavirus battering New York in every conceivable way — including financially — the state could use all the federal financial help it can get. The federal government uses census data to determine the number of representatives states have in the U.S. House of Representatives. The 435 House seats are apportioned based on the population of each state. The larger its population, the more seats a state receives — and the greater the voice it has in federal decisionmaking. The federal government also uses census data to distribute funding for pro-

grams like Medicare and Medicaid. In fact, a 2015 paper by the U.S. Census Bureau found that 132 federal programs used census data to distribute more than $675 billion in funds that year. Here’s the thing: If a state is underrepresented in the decadal census, then it receives fewer representatives and less federal funding than it deserves, and New York, by many accounts, is typically undercounted in the census. Now, not later, is the time to go online and fill in the census, or fill out the paper census you received in the mail and send it in. If you don’t, federal workers will swing by your home looking to count you and everyone who lives there. At a time like this, when a potentially deadly virus has spread among us, census workers shouldn’t have to do that when it

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Right now, there is no coordinated approach to how schools should handle the state’s curricula, and so, statewide, we have a hodgepodge of approaches. Some districts are fully online, with regular teaching schedules. Others, citing privacy concerns, are not teaching remotely, but rather are emailing students their assignments. Many students — particularly those in low-income areas — don’t have computers and internet connections. The state must make a decision soon about the fate of this school year, and if the schools are to remain closed through June, there should be one plan for all that ensures children will continue learning during this trying time.

letters

Spring brings signs of hope To the Editor: New Yorkers are celebrating the arrival of spring differently this year and in their own way. Although we come from different faiths, the season brings a message of resilience, renewal and hope. Spring is a metaphor for positive change and rebirth. We can all agree that hope is more important now than it has been at perhaps any moment in the recent past. We are all facing unprecedented challenges and anxiety for ourselves and our loved ones. At this moment, our faith, our family and our friendships are more important than ever. This is the time for us to try to be the best partners, parents, siblings, friends and neighbors that we can be. As we take the time for spiritual reflection, consider what brings us together. The things we have in common, our shared love of family and community, are what will carry us forward. I wish every-

takes only 10 minutes or so to fill out the forms online. According to the Census Bureau, you should be counted where you are living and sleeping most of the time as of April 1. If you’re responding for your home, count everyone who lives and sleeps there most of the time. That includes young children, foster children, roommates, and any family members or friends who are living with you, even temporarily. If someone is staying with you because of the Covid-19 pandemic, however, they should be counted where they usually live. This includes college students, who should still be counted at school, even if they’re home early. If they live in student housing, the college will count them. If they live off campus, they should respond for their offcampus addresses.

opiNioNs

ewly released data highlight major racial disparities in deaths from Covid-19, and it’s not surprising. It’s a reflection of the structural racism that has created an unequal foundation for so many aspects of life in America, including widely documented, underlying health disparities for African-American and Latinx people. It should move us to examine structural racism more closely, illuminate its impacts, and redouble our efforts to eliminate it. According to data released by the City of New eLaiNe York, black and Gross Latinx people are dying of coronavirus at twice the rate of white people. In New York state, excluding New York City, blacks account for 18 percent of deaths, despite comprising just 9 percent of the population. Fourteen percent of the deaths are Latinx people, who make up 11 percent of the population. In Michigan, according to The Washing Post, African-Americans account for 33 percent of Covid-19 cases and roughly 40 percent of deaths, despite comprising only

14 percent of the population. In Chicago, according to The New York Times, African-Americans account for more than half of those who have tested positive and 72 percent of virus-related fatalities, even though they make up a little less than a third of the population. Beneath these numbers are underlying health disparities for African-Americans and Latinx people. It is those underlying health problems that land people in the hospital and that lead to more deaths from the virus. Higher rates of infection for African-Americans are likely exacerbated by such factors as whether they can work from home, whether they work in “essential” services, whether they have routine access to health care, and how quickly they can get that care, among others. A study by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer found that 75 percent of so-called front-line workers in the city — grocery clerks, bus and train operators, custodians and child-care workers — are minorities. Those circumstances are a function of structural racism, not a function of race, which is a social construct. In considering these racial disparities, we shouldn’t confuse the two. We shouldn’t give credence to the idea that there is something inherently

different about African-American or Latinx people that makes them have higher death rates — other than the circumstances of structural racism. What we should focus on is this: How do we address the racism that has caused and continues to cause health and other disparities? That’s the question that rightly examines the impediments to racial equity that are leading to these racial differences in Covid-19 deaths. Structural racism is partly a function of conditions that are baked into our society: the effects of slavery, Jim Crow, redlining and other historic conditions. But it is also partly a function of ongoing activities. ERASE Racism’s own research, and a recent landmark investigation by Newsday, evidenced widespread, contemporary racial discrimination in real estate practices on Long Island, for instance. That discrimination continues to steer black and Latinx people to less-integrated communities with fewer resources, and thus to lessintegrated schools with fewer resources. Anecdotal evidence already identifies disparities in students’ access to distance learning. Some schools send students home with laptops, for instance, while others do not. Some schools provide students

hreequarters of the city’s nonemergency frontline workers are minorities.

Letters one a healthy gift of spring. THoMAS DINAPoLI New York state comptroller

Objects to town budget practices To the Editor: Covid-19 has unleashed a catastrophic financial crisis. our economy is shuttered, and it is uncertain when it will rebound. Leaders must make every effort to retain workers, but also to tighten spending. Shockingly, as municipalities across the country are doing just that, Supervisor Don Clavin and the Town of Hempstead Board gave $770,000 in promotions, raises and new jobs for party favorites on March 30. With unemployment in New York soaring 360 percent and more than 10 million Americans suddenly left jobless, with no income or health insurance, last week it was Christmastime in Hempstead. Clavin and Council members Anthony D’Esposito, Dennis Dunne, Tom Muscarella, Bruce Blakeman, Chris Carini and Dorothy Goosby gave away almost $1 million in taxpayer dollars to friends and family while they thought no one was looking. In an empty, debate-free meeting lasting 10 minutes, they doled out political favors while hardworking residents wondered how they would pay their bills. As 450,000 New Yorkers lined up for initial unemployment assistance, Clavin’s cronies, Hempstead GoP club leaders and their children lined up at Town Hall to collect unbudgeted raises and promotions.

t’s with video-based instruction, while others to give them packets of material. New York cu state has left the details of remote learning gra to individual school districts, and that just amplifies the differences between the well- $2 trilli my tha resourced schools and those with fewer Alo resources. Again, structural racism is the determi- sures t help ke nant. The overwhelming percentage of black and Latinx students are in segregated and less-resourced schools, and are at a disadvantage now and, most important, in the fall, when they will most likely return to school behind their peers and the grade level standards. In 2018, ERASE Racism launched an ongoing regionwide public initiative called How Do We Build a Just Long Island? That’s exactly how we should approach this problem: How do we look at this data and together seek a just America — an America of shared action to disassemble structural racism. The coronavirus is creating a new future. Let’s create a future together that wasn’t does not accept the idea that these dispari- poses. In N ties are unchangeable. Let’s take advantage of the light that Covid-19 is shedding shown on our society and come together to reflect ship. A that light onto a path to justice. It’s time to rus doe and Re work together as a nation and root out Con structural racism for good. econom period Elaine Gross is president of the Long our he Island-based ERASE Racism. strengt unemp

Framework by Christina Daly

Compounding this outrageous and irresponsible betrayal was the March 30 vote to reduce the town’s fund balance by more than 50 percent. The fund is a rainy-day reserve to see the town through difficult times. Years of Nassau GoP patronage and irresponsible hiring practices, aggravated further by last week’s largesse, have led a financial structure in which payroll and related costs exceed 60 percent of the town’s budget. Couple this with the town’s debt burden, the new fund balance would not be sufficient to cover just two months of required payroll and debt service, not to mention utilities and other important expenses. At this meeting, there was no mention of how any of this might harm the unconnected rank and file. No one mentioned that the current town comptroller inflated revenue projections for 2020 — a concern that I raised during the budget process before Covid-19 hit. There was also no mention of shrinking mortgage recording tax fees, permit fees, recreation fees, a potential increase in health and pension costs, and potential decreases in utility payments from cash-strapped consumers. None mentioned how all of this might impact the town’s bond rating. This matters to residents, because when our bond ratings plummet, town costs rise, leaving fewer dollars for infrastructure and services. Not one board member mentioned Hempstead residents’ current pain before giving away their money. There was no voice of dissent speaking up for the rest of us. LAuRA GILLEN Rockville Centre Gillen was Town of Hempstead supervisor from 2018-19. Clavin, then the town tax collector, defeated her last November.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 16, 2020

No surprise: More blacks and Latinos are dying of Covid-19

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UNFORTUNATELY, ORTHOPEDIC PAIN DOESN’T STOP IN A CRISIS.

With our new on-call only model, neither does the opportunity to receive care. Balancing the need to be there for our patients with the health and safety of our staff and community, we’re temporarily becoming an “on-call” practice – offering both in-person and telehealth visits – for those experiencing orthopedic pain. If you think you have an orthopedic issue that can’t wait, call Orlin & Cohen and a member of our team will work with you to assess whether you need immediate attention. It’s a new, creative approach to our practice: Because in this crisis, protecting each other should be everyone’s top priority.

In light of this broad accessibility to our services and for everyone’s safety, we are suspending our Merrick after-hours and weekend walk-in clinic for the duration of the crisis.

On-call orthopedic care by appointment only! Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday & Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Call for your care needs assessment:

Nassau: 516-536-2800 Suffolk: 631-706-2800

Stay safe!

orlincohen.com Rockville Centre Lynbrook Merrick Cedarhurst Garden City Massapequa Woodbury Melville Bohemia Smithtown Port Jefferson Riverhead Southampton Port Jefferson Station

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April 16, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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