_______ Lynbrook/east rockaway ______
your HEALTH body / mind / fitness
and MAY 18, 2023
HERALD Also serving Bay Park
with a focus on:
looK INsIde
Your Health Mental Health
Vol. 30 No. 21
Amazing student leaders honored
lynbrook tennis back in playoffs
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MAY 18 - 24, 2023
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Lynbrook, E.R. budgets pass Aragona, Pelleschi, Marcus, Cilluffo and Lonergan all win and prepares for the upcoming loss of federal and state Covid-19 financial support. The plan has a Lynbrook’s education budget tax levy limit of 2.6 percent, or passed for the upcoming aca- $75 million. demic year, and it wasn’t even The budget is expected to close. allow Lynbrook educators to proMore than 1,200 vide courses in AP votes were cast in pre-calculus, busifavor of the $101.8 ness law, and fifthmillion plan, repregrade health. It also senting 77 percent of fully integrates prothe vote. grams that had preEast Rockaway’s viously depended on $43.9 million educastate aid, including tion budget passed Owl Success Acadeas well, with 69 permy. cent of the vote. Other priorities East Rockaway’s include an elementabudget is a little ry school lunch promore than 3 percent gram and increased higher than last funding for assemyear’s, and includes blies and field trip PAUl lYNcH a tax levy of just transportation. under 2 percent. The incoming Lynbrook The margin of budget will allow the superintendent victory for the Lyndistrict to provide brook budget courses like finanimpressed Paul cial algebra, Advanced Place- Lynch, who is succeeding Melisment research, and Spanish 3 sa Burak as Lynbrook superinHeritage. tendent in June: “77 percent, Other budget items would that’s just incredible. The confifund a school counselor, a full- dence the community has in our time social worker, an elementa- school system is just overwhelmry special education teacher and ing.” flag football. The three Lynbrook school Lynbrook’s budget is nearly board seats were won by incum$5 million more than this year’s, Continued on page 16
by NIcole ForMIsANo nformisano@liherald.com
t
Herald file photo
lIbertY UtIlItIes, wHIcH provides drinking water to several South Shore communities, is proposing a rate increase. Advocacy groups fighting for a public takeover of companies like Liberty are opposed to the increase — and putting pressure on the South Nassau Water Authority to facilitate takeover efforts.
‘Dramatic’ rate hike sought Hempstead officials are fuming over proposal by JordAN VAlloNe jvallone@liherald.com
More than 100,000 customers across Nassau County’s South Shore communities may face a steep increase in their private water bills if Liberty Utilities’ planned rate hike is approved. Some 113,000 residents between the Five Towns and Seaford receive private water — sometimes paying up to 1,300 percent more for water than Town of Hempstead Water Department customers. Liberty Utilities, which took over operations from New York American Water in January of 2022, filed a notice with the New York
State Public Service Commission on May 5, seeking a cumulative 34.2 percent rate hike across Nassau County. When Liberty purchased the water company, it agreed to a two-year rate freeze, as previously reported in the Herald. If approved by the state, the proposed rate increases of 42 percent and 39 percent in the Merrick and Lynbrook service areas, respectively, would take effect next year. Liberty is seeking the increase to offset the cost of “necessary plant investments, high tax burdens, the installation of advanced metering infrastructure, proposed low-income and Continued on page 18
he confidence the community has in our school system is just overwhelming.