Merrick
HERALD Students head back to school
Merokeans honor 9/11 heroes
Calhoun H.S. senior honored
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Vol. 23 No. 38
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SEPTEMBER 17 - 23, 2020
Charles Street neighbors petition BOE this pandemic. Throughout the rest of the day there may be incidental use of the entrance.” A recent decision by the MerAccording to Superintendent rick Board of Education to Dr. Dominick Palma, the board reopen a gate on Charles Street believed this year was “the perbehind Levy-Lakeside Elementa- fect time” to reopen the Charles ry School for vehicStreet gate, since ular traf fic has Levy-Lakeside raised concer n underwent conamong residents struction over the who live on the summer. In addidead-end block, tion to new asphalt and who say they and sidewalks, its were notified of the parking lots were decision after the redesigned to fact. i m p rove t r a f f i c A note on the flow during arrival district’s website and dismissal. states that the gate A guardrail that — which separates once stood behind the end of Charles TiM aNdERSoN the g ate in the Street from the dis- Charles Street resident parking lot was trict’s administraalso removed “to tive parking lot at make it feasible for Levy-Lakeside — will remain emergency vehicles to enter open during school days to ease from Charles Street,” Palma congestion on Babylon Road, the said. “For a very long time, resimain outlet by which students dents of Babylon Road have are dropped off and picked up. asked the district to relieve pres“We anticipate that this sure there, and the board entrance [on Charles Street] will thought reopening the gate was a be used by two grade levels of reasonable idea.” families during arrival and disMore than 80 neighbors on missal,” the note reads. “It will Charles and surrounding streets also help reduce the number of are now petitioning to have the students entering through the front doors, a precaution during Continued on page 10
By alySSa SEidMaN aseidman@liherald.com
i
t’s just chaotic. There’s no crossing guards, nobody directing traffic — it’s a free-for-all.
Alyssa Seidman/Herald Life
BEllMoRE RESidENTS THoMaS Stoerger and Juliette Kealy, both 21, were some of the first students to enroll at the Rock Underground when it opened on Bedford Avenue 10 years ago. Now they are the ones teaching the next generation of musicians.
Rock Underground still rockin’ By alySSa SEidMaN aseidman@liherald.com
It’s been 10 years since lifelong musician Paul Casanova — armed with a roll of painter’s tape — mapped out the blueprint for a music school in an empty 2,500-square-foot storefront in Bellmore Village, but the Rock Underg round’s fiery lo go and “Dazed and Confused” décor clearly suggests that it “isn’t your typical music school,” Juliette Kealy said.
At 10, Kealy signed up for piano lessons at the Rock, and within a month she wanted to learn how to play guitar and drums, too. “Once you start going here, you pick up every instrument,” she said. “It’s just that type of environment.” Now, at 21, Kealy and other longtime students are becoming the teachers at the music school, setting a tone to keep it rocking for the next 10 years.
The Rock’s rumblings Casanova was a former music director at the School of Rock in Port Washington, but when the company went corporate in 2010, he decided to open his own school. Having worn many hats in the music industry — including booking bands for CMJ Holdings Corp. and writing a song on the “Empire Records” soundtrack — he was inspired to pursue music education. Continued on page 3