your HEALTH body / mind / fitness
and MAY 18, 2023
with a focus on:
__________________ Merrick _________________
HERALD
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VOL. 26 nO. 21
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MAY 18 - 24, 2023
100 years of Camp Avenue From 1923 to 2023, North Merrick School District reflects on its history By JORdAn VALLOne jvallone@liherald.com
Tim Baker/Herald
CAMp AVenue sCHOOL, in North Merrick, celebrated its centennial at a special celebration on May 12. Triton and Aris Cimino, both in third grade, couldn’t contain their excitement as they walked through the 100th anniversary balloon display.
It’s not every day that an elementary school gets to celebrate a centennial, but that was the case at Camp Avenue School in the North Merrick School District last week. T hose f amiliar with the 100-year-old building, along with officials from North Merrick schools, reflected on Camp Avenue’s history and expressed confidence that it woul dcontinue on a path to a bright future and another 100 years of quality education.
The North Merrick School District, established in 1921, was originally known as the Union Free School District No. 29. In its first official school year, the district had no formal school building. Classes were held in places like a chapel on Richard Avenue and at the old campgrounds, a popular meeting place and living community for the Methodist Church, dating back to the 1860s. Camp Avenue School was completed in 1923, serving as the district’s first school building, and three additional Continued on page 8
Liberty seeks water rate hike, angering advocates, officials 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. S o m e 1 1 3 , 0 0 0 re s i d e n t s 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 arrearage management programs, and a fee-free program for electronic payment of Liberty NYW invoices,” according to the filing. The company added that the rate hike would help cover the cost of 17 new jobs that were created at its Merrick offices, as well as “the implementation of a low-income program” to provide aid to certain customers. Customers in the Lynbrook service area, also referred to as Service Area 1, could see an $18.32 increase per month in their water bills. This service area includes dozens of surrounding communities. In the Merrick service area, which
encompasses Bellmore, Wantagh, Seaford, Massapequa and parts of Levittown, customers’ monthly bills are projected to increase by $15.74. The fight for public water in several Town of Hempstead communities has been a long and challenging one. Dave Denenberg, a former Nassau County legislator and co-director
of Long Island Clean Air Water & Soil, or LICAWS, an advocacy group that has been fighting for the cause, said Liberty’s request is not surprising. “History keeps repeating itself for residents abused by a private water monopoly,” Denenberg said. Private water companies, he added, “always promise Continued on page 10