_________________ WANTAGH ________________
your HEALTH body / mind / fitness
and MAY 18, 2023
HERALD
with a focus on:
looK INsIde
Your Health Mental Health
Vol. 71 No. 21
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What you can do with library cards
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MAY 18 - 24, 2023
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Lifelong friends named top two Katherine Killian, Nora Toscano lead Wantagh’s Class of 2023 By MIcHAel MAlAsZcZYK mmalaszczyk@liherald.com
Courtesy Wantagh Public Schools
WANTAgH HIgH scHool seniors Katherine Killian, left, and Nora Toscano are the valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively, of the class of 2023.
Nearly 13 years ago, Katherine Killian and Nora Toscano became friends in kindergarten at Wantagh’s Forest Lake Elementary School. Now they w i l l l e a d Wa n t a g h H i g h School’s Class of 2023 — Killian as valedictorian and Toscano as salutatorian. “It’s a full-circle moment,” Killian said. “We started out in Miss Adams’ kindergarten class, and now we’re both seniors and in many of the same classes and courses. It’s
just surreal.” The pair finished academically within decimal points of each other — Killian’s grade point average was 108.56 and Toscano’s was 108.2. They both tried hard not to think about receiving the honor, and instead focused on their studies. They attended elementary school and middle school together before arriving at Wantagh High, where they became known as the “dynamic duo,” as described by Principal Paul Guzzone. Both Killian, Continued on page 2
Town of Hempstead officials fuming over Liberty plan 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 hikes are approved. Some 113,000 residents between the Five Towns and Seaford receive private water — sometimes paying up to 1,300 percent more for it 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 lowincome 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 county leg-
islator and co-director of Long Island Clean Air Water & Soil, or CAWS, 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 p r ivat e w at e r m o n o p o ly, ” Denenberg said. Private water Continued on page 4