US Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-Queens/LI) played Santa by securing and delivering holiday gifts-in the form of millions of dollars-to numerous Long Island projects and community organizations throughout Nassau and Suffolk counties. They include the following:

* $350,000 for the Town of North Hempstead to acquire more land along the Hempstead Harbor Shoreline Trail. This additional four acre panel-consisting of a small bay and beach, wetland vegetation and non-motorized boat access-is located within the cove section of the trail and is to run along the westerly shoreline of Hempstead Harbor from Bar Beach in Port Washington to the Village of Flower Hill. The Hempstead Harbor Shoreline Trail-a natural resource providing public access to the harbor, ecological benefits to Long Island Sound and recreational opportunities-is almost entirely in public ownership with the exception of three parcels, two after the acquisition of this one. Although approved for development, the landowner recently agreed to sell this critical parcel to the Town of North Hempstead to preserve and restore the precious resource.

The project will be funded by a National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) grant Ackerman and the Long Island Congressional Delegation obtained under the Commerce, Justice and State Department appropriations bill, recently signed by President Bush. Hempstead Harbor has been designated by the NY Department of State as a Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat. Its intertidal marsh habitats represent the largest and most productive marshes along the north shore of Nassau County.

* $800,000 in federal funds for the US Army Corps of Engineers to continue developing beach erosion solutions and flood prevention methods in the Nassau County Village of Bayville and the Suffolk Village of Asharoken. The allocation appropriates $400,000 for each community. A study of the erosion and flooding was launched a year after the two areas suffered severe storm damage from the devastating Nor'easter of 1992. The results of the study recommended a buried seawall and limited beach nourishment in Asharoken and a buried seawall and a set back flood wall with interior drainage for Bayville. But due to the complexity of the problem and the lack of hard data, the corps determined that a feasibility study with greater detail was necessary to formulate the most appropriate plan for any proposed storm damage protection project. The money, which Ackerman attached to the Energy and Water appropriations bill, was this month signed into law by President Bush.

* $500,000 for Bias Help of Long Island, a Huntington-based, nonprofit organization dedicated to monitoring and combating bias crimes and hate-related harassment in Nassau and Suffolk counties. The funds will be used to provide assistance to victims, families and local communities affected by hate crimes as well as to conduct workshops that teach tolerance, fight hate and combat school violence. Incorporated in 1997, Bias Help in 2000, logged more than 250 hotline calls, provided support services to more than 48 bias crime victims and reached more than 24,000 Long Islanders with their educational programs designed to promote nonviolence. Bias Help has put together a well-designed and comprehensive proposal to expand and enhance its innovative services throughout the region. The allocation, which Ackerman secured under the Commerce, Justice and State Department appropriations bill, was approved this month by President Bush.

* $47,822,000 for the operation and maintenance of the US Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point including $13,000,000 for capital improvements of the facility. Repairs include several to be determined maintenance and renovation projects to the base's infrastructure as well as to the Kings Pointer, the academy's training vessel. The facility's budget and the Ackerman-secured improvement funds, were part of the Commerce, Justice and State Department Appropriations bill. The measure has been signed by President Bush.

* $125,000 for arts and culture programs for at-risk youth at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University. Under the funding, the facility and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City will collaborate on a program to help elementary and secondary, at-risk students participate in after-school and summer programs in dance, theater, music, painting, sculpture and architecture. These activities are designed to serve as alternatives to illegal and destructive activities that confront children during these vulnerable periods of time. The appropriation allows the Tilles Center to offer joint programs from Lincoln Center to nine public schools on Long Island during 2002, assisting a total of 2,500 students. Ultimately, it's hoped the program will expand to schools throughout New York State. Ackerman secured the allocation from the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention program within the Commerce, Justice, State Appropriations bill which was recently signed by President Bush.

* $20,000 for the Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington to support the touring exhibition "Out of the Shadows: Helen Torr: A Retrospective." The exhibit is scheduled for later in 2002. The grant was obtained by the congressman from the National Endowment for the Arts.

* $10,000 for Huntington's New Community Cinema to support the 2002 Weekend Mini-Focus Series: "A Journey Across Four Continents." The financing also obtained by Ackerman, is being made available through a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

"I am pleased that Long Island continues to receive its fair share of tax dollars back from Washington" Ackerman said. "These are indeed nice gifts from DC to Long Island as we celebrate the holiday's and enter the new year."