Town’s 9/11 Memorial Ceremony To Be Held On September 7

All residents, their families and friends are invited to attend the town’s 9/11 Memorial Ceremony to honor the memory of those lost on Sept. 11, 2001. The Town of Oyster Bay 9/11 Memorial Ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 7, beginning at 7 p.m. at Tobay Beach.

“The town’s September 11 memorial is situated on the bayside of Tobay Beach, where there is a direct line of sight to where the Twin Towers once stood,” Supervisor John Venditto said. “It provides a serene and peaceful surrounding, making it a fitting backdrop for a place of remembrance.”

Massapequa Rallies To Upstate Cause

Charity work delivers clothes, food and books to little Pratsville

It has been over a year since Hurricane Irene paid an inhospitable visit to Long Island, causing, at the worst, inconveniences that lasted no longer than a week at most.

Other portions of New York State had it far worse, especially rural counties upstate. For the past year, the Massapequa spirit has been at its best, performing yeoman-like charity efforts to the small town of Pratsville.

Court: MTA Payroll Tax Unconstitutional

Transportation authority to appeal decision

The Metropolitan Transit Authority stands to lose about $1.5 billion in revenue per year after a New York State Supreme Court judge ruled on Wednesday, Aug. 22 that the MTA payroll tax is unconstitutional. The MTA plans to appeal the decision made by Judge R. Bruce Cozzens Jr., according to a released statement last week.

This didn’t stop local officials from calling the ruling a “win for taxpayers” during a press conference last Thursday. Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano, along with numerous members of local and state government, were out in full force to applaud the decision, and plead to the powers that be to not grant a successful MTA appeal.

Administrators Set To Start New Posts

Massapequa SD prepares for school year

As the new school year approaches, the Massapequa School District promoted three staff members to existing administrative posts and filled two administrative positions.

Ms. Diana Haanraadts was appointed assistant to the superintendent for Instructional Support and General Administration.  She was formerly the principal of Unqua Elementary School and has served as acting assistant to the superintendent during the 2011-12 school year. 

More Charges For Roth

DA’s office: Arrest made for violating an order of protection

On Thursday, Aug. 16, Massapequa resident Raymond Roth faced an additional charge in the conspiracy case that has made the national news. Roth was arraigned on that date after being arrested on Wednesday, Aug. 15 and charged with criminal contempt in the second degree for violating an order of protection.

The Nassau County District Attorney’s office said that bail was set in the amount of $10,000 cash or bond. The district attorney’s office asked for bail of $1 million. According to the criminal complaint issued by the district attorney’s office, Roth violated a county court order of protection by attempting communications with a person that he had been ordered to refrain from doing so with. Roth is due back in court on Sept. 11.

Bizarre Conspiracy Plot Unravels

Massapequa men arrested on insurance fraud charges

Email messages uncovered by the wife of Raymond Roth untangled one of the more bizarre criminal attempts to come out of Long Island in recent years.

On Wednesday, Aug. 15 Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced the arrest of Roth, a Massapequa resident, on counts of insurance fraud, conspiracy and falsely reporting an incident. This follows the Aug. 6 arrest of Roth’s son, Jonathan, also of Massapequa, on those same charges, plus that of making a punishable false written statement.

Saladino Faces GOP Primary Challenge

Richard Young qualifies for Sept. 13 contest

For the past 12 years, Joseph Saladino has represented the Massapequa area in the New York State Assembly. But this year, the lines of the 12th Assembly District have been redrawn to include parts of Suffolk County that previously weren’t in Saladino’s district.

And so, as sometimes is the case with new districts, the assemblyman is facing a challenger in the Sept. 13 Republican Party primary. Richard Young, a retired sergeant with the New York City police department and a West Islip attorney, has garnered enough signatures to make the ballot for the Sept. 13 race. West Islip is a village that falls within the boundaries of the current district.

Meeting To Discuss Cell Tower Installation

Village hopes also to resolve block party situation

With its annual Independence Day Parade and more great performances from Little League squads, it’s been a busy summer in the Village of Massapequa Park.

Summer still has another long, hot month ahead and in the village that will include several key topics of conversations at village hall meetings.

Sons Of Italy-Columbus Lodge #2143 Scholarship Winners

Sons of Italy-Columbus Lodge #2143 (“CL”) First Vice President and Scholarship Chairman Ed Bochynski recently hosted the lodge’s annual scholarship ceremony.

Several Massaspequa High School students were honored, including Daniele Giorgio who received the Excellence in Italian Language Award, Nicholas Barbieri, who received the High Scholastic Achievement Award, Stephanie Gillam who received the Zabbia Memorial Award and Jake Spero who received a general scholarship.

Weekend Reunion For The Class Of ‘77

Taking a pub crawl down Park Boulevard

Massapequa is famous for folks like Alex Baldwin, Jerry Seinfeld and Bobby Nelson.  And even though Berner High School is no more, the Class of 1977 recently celebrated their 35th high school reunion with a Pub Crawl on Friday night before moving onto a fun-filled Picnic at Brady Park.  It’s not often an alumni group like this one continues to come up with reasons to reconnect and rekindle old friendships.

While it wasn’t the sanctioned 40th year reunion, Julie Freud-Cappelluzzo, classmate and organizer of this event, had the itch for old high school buddies and didn’t want to wait another five years. Cappelluzzo thought, “what if we host a mini 35th reunion by having a Pub Crawl down memory lane or better yet, Park Boulevard with a picnic day after at Brady Park?”