Syosset Board Members Argue Over Procedure

Meeting gets heated when new trustee Lafazan tries to bring motion to the floor

Things were definitely not business as usual at the Monday, Aug. 6 Syosset Central School District School Board meeting, as arguments over proper procedure stalled progress for nearly half an hour. The meeting started out on a festive note, with performers from the summer stock performance of Annie Jr. lighting up the stage with their renditions of old favorites like Tomorrow and It’s The Hard Knock Life, but the tone changed quickly once the children (and many of their parents) had left the meeting.

On a positive note, during the report of the Superintendent, Dr. Carol Hankin revealed that while fiscal advisors stated that the district’s Tax Anticipation Notes (TANS) interest rate for last year was the lowest they had ever seen, the interest for 2012-13 is even lower: 0.217 percent. According to Hankin, chairman of the board of the New York Municipal Advisors Corporation Bob Kerr stated that Syosset received the lowest interest rate he has ever seen for a school district TAN in over 30 years of business.

It’s A Nice Day For A … Free Wedding

Viana Hotel & Spa offering ceremony, honeymoon for veteran on Nov. 11

This Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11, Westbury’s Viana Hotel & Spa is giving back to one lucky veteran in love.

In collaboration with the Nassau County Veterans Service Agency, the Village of Westbury and the Westbury-Carle Place Chamber of Commerce, Viana, a recently constructed small luxury hotel featuring a number of green initiatives located at 3998 Brush Hollow Road, will host a complimentary wedding ceremony – and provide accommodations for a honeymoon – to one active duty or retired service member (who has been honorably discharged) living here in Nassau County.

Steve Israel, Mangano Combat Medicaid Fraud

‘At least 50 percent of recovered funds would go to counties and localities’

On Friday, July 27, Congressman Steve Israel joined Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano to announce federal legislation to make it easier for counties to prosecute Medicaid fraud, potentially saving taxpayers billions of dollars in wasted funds. Israel’s legislation would allow states to apply for grant money to support the local expenses associated with Medicaid fraud investigations and would require at least 50 percent of the funds recovered go to counties and localities.

Medicaid is the largest source of funding for medical and health-related services for people below a certain income level, jointly funded by the state and federal governments. Due to the program’s complexity and size, it is susceptible to fraud. In 2010 alone, the U.S. Government Accountability Office estimated $22 billion was lost to Medicaid waste, fraud, abuse, and improper payments nationally. Medicaid currently costs Nassau County $248 million a year.

TOB Holds Grand Opening For Compressed Natural Gas Station

New Syosset fueling station will reduce town’s petroleum usage by an estimated 264,000 gallons per year

Garbage trucks don’t usually get a whole lot of respect, but maybe it’s time they did; with the switch from vehicles that run on gasoline to clean-burning compressed natural gas, Town of Oyster Bay sanitation trucks will now produce 27 percent fewer greenhouse emissions than comparable models, an estimated 67,130 pounds of identifiable pollutants will be reduced annually, and the town’s petroleum usage will be reduced by an estimated 264,000 gallons per year.

“Who would have ever thought in this day and age that the cleanest vehicles on our roads in the Town of Oyster Bay would be our sanitation vehicles?” said Town Clerk Steve Labriola at the ribbon cutting for the new CNG fueling facility in Syosset on Wednesday, July 25. “It really is quite an accomplishment to see these hulking, municipal vehicles going down our streets with almost zero emissions,” he continued.

Mangano Outlines Budget Reductions

Claims to balance budget without property tax increase

Recently, Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos announced that the county’s unaudited 2011 budget deficit would reach $50.4 million. Maragos blamed the gap on failures to approve pending bonding legislation.

Maragos also said that County Executive Edward P. Mangano would be announcing a fresh round of budget reductions. And that is what happened at a press conference on Monday, July 23. There, Mangano, along with Maragos and Presiding Officer Peter J. Schmitt (R – Massapequa) outlined a $45 million deficit reduction plan, one that the county executive said would balance the budget without raising property taxes.

Nassau County Museum Of Art Celebrates The Opening Of ‘Marc Chagall’

“World class” exhibition features the largest collection of the artist’s works ever assembled on LI

On a rainy Friday evening at the Nassau County Museum of Art, Ambassador Arnold Saltzman, founding president of the museum, spoke of a very different time. A time when people lived in tents, or perhaps even caves, and though life was hard, they could always look up at the stars and find beauty and serenity. Nowadays, many are too busy to look up at the sky, and with the city lights blocking our view, the stars don’t seem to shine quite as brightly.

 “I thought, how could we resurrect some of that peace and quiet, and bring man back to nature?” remembered Saltzman. “And there is one man, one artist, who I knew could do that, and his name was Marc Chagall.”

Maragos: Bonding Failure Increases Budget Deficit

NIFA, Democratic legislators targeted for criticism

Last week, Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos announced that the 2011 unaudited budget deficit would reach $50.4 million. He added that the projected deficit for 2012 is set at $45 million. However, he placed the blame on both NIFA and the Democratic Party caucus in the county legislature.

Maragos said that the failure of both NIFA and the Democratic caucus to work with County Executive Edward P. Mangano and approve $43.1 million in bonding for property tax refunds caused the deficit to balloon. With such approval, he said the deficit for 2011 would be at only $7 million and the 2012 projected budget would be nearly balanced.

Roslyn Native’s Company Acquires LI Radio Stations

It seems that Jeff Warshaw, CEO of Connoisseur Media, was destined to be involved in Long Island radio. Growing up in Roslyn, Warshaw was intrigued by the radio business as his parents owned the Mineola-based radio station, WTHE (1520 AM), and still own it today. Therefore, when Connoisseur Media Group purchased KJOY 98.3 FM (WKJY), WHLI (1100 AM), 94-X (WIGX, 94.3 FM), and B103 (WBZO, 103.1 FM), Warshaw is finally returning to his roots after almost three decades in broadcasting. Yet, as he explains, the synergy and nostalgia of owning stations where he grew up, factored very little into his decision to acquire these stations.

“It’s fun and I’m really gratified by it, but it’s really about our belief that this is a great community to do business in,” says Warshaw of the decision to acquire the four stations. “Maybe I knew them a little bit better than I might know other businesses so I was a little more comfortable with them, but it’s not like I’m buying these stations because I always wanted to come back to Long Island. It’s more like these are great stations, and that’s why we’re buying them, in a great community.”

Temple Shalom Celebrates First Anniversary

Reform temple with traditional flair pioneers new model for synagogues

In some respects, Temple Shalom in Woodbury is more traditional than most reform synagogues. Weekly Shabbat services contain just as much Hebrew as English, if not more, and Cantor Stephen Stein, who spent 36 years as a cantor in a conservative synagogue, chants with classic style and intonation. But surprisingly, no one could accuse the synagogue of being anything less than thoroughly modern; not only is Temple Shalom pioneering an innovative pay-as-you go model for its members, virtually all communication is done by email. Furthermore, there are plans in the works to institute a webcast service, so all those who can’t be at The Historical Chapel in body can still be a part of the congregation, with a little assist from the Internet.

It’s also a family affair. Cantor Stephen Stein and Rabbi Alan Stein are a Cantor/Rabbi father-son team, the only one in the New York area and likely beyond. In addition, members from different generations of the Stein family all pitch in at Temple Shalom, making the synagogue a multi-generational melding of old and new.

Youth Services Coalition Rallies For Funding

Monies eliminated for numerous county agencies

With no budget agreement in sight and numerous agencies now defunded, the Nassau County Youth Services Coalition once again rallied on Friday, July 6, at the Theodore Roosevelt Legislative Executive Building in Mineola to both protest the lack of inaction and to seek the restoration of lost funds.

In June, numerous youth agencies received notice that their county contracts would be cancelled and funding eliminated on July 5 if Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano’s fiscal recovery plan was not approved.