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The Long Island Daily
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The Long Island Daily, formerly Long Island Morning Edition, with host Michael Mackey provides regional news stories and special features that speak to the body politic, the pulse of our planet, and the marketplace of life.
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Trump border czar threatens to "flood the zone" if Hochul passes ICE limitations
3w ago00:10:09Tap to summarizeMTA managers, making their case against Long Island Rail Road unions' demands for 14.5% raises over four years, say LIRR employees threatening to strike are already the highest-paid railroad workers in the nation.But LIRR labor leaders argue both their pay and negotiating position are warranted given the high cost of living in New York and recent raises given at other railroads across the country. And they're prepared to walk off the job May 16 if their terms aren't met.In response to questions from Newsday about how they determined LIRR workers are the highest paid in the United States, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority cited numbers showing wages at four key LIRR positions exceeded the median of the next five largest American commuter railroads.Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that signal inspectors had the biggest difference among the union positions threatening to strike, according to MTA figures. Their $50.89 top hourly pay in 2025 was 20.7% higher than the $42.17 median at the five other railroads — Metro-North, NJ Transit, Boston’s MBTA, Philadelphia’s SEPTA and Chicago’s Metra. The smallest difference was for LIRR locomotive engineers, whose $54.81 top hourly pay was 3.4% above the $53 median earned at the other railroads. The MTA has told mediators that median pay was $131,212 in 2024 for employees in the five unions. When including fringe benefits such as health insurance, the average compensation was $200,427 in 2024. For locomotive engineers, the highest paid, it was $241,397. "They are the highest-paid railroad workers in the nation but have refused the same significant wage increases the vast majority of their colleagues accepted," MTA chief labor and employee relations officer Anita Miller said in a March statement.LIRR union leaders said those figures give an incomplete picture. They noted for one position some other railroads pay more. Locomotive engineers at Metro-North and Amtrak can earn $59 an hour — $4 more than the LIRR, according to information provided by the unions.More broadly, the unions say LIRR workers’ pay reflects the cost of living in the metropolitan area, which is among the highest in the nation.When accounting for cost of living, and for special pay outside of regular wages — including for receiving special training — the unions have said several other railroads pay more. Those include Metro-North, NJ Transit, Baltimore’s MARC, Northern California’s Caltrain and Southern California’s Metrolink, the LIRR unions said.Unions say recent raises given at other railroads were as much as 7%.If no agreement is reached, LIRR unions are threatening to walk off the job Saturday, May 16, at 12:01 a.m.***Employees at Long Island MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma racked up more than $1 million in overtime in each of the past two years, a Newsday analysis found, costs that climbed amid a struggle to hire and retain security guards. The Town of Islip, which runs the airport, paid more than $1.2 million in overtime for 75 airport employees last year, up from $1.09 million a year earlier. In 2023, the town paid $944,017 in overtime. Sam Kmack reports in NEWSDAY that airport security guard staffing has fallen over the past several years. Islip Town employed 18 security guards at the end of 2019, and by the start of 2025, nine were employed, according to data provided by the town. Islip ended last year with 17 guards, following a mid-year push to boost staffing levels. The average base salary for a security guard last year was $67,469, town payroll records show.Overtime pay in 2025 for a single guard reached a high of $110,154, records show. The airport's top five overtime earners were all within the airport's security division, and two guards more than doubled their salaries through overtime. Newsday obtained Islip's payroll records under the state's Freedom of Information Law. Islip Town officials say federal minimum staffing requirements, and struggles to recruit and retain guards, contributed to the rising overtime expense.***Tomorrow morning, Peconic Landing in Greenport will host its 20th Annual John May Mile and 5K Race to benefit the Greenport Fire Department.The John May Mile and 5K fundraiser is open to runners and walkers of all ages and fitness abilities, offering both a relaxed mile-long walk and a more challenging 3.1-mile run. Registration and stretching begin at 7:30 a.m. at Brecknock Hall with the race and walk to start at 9 a.m. Runners and walkers may register at: www.peconiclanding.org/JMM.The family-friendly event features a barbecue lunch, raffles, and more.Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that since inception in 2005, the annual John May Mile and 5K has raised over $400,000 to support the local first responders. The most recent event in 2025 contributed a total of $28,570, helping to purchase and maintain rescue equipment vital to keeping Greenport Fire Department volunteers safe while responding to emergency calls.Following the race will be an awards ceremony at 10:30 a.m. on the back lawn of Brecknock Hall.To register as a runner or vendor, visit www.peconiclanding.org/jmm.***The possibility of preserving the Peconic Farms property on Peconic Bay Boulevard in South Jamesport is off the table, a spokesperson for Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine told RiverheadLOCAL yesterday.The owner of the 9.6-acre parcel, who had been negotiating with Suffolk County to sell the land for preservation as open space, notified the county real estate division late Wednesday that they were no longer interested in selling the land to the county, according to the county executive.“This is a missed opportunity to preserve more farmland on the North Fork,” Romaine stated.A portion of the site had been farmed, though the property was slated to be preserved as open space.The owner has decided not to sell the property to Suffolk “as is their right,” Romaine said, adding, “We remain open to any further discussions in the future.”Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the potential sale became a subject of local controversy last week, when County Legislator Greg Doroski asked the Riverhead Town Board to partner with the county in the acquisition by managing the property after its transfer to the county. It would be preserved as open space for passive recreation uses, he told Town Board members at last week’s work session.Riverhead officials balked at the idea of recreational uses on the site, expressing concerns that it would be opened up to people from all over Suffolk seeking beach access. The parcel borders town-owned land along East Creek but does not have any direct access to the waterfront.Residents in an adjoining neighborhood also objected to the idea of recreational uses on the property. They said they would support an open space purchase without any recreational uses.The Riverhead Town Board on Tuesday adopted a resolution supporting an open space acquisition conditioned on there being no recreational use of the site as county parkland.Riverhead Town Supervisor Jerry Halpin expressed disappointment that the acquisition may not happen.“I’m disappointed that this wasn’t able to happen,” Halpin said. “I totally respect the owner and their decisions, but I hope that myself and our Town Board can always be open to working with the county and landowners” to preserve land.***President Donald Trump's border czar has threatened to “flood the zone” with immigration agents if New York State passes bills to limit local coordination with the federal government's crackdown.New York seems ready to do so anyway.“I don't take well to threats,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said yesterday. "We’re going to pass what we think is important to protect New Yorkers.”Vaughn Golden and David Propper report in THE NY POST that Border czar Thomas Douglas Homan “schooled” Hochul Wednesday night as the New York governor looks to reduce local cooperation with ICE. Homan claims the Democrat NYS chief executive is only hurting the migrants she’s trying to help.The Trump administration’s top immigration official hit back at Hochul as the pair got into a war of words this week over the possibility of federal agents surging into the Empire State.The governor said she was “not asking” for more ICE agents to crack down on illegal migrants Wednesday – only for Homan to respond hours later on Fox News: “Well, Governor Hochul, I’m not asking either.”Homan’s threat of more manpower comes as Hochul and state lawmakers near a deal — that would be included in the delayed state budget — to dramatically curtail how much local law enforcement and jails can work with ICE. If ICE agents can’t work with jail officials in certain New York counties that have agreements with the federal government, Homan stressed the feds will find other ways to track their targets down.“She wants to end the partnership we currently have which means now we’ve got to send a whole team to look for a criminal that we could arrest in the safety and security of a jail, which is safer for the officers, safer for the aliens, certainly safer for the communities,” he told Fox News host Laura Ingraham. “So you’re forcing us into the neighborhoods to find this person, which means we lost the efficiency of the jails that you want to lock us out of, now we have to send a whole team to find this person so of course we’re going to increase manpower – a lot.”Albany Democratic legislators also want all law enforcement in the state to stop communicating with ICE unless a person has been criminally charged with a felony or misdemeanor. ICE won’t be able to ...
Transcribe →Town of Southampton in roll out new mass alert system
3w ago00:10:03Tap to summarizeCorporal punishment and harsh discipline during toilet training against toddlers and preschool-age children that went unreported to the state.Young children left without competent supervision and staff who failed to immediately inform parents of serious incidents.Day care centers that failed to conduct criminal or sex offender background checks for new hires, in violation of state guidelines.Robert Brodsky reports in NEWSDAY that these are just some of the nearly 100 allegations leveled against seven Long Island day care centers that state officials report are now at risk of losing their license to continue operating.Meanwhile, another four local childcare facilities had their license revoked and were forced to shutter in recent months after serious health or safety violations were documented by the NYS Office of Children and Family Services, a Newsday investigation found.None of the nearly dozen Long Island day cares that have found themselves under scrutiny from the state are on the east end. Overall, the day cares cited represent just a small fraction of the 2,133 childcare providers on Long Island.But to the families of children enrolled in these facilities, typically ranging in age from infants to as old as 12, the alleged violations raise questions about the businesses' safety protocols and offer doubts whether they'll continue to operate moving forward."The safety and well-being of all children in Office of Children and Family Services-licensed childcare programs is our top priority," said Daniel Marans, a spokesman for the agency. "To achieve these standards, we work diligently to ensure enforcement is fair and proportional across the state, creating a pathway back to good standing for childcare providers that fully comply with OCFS’ remediation plans."In Suffolk, five day care businesses are at risk of revocation, records show.They include Dazzling Tots Daycare in Mastic, Kiddie Academy of Farmingdale, The Learning Experience in Northport, Snuggles Day Care in Copiague, and Vanessa Little Blessings Daycare in Coram.***An off-duty Quogue Village police officer who struck and killed a Hampton Bays woman with his personal vehicle will not be charged with a crime following a review of the case by New York State Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation.Robert Brodsky reports in NEWSDAY that Margaret Lucey, 89, was crossing Ponquogue Avenue walking west in Hampton Bays shortly before 11 a.m. on Jan. 8, 2024, when she was struck by officer Jon Stanton’s Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck as Stanton made a left turn from Good Ground Road, authorities said.Stanton remained at the scene and cooperated with the investigation, the report said. Lucey was taken by Hampton Bays Volunteer Ambulance to Southampton Hospital where she died from her injuries, Southampton Town police said.Two months after the accident, the AG's office announced that it was launching an investigation of the crash, which is mandated under a 2021 state law for deaths involving on- and off-duty police, peace officers and correction officers. Yesterday, James' office released her 11-page report into the incident which "concludes that a prosecutor would not be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that Officer Stanton committed a crime when he caused Ms. Lucey’s death."The investigation, the report states, included review of a 911 call, footage from nearby security cameras, an interview with a witness and photographs from the scene. The investigation, the report said, found no evidence that Stanton was speeding, distracted, impaired by drugs or alcohol or driving in a reckless manner.Stanton, who was hired by the Quogue Village P.D. in February 2022 and is a volunteer firefighter and EMT, immediately requested an ambulance, the report states, and began performing life-saving measures.***Suffolk County legislators approved at least $3.9 million to settle police-involved lawsuits so far this year, including $3 million to the estate of an emotionally disturbed man, Walter Kellogg, who was allegedly shot and killed by a police officer outside his Shirley home.Lawmakers also approved $600,000 to settle a lawsuit that claimed the same officer assaulted a Shirley woman in 2012.Internal affairs cleared the officer of wrongdoing in those incidents but he was terminated on other charges in 2022.Michael O'Keeffe reports in NEWSDAY that the Suffolk police Internal Affairs Bureau cleared former Officer Frank Santanello of wrongdoing in the 2018 fatal shooting of Walter Kellogg, but the Suffolk County Legislature’s Ways and Means Committee, which must sign off on large settlements, authorized $3 million to settle the estate's federal lawsuit at its March 3 meeting, according to the panel's minutes. Internal affairs also cleared Santanello in the alleged assault and false arrest of Jessica Roger, also of Shirley, in 2012. But the Ways and Means Committee approved a $600,000 settlement to end her federal lawsuit in January.Santanello, the target of 25 civilian complaints and four administrative investigations, joined the Suffolk County Police Department in April 2002. He was placed on suspension without pay in April 2021, and an arbitrator upheld his termination in June 2022, internal affairs bureau records reviewed by Newsday show.***The Town of Southampton is rolling out a new mass alert system that it says will be able to more efficiently alert large numbers of residents and town employees to emergencies, public safety threats, weather alerts or information about blocked or closed roadways and extended traffic delays.Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that Southampton Town’s new system — which residents are being asked to sign up for now — will allow the town to send text messages to thousands of numbers at once and allow the town to target information by hamlet or neighborhoods or specific clusters of town facilities.To sign up for the new text alerts, residents need only send a text saying “SouthamptonNY” to 38276 and they will be enrolled in the alert system. The town has also set up a specific notification for news related to the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in June, which you can enroll in by texting OPEN26 to 38276.The need for the new system became apparent, Southampton Town officials said last week, during the Westhampton Pines wildfire in spring 2025 when conflicting information about whether an evacuation had been ordered sowed confusion and panic in neighborhoods near where the fires were raging.The town’s current emergency alert system, NotifyMe, is only able to send text messages to fewer than 200 individual numbers at a time, so broader alerts and information messages are sent via email. But town officials acknowledged that emails are often not viewed as immediately as text messages are.More than 500 town employees have been enrolled in the alert system already, which will allow the town to notify those who work in specific buildings, or groups of town facilities, about information relative only to their locations.For mass emergencies, the system will also be able to access lists of residents who have signed up for CivicPlus alerts about town activities and events.Ryan Murphy, Southampton Town’s emergency management coordinator said the town will be starting a broad public outreach to encourage residents to sign up for the alerts in the coming weeks.***Designs for a facelift for the off-the-beaten-path Town Lane sculpture park in East Hampton include seven parking spaces and a gravel walkway access point, essentially establishing official access for the public.Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that in 2006, East Hampton Town officials bought the easily overlooked 5-acre parcel of land, located at 173 Town Lane for around $1 million for the purpose of showcasing sculptures by Sasson Soffer, which are still present on the unkempt property. Those sculptures remain on display in the park.The idea behind the work that town officials plan to undertake, the initial stages of which are being funded by the Sasson Soffer Foundation, is to beautify the park itself and provide access to and from for the public, which is currently lacking. A walking path will be made of pressed gravel.“The town's Land Acquisition and Management Department has maintained the meadow by annual, or as needed, mowing,” said East Hampton Town Land Acquisition Principal Environmental Analyst Andy Gaites. “Proposed improvements to the park, which are to be donated by the Sasson Soffer Foundation at no cost to the town, include driveway improvements, addition of a parking area, ADA compliant pathways, benches and native plantings.”Contractors working on behalf of the Sasson Soffer Foundation are planning to begin removing vegetation this month, so long as all the paperwork gets put in place. East Hampton Town officials say the plan is to begin parking preparations in July.***The bodies of two missing fishermen who both apparently drowned after falling out of a kayak were found in western Shinnecock Bay early yesterday morning.Southampton Town Police have identified the men as Daniel Villa, 25, of Southampton and Juan Carlos Penaranda, 43, of Quogue.As posted on 27east.com, the pair had ventured out together on a two-man kayak from the south pier of the old Ponquogue Bridge at about 8 p.m. Tuesday night to go fishing. They had paddled west into Shinnecock Bay from the old bridge pier, a popular area for striped bass fishing.Police were notified at about 1:30 a.m. Wednesday by concerned family members that the men had not returne...
Transcribe →Price of gas continues to rise for Long Islanders
3w ago00:09:56Tap to summarizeOn Long Island, the number of households receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits…known as SNAP…has grown since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. Experts say the spike stems from the region's cost-of-living crisis that has made housing unaffordable and can make food an afterthought. More affluent households seeking food assistance might not meet the lower-income federal eligibility requirements for benefits, and recent changes to SNAP work requirements means thousands of Long Islanders could soon lose access to the program.Tiffany Cusaac-Smith reports in NEWSDAY that SNAP, the nutritional support program formerly known as food stamps, has long served as a financial pulse of sorts that measures economic hard times. Experts say more households are turning to the program. Yet, they are quick to point out that the program is not a panacea for food insecurity in the region.In 2020, on average each month, 59,020 households in Suffolk County used the benefit. By 2025, Suffolk County had a monthly average of 78,923 households using the program, representing a roughly 34% increase, according to state data.SNAP benefits often go to the elderly and children on Long Island. In September, roughly 20% were in that age group in Suffolk, according to data from the state. Children represented about 31% of beneficiaries in Suffolk. For households on SNAP in Suffolk, the median income was $70,330, with a margin of error of about $7,800, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2024 American Community Survey one-year estimates.Vanessa Baird-Streeter, president and CEO of the Health & Welfare Council of Long Island, which is tasked with helping people sign up for SNAP, said the hunger assistance program today amounts to a subsidy people increasingly depend on — albeit one that many earn too much to tap. A few decades ago, she said, a middle-class family looking to move to Long Island to try and live the suburban dream could afford rent and food costs, likely never thinking they would need financial support."And so those people who may have never thought about a safety net program or a public benefit program before, they are now being faced with having to take advantage of these programs in order to ensure that their family just has…foundational stability," Baird-Streeter told NEWSDAY.***Preservation of a 9.6-acre property adjacent to a town-owned marina and beach in South Jamesport was endorsed by the Riverhead Town Board yesterday. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the board unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday afternoon supporting Suffolk County’s proposed preservation of the Peconic Farms parcel on Peconic Bay Boulevard. The resolution contained a qualifier held out by board members as essential to their assent: “as Open Space without improvement or development.”The vote followed days of public debate and mounting pressure from residents over the future of the property at 1161 Peconic Bay Blvd…which Suffolk County is considering acquiring through its Drinking Water Protection Program. Board members emphasized yesterday’s resolution does not finalize any agreement with Suffolk County but signals willingness to continue discussions over potential management terms.As a condition of the acquisition, the county is asking the Town of Riverhead to partner in the project by assuming management responsibility for the site, including “passive recreation uses” at the property, such as a walking trail and a gravel parking area. That condition triggered opposition from town officials, who said they feared such uses, if allowed, would lead to use of the site by out-of-town residents to gain beach access for fishing, swimming and other activities, with negative impacts on the character of the surrounding residential community.As he introduced the resolution, Riverhead Town Councilman Ken Rothwell acknowledged the board had received “an overabundance of emails and phone calls” about the proposal.“We very much want to protect [the property] from development,” Rothwell said.***ReWild next teams up with Group for the East End for a talk on “The Impact of Lawns” on Thursday, May 7…that’s tomorrow afternoon at 3 p.m. at Downs Farm Preserve in Cutchogue.A talk on lawns by gardener Corn Schmid will address why these grasses have become ingrained into our collective consciousness, culture, and even laws. Mr. Schmid will discuss the myths, facts, functions, and impact of one of America’s largest crops, as well as alternatives specific to our region.Corn Schmid’s expertise in plant ecology comes from years of experience working in the nursery industry and as a gardener in New York City and on the East End. Registration is required as space is limited.For more information, contact Group director of outreach Taralynn Reynolds at taralynn@thegroup.org.That’s “The Impact of Lawns” at Downs Farm Preserve in Cutchogue tomorrow from 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm.***Neighbors of East Hampton High School are opposed to the district’s $64 million bond proposition due to the lights that will be placed on the turf field neighboring their homes. Desirée Keegan reports on 27east.com that Kate Gibbons, who said she was speaking on behalf of herself and her father, Ed Cullum, who could not attend the meeting, expressed disappointment over the district’s decision to include the lights in the bond, saying they will not only disrupt her and her family’s quality of life, but could lower property values and force the family to sell their home.“Disappointment doesn’t capture my true feelings,” she said during yesterday’s Board of Education meeting. “Your decision to put stadium lights on the existing turf field that runs along our family property is heartbreaking and gut-wrenching.”Five generations of Cullums, she explained, have lived on her East Hampton property over the last 100 years, and have been neighbors to the high school since it was built in 1970. Gibbons said she began a seven-year process in 2002 to build her house on her family’s land.“This was the way I could remain in this community that I grew up in and was teaching in,” she said, adding that she’s been an educator at John M. Marshall Elementary School for 32 years.“To say that the lights will not impact us is just not true,” she said. “The lights will impact us. And it‘s not only the lights on the field that are a concern for us, it’s all the other things that come along with {night-time} events.”Ms. Gibbons pleaded with the board through tears to reconsider, stating she…is trying to understand the need for stadium lights — questioning why the baseball and softball fields and tennis courts do not also need lights.According to Gibbons, Superintendent of Schools Adam Fine said during a recent meeting between him and her family that there would not be enough room for bleachers around another centrally-located turf field away from EHHS neighbors.***The price of a gallon of regular gasoline climbed 31 cents in the past week, spiking to an average of $4.48 per gallon yesterday, according to AAA, hitting the wallets of drivers after rising 50% since the war with Iran began.As reported by The Associated Press the main reason drivers are paying more at the pump is because of the global energy crisis caused by the Iran war. The price of crude oil, which is the main ingredient in gasoline, has been climbing for most of the past two months because the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passage of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s crude oil normally passes, has effectively been shut, and oil tankers have been stranded there unable to deliver crude.Many drivers were hopeful in mid-April, amid signs that the conflict could be winding down, and gasoline prices fell daily for almost two weeks.“After the announcement of the initial ceasefire, there was kind of optimism that this really could be the beginning of the end of the conflict,” said Rob Smith, director of global fuel retail at S&P Global Energy. “And so crude prices came down correspondingly, gasoline spot prices followed, and so on and ... the retailers lowered prices as well.”But as the war continued, gasoline prices reversed course and began increasing again.“There’s a fundamental shortfall that will exist globally or fundamental struggle to meet that demand that will drive up price,” Smith said. “No matter what a government says or what any market person thinks, there is a true kind of upward pressure that’s being exerted on prices every day the Strait of Hormuz is constrained. And it is still severely constrained.”The longer the flow of oil is constrained through the Strait of Hormuz, the higher prices will go, and the longer it will take to get back to normal, Smith said.***Twelve Long Island hospitals scored an A grade for patient safety among the 2,800 healthcare centers reviewed nationwide, according to a new report released today.Celia Young reports in NEWSDAY that the nonprofit watchdog organization, The Leapfrog Group, rated 23 Long Island hospitals based on how well they protected patients from accidents, infections and injuries. Six hospitals scored B. Three hospitals scored C, Nassau University Medical Center received a D, and one was not assigned a grade, according to Leapfrog.The ratings can help Long Islanders determine where to get care, said Elisabeth Benjamin, vice president for health initiatives at the Manhattan-based Community Service Society of New York."The No. 1 thing you want when you're looking at a hospital is to make sure that the quality of care, the standard of care [and] t...
Transcribe →Microplastic levels in drinking water not a required test
4w ago00:09:56Tap to summarizeMicroplastics have been found in bodies of water all over the globe, from the Arctic to the Caribbean Sea to Long Island Sound. They can leach into groundwater from those waterways, and from septic systems and cesspools, or from rainwater runoff that collects particles from streets or landfills.And they make their way into our bodies from the food we eat and the water we drink, whether from the tap or bottled in plastic.Tracy Tullis reports in NEWSDAY that it's not clear if microplastics and the even smaller nanoplastics are in Long Island's drinking water, in part because testing is not required, and there's no standardized test.The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced last month it will consider regulating microplastics — particles that can be smaller than a grain of sand, or even microscopic — as a contaminant in drinking water.California is the only state that requires testing for microplastics, and had to develop new ways to test for them.“The New York State Department of Health is closely watching the rapidly evolving science on microplastics and supports the addition of microplastics to the sixth candidate contaminant list,” Marissa Crary, spokesperson for the NYS Department of Health, wrote to Newsday in an email. At the moment, however, “no widely available standard method exists for evaluating microplastics in drinking water.”Tests conducted by the Suffolk County Water Authority found no detectable microplastics in its samples, probably because water drawn from an aquifer is somewhat protected from plastic contamination.“I can’t think of an issue that hits closer to home for American families than the safety of their drinking water,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in announcing the move to regulate microplastics as a contaminant in drinking water.Water suppliers in the United States are not required to test or filter for microplastics, "which is why this is important," Judith Enck, president of the nonprofit Beyond Plastics and a former EPA regional administrator, told Newsday.There are no guarantees that this first step will lead to anything. Last month the EPA declined to regulate any of the contaminants from the previous list, issued in 2022. And the administration also is trying to weaken regulations on PFAS in drinking water established by President Joe Biden.The EPA is required to name at least five possible drinking water contaminants every five years and to study their presence in drinking water, their health effects and whether they ultimately should be regulated.***A county effort to preserve a nearly 10-acre parcel of vacant land on the south side of Peconic Bay Boulevard in South Jamesport has run into resistance at Riverhead Town Hall.Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the property, part woodland and part fallow farm field, is located between a residential subdivision and the town boat ramp.Suffolk County Legislator Greg Doroski met with the Town Board at its work session Thursday to discuss preservation of the site as open space. Doroski said the county wanted the town to partner in the acquisition by agreeing to maintain the site for passive recreation use.That got pushback from board members, who said they’d prefer to see a development rights purchase rather than outright acquisition, so the property could be farmed. Some members objected to its conversion to county parkland, expressing concern that the use could be disruptive in a quiet residential area. Others voiced concerns about the cost of establishing and maintaining amenities like the walking trail and gravel parking area suggested by Doroski.An appraisal of the property has been completed, Doroski said. If it moves forward, the county would make an offer to the property owner, which, if accepted, would then require approval by the full Legislature.But the deal would stall without the town’s participation, he told Riverhead officials.The Suffolk County Legislative committee was scheduled to discuss preservation of the site during its executive session yesterday. However, the discussion was postponed.***The Regional Tick-Borne Disease Resource Center at Stony Brook / Southampton Hospital will hold a discussion on all the latest information about tick-borne diseases tomorrow afternoon at 4 p.m. in the Cutchogue-New Suffolk Free Library.Registration required.Medical Entomologist Dr. Scott Campbell, Chief of the Arthropod-Borne Disease Lab at Suffolk County’s Department of Health Services, and a member of the Scientific Advisory Panel of the Regional Tick-Borne Disease Resource Center at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, will discuss the medically important tick species on Long Island, their biology, habitat, the pathogens they transmit, and the best strategies to prevent tick bites in adults and children. Tomorrow’s program is sponsored jointly by the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital, and the Tick Resource Center at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital. All attendees will receive a free tick removal kit and a tick disease handbook.Register for this event on line at cutchogue.librarycalendar.com***A portion of the brand-new dune at Ditch Plains in Montauk took the brunt of the winter, eroding by about a dozen feet, but East Hampton Town officials have a plan to fill in the damaged gaps with fresh sand. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that one stretch of the new dune, located due west of Ditch Plains’ western parking lot, got the most battered over the course of the winter, and that is where town officials are planning to jump in and give the wall of sand a facelift.There the face of the dune, which would otherwise be lined with freshly planted beachgrass, has been fully peeled off, and the sand itself has receded. Elsewhere, the beachgrass remains, and the dune, in all other stretches, has successfully weathered its first winter.Where town officials expected to see the erosion was in the center portion of the beach at Ditch Plains, which is where the brunt of erosion has been felt in the past, like with the storms that battered the area in the winter of 2024. But the erosion instead was felt west of there, between the parking lot and the bluffs. Drone photos suggest the sand was peeled back about 10 or so feet.This restoration project has its roots in that brutal string of storms a few years back, when the storm surge breached the dune and pushed up beyond the houses that line the coast. The impacts were uncovered not long after, as it became known that the storms dwindled the beach and the dunes to the point of near nonexistence — or down to the hardpan, a beneath-the-sand layer of clay.Montauk has been front of mind for the East Hampton Town Board, as the severe weather events continue to roll through the area, sweeping away sand and highlighting the need for long-term planning. Among these initiatives was the approval of a 30-year agreement, part of the Fire Island to Montauk Point, or FIMP, project, with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and New York State government that put East Hampton Town officials on the hook for around $27.6 million, or 15 percent of the total cost, over that span of time.But for the immediate future, as FIMP measures continue to inch forward, Ditch Plains will be the main beneficiary of the town-led stopgaps against erosion.***Over the past year, lawmakers across New York State have proposed protest buffer zones around houses of worship in response to vitriolic protests.Both New York City and Nassau County passed laws meant to protect worshippers from harassment near religious institutions. Suffolk County officials, state legislators and a Long Island congressman are pushing their own versions.Steve Hughes reports in NEWSDAY that proponents, including Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, argue that buffer zones balance the need to protect people from harassment while also allowing protesters to exercise free speech. They point to a jump in hate crimes across the state, including a sharp increase in reported cases of antisemitism.But civil liberties groups and other critics argue that buffer zones infringe on freedom of speech and break with established legal precedent. On Friday, a group of labor unions, including 1199 SEIU and the New York State Nurses Association, sent a letter to state leaders voicing their opposition.The unions argue that the measures are so broad they would effectively criminalize picketing activities outside certain buildings and subject unionized employees to potential felony charges if they come too close. State Sen. Sam Sutton, D-Brooklyn, who is sponsoring a buffer zone bill in the State Legislature, said during a March rally that he believes the state could balance the right to protest and the right to pray. He said he does not see them as competing values."We will protect our communities, we will defend our civil liberties, and we will uphold the values that make this state strong," Sutton said.But Justin Harrison, senior policy counsel with ACLU of New York, said the proposed state law is far too broad since it would apply to everyone, including protests that a church or clinic might support. The proposal makes no difference between places that might want a buffer zone and those that don’t, he said."You’re capturing a lot of constitutionally protected protest," he said. "These laws are going to be used to single out people wi...
Transcribe →Chronic absenteeism remains high in Long Island schools
4w ago00:09:55Tap to summarizeChronic absenteeism in Long Island schools remained stubbornly high in 2024–25, despite efforts to get students back into the classroom following a surge in absences during the pandemic. Lorena Mongelli and Arielle Martinez report in NEWSDAY that in Nassau and Suffolk combined, 17.3% of students in public schools were chronically absent, meaning they missed 18 or more class days during the school year compared to 17.6% the year prior, according to a Newsday analysis of state data. While that is lower than the nearly 20% absenteeism rate in the 2021–22 academic year, when all New York schools reopened for full in-person learning, it still exceeds the 11.4% rate in 2018–19.The figures reflect a nationwide trend, with education experts saying schools throughout the country have struggled to boost attendance rates in recent years.Research has shown that persistent absences can be detrimental for students, leading to gaps in proficiency and increasing the risk they will drop out of high school. Studies have also found that such absences disrupt learning even for students who attend regularly because academic content needs to be reintroduced.Experts say a variety of factors are to blame for the high rate of absenteeism, including a shift in how parents value in-person learning since remote instruction became more commonplace during the pandemic. Local educators also cited student mental health issues, general disengagement with school, work priorities and, in some districts, anxiety about immigration enforcement amid the Trump administration’s crackdown.In 42 states and the District of Columbia, 23% of students were chronically absent in 2024–25 compared to 24% the year prior, according to Nat Malkus, senior fellow and the deputy director of education policy at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based conservative-leaning research organization that tracks chronic absenteeism nationwide.New York’s chronic absenteeism rate was 27% in 2024–25 versus 27.3% the year prior. according to Newsday’s analysis.Twenty-nine of Long Island’s 124 districts had an absenteeism rate higher than 20% in 2024–25. The Hempstead district had the highest rate, at 49%, followed by Central Islip at 39.7%, according to state data.***The chronic absenteeism rate in Long Island public schools dropped slightly in the 2024-25 school year, from 17.6% the year prior to 17.3%, according to a Newsday analysis of state data. The figure was lower than the nearly 20% absenteeism rate seen during the pandemic but still higher than the pre-pandemic rate of 11.4% rate in 2018–19.Lorena Mongelli and Arielle Martinez report in NEWSDAY that a couple of east end school districts showed improvements in their absenteeism rate, which counts students in first grade and older who are enrolled for a minimum of 10 instructional days and attend at least one of those days.Bridgehampton dropped 9.6 percentage points, to 19.5%, in 2024–2025.The district’s interim superintendent, Brigid P. Collins, said, “The decrease in attendance issues is a combined reflection of our strengthened communication efforts and deeper family engagement.”She said the district sends attendance letters and implemented the ParentSquare notification system, which sends immediate alerts about student lateness and absences.The Amagansett school district, which had less than 100 students last school year, lowered its rate by 8.4 percentage points to 21.8%.Superintendent Michael S. Rodgers said the district “has made a strong, collective effort to build a more positive and engaging school culture for the students, staff, and families.”“This includes incorporating more hands-on projects, experiential learning opportunities, and field trips that connect classroom instruction to real world experiences,” Rodgers said. Cecelia Leong, vice president of programs at the national nonprofit Attendance Works, said some schools are having success by building relationships with students and families and ensuring students feel welcome, accepted and safe.“Those consistent things that build a sense of belonging and relationship are really important,” Leong said. ***A coalition of fire response entities and other partners will host an open house at Flanders Community Center, 655 Flanders Road, Flanders on Tuesday, May 5…that’s tomorrow from 6 to 8 p.m. to solicit public input for the Southampton Central Pine Barrens Community Wildfire Protection Plan, a plan that will help residents of western Southampton Town learn how to best protect their families and homes from wildfire hazards.Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that tomorrow’s meeting will provide an opportunity for residents to learn about the Community Wildfire Protection Plan {CWPP} and provide comments to help create the plan. Officials at the beginning of the meeting will offer a brief presentation about the CWPP program. Attendees can then learn more details about the CWPP from local experts at tables with topics including Resilient Landscapes, Safe and Effective Fire Response and Fire Adapted Communities. There will also be a table at which attendees can leave comments.Tomorrow’s open house is at Flanders Community Center starting at 6 p.m.***Southampton Village officials have unveiled a plan to build a downtown sewage treatment facility, a proposal they say is critical to improving water quality and allowing new apartments.Alek Lewis reports in NEWSDAY that the sewer plant would be in the village's business district, behind its police headquarters on Windmill Lane. But a group of residents have objected to the plan because it requires the village to turn a dog park there into leach fields, where treated wastewater is released into the ground. The village plans to build a new dog park down the street. Southampton Village Mayor Bill Manger said the plan is a breakthrough in the long-running effort to build a sewer system following a lengthy search for a suitable site.“We realized that after years and years of the village existing here with basically only cesspools and septic systems, we’re just really polluting our groundwater and our bays and lakes and shoreline,” Manger told NEWSDAY.Toxic blue-green algal blooms are prevalent in water bodies in and around Southampton Village, according to a recent Stony Brook University water quality report. That includes Lake Agawam, the 65-acre lake in the village's center.Sewers and advanced septic systems can prevent those blooms by reducing the nitrogen from wastewater that goes into the ground, environmental advocates and village officials contend. Manger said the hope is for the plant to open by 2030.However, building the sewage treatment plant as currently proposed would require moving Lola Prentice Dog Park down the street.Five residents who live near the park have sued to block the plan to convert it into leach fields.The Southampton School District gifted the park property to the village in 1962. In 2019, a judge ruled in a separate court case that the property could only be used for recreational and educational purposes. The plaintiffs are asking the court to prevent the village from using it now to build a sewer plant.A separate petition by the same plaintiffs asks the court to find the Village of Southampton and its trustees in contempt for violating the 2019 ruling and the court's injunction.***Relief is on the way for more than a dozen Long Island oyster farms after an icy, brutal winter damaged equipment and wiped out many growers' inventories. Tara Smith reports in NEWSDAY that fourteen oyster farms will receive $3 million in state funding to upgrade infrastructure and boost production, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Saturday. The infrastructure grants can help fund new docks, equipment and other tools to support aquaculture farms, state officials said.The funding is part of a second round of awards through the Long Island Aquaculture Program. Farmers said the timing couldn't be better after a deep freeze caused an estimated $2.4 million in losses across the region. New York State officials awarded an initial $1.2 million to 17 businesses to expand and upgrade equipment last October.On Friday morning, Matt Ketcham of Peconic Gold Oysters was still hauling up decimated cages from his plot in Cutchogue Harbor. "I had a section of my farm that we call 'iceberg alley' now," Ketcham said in an interview. "I'm still pulling up crushed stuff, broken stuff, stuff that was dragged through the mud. I need a lot of new cages."Ketcham said he plans to use part of his grant to invest in an ice machine and, over time, save money on a crucial element of his business.Aquaculture, he said, "is a type of farming that requires a ton of capital investment and a ton of reinvestment even just to grow your sales a little bit."He added, "Something like this helps us a lot."Other awardees include West Robins Oyster Co., Hampton Oyster Co., Davy Jones Landing, Oysterponds Shellfish, Lucky 13 Oysters, East Hampton Oyster Co., Scrimshaw Enterprises, Hart Lobster Co., Thatch Island, North Fork Big Oyster, Jeffrey M. Kraus, Dune Fishery and Little Ram Oyster Co., according to a news release from the governor's office.The awards range from $111,702 to $250,000, according to the governor's office."Long Island's historic seafood industry is second to none, helping to strengthen local food supply chains, bolster our state's economy, and upholding a legacy of excellence and dedication to industry," Hochul said in a statement. She noted that the program is intended to support aquaculture farmers so "they can continue to thrive for...
Transcribe →Southampton Town says Riverside can expect new sewer district to be active by late 2029
4w ago00:10:04Tap to summarizeLong Island business leaders yesterday expressed concern of the potential economic impacts from an LIRR union strike, while also warning that unprecedented raises for railroad workers could be "unsustainable." Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that leaders from seven Long Island business advocacy and economic development groups, in a letter to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, expressed their "deep concern regarding the negative economic impact of a potential strike" by five Long Island Rail Road unions.The leaders noted that the strike, which could begin May 16, would come a week before Memorial Day as Long Island enters its peak tourism season."The railroad takes tens of thousands of New Yorkers each week to Long Island beaches, golf courses, and wineries," they wrote. "Thousands of small businesses rely on summer tourism to survive."The business groups also expressed concern that "unprecedented raises to the minority of the LIRR workforce will be economically unsustainable for a mass transit system with chronic fiscal woes." The labor organizations represent about half the LIRR’s union workforce.The letter was authored by representatives from the Association for a Better Long Island, the Long Island Association, the Hauppauge Industrial Association of LI, the Long Island Builders Institute, the Long Island Contractors' Association, the Commercial Industrial Brokers Society of Long Island and Discover Long Island.Hochul spokesman Sean Butler said the governor's position is that "a strike would hurt LIRR workers and riders alike. It is critical that both sides come to the table and negotiate in good faith."Asked to comment on the letter, MTA officials pointed to remarks made Wednesday by the agency's chief financial officer, Jai Patel. In the event of a strike, Patel said, "Riders will be frustrated, the local economy will struggle and trust in our service will erode."***Just in time for summer, East Quogue got a new Christmas tree last week.Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that the blue spruce tree that has served as East Quogue’s public Christmas tree for many years was getting bare and suffering from needlecast and residents had recently begun talking about a replacement after the winter, resident Christine Grant said.The Town of Southampton created a hamlet park district last fall, which directs funds from development project fees to a kitty for beautification projects. But buying a new Christmas tree would have tapped the bulk of the fledgling park district’s funding.Two residents, Cathy Zambetti, and her husband, John Picone, stepped in and instead offered to cover the cost of purchasing a new tree. Grant and her husband, Chris Connolly, who own Aspatuck Gardens, were able to source a 20-foot Norway spruce from a North Fork tree farm and got Southampton Town Parks & Recreation staff to remove the old tree and excavate a hole for the root ball of the new one.That’s when the small town stuff really kicked in.The tree arrived on a rainy morning last week and proved to be so heavy that the equipment the town brought to move it into place couldn’t lift it.“So we did the classic Mayberry, small-town thing: We texted our friend Michelle Meduski, who knows everybody in town,” Connolly said. “She knew a company who had an excavator and they came right over and it turned out that they were East Quogue people, so it was pretty cool how it all worked out.”***The Town of Southold is holding an Environmental Expo and Repair Café with the North Fork Environmental Council (NFEC) tomorrow from 12 noon to 4 p.m. at the town’s Peconic Lane Recreation Center.The public can bring their household items — including small appliances, clothing, toys and bicycles to be repaired, and their knives to be sharpened. “It’s a great community event, with neighbors helping neighbors to make things work again, with the added bonus of keeping those things out of the waste stream,” said Margaret deCruz, the NFEC Repair Café chair.Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that numerous environmental organizations will also have tables at tomorrow’s event. Compost coaches from the Long Island Organics council will give demonstrations and offer tips on how best to compost at home, and organizations ranging from Group for the East End to the Peconic Baykeeper, Peconic Estuary Partnership, ReWild North Fork and UpSculpt will also offere information and inspiration on how to preserve our local natural resources.Tomorrow’s Environmental Expo and Repair Café is from 12 noon to 4 p.m. at Peconic Recreation Center, 920 Peconic Lane, Peconic, NY 11958.***Southampton Town gave residents of Riverside a look at some of the practical aspects of its new $44 million sewer district this week. The town’s consultants say they anticipate the system coming online in late 2029 or early 2030.Funding the Riverside Wastewater Recovery System has been a project in the works for more than a decade, and it has been seen as a necessary tool in the revitalization of this neighborhood across the Peconic River from downtown Riverhead. The neighborhood, however, is in the Town of Southampton.Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that investment within this community has stagnated in recent years, in part due to the inability to install more septic systems in an area with a high water table adjacent to the river.The sewer district received a major boost in the fall of 2025, when it received $19 million in funds through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.Consultants working with Southampton Town on the sewer system outlined some of its features for the crowd of residents who gathered at the Flanders Community Center Wednesday night. Many had been asking the town to come talk to them since it began redesigning some elements of its 11-year-old Riverside Revitalization Action Plan last year.The sewage treatment plant has been downgraded to 290,000 gallons per day of effluent from an original 800,000 gallons.The latest plan for the neighborhood, as presented by Paul Knight of the firm Historical Concepts, calls for allowing the construction of an estimated 532 housing units, ranging in style and sized from 450 to 1,200 square feet, along with 198,000 square feet of commercial space.Mr. Knight shared potential scenarios for commercial space in which 72,000 square feet could be offices; 45,000 could be retail; 15,000 could be restaurants and 20,000 could be a grocery store, with smaller portions of square footage available for gyms and dance studios, cafés and delis and bars.The engineering firm Arcadis is asking Riverside residents to fill out a detailed survey about their existing septic systems and other engineering aspects of their homes, to help them get a better idea of how each home will tie into the system.The survey is expected to be posted soon online.***A few years ago, North Haven Village officials orchestrated a move of the village’s historic old schoolhouse — for decades located on a piece of land at the corner of Payne Avenue and Ferry Road — to its current location on the property of North Haven Village Hall.Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that the village-owned land that the schoolhouse had been on has been vacant since then but won’t be for much longer.At the last Village Board meeting, North Haven Mayor Chris Fiore and his fellow trustees unanimously approved a resolution to put that property up for sale. Before they could even list it, the following day, a potential buyer reached out with a cash offer of $1 million for the property.Mayor Fiore said that putting the property up for sale essentially amounted to a no-brainer for the village…pointing out that the sale of the property represents a smart financial investment at a time when the village could really use one.For the second straight year, the Village of North Haven has been forced to pierce the state’s cap on tax levy increases, with a 10 percent rise in property tax in store for residents this year.“We have been advised the sale of the former schoolhouse property could generate in excess of $1 million. This will guarantee our fiscal safety for years to come.”***The Dandelion Festival at KK’s The Farm in Southold this Sunday is on a mission to spread the word about the benefits of the dandelion leaf, flower and root, and its vital role as early season food for bees and other pollinators.Stop down any time between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to learn more.EAST END BEACON Editor Beth Young and Climate Local Now columnist Mark Haubner join a panel discussion at the festival at 11:30 a.m.There will be workshops, farm tours, live music, kids crafts, dancing and hula hooping.Bring a picnic.The event is free.Dandelions will make you wise this Sunday from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm at KK’s The Farm on Main Road in Southold.***The U.S. Supreme Court’s Wednesday ruling limiting the use of race in creating congressional district maps will not impact New York’s current map, but the decision reignited calls among Democrats for state lawmakers to move forward on a plan to amend the state Constitution to allow for mid-decade r...
Transcribe →MTA claims large rate hikes would be required to meet LIRR worker demands
Apr 3000:08:50Tap to summarizePaying Long Island Rail Road workers the raises they're demanding to avoid a strike could lead to service cuts, job reductions, or fare hikes as high as 8% — twice the usual rate, MTA officials said yesterday.But LIRR labor leaders, who met with Metropolitan Transportation Authority managers for an impromptu bargaining session Wednesday, blasted the figure as baseless, and maintained the MTA can afford to pay workers a fair wage without digging deeper into riders' pockets to pay for it.MTA officials also released new details of their strike contingency plan, which now includes shuttle buses serving five Long Island locations.Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that the MTA and five labor organizations representing roughly half of all LIRR union workers are locked in a contract dispute that could result in the first railroad work stoppage in more than 30 years beginning on Saturday May 16. The two sides have agreed on the terms of the first three years of a deal, with raises totaling 9.5%, as has already been accepted by most MTA unions.The LIRR unions still holding out want a fourth year at 5%. The MTA has offered between 3% and 4.5%, depending on contract concessions.Paying Long Island Rail Road workers the raises they demand in order to prevent a strike next month could lead the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to hike fares by 8% in 2027, cut jobs, or slash service, officials said.Ahead of a potential May 16 LIRR work stoppage, officials released new details of a strike contingency plan, including rush hour shuttle buses running between five locations on Long Island and two Queens subway stations.An impromptu negotiating session between LIRR labor leaders and MTA managers yesterday ended with no settlement, but with plans for further talks.Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that MTA officials recently laid out what they said were the potential consequences of acquiescing to the demands of the five unions, which represent locomotive engineers, electricians, machinists, signal workers, and ticket clerks. Because, other unions — including those representing more than 40,000 city bus and subway workers — would expect the same terms as those given to the 3,400 LIRR workers in the contract dispute, transit officials said giving in to them would cost the MTA an extra $200 million a year. MTA Chief Financial Officer Jai Patel said, "The entire MTA, and not just the Long Island Rail Road, has to pay for this somehow.”Kevin Sexton, national vice president of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and a spokesman for the coalition of five unions, called the threat of an 8% fare hike "absolute, unadulterated, shameless fear mongering."Sexton said the MTA's figures are "not based in fact" and are disputed by federal mediators who have reviewed MTA's finances.Members of the five unions threatening to strike made on average $122,443 in 2024, the latest year available, according to a Newsday analysis of payroll data.With the May 16 deadline drawing nearer, MTA officials yesterday began warning riders directly of a potential railroad shutdown, including through a new website, mta.info/lirrstrike, which includes information about a plan to help commuters get to work and back without trains running.***Two Southampton High School juniors are helping bridge the gap between the classroom and the workplace by playing a key role in launching a new Business Advisory Council aimed at expanding career opportunities for students.Working alongside Director of Counseling Martha Tuthill, student ambassadors Cameron Kieffer and Jack D’Italia have helped establish the initiative, which focuses on strengthening connections between the Southampton School district and the local business community.As reported on 27east.com, since the start of the school year, the council has hosted two meetings with more than 20 local business leaders, working to increase student access to career information, internships and job opportunities while enhancing career education programs.Ms. Tuthill said the initiative is just beginning. “The council can only grow from here, and the plan is to build upon it every year,” she said.Looking ahead, the students are working to launch a business club in fall 2026 to further expand opportunities for their peers.Local business leaders interested in participating can contact Tuthill at mtuthill@southamptonschools.org***Almost everyone in Sag Harbor — from village government leaders to the heads of community nonprofits and advocacy groups, small-business owners and landlords, and more — agree that the village is at a tipping point, similar to the identity crisis it experienced around 2008, when the specter of CVS arriving in Sag Harbor led to code changes to protect the village’s character. Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that there’s a sense of urgency, bordering on panic at times, and a feeling that immediate steps must be taken to ensure that the Village of Sag Harbor doesn’t succumb to the same fate as its neighbors to the east and west, East Hampton Village and Southampton Village, where the downtown becomes a ghost town during the months outside of Memorial Day to Labor Day weekend. The re-opened and restored Southampton Playhouse has enlivened Hill Street in Southampton.What can and should be done to help ensure Sag Harbor can continue to lay claim to its longtime moniker as the “Un-Hampton,” is a debatable topic in the village. Nowadays one might rightfully refer to Sag Harbor as SAG-HAMPTON.With Target set to open in Bridgehampton this fall, the problem gets bigger. A not much longer drive to an area with free and abundant parking becomes an almost irresistible option for local shoppers.Bob Weinstein is the co-president of Save Sag Harbor. He spoke about the irony of the situation the village now finds itself in, nearly two decades after the rise of Save Sag Harbor as an organization.“I sort of joke that Save Sag Harbor, which has been at the forefront of protecting the scale and authenticity and charm of the village, maybe we’ve been too successful,” he said. “What used to be the un-Hampton is now so desirable, but all the things that make us so desirable could be lost so easily if the village goes from being Sag Harbor to Sag Tropez.“If everyone doesn’t come together, the things that we love will be lost, due to its popularity, and then the popularity will also be lost,” he added.Weinstein is a big believer in the value of shopping locally. “I sound like an old hippie saying this, but there’s power in the people,” he said.***New York Governor Gov. Kathy Hochul is seeking to pass a bill that would require the drivers of “super-speeder” vehicles to install speed-limiting devices. Its fate is tied to state budget negotiations with the Legislature, which has so far failed to pass the measure. (The NYS Legislative 2026-27 budget is now a month overdue.)Stefanos Chen reports in THE NY TIMES that a driver must be caught on camera speeding 16 or more times in a single year — or more than once a month — to qualify as a super-speeder. In New York City, that designation currently includes about 14,600 vehicles.The device, known as Intelligent Speed Assistance, is a small box affixed to the dashboard that uses GPS to identify the speed limit — 25 m.p.h. or less on most local streets, and higher on highways — and caps the driver slightly above it. The driver may temporarily override the device, in certain circumstances, with the tap of a button.Proponents say the program could lead to a big improvement in street safety, where other interventions have failed. Critics argue that the technology is invasive and could endanger drivers if it malfunctions or if they need to speed up suddenly, though similar devices have been used successfully elsewhere.“Suspending the license doesn’t do anything,” said Emily Gallagher, a state assemblywoman representing parts of Brooklyn, who backs the super-speeder bill.Many repeat offenders will continue to drive, she said, so the aim should be to limit the harm they can cause.***Riverhead Rotary’s 30th annual East End Garden Festival runs May 3 to May 10 at Tanger Outlets in Riverhead.The event which starts this coming Sunday features a giant plant sale, with proceeds benefiting Riverhead Rotary Charities, Operation International and Peconic Bay Medical Center.A raffle will also be held with a top prize of $10,000, second prize of $3,000, third prize of $1,000 and two additional prizes of $500. Raffle tickets cost $100 each, and sales are limited to 300 tickets. Winning tickets will be drawn Wednesday, May 27, 2026. If fewer than 300 tickets are sold, prizes will be proportionate to the number of tickets sold. Winners do not need to be present to win.***The Town of Southampton will be paid $850,000 by the organizers of the U.S. Open Golf Championship for police and other expenses incurred during this year’s tournament in Shinnecock Hills. Alek Lewis reports in NEWSDAY that the payment will reimburse the estimated cost of town police, traffic control, safety enforcement officers and other town staff during the event, said Ryan Murphy, Southampton’s public safety and emergency management administrator.“It's a considerable amount of resources that go into it,” Murphy told Newsday yesterday. “The town provides a rather large police presence for the event ... as well as the traffic and making sure that things flow through the area.”The Southampton Town board approved a "consideration agreement" between the town and the U.S. Golf Association, which runs the tournament, at its meeti...
Transcribe →Trump war with Iran continues to raise cost of living for Long Islanders
Apr 2900:10:02Tap to summarizeGasoline prices on Long Island rose more than 12 cents a gallon over the last week, pushed by the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, which has choked oil exports from the Persian Gulf, as well as seasonal factors, according to AAA.By Monday morning, the auto club put the average price per gallon at just under $4.13. Gas Buddy put the average at $4.09, the highest in 12 months, though well off the $5.05 highest average price the AAA recorded for the region in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The national average has dropped since early April and was $4.11 on Monday, according to AAA. Here on the east end stations were charging over $4.20 per gallon in Water Mill and points east.Nicholas Spangler reports in NEWSDAY that gas prices — advertised on almost every commercial road — are key to consumer confidence, especially on Long Island, where there are more cars than households. Crude oil cost is the major driver of retail gasoline prices, and it has surged since the start of the Iran war because of disruption to production and shipping of oil and gas in the Persian Gulf. The threat of Iranian attacks on shipping has essentially closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world’s daily crude diet passed before the war’s start.The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s last available short-term energy outlook, from April 6, predicted retail gasoline prices would peak at $4.30 in April and average more than $3.70 this year, but that outlook assumed that war would not continue into May and that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz would gradually resume.***The Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center in East Hampton is looking to undertake a $4 million basement renovation to make way for a new Infant center, building on the success of the program for infants launched at the center last year.Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that to get the renovation project off the ground, the center, which provides child care and early education for infants and toddlers in East Hampton, is eying a $3.5 million grant from the NYS Office of Childhood and Family Services, which will be awarded to an early childhood center within the state for either new construction or a renovation.What the renovation project calls for is an overhaul of the center’s underutilized basement space as part of a three-phase project.If the center does not receive the grant for the renovation, it will pursue the project through other means. But the grant would serve to expedite the process overall.“We're still going to go ahead, and what we'll do is we'll probably break up the project into three different areas,” said Tim Frazier, Executive Director. “We'll probably put the elevator in first, and then we'll look at the renovation on the outside, then the renovation on the inside.”The Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center is one of only a few early education centers in the region that offers a structured and educational infant program.***Montauk, the home of the lighthouse, is about to see its name in lights on Broadway. Daniel Bubbeo reports in NEWSDAY that yesterday, Manhattan Theatre Club announced that Emmy Award winner and Oscar nominee Laura Linney will star in the world premiere of "Montauk," a new drama by David Hare at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre next spring. The play is described as "a visceral portrait of two artists with violently different approaches to art and life." Linney will play a writer who becomes infatuated with a passionate artist who is "a stubborn titan of Long Island abstraction," according to the announcement.Montauk has history as a refuge for artists including Andy Warhol, who lived in the oceanfront estate Eothen in Montauk.Eothen is Greek for "from the East" or "from the dawn.***Suffolk County officials are pointing to the Navy’s cleanup of the Bethpage plume in Nassau County as a precedent — and warning they expect the same urgency in Calverton, where county testing shows contamination from the former Navy-owned Grumman manufacturing site continues to move through groundwater, surface water and fish habitat while federal cleanup efforts remain largely in the study phase. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that at a community meeting last night, County Executive Ed Romaine made clear Suffolk is no longer willing to wait.“We are not without options,” Romaine said, emphasizing the county’s size, population and resources as he warned the county is not willing to tolerate indefinite delay from the U.S. Navy.The contrast with Bethpage is hard to miss. There, after decades of delay and denial about groundwater contamination from a former Navy/Grumman site, the Navy and Northrop Grumman in 2020 agreed to a $406 million cleanup plan to halt the spread of a massive groundwater plume that had already polluted public water supply wells, according to the Associated Press.That is the model Suffolk officials and environmental advocates say should now apply in Calverton: a former Navy/Grumman site, migrating contamination, public-water impacts, years of delay — and, eventually, an engineered containment plan funded by the responsible parties.Suffolk Health Commissioner Dr. Gregson Pigott said the stakes are high because Nassau and Suffolk have only one drinking water source: the sole-source aquifer.“It’s very important to understand what’s going into that aquifer, what’s going into our groundwater, our surface waters,” Pigott said.Riverhead Town Supervisor Jerry Halpin said after last night’s meeting that the Navy must move beyond discussion.“It’s time for the Navy to take accountability and begin action,” Halpin said. “They need to formulate an action plan and clean up our water so people have clean drinking water. It’s a basic human right.”***The mother of 8-year-old Thomas Valva, who reached a $9 million settlement with Suffolk County after her son died from being forced to sleep in a freezing garage in Center Moriches, could soon see the agreement scrapped and instead be forced to take the case to trial, a federal judge said yesterday during a brief but contentious hearing.Nicole Fuller reports in NEWSDAY that U.S. District Judge Brian M. Cogan, who recently took over the case after Valva's mother, Justyna Zubko-Valva, refused repeated requests from her lawyers to sign the required documents to finalize the settlement, issued an ultimatum from the bench in federal court in Brooklyn."There will be no settlement unless the plaintiff [Zubko-Valva] files an infant compromise motion," Cogan said, referring to the required motion that he said must be approved by a judge in settlements involving minors.If Zubko-Valva doesn't sign off on the motion in 30 days, the judge said, "Then the only other option is, we're going to trial."Zubko-Valva rejected an earlier proposal for distribution of the settlement, which called for her to receive $2 million immediately and for trusts in the amounts of about $2 million apiece to be established for her two surviving sons, Anthony and Andrew. The remaining $3 million would have been set aside for Zubko-Valva's attorneys. Her former attorney, Jon Norinsberg, has argued he is entitled to be paid. But Zubko-Valva has argued that neither her current attorney nor her previous one are entitled to any of the money, despite her signing agreements with each that stipulated they would be paid a portion of any settlement reached. 8-year-old Thomas Valva was killed on Jan. 17, 2020, by his NYPD officer father, Michael Valva, and Valva's then-fiancee, Angela Pollina, who forced the boy to sleep in their unheated Center Moriches garage, and starved and beat him. Thomas died from hypothermia.Valva and Pollina were both convicted of second-degree murder and are serving sentences of 25 years to life in upstate prisons.***The Town of Southampton will host a community discussion of the Riverside Water Resource Recovery Facility this evening at 7 p.m. at the Flanders Community Center, 655 Flanders Road, Flanders.Attendees will receive the latest updates on the Riverside project, learn what an E-One grinder pump looks like, and hear information about its installation and operation from the vendors at Site Specific. Southampton Town’s consulting engineers and architects will also be available to answer questions and gather community feedback.Community participation and input are encouraged as the Town of Southampton works with residents toward the future of Riverside.Tonight’s meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Flanders Community Center.***Years of independent ground and surface water testing by Suffolk County shows that a far more extensive plume of industrial chemicals is spreading beyond the former Grumman site in Calverton than the U.S. Navy has acknowledged. Tara Smith reports in NEWSDAY that the findings, presented by the county at a forum in Manorville last night, show the hazardous and in some cases carcinogenic chemicals are migrating directly toward the Peconic River, putting the entire estuary at risk.Residents, environmental advocates and local officials have grown frustrated by what they say is the U.S. Navy moving too slowly to confront the full extent of the pollution. The Navy is "dragging their feet," said Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment.Navy officials did not participate in yesterday’s forum, though a Navy representative was in the audience taking notes.The 6,000-acre former Grumman site was used to build and test fighter jets from 1954 to 1996.Last night's meeting struck an urgent tone among nearly 100 residents who fi...
Transcribe →Village of East Hampton first to pass law to boost ICE accountability
Apr 2700:10:00Tap to summarizeThe Long Island Rail Road will begin summer service schedules on May 18 on the Montauk, Long Beach and Ronkonkoma lines — including more weekday trains to Montauk. Peter Gill reports in NEWSDAY that separately, beginning May 11, some midday weekday trains on various branches will see their departure times adjusted by a few minutes to accommodate maintenance work and accessibility upgrades outside of rush hour.All the changes will be viewable on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s TrainTime app later this week, according to the LIRR.Beginning Monday, May 18, the 5:13 p.m. train from Penn Station to Speonk — which normally runs to Montauk on summer Thursdays and Fridays — will continue on to Montauk, making all stops Mondays through Fridays throughout the summer. Likewise, the 11:37 a.m. and 4:18 p.m. trains on Sundays (Mondays on holiday weekends) from Montauk will operate through to Penn Station.The additional summer weekday trains to Montauk were first rolled out last summer. They are in addition to the Cannonball trains that offer express service to and from the South Fork on summer weekends."As we head into the busy summer season, we’re expanding service to give customers more flexibility," said LIRR President Rob Free in a statement yesterday.Regarding the north fork, midday weekday train service east of Ronkonkoma to and from Greenport will resume on May 11; it had been substituted with busing for several months for track maintenance.***The New York attorney general, Letitia James, on Friday sued to block the Trump administration’s cancellation of more than $73 million in highway funding for the state.The lawsuit, which A.G. James filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, asks the court to overturn the U.S. Department of Transportation’s decision and to restore the funding. Samantha Latson reports in THE NY TIMES that the Department of Transportation said last week that it would withhold financial support because New York refused to revoke commercial driver’s licenses it said were issued illegally. Ms. James said the trucking licenses were in compliance with state and federal regulations and only issued to people with legal status.“New Yorkers depend on safe, reliable roads and bridges to get to work, take their kids to school and keep our economy moving,” Ms. James said. “The administration cannot promise funding to our state and then abruptly yank it away.”Last week, the Transportation Department said it would also withhold an additional $147 million in future funding. The federal aid funds road maintenance, safety improvements and infrastructure. The attorney general said the aid block could interfere with “critical” transportation projects, increase costs and effect local economies across the state.“I promised the American people I would hold any state leader accountable for failing to keep them safe from unvetted, unqualified foreign drivers,” said Sean P. Duffy, the U.S. transportation secretary, in a statement. “I’m delivering on that promise today by refusing to fund Governor Hochul’s dangerous, anti-American policies. My message to New York’s far left leadership is clear: Families must be prioritized on American roads.”The trucking licenses have been part of a protracted battle between New York and the department for months. Mr. Duffy said in June 2025 that the federal government would audit state licensing practices because millions of people entered the United States illegally, leaving the truck licensing system vulnerable to exploitation. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration audit released in December found that 107 of New York’s commercial driver’s licenses were issued illegally out of 200 sampled records. The agency said the state issued commercial licenses to foreign drivers without providing evidence that it had verified the driver’s legal status.Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement on Friday that the department’s claims were false and that the blocking of federal funds was “political payback.”***Beth Young in EAST END BEACON reports that that there are 3 important civic gatherings this evening:The League of Women Voters of the Hamptons will host a program titled “Learning About Serving on Your East Hampton, Southampton and Shelter Island Town Board Advisory Committees” this evening from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the East Hampton Library, at 159 Main Street. The program will include LWV members from the three towns speaking about how to participate on the town advisory committees, when they meet, what the committees’ responsibilities are, and what they’ve accomplished. For more information, visit lwvhsinf.orgThe Mattituck and Cutchogue Civic Associations host a joint public forum on “The State of Mattituck-Cutchogue Schools” this evening from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Veterans Park, on Peconic Bay Boulevard in Mattituck. Find Out More.The Hampton Bays Civic Association meets this evening at 7 p.m. at the Hampton Bays Senior Center. They’re expecting to hear from a septic system installer about grants available for new septic systems, and from a member of the Southampton Town Board about local issues.***The Village of East Hampton has become the first municipality on the East End to enact a law, drafted by OLA of Eastern Long Island, Inc. (Organización Latino Americana), that is meant to boost accountability in the event of federal immigration action.What the blueprint drafted by OLA aims to do, primarily, is establish a series of procedures and training programs that would help deter the impersonation of federal officers and adopt local requirements for reporting enforcement activity up and down the chain, with the goal of making that information publicly available. The purpose is to boost public safety and accountability and clarify the place that local governments occupy in the event of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, raid.Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that East Hampton Village officials adopted a version that is stronger than the final version that OLA is promoting. This is primarily because the village law, unlike OLA’s draft, blocks village officials from entering 287(g) agreements, which essentially allow local and federal officers to work in partnership for immigration detentions. OLA removed this provision, thinking that blocking 287(g) agreements could be a stumbling block, after receiving feedback from local officials.Another point where East Hampton Village officials gave the law extra teeth is in blocking federal officials from accessing data from the village’s Flock, or license plate reader, cameras. Data that has not been flagged in connection with a criminal investigation will be deleted within 30 days. East Hampton Village officials enacting the law, which was drafted via a collaboration between OLA and former NYS Assemblyman Fred Thiele, came right on the heels of a public hearing, held on April 22, during which OLA advocates spoke up.Of the 10 twin forks towns and villages with a police department, East Hampton Town and East Hampton Village have been spearheading the OLA law, while others are continuing discussions with OLA about what the law will entail.OLA Legal Advocate Erika Padilla said the law is not about hindering federal enforcement but protecting the safety and integrity of the local community. The law will provide a simple, common sense solution, Padilla said.The East Hampton Town Board, which lent support to the law after a discussion on April 7, plans to hold a public hearing on May 7.***The Town of Southold struck two words from its zoning code in a move officials say could spur more accessory apartments and boost affordable housing on the North Fork. Tara Smith reports in NEWSDAY that the change approved April 21 allows accessory apartments to be built in new detached structures on residential property. Previously, Southold Town law required accessory apartments be built in “presently existing” structures including garages, barns and storage buildings.The town board approved the change as part of a broader effort to update zoning laws to encourage accessory dwelling units in a competitive, expensive housing market. Southold’s Zoning Board of Appeals, which reviews applications to build accessory apartments, supported the change.Leslie Weisman, the board’s chair, said the town removed a roadblock and could allow residents to have tiny homes on their properties.Weisman cited a recent denial on a property where a homeowner sought to build a detached apartment for their son to live in. “We couldn’t say yes, because it was not existing,” Weisman said in an interview.Adding affordable housing is a key priority in Southold’s 2020 Comprehensive Plan. The need is dire, Weisman said.“Enrollment in our public school systems on the North Fork [is] dwindling dramatically,” Weisman said, noting that young families cannot afford to live in the region. “We’re going to lose generational vitality if we don’t do something about housing.”The Town of Southold is considering tapping its Community Housing Fund to provide no-interest loans to homeowners looking to build accessory apartments.***A Riverside Wastewater Forum at Flanders Community Center is scheduled for this coming Wednesday evening April 29 from 7 to 9 p.m.Southampton Town representatives will discuss the latest on Riverside’s Water Resource Recovery Facility in an informational program for the community.That’s this Wednesday at 7 p.m. in David W. Crohan Community Center, 655 Flanders Road, Riverhead, NY 11901.***New York school leaders have until today to file their 20...
Transcribe →Rotovirus on rise on Long Island, and nationwide
Apr 2400:10:06Tap to summarizeThe confessed serial killer, Rex Heuermann, told family members that the woman whose body was found in a wooded area in North Sea was indeed the first murder he committed and the only one that was not planned ahead of time.Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that in a documentary released yesterday on the streaming service Peacock, Heuermann’s wife and daughter recounted conversations they had with him last summer in which he admitted to them to have killed eight women between 1993 and 2010.The first, they said he told them, was Sandra Costilla, whose body was found in a small section of woodlands off Fish Cove Road, just north of Noyac Road.His wife, Asa Ellerup, says in the documentary that he told her he killed Costilla, who was a sex worker he had hired and arranged to meet over the phone, inside an SUV he owned at the time, a two-tone blue Dodge Ramcharger.“He said he killed Sandra Costilla in the Dodge — that was his first murder, before I married him,” Ellerup says in the “The Gilgo Beach Killer" fourth and final episode.Heuermann would have been 29 in November 1993, when Sandra Costilla, 28, disappeared. Her body was discovered by two Southampton waterfowl hunters early on the morning of November 20, 1993.“He said ‘The first one, I had no idea I was going to kill at the time, I just randomly did it,’” therapist Alison Winter, tells the documentary cameras, after speaking with Heuermann, with Ellerup, in the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Riverside in August 2025.Costilla’s murder had been the earliest one that Suffolk County Distirct Attorney Ray Tierney’s office had linked to Heuermann since 2024, when a new examination of DNA evidence in cold case murders following Heuermann’s 2023 arrest linked him to the decades old Southampton case.Costilla’s body was found, still partially clothed. Her body had been mutilated but was not disremembered, like many of the other victims, and only feint effort had been made to avoid the body being found.“She was lying on her back with her arms outstretched over her head — her legs were uncovered, a shirt was pressed over her head,” Tierney said at a press conference in 2024, the day he announced the new charges against Heuermann. “The victim suffered numerous sharp force injuries, 25 in all, which we believed were post-mortem.”Neither the D.A.’s office, nor the documentary, has shed any light on how Heuermann arrived at the small plot of undeveloped land in North Sea as the disposal site for Costilla’s body. The other bodies of his victims were found in dense brambles off a remote stretch of the Ocean Parkway in Gilgo Beach and in the woods of the Long Island Pine Barrens in Manorville.***There will not be a Republican Party candidate for East Hampton Town supervisor for the second straight election cycle, giving the winner of this year’s highly contested Democratic primary race a straight shot at the town’s top office. Jack Motz reports on 27east.com that East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen has, for months now, been running a challenge against incumbent Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, who was formally endorsed for a third term by the established Town Democratic Committee in January.Besides running a fiery campaign for town supervisor, Larsen has been backing a push to reshape the local Democratic Committee in his image by unseating the lion’s share of the 38 sitting committee members and putting his allies in their place.Throughout the campaign, Larsen has defended his political identity from establishment Democrats who say the Larsen-backed slate of committee candidates is sprinkled with longtime Republicans who appear to have switched their registration to wrest power from the local ruling party.Larsen said of the Republicans failing to nominate a candidate that “the election is really decided in June for the foreseeable future.”Burke-Gonzalez, in November, won reelection for a two-year term, in another uncontested general election, but a New York State law, which lined up local elections with the national calendar, truncated her term to one year – and put her right back on the campaign trail.This week, Larsen wrote off the possibility of him running with a third party, which would have been possible in the event of a Burke-Gonzalez win in the June primary election: “Democrat only,” he told The East Hampton Press.The candidates, Burke-Gonzalez and Larsen, will face off at a debate at LTV Studios in Wainscott on May 13 at 6 p.m. Express News Group Consulting Editor Joseph P. Shaw will serve as the moderator.***North Fork Scouts are busy this year making Southold a better place, starting just steps from the side door to Town Hall. Mattituck High School Junior Madison Tomaszewski is planning a Celebration Garden in a neglected space just outside of Southold Town Hall as part of her Gold Award project, while Brendan Boyle of Southold is placing first aid stations at a number of preserves throughout the town as an Eagle Scout project.Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that regarding Madison Tomaszewski’s Celebration Garden, Southold Supervisor Al Krupski told Town Clerk Denis Noncarrow to get ready for a slew of applications for weddings at Town Hall.“Quite a few weddings take place here already,” he said. “This serves as an example to younger girls, to see the kind of things they can do to help the community.”Regarding Brendan Boyle’s project, Southold Land Management Coordinator John Sepenoski told the Southold Town Board this week that Boyle’s first aid stations will be placed at Ruth Oliva Preserve in East Marion, Arshamomaque and Pipes Cove preserves in Greenport, Paul Stoutenburgh Preserve in Southold, Downs Farm Preserve in Cutchogue and Laurel Park in Laurel.***Suffolk County sheriff’s deputies are testing out high-tech guns that will be mounted on police car bumpers to fire GPS darts onto suspects’ vehicles’ during high-speed chases.The new technology, known as StarChase, already led to the tracking and arrest of a drunk driver who refused to pull over, authorities announced yesterday.Brandon Cruz reports in THE NY POST that the program was launched several weeks ago and is being piloted by the department’s DWI enforcement unit — the first agency in the county with access to the tech.“We have seen dozens of people try to evade arrest causing dangerous situations for themselves, our officers and the community at large,” said Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. “With our DWI team equipped with the StarChase GPS technology, it will help them apprehend subjects during high-risk events by safely giving our officers access to their real-time location, speed and direction,” the sheriff said. Once a driver makes it clear they have no intentions of pulling over, police are authorized to shoot the adhesive GPS tag onto the back of the fleeing vehicle, authorities said. It isn’t clear what the dart guns’ maximum range is.The dart then latches onto the car, giving officers and dispatch the ability to monitor the target’s real-time location, speed and direction without having to chase them through the streets.Once the driver believes they got away and comes to a stop, the tracking officers are then able to swoop in and make the surprise arrest.The system, according to officials, boasts an 85% success rate across a range of offenses — from drunk driving and stolen vehicles to human trafficking and narcotics — and could possibly find itself implemented in police vehicles across the county to use beyond DWI enforcement.With the new pilot program launching just weeks ago, Suffolk County joins neighboring New York City and Old Westbury cops in Nassau County who both implemented the tech back in 2023.***The president of the LIRR expressed optimism yesterday that a deal could be reached to avert a railroad union strike less than a month away. Alfonso A. Castillo reports in NEWSDAY that ahead of a planned virtual conference with LIRR labor leaders Monday, Long Island Rail Road president Rob Free said he "absolutely" believes a settlement to the three-year-long contract dispute is within reach.The two sides have already agreed on raises totaling 9.5% over the first three years of a new contract — terms already accepted by most Metropolitan Transportation Authority union workers. But the five LIRR labor organizations are demanding a fourth year at 5%. The MTA has countered with an offered 4.5% raise in the fourth year of the contract, but tied it to productivity increases and work rule givebacks."We want to talk to them. We're almost there," Free said at a Jamaica news conference. "Three years we're in agreement on. We're talking about a fourth year, and I don't think we're that far apart in what the raise would actually be."The five labor organizations embroiled in the contract dispute represent nearly half the LIRR’s union workforce, including locomotive engineers, signal workers, machinists, ticket agents and electricians.The unions have said the 15% in total raises they’re seeking is necessary to keep up with the rising cost of living, and with raises given to other union workers throughout the railroad industry. The LIRR’s offer, the unions have said, would amount to a pay cut.Free said Wednesday that paying higher-than-expected wages would create added costs in the MTA’s operating budget, which is funded in part through riders’ fares. "Who’s going to pay for it?" Free asked.Jeff Klein, general chairman of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 589, the union representing LIRR electricians, said he, too, remains optimistic that a deal can be made, but believes that raises...
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