Closings, changes to events, meetings and policies in your town

Here is a list of closings and changes to meetings, events and policies in towns, cities and libraries around Long Island.

AMITYVILLE

• Village hall is closed from until March 20, and all meetings are cancelled.

BABYLON

• The Town of Babylon is closing all facilities to the public Monday and Tuesday to allow for cleaning and time to assess how to move forward with services. Public safety, the fire marshal’s office and the animal shelter will still be staffed during this time, town spokesman Kevin Bonner said. The town will also be delivering senior meals during this time. All public meetings and hearings during this time have been canceled. During the two days, more than 340 town employees will be off with pay while 67 will be working, with 10 of those individuals working from home, Bonner said. He said that by Wednesday the town hopes to have a plan made public about how they will proceed.
• The Babylon Industrial Development Agency has canceled its Wednesday meeting.
• In North Babylon, the public library is closed today and will be open from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday. The board of trustees will hold a budget hearing before a board meeting at 6 p.m. At the hearing, a proposed $1 million budget increase to bring the building into compliance with the federal American with Disabilities Act will be discussed.
• The West Babylon Public Library is closed until March 23.

BABYLON VILLAGE

• The highway and sanitation office will be closed to the public until further notice.

BROOKHAVEN

• The town ecology center and animal preserve in Holtsville is closed.
• All parks and recreation programs are canceled.
• The town also has canceled a "Recycle Right" media contest, and the "What Now?" youth events scheduled for today and March 30.  
• The Agricultural Advisory Board meeting scheduled for March 25 was canceled.
• Suffolk Board of Elections training seminars at Brookhaven Town Hall were canceled.
• Women's Recognition Night, scheduled for March 24, was canceled.
• The Animal Education, Care and Awareness workshop at Longwood Public Library, scheduled for March 21, has been postponed. No makeup date was announced.
• The Brookhavn Animal Shelter donation drive in Center Moriches, scheduled for March 21, has been postponed.
• The Prom Gown donation program, scheduled to begin on March 24, has been postponed.
• A youth bureau program, "Gangs on Long Island: What You Need to Know," scheduled for March 23, has been postponed.
• The Dress for Success program, including client suitings and donations, has been suspended until further notice.
• Brookhaven Parks Violations Bureau hearings on March 18 and 25 have been adjourned. Those scheduled to appear will receive notices with new hearing dates.
• Town will cut the number of staff working in town facilities to comply with state orders. Other employees will work remotely.
• Planning, zoning, town clerk and assessors documents may be dropped off at town hall.

COPIAGUE

• The Copiague Public Library is closed until further notice, according to its website.

EAST HAMPTON

• The East Hampton Town Board will hold its regularly scheduled work session at 10 a.m. Tuesday. In lieu of the planned agenda, town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc will provide an update on the COVID-19 coronavirus situation and share key information for residents during the town state of emergency. There will be no public attendance at the meeting. The meeting will be taped and broadcast live on LTV channel 22. Public comments for submission to the record may be emailed to the town clerk, Carole Brennan, at CBrennan@EHamptonNY.gov.
• The town board meeting scheduled for Thursday has been canceled.

HEMPSTEAD TOWN

• Hempstead Town Hall starting Tuesday will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday with reduced staff until further notice. Residents are urged to call or use online services to conduct town-related business whenever possible.

HUNTINGTON

• Huntington Town Hall is closed to the public beginning Monday.
• The animal shelter on Deposit Road is closed to the public until further notice.
• Town parks and playgrounds are open but all permits for play on town fields are canceled through March 31.
• The Town of Huntington Recycling Center on New York Avenue will be closed to the public until further notice.
• The Huntington Youth Bureau on Park Avenue is closed to the public until further notice. 
• The Walt Whitman Birthplace State Historic Site will be closed from March 17 to April 6.

ISLIP

• All town buildings are closed to the public except by appointment.
• Residents are asked to use the town website islipny.gov to conduct town business online.
• Senior centers are closed. Essential senior services are continuing, including in-home meal delivery and transportation to doctor appointments. 
• There will be no adoptions at the animal shelter for two weeks.  
• Traffic violations conferences scheduled for March 23 and April 6 have been canceled.
• The town Planning Board meeting scheduled for Thursday has been canceled.
• WRAP pail distribution will be halted for two weeks.
• All programs, classes, concerts and the exhibit at the Islip Art Museum are canceled unitl further notice.

LINDENHURST

• The village board meeting scheduled for Tuesday has been canceled.
• Village court will not be in session this week.
• Staffing will be at a minimum level. Village hall is open for essential business only. 

LONGWOOD 

• The animal education, care and awareness workshop, scheduled for March 21 at the Longwood Public Library, has been postponed. No makeup date was announced.

NISSEQUOGUE

• Nissequogue’s Tuesday night Village Board meeting will take place but with a streamlined agenda, Mayor Richard Smith said, with staffers who normally report in person emailing instead. Trustees are scheduled to vote on a law banning use of vinyl siding on buildings in the village, he said. Village residents can look forward to some good news: Property taxes in the 2020 budget will likely be cut 2 percent, Smith said, anticipating a formal announcement in early April. Two years of lighter than usual snow and an intermunicipal agreement with Smithtown Highway Department have resulted in a decrease in expenses, he said.

NORTH HEMPSTEAD

• All town facilities will remain closed to the public until March 30. Essential services, such as 311, the clerk's office and sanitation, will continue to operate. The 311 call center will remain open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

NORTHPORT

• The village board will meet on March 19. There will be no public participation. There will be no commissioner reports and no new business. The agenda will consist of accepting the results of the election, pay bills and accept the minutes of the last meeting. The village is advising all the public to stay home.
• Northport Village Court session for Monday is canceled. Court personnel can be reached by phone at 631-757-0935.

SMITHTOWN

• Smithtown officials on Monday said in an email they had postponed a March 18 Planning Board meeting and a March 24 Board of Zoning Appeals meeting until April. The 2 p.m. March 19 town council meeting has been closed to residents, who can still comment by emailing townclerk@smithtownny.gov.
• While town offices remain open and staffers are still at work, town spokeswoman Nicole Garguilo said residents are being asked to phone or email for service instead of visiting in person. In cases where that may not be practical — including a small number of Building and Planning Department applications — residents should call ahead to pick up or drop off documents in building vestibules, she said. “For people with sensitive documents to pick up or drop off, they can call the building department when they get to the driveway and watch someone pick it up,” she said. 
• Town Supervisor Edward Wehrheim met with CSEA and SAG union representatives Monday morning to discuss plans in the event a town staffer or family member gets exposed to the coronavirus, Garguilo said. Town leadership was looking for flexibility on contract provisions that call for time-and-a-half pay to kick in for staffers who continue to come in to work when others work from home, she said. “We’re trying to work it out so it’s fair to everybody,” she said. Time-and-a-half would also kick in if the town declared a state of emergency, she said. Smithtown is the lone Suffolk Town that has not done so. Garguilo said last week that the declaration would provide few capabilities not already available under Suffolk County’s declaration.
• The town senior center shut Monday for what Garguilo said last week would be two weeks, giving workers from the parks department time to clean the building. The move was also intended to protect elderly residents who may be most at risk to the coronavirus, she said. Town staffers and volunteers on Monday started home delivery of lunches for up to 35 seniors who previously ate at the Senior Center. The hot meals, which typically include soup, a vegetable and an entree, are free for any resident 65 and older and can be requested by calling 631-360-7616. 
• Smithtown Fire Department Chief Kevin J. Fitzpatrick reassured residents that the department was open and responding to all emergencies, describing as “baseless” a rumor that the department was closing. Fitzpatrick said he had ordered limited access to fire stations for tours and other events. Garguilo said the rumor started on a Facebook page frequented by area residents. “All volunteers in emergency services will remain on the front lines during this time,” she said. “We should all be cooperating and working together and not pulling pranks that can cause serious panic.” 

VILLAGE OF THE BRANCH

• Village of the Branch will hold its election as scheduled Wednesday, Mayor Mark Delaney wrote in an email Sunday night. “We rarely have more than 75 or so voters and that’s well below guidelines regarding public gatherings given that it’s over a daylong period,” he said, adding that plans could change “if any of the staff feel uncomfortable or if things change” Monday. The election is uncontested. 

WESTHAMPTON BEACH

• The Westhampton Free Library is closing all library facilities starting Monday until further notice. The library’s Wi-Fi is still broadcasting and can be accessed from the parking lot. If patrons have items that are due, they will not accrue late fees. Book drops will be closed, and patrons are asked not to leave items outside the library. All library cards that are nearing their expiration dates in March will be renewed until June.