LIE rest stop proposal draws ire from elected officials

A controversial state Department of Transportation plan to expand a rest stop between Exits 51 and 52 on the Long Island Expressway in Dix Hills has been resurrected in a pared down version.

Huntington Town Supervisor Frank Petrone said Thursday he was briefed on the revised plan about two weeks ago. But state legislators representing the area said they were unaware of the proposal before the state notified town officials about the changes.

“The Department of Transportation should have gone to the four state legislators for a briefing before anybody else,” Assemb. Andy Raia (R-East Northport) said Thursday. “What I don’t appreciate is getting calls from my local civic associations asking me about a revised project that I have absolutely no idea about.”

Local officials in August also criticized a lack of communication from the state about the plan. They learned about it only after residents near the site complained that trees were being cleared at the current “text stop” on the south side of the LIE that is frequented by truckers.

Officials later learned the Department of Transportation had put out a construction bid to build a 9,000-square-foot facility with 200 parking spaces and parking for four buses without notifying elected officials. The bid was pulled a week later.

The new plan, revised to ban trucks, would add vending machines and restrooms at the site, and sell products from Taste New York including wine, town and state officials said. State officials also are considering adding a substation for the New York State and Suffolk County police.

Petrone said he was organizing meetings with some community members when he learned Raia, State Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R-East Northport), Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset), and Assemb. Chad Lupinacci (R-Huntington) had not been briefed.

“Evidently something is being set up for next week for them to hear about the plan,” Petrone said after holding a meeting Thursday at his office with Raia, Lupinacci, Suffolk County Legis. Steve Stern (D-Dix Hills) and representatives of Flanagan and Marcellino. “If this project is going to be a benefit, we all should have input on it.”

In an emailed statement Thursday, DOT Commissioner Matthew Driscoll said: “To ensure the state is receiving an array of input, we’ve been meeting with stakeholders as we committed to last fall. They’ve been productive discussions about how we can best ensure the health and safety of all users of the LIE, and we look forward to continuing those conversations in the coming weeks and months.”

Raia sent a letter Thursday to Driscoll saying he was “deeply offended” that he had to find out about the latest plan from civic groups and Petrone, and requested answers to 10 detailed questions about the environmental impact, security, bus use and other issues.

“We oppose it at this point,” Lupinacci said of expanding the text stop. “We have no details and don’t believe there’s a high need for this type of rest stop in this part of Long Island.”

Stern said it is “unacceptable” that local state officials had once again been kept out of the loop.

“I will continue to stand strong with my community to make sure any proposal is properly vetted,” Stern said. “I will fight to make sure Dix Hills residents have every opportunity to participate in the process and make their voices heard.”