Long Island briefs

SUFFOLK COUNTY

West Nile hotline

in operation

Suffolk County has activated a West Nile Hotline as part of its effort to detect and prevent the spread of West Nile virus.

The Department of Health Services' Public Health Hotline at 631-787-2200 is available from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

"It's important to provide our neighbors with the information on who to contact if they have concerns about West Nile," said Suffolk County Legis. Steve Stern (D-Huntington). "West Nile continues to be a public health challenge. The best way to protect ourselves and to protect our communities is by getting important information out to residents."

West Nile virus was first detected in Suffolk County in 1999. Some mosquito bites can transmit West Nile to humans, with mosquitoes picking up the virus from infected birds. Residents are advised to call the hotline if they see a dead bird, and the department will determine whether it will be picked up for testing.

The hotline will be active until Labor Day.

For further information on mosquitoes and mosquito-borne illnesses, visit the county Department of Health Services website, suffolkcountyny. gov/health and look under "seasonal trends." To report mosquito problems or stagnant pools of water, call the Department of Public Works Vector Control Division at 631-852-4270.

NASSAU COUNTY

Website proposed

for sharing services

Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano is proposing a cloud-based website that aims to improve centralized bidding across local municipalities and school districts -- while encouraging increased sharing of services.

The administration has entered into a three-year contract with Spec Bid Holdings Inc. of Roslyn Heights to operate the site, at a cost of $637,000. The county will offset that expense with a $353,000 state grant, officials said.

Mangano called the site "a first-of-its-kind, 100 percent transparent" venture that runs on cloud storage technology instead of costlier software. Officials said it would "streamline and simplify" Nassau's current bidding system, which is used by municipalities, schools and taxing districts to obtain common goods and services such as paper and natural gas.

"The system will allow all of our contracts and blanket purchase orders to be downloaded and searchable, send out bids through instant alerts via email to both buyers and sellers for increased efficiencies, and encourage participation in leveraged buying," Mangano said in a statement, noting that the new site could be "accessed from anywhere, on any device," unlike the current shared bidding portal.

Mangano added that the county hopes to launch this summer and also is exploring shared purchasing of electricity, micro-turbines, fuel cells and other types of power.

The County Legislature's Rules Committee is expected to consider the contract at its next meeting on Monday.

OYSTER BAY TOWN

Town official phasing out legal practice

Leonard Symons, a full-time Oyster Bay deputy public safety commissioner, is phasing out his private legal practice.

The former town board member and Nassau County assistant district attorney has been a frequent presence in Nassau courtrooms, particularly in Family Court in Westbury where he works as an assigned counsel for two state programs.

Public Safety Commissioner Justin McCaffrey and town attorney Leonard Genova said Symons has been able to make court appearances during the day -- sometimes twice in the same day -- because he more than made up the time by working nights and weekends managing security at town events and attending community and professional association meetings.

"We run hundreds of events," said McCaffrey, who is Symons' supervisor. "The vast majority of my employees do work nights and weekends."

Symons, of Plainview, coordinates emergency preparedness responses, Genova said, adding that Symons has purchased weather equipment and goes to weather conferences at his own expense.

Genova said Symons decided late last year to phase out his private practice and is now wrapping up ongoing cases. He is paid $104,000 for his full-time town job.

"I have been a workaholic all my life, and continue to be," Symons, 71, said yesterday. But he added that "I just can't do 80 hours a week anymore, and I'm at the point in my life where I really want to devote all my energies to my passion of emergency management and meteorology."

BROOKHAVEN

50 firms to attend job fair tomorrow

Fifty companies will be looking to hire at Brookhaven Town's annual job fair tomorrow.

The event, sponsored by the town and the Brookhaven Business Advisory Council, is open to the public and free. The Suffolk County Sherriff's Office and Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center are among the employers participating.

"The Job Fair is a great opportunity for job hunters to connect with companies that are looking for qualified candidates," Town Supervisor Edward P. Romaine said in a statement. "Helping people find good paying jobs is one way that government can work with the private sector to stimulate the local economy."

Town officials recommend job seekers bring resumes and be prepared to speak with prospective employers. Recent college graduates are encouraged to attend.

The fair will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Town Hall, 1 Independence Hill in Farmingville.

ISLIP

Town planning board agrees to divide plot

The Islip Town planning board has unanimously approved an application to subdivide a parcel in Bohemia into two lots.

The Bohemia site, located on LoGrande Court near DaVinci and Johnson streets, will be converted into two lots for vehicle repair and construction equipment storage, according to representatives for the applicant, J.D. Posillico.

The board reserved a decision on an application to build a bakery in Central Islip at the corner of Suffolk Avenue and North Peters Boulevard after a resident complained about traffic in the area. Jose Vazquez applied to build a 16-seat bakery selling pastries and cakes, according to his architect, Fernando Villa of Astoria.

Daisy Gutierrez, who lives nearby on Applegate Drive, told the planning board that while she "loves (that) my neighborhood is becoming nicer," she was concerned about traffic on Suffolk Avenue with the presence of several convenience and fast-food stores.

"Traffic is already a nightmare in my neighborhood," Gutierrez said. Board member Michael Kennedy recused himself from the vote.

The board also reserved decisions on an application to build a dialysis practice on the corner of Carleton Avenue and West Adams Street in East Islip, and an application to build a deli and retail store at the corner of Marvin Road and Fifth Avenue in Bay Shore. Kennedy recused himself on the Bay Shore deli application as well.

The board also unanimously approved an application for overnight storage of vehicles at a parcel at Hoffman Avenue and Newton Place in Hauppauge, and an application to maintain a mixed-use building at the corner of Railroad Avenue and Hiddink Street in Sayville.OYSTER BAY

Board OKs payment to settle 3 lawsuits

Oyster Bay town board has approved paying $119,351 to settle three negligence lawsuits stemming from car accidents involving vehicles driven by town employees.

The largest payment was $72,500 to settle claims arising over a 2009 accident in which a truck driven by town employee Robert Limoncelli rear-ended Pei-Xin Yu's vehicle on Old Bethpage Road near the intersection with Haypath Road.

In 2012, a state judge in Nassau County granted a partial summary judgment in favor of Yu on the issue of liability. The decision said the driver traveling behind another driver has a duty to maintain a safe distance behind the front vehicle. The settlement covers Yu's personal injury claims that the crash injured her right knee and shoulder.

"We did accept the fault," Oyster Bay spokeswoman Marta Kane said.

The town also approved a $24,000 payment to Sonia Kamal and her attorney to settle a personal injury claim that alleged she suffered a spinal injury in a collision with a town vehicle in Hicksville in 2009. The third payment approved was $22,851 to settle a claim by Nationwide Insurance Company of America for insured property damage for an accident in 2011 in which the company alleged a vehicle driven by a town employee rear-ended Bruce Yearwood.

Kane said that none of the town employees involved in the accidents was disciplined.

GREAT NECK

LIRR to resume platform renovation

The Long Island Rail Road is to resume renovation work on its westbound platform in Great Neck on Monday.

The new construction phase will complete rehabilitation on the platform after the LIRR repaired the eastbound portion last year, LIRR officials said in a news release.

"The new platform will provide an even surface for passengers who are boarding and exiting trains," the release said.

Plans to resurface the uneven platform, retaining walls, pedestrian overpass, canopy, and stairs will continue through early October, the release said. Work is scheduled for daytime hours and is not expected to affect train service, but it will leave the elevator and main stairway from Barstow Road out of service.

Travelers wishing to access the westbound platform should use the temporary staircase west of the station house. Officials recommended that customers who have difficulty with stairs use accessibility ramps at Little Neck or Manhasset stations.

SELDEN

Craft beer, music fest draws enthusiasts

Microbrew aficionados gathered for the third annual Beer Fields Craft Beer and Music Festival at Pennysaver Amphitheater in Selden on Saturday.

Among them was Keith Collins, who traveled from Brooklyn to sample some of the 200 beers from 100 Long Island and national breweries that set up booths on the theater's grassy grounds.

"I sometimes drink Bud Light and Miller Lite, but as the microbrew industry has grown over the past five to 10 years, I've learned that there are a lot of different beers out there to try," said Collins, 30, adding he favors Blue Point Toasted Lager.

Montauk Brewing Co. and Oyster Bay Brewing Co. were two of the many Long Island microbreweries that showcased their brands along with companies from as far away as California. Duffy Griffiths, co-owner of the Crooked Ladder, which launched in Riverhead last year, poured beer from taps on a firetruck.

"It's been great, great music and great people," Griffiths, 42, said of the festival. "Everybody's happy to try different beers. That's what matters."

The musical acts performed at the amphitheater and a smaller, satellite stage throughout the seven-hour festival.

"We've taken the typical beer festival and added a musical element to it," said James Bonanno, a co-founder of Beer Fields and owner of Tap Room in Patchogue. "There's a lot of beer festivals around the world, but not many bring the type of music that we bring."

Beer Fields has grown from an estimated 3,500 people in 2012 to 5,000 on Saturday. Bonanno attributed the growth to the popularity among microbreweries, which typically produce a limited supply of specialty beers sold regionally.

"There has been a whole craft beer revolution and it's just been growing," he said. "I've been in the industry for three years and we see firsthand on my day-to-day job just how big the following craft beer has become."

Greg Martin has showcased his Long Ireland Beer Co. at the festival all three years. He and his business partner sold their first keg in March 2009, and with minimal advertising the East End-based company has averaged about 25 percent growth annually on Long Island, he said.

"As we open new markets and new territories further upstate or another state, we expect exponential growth in those areas as well," Martin said.