Roundup: Advocate seeks housing plan help

A community housing advocate called on Suffolk County on Wednesday to adopt a housing plan that sets goals for towns and villages to add rental units, arguing it would give developers more leverage to get plans adopted.

“I’m calling for a grand bargain — if people want single-family housing, the suburbia they came out here for, you need to allow some density,” said Alexander Roberts, executive director of the White Plains-based advocacy group Community Housing Innovations.

Roberts told a Suffolk legislative committee that Long Island needs more affordable rental housing near downtowns to keep 25- to 34-year-olds from moving away.

The 2008 report, “Suffolk County Workforce Housing Needs Assessment and Responses,” prepared at the direction of the county, was never adopted. It set new housing goals for each town and village through 2020, totaling 1,928 rental units a year.

He said a federal court ruling in December in favor of advocates of a multifamily housing project in Garden City could spur similar legal challenges on Long Island. Suffolk adopting the housing plan would aid developers, he said.

Suffolk lawmakers had mixed reactions. Committee chairman Robert Calarco (D-Patchogue) described it as the “stick approach.”

The county had been using “carrots” of subsidies to encourage denser development that might appeal to young people, he said.

“It’s a really interesting theory he’s bringing forward,” Calarco said after the meeting. “It’s something I’m willing to look at.”

Legis. Tom Cilmi (R-Bay Shore) said the county has a history of working with local towns and villages on land-use issues. “I fully expect that to continue without having to force mandates on other levels of governments,” he said.

Roberts said “NIMBY” — Not in My Back Yard — and the “abuse of home rule” by local government often wins out in controversial land-use decisions.

Lawmakers brought up the frequent fear from residents, that Long Island “will become the sixth borough,” as Legis. William J. Lindsay III (D-Bohemia) said.

Roberts said he’d be willing to talk to civic groups, but said the county could spur them by adopting the housing plan. He also acknowledged, “obviously, there’s a lot of money to be made from the developer side.” But, he added, “people have to recognize there is a problem.”

He recommended to the Committee on Government Operations, Personnel, Housing and Consumer Protection that the county also set up an independent Housing Opportunity Commission and help local governments meet the benchmarks of the plan. — DAVID SCHWARTZ

GARDEN CITY

LI teens recognized by business program

The Young Entrepreneurs Training Program is celebrating 10 years Saturday with an 11 a.m. brunch at the Garden City Hotel.

It will showcase members of the YETP teams that have won the University of Delaware’s Business Plan Competition for the past three years.

Sponsored by the Cedarmore Corp., the program provides financial literacy to young people ages 7 to 18.

“All roads in business lead through money,” said Bishop Frank O. White, pastor of Zion Cathedral in Freeport and founder of Cedarmore.

The Delaware school’s 2014 YETP winners are: Jennifer Velasquez, Jonathan Velario and Kevin Jackson, Freeport High School; Ja’aziel Robinson, Manhasset High School; Iyanna Tutt, Malverne High School; and Elijah Hall of Kolbe (Home School) Academy in Westbury.

They will present their Garden City-based, fast-casual restaurant business plan for Galaxy’s International Cuisine LLC at the celebration.

“Galaxy’s business plan could be taken into tangible consideration as a lucrative investment opportunity,” said Barbara Jordan, the YETP founder.

The Rev. Robert A. Picken, canon pastor of the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, is scheduled to speak on the history of the cathedral as it relates to the teens’ business plan.

For more information about the YETP and the brunch, call 516-378-3415. — SID CASSESE

FARMINGVILLE

Brookhaven Fair to open next month

Dog-riding monkeys, trapeze artists and magic and illusion are expected to be on the bill when the 12th annual Brookhaven Fair opens next month at Bald Hill in Farmingville.

The fair, featuring rides such as the Wave Swinger, Giant Wheel and Swing Tower, is scheduled to open on May 9 and run on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through June 1 at the Pennysaver Amphitheater. The show also is scheduled to be open on Memorial Day.

Free fireworks shows are scheduled for May 10, 17, 25 and 31.

The fair is expected to feature a petting zoo with exotic animals, the Lance Gifford Magic and Illusion Show, and a “banana derby” with monkeys that ride on dogs and perform tricks.

Food kiosks are slated to sell candy apples, cotton candy, sausage and peppers, gyros, crabcakes, funnel cakes, zeppoles and other fare.

Gates open at 5 p.m. on Fridays, and noon on Saturdays, Sundays and Memorial Day. The fair closes at midnight each night. Admission is $4. For more information, visit BrookhavenFair.com or call 631-920-2309. — CARL MACGOWAN

ISLANDWIDE

Towns evaluate laws on CO detectors

North Hempstead officials have amended the town code so carbon monoxide detectors are required at places of assembly and public assembly. The law, passed Tuesday, also requires those detectors to provide digital readouts for lower level emissions.

Neal Lewis, executive director of the Sustainability Institute at Molloy College, urged that addition at an earlier hearing.

Fines for violators can range from $250 to $5,000. New construction sites must have the detectors hard-wired into the facility. Store-bought detectors for existing structures are acceptable.

North Hempstead and other Long Island governments — including Nassau and Suffolk counties — have been weighing updates to their laws governing detectors since Steven Nelson died from the poisonous gas on Feb. 22 at Legal Sea Foods in Huntington Station. Dozens were also sickened when the gas leaked from a faulty pipe in the restaurant’s basement. The building had no detectors.

The Village of Northport this week announced it is considering carbon monoxide regulations as a result of the poisoning death. Village officials approved a resolution at its Tuesday meeting to set a public hearing for the proposed legislation on May 6, 6 p.m., at village hall.

Northport has no laws regulating carbon monoxide detection. The proposal would require detectors in all “places of public assembly” by July 1.

The requirement would apply to structures such as churches, theaters and restaurants, but not smaller retail stores, according to the village’s attorney, James Matthews. — MACKENZIE ISSLER and SCOTT EIDLER

FREEPORT

Kennedy joins committee of mayors group

Freeport Mayor Robert Kennedy has been appointed to the eight-member nominating committee of the New York State Conference of Mayors (NYCOM), according to a statement from the organization.

NYCOM president Richard Donovan, mayor of the Village of Minoa, near Syracuse, selected Kennedy.

“Mayor Kennedy,” Donovan said, “has been an active participant in NYCOM programs and is well suited to serve on this important committee ... [and] will ensure that the leadership of the Conference of Mayors remains in good hands.”

The committee is responsible for assembling the slate of officers to be elected on May 5 at NYCOM’s 105th annual meeting in Saratoga Springs. The Conference of Mayors represents 583 cities and villages in the state. — SID CASSESE

ISLANDWIDE

Extension sought for Sandy flood claims

U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Wednesday to grant another extension to Sandy victims who still need to file flood insurance claims. Under the National Flood Insurance Program, Sandy-impacted homeowners must file a “proof of loss” form, a statement on the amount the homeowner is claiming under his or her flood insurance policy.

The deadline already has been moved from Oct. 29, 2013, to this April 28.

“Many homeowners affected by Sandy are still in the recovery process and need more time to estimate the total cost needed to rebuild from the storm,” Schumer said. “It is clear that many Sandy-victims still may not be able to meet this fast approaching deadline. FEMA should grant another extension to ensure that all homeowners in-need have the opportunity to file their flood insurance claims.”

Gillibrand said she also urges “FEMA to heed our call to assist New Yorkers through this process.” — SID CASSESE

ISLIP

Students focus on school, lake cleanups

Islip high schoolers will continue Earth Day efforts with plans to improve campus grounds.

Students from the Islip High School Keep Islip Clean Club plan to build swales in the high school parking lot Thursday to improve filtration from runoff into the nearby lake, which feeds into the Great South Bay.

The students will also clean the lake and build new gardens by the school.

The high schoolers will perform the activities from 8 to 11 a.m., then from noon to 2 p.m. at Islip High School on Union Boulevard. — SOPHIA CHANG

OYSTER BAY

Town gets more time on lawsuit response

The Town of Oyster Bay has received a six-week extension to respond to a federal housing discrimination suit, parties to the suit said Wednesday.

The town’s May 1 deadline to answer the complaint filed on April 10 in federal court in Central Islip was extended to June 16.

In a letter submitted to federal Judge Arthur D. Spatt Wednesday, attorney Christopher Y. L. Yeung of Covington & Burling LLP, the law firm the town hired to represent it in the case, asked for the extension to prepare a response.

Speaking generally, Town Supervisor John Venditto said that typically such an extension “gives you additional time to analyze the complaint, to absorb it, gather whatever information you need to put in your answer or make any motions you deem appropriate.”

A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice confirmed that the extension had been granted with its consent. A court clerk was unable to verify that the extension had been granted.

The suit alleges that two town housing programs violated the federal Fair Housing Act because they gave preferences to residents in a municipality that has few black residents compared to surrounding areas. Town officials deny any wrongdoing and are fighting the suit. — TED PHILLIPS

HEMPSTEAD TOWN

Passport service day slated in Cedarhurst

Hempstead Town is making it easy for the Five Towns and surrounding area residents to apply for their passports, by holding a passport day at Cedarhurst Village Hall from 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 4.

“There’s no better way to start planning your trip than by applying for a U.S. passport right in your own backyard,” Town Supervisor Kate Murray said.

All U.S. citizens entering and re-entering the United States must have a valid U.S. passport; this includes children and infants.

The normal turnaround time for a passport is within four to six weeks from the date of application. The U.S. Department of State also offers expedited service, shortening the turnaround time to two to three weeks (for an additional fee).

The town will supply the applications and take passport photos for a nominal fee of $5.

The town clerk’s one-stop passport shop, the nation’s largest passport acceptance facility, is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.

For details on passport requirements, documentation and fees, call the shop at 516-812-3100, or visit toh.li/passport-services.

Cedarhurst Village Hall is at 200 Cedarhurst Ave. — SID CASSESE