Troublesome utility holes filled

I've been living with two holes on my property that were left open by Verizon workers who have been doing a lot of work at various locations in my neighborhood (we have underground lines). All but the two holes at either end of my property have been filled. Mine were cordoned with orange plastic safety fencing that gets knocked down in storms. I have made several calls to Verizon and was given assurances that a supervisor would contact me about my complaint. To date, no one from Verizon has seen fit to contact me.

-Rich Clark, East Setauket

Once again, Verizon crews made quick work of fixing a problem after we brought it to the attention of spokesman John Bonomo to let him know our reader was upset about the construction holes that were left unfinished for months in Mr. Clark's front yard.

The workers who completed the job told Mr. Clark that their normal jobs involve the Verizon utility poles but had been dispatched to deal with the East Setauket problem to get it resolved quickly. We appreciate when a company like Verizon takes the extra effort to resolve issues that can be frustrating to homeowners.

For problems involving Verizon, call 800-VERIZON.

Hempstead Gardens Drive in West Hempstead runs parallel to the LIRR tracks and has a considerable amount of traffic during rush hour. For a distance of several blocks, there are five or six manhole covers that sit higher than the road surface, and the area surrounding the covers has been filled in with asphalt, making them as high as speed bumps. They are on the side closest to the tracks, and drivers are always dodging them by driving into the lane of oncoming traffic. I called the Town of Hempstead Highway Department in September. They said it's Nassau County's problem. I called the county, they said they have no record of it being reported by the town. These need to be fixed before there's a serious accident.

-Lorraine Galella, West Hempstead

The Town of Hempstead was aware of the problem before we called and is taking full responsibility for making the repairs, Mrs. Galella.

Spokesman Mike Deery said, "We had engineers look at this and we're addressing it. It will be fixed."

The problem was likely caused by the road settling, Deery said. "We have particular areas where it just keeps settling. It has happened before." The project was put out to bid and a contract has already been approved by the town board, he said. The work should be completed by late August.

For problems involving Town of Hempstead roads, call the town's hotline at 631-489-6000.

On Serpentine Lane in Old Bethpage, the streetlight is out where all the kids play ball on summer nights. Our block is a horseshoe shape, so we count on this particular light. It's a comfort to see our children when we look outside. I've contacted the Town of Oyster Bay twice in recent months. I don't want the whole summer to go by before it's finally fixed.

--Glen Dauman, Old Bethpage

Shazam! Within 48 hours of our call, workers from the Town of Oyster Bay repaired the streetlight at the corner of Serpentine Lane and Swan Court.

Town spokeswoman Marta Kane said the problem was caused by a bad bulb. She also said the town had no record of inquiries from Dauman about the light. "The last record we have regarding this address is from 2004," she said.

(We suggest that anyone who is trying to get a problem fixed call the town responsible for the repairs as many times as necessary to resolve the issue. Mr. Dauman's calls apparently were misplaced or misdirected, and based on complaints from our readers, that happens frequently in every municipality on Long Island.)

Dauman also contacted us after the repair to report that workers were "very polite" and knocked on his door before the work to make sure they were about to fix the correct streetlight.

Oyster Bay residents with similar street lighting concerns should call the town's public lighting division at 516-677-5915.

--MICHAEL R. EBERT