Residents Speak Out

Kathy & Tom - Thanks for your note and for adding to the report we received from the Fire Department. Please feel free to send us any pictures or commentary you may have on this year's Pumpkin Walk. Thanks!

e-mail from Ruth Barash

Saturday July 12th, 2003

9 a.m. at the ball field there’s an ad hoc gathering of 23 Mineola Avenue and nearby Lido Boulevard residents including the George Hearns, Jack Paz, Dana & Ronnie Conklin, Bill Hogan; the Civic’s Frank Ryan; Bruce Hallbert of the Parks Department; Ron Masters of Conservation and Waterways; Jim Corcoran, the “commissioner of Little League baseball”; and a few others , including various members of the MacDonald family and your Diarist. The subject is a line of 14 or 15 trees that suddenly appeared adjacent to the ball field, running west-east towards the Point. Right now these trees look innocuous, but more than half of them are Bradford pears, which grow to 30 feet and bush out to a huge circumference. While the Mineola contingent appreciated Mr. Corcoran’s previous landscaping efforts, including lovely hydrangea bushes around the circumference, they are distressed by the view-blocking trees that were planted without consultation with the residents whose property values - and enjoyment of their properties - are dependent on that view. We all know that “water view” and “waterfront” command a tremendous premium in our community. It is the premise of the residents that the planting of the trees is a taking of their property values. Others simply feel that these trees are inappropriate for the site. Bradford pears are certainly not native to the beachscape. Mr. Corcoran promised that the personally would keep the trees trimmed to no higher than 12 feet. Even that height seemed excessive to most. Further, it was suggested, Mr. Corcoran might move, or get arthritic, or grow bored with the project, or be hit by one of those suv’s speeding home from a game…Stay tuned on this one - it has a long way to go since Parks Department bureaucracy is also involved. 

One related subject that came up at the meeting was view-choking natural growth between the property lines of the Mineola homes and the Inlet - stuff that is not necessarily native to that area but has just "arrived" - as things do, thanks to birds, the wind, whatever. TOH's position has been that whatever arrives naturally and wants to stay, stays. However, I gathered that Commissioner Masters is inclined to be flexible about this (he himself owns water front on Bayside), as long as whatever pines there are remain untouched. This was an impression he gave us - it's not in writing!

posted 6/19/2003

e-mail from Patrick Sullivan, current resident

Hello, my name is Patrick Sullivan and I am a frequent visitor of the beautiful baseball fields and dunes at the point. I am writing to express my concerns about the recent tree plantings. I love trees, I work with trees as I am a forester for the city of NY. I am the street tree planting coordinator for south Brooklyn and responsible for hundreds of tree plantings per year. I cannot help but notice the poor effort put into the recent plantings located at the ball fields. On top of that there are 5 more trees left out exposed to the maritime influence which is sure to lead to their demise. I would like to discuss this matter in further detail, to avoid these mistakes in the future. I also see many errors in the recent plantings located along Beech St. I would like to stress that I am not reaching out to criticize, I would like to assist in making correct decisions concerning trees in our community for the future. I also feel the plantings in the ball park are so recent that measures can be taken to raise their chances of survival. I am writing you folks in hope to gain direction in which to direct my concerns. Please feel free to contact me at the e-mail address below and thank you for your time.

Geologicforester@hotmail.com 

e-mail from Gerry Ottavino

I find it necessary to address the spate of dog-related incidents violating our community over the past six weeks. The cold and rainy spring may have served to hide them but now that summer has arrived full force, I feel I must speak out.  The opinions and requests that follow are strictly MY own. I am neither speaking for anyone nor representing anybody other than myself.

I appreciate the vast majority of dog owners in town act responsibly. They respect the rights of others, follow protocol and comply with the law. I also know they share my views. Many of them ardently told me so; some when reviewing drafts of this editorial. What follows is not directed at them. They “get it”. However, it is directed at the ignorant or dismissive few that, simply put, “just don’t get it” or, more aptly put, “just don’t ‘wanna’ get it”.

Dog Owners: Be respectful of the Point Lookout community, its residents and its local environment. Be mindful of your dogs and PLEASE:

·        Clean up after them and strongly urge other owners to do likewise.

·        Prevent dogs from harassing wildlife or entering dune protection areas.

·        Do not allow your dog to approach people without their expressed permission.

On my first request, dog owners are leaving more and more waste on the streets and at Civic Beach . This is most offensive during the barefoot summer season, in particular, at the beach where it poses, among other concerns, serious health problems. Also, burying fecal matter or simply picking it off the beach is not cleaning it up there since lingering waste attaches itself to visitors as they walk and play in the sand.

On my second request, some owners are adding to the environmental concerns already present at local and neighboring beaches. Among them are wildlife and dune protection violations jeopardizing endangered species and nesting areas. Pursuant to protection laws, severe penalties may be assessed upon anyone responsible for these violations. Do not allow your dogs to chase wildlife and keep them out of the dunes.

On my last request, not all people share the same affection for dogs as dog owners. Some are frightened of them; others may be allergic to them. Runners are particularly wary of unleashed dogs not kept under full control.  Please maintain full control of your dogs at all times.

Finally, I appreciate there are many non-owners initiating similar civic and environmental concerns locally but do not believe I have overly focused on or unfairly targeted dog owners for sins regularly committed by the canine community. If I have, I apologize.

e-mail from Jill Butensky 

e-mail from Ruth Barish regarding the Federal Beach Nourishment Project

"We understand that some or all of you have been contacted by members of the Point Lookout Civic Association, urging a go-ahead on the Army Corps of Engineers' Long Beach/Point Lookout groins project. Many thoughtful Point Lookouters think the ACE project is counter-productive and a waste of money.

The project addresses two issues: 1 - storm damage; and 2 - beach erosion.

1 - The ACE contends that extension of existing groins and construction of additional groins and berms on our beaches will mitigate the effects of storms from the south. Further, it gives assurances of FEMA assistance in case of disaster.

Fact: case after case has shown that groins have no mitigating effect whatsoever; on the contrary, the collision of waves against rocks gouges out sand at the foundation, causing steep drops, dangerous currents and riptides. Erosion may be hastened by groins and berms.

Fact: on Long Beach Island major storm damage historically comes not from the south but from nor'easters, causing flooding on the Reynolds Channel side.. (The ACE project explicitly excludes this problem.)

2 - The ACE has promised, if the groins project goes through, to replenish sand on our beaches approximately every 5 years for the next 50 years.

Fact: existing jetties and groins have largely caused the problem of diminishing beaches. The sand that would have naturally nourished our beaches in the lateral east-west flow has been diverted to an enormous sand bar hundreds of yards out to sea.

Fact: because of a Corps-created problem, we do need periodic infusions of sand on our beaches. The Corps owes us periodic beach replenishment - without the groins and berms."

Those of us who collected signatures were appalled at the lack of information, and the misinformation, and the indifference, we encountered here in town. More public education on both sides of the issue is essential, because the project is irreversible.

Also on November 6th, a number of Point Lookouters attended a packed open meeting of the Long Beach City Council at which the project was discussed, primarily with respect to the situation in Long Beach: a wide public beach used for many recreational activities by thousands of people. Our beach of course is increasingly narrow and, so far, still private. Environmental and ecological concerns, some of which resonate the entire length of our barrier island, were also raised. I was interviewed by the Channel 12 news team, which covered the meeting. Joel Crystal, the council president, indicated that there was still a long road to travel on this matter.

We met some extremely knowledgeable and articulate people at the meeting and believe it would be valuable to have one or more of them address an upcoming Civic meeting, perhaps in conversation with someone like Ron Masters or Jerry Ottavino, to explore all the aspects of the situation.

e-mail from Adam Cannizzaro of Long Beach regarding the Federal Beach Nourishment Project

e-mail from John Galvin & Jane Bartnett regarding the Tax Re-assessments

Jane Bartnett Communications has discovered numerous errors in the assessments of lots in PL.

We have posted a page with most of the assessments on PL lots (not houses) on our server. It clearly shows the differences. The page may be reached at www.janebartnett.com/tax.

e-mail from Harold Wondsel regarding the Tax Re-assessments 

• Tax Assessments... Fair or Unfair?
• Letter to Thomas Suozzi Nassau County Executive

Copyright @ 2001 by Julie McTernan and Barb Fiorillo