Covering All Bases: May 15, 2012

Looking Back, Look Forward

“I don’t watch the news. It’s too depressing.”

If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, well, I’d have a lot of nickels. Of course, when you work in the newspaper industry, it’s hard to avoid the news, but is it that depressing? Let’s recap some of the major news stories from this week.

Not So Humble Opinion: May 15, 2012

Get The Word Out: Parking In Parking Lots Is Cool

I’m aware that addressing any group as “those people” sounds judgmental, but in this instance I don’t think I can get around it: I just don’t get those people who park in the fire lane in front of Starbucks, or a similar establishment, presumably because they’ll “just be in there for a minute.”

We all know that most customers of Starbucks and its ilk are only in there briefly to pick up a drink, so the “just a minute” excuse can be unilaterally ignored. These people park in the fire lane because they seem to think, for some reason, that parking in the lot and walking to the store is something only other people should have to take the time and energy to do.

Letter: The Sun Is Shining; Just Look Out The Window

An April 27th letter to the editor [published in Anton Community Newspapers] authored by Philip H. Smith, president of the United University Professions, leads one to believe that Mr. Smith does not closely follow the topics or institutions about which he writes. In his letter, titled “Let the Sun Shine on SUNY Foundations,” Mr. Smith states that The Research Foundation for the State University of New York (“Research Foundation”) is “largely led by government officials”; that it feels “no...compulsion to share information with the public,” and that it is an organization that “cloak[s] [its] activities in secrecy.”

All three statements are easily refutable and simply untrue. The Research Foundation is not led by government officials. Most importantly it is an organization that over the past year has demonstrated, and has been recognized for, its pledge to accountability and transparency.

Pete Fornatale Signs Off

“There goes the last DJ/Who plays what he wants to play/And says what he wants to say, hey hey hey...” – Tom Petty “The Last DJ”

On April 26, a seminal voice that was an integral part of the local airwaves was silenced when Port Washington’s hometown hero Pete Fornatale died from a stroke at the age of 66. Part of the class of free-form rock DJs whose ranks included Dennis Elsas, Vince Scelsa and Carole Miller along with late lamented names like WNEW-FM icons Scott Muni, Fornatale mentor Rosko and Alison Steele, the former high school teacher was part of a vanguard of FM broadcasters who counterbalanced the condescending and infantilized manner in which the dominant AM stations of the ’60s and early’70s treated rock ’n’ roll. And while corporate radio monoliths eventually wrapped their rapacious tentacles around any semblance of creativity by way of narrow formatting, skeletal playlists and jocks who were essentially scripted if not automated, Fornatale was one of the dwindling group of Don Quixotes titling at the Clear Channel windmills of the world.

Letter: Setting The Record Straight On Recent Legal Action

I am puzzled by the brief article published last week that described my lawsuit against the village (“Supreme Court Judge Allows Demolition Work To Go Forward,” The Roslyn News, April 26). What was published was misleading, suggesting that the case was “dismissed” and construction was “allowed” by a judge.

The fact is that a judge granted two orders to temporarily halt work in order to allow a legal inquiry into village’s actions that I outlined in a sworn affidavit. The subsequent dismissal was strictly pro forma, because I chose not to proceed, for non-legal reasons I will describe.

Letter: Homeowners Plan Makes Sense For Pool Situation

I still prefer the plan by a group of Roslyn Country Club (RCC) homeowners to purchase the club and sell part of the land for a small number of homes to cover the cost of the ownership the club property (“Negotiations Continue Over Pool Status,” The Roslyn News, April 26).

Letter: Bryant Library Budget Message From The Board Of Trustees

On Tuesday, May 15, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Roslyn High School, you will have the opportunity to vote on the proposed annual Bryant Library budget for the 2012/2013 fiscal year.  The library budget will appear, as it does each year, as Proposition #2 on the ballot.

As community members, the library trustees are striving to balance the excellent service you expect with the economic realities we all face.  This year we are confronted with multiple challenges: An 18.9 percent increase in our NYS retirement costs, the imposed sewer tax, and a decrease in revenues due to low interest rates.

Letter: Let The Sun Shine In On SUNY Foundations

You would expect an organization created for public benefit that is largely led by government officials would be obligated to report to the public about its activities. Yet the Research Foundation of the State University of New York (SUNY) and its many campus foundations are not required to do so and apparently feel no such compulsion to share information with the public. Instead, these organizations often cloak their activities in secrecy.

As president of United University Professions – the union representing academic and professional faculty at SUNY’s state-operated campuses – I think it’s time to let the sun shine in. It’s time to require the SUNY Research Foundation and campus foundations to be held accountable and to be more transparent.

Letter: EWSD BOE Asks For Community Input In Superintendent Search

The East Williston School District Board of Education is actively searching for the next superintendent of schools. It is the board’s intention to have our next superintendent in place by the start of the new school year Friday, July 1.

The board invites the East Williston School District community (including residents, parents, staff and students) to offer their suggestions and insight into the superintendent selection process. A link is set up on the home page of the district website, www.ewsdonline.org. Please go to the news box, click on “Sup’t Search –Community Input” and click on the link.

Letter: Friends of Cedarmere Initiated ‘Bryant Bridge’

The Friends of Cedarmere was pleased to see the April 5 article about the New York Senate approval of a bill renaming the Roslyn Viaduct to honor William Cullen Bryant, Roslyn’s most prominent author (“New Name for Roslyn Viaduct,” The Roslyn News, April 5).  While quotes from State Senator Jack Martins and local community leaders support this recognition for Bryant, credit for the initiative to have the viaduct renamed should go to our board members who requested that appropriate legislation be created and, for the past year, provided Senator Martins and Assemblywoman Michelle Schimel with information about Bryant’s important achievements as poet, newspaper editor, and civic leader.  While the assembly has yet to vote on the companion bill, we feel confident that it will pass, and that a naming ceremony will bring well-deserved attention to Roslyn and to Cedarmere, Bryant’s home.