Hewlett Harbor discusses village court

April 2006 public vote rejected idea

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Village of Hewlett Harbor trustees are continuing their discussion about establishing a village court as they plan to have a lawyer from the New York State Conference of Mayors and Municipal Officials speak to them prior to the next public meeting on Nov. 13 to provide them with more information.
During the November meeting, a decision could be made to hold a public hearing information at the December village meeting.
Hewlett Harbor board members have been considering creating a village court for the better part of this year to better enforce its village code, citing a dissatisfaction with the results in Nassau County’s district courts.
Before presenting the idea of a village court to their residents during a public hearing, the trustees want to be better informed. “[The attorney] can answer our questions and we will be in a better position for when we have a public forum,” said Mayor Mark Weiss during Hewlett Harbor’s board meeting on Oct. 9.
Trustee Tom Cohen conducted six months of research and presented a report to the board in May. He strongly supports the idea and said it is not a matter of money. “The start up costs are very reasonable and grant money is available from the Justice Court Assistance Program to cover most it,” Cohen said.

The Justice Court Assistance Program was established by the state Legislature to provide a way that towns and villages could obtain limited funding to improve operation of their justice courts.
In the past year, the upstate villages of Montebello, in Rockland County, and Brockport, in Monroe County, established courts for between $22,000 and $26,000, which included furniture, equipment and construction, Cohen said.
A past attempt to establish a village court through a public referendum failed. Residents rejected the idea by a reported 4-1 margin in April of 2006. Regarding the failed vote Cohen said, “That was eight years ago, times have changed, the [village’s] demographics have changed.”