By JOSEPH KELLARD
³This is an Oceanside problem as a whole,² Stu Gubenko told about 25 fellow residents at a community meeting at School 8 Jan. 25. ³If just 20 people show up for the hearing, that¹s a slam dunk for Serota.²
Gubenko and resident Ellen Igoe are leading the legwork in an effort to spread the word to and educate residents about the zoning case. Gubenko stressed that Oceansiders town-wide should get involved and speak out against the recycler moving in, because, he claimed, the facility was likely to attract increased traffic and pollution that would affect them. Igoe¹s talk focused on the legal issues surrounding the case.
The meeting consisted mainly of the hosts, the Oceanside Civic Association, and Gubenko, Igoe and residents kicking around ideas on how to spread the word in the brief time they have to prepare for the Feb. 8 hearing, which was adjourned at the original hearing on Jan. 3.
That¹s when residents learned that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation had already granted Serota approval to build its recycling facility for construction and demolition materials at Brown Court. The hearing was delayed to February so that the town zoning board and opposition could look into whether the board has jurisdiction over the DEC to hear the opposition¹s testimony.
With copies of legal papers in hand, Igoe questioned Serota¹s request to the DEC for a renewal and transfer of the facility. Serota had leased the Brown Court property to Gator Recycling Corporation, a company that recycled the same materials but was closed in October 2003 after incurring DEC fines. Igoe believes Serota¹s DEC-approved permit is contingent on the zoning board¹s approval. Having already contacted the DEC about the case, Igoe vowed to also call state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer¹s office.
Residents encouraged Igoe and others to also get local television involved, and members of the Oceanside Civic Association and Sandi Schoell, a member of Oceanside¹s Board of Education, stressed that residents should send hand-written letters opposing the facility to the board. When Gubenko asked Schoell to bring the issue before Superintendent Dr. Herb Brown and the board, Schoell said that while the district sent out fliers alerting residents to the situation, the district cannot take an official position on the case. ³We have legal issues that we have to be very, very careful about,² Schoell said. Another resident emphasized that local county and town politicians should be more involved in this case, while another suggested a petition.
When one resident, a woman identifying herself as Ruth, stressed that her main concern was the heightened traffic the facility could potentially attract, Mark Greenberg of the OCA indicated that the civic association is working with the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce to get in touch with businesses on Long Beach Road to voice their concerns about existing heavy traffic on Oceanside¹s main thoroughfare. OCA President Ray Pagano said he contacted the Oceanside Fire Department, Nassau County Police Department and South Nassau Communities Hospital about how the increased truck traffic could further obstruct their emergency response vehicles.
Another resident asked exactly what the message was that the organizers of the crusade against Serota wanted to send, seeming concerned that it was simply about getting enough bodies at Town Hall for next week¹s hearing. ³We have to go in now on a new legal precedent that the town does have jurisdiction in this case,² Gubenko said. Noting that more time was needed to effectively battle Serota, Gubenko added, ³We¹re going to ask for an adjournment. That doesn¹t mean we¹re going to get it.²
While representatives of Serota gave a presentation and fielded questions from residents at a community meeting at School 8 prior to the Jan. 3 hearing, Serota was not invited to last Wednesday¹s meeting. ³Although I respect these people¹s right to protect their best interests in their community and the value of their homes,² Serota Properties co-owner Jeff Serota told the Herald last Friday, ³they have purchased homes on top of an industrial zone, and must be aware that there is a great necessity for facilities such as the one we will open.²
Asked to comment on residents¹ concerns about the number of such facilities in Oceanside and the potential traffic and pollution the new facility might increase, Serota noted that his company plans to install a state-of-the-art, enclosed facility sanctioned by the DEC.
³There aren¹t enough facilities,² he added. ³If there were, this facility won¹t be successful and will close up. It¹s whatever the traffic will bear. If the facility goes well, it¹s proof positive that it is necessary.²
Comments about this story? JKellard@liherald.com or 516-569-4000 ext. 287.
