By:Anthony Rifilato
The forum, held at Baldwin Senior High School, was a civil gathering of Democratic and Republican politicians who discussed their agendas before fielding questions from the public. About 40 people who live in the Baldwin School District attended the meeting, which was sponsored by the Baldwin Council of PTAs.
But the predominant theme of the evening was education, and the range of problems posed by a slew of state and federal mandates that have Baldwin and many districts across the state concerned. School officials at the forum explained that the Baldwin School District continues to face a number of obstacles each year, and this year is no exception.
While the district braced for a cut of nearly $2 million in state education aid last year, it was ultimately restored after the state Legislature overrode Gov. George Pataki's veto. This year, school board President James Scannell said, even though aid was cut by only about 1 percent, Baldwin is on a "precarious perch," facing an array of unfunded mandates as well as rising pension, health care and other costs.
Because Baldwin is a low-wealth, high-tax district with a weak commercial base, Scannell and others said that without adequate state funding, the financial burden is shifted to the taxpayers. "If the costs of schools keep going up, the amount that local property taxpayers have to pay is going up," said Legislator Dave Denenberg (D-Merrick).
Assemblyman Bob Barra (R-Lynbrook), who voted against the governor's budget last year, said that Long Island schools are taken for granted by some lawmakers in Albany who don't live downstate, and that the economic realities of schools such as Baldwin are overlooked.
He said it is often difficult to bring the state budget in on time, something that hasn't been done for about 20 years, due to partisan politics. "They think we're rich on Long Island," said Barra. "We spend a lot of money on education. We're going to fight hard to bring out as much aid as we can."
Sara Holly, a spokeswoman for senators Charles Fuschillo and Dean Skelos, said that boosting aid to schools was their aim as well, and added that the state Legislature was off to a good start this year. "Is the Legislature going to improve upon it?" said Holly. "You bet they are."
State testing
Baldwin resident Russ Martinez asked how the increased Regents standards would impact the district in the future in light of state-wide problems with the physics and math A Regents exams. The state will eventually require that all students pass six Regents examinations with a minimum score of 65, something that many consider an unfunded mandate and which schools across the state are girding for.
Barra and Holly said that they have expressed their concerns about the flawed exams and other issues to State Education Department Chairman Richard Mills, though Barra said, "I haven't seen any shift in his policy."
"The question is," said Holly, "What happens to that child who just cannot pass those tests?"
Gang-busters
While the need for education funding reform was of concern, another alarming trend -- gang violence -- also sparked discussion. Barra and Legislator Kevan Abrahams (D-Hempstead) said there was an urgent need to address the issue by not only cracking down on gang activity but also encouraging young people to resist joining gangs.
Barra spoke about his proposed legislation that would, in part, allocate $15 million in managed after-school programs to keep kids off the streets.
Abrahams pointedly stated that gang violence is an issue that is ignored locally because not many people want to acknowledge that it exists in their backyards. Saying that programs for the youth need more funding, he called for a comprehensive plan in which lawmakers, schools and parents would work together to fight the problem.
"If we're running away from the problem, we're running away from our children," Abrahams said.
Quality of life
Legislator Joe Scannell (D-Baldwin), Town Councilman Anthony Santino and Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby spoke about a number of local issues and provided updates on initiatives that are in the works.
Scannell gave an overview of his pond improvement project, a $4.4 million initiative that he said was ahead of schedule and should be completed by the end of the year.
One resident said she was very happy with the project, but also wanted to know about the state of the First Precinct, which many say is in desperate need of repair, now that plans to move the precinct to Grand Avenue have been officially squashed.
Scannell explained that although the $16 million project never got off the ground due to the county's dire fiscal situation, the precinct is not moving out of Baldwin. He added, however, that no money has been allocated by the county to upgrade the facility in the near future due to Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi's plan to consolidate the Nassau County Police Department's infrastructure.
"My hope is that if [Suozzi's plan] doesn't pass, [Suozzi] could focus on the precincts," said Scannell.
Freeport resident Jackie Eradiri brought up the need for more affordable housing in order to keep young professionals in Nassau County, saying that people are being "priced out" of the area.
Santino explained that the Town of Hempstead just approved a rental apartment project on the grounds of the former Roosevelt Raceway in Westbury, 20 percent of which will be set aside for affordable housing. "We're already moving in that direction," he said.
Residents also asked about the state of Grand Avenue and the lack of quality businesses such as Starbucks and Old Navy in town. They cited a number of dilapidated storefronts and building facades that could use major upgrades, particularly on Grand Avenue near the corner of Merrick Road, near the Super Buffet and KFC. "It's in really horrendous shape," said Baldwin resident Donna Lerner. "It's not what we are."
Both Santino and Scannell said they are looking into different ways to refurbish the west side of Grand Avenue and Merrick Road as well as other parts of Baldwin that would help attract more businesses to the area. "The more we could continue to address Grand Avenue ..." Scannell began, and Santino finished his sentence with, "... the more conducive it will be for a big company to come in here."
