By Anne Marie Allocca
Alan Schaechter, who, along with a handful of other Gibsonites, has been spearheading the effort, thanked those in attendance, and began his introduction by speaking of the late William Gibson and his vision for the village in the early 1920s.
"William Gibson suburbanized the area by creating hundreds and hundreds of homes," Schaechter said. "He wanted people living in New York City to have a piece of the country life. This was three years before Valley Stream was incorporated. Without Gibson's vision there would be no incorporated village. We don't want to overdevelop and look like the city."
He added that many of his neighbors have lived in the village for 50 years or more on the blocks between Munro Boulevard and Page Road.
The old adage of "it's not what you know, but who you know," came into play in Schaechter's comments regarding Dominick Minerva, of Minerva & D'Agostino, attorney for Dr. Leonard Bleicher, of Hewlett Harbor, the property owner.
"Is it possible that a former mayor - [Minerva was mayor of Valley Stream from 1975 to 1979] - might know some politicians?" he said. "There may have been some favoritism. Dr. Bleicher is entitled to do whatever he wants within the code. We believe our officials should be upholding the code - honoring that code. We believe we didn't get a fair hearing. No public notices were filed for the June 7 meeting and there was no public notice for the decision meeting on July 26. All we want is justice. I have nothing personal against Dominick Minerva, Dr. Bleicher or village attorney Mike McKenna. I am against their philosophy."
The proverbial thorn in the Gibson residents' side, aside from the number of units, is the variance that allowed a 4-foot front setback rather than the required 20 feet. Schaechter displayed a drawing of the plans and noted that there are trees shown in the drawings. "Where are the branches of the trees going to go?" he said.
Pledge cards were distributed to those in attendance, asking for a donation of $100 per family to help pay for legal costs of making the court challenge, known as an Article 78 proceeding. By the time the meeting ended, 20 pledges had been received. While $100 is the suggested amount any amount is welcome. Money is not required at this time. Gibson resident Ted Eid said he is available to answer residents' questions at (516) 359-7442.
Four attorneys have been contacted thus far and Schaechter is awaiting word on how much a lawsuit would cost. The residents have 30 days from the date the decision is filed to file a lawsuit. The decision is expected to be filed following the BZA's Aug. 16 decision meeting.
Cochran Place resident Linda Gimignani saw signs posted that read, "No condos." She asked Schaechter, "Who is determining what goals we are donating money to?"
Giving money for legal expenses would only make sense if the group agreed as a whole what they were trying to achieve, she said. Gimignani said she doesn't mind the project as long as they adhere to the zoning laws. "With the shops vacant it looks horrible," Gimignani said. "If they are allowed to build five stories high it will look like Queens where I moved from."
Judy Horowitz sums up her dissent from the 35-unit building with a question for the property owner, "Would he put this in Hewlett Harbor next to his house?"
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