By Joseph Kellard
In June, the Nassau County Police booth that was stationed at the Triangle was destroyed by an errant driver. By the new year, two monuments and another structure are planned to be erected on the property, which is owned by Nassau County and unofficially maintained by the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce.
The two monuments are commissioned to be two by three feet, and will stand side by side in honor of the country's military veterans and rescue workers lost in the Sept. 11 attack.
According to the community member commissioning the project, one of the monuments will read: Memorial honoring the deceased, disabled and veterans of foreign wars, along with an image of a bald eagle clutching American flags. The other monument will read: September 11, 2001: Honoring the tireless efforts of our nation's fire fighters, police officers and emergency medical services, along with an image of rescue workers raising an American flag and photos of two N.Y.C. firefighters from Oceanside, Kenneth Marino and Thomas Gardner, who perished in the World Trade Center. There was no word on whether other fallen rescue workers from the community, such as Firefighter Robert Spear, would also be recognized.
Shortly before Sept. 11, Frank Spingola, 91, a 40-year resident of Oceanside, approached both Nassau County and the Chamber, requesting that the area be renamed Oceanside Veteran's Memorial Plaza. Spingola, an honorary member of the Disabled Veterans of Foreign Wars who had a brother and cousin fight in World War II, also requested that a plaque be placed there to honor veterans of foreign wars.
But after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Spingola sought to erect two monuments instead, which he alone would finance. In addition to the veterans, he also wanted to honor the rescue workers at the W.T.C., including Marino and Gardner, who had ceremonies held in their honor a block from Spingola's home at St. Anthony's R.C. Church in Oceanside. Spingola has a special affinity for the Twin Towers, he said, since his late wife, Winnie, and her friends worked in them for many years. Also, for 24 years Spingola worked in the cargo department and as a crew chief for American Airlines, whose planes were used in the attacks.
Bob Tower, past president of the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce, said Spingola approached him with his proposal to put up monuments at the Triangle, and after a meeting with the Chamber, the Chamber signed on to it.
People sometimes think they can just put any sign up there, but they can't, Spingola said. Frank went about his proposal the right way, and we helped him with the little things.
According to Spingola, County Executive Tom Gulotta said he thought it was a patriotic and good idea.
At this time, the county is still in the planning process but is not involved with the details of the project, such as the size of the monuments, said John Zaher, press secretary for Nassau County. But the county is working with community members and is available to assist everyone who is interested and wants to do the best thing with that property.
In preparation for the installment of the monuments, Gulotta and other county officials attended a dedication ceremony held on Nov. 1, when the new signs renaming the area Oceanside Veteran's Memorial Plaza were unveiled. Spingola said that since the area is not technically a triangle, but a quad-angle, that it fits the definition of a plaza. Not everyone, though, was completely happy with the new designation.
Tracy Noon, 84, a life-long resident of Oceanside, objected to the idea that the area, which has been known as the triangle since the 1930s, now be called a plaza.
I see no reason why the name should be changed, Noon said. It's not a plaza, it's a triangle, and it's been called that ever since I can remember.
On the first Thursday of every month, the Chamber uses the property to hold a memorial ceremony for Americans who have died in foreign wars, and Noon regularly attends these gatherings. For approximately three years, he wrote letters to county officials asking that the area be renamed the Oceanside Veteran's Memorial Triangle, Noon said.
In a September 1999 letter replying to his request, Gulotta wrote that in order to make this change Noon would need a use and occupancy permit, as well as a liability insurance policy. Spingola said Nassau County never asked him to provide such materials in order for his requests to be granted.
Other residents expressed some disappointment at not being included in the planning process.
Any positive recognition for veterans I'm for, but I'm a little disappointed, too, said Dan Schulman, president of the Oceanside VFW. Why didn't Nassau County sit down with us, just for a little input or to at least let us know? Mr. Spingola called to ask us for contributions like flags, but we weren't contacted at all by Nassau.
All in all, local veterans are happy that such recognition is going to be bestowed upon them and their comrades.
I think the name change and the monuments going up are a good idea, said Arthur Fleischman, president of the Jewish War Veterans. No date has been set for installing the monuments.
