By DEBBIE ROSEN
Residents hope parking to be restricted
Oceanside residents feel the long and winding roadway that lies along Lawrence Avenue between Concord and Henrietta avenues may take a turn in the right direction if Hempstead Town Council members vote to restrict parking there.
Following months of letter writing and complaints by area residents about dangerous conditions and near misses, the town commissioned a traffic study earlier this year. Based on the study's results, released earlier this month, the town's Traffic Control Division will ask the town board to approve the placement of signs bearing the words "No stopping anytime" on the west side of Lawrence Avenue.
Elliot Taub, a leader of the residents in this matter, said he was delighted that officials are finally taking note of the problem.
"I'm happy [the town's] being receptive and viewing this street as a safety problem," said Mr. Taub. "This solution comes with the least possible inconvenience to people in the neighborhood, while providing more safety."
A town spokesperson said the Traffic Control Division has also installed four street signs along Lawrence Avenue that alert drivers to the curve to come. Two such signs were installed at one end of Lawrence Avenue and two were placed at the opposite end. However, the installations were met by criticism from residents in the area.
Leslie Brodie lives on the corner of Concord and Lawrence avenues. She and her husband not only disapprove of the location of the signs, which disturb their view, but feel the signs don't address the problem of safety. "We were out there when they put in the signs, and my husband and I complained. We sit in our backyard and all we see are signs," she said. 'They are totally useless. Ninety-nine percent of the people who use the street live around here and know there's a curve."
Ms. Brodie said that while part of the problem is simply that people simply go too fast, parking along the road poses additional safety concerns on a street with a blind curve. When told about the town's motion to move toward a No Parking policy on the west side of Lawrence Avenue, Ms. Brodie felt, if adopted, the move would help.
Mr. Taub called the signs an old solution to an ongoing problem. "There have been signs posted along there at different times, and they never did anything," he said. "On Rosh Hashanah, both sides of the street were packed with cars and you couldn't fit two cars on the street. I just laid on my horn and hoped. By driving very slowly, I hoped it would give me time to avoid someone else."
