By: Leslie Gonzalez
Malverne residents riled by rowdy kids
With the weather getting milder and the school year soon ending, some Malverne residents are demanding action be taken this year to control noise, loitering and harassment by a group of teenagers in their neighborhood.
The trouble starts, residents say, when kids get out of school and about two dozen children ages 12 through 15 congregate on the streets and sidewalks for hours of skateboarding and loud noise, which residents say lasts late into night.
Most complaints come from people living on Church Street and Utterby Road, just steps from Village Hall and the local police station.
About a half dozen such residents spoke out at Village Hall last Wednesday, calling on Mayor Anthony Panzarella and village officials to act immediately to stop the problem.
The skateboarders are attracted to the area apparently because it's near Reese Park and an ice cream shop.
People complained of sidewalk and landscaping damage, and hazards from wax applied to curbs by skateboarders, as well as verbal abuse by some of the kids.
"Something has to be done," said Saul Katz, an Utterby Road resident for over 20 years. He explained how, for hours, the children ride their skateboards over the waxed curb, then jump off, letting their skateboards fly into his storm door and the area beneath his window. "They're saying, 'no one can stop us.'"
"It's not true," says Tom Walsh, whose 13-year-old son, Ryan, is part of the skateboarding group. "Ryan's grandmother lives in that same apartment building right next to Saul, and believe me, she would be the first one on the phone calling me if the children were being out of line." Walsh says the kids are not disrespectful, as others claim, but "kids will be kids. If you're going to tango, these kids are going to tango back. The sidewalks and streets are public domain and the children have just as much right to use them as anyone else in the community." He said there's really no place else for the kids to go.
"I know there are ordinances for this," said Patricia Norman of Church Street. For her, noise and harassment problems have grown so intolerable that she felt compelled to write Village Hall. She said the mayor had responded in a letter, which said that the children had the constitutional right to congregate in the park.
"Where do you propose these teenagers go?" asked Panzarella. "I'm not giving you a hard time, but I just want to make sure that everyone's rights are protected."
When the mayor heard accusations that the teens are taunting, cursing and following adults who have complained, he said that such behavior is uncalled for, and described it as a police matter. Panzarella said threats and harassment by children would not be tolerated. "It's one thing if kids are congregating. It's another if they are threatening. I don't care how old they are, that is a crime. That's the kid that needs to get involved with the juvenile authorities."
The residents complained about what they say is a lack of enforcement of an ordinance prohibiting skateboarding on the streets. The mayor said he was looking into a law recently passed in Lynbrook for skateboarders. "I've asked Mayor Scarpato for a copy, that perhaps Malverne would pass a similar law."
Gayle Hysler and Joseph Fasanella of Utterby Road complained of the lack of parental supervision. They said children even refuse to move out of the way of passing cars. "They're coming onto our property, cursing us, telling us 'we're going to own your house.' One of the kids' uncles is a police officer," Fasanella said.
The problem escalated, he said, when he confiscated a 4 foot by 4 foot skateboarding ramp and asked to speak with a child's father before its return.
"He said, 'My father don't care." His friend who saw all this said 'don't talk to him like that." Fasanella said the second boy then raised his skateboard to strike the homeowner.
Leigh Long, who lives above the ice cream shop, says the loitering problem has been an unbearable reality for the past three years. "It is so loud, I've had my air conditioner on with my windows closed, and I'm on the phone with people asking me if I'm having a party." She said the noise continues as late as 11:30 p.m. 7 days a week.
"They're not buying ice cream, they're just hanging out, and their parents are just dropping them off." She said she was concerned about kids who play on the streets, the railroad tracks and on people's cars.
Katz suggested that skateboards be confiscated and parents be given a summons or fine. "We have to tell these parents that they're responsible for the action of their kids, and if they can't control them, they're going to have to pay the price for it."
Fasanella and Hysler said police who've responded to their calls have often dismissed the matter as children playing. When they checked with police headquarters regarding one officer's conference with parents, they found the incident was unrecorded. Long said she felt uncomfortable having to call the police several times a week to chase the kids out. "They give the officers a hard time, which is not OK."
"I don't know why you should call the police department, they should be on patrol. They know a situation exists," said Trustee Joseph Hennessy, who called for immediate, routine law enforcement, a designated place for youths to congregate, and the cooperation of store owners to help resolve the problem. He recalled a similar situation by a park near C-Town that ended with constant police presence. "We're now in a situation where neighbors are having confrontations with neighbors over lack of discipline and lack of respect for others' rights."
"There is no enforcement with an individual under 16. It's generally handled between the police and the parent," said police Lieutenant Glen Jacobsen, who said he has driven home youths and spoke to their parents. "When you look at how often we're called for this, it is a tremendous drain on our resources."
Trustee Patti McDonald says there are no easy solutions. "The youth board is trying to come up with activities for all different age groups, especially that age. If parents are dropping their kids off, then we need new ideas."
Mayor Panzarella said he has asked the youth board for a summer program for teenagers at Harris Field two nights a week from 7 to 9 p.m. "There are also other ideas for something more permanent, 12 months out of the year," he said.
Walsh says he has instructed his son that if he receives any complaints, he and his friends should just move along to prevent any further altercations. "We hope the village will do something about this and build a facility for the children to go to before things worsen."
SUBHED: It's a start
Since the public meeting, Lt. Jacobsen has requested the use of a village storage building adjacent to Parking Field 8, behind the movie theater. With a little help, he has converted it to a makeshift, temporary meeting place.
Several community members have since volunteered and donated sports items. "Over the weekend, I had about a dozen kids here each night. It's a start," he said.
"The kids need a place to congregate, and we're working to the best of our ability to establish that," said Hennessy.
