By Jonann Brady
At a town hall meeting last Thursday night that featured a panel of eight county administrators, Legislator Joseph Scannell (D-Baldwin) ran down a number of positive developments for both the county and Baldwin, and then announced that the plan to move the First Precinct to Grand Avenue Merrick Road had been scrapped.
Scannell added that the precinct could still be moved, just not in the near future and not where many had hoped. "The county is looking to build a model precinct, and one thing theyÕre looking at is alternative sites on county properties within Baldwin," he said.
The First Precinct building, on Harrison Avenue, is outdated and in disrepair, according to many insiders. Six years ago, County Executive Thomas Gulotta and the legislator at the time, Republican Thomas Glynn, held a news conference with much fanfare announcing that a new precinct, complete with a town square, would be built on the western side of Grand Avenue, between the firehouse and Merrick Road. Many community leaders thought that the new precinct would help revitalize a downtown that had fallen on hard times.
But what began as an $8 million project ballooned into $16 million and then $20 million, and with Nassau county experiencing a serious fiscal crisis, County Executive Tom Suozzi put a hold on most capital projects in order to review their merits. The First Precinct project didnÕt make the cut.
Though disappointed with the outcome, several community leaders expressed relief that they finally knew the status of the project and could move forward. At the standing-room-only meeting at the Rose Boulevard firehouse, Baldwin Community Association Vice President Deborah Maniaci said that the properties along that stretch of Grand Avenue have been "in limbo with uncertainty about the First Precinct. Now that itÕs off the table, they can move forward."
Scannell announced earlier in the meeting that he had secured $200,000 in beautification money for Baldwin, and Maniaci and others suggested that that area would be a good place to invest the money. Other residents said the money should be used in areas in North Baldwin and on Atlantic Avenue. Scannell said he had not decided where to invest the money but would be making the decision within the next month.
Of the 17 storefronts on the west side of Grand Avenue, five appear empty or have For Rent signs in the windows. Several store owners said that the area could use some spiffing up to match the east side of the street, which underwent faade improvements last year and had new sidewalks, lighting and benches installed. "This side of the street needs some uplifting," said an employee at Pure Spa who asked that her name not be used.
Many merchants and community members also said that the area has become a magnet for young people, some of whom not only hang out but engage in gang and criminal activity. "The west side of Grand Avenue is in terrible shape," said resident Tom Ryley, addressing a question to members of the First Precinct who were on hand: "What are you doing about the crime youÕre finding there? ThereÕs a lot of stuff going on there that shouldnÕt be."
Later, another woman from the audience said, "The streets may look pretty, but it wonÕt matter if we canÕt walk on them."
Three shootings have occurred in the area in the past three months, the most recent just last week. (See story on page 1.)
Police Officer James Healy said, "There is a gang problem there. Activity has picked up in the last couple of years. ...[But] we patrol regularly ... day and night. WeÕre aware. WeÕre issuing summonses and making arrests."
Capt. Thomas Hayes added that gang activity is a county-wide problem, not unique to Baldwin, but again stressed that the police had increased patrols in that area. Hayes also said that recent statistics show that all major crime indexes are down in Baldwin, except for stolen vehicles.
George Siberon, the executive director of the Nassau County Youth Board and a Baldwin resident, discussed the countyÕs Task Force Against Gangs (TAG), intended to steer kids away from gang activity and alert parents to the signs of gang involvement. He also reminded the audience, "The gang issue is not a Latino issue, not a black issue, not a white issue."
Aside from beautification and crime concerns, the hot topic of the evening turned out to be traffic. Again and again, residents complained about truck traffic on residential streets, double parking, bottlenecks and the difficulty of making turns at certain intersections.
Two panelists, Joe Pecore, director of traffic engineering, and Peter Gerbasi, commissioner of public works, wrote down particular trouble spots, saying they would look into problems, but they also reminded residents that often the area was not in the county's jurisdiction, or that what seems like a solution to a traffic problem can sometimes just exacerbate it. Pecore said, "Traffic is like water. It will just look for somewhere else to go."
