By Sarah Moskowitz
"We may be the cultural arts center that never happened," said LICAS President Adam Schaap.
LICAS, a non-profit community educational and presentational arts center for kids and the only licensed curriculum theatre school in Nassau County, was supposed to open in September in five storefronts on the east side of Atlantic Avenue underneath the railroad trestle. Schaap said, however, confusion over whether the building has to meet state or county fire codes has stalled the center's opening.
The property located below the Atlantic Avenue railroad trestle is owned by the Metropolitan Transit Authority, which is governed by state law. Originally the MTA had the authority to inspect the systems, however, problems ensued when inspection duties were transferred to the county, which has different code requirements.
Schaap said sprinkler systems were installed on the property in June and July and a fire alarm system in August and September, according to New York State fire prevention building code. The state code, however, has different regulations for fire systems according to ceiling height and square footage than Nassau County fire prevention code.
On Oct. 18, the MTA sent a letter to Nassau County Fire Marshals asking them to take charge of inspection duties because they determined it to be property of the Long Island Rail Road, which operates under county supervision. LICAS was notified by county fire marshals on Oct. 21 that the systems in place in the buildings would need to be reformatted according to county code. Schaap was forced to redraw his plans and is currently retrofitting alarm and sprinkler systems and adding fire exits. Schaap estimates the retrofitting of fire systems holds a price tag of $15,000, but it will remain unfinished until the project receives final approval from the county fire marshals.
Nassau County Fire Inspector Brian Flaks said LICAS fire system plans were received on Oct. 25 and the normal time to review and approve these plans is between three and five weeks. Even after plans are approved, fire marshals must inspect and test the systems in person before they can issue a permit.
MTA spokesman Tom Kelly said the whole inspection situation was a misunderstanding. While the MTA who adheres to state law owns the property, the MTA leases that property to the Long Island Rail Road, which follows county codes. Therefore, LICAS, who leases the property from the LIRR should have to follow local law. Kelly added that to his understanding, the situation will be worked out within the next few days and LICAS will open shortly.
While the MTA claims the LIRR is in charge of the property, LICAS has been paying rent to the MTA since November 2001.
Schaap said it does not matter who issues the permits as long as he gets them before he runs out of money and loses the center. The LICAS construction has a price tag of $2 million, including $150,000 worth of fire detection systems from Tri-County Fire Equipment of Cedarhurst. Much of the building supplies and labor have been discounted and donated by local merchants, plus 15 local civic groups volunteered their time to help build and decorate the interior of LICAS.
Schaap first approached the MTA in April 2001 about the storefronts and anticipated LICAS would open in April 2002, but problems started from the beginning. Construction was delayed after the MTA held building plans from March 12 until mid-June, said Schaap, who then wrote a letter demanding that the MTA take action. Now, after spending time and money, both are running short.
Schaap said he will not be able to continue paying bills without additional help and is hoping a philanthropist or sponsor will step forward. He added that he does not want people to feel sorry for him.
"I don't want pity and I don't want excuses from the municipalities anymore," said Schaap. "I want to give the children what they deserve. It's time for our community to stand up and help."
"By offering culture in our community we're giving fiber to the future," he added. "It's going to open the door for all the talented people in our community to feel there is a venue to practice their craft. In my opinion, it's long past due."
