And when Suozzi agreed to take a tour of the facility, it seemed rather fitting that one of the jail's elevators broke down--with him in it.
The visit was arranged after correction officers lodged myriad complaints with areas of the jail they believer desperately need repairs.
Though the county couldn't afford to fix all the problems, after his visit the county executive asked union representatives to sit down with Nassau County jail boss Sheriff Ed Reilly to prioritize what work needed to be done first.
Study leads to zoning law change
Businesses wanting to open on two-lane roads in East Meadow now have to file for a special town permit, giving residents a chance to weigh in on the move.
The Town of Hempstead Council unanimously passed a code amendment requiring businesses of certain sizes to apply for a "special exception" with the town Board of Zoning Appeals when moving onto roads allowing only a single lane of traffic in each direction, such as Front Street or East Meadow Avenue.
A town study examining how businesses impact traffic congestion on such roads precipitated the amendment.
Top cop talks crime
House burglaries, quality-of-life issues and traffic problems were just some of the concerns residents of the Salisbury and Clearmeadow communities expressed to 3rd Precinct Inspector Lorraine Hannon.
Hannon attended a public safety forum organized by Nassau County Legislator Norma Gonsalves.
Hateful messages at school
Swastikas were among the graffiti found on Parkway Elementary School's walls and sidewalk, the latest incident at a school that has been plagued by vandalism.
The head custodian saw three people, one holding a can of spray paint, on the northwest side of the school. He went to take a closer look, and the three walked off, leaving behind fresh graffiti, which included two small swastikas.
The graffiti was immediately removed.
Community leader dies
East Meadow lost one of its most beloved leaders when Sal Napolitano succumbed to cancer after a two-year fight that only underscored his bravery and dedication to the community.
Diagnosed in January 2002, the disease took an exacting physical and emotional toll on Mr. Napolitano, but he never let it keep him down.
Despite surgery and rounds of radiation and chemotherapy, he remained extremely active in East Meadow, and for that reason, was named the East Meadow Herald's Person of the Year for 2002.
Candidates profiled
The East Meadow Herald showcased the candidates running for school board. The 2003 election featured Barry Rubinstein against Janet Mangano, David Kaplan against Louis Labush and Steven Jacobs against Debbie Kirsh.
Synagogue changes to Orthodox
To save a dying synagogue that has suffered a significant drop in membership over the years, the longtime Conservative Suburban Park Jewish Center recently voted to switch to orthodoxy.
The temple's general membership voted 20-13 in favor of the move during an often contentious meeting.
It was hoped that the switch would attract more young members to the synagogue on Old Westbury Road, which serves only 60 families but once boasted as many as 200.
Neighbors battle blaze
A lightning bolt sparked a fire that devastated Marie and Anthony Iamunno's Cypress Lane home and if it weren't for their neighbor's quick thinking, the fire could have cost the Iamunnos their lives.
Recognizing the house was on fire, neighbors rushed to Iamunno residence to wake up the elderly couple, helping them escape along with their two grandchildren.
Neighbors then hosed down the house with their garden hoses, keeping the fire at bay until the fire department arrived at the scene.
School board, budget decided
David Kaplan, Barry Rubinstein and Debbie Kirsh beat their opponents for seats on the East Meadow Board of Education and the district's 2004-05 budget passed a May 18 vote.
What lies beneath?
An investigation into the breadth and depth of contamination stemming from Melody Cleaners on Hempstead Turnpike was completed and officials devised a way to clean it up.
JUNE
Turan resigns as NUMC head
Richard Turan stepped down as president of the financially strapped Nassau Health Care Corporation, he said in a statement.
The announcement came about a week after the Civil Service Employees Association, which represents some 3,000 Nassau Health Care Corporation employees, called for his resignation because he accepted a raise while planning to layoff more employees.
Turan characterized his tenure with the Nassau Health Care Corporation as a success, pointing toward improved care and financial recovery. But his years were also marked with controversy.
Fire at the Herald
A quick-moving fire ravaged the Herald Community Newspapers' building in Lawrence, forcing about 120 employees to safely evacuate to the street.
The blaze gutted much of the historic building, at 379 Central Ave., which is home to Richner Communications, publishers of 16 weekly newspapers and PrimeTime Guide.
The fire started in the rear of the company's printing press room and quickly spread through the rest of the building. About eight minutes into the fire, a propane tank, used to power a company forklift, exploded in the rear of the building.
Taking pride
Hundreds of East Meadow residents turned out for the 13th annual East Meadow Community Pride Day in Speno Park, which was dedicated to longtime event organizer Sal Napolitano, who had died of cancer in May.
Before the three hours of free fun, food and festivities commenced, Napolitano was honored in a poignant opening ceremony, and a tree was planted in his memory on the third-base side of the Speno Park ball field.
Suozzi gives E. Meadow a once-over
Broadening the tax base and building affordable housing were the two main topics discussed during Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi's economic development bus tour of the East Meadow-Salisbury area.
The tour, which was followed by a long meeting at the Wisdom Lane Middle School in Levittown, was part of a county-wide initiative Suozzi started last year to familiarize himself with the different economic issues facing Nassau communities.
Joined by East Meadow elected officials and civic leaders, Suozzi said increasing the property tax base and creating housing so upstart county residents can afford to live here are issues throughout Nassau.
School trustee resigns
David Kaplan resigned as trustee of the East Meadow Board of Education, just weeks after scoring a resounding victory in his re-election bid.
Kaplan would not offer specifics about why he decided to leave the board. He did, however, cite pressing health concerns in his family as the main reason for stepping down.
The board said it would likely appoint Kaplan's successor, though to date it has not.
Rape at NUMC
A 25-year-old woman was dragged into a third-floor restroom in Nassau University Medical Center's B Building, where she was beaten and raped.
The woman, who police said spoke only Spanish, was at the hospital for outpatient care and on her way to the elevator when she was approached by the suspect.
The suspect lead her to another elevator and pulled her into the nearby bathroom, where he raped her.
Promoted to editor
Nick Buglione, who had been assistant editor of the East Meadow, Merrick and Bellmore Heralds, was promoted to editor.
School turns 50
Barnum Woods Elementary School celebrated its 50th anniversary with a day-long celebration and a miniature golf party at Eisenhower Park.
An All-County girl
W.T. Clarke athlete Stacey Landini received All County honors in three sports in 2003--softball, volleyball and bowling.
She currently attends Sienna College on a full softball scholarship.
JULY
NHCC names new acting CEO
Vowing to restore fiscal stability and improve patient care, Dr. Daniel Kane was named the acting head of the beleaguered Nassau Health Care Corporation.
With an extensive background in hospital management, Kane contrasted starkly with former president and CEO Richard Turan, who had no experience in the health-care industry and resigned amid controversy.
Prior to joining the Nassau Health Care Corporation, Kane served as president and CEO of the Englewood Hospital and Medical Center in New Jersey, and before that as head of tertiary hospitals in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin.
Leaders meet on 7-Eleven plan
East Meadow and 7-Eleven officials met behind closed doors to review plans for a new convenience store at East Meadow and Prospect avenues.
Aesthetics and traffic concerns were among the top issues discussed in the meeting.
East Meadow already has four 7-Elevens in the area, which left some wondering why the convenience store chain wanted to build another. Since East Meadow and Prospect avenues are already marked by traffic congestion and accidents, concerns that a 7-Eleven would exacerbate the problems surfaced after residents learned of the proposal.
Young leader heads to conference
The Herald profiled Ramya Sekaran, 15, an East Meadow High School student who headed to a conference in Washington, D.C., where she met the leaders of today and honed the skills that may make her a leader of tomorrow.
Born again
The Herald detailed the story of Nat Giambalvo, a one-time atheist who has galvanized Calvary Lutheran Church's youth ministry, swelling its ranks and making it a widely successful model for other churches.
Shut down!
The Home Depot on Hempstead Turnpike was evacuated and a large section of the thoroughfare closed down when a paint can, presumed to be a bomb, was found there.
Dozens of workers and customers were led from the store, one of the largest and busiest Home Depots on Long Island, after the can was discovered inside a shopping cart in the parking lot with a note attached stating that it was an explosive, police said.
The can turned out not to be a bomb.
Rising from the ashes
A stoic Sal Giambaco stood amid the charred debris inside Fabio's on July 22, just four days after fire ripped through the restaurant he has owned for five years, severely damaging it.
A thick stench of smoke still hung in the air, and water still leaked steadily from the hydrant out front as Giambaco surveyed the half dozen or so workers shoveling burned refuse.
The fire had started in the basement and made its way up into the restaurant, doing the most damage in the section of the dining area to the immediate left of the entrance.
AUGUST
Another East Meadow audit
It was revealed that the East Meadow School District would again be the focus of a New York state comptroller audit, almost two years after investigators from the comptroller's office examined the district's books for the 2001-02 school year.
Comptroller Alan Hevesi announced in a press conference Tuesday that East Meadow would be among a number of Long Island school districts audited in the wake of the financial improprieties discovered in Roslyn and William Floyd districts.
Mopping up the mess
The firm hired to study and clean up the chemical plume emanating from Melody Cleaners washed and filled seven open contaminated cesspools on site, the latest measure in the ongoing cleanup.
Impact Environmental officials cleaned the seven abandoned cesspools, which had once belonged to the laundromat situated just south of Melody Cleaners on Front Street.
The cesspools had been tainted with chemicals that seeped into the soil and surrounding ground water from Melody Cleaners, specifically tetrachloroethylene, a hazardous substance used in dry cleaning that poses health risks, including cancer.
Getting their kicks
The community again geared up for the East Meadow Soccer Club's annual American Ref-Fuel Tournament, which in its 26th year reached the apex of its size and scope.
Some 14,000 spectators were expected to gather to watch 420 soccer teams featuring 6,500 players, some from as far away as Canada and Bermuda, square off in the three-day tournament.
New rabbi in town
Temple Sholom in Salisbury welcomed Rabbi Simcha Zamir, who became the temple's new spiritual leader on Aug. 1.
Lights, camera, makeover!
A down-on-its luck Queens family got the surprise of a lifetime, thanks to an East Meadow construction company.
Alure, a Hempstead Turnpike-based firm specializing in kitchens, bathrooms, basements, siding, windows and roofing, agreed to essentially rebuild the South Ozone Park family's house for the ABC television show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."
The family had hired a contractor to put a second-story addition to their home. The contractor gutted the building and then walked with the money before finishing the job.
NHCC board plans for future
The board of directors paved the way for major change at the financially strapped Nassau Health Care Corporation in a special meeting, voting to give its acting president and CEO, Daniel Kane, the authority to sell the A. Holly Patterson nursing home in Uniondale and move its residents to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow.
At the meeting, Kane asked the board to authorize him to use the independent, county-commissioned study on the corporation, released earlier in the year, as a road map to financial recovery.
