By Anthony Rifilato with Jonann Brady
Town of Hempstead officials were alerted last week to what can only be described as a "dump and run."
Last Wednesday, one resident complained to Town Councilman Anthony Santino's office about the dilapidated vehicles, which have been left in the parking lot for weeks, some in handicapped parking spots.
That morning, the town contacted the First Precinct and requested that police record license plate and vehicle identification numbers of at least six abandoned cars. On Friday morning, with police approval, the town towed one of the cars, and another, a van, was awaiting removal by flatbed truck.
Several residents say it's about time. "In the last month there have been about 10 junked cars," said Oceanside resident Jerry LaMonica, who added that he saw cars with multiple summonses and no wheels, license plates or inspection stickers. LaMonica, who ran unsuccessfully against Santino for a Town Council seat in 2001, said he contacted Santino's office last Friday morning to look into the problem further.
Santino's assistant, Linda Reed, came to the parking lot with Building Department and Highway Inspectors in tow, along with a First Precinct officer. But the scene quickly turned into a shouting match between LaMonica, who met the officials at the lot, and Reed.
"They told me it's the county's responsibility to enforce," LaMonica said, adding that he demanded the cars be removed immediately.
But Reed said the town has to abide by rules and that she explained this to LaMonica. "There's a procedure," said Reed. "We can't just remove the cars."
That procedure requires that the police department try to contact vehicle owners before cars are removed, either through license plate numbers or vehicle identification numbers. If contacted, the car owners are given two to three weeks to respond. But if there is no response, the police authorize the town to tow the cars.
While two cars were determined to be derelict, the others are still being investigated by police before they can be towed.
A violation notice was also issued by the town's Building Department on Friday to South Shore Automotive Discount on Merrick Road for the storage and sales of unregistered vehicles, said Ed Sieban, Santino's executive assistant. Sieban said that South Shore Automotive may be responsible for dumping cars in the parking lot.
But South Shore's owner, Allen Rattin, maintains that he has never dumped any vehicles in the lot, and that the violation was for cars on his property only. "My cars are not bothering anybody," said Rattin.
Still, while the police and town investigate, business owners in the area said the lot has become a real eyesore. "There's a lot of abandoned cars back there -- every day you'll see a different car," said Jack Melo, co-owner of F and J Classic Cigars on Grand Avenue.
Melo said the cars have been there for nearly a month and have hurt his business as well as others in the area. "I don't know where these cars came from," he said. "But the town should keep on top of it."
