Classic cars come to Valley Stream

After the Village of Lynbrook announced that it would no longer be holding a car show this year because it needed the parking space for the new movie theater, car enthusiasts had nowhere to go on a Thursday night in the summer.

Then, Valley Streamer Dennis Verriello contacted Mayor Ed Fare and said, “‘It would be a great thing for Valley Stream to be able to grab that car night before guys found another place to go,’” Verriello said.

Fare agreed with the idea, being a classic car enthusiast himself, and decided the village would hold a car show every Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Parking Field 12, behind Rockaway Avenue.

He said he thought it was “a great idea” because “the business districts can get some business [and] the car people can all meet and greet and talk.”

But they still needed someone to pay for the insurance for the event. That’s when the Valley Stream Lion’s Club decided to help out. Members of the club said they were interested in sponsoring the car show because it provided exposure to their club and the work that they do.

The weekly car show officially started on July 5, and one week later, the parking lot was filled with about 50 classic cars.

The cars included Rob Baglio’s 1969 AMX two-seater, one of only about 18,000 in production. The Lynbrook resident said that he had wanted the car since he was a child, and in 2007, at the age of 60, he found a man in Massachusetts that was willing to build him the car in any color he wanted.

Unfortunately, the car was totaled in Hurricane Sandy. Baglio said he was willing to buy a new car, but found a man in Vermont that was able to fix it and bought it off of him. “So I actually got the car twice,” Baglio said.

Valley Streamer Anthony Santoianni also showed off his handmade 1962 Ford coupe with an original steel body, and Brooklynite Lovelle Mason displayed his custom made 1968 Buick Skylark with LED lights, a pop-up flat screen television and a hidden compartment in the trunk that contains a spare tire that pops up with the push of a button. They all said they enjoyed the evening.

“It eases your mind,” said Mason. “If you’ve got a lot going on you [can] get away, you meet great people, good friends, [and] you get to see great cars and different cars.”

The classic car show will be held every Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Parking Field 12 until Sept. 6. It will feature raffles, cars and classic rock music. For more information about the car show, contact Dennis Verriello at (646) 235 – 2129 or Chuck Ristano at (516) 318 -4816.