READER OF THE WEEK IS KAREN DAVILA OF WEST BABYLON
Friday Night DessertTour By Chris Cosci
Read the Friday Night Dessert Tour column Page 2
Vol. 58, No. 32
THURSDAY, August 8, 2024
DP students study theater this summer Page 6
www.babylonbeacon.com
New President of Babylon Rotary Club, Page 12
50 CENTS
SCWA to give Suffolk’s small businesses first shot at bids
Saffron United Pipe Band of Babylon takes First Place
Congratulations to the Saffron United Pipe Band of Babylon, which competed Sat., July 20 at the Glasgow Lands Scottish Games in Northampton, Massachusetts, taking First Place out of. 18 bands in Grade 5. “This is a very exciting time for us as all as our hard work and weekly Thursday evening band practice/rehearsals are yielding nice results,” said Bob Farrell, Pipe Band Major. The band performs at many local functions and parades and anyone interested in joining can send an email to more information. Currently our new students meet Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. at the AOH Division 2 hall at 27 Locust Ave., in Babylon.For more information on the Pipe Band email Bob Farrell at pmsupb@gmail.com. Shown in photo are: Standing: Isabella Meichsner, Greg Jemison, Mike Scalia, John Martin, Nicholas Minguillon, Chuck P, PM Bob Farrell, Donal Morrissey, Olivia Meichsner. Kneeling left to right: Drum Sgt Eric Meichsner, Bib Mulligan, Pat Mulligan, Katie Kavanaugh, Brian Meichsner.
New parking meter kiosks on South Wellwood Avenue in Lindenhurst Village now live! The Village of Lindenhurst has upgraded its parking meters on Wellwood Avenue to touch-screen parking meter kiosks that accept both coins and credit cards. In addition, “Pay-by-App” and “Pay-by-Text” options are also available that allow customers to pay without using the kiosk! The kiosks on North Wellwood Avenue have been up and running since June, and the kiosks on South Wellwood Avenue are now “live” as well! As part of this new system, most parking spaces on Wellwood (between John Street and Gates Avenue) are numbered, and to begin any parking transaction, customers must enter their space number. Customers
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By Carolyn James The Suffolk County Water Authority will now give preference to small businesses that have their primary place of business within the county when considering bids on contracts. The new policy was adopted by a unanimous vote at the SCWA board meeting July 26 and requires that SCWA consider local businesses if they meet the criteria and are no more than 5 percent higher than the next lowest bid. The policy only applies to contracts for the delivery of goods and for professional services; it does not apply to construction contracts. “This makes perfect sense, and I am surprised that this was not a policy already,” said David Kennedy, a member of the Board of Directors of the Suffolk County Alliance of Chambers and executive director of the Greater Patchogue Chamber of Commerce. “I would have thought that would have been a regular practice not only for the Water Authority but for all agencies in Suffolk County; it’s just common sense.” “We are all about supporting the Suffolk County economy and this measure will do just that,” said SCWA Chairman Charles Lefkowitz. Suffolk County has a similar policy giving field advantage to Suffolk County businesses whose bids are within the 10 percent range of the lowest responsiblebidder, according to S.C. Leg. and Presiding Officer Kevin McCaffrey’s spokesperson. The county law states: “This Legislature also determines that the County of Suffolk enacted these laws to assist Long Island businesses and protect local jobs during an economic downturn. While these goals were and are worthy, Local Law Nos. 4 and 5 of 1993 have had the unintended effect of disqualifying some businesses that have a substantial local presence from competing for County contracts. This Legislature also finds and determines that the County’s local preference laws should be amended to encourage broader competition and obtain greater cost savings for Suffolk County taxpayers. Therefore, the purpose of this law is to update the County’s local preference laws in order to achieve greater cost savings from fuller competition while continuing to promote the use of local businesses and strengthen the local economy.” (Continued on Back Page)