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Friday, May 21, 2021
Vol. 96, No. 21
PRESENTS
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PAGES 21-44
N.Y. ADOPTS CDC GUIDANCE
CURRAN LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN
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Former Rep. Lester Wolff dies at 102 Ex-G.N. resident was key figure in relations with Taiwan, environment
BY R OB E RT PE L A E Z After a long public career in which he helped push through iconic social programs for the nation, former Congressman Lester Wolff has died at 102. He represented the North Shore from 1965 to 1981. Wolff, a Democrat who was the oldest living person to have served in Congress, died on May 11. Wolff ’s son, Bruce, confirmed his father’s death to various news outlets but did not provide a cause of death. He died at a Syosset Hospital, according to reports. Efforts to reach a member of Wolff ’s family for comment were unavailing. When Wolff was elected to the House of Representatives in 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson was creating his Great Society and was tangled up with the Vietnam War. Wolff voted for the bill creating Medicare, the health insurance plan for those 65 and older, and
later for the bill creating Medicaid, which covered the poor. Wolff voted for legislation against the Vietnam War and marched with civil rights activist Medgar Evers. He attended Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral. During his time as a congressman, Wolff helped preserve natural resources in battles against such opponents as famed planner Robert Moses and Gov. Nelson Rockefeller. Wolff was born in Manhattan and attended college at New York University, where he majored in business but did not complete his education. He married his wife, Blanche Silvers, in 1940. The two were married for more than 50 years before her death in 1997. Wolff represented New York’s 3rd Congressional District from 1965 to 1973, and the 6th Congressional District from 1973 to 1980. His congressional career ended in a loss to 27-year-old ReContinued on Page 50
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE GREAT NECK SCHOOL DISTRICT
Grant Toch was sworn into the Great Neck Board of Education as a trustee last week. Story on page 63.
VGN residents oppose new condo proposal BY S A M U E L E PETRUCCELLI Village of Great Neck residents strongly opposed a proposal for a new condominium that would replace a vacant building at 193 Middle Neck Road during the village’s zon-
ing board meeting last Thursday. The proposal features 22 units rising five stories tall, along with 45 below-grade parking spaces. The condominium would fit within the existing structure’s footprint, project representatives said,
replacing a vacant building on the corner of Middle Neck Road and Allenwood Road. While no actions were taken by the Zoning Board of Appeals, concerns about the apartment’s design, impact on school enrollment and vehicle Continued on Page 50
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