Friday, March 24, 2017
THE PULSE OF THE PENINSULA
Vol. 92, No. 12
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HOME, LAWN AND GARDEN
COPS SAVES 3 IN G.N ESTATES FIRE
COUNTY DEMS BLAST TRUMPCARE
PAGES 35-46
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PAGE 6
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LIFE ON THE ICE
Village going with LED lights despite concerns BY JA N E LL E C L AUS E N
PHOTO COURTESY GREAT NECK PARK DISTRICT
Ilana Sherman, a Great Neck resident, has skated her entire life, traveling around the country to practice and compete. See story on page 59.
The Village of Great Neck plans to move forward with the installation of new LED street lights despite concerns from some residents about their health eects. At a meeting Tuesday night, the Board of Trustees and many residents expressed support for the project, citing decreased lighting costs and a need to embrace new LED, or light-emitting diode, technology. Village Clerk-Treasurer Joe Gill said the new lights will bring savings of 50 to 60 percent on lighting costs, which reach $175,000 per year between electricity and maintenance. “It’s incumbent upon myself, the board and the mayor to look at the expenses and make sure we’re getting the most bang for the taxpayer buck,â€? Gill said in an interview before the meeting. “We’re not trying to be brighter; we’re trying to be more eďŹƒcient,â€? he added. The village is currently in the pre-bid stage, meaning oďŹƒcials are open to residents’ input before issuing two separate bids for the purchase of the ďŹ xtures and the installation.
Scott Vokey, director of government relations and community solutions for RealTerm Energy, the company planning the village’s light installation, said the ďŹ rm has mapped out an asset inventory of the village. It is a street-by-street analysis taking ďŹ xture types, wattage, height, poles, traďŹƒc conditions and other factors into consideration. “Essentially, we’re going to make sure that our robust photometric design and installation mitigates any light trespass or glare issues,â€? Vokey said. While many supported the project, some Great Neck residents protested that the lights could be a health hazard. “We surely won’t give up our computers, our smartphones and our at screen TVs, but do we need additional blue light exposure from our village street lamps?â€? said Judy Shore Rosenthal, a longtime critic of LED lighting. “This discussion brings us here today.â€? Rosenthal and Amy Glass, another critic, cited studies suggesting that prolonged exposure can lead to sleep cycle disruption and retinal damage. Dimming the lights would also not be a solution, Rosenthal said, because then the process of Continued on Page 63
4 mayors, 12 trustees win in village elections BY ST E P H E N ROMANO, MAX ZAHN AND NOAH MANSKAR
With Gary Noren choosing Mayor Steven Weinberg and not to run for re-election in the Trustee Jill Monoson were reVillage of Thomaston, Berton elected to the board. Weston was elected to the Board All three candidates ran unof Trustees on Tuesday. opposed. Weinberg received 32 votes; Monoson, 32 votes; and Weston, 31 votes. Noren, vice president of sales for Outerstu LCC, a sports apparel company,
said in 2015 he would not seek another term after the completion of the Long Island Rail Road’s project at the Colonial Road Bridge in Thomaston. Weinberg, an attorney with the ďŹ rm Gottesman, Wolgel, Flynn, Weinberg & Lee PC, was named acting mayor in September 2014 after former Mayor Bob Stern resigned, and oďŹƒcially be-
came the mayor about a month later. Monoson, an attorney with the Great Neck ďŹ rm Kestenbaum & Mark, began serving as trustee in January 2015 after Weinberg became mayor. She was approached to serve as a trustee because of her record of pubic service as a village justice from Continued on Page 63
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