(Long Island, NY) Suffolk County Crime Stoppers and Suffolk County Police Fourth Precinct Crime Section officers are seeking the public’s help to identify and locate the man who stole money from a Smithtown church last month.

A man entered St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church, located at 280 East Main St., and sat in a pew for an hour before he used tools to pry open a donation boxon October 10 at 1 p.m. The man fled with more than $100.

Suffolk County Police are seeking the public’s help to identify the man who stole money from a Smithtown church last month. Photo Credit: SCPD.

Suffolk County Crime Stoppers offers a cash reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to an arrest. Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.

Balanced budget freezes general fund property tax and invests in clean water

(Long Island, NY) The Suffolk County Legislature yesterday passed a $2.9 billion operating budget for the county’s 2016 fiscal year. The balanced budget, which will be presented to the County Executive for approval, freezes the general fund property tax, invests in clean drinking water projects, and maintains critical services for Suffolk residents.

“Although the county’s revenue shortfall created challenging constraints, the Legislature’s bipartisan working group rose to the task and balanced yet another budget for the people of Suffolk County,” said Suffolk County Legislature Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory. “We made difficult, fiscally-responsible decisions in order to avoid raising the general fund property tax. I am proud that this budget passed with bipartisan support, and I thank the Legislature’s nonpartisan Budget Review Office for its expertise and assistance in balancing this budget.”

Suffolk County Legislature Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory reviews the Legislature’s amendments to the County Executive’s 2016 recommended operating budget. Photo Credit: Suffolk County.

The budget provides for the sale of the John J. Foley Nursing Home, which had previously been operated by the county, to Brookhaven Memorial Hospital, which will save taxpayers more than half-a-million dollars per year in operating costs. The Legislature also amended the County Executive’s recommended budget by restoring more than $200,000 in proposed cuts to contract agencies, such as homeless shelters and food pantries, that serve Long Island residents who are most in need. Another change to the County Executive’s recommended budget included the investment of more than $180,000 in a fund that supports clean drinking water projects.

Additionally, a law sponsored by Presiding Officer Gregory that took effect this year provided performance metrics for the agencies with which the county contracts. The resulting report containing this data helped inform the 2016 budgetary process. Gregory will also convene a special committee of legislators to delve even more deeply into that data in the coming year to continue to improve the efficiency of the county’s use of taxpayer dollars.

(Long Island, NY) The Major Case Bureau reports the arrest of a two Flushing men for Grand Larceny that occurred in Manhasset between August 7, 2015 and September 9, 2015.

According to detectives, the defendants Zhaolong Wen, 25, and Jianhui Zhuo, 30, while acting in concert did purchase items using re-encoded credit cards at Macy’s, located at 1100 Northern Boulevard, Manhasset.

Nassau County Police reports the arrest of Zhaolong Wen, 25, of Flushing for Grand Larceny that occurred in Manhasset between August 7, 2015 and September 9, 2015. Photo Credit: NCPD.

The use of the re-encoded cards caused a loss in excess of $60,000 to Citibank, $20, 000 to Discover and $39,000 to Macy’s. Both defendants were arrested on Thursday, November 5, 2015 at Nassau County Criminal Court in Mineola where they were being arraigned on an unrelated charge.

Nassau County Police reports the arrest of Zhaolong Wen, 25, of Flushing for Grand Larceny that occurred in Manhasset between August 7, 2015 and September 9, 2015. Photo Credit: NCPD.

Both defendants are charged with Grand Larceny 2nd degree and two (2) counts of Grand Larceny 3rd degree and were arraigned on Thursday, November 5, 2015 at First District Court in Hempstead.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

(Long Island, NY) Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci (R, C, I – South Huntington) was among nearly a half-dozen elected officials who honored Town Clerk Jo-Ann Raia for her 34 years of dedicated service at the Republican Women of Huntington’s annual brunch at the Cinque Terre Ristorante in Huntington Station. Raia is the longest tenured public servant in Huntington town history.

Assemblyman Lupinacci presents Huntington Town Clerk Jo-Ann Raia with a citation honoring her achievement of becoming the town’s longest-serving Town Clerk. Photo Credit: NYS.

“It is a great honor and privilege to recognize the longest serving town clerk in the history of Huntington, Jo-Ann Raia,” Lupinacci said. “Town Clerk Raia has served not only as a friend and mentor to me, but also as a symbol of dedication to the residents of Huntington. I am proud to award Town Clerk Raia with this New York State Assembly Citation as she is truly the epitome of an excellent public servant.”

(Long Island, NY) New York State Senator Thomas Croci announced he has secured an additional $60,000 in state funding for the Sachem school district, in addition to the historical state aid secured in this year’s budget for Sachem in the amount of $118 million – an increase of over $6 million from last year.

“It was great getting to meet the Chippewa Elementary students, as well as Principal Patricia Aubrey and teachers and staff.  The students displayed their leadership qualities, as well as their pride for their school, by talking with me about their activities as part of Sachem’s ‘Leader in Me’ program. One special activity included a beautiful mosaic they created for the entrance of their school. I’m really proud to represent Sachem and I look forward to continuing my partnership with Superintendent Nolan and his staff to advocate for the entire district on education matters and find solutions to help Sachem families” said Senator Croci.

Sachem administrator Stephanie MacIntosh, Superintendent James Nolan, Principal Patricia Aubrey, Senator Croci, and Chippewa Elementary School student members of the “Leader in Me” student program. Photo Credit: NYS.

Superintendent Nolan has indicated that $10,000 of the funding will be used to support their “Leader in Me” K-12 educational leadership program and $50,000 will be used for capital improvements for the schools.

All media inquiries should be directed to Senator Croci’s Communications Specialist, Christine Geed at (631) 398-8044 (call or text) or via email at geed@nysenate.gov.  Inquiries for additional information should be directed to Senator Croci’s Press Secretary, Jennifer Freeman Romero at (631) 513-5657 or via email at jfreeman@nysenate.gov.

(Long Island, NY) Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano today joined Nassau Events Center (NEC), led by Bruce Ratner, developer of Barclays Center, and Brett Yormark, CEO of Barclays Center, at a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.  The new arena will retain its history of honoring our veterans while sharing revenue with taxpayers and employing 2,700 people. The project is majority owned by Mikhail Prokhorov through his investment company, Onexim Sports and Entertainment.

County Executive Mangano stated, “Today we officially begin construction of the new Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and surrounding parking lot into an economic generator that creates new jobs along with a vibrant, attractive destination for Long Islanders and tourists. This is only the beginning as the property will be further developed to create healthcare-related jobs, including Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and other exciting initiatives.”

After the Coliseum’s final sold-out show by native Long Islander Billy Joel on August 4, the project’s construction team fully mobilized on site, completed an extensive program of environmental testing and conducted pre-demolition activities, such as exterior sign removal, food service equipment disconnects, and furniture and fixture removals.

“Long Islanders have waited far too long for a premier entertainment destination that they can be proud of,” Ratner said. “Today marks an important milestone and step forward in delivering a state of the art entertainment venue and retail destination that will truly have an incredible impact on the region.”

“We are thrilled to bring an exceptional guest experience and a dynamic and diverse slate of events to the reimagined Nassau Coliseum,” said Yormark, who will oversee the new venue.  “From sports, to music, to family entertainment, to outdoor festivals and other special events, our soon-to-be-announced programming schedule will complement the local audience and bring the best to Long Island.”

The architect for the Coliseum facade is SHoP Architects, architect for the interior renovation is Gensler, and the construction manager is Hunt Construction Group.  NEC has also secured in principle a naming rights partner for the entire project and will make that announcement soon.

Legislative Presiding Officer Norma Gonsalves stated, “I am so pleased to see this project break ground.  This project will not only bring jobs to Nassau, it will also be the premier entertainment destination for our residents.”

“The groundbreaking for the refurbished Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum signals a Renaissance for Nassau’s Hub,” stated Hempstead Town Senior Councilman Anthony Santino.  “Working with a respected development group and Nassau County, Hempstead Town has created a building development zone and approved a master plan for the site that will stimulate our economy, create jobs and establish an enhanced entertainment destination in the heart of America’s largest township.  I’d like to thank Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby and Supervisor Kate Murray, along with the Nassau Events Center for working collaboratively with the town to bring meaningful and sustainable development to this site.”

The renovation of the 43-year old Nassau Coliseum and construction of its surrounding retail and entertainment center is expected to create more than 1,035 direct construction jobs, and more than 570 additional indirect and induced jobs in Nassau County.  Construction will also generate more than $330 million in economic activity for the County. The Coliseum is scheduled to reopen in winter of 2016.

Both the Coliseum and the retail center are funded by $260 million in private investment from NEC. No tax dollars are being used to construct the Coliseum and its surrounding retail and entertainment center.  Under terms of the agreement, $194.5 million is the minimum guaranteed revenue the County will receive during the 34-year lease term with NEC.  Simply put, the County will receive a minimum of 8% of gross revenue or $4 million annually, whichever is greater; plus $400,000 annually from the retail component or 8% of the gross, whichever is greater.  Payments began pre-construction in August 2015 and will be used to keep County property taxes down. Additionally, $3.7 million in annual sales taxes from the arena will be generated, along with an estimated $2.7 million in annual sales tax from new retail and entertainment surrounding the area.

The Coliseum will continue to be owned by the taxpayers, and Nassau County taxpayers will shed significant costs related to operating the arena. On August 1, 2015, NEC took responsibility for all costs related to operating, insuring, maintaining and providing utilities at the Coliseum. In fact, the agreement provides direct financial relief to taxpayers by eliminating millions of dollars in annual expenses for utilities, parking lot repairs, and capital expenditures.

When complete, the Coliseum will host hundreds of events annually, including six New York Islanders games, a Brooklyn Nets preseason game, boxing, minor league sports and college basketball, as well as star-studded concerts and family-fun entertainment.

In the months after construction of the Coliseum begins, work will begin on the plaza surrounding the arena to build a movie theater, family sports and entertainment facilities, and restaurants.

Download renderings here.

Gig Workers Can Now Better Navigate Maze of Options During Open Enrollment with Carefully Curated Plans on Freelancers Union’s National Benefits Platform

(Long Island, NY) Traditionally forced to navigate the maze of health insurance options on their own, Freelancers Union is helping New York’s independent workers more easily find quality, affordable care with a new partnership with CareConnect. Freelancers Union will offer a link to CareConnect plans on its National Benefits Platform. These plans are carefully curated to meet the needs of gig workers today. Freelancers will have access to CareConnect’s network of over 40 hospitals and 24,000 providers across New York City’s five boroughs, Long Island, and Westchester County. The agreement will also accommodate freelancers who are Health Republic members, who are eligible for a special enrollment period that began November 1, 2015 for coverage starting December 1, 2015.

“Freelancers want quality, portable health insurance but are uniquely sensitive to rising healthcare costs. We’ve whittled the hundreds of options they would find on the exchange down to the few that best meet these needs,” said Freelancers Union Founder and Executive Director Sara Horowitz. “We did this by both listening to our members, and by relying on our 10-year track record of helping gig workers find affordable coverage.”

The partnership with CareConnect marks the first expansion of Freelancers Union’s National Benefits Platform since it launched in 2014. The platform enables all freelancers to easily access curated, high-quality options for health insurance, retirement plans, and disability, liability, dental and life insurance.

“Freelancers Union is a forward-thinking organization that is actively improving options for everyday New Yorkers. That is our vision at CareConnect, too,” said CareConnect President and CEO Alan Murray. “Working with Freelancers Union will help provide security and peace of mind to the independent workers that set New York apart.”

CareConnect’s benefit plans are among the lowest-cost, highest-quality, commercial insurance options available on the market. As New York State’s first provider-owned commercial insurer, the company believes affordability is a critical component of care, and its products often provide significant savings for consumers when compared to similar products offered by large national carriers. Over the past month CareConnect has seen an uptick in inquiries regarding its small group and individual insurance offerings. This interest has been driven by industry consolidation and the attractiveness of CareConnect’s offering.

The company’s network includes many leading hospitals and facilities throughout downstate New York, including Lenox Hill Hospital and Lenox Health Greenwich Village, in Manhattan, Maimonides Medical Center, in Brooklyn, and Montefiore Health System, in Bronx and Westchester counties, as well as all of CareConnect’s parent organization, the North Shore-LIJ Health System, which is changing its name in January to Northwell Health. CareConnect members also have access to a variety of convenient urgent care options including CityMD and North Shore-LIJ GoHealth Urgent Care, located throughout the region. Freelancers Union’s announcement with CareConnect follows several recent critical provider partnerships that have expanded the insurer’s network, including the addition of the New York City Health and Hospital Corporation’s 11 hospitals in New York City, and White Plains and Nyack Hospitals in Rockland County.

About Freelancers Union
Freelancers Union’s 300,000 members believe all workers should have the freedom to build meaningful, connected, and independent lives – backed by a system of mutual and public support. More than one in three working Americans is an independent worker. That’s almost 54 million people – and growing. They are lawyers and nannies, graphic designers and temps. Freelancers Union serves the needs of this growing independent sector.

About North Shore-LIJ CareConnect Insurance Company, Inc.
The first provider-owned commercial insurer in New York State, CareConnect was created by North Shore-LIJ Health System (which is changing its name in January to Northwell Health) to make it easy for people to get and stay healthy. Its innovative model is designed to provide access to care that’s both excellent and affordable. CareConnect was founded in 2013 and offers a variety of plans for individuals, families and businesses. It is headquartered in East Hills, New York. For more information, visit www.careconnect.com.

Lowe’s Will Refund Over $1 Million To More Than 16,000 New York Consumers and Will Establish New Guidelines For Installation Services

(Long Island, NY) Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced a settlement with Lowe’s Home Center, LLC, which has 64 retail locations in New York State, over allegations of deceptive sales practices for flooring installations. The agreement provides cash refunds of up to 10% of per-square-foot basic flooring installation fees charged to over 16,000 New York consumers and establishes new disclosure guidelines relating to “per square foot” installation charges. The agreement will return up to $1,100,000 in cash refunds to consumers and concludes an investigation into Lowe’s per square foot billing practices for alleged deceptive acts and practices and deceptive advertising relating to per square foot installation charges. Under an Assurance of Discontinuance signed by the company, they will also pay $900,000 in costs and fees to New York State.

“When consumers shop for home installation services, they deserve to be dealt with honestly and fairly – and not to be misled by deceptive sales practices that conceal the true cost of a service,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “Today’s agreement with Lowe’s will return over $1 million to consumers and will result in clear disclosures being made to customers. We expect others who advertise for flooring installation to follow the model practices outlined in today’s agreement.”

Under the Agreement’s new disclosure guidelines, prior to any consumer becoming bound to an installation contract, Lowe’s shall fully disclose how its “per square foot” installation charges are calculated, including but not limited to, identifying the actual square footage of the project, the actual square footage of the materials required, and the square footage upon which the installation charges will be based. Lowes’s will also plainly disclose any charges in excess of the actual square footage of the project when per unit pricing is quoted for installation projects.

The terms of the agreement require Lowe’s to also refund up to 10% of per-square-foot basic installation fees charged to customers in New York who purchased basic installation services for covered categories between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2012. These customers will receive notice by mail advising them of their right to a cash refund. Consumers will verify their identity and that they have not received a prior refund and will then receive a check valued at 10% of the total installation cost.

An investigation by the Attorney General’s Office revealed that since at least 2008, Lowe’s advertised installation services to consumers for several of its product lines including carpeting, ceramic tile, wood/laminate flooring (the “Covered Categories”)  offering, at times, these products for installation based on a “per square foot” basis. For example, flooring has been advertised at “$1.99/sf installed” although it was not disclosed that this was based on the square footage of materials ordered, not the square footage of the project area.

To utilize Lowe’s installation services, consumers paid Lowe’s to send a third-party installer selected by Lowe’s to measure the project and obtain measurements. Consumers who proceeded with the purchase of materials and installation received a credit of the measuring fee toward the total project cost. After the customer selected the Lowe’s product to be installed, Lowe’s generated a document setting forth the cost of the material required for the job and the cost of installation. Although the installation fee was by the “square foot,” the square footage of the room(s) size was not disclosed to the consumer on the paperwork given to the consumer, nor was the square footage of the material ordered.  The installation charge was calculated roughly upon the amount of material ordered, not the size of the project.  This was not disclosed to the consumer.

The Attorney General alleges that in contrast to the explanations proffered to customers for the need to purchase material in excess of the actual square footage of the project area (and their ability to return unopened excess product for a refund), Lowe’s did not systematically explain to customers that per-square-foot installation fees also applied to the material in excess of the actual square footage of the project area. Rather, Lowe’s typically only provided the consumer with a lump-sum installation charge. Consumers were not regularly provided square foot measurements by Lowe’s unless the measurements were specifically requested. Lowe’s and its contractors received higher remuneration from consumers by calculating the installation charge based on the total amount of product ordered, rather than the actual square footage of the project area.

The office is continuing to investigate other home center stores that fail to properly disclose the true cost of home improvement installation services. Consumers deserve transparency in installation pricing and the Attorney General will demand industry practices which do not create a bait and switch environment.

This case was handled by Deanna Nelson, Assistant Attorney General In-Charge of the Watertown Regional Office. The Watertown Regional Office is part of the Division of Regional Affairs led by Executive Deputy Attorney General for Regional Affairs Marty Mack.

(Long Island, NY) Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci (R,C,I-South Huntington) joined members of Boy Scout Troop 78 at the Halesite Fire Department Sunday night to honor Tyler Varacchi and Michael Signorile for achieving the rank of Eagle. Lupinacci presented both young men with an official New York State citation and a pin in commemoration of their accomplishments.

Lupinacci (left) joins Huntington Town Clerk Jo-Ann Raia and Suffolk County Legislator William Spencer in honoring Tyler Varacchi and Michael Signorile for becoming Eagle Scouts. Photo Credit: NYS.

“As a duly elected member of the New York State Assembly, it is so encouraging to see today’s youth taking pride in our nation, giving back to our community and portraying outstanding character throughout their time as a Boy Scout,” Lupinacci said. “It is an extreme honor and accomplishment to be awarded the rank of Eagle, as you are now a member of a historic and storied fraternity. I proudly applaud Tyler and Michael for their exceptional efforts and their service to our community, the great state of New York and the United States of America.”

Co-sponsors Gibson Resolution with 11 other House Republicans

(Long Island, NY) As the Sustainability Coordinator at a Christian liberal arts college, I talk a lot about how climate change impacts people. Some students respond by wanting to hit the streets in protest while others remain convinced I’m a dupe of the “liberal agenda.” The real problem, though, is that political partisanship has blocked effective engagement with the topic of climate change in our country for far too long. While politicians on both sides posture for the cameras, the earth continues to warm.

On Tuesday, November 3, Congressman Tom Reed (NY-23) took on a new role of climate leadership by joining 11 House Republicans to co-sponsor the Gibson Resolution (H. Res 424). This resolution recognizes the impacts of climate change and calls for action to reduce further risk by working constructively to create and support economically viable solutions. With a focus on American ingenuity and innovation, the resolution seeks to reframe climate change as a commitment to conservative environmental stewardship.

The resolution states, “If left unaddressed, the consequences of a changing climate have the potential to adversely impact all Americans.” This simple statement echoes the results of thousands of studies, demonstrating a broad scientific consensus. More than 97% of climate scientists agree that the world is warming in an unnatural way and that humans are the cause. These changes are resulting in damaging consequences for millions of people.

It’s true that global warming will bring some benefits, including increased crop production for colder climates and generally milder winters for western NY. However, the overall impact of climate change will be overwhelmingly negative with more intense heat waves, an increase in both droughts and flooding, stronger storms, more natural disasters, rising sea levels and decreased crop production for many of the world’s poorest communities.

In fact, we’re already seeing the destructive impact of climate change right here in the United States. In 2012, unusually warm waters led to Sandy becoming the largest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded, resulting in $75 billion in damages. California’s epic drought threatens much of the nation’s food supply. Miami Beach just embarked on a $300 million project to install water pumps throughout the city to handle flooding caused by sea level rise. The consequences of climate change are impacting us now.

Climate change may be a big problem, but it’s a problem we can solve. In 1961, when President John F. Kennedy committed to putting a man on the moon by the end of the decade, few believed it was possible. The technology didn’t even exist yet. Nevertheless, Neil Armstrong’s famous words just eight years later demonstrated that a national commitment paired with American ingenuity and bipartisan support can accomplish a truly remarkable goal. As with the Apollo mission, solving climate change will require our leaders to work together. But unlike President Kennedy’s challenge, the technology to solve climate change already exists. The only thing missing is the political will to do it. We need our political leaders from both sides of the aisle to come together for a bipartisan solution.

One promising answer that liberals and conservatives could agree on is a revenue-neutral “Carbon Fee and Dividend.” This model puts a steadily rising fee on carbon-based fuels at the point of extraction or import. The fee is then returned (100%) to American households as an annual dividend. This would create 2.1 million jobs in just 10 years and would help stabilize the climate, decrease our dependence on foreign oil, promote national security, decrease pollution and stimulate the economy. Most middle- and lower-income households actually stand to earn money through such a plan.

Last June, I met with Rep. Reed in DC to discuss how a Carbon Fee and Dividend plan would benefit the 23rd district while also ensuring long-term climate stability. Because of the timing of the meeting, I had to miss my daughter’s sixth birthday. It was a difficult decision, but I wanted her to know that I’d done everything in my power to not leave a broken and messed-up world for her generation to fix.

Thank you, Congressman Reed, for joining the ranks of those working to constructively address one of the greatest problems of our time. Your courage is much appreciated. Now, we’re looking to you to continue to be our “climate hero” by joining hands across the aisle to demonstrate bold American leadership in solving this challenge.

Webb is currently the sustainability coordinator for Houghton College.  He holds a Master of Science in Experiential Education and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Sustainability and Environmental Management from Harvard Extension School.  Webb is also a founding member of Climate Caretakers, a new Christian organization devoted to helping Christians be more engaged with climate issues.  Recently he was the project leader on the building of a new 2.5 megawatt solar array on the Houghton College campus which at that time was the largest solar array on a college campus in New York.