February - 2023

Op-Ed: Santos’ Sister Could Give Him $26K - But Wouldn’t Pay Her Rent

By Steve Levy How crazy a world are we living in today where the tenant who failed to pay her rent for two years had enough money reserved to donate nearly $26,000 to her brother’s political campaign? That’s exactly what Tiffany Santos, the 29-year-old sister of now-US Congressman George Santos, did during a period in which she was refusing to pay her rent. She stopped paying rent on her $2,000-per-month Queens apartment in March 2020 and accumulated arrears of approximately

Proposal: Turn Jericho Homeless Hotel into College Dorms

By Thomas Nothel The new Hampton Inn on Jericho Turnpike in Jericho was closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic – with ex-Nassau County Executive Laura Curran (D-Baldwin) proposing in late 2020 to open a homeless shelter in the hotel. The proposal to turn the Hotel into a Homeless shelter was opposed by Jericho school district parents and nearly every local government leaders. The hotel has no kitchen facilities in the rooms, and bringing-in 300 homeless into the center of Jeric

FBI Closing-In on George Santos – Now It’s a Credit Card Fraud Ring

By Rupert Deedes With the FBI already assembling criminal charges over Congressman George Santos, a new criminal caper – this one involving credit card fraud – has Santos implicated in the plot. The FBI has already interviewed and retrieved information on Santos stealing $3000 in charity contributions raised for emergency surgery for the service dog of disabled US Navy veteran Richard Osthoff – which resulted in the surgery being canceled, and the veteran's dog dying. The FBI

Bayville Bridge Closed – Again – For Two Months

By Thomas Nothel The Bayville Bridge was again closed to vehicle traffic, starting at 7am on February 14th, in order for more repairs to be done to the Bridge – but the new repairs are promised to take only two months. The Bridge is scheduled to reopen to vehicle traffic in about 30 days. The drawbridge was closed to marine traffic on January 9, 2023 and is now “scheduled to reopen” on April 9, 2023. The Bridge was damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. Repairs were t

Huntington’s William Naughton Passes Away

Longtime Huntington Highway Superintendent William J. Naughton has passed away at the age of 89. Throughout his 26 years of dedicated service, Naughton managed several major storms that wreaked havoc upon the town, including Superstorm Sandy and the Nor’easter of 2012. These storms shut down multiple roads and produced over 530,000 cubic years of debris. Under his superb guidance in those trying times, his department was able to haul away all of the debris and clear the roads

Barbara Jo Brundige Has Passed Away

By Maureen Daly A well-known local realtor and community leader, Barbara Jo Brundidge, passed away on Thursday, February 9th. Barbara Jo was 77 years old and suffered a lengthy battle with breast cancer, She died peacefully at home with her family at her side. Barbara was predeceased by her parents Howard and Ida Mae Shoen, who were the founders of North Shore Day School in Glen Cove. Barbara Jo graduated from Friends Academy and Skidmore College. She earned her master’s

The Golden Age of the Grifter - Part 2

When this newspaper, only two months ago, published an editorial lamenting the fraud and con-artists in our midst - focusing on the Crypto ponzi-scheme FTX and its con-man CEO Samuel Bankman-Fried - we didn't expect things to get so much worse, so quickly. But look at us today, with a US Congressman who is internationally reviled as a sociopath and con-artist, and new young barbarian con-artists rising up hungrily among us, to try to take his place. The story of George Sant

Oheka Castle to Build 95 Townhouse Condos

By Rupert Deedes Oheka Castle is about to undergo major changes - with the building of 95 townhouse condos on the 22 acre property. The historic building in West Hills on the Huntington-Oyster Bay line, took five years to build – from 1914 to 1919 – and served as the country home of investment financier and philanthropist Otto Hermann Kahn and his family. The name "Oheka" is an acronym made up of the first several letters of Kahn’s name. The mansion is the largest private hom

Op-Ed: Governor Hochul’s Assault on “Home Rule” & Local Zoning

By Mayor Jean Thatcher I write to alert you to a really alarming provision that your Governor intends to insert into the 2023-24 NY State budget. Dubbed the “New York Housing Compact”, it is targeted at destroying local zoning control. It would MANDATE multi-family and high density housing everywhere across NY State and impose target dates and penalties (taxes) for non-compliance. Within three years 800,000 new housing units are to be built in NY State - 38,000 housing units

Oyster Bay Looking to Create Town Court

By Nolan Cleary The Town of Oyster Bay is looking into creating its own town Court to handle local zoning and building violation disputes. The proposed Bureau of Administrative Adjudication ("BAA") would make the court process simpler and more convenient for Oyster Bay residents, by establishing a local court that would solely focus on local - mostly building violations - matters. Proponents of the proposed court argue that it could be an easier way of handling proceedings. A