The Centereach Civic AssociationCCA
Civic News
April 2008
Message from the President…
AGENDA – SCHOOL BUDGET PRESENTATION
SCHOOL BOARD TRUSTEES AND CANDIDATES
Due to the fact that the petition process for school board candidates is not officially over until after the meeting. I can only tell you that to the best of our knowledge Board Trustees Nick Caracappa and Susan Jacobsen are seeking re-election. Trustee Kim Tarpey’s seat is open. Civic member Vinny Zecca has told us that he is running. Only after the official cut off date will we know for sure if anyone else is running and who, if any, will be vying for the same seat. The vote is May 21st, 2008.
Following is most of the handout that will accompany the presentation. Please glance over it before the meeting. Have your questions, if any, ready. I will state again, that although you may not agree with the budget or some of the decisions of our school board your chance to express that is in the voting booth. I appreciate that this topic brings about passionate and sometimes heated debate but know coming into the meeting that we will demand a respectful discussion by all. Come to question, come to learn, come to decide but come with the knowledge that our school board trustees are volunteers, and taxpayers too, with a very difficult task.
On another note, I hope everybody has noticed the beautiful, decorative lights in front of Walbaums. In addition to our elegant clock (that will have plantings very soon) and near our stylish flower pole with hanging baskets 9 decorative light fixtures have been installed and it really just looks great. It absolutely makes a really nice difference. A few kudos must be given out; Ground Management, owned by Carlo Cavalieri, who did our brickwork around the signs and who will be planting soon also put up our flower poles. The gorgeous flower arrangements that are simply perfect were “arranged” with wires and foam so they will look great for a long time by our very own Joe Rizzolo. Although the civic received the grant many years ago (2002) for the decorative lighting – and yet it almost seems like an overnight success – one morning you just wake up and they are there – I would be remiss not to acknowledge myself – yes, that’s allowed, and Bob Mille. Had we not stayed on this “promise” of money, tracking it down, and forcing it into reality, I do believe it would have simply been lost to us. After I fought for a long time to secure it, Bob Mille planned the lights, fixtures and layout, worked tirelessly with Basser – Kaufman (property owners) and Councilwoman Kathy Walsh to bring it to fruition. I absolutely want to acknowledge Councilwoman Walsh’s part in this because she walked in through the seemingly insane process of coordinating the various Town Departments and legal issues that needed to be handled. Also deserving of our
thanks is Bruce Schroeder in the lighting division of the Town who has seen this project through since inception. Lastly, many thanks to then Assemblyman Steve Levy who gave us the money and Assemblywoman Ginny Fields, who was of great assistance as we tried to track it down. I sincerely hope everyone can appreciate the significant amount of work being done by our civic board because it would be very easy to think – oh, that’s nice – some lights.
Would now be a good time to inform you that the Civic Board has an opening? Our 2nd Vice President Jeff Freund has resigned his post. Jeff has been a great asset to the Civic Board and has been a driving force behind our growth as a civic. His resignation is a loss to the board but Jeff not only opened his own Insurance Agency, but is in the process of buying a second one and has been asked to takeover in the role of Chamber of Commerce President AND is now sitting co-chair of the Smart Growth Coalition. All great things and simply, something had to give. Thank you for your time and dedication to our community.
I have to personally thank Jeff because he was always there to offer support when I was feeling “burnt out” and also annoyingly always there to keep me in check when I made more of an issue than it needed to be. Thanks Jeff and best wishes for success in all your new roles.
Anyone interested in coming on board –ready and willing to work – please let us know. Congratulations to Joe Rizzolo who has been “promoted” to 2nd Vice President (the flower baskets themselves really were cause for promotion).
Lastly, for all you watching intently on the amazing progress made at Hobbs Farm – they have just initiated a web site, still in its formative stage but a way to get more people directly aware of all the great work going on there. It is www.hobbsfarm.info.
Respectfully, Diane Caudullo