NY Wiki

longislandernews.com
The Long-IslanderRecordHalf Hollow Hills NewspaperNorthport Journal

An afternoon train, seen from the rooftop of Blackman Plumbing Supply
Company, as it passes the potential Huntington Station site. Kevin Gary, a
Greenlawn resident, sent a scathing letter to the Long Island Rail Road,
explaining why their interest in building a train facility in Huntington Station would
be an unfair burden on the communities in that area, and a violation of numerous
federal laws.

Long Islander Photo/Brian Ferry

GREENLAWN-HUNTINGTON STATION
Past Comes Back To Haunt The LIRR

Greenlawn man involved in 2000 fight sides with Huntington Station

By Brian Ferry

When officials of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and Long Island
Rail Road (LIRR) informed the public that they were interested in hearing
opinions regarding their plans to build an electric train facility somewhere in the
towns of Smithtown or Huntington, they opened a door that will be difficult to
close. Many people are content with simply showing up to the public scoping
meetings and saying a few words. Others may opt to fill their three-minute time
allotment with a prepared speech or letter. Still, others have done their
homework and have prepared a packet to hand to LIRR and MTA officials while
being forced to cut their speech short once their time is up.

Here’s where Kevin Gary comes in. A Greenlawn resident, Gary was a vocal
dissenter to the MTA and LIRR’s idea to place a similar facility south of the LIRR
right-of-way and north of Pulaski Road — where Harborfields’ Estates are now
being planned for construction. He and fellow Greenlawn resident Gary Schoer
brought a lawsuit against the LIRR asserting that the railroad had failed to
comply with the environmental procedures in the scoping process. Thanks to
their work, in conjunction with the work of Town Councilman Mark Cuthbertson
and State Senator Carl Marcellino, the result was a total withdrawal by the MTA
and a promise that the Greenlawn site wouldn’t be considered in the future.

Now, Gary has joined the unhappy citizens of Huntington Station in their fight to
keep the facility from being built on a site between the LIRR right-of-way and
East 5th Street.

On October 2, the two agencies sent out a package to media outlets and
residents who have attended past public meetings concerning these sites. In this
packet, they explained the environmental review process, attached maps of all
the sites still under consideration, and gave dates, times, and directions to all
public scoping meetings in November. Gary obtained one of these mailings,
which is the basis of a seven-page letter that he sent to Peter Palarmo, editorial
officer of the LIRR public affairs department.

The letter lists three primary concerns. The first is called “environmental justice.”
Gary cites various federal laws, including the 14th Amendment of the
Constitution, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and Executive Order 12898. Through
these laws, Gary insists that plans to build the facility in Huntington Station would
imply a discriminatory impact on the residents. He cited demographic studies and
census numbers of Huntington Station and the other communities along the Port
Jefferson Line, and it shows a staggering difference in ethnicity. According to US
Census information listed in his letter, the African-American population in
Huntington Station is 1,500 percent greater than in any other area being
considered. Similarly, the Hispanic population in Huntington Station is 750
percent greater, and the non-English-speaking population 240 percent greater.
The number of people living in poverty in Huntington Station is 300 percent
greater than in these other areas.

“I find it interesting that they had considered several locations in the Huntington
area and all the ones in white neighborhoods, including my own, were excluded,”
Gary said, adding that he believes that the Huntington Station site is the real
focus of the MTA and LIRR efforts. It was reported that extending the
electrification east of Huntington Station would cost the agencies millions of
dollars per mile. “It would seem to me that this was their primary focus based on
economics. Obviously, from a cost-benefit analysis, the railroad believes it
should be the first choice.”

His second argument delves into the reasons why other sites were excluded, or
deemed “fatally flawed” by the MTA. Thirteen sites were excluded from further
investigation under this circumstance, due to their proximity to parks,
businesses, residential communities, schools, and more. Gary argues that the
Huntington Station site neighbors public parks (including Manor Field Park and
Fair Meadow Park), residential communities (including Huntington Country Farms
and Winoka Manor apartments), and is a very short distance (approximately
2,000 feet) from Washington Drive Primary School. For these reasons alone, he
says, the Huntington Station site is fatally flawed.

Finally, he ties back into the non-English-speaking population in Huntington
Station and the method the agencies have chosen to present public scoping
meetings. Gary says that the scoping process itself is riddled with flaws,
providing only documents written in English for the public to analyze after the
first scoping meeting in June. He also argues that the maps provided in the
mailed scoping document are vague, failing to list the location of surrounding
housing and apartment complexes, Washington Drive Primary School, and other
major landmarks, which “seriously calls into question its ability to convey to the
reader, who may not even be able to read English, where the proposed site is
located in relation to landmarks in the surrounding area.”

Gary said that because of his involvement in the Greenlawn fight, he started
receiving letters and documents from the MTA and LIRR concerning these sites
long before such information was made public to most residents. Based on the
information they have provided him, Gary feels the agencies have not proved to
him that the rail yard is necessary.

“It would seem to me that the sum of the other five sites that they are
considering are better suited for a rail yard. I also note… that when they were
previously considering the Greenlawn site, they were also considering the Cerro
Wire site,” Gary said, referring to the Syosset property proposed for
development as a regional shopping mall. Referring to a civic group’s vocal
opposition to the shopping mall plan, Gary said, “I read in the newspaper that at
least one of those individuals said they would rather see the rail site than the
mall.”

“We have received Mr. Gary’s letter,” said Sam Zambuto, spokesman for the
LIRR. “It has been entered as part of the record for the Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) and we will be responding to his letter.”

“I think he was a very effective advocate in the past and this letter shows that he
will continue to be, Cuthbertson said of Gary. The councilman said that he
anticipates Gary will follow through on his commitment until the situation in
Huntington Station is resolved. “He is a very committed community activist.”

© 2003 Long Islander Newspapers, Inc.
(631) 427-7000
322 Main Street
Huntington, NY 11743