The Second Annual Joint Civic Association gala was held at the Pine Hollow Country Club on Friday, May 29. Just as the first gala of the East Norwich Civic Association and the Oyster Bay Civic Association, the event was a great success.
This year Oyster Bay Civic Association President Bill Von Novak presented the first scholarship for the Joint Civics to Sara Kenn, the daughter of Mary and Norman Kenn. She is the class of 2009 Salutatorian and is going to Binghamton College. Mr. Von Novak made the presentation to the Oyster Bay High School senior at an awards night on May 28, in the Performing Arts Center. Funding for the scholarship was raised at the first Joint Civic gala last year.
This year ENCA President Matt Meng welcomed guests and elected officials including Nassau County Legislator Judy Jacobs, Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto, Councilman Joe Pinto, Councilwoman Beth Faughnan, Assemblyman Rob Walker, and retired Judge Robert Schmidt to the gala.
Legislator Judy Jacobs said that she has been working with Sean Rainey, ENCA vice president, in putting up new street signs in East Norwich. She said, “I heard the Oyster Bay Civic Association is jealous of the signs going up using Community Revitalizing money and the Town of Oyster Bay is installing them in a joint project. If Oyster Bay likes them and wants it, within a year you will have it.”
The two organizations work well together. At the May 28, ENCA meeting Rob Brusca (an OBCA board member and an ENCA member) said he will be working with both groups looking at “hot spots” along Route 106 that need addressing by the NYS DOT, spurred on by an accident had by Bob Martin, when exiting from Johnson Court onto Route 106, when his 1997 Thunderbird was demolished. “I went to the hospital and if I was out another foot onto Route 106, I wouldn’t be here,” said Mr. Martin of his Feb. 10, 2009 accident. He broke his arm in the accident.
Mr. Martin spoke on May 21 at the OBCA telling of the accident and asking for help from the group and elected officials to solve the traffic problems.
ENCA President Meng suggested that stripping the area along Route 106 where no parking is allowed might keep people from parking there. There is some parking allowed on the southern part of that road in front of Christina’s, but not on the northern area near the East Norwich Post Office. Cars exiting onto Route 106 from Johnson Court have impaired visibility when a car is illegally parked at the northern end of that strip. At the meeting members brought up other areas along Route 106 that need addressing. Mr. Brusca is planning on putting together information about Route 106, Pine Hollow Road and South Street and having representatives from the NYC DOT look at the information in an effort to solve the problems. (Further coverage of the gala will be in a future edition of the Enterprise Pilot.)
