Co-founded by Gardiner E. Gregory (a longtime Hicksville High School teacher) and his late wife Anne Church Gregory, the Gregory Museum has been located the Heitz Place Courthouse since it was moved there in 1973 from where it was originally founded at the Gregorys’ Cottage Boulevard home in 1963. While the institution’s namesake passed away in 2005, it has continued serving the community as an earth science center.
(Photo courtesy of the Gregory Museum)
With Governor Andrew Cuomo’s New York State on PAUSE order in effect, nonessential businesses like museums were required to remain closed up until the end of August. The Gregory Museum postponed all tours and activities as a means of complying with the order as a means of helping the community help decrease the spread of the virus. With COVID-19 being an airborne virus, upgrading the building’s ventilation became a major priority. Legislators Rose Marie Walker and Laura Schaefer came to the rescue by approaching the Nassau County Legislature to request Community Revitalization Project (CRP) funding for an Inter-Municipal Agreement (IMA) with the Town of Oyster Bay, to purchase, upgrade and install an HVAC system at the museum. CRP funding is used to benefit local municipalities, fire departments, museums and schools. Walker was unequivocal in stating the importance of this upgrade for both public safety and historical preservation purposes.
“I am happy to help the Hicksville Gregory Museum upgrade their HVAC systems,” Walker said. “This new heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system will allow for more than just public use of the museum, but also will help in preserving the one-of-a-kind history the Gregory museum contains. Historic artifacts and documents need a climate-controlled environment to maintain integrity, and this CRP funding provides that.”
Legislator Laura Schaefer joined with the members of the Nassau County Legislature to approve funding for numerous projects in District 14 with Community Revitalization Project (CRP) funds. In keeping with how CRPs aid local fire departments, municipalities and government entities to help benefit the residents of the community, Schaefer’s efforts helped fund two other projects besides the Gregory Museum HVAC upgrade. The Westbury Fire District will be receiving portable data terminals through this grant. These terminals will be installed in each response vehicle in the care of the fire department. They will allow for full computer-aided dispatch information while responding to alarms. This advancement in technology will be of great benefit to coordination and response time for emergencies. The final project allows the Garden City Fire Department to purchase portable radios for use during their emergency calls. These radios, replacing their previous out-of-date equipment, will allow the departments to coordinate and respond to fire and emergency calls and provide the best service to the Garden City community possible.
“The residents in the 14th Legislative District are benefiting from these CRP funds, as their fire departments and museums will be updated and quality of life will be maintained,” Schaefer said. “I am happy to provide the means possible for these services, and look forward to seeing the funding go to good use.”
Visit www.gregorymuseum.org to find out more about the Gregory Museum.
