Glen Cove city council members voted 6-0 on Tuesday, June 24, to amend a noise ordinance to restrict the use of power tools on Saturdays. This revised a Sunday-only ban that sparked resident opposition.
“I’m glad to see that we’re making Saturdays and Sundays the same time,” Council Member Marsha Silverman.
Under the revised ordinance, residents will be permitted to use gasoline-fueled or power tools, including lawn mowers, leaf blowers, saws, and woodchippers, on weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. and on Saturdays and Sundays between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
The previous amendment, passed on May 13, permitted tools on weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., on Saturdays between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., and on Sundays between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
Resident Harris Pepper said the amendment created an “unjust bias.”
Pepper said the law allowed for less work on the Christian Sabbath than it does on the Jewish Sabbath.
“Christian residents are granted more time to work on the weekends than their Jewish neighbors,” he said.
Mayor Pam Panzenbeck said the disparity was not the city’s intention. Council Member Marsha Silverman said she had brought this issue up twice in pre-council meetings.
Panzenbeck noted that she brought the issue up once prior to the vote and once after the vote, when the law had already been passed.
Silverman voted in favor of the amendment at the May 13 council meeting.
At a June meeting, five council members voted in favor of the change, making Saturdays and Sundays equal. Council Member Kevin Maccarone voted against it.
Maccarone said that, while Saturdays and Sundays should have the same time constraints, limiting residents between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. was too strict. He said many homeowners cannot afford landscapers and complete their yard work over the weekend.
Silverman disagreed, saying she would like the noise ordinance to become stricter in the future, as many residents want to enjoy a quiet backyard on weekends. She said the ordinance’s intention was to “limit loud noises when people are out trying to enjoy a nice quality of life in their yards.”
Silverman said the noise ordinance as a whole is “outdated” and should be updated further in the future.
Pepper thanked the council for adopting the amendment at its June meeting.
At the beginning of the meeting, the council recognized members of the city’s fire and police department who were involved in fighting an apartment fire on Glen Cove Avenue in April. Between the two departments, 12 residents from the apartment complex were rescued, some of whom were trapped on the second story of the building.
Panzenbeck, who went to the scene with Deputy Mayor Donna McNaughton, referred to their work as a “night of heroism.”
“We saw this great work all in action,” she said.
Over two dozen of the city’s first responders received citations from the city.
“I just want to say thank you to the mayor, deputy mayor and the city council. I have a great bunch of men and women beneath me that make us look great,” said Phil Grella, the city’s fire chief.
Deputy Chief Chris Ortiz said the response showcased a “coordinated effort” between the fire and police departments.
The council also celebrated the Glen Cove High School softball team, which won the county championships this season.
“We are so proud of all of you,” Panzenbeck said to the students.
Panzenbeck said the team has the highest grade-point average of all varsity teams at the high school.
This season’s win came 40 years after the program’s last county championship victory, in 1985, and marked the program’s 50th anniversary as a whole.
Council Member Danielle Fugazy Scagliola noted that Coach Kim Kessel, who received tenure this year, earned the Nassau County Coach of the Year award.
Nassau County Legislator Delia DeRiggi-Whitton presented the team with a county citation, celebrating their hard work and dedication. DeRiggi-Whitton was a pitcher on the 1985 champion team, which won the game with a no-hitter.
