Karen Louise Berryman of Hoboken, N.J., formerly of Southold, passed away Wednesday, May 1, 2024. She was 71 years old.

Karen was born Jan. 9, 1953, in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Rose C. (Kroleski) and John Henry Berryman. She was an only child. She graduated from Saint Joseph Hill Academy High School in Staten Island, N.Y. After high school she attended Fairleigh Dickinson University, where she attained her bachelor’s degree, and then the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, where she attained her master’s degree, after which she continued taking classes at Oxford University in England.

In her professional career, she worked as a research librarian for many different companies including IET, Info Current, Elsevier Engineering Information and Block Drug Company. She was a member of the National Library Association. She loved the theater, opera, classical music and literature. She was always reading. She was a lifelong lover of all types of animals and an enthusiastic equestrian. She also loved attending classes at Oxford every summer and exploring different areas of England and Europe. It was through these experiences that Karen befriended people from all over the world.

Predeceased by her father, John, in 2021, Karen is survived by her mother, Rose, and numerous cousins.

The family received friends May 6 at DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Southold, where funeral services were held May 7, officiated by Deacon Doug Moran. Interment followed at Sacred Heart R.C. Cemetery in Cutchogue.

Memorial donations to Southold Free Library would be appreciated.

This is a paid notice.

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Gail Berkes Starkie of Southold peacefully passed away May 1, 2024, at the age of 86, at the Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Westhampton Beach, N.Y.

Gail was born Aug. 14, 1937, to Dorothy (Marthens) and Philip Berkes in Brooklyn, N.Y., and was raised in Floral Park, N.Y.

She graduated from Hofstra University with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1959 and a Master of Science degree in 1965, and earned her doctorate degree in 1977, all in the field of education.

In addition to her academic achievements, Gail was an artist. She loved to paint and was a member of various art clubs and organizations on the North Fork. She was also a proud member of the Southold Historical Society and St. Patrick’s R. C. Church in Southold, and a grateful friend of Bill W.

Gail is survived by her loving husband of 47 years, George Starkie Jr.; and two stepchildren, George (Butch) Starkie and his wife, Patti, of Farmingdale, N.Y., and John Starkie and his wife, Cheryl, of Massapequa, N.Y. She was predeceased by her stepdaughter, Diane Stergiopoulos, and husband, George; and her sister, Sharon McManus. Gail also leaves behind nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, whose lives she touched with love and wisdom, along with her brother-in-law, Jack McManus, and several first cousins, nieces and nephews. She will be dearly missed by her family and friends.

In honoring Gail’s life, all services will be private, allowing her family and close friends to celebrate her life in a private setting.

DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Southold is assisting the family.

This is a paid notice.

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Here are the headlines for May 8, 2024.

THE SUFFOLK TIMES

Southold volunteers gather to build 20 beds for kids in need

RIVERHEAD NEWS-REVIEW

Tackle shop reacts to recent shoplifting incident

SHELTER ISLAND REPORTER

Shelter Island volunteers for better bays

NORTHFORKER

Culture Club: Sunshine Sessions at the Sunshine Shack, Orient Point

SOUTHFORKER

Cook This Now! Spring nettle pesto

The daily update is a briefing on what’s happening across the North Fork and Shelter Island.

​Get the daily update delivered straight to your inbox every weekday by subscribing to our newsletter.

The post Daily Update: Southold volunteers gather to build 20 beds for kids in need appeared first on The Suffolk Times.

Last fall, John Succoso was reading a real estate magazine his wife, Cindy, gave him and noticed a story about a group called Sleep in Heavenly Peace. Its motto was straightforward: “No kid sleeps on the floor in our town!”

Mr. Succoso read more about the group and learned it began in 2012 in Idaho and had branches around the country. There were none on Long Island. That is, until he started one.

Sleep in Heavenly Peace is an all-volunteer organization with one purpose: to build children’s beds, bunk beds and single beds, and get them to families who need them. The volunteers acquire the wood, build the beds and — along with mattresses, sheets, blankets and pillows — get them to children.

“When I saw the story, I knew I wanted to get involved,” Mr. Succoso said. “I wanted to give back.”

On a recent afternoon, Mr. Succoso, the local branch president, sat in a diner along with his wife and Southold jeweler Roger Satnick, who is the group’s fundraising manager. Ms. Succoso handles social media and marketing.

“It is amazing how getting a child in need a bed, with everything included, can be so life changing and can really help that child in every way,” Ms. Succoso said. 

“The kits are assembled and along with everything else will go to the houses that need them and be fully assembled on the spot,” Mr. Satnick said. “It’s all brand-new. It’s truly wonderful.”

In keeping with its core mission, Southold Rotary is deeply involved with the group. Longtime Rotarian Walter Krupski said club members will join forces with volunteers from Sleep in Heavenly Peace on Saturday, May 18 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the American Legion Hall in Southold for what the group calls the first “build” of 20 beds.

“Each year, Rotary International selects a day where its clubs and club members select a community project in which to participate in a ‘hands on’ way,” Mr. Krupski said.  “The Rotary Club of Southold has selected to participate in SIHP’s first build …  About 18 members of our club, under the leadership of our president, Emily Franchina, in addition to other volunteers, will participate in this build. The public is more than welcome to come down to see us in action.”

As Mr. Succoso explained it at the diner, this first build is 20 beds, but much more will be done as the group moves forward. This is just the start. And, he and the others added, requests are already coming in for the new beds even without widespread publicity.

“We know there is a need,” said Mr. Satnick. Ms. Succoso concurred: “We think the need will be great.”

The construction will take place on the lawn on the east side of the Legion Hall  by the flagpole and adjacent to the Civil War Monument that faces Main Road. Long tables will be set up as beds are assembled into easier to carry kits, which will then be delivered to families.

All three said there are no “typical” families with children who need beds, but they expect requests from single-parent households and families who have lost a place to live due to rising rents.

Southold Supervisor Al Krupski — who is related to Walter if you trace  back a few generations —  said in an interview that he has told the group they are welcome to use the town-owned Peconic Recreation Center if Saturday brings rain.

“They can certainly have the rec center if it’s needed,” he said, adding that he heard about the group through Rotary, which he characterized as a “wonderful organization.”

“This is a lovely thing to do,” the supervisor said. “It’s a wonderful thing to help each other. Small acts of kindness add up. It’s wonderful.”

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Wilma C. Doroski of Cutchogue passed away at home Tuesday, May 7, 2024. She was 88.

The family will receive friends Friday, May 10 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at the DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck.

The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated following the visitation at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of Ostrabrama R.C. Church in Cutchogue.

Interment will follow at Sacred Heart R.C. Cemetery adjacent to the church.

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Southold Town homeowners interested in building an accessory dwelling unit can apply for a grant worth up to $125,000 to fund the project.

Last December, Long Island Housing Partnership, a Hauppauge-based nonprofit that seeks to provide affordable housing opportunities, launched its Plus One ADU Program, which earmarked $2 million using funds provided by the New York State Housing Trust Fund Corporation to disburse as grants of up to $125,000 to Southold Town homeowners for the construction or renovation of new or existing accessory dwelling units. Through the program, the group also began managing similar funding pools for residents of Brookhaven and Huntington towns.

Under current Southold Town code, ADUs are permitted in multiple zones and homeowners can have one unit either within the primary residence with a separate entrance or in a secondary free-standing structure on their property, sharing an address and electrical, water and septic hookups with the primary residence. An ADU must be a minimum of 220 square feet and cannot exceed more than 25% of the square footage if part of a primary residence or 750 square feet for a secondary building. Through the LIHP program, applicants can use grant funds to bring an existing ADU up to code.

Southold joined the LIHP program to bolster and diversify its housing stock as it combats an ongoing affordable housing crisis and town officials hope year-round rental options provided by ADUs may help fill some of the gaps. 

“[Residents] understand we need affordable housing because they see it every day,” said Southold Town government liaison officer Gwynn Schroeder, who manages the town’s affordable housing registry of more than 600 entries. “I think for the most part, as long as [ADUs] are managed well, I think people will accept them. We get a lot of blowback when bigger projects are proposed, so this might be a way of not only giving a tenant a place to live, but helping somebody that otherwise might not be able to stay in their house [to have] the opportunity to stay. So I’m hoping the community will embrace it.”

Current town code allows a homeowner to rent an ADU in their primary residence to tenants of their choosing on a year-round basis at any rate. However, homeowners must rent ADUs built in a detached structure to either a family member or someone from the town’s affordable housing registry. Tenants selected from the affordable housing registry can be charged up to the maximum affordable monthly rent the Southold Town Board approves each year based on annual metrics released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD recently released its figures for 2024, and Ms. Schroeder and town planning department staff members are currently working with the Town Board to calculate this year’s affordable rental rates. The board-approved rates for 2023 range from a maximum of $1,536 per month for a studio to $3,245 for a four-bedroom apartment.

Roughly 20 Southold residents have so far applied for the accessory dwelling grants, LIHP executive vice president James Britz said, and four were approved as of Friday.

“These were approved applicants that went through our screening process,” Mr. Britz explained. “They’ve signed the agreement now for the funding source to be there, and they’re selecting their contractors to start the pre-development work, which is getting municipal approvals and creating the plans.”

By comparison, Mr. Britz said approximately 125 Brookhaven Town homeowners and 60 in Huntington Town submitted Plus One ADU Program applications. As of Friday, 14 Brookhaven applicants and five in Huntington received approvals.

Due to the program’s popularity in those nearby towns, LIHP received approval for an addition $2 million to be added to those municipalities’ funding pools. Mr. Britz said LIHP could receive additional funds for the program next year, which could be earmarked for Southold Town if there is sufficient local interest in the program.

Ms. Schroeder and Leslie Weisman, the chair of the Southold Town Zoning Board of Appeals, joined LIHP construction program coordinator Doug Hirst late last month for a public information session to increase awareness of the program. The event — hosted by Southold Peconic Civic Association — drew a crowd of approximately 50 residents to the Southold Town Recreation Center on Peconic Lane.

“It was a very good turnout,” Ms. Weisman said. “There’s substantial interest in what would be involved in creating accessory dwelling units in the Town of Southold because its a potential boost to assist with the affordable housing or family housing crisis that we have out here.”

Southold has long allowed ADUs inside primary residences, Ms. Weisman explained. In 2010, the town updated its code to allow free-standing ADUs in preexisting accessory structures. From 2010 through this past April, Ms. Weisman said, the town received a total of 66 applications for free-standing ADUs; 51 were approved, three were withdrawn and the remainder were denied.

Depending on the time and place, ADUs have either drawn ire from neighbors or been touted as a useful community planning tool. Ms. Weisman believes Southold could amend its code again to further incentivize ADUs, and said various major cities — including Los Angeles, Calif., Seattle, Wash., Austin, Texas and Portland, Ore. — “are loosening up their zoning constraints to encourage [ADU] development.

“ADUs were pervasive before World War II everywhere in this country; they were extremely popular,” Ms. Weisman said. “But after World War II, the G.I. Bill of 1944 really created the suburbs … Suburbanization became ubiquitous and with that, land use regulations were established to instill conformity and to protect lower density development. It wasn’t until the ’50s that zoning was even put in place, and that zoning created barriers for ADUs because they were favoring single-family housing development. But now [ADUs] are rising again in popularity all across the country in high growth and high cost areas.”

Southold Town residents interested in learning more and applying for grant funds through the Plus One ADU Program may visit lihp.org/adu.

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Listings prepared for Times Review Media Group by Suffolk Vision Inc., dated March 8, 2024.

BAITING HOLLOW (11933)

• Estate of Edna Rollo to Kateryna Skliarenko, 180 Oak Drive (600-38-3-11) (R) $650,000

CALVERTON (11933)

• Estate of Dawn Lewin to Gerard & Laurie Kaelin, 1989 Sound Avenue (600-60-1-8) (R) $425,000 

• Patricia Sendlewski to Jeffrey & Catherine Sendlewski, 43 Southfield Road (600-79-1-15.010) (R) $425,000

CUTCHOGUE (11935)

• Philip & Karen Gillette to Stephen & Lindsay Trant, 3980 Vanston Road (1000-111-10-21) (R) $2,300,000 

GREENPORT (11944)

• Albert & Helen Breneisen to Dawn Drive LLC, 715 Dawn Drive (1000-35-5-16) (R) $2,150,000

• Jonathan & Mary Joyce to Charles & Kirsten Knight, 431 7th Street (1000-48-1-41) (R) $1,210,000

• Marc & Kristen Perman to John & Maria Citarella, 130 Bennet Road (1000-40-5-1.001) (R) $1,075,000

• Estate of James Buchanan to 306 5th Street Property LLC, 306 5th Street (1001-6-7-18) (R) $900,000

MATTITUCK (11952)

• Lorin Cirincione to Gregory & Jacqueline Goodale, 4225 Mill Lane (1000-107-4-2.006) (R) $2,115,000 

• Steve & James Nikolis to Brendan Burke & Elizabeth McCormack,1280 Reeve Road (1000-100-3-15.007) (R) $999,900

• Maureen & Paul Cacioppo Trust to Derek Stadler, 935 Bay Avenue (1000-143-4-27) (R) $649,000

RIVERHEAD (11901)

• Mary & Paul Fleig Trust to Salvatore Talluto & Angela Manchisi-Talluto, 415 West Lane (600-45-1-7.004) (R) $790,000 

• Robert Aginsky & Barbara Federmack to Gabriela Molina, 844 Pondview Road (600-107-2-52.004) (R) $700,000

• Riverhead Polish Independent Club Inc to Silverback Holdings LLC, Sweezy Avenue (600-124-2-50.003) (C) $342,000

SHELTER ISLAND (11964)

• HOC Investments LLC to Andrew & Suzanne Plump, 22 Osprey Road (700-23-2-53) (V) $1,150,000 

SOUTH JAMESPORT (11970)

• Jenny Thom & Suzanne Puls to Brad & Karen Greenwood, 102 Point Street (600-92-2-32) (R) $565,000 

SOUTHOLD (11971)

• Roberts Premier Development LLC to Bailey Investment Group II LLC, 910 Glenn Road (1000-78-2-27) (R) $2,100,000 

• Estate of Eleanor Reiersen to James & Donna Scordianos, 1100 Rambler Road (1000-88-5-17) (R) $800,000

WADING RIVER (11792)

• Joanna & Steven Guild to Vincenzo & Sarah Battaglia, 62 Gully Road (600-54-3-9.004) (R) $581,000

• John Biemer & Lisa Chase to Patrick Biemer, 18 Laurel Lane (600-25-1-23) (R) $450,500

• Deborah & Thomas Boyd to Christopher & Jaimee deAngelis, 361 Sound Road (600-24-1-20) (R) $350,000

• Hip Waders LLC to Thomas Andrews, 2974 North Wading River Road (600-27-3-67) (R) $313,000

(Key: Tax map numbers = District-Section-Block-Lot; (A) = agriculture; (R) = residential; (V) = vacant property; (C) = commercial; (R&E) = recreation & entertainment; (CS) = community services; (I) = industrial; (PS) = public service; (P) = park land; as determined from assessed values in the current tax rolls.)

The post Real Estate Transfers: May 9, 2024 appeared first on The Suffolk Times.

All ages

Sunday, May 19, 9 a.m.: East End Walk and Family Fun Day at RGNY, 6025 Sound Ave., Riverhead. Hosted by Peconic Bay Medical Center and Northwell Health. Registration opens at 9 a.m.; walk begins at 10. With live music, food trucks and kid’s zone. Dog friendly. Register: northwellhealthwalk.com.

The arts and crafts

Friday, May 17, 6-8 p.m.: Opening reception for Manhattan to Plum Island: Mysteries of the New York Archipelago, a photography exhibition by Thomas Halaczinsky at Floyd Memorial Library, Greenport. Information: floydmemoriallibrary.org.

Fairs and festivals

Monday-Sunday, May 6-12, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.: 28th annual East End Garden Festival at Tanger Outlets, Riverhead. Plant sales and raffles benefiting Peconic Bay Medical Center, Operation International and Riverhead Rotary. Information: 631-727-0176.

Saturday, May 18, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.: Fleece and Fiber Festival at Hallockville Museum Farm, 6038 Sound Ave., Riverhead. Sheep and alpaca shearing and fiber arts demonstrations, more than 30 vendors, embroidery exhibit and bilingual puppet show. Adults, $10; children 12 and under, free. Rain date: Sunday, May 19. Information: hallockville.org, 631-298-5292.

Saturday, May 18, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.: Antiques, Fine Art and Crafts Fair on the grounds of Old Town Arts and Crafts Guild, 28265 Main Road, Cutchogue. Antiques, collectibles, paintings, fiber arts, photography, woodwork, jewelry and more crafts. Rain date: Sunday, May 19. Information: oldtownartsguild.org, oldtownguild@aol.com, 631-734-6382.

Fundraisers

Friday, May 10, 6 p.m.: Spring Gala benefiting the First Universalist Church of Southold building fund, at Townsend Manor Inn, 714 Main St., Greenport. Buffet dinner, soft drinks, wine, beer, music, raffles, silent auction. Tickets: $125; two for $200. firstuniversalistsouthold.org. Information: southolduu@optonline.net.

Friday and Saturday, May 10-11, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.: Mother’s Day Plant Sale at The Vine Church, 43960 Route 48, Southold. Benefits AdoptAPlatoon, an organization that sends care packages to local friends and family who are deployed. Information: northforkumc.com.

Saturday, May 11, noon-6 p.m.: Food for the Soul Fried Chicken Dinner at Jefferson Temple Church of God in Christ, 15625 Route 48, Cutchogue. Dinner: $20, includes three sides. Information: 631-525-2128.

Saturday and Sunday, May 18 and 19, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.: 10th annual Spring Native Plant Sale hosted by North Fork Audubon Society at the Roy Latham Nature Center at Inlet Pond County Park, 65275 Route 48, Greenport. Information: northforkaudubon.org.

Get together

Thursday, May 16, 6 p.m.: Be Our Guest hosted by Greenport Rotary Club at Kontokosta Winery, 825 North Road, Greenport. Complimentary glass of wine and hors d’oeuvres. Information: greenportrotary.org.

Lectures

Monday, May 13, 1:30 p.m.: Probate, Taxes and Asset Protection 101 at the Riverhead Free Library craft room. Presented by Brittni Sullivan of Burner Prudenti Law, P.C. Register: 631-727-3228.

Local history

Thursday, May 9, 6 p.m.: Mattituck-Laurel Historical Society lecture: The Lady Lighthouse Keeper presented by Mary Korpi at the Veterans Memorial Park Community Room, 11280 Peconic Bay Blvd., Mattituck. Information: mlhsm11952@gmail.com.

Saturday, May 11, 11 a.m.: Oysterponds Historical Society and Oysterponds Civic Association present 150 Years of Poquatuck Hall, a lecture by John Holzapfel at Poquatuck Hall, 1160 Skippers Lane, Orient. Free. Information: oysterpondshistoricalsociety.org.

Saturday, May 18, 3 p.m.: Shipwreck and Salvation: the Wreck of the Prince Maurice in 1657 presented by the New Amsterdam History Center at Suffolk County Historical Society, 300 West Main St., Riverhead. Presented by Taya Dubin, project director of Mapping Early New York and Algonkian historical consultant Drew Shuptar-Rayvis. Free. Registration required: 631-727-2881, ext. 100.

Meetings

Saturday, May 11, 10 a.m.-noon: Monthly chapter meeting of ReWild North Fork at the Vine Church, 43960 Route 48, Southold. Presentation on garden butterflies and moths by Felicia Scocozza and Tom Schlichter, native plants to support or repel wildlife and community composting pilots. Information: rewildlongisland.org.

Tuesday, May 14, 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.: Peconic Amateur Radio Club open house at Custer Institute and Observatory, 1115 Main Bayview Road, Southold. Information: w2amc.org.

Music

Sunday, May 12, 5 p.m.: The Beatitudes Rites of Spring Music Festival concert by Ulysses String Quartet and Paolo Bartolani at RGNY, 6025 Sound Ave., Riverhead. Tickets: Rites of Spring members, $40; nonmembers, $70; under 25, free. Information: ritesmusic.org.

Tuesday, May 14, 4 p.m.: Jamesport Meeting House Chorus at Peconic Landing Auditorium, 1500 Brecknock Road, Greenport. Free. Register: peconiclanding.org/events.

The natural world

Saturday, May 11, 10-11:30 a.m.: Native Trees of the East End walking tour led by Mary Laura Lamont at Hallockville Museum Farm, 6038 Sound Ave., Riverhead. Members, free; nonmembers, $10. Register: hallockville.org.

Performance

Thursday, May 16, 1 p.m.: Brooklyn Ballet Workshop and Performance at Peconic Landing Auditorium, 1500 Brecknock Road, Greenport. Tickets: $10. peconiclanding.org.

Saturday May 18, 6 p.m.: Calpulli Mexican Dance Company presents the bilingual family show Puebla: the Story of Cinco de Mayo at the Center for Advocacy, Support and Transformation’s Treiber Gathering Hall, 53930 Main Road, Southold. Free. Register: castnorthfork.org.

Sports and recreation

Saturday, May 11, 9 a.m.: 18th annual John May Mile and 5K Race at Peconic Landing. Registration and stretching 7:30 a.m. at Brecknock Hall, 1500 Brecknock Road, Greenport. Register: peconiclanding.org/events.

Theatre

Friday and Saturday, May 10-11, 7:30 p.m.: Riverhead Faculty and Community Theatre presents Fractured Broadway 3: The Audience Strikes Back with Dan Grable on piano at North Shore United Methodist Church, 260 Route 25A, Wading River. Tickets: adults, $20; students, $15. Reservations: 631-929-6075, nsumc@optonline.net.

Volunteer

Saturday, May 18 9 a.m. to noon and 1-3 p.m.: Shelter volunteer orientation class hosted by the Town of Southold Emergency Management Committee at Poquatuck Hall, 1160 Skipper’s Lane, Orient. For Orient and East Marion community members. Program introduces and review the skills needed to open and staff a Southold Town Emergency Shelter during a hurricane or other time of need. Free. Register: Don Fisher, n2qhv@arrl.net.

Ongoing events

Saturdays through October, 9 a.m.: Tai Chi with Denise Gillies at Mitchell Park, Greenport. Sponsored by Friends of Mitchell Park. Free. No classes June 29, July 27, Aug. 31 or Sept. 21.

Fridays and Sundays: Roller skating at Greenport American Legion, 102 Third St. All-ages All Skate: Fridays, 3-9-p.m. and Sundays, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Admission: $10, includes skates; $5, spectators. greenportamericanlegion.org. 

Wednesdays, 5-9 p.m.: Adult skate for ages 18 and up at Greenport American Legion, 102 Third St. Admission: $10, includes skates; $5, spectators. greenportamericanlegion.org. 

Tuesdays, noon-3:30 p.m.: Bingo at Southold American Legion, 51655 Main Road. 631-765-2276.

Saturdays, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.: Docent-led tours at Hallockville Museum Farm, 6038 Sound Ave., Riverhead. Tickets: $15, adults; $10, seniors and children. 631-298-5292, hallockville.org.

Saturdays, 7 p.m.-midnight: Stargazing at Custer Observatory, 1115 Main Bayview Road, Southold, weather permitting. Suggested donation: adults, $5; under 12, $3. 631-765-2626, custerobservatory.org.

Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.: Blacksmithing demonstrations with Tom Barry at Village Blacksmith Shop, 101 Front St., Greenport. 631-477-2100, eastendseaport.org.

Exhibitions

Through May: Captured Moments, photography by Hollye Gilbride, at Mattituck-Laurel Library. Information: mattitucklaurellibrary.org.

Through May 12: Heritage and Home: Latin American Artists of the East End at Floyd Memorial Library, Greenport. Information: floydmemoriallibrary.org.

Through October: A Sportsman’s Paradise: Man and Nature in Suffolk County’s Past at Suffolk County Historical Society Museum, 300 West Main St., Riverhead. Assortment of hunting equipment, hand-carved decoys, duck boats, fishing gear, themed toys, clothing, magazines and more. 631-727-2881, suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org.

Wednesdays-Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.: Suffolk County: A Timeline Experience at Suffolk County Historical Society Museum, 300 West Main St., Riverhead. Interactive exhibit of artifacts, documents, photos and digital experiences provides a comprehensive timeline of Suffolk County history. 631-727-2881, suffolkcountyhistoricalsociety.org.

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The post Community calendar: May 9, 2024 appeared first on The Suffolk Times.

Here are the headlines for May 9, 2024.

THE SUFFOLK TIMES

Environmental impact concerns raised on Strong’s expansion bid

Southold boosts accessory dwelling grant awareness

RIVERHEAD NEWS-REVIEW

Blue Waves girls lacrosse team ‘sticks it’ to cancer

Holocaust Remembrance Day event underscores the power of words at Riverhead Library

SHELTER ISLAND REPORTER

Love on the Rock: Pepe and Lydia, hot off the fax

NORTHFORKER

Weekend Update: Celebrating mothers across the North Fork

SOUTHFORKER

Vintage Vibes: new boutique Eastport Retro is a family affair

The daily update is a briefing on what’s happening across the North Fork and Shelter Island.

​Get the daily update delivered straight to your inbox every weekday by subscribing to our newsletter.

The post Daily Update: Environmental impact concerns raised on Strong’s expansion bid appeared first on The Suffolk Times.

On Monday, the Southold Town Planning Board formally accepted its commissioned review of potential environmental impacts from the proposed Strong’s Yacht Center expansion, which raises significant concerns about the project’s feasibility. The Final Environmental Impact Statement from New York City-based consultant Hardesty & Hanover LLP described many of the findings and methodologies used in the original draft review as “deficient,” “insufficient” and “flawed.”

Strong’s submitted a proposal in 2018 to construct two heated buildings for indoor boat storage — 52,00 square feet and 49,000 square feet — at its facility on Mill Road in Mattituck, a 32.96-acre parcel zoned Marine II and R-80, zones that permit marine uses and low-density residential development. 

Strong’s retained Bohemia-based P.W. Grosser Inc. and an array of technical consultants to complete a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the proposal, which, among other things, outlined construction plans and addressed environmental and quality of life concerns. That report was initially submitted in December 2021, then revised and resubmitted in November 2022.

The proposed new buildings could house more than 80 yachts averaging 60 feet in length, with some stretching to 86 feet. Jeff Strong, proprietor of the family-owned business, said the expansion will satisfy demand among large craft owners in need of a climate-controlled space to store boats and protect their electrical systems.

The Planning Board hired Hardesty & Hanover LLP, which has an office in Melville, to undertake the final review. That report, which took nine months to complete, represents the board’s final assessment of the environmental impacts related to the Strong’s proposal. It also addresses more than 1,800 comments the board received from the public regarding the initial environmental review, including those made at a series of hearings held in May and June 2023 and others submitted in writing. 

The 58-page FEIS, along with a pair of appendices that Hardesty & Hanover submitted to the town, are available for public review on the Southold Town website.

“There appear to be several major deficiencies in the methodology presented for the ecological impacts analysis conducted in the [draft review] that would suggest that the impacts associated with the project would be more significant than they are presented,” the FEIS states. Among numerous concerns, the report notes that the DEIS does not address potential impacts to the bald eagle population, which New York State categorizes as threatened, or to a slew of other “special concern” birds, including the peregrine falcon, the nighthawk, the common loon, the horned lark and the osprey. Among other species the FEIS deemed as “not sufficiently included” in the original analysis are the piping plover, the eastern box turtle and the northern long-eared bat, which the United States Fish and Wildlife Service classified as endangered November 2022.

In addition, the FEIS notes that “there is no substantial discussion of how the noise levels would impact local wildlife.”

The proposed excavation and removal of 135,000 cubic yards of debris — predominantly sand — from the project site has also raised significant concerns among residents and officials in both Southold and Riverhead, as the hauling trucks would traverse Sound Avenue, Northville Turnpike and County Road 58, and the FEIS also calls these impacts into question. “There are inherent flaws in the way the number of construction trips have been estimated and disclosed,” the document states, adding that the heavy truck traffic could negatively affect “the structure of the local roadways and bridges, safety for other vehicles on the road, traffic congestion, noise and vibrations, pollution levels and quality of life of the community.”

The Planning Board was not required to hold any public hearing before accepting the final report Monday evening. Just before the members cast their votes, however, Charles Cuddy, the attorney representing Strong’s Yacht Center, approached a podium in the Town Hall meeting room and asked if he “may have at least a moment to address some things” and make a statement on behalf of his client. The board declined the request and deputy town attorney James Squicciarini advised Mr. Cuddy that he was interrupting official business.

“It is not appropriate to make these comments at this time,” Mr. Squicciarini said.

“All you’re doing is looking at the DEIS,” Mr. Cuddy interjected. “The applicant has never had a chance to comment on the public comments.”

Mr. Cuddy’s remarks were not officially recognized. “I’ve been advised that we have followed procedure correctly,” Planning Board chair James Rich III said.

The Planning Board must now submit the FEIS to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Suffolk County Planning Commission, and the latter will vote to approve or deny Strong’s proposal. Regardless of how the commission votes, the five-member Planning Board has the authority to overrule the its decision with a majority-plus-one vote. The commission’s next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, June 5; there is currently no agenda available for that meeting.

The Planning Board is not required to hold a public hearing on the FEIS but comments may be submitted in writing. 

Following the county’s decision, the Planning Board will issue its final findings statement and make a final decision on the Strong’s site plan application.

“We expect this all to be completed in the next couple of months,” Mr. Rich said.

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Talk about flower power — The Riverhead Rotary’s 28^th annual Garden Festival is bursting with a rainbow of colors this week at Tanger Mall, but time is running out to get in on the floral frenzy — which runs from 9 to 5 p.m. each day this week leading up to Mother’s Day on Sunday.  

The festival raises funds for a variety of charitable projects by soliciting donations of plants and flowers from nurseries all over Long Island and as far away as New Jersey. The rotary then sells everything at a discounted price. There’s also a high-roller raffle in which just 300 tickets are sold for $100 a piece — with a $10,000 prize for the winner, $3,000 for second prize, $1,000 for third prize and a pair of $500 prizes as well.

The annual weeklong event raises money for Riverhead Rotary charities, Operation International and Peconic Bay Medical Center.

The festival, which got underway nearly three decades ago, was originally run by the Peconic Bay Medical Center, according to Riverhead rotarian and PBMC pulmonologist Dr. Raj Patel. He said that several years ago, veteran rotarian Jack Van de Wetering helped convince the Riverhead Rotary to take over and expand the festival.

“I think the hospital had a group of people that were selling geraniums, but they were only making a couple thousand dollars,” Mr. Van de Wetering said. “We said, ‘we can do better than that,’ and that’s how it started. So we went from a couple thousand to $50,000 to $100,000 and now we’re up to basically $300,000. And all this is given. It’s donated.”

Dr. Patel said that over time the festival has blossomed into a North Fork springtime tradition.

“It’s come to a point where people wait for this festival to occur,” he said. “They wait for Mother’s Day to come along and they reserve all their spending money to spend at the Garden Festival because they know it’s a win-win situation for Operation International, for the hospital, and for the community.”

The doctor said the primary beneficiary of the annual garden festival is Operation International — a secular, apolitical, humanitarian organization founded in 1996 by a group of Southampton doctors, Dr. Patel among them. The charitable organization provides free medical care and performs complex surgeries on children and adults without access to basic health care in poor countries.

“What we do is free operations all over the world, no matter where it is,” he said this week. “We do very complex surgeries covering general surgery, plastic surgery, dental operations — and now we have started neurosurgery and orthopedics.”

Dr. Patel provided the Suffolk Times with a series of bracing before-and-after pictures of successful Operation International surgeries.

About a dozen volunteers, including Carl Nielsen and work force interns from the Timothy Hill Ranch, man the festival’s rows and rows of tulips, hyacinths, lilacs, peonies, pansies, azaleas and forsythia — to name just a few of the flowers featured this week.

Among the dozens of nurseries that donated to the petal-packed festival are Hopewell Nursery in New Jersey, Ivy Acres in Calverton, Kurt Weiss Greenhouses in Center Moriches and Riverhead’s Van de Wetering Greenhouses. Sponsors include the Allstate Foundation, Tanger Outlet Center, Dime Bank and Riverhead Building Supply.

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During a 10-second span late in the first half of a 14-4 win over Kings Park last Thursday, the Mattituck/Greenport/Southold girls lacrosse team reminded everyone just how lethal they can be.

The Kingsmen had pulled within one goal for a 5-4 deficit with 27.4 seconds remaining before halftime.

The Suffolk County Class D defending champions then turned the game on its head, striking twice, on goals by sophomores Claire McKenzie and Gianna Calise, sparking a streak of nine consecutive unanswered goals to close out the Division II match and putting the Tuckers on the verge of clinching a playoff berth.

It was the team’s fifth straight victory after enduring a four-game losing streak — and none of those wins have been nail-biters. The Tuckers’ average margin of victory during the streak is an impressive 12.2 goals.

“We played our best game this year,” head coach Logan McGinn said. “We’re getting hot at the right time. It’s fun to coach. It’s fun to watch.”

“I’m so happy for how the hard work and everything’s paying off and coming together,” said Calise, a midfielder who scored six goals to match her career high and added two assists. “We had it a little rough a few games, but we really showed each other that we want this. We push each other to the best of our abilities. We are back and we’re on a roll.”

The Tuckers (9-5, 7-5) hope to secure the top seed in the final at William Floyd High School on May 22.

Unlike other sports, in which teams need to finish at least .500 to be considered for the playoffs, girls lacrosse is determined solely on power points. After last Thursday’s results, the Tuckers (101.01) moved past Center Moriches (94.83) and held a slim lead over Babylon (96.29.) 

Lacrosse is a game of momentum and Kings Park (7-8, 6-8) had established a bit of its own as it pulled within a goal on Emily Hnis’ score late in the first half.

Then the three sophomores changed the direction of the match.

Calise won the ensuing faceoff. Midfielder Page Kellershon set up McKenzie for a close-range goal with 10.1 seconds remaining.

Just as the next faceoff was about to begin, a Kings Park player ran across midfield from the defensive end. The referee ruled that she was in an illegal position and gave the hosts possession at midfield.

Kellershon was the playmaker again, feeding Calise with 1.1 seconds left on the clock.

A one-goal lead suddenly had become a three-goal margin.

“We might have lost a little motivation for a little bit but we got right back up. We put our game faces on,” McKenzie said.

“It definitely deflated them a little bit,” McGinn added. “We are able to play fast. I’m very lucky for the group that they can just play.”

It was another impressive team performance by the Tuckers.

Kellershon contributed a goal and career-best six assists. McKenzie scored four goals and senior attacker Sofia Knudsen tallied twice. Sophomore Grace Quinn finished with a goal and two assists. Sophomore defender McKenna Clark and freshman Reese McKenna had one assist apiece.

Goaltender Aiko Fujita, along with Ruby Villani, Haylie Dickerson and Clark, led a stellar defensive effort. “They really stepped up,” McGinn said. “We came up with a very good game plan. They followed it to a tee.”

Few teams can rival the Tuckers’ power-scoring trio.

Calise is 10th in the county with 43 goals and 14th with 56 points. Kellershon, who has 28 goals, is 13th with 58 points. Knudsen has 33 goals, including 22 during the winning streak.

“We know where to find each other, and with Sophia especially now that she’s going to be open along with her height,” Kellershon said. “We can trust her to finish the ball. ”

Only 64 seconds into the fourth quarter, the Tuckers held their collective breath when Calise fell to the ground after scoring her sixth goal. Calise said that she knocked knees with a Kings Park player.

“It was kind of scary,” she said. “It was an accident.”

Calise, who was taken out of the game, also handles faceoffs, and won 11 of 18 last Thursday.

“Thank God she didn’t tear her ACL because that would have been [season-ending],” Kellershon said. “That would have definitely hurt the team. Her game has just been phenomenal.”

Which is a good word to describe all of the Tuckers these days.

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Head coach Chris Robinson has treasured every Mattituck girls track team’s league championship.

But the most recent one, the Tuckers’ ninth title in a row, might have been a bit sweeter than others.

Despite having its smallest squad in years, Mattituck captured the Suffolk League VII crown with an undefeated season, culminating with an 81-57 victory at Southold/Greenport Tuesday afternoon.

“Every year is special,” Robinson said. “To do it consistently, you have different challenges that each year brings. We had the smallest team probably in the last 11, 12 years. We started out on paper, we had 25. Things happened throughout the season, and we had a solid 16-17. It’s hard to continue to win when you have a small team because there’s a lot of events. You try to fill them. Usually, you win with numbers. We didn’t have that.

“A lot of the girls had to step up and do four events every week, which is asking a lot,” he continued. “So, this is a special year. These girls really worked hard to fill in the gaps where we needed them. It’s not easy to win one, let alone nine in a row. It’s a tremendous accomplishment for them.”

 You didn’t need to remind two Tuckers (6-0, 6-0) athletes who were victorious in multiple events about that.

“Just having everyone putting their best foot forward was really nice,” said junior Casey Szczotka, who participated in four wins. “The fact that we are so small helps us get closer knit. A lot of teams, you’ll see they don’t really cheer for each other as much. If you go to any [Mattituck] event, you’ll see about 10 girls lined up cheering for their teammates. I think that’s really what motivates everyone to do well.”

Senior Alyvia Apparu noted that Mattituck shared the 2023 crown with Port Jefferson and Southampton.

“I’m really happy because our team at the beginning of the season wasn’t looking too strong,” she said. “We had a lot less girls, but everyone pulled through and did what they had to do.”

On Tuesday, Apparu did what she had to do, winning the 100-meter dash (12.4 seconds) and 200 (25.8). She also was part of the victorious 4×100 relay team (52.9) along with juniors Rhianna Lutz, Riley Corrigan and Szczotka.

Apparu had a personal record in the 100, dropping .6 seconds off her best time.

“The 200 usually is my better race,” she said, “but I did better in the 100. So that was exciting. I would say I’m a little tired today. Maybe that’s why the shorter distances were a little bit easier.”

Szczotka won three individual races — the 110 and 400 hurdles in 16.1 seconds and 77.2 seconds, respectively, and the 400 in 63.5.

As a freshman in 2020, Szczotka finished fifth in the states in the pentathlon. She won’t be pursuing it at the county small schools’ championships on May 21.

“I want to see how far we go in the four-by-one,” she said. “If I do the pent, I can’t do the four-by-one.”

Eighth-grader Madelyn Mignone also was a multiple winner, taking the 800 (2:38.7) and 1,500 (5:52.1). Senior Carolyn Conroy won the triple jump (35-3.5).

Junior Haley Lake was excited breaking her school pole vault record, jumping 9-6.

“I’ve been working on that for a while,” she said. “You just got to keep going up from there.”

Robinson was elated with Lake’s progress, noting that she also runs the 100 and 400 hurdles.

“She does just about everything,” he said. “I could go on and on. We have some young girls stepping up, too. Hopefully, they continue through the postseason. We have an opportunity to bring some of these girls who worked hard to the states. It’s going to be great.”

For the Settlers (2-4, 2-4), seniors Olivia Misiukiewicz captured the high jump (5-3) and Cameron Stanton won the long jump (17-3.5). Jackie Martocchia took the 1,500 walk run (10:45) and Emily Kaelin won the 3,000 (13:32). Alex Feeney clinched the shot put (28-0) and LeNeve Zuhoski the discus (79-0).

Southold head coach Tim McArdle called his team’s performance “mediocre.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s our best performance. It’s not the worst,” he said. “So proud of the girls, a couple of PRs. Unfortunately, we had a scheduling conflict with something else going on at the school. With the counties, that’s what really starts counting for the individuals on the team.”

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Here are the headlines for May 10, 2024.

THE SUFFOLK TIMES

Fancy-feathered birds delight the North Fork just in time for World Migratory Bird Day

Riverhead Rotary Garden Festival ends Mother’s Day

RIVERHEAD NEWS-REVIEW

Riverhead Rotary Garden Festival is in full bloom

World Migratory Bird Day lands in the area Saturday

SHELTER ISLAND REPORTER

Shelter Island town subcommittee to review site plan chapter in code

NORTHFORKER

Look what’s sprouting in Mitchell Park: Greenport Farmers Market launches May 17

SOUTHFORKER

Learn about bartending, have a brew for the bay and see a mother of a comedy special all this weekend!

The daily update is a briefing on what’s happening across the North Fork and Shelter Island.

​Get the daily update delivered straight to your inbox every weekday by subscribing to our newsletter.

The post Daily Update: Fancy-feathered birds delight the North Fork just in time for World Migratory Bird Day appeared first on The Suffolk Times.

Among the local cardinals calling “purty-purty-purty” and the “cheerily-cheerily” of resident robins, springtime also brings the bird songs of warblers, tanagers and other species migrating through the area. Early to mid-May is the peak of the spring migration, offering birding enthusiasts with a good set of binoculars peeks at exotic and rare birds, many with intricate colorations and vocalizations.

World Migratory Bird Day — which falls on Saturday, May 11, this year — arrives amid the seasonal migration, drawing attention to the flights of the various visitors ­— and their plights. “Birds are declining and that’s a fact,” said MaryLaura Lamont, a naturalist at the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. “Birds have it extremely difficult now to find enough food and protection for themselves and their babies. Their migratory pathways that were once pristine are now lost to development.”

This time of year, Ms. Lamont said she expects to see many kinds of neotropical birds migrating to northern breeding grounds. They include many species of warblers, vireos, grosbeaks, tanagers and thrush. 

“Rose-breasted grosbeaks are stunning,” she said. “So are scarlet tanagers. Even the little warblers are showstoppers in their breeding plumages, like black-throated green warblers, magnolia warblers, yellow warblers and American redstarts, to name just a few.” To help identify the many species of warblers in the area, Ms. Lamont said to note their tails, wing bars and eye rings.

Many of the visiting birds stay in the area for just one day and take off overnight if conditions are good. Should bad weather set in, Ms. Lamont explained, they may stay put for several days until better conditions enable them to continue northward.

World Migratory Bird Day is a global avian conservation and education campaign lead by several nonprofits. The theme this year is “protect insects, protect birds.”

“About 95% of birds feed their babies insects because insects are protein-rich, which allows the youngsters to develop properly,” Ms. Lamont said. “Insects are in severe decline, which means birds are in decline because they are losing their major food sources. 

“The way people can help is to plant native species of plants, which insects seek out for their food,” Ms. Lamont said. “Don’t spray herbicides or pesticides. Insects need a good variety of plants to feed on, not monocultures of plants,” she added.

Aligned with the spring migration and regional efforts to help pollinators is the North Fork Audubon Society’s 10th annual Spring Native Plant Sale, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, May 18 and 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Roy Latham Nature Center at Inlet Pond County Park in Greenport.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also suggests helping migrating birds and pollinators by turning off lights at night. 

“Make your home or other buildings safer for birds by taking steps to reduce or eliminate building collisions and keeping artificial lights off between dawn and dusk during fall and spring migration seasons,” the federal agency’s World Migratory Bird Day webpage states. “Artificial lighting can also drastically affect the behavior of insects and pollinators, reducing the ability of plants to produce fruit and reproduce.”

Another way to support birds is to learn about them through educational outreach programs at area parks. Ms. Lamont is leading a bird walk at Hallock State Park Preserve in Riverhead Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The 3-mile trail walk will feature many migratory birds, most of which spend their winters in South or Central America but nest further north. Ms. Lamont noted to bring binoculars, tick repellent and $8 for parking.

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Mark Emerson, a bright and vibrant personality, passed away of natural causes 12 weeks after his 95th birthday May 2, 2024.

He was born on Feb. 7, 1929 in Chippewa Falls, Wis., the son of Alfred and Mary (Trudelle) Emerson. Mark was preceded in death by his parents; his three brothers: John Emerson, Paul Emerson and Hugh Emerson; and his first wife Elinor (Mason) Emerson. He is survived by his wife, Mary Ellen (Timmons) Emerson and by many nieces and nephews and grand and great-grand nieces and nephews.

He was an Army veteran and served in the Occupation of Korea 1946-1948. Upon return, Mark attended the University of Wisconsin for undergraduate and graduate degrees in Geology and an MBA at Washington University in St. Louis.

Mark started his career as an exploration geologist with the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission followed by mineral exploration in the Midwest, then many years with Newmont Mining as a mineral economist after several years at the Battelle Memorial Institute. He was a long-standing member of The Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME) and in 2019 was the recipient of the Distinguished Member Award for his pioneering in the field of mineral economics.

Mark spent much of his life living in Manhattan and he was a gifted restorer of two separate New York brownstones. These brownstones were restored with great insight and elegance.

Mark loved the outdoors especially birding, attending and listening to musical performance ranging from Broadway plays to the opera, and gave his family and friends great enjoyment when they were lucky enough to be with him.

Services are pending at this time.

DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Southold is serving the family.

This is a paid post.

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Kurt B. Kosavich of East Marion, formerly of Carle Place, died May 8, 2024. He was 77.

Born Oct. 20, 1946 he was the son of Ben and Charlotte Edwards Kosavich. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history. He married his wife Trudy April 28, 1973.

Mr. Kosavich served in the U.S. Army more than three years, rising to the rank of first lieutenant. He worked at the Nassau County Department of Health for 28 years.

Family said he enjoyed boating and fishing, keeping his boat docked at Goldsmith’s for 20 years. He also enjoyed bird watching, reading and trains.

Mr. Kosavich is survived by his sons Rich and Rob, both of Westbury; and his beloved dog, Molly.

The family will receive visitors Monday, May 13 from 4 to 8 p.m. at Horton-Mathie Funeral Home in Greenport. A burial service is scheduled for Tuesday, May 14 at 11 a.m. at East Marion Cemetery.

Memorial donations are requested for North Fork Animal Shelter or Long Island Cares.

Horton-Mathie Funeral Home is assisting the family.

The post Kurt B. Kosavich appeared first on The Suffolk Times.

During a timeout in a scoreless first quarter of a match against Center Moriches Thursday, Mattituck/Greenport/Southold head lacrosse coach John Amato asked his players, “Who’s going to get the party started?”

As it turned out, the Tuckers struggled to get things going and the Red Devils went on to spoil the party in a 7-3 loss on Senior Day in the Suffolk County Division II encounter in Mattituck.

The defeat, which snapped the Tuckers four-game winning streak, also delayed news on whether the team had qualified for the county Class D finals.

“It’s really frustrating, especially with the way were playing recently,” co-captain and senior midfielder Alex Clark said. “We didn’t come out with the fire we’ve had the past couple of games.”

Calculating power points — the secret sauce in lacrosse playoff positioning — uses a formula that is a bit complicated and factors the team’s record and strength of schedule. Prior to the match, the Tuckers (5-11, 5-9) had 82.51 points, compared to Center Moriches’ (6-10, 5-9) 67.12, a comfortable 15-point cushion. When the updated rankings were posted on the Section XI website Friday morning, Mattituck stood mostly pat at 82.62, but the rival Red Devils had jumped to 76.30 points.

“Because our records are so similar, they actually don’t benefit too much,” Amato said Thursday ahead of the rankings change. “I figured out our records are similar, but our power ranking points were so far apart from theirs that I don’t think it’s enough to make up the deficit. Plus, we had a strength of schedule that was harder than that. We actually get strength of schedule points.”

Bottom line: the second-seeded Tuckers will get an opportunity to defend their county title against No. 1 seed Babylon at Longwood High School on Wednesday, May 22 at 4 p.m.

“I want to do it for my seniors out there,” said junior attacker Tate Foster. “They deserve it.”

Clark, who was honored along with fellow seniors, midfielder-defenseman William Gammon and defenseman Bruce Walling, after the game, said that he would love to finish his final season on a high note.

“It’s important to me and the program, especially two wins over Babylon,” he said, referring to the 12-5 victory over the Panthers in last year’s county final. “It would be pretty impressive in back-to-back years.”

But the Tuckers hardly looked like a playoff team Thursday as Center Moriches grabbed a 3-0 halftime lead.

Ryan Person lifted the visitors to a 1-0 edge with a low sweeping shot past goaltender Andrew McKenzie 3:04 into the second quarter. Gavin Javetski doubled the lead with a high shot at 4:31 and Colin Casey tallied the first of his three goals with a man-advantage score from the right side with 1:33 remaining in the half.

“We could have done better,” Foster said. “We underestimated them a little bit. That was one of the reasons we played out there a little worse than we normally do. We just weren’t playing as a team.”

“Senior night, a bunch of people here, maybe playing a little tense,” Clark added. Once we started off slow and they jumped on us right away, it was harder for us to bounce back.”

The Tuckers had trouble maintaining possession in the attacking zone in the first half, making many unforced turnovers.

“You just can’t do that,” Amato said. “It’s not playoff lacrosse. That’s not how you win games. That’s how you lose games. I think we were a little intimidated and they started to kind of get in our kids’ faces. I think our kids just clammed up a little bit.”

The Red Devils increased their lead to 5-0 in the third quarter on long-distance shots by Caden Leslie (2:14) and Matthew Alino (6:45).

The hosts finally found the range during a 2:40 span in the period, as junior attack Tanner Vaccarella (7:24), Foster (8:41) and Clark (10:04) scored against goalie John Marino to pull within 5-3. But Casey made sure the hosts couldn’t stage a comeback, striking twice in the fourth period with man-advantage goals at 6:59 and at 8:18.

Despite the loss, the Tuckers will get an opportunity play another day with an opportunity to avenge a 4-3 four overtime loss at Babylon on April 25.

“The last couple of times that we’ve been in that championship game, we’ve been the favorite,” Amato said. “Looking forward to being the underdog and upsetting Babylon. That’d be a great win for us, program-wise. We’ve got the guys to do it. We just got to play better.”

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New York State Regents examinations take place in June, and as they inch closer, officials at some North Fork school districts are discussing whether to implement a “Do No Harm” policy to protect students’ final grades. 

The policy allows schools to omit a State Regents exam score from a student’s final course grade if it negatively affects their average. Some districts adopted the policy during the COVID-19 pandemic, when learning conditions were severely disrupted and more flexibility was needed in assessing students’ overall progress. 

Since then, local school districts have been debating whether to opt out of or extend the “Do No Harm” policy. It is also up to individual districts to decide how to apply Regents exam scores to final grades. 

According to its website, the New York State Education Department “does not require or recommend that schools use Regents examination grades as part of the calculation of a student’s final average.” 

Riverhead is one school district where the Board of Education is currently reviewing and revising its policies, including the weighting of Regents exam scores — which was last undertaken in 2019. 

The current proposal is to reduce the weight of a Regents score  from 20% to 10% of a student’s final course grade. Each quarter’s grade would then be weighted at 22.5% of the final, the policy states. 

There are also a handful of exceptions to how a Regents score might affect an overall course grade, including a lower passing threshold for students with a disability and English Language Learners, or an invalid test, which is a correction issued for a specific Regents exam that may affect the administration or interpretation of the test. 

Additionally, students who decide to retake a Regents examination in a specific course will have that course grade recalculated to reflect the highest grade earned, and that higher grade will be recorded on their transcript. 

“Education isn’t meant to be punitive,” said Riverhead school board president Colin Palmer. “If a student does better a second time they take a Regents, that’s evidence of education, evidence of increased mastery over the subject, and that’s the whole point of a class.” 

After a lengthy discussion about the policy at an April 16 meeting, the school board voted to postpone approving the second version of the revised policy until Tuesday, May 16, and sent that draft back to the policy committee for review.

Board members Virginia Healy and Cynthia Redmond said they felt conflicted about how to properly weight Regents exam scores and agreed there needs to be more community input. 

“I think we need to operate from what is best for our students,” Ms. Redmond said. “They are mixed as well — there are some who feel it should count for something and then there are others who have expressed that they themselves have had issues with the testing.” 

Interim district superintendent Cheryl Pedisch said that if the school board decides to extend “Do No Harm” until next academic year, a slight amendment would need to be made to the existing district policy and the 20% weight would remain. 

Some Riverhead school parents have requested that the district reinstate the “Do No Harm” policy, including Allyson Mateway of Wading River. She launched a petition in 2022 in favor of establishing a permanent policy and has advocated for “Do No Harm” for over a decade. 

“This is the most equitable solution for all our students,” Ms. Mateway said in a letter to the school board.

In response to the pandemic and its effect on instruction, the Greenport Union Free School District also changed the weighting of their Regents exams on students’ final averages from 20% to 10%. 

Gary Kalish, secondary principal at Greenport High School, said that since making the change, everything has been “relatively status quo.” He said some students benefited in terms of their passing grades. 

Mr. Kalish said he can “appreciate” the idea of “Do No Harm” and supports the policy to an extent, considering many of the Regents exams are required for a student to graduate. 

He argued that if a student performs poorly on a Regents exam and it is placed into the local quarterly class average of the year, whatever the final grade turns out to be can prevent them from graduating on time. 

“Some could say it’s a bit of a double jeopardy,” Mr. Kalish said. “I am in support of districts, and in our district I’m grateful we were able to put together a new policy in consideration of that.” 

Like many other Long Island school districts, the Shoreham-Wading River Central School District implemented a “Do No Harm” policy during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — counting a Regents exam score only if it helped a student’s overall average grade. 

Frank Pugliese, Shoreham-Wading River High School principal, said the district has since done away with this measure. Regents exams in that district now account for 12% of a student’s overall final grade. The marking period grades are weighted at 22%­ — a combined average of the student’s average daily grades and average major grades. 

Mr. Pugliese said the district believes the Regents are a “valid exam” and the scores are used to help determine placement for students. He added that he sees the students scoring “well above” the average in the state exams and so far, the district has not identified any issues. 

The challenge right now — which Mr. Pugliese said is a common post-pandemic problem — is rebuilding test stamina. However, he said, the value of the Regents exam can follow a student beyond graduation. 

“It’s just getting them back to where they previously had been in their ability to sit for a longer assessment, really not much to do with content,” Mr. Pugliese said. “We firmly believe that [the exams] establish good habits for our students, whether they are going on to college, into the work field — in terms of focus and attention and being able to stay on task. Those are all skills that are going to be essential as they move into adulthood.” 

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BOYS LACROSSE

May 7 Mattituck 7, Miller Place 6

Senior midfielder Alex Clark connected for the game-winner with three minutes and 45 seconds remaining in the match as the Tuckers (5-10, 5-8) extended their winning streak to four games in Suffolk Division II. Clark, who finished with two goals and one assist, scooped up a ground ball after a turnover and raced down the field to score against the Panthers (5-10, 4-9). Juniors Shane Psaltis and Tanner Vaccarella also had two goals each and Rocco Horton added one. Sophomore goaltender Andrew McKenzie saved 14 shots.

Clark tallied three goals and five assists as Mattituck defeated visiting Eastport-South Manor (4-10, 4-8), 7-4, on May 1. Tate Foster added two goals and Psaltis and Vaccarella had one apiece. McKenzie produced 15 saves.

Two days later, the Tuckers broke open a close game at halftime, outscoring Port Jefferson, 8-1, en route to a 12-4 triumph at home. Horton led the way with four goals, while freshman Henry Blair and Clark each contributed a hat-trick. Sophomore Nate Steinfeld and Vaccarella had one goal apiece. McKenzie was called on to make 13 saves.

The Tuckers will complete their regular season, with the hope of reaching the Class D playoffs, hosting Center Moriches on Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m.

GIRLS LACROSSE

May 4 Mattituck/Greenport/Southold 11, East Hampton/Bridgehampton/Ross 6

Sophomore Gianna Calise scored five goals to reach the 100th goal of her career for the Tuckers (10-5-8-5), who extended their winning streak to six games. They’ve also clinched a spot in the Class D playoffs. Calise, who is tied for seventh place among county goal leaders (48), also has recorded 13 assists this season. Sophomores Claire McKenzie (hat-trick), Page Kellershon (two goals, one assist) and Grace Quinn (one goal, two assists) also found the net. Senior goaltender Aiko Fujita made 11 saves against East Hampton (8-7, 6-7).

Mattituck hosted Hauppauge in its regular-season finale May 8.

BASEBALL

May 6 Mattituck 9, Southampton 3

Sophomore right-hander Tyler Brown fanned seven batters in five innings to lead the Tuckers (5-12, 4-12). James Reidy (three hits) and Trey Hansen drove in three runs apiece against Southampton (2-16, 2-14).

Mattituck was swept in its three-game series against Babylon, however, losing its last two contests. The Panthers recorded a 13-6 win on May 1 and then blanked the Tuckers, 7-0.

The Tuckers played at Southampton on Wednesday, and host the Mariners Thursday, May 9, at 4:30 p.m.

May 6 Port Jefferson 3, Southold 0 

In a League VIII game, Ruairi Rago struck out 10 batters in a complete game as the Royals (10-4, 8-2) clinched a Class C playoff berth. The Settlers dropped to 4-10, 4-9.

Southold will finish its regular season this week, having played at Port Jefferson May 8 at 4:30 p.m. and facing them again at home on Thursday, May 9 at 4 p.m.

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