Former Mattituck resident Richard E. Olsen of Riverhead died Jan. 9. He was 57.
The family will receive visitors Tuesday, Jan. 19, from 6 to 9 p.m. at DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck. Funeral services will be held that evening at 8 p.m.. officiated by Pastor Dan Reiter.
A complete obituary will appear at a future time.
The perfect record is no more.
Nine games into its high school girls basketball season, Mattituck has finally tasted defeat.
Plucky Port Jefferson refused to fold despite trailing for most of Monday’s game. The Royals, who didn’t take their first lead until the final minute of the third quarter, showed composure down the stretch and eked out a 53-52 triumph over the Tuckers in Port Jefferson.
Port Jefferson took the lead for the fifth and final time when a free throw by Courtney Lewis snapped a 52-52 tie with 21.7 seconds left to play.
The loss left the Tuckers with an 8-1 record, 7-1 in Suffolk County League VII.
The Tuckers saw their last chance to preserve their unbeaten record sail away along with an errant bounce pass that went out of bounds, giving Port Jefferson possession with 14 seconds left.
The Tuckers intentionally fouled a couple of times before time ran out on them. With 1.6 seconds to go, Port Jefferson’s Annabelle Soucy inbounded the ball to Lewis, who held it as time expired.
Port Jefferson (6-3, 3-1), which gained its third straight win, was led by Lewis’ 22 points, 2 points below her average. The junior also collected 10 rebounds, 5 steals, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots. Teammate Gillian Kenah came down with 15 rebounds.
The Tuckers lost despite strong showings by Katie Hoeg and Liz Dwyer, who combined for 41 of Mattituck’s points. The Tuckers, however, received no point production from their bench.
Hoeg totaled 21 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals. The senior point guard fouled out with 1.6 seconds to go.
Dwyer put up 20 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. She shot 6 of 17 from the field, making a pair of 3-pointers.
The Tuckers had charged out to a 12-3 lead, but Port Jefferson managed to pull closer and stay close with the Tuckers the rest of the way. A putback by Lewis at the halftime buzzer trimmed Mattituck’s lead to 29-27.
The teams were even at 50-50 following a layup by Port Jefferson’s Jillian Colucci and a basket by Mattituck’s Corinne Reda in the fourth quarter.
Dwyer sank a pair of free throws with 2:43 remaining for a 52-50 lead.
Port Jefferson tied it up again, beating Mattituck’s press with a quick succession of passes, the last of which, by Kenah, set up a Soucy layup.
Photo caption: Mattituck coach Steve Van Dood talking to his players during a timeout in the first quarter of their game in Port Jefferson. (Credit: Bob Liepa)
A reduction in the number of housing units and a pledge to use advanced wastewater treatment systems isn’t enough for many residents to support The Heritage at Cutchogue’s proposed 55-and-over community development.
The Southold Town Planning Board held a public hearing Monday to discuss the controversial proposal’s draft environmental impact study, known as DEIS, which was published on the town’s website last month.
More than a dozen residents said they oppose the plan because they believe the rural area’s environment and roads can’t sustain such a high-density proposal.
“If it doesn’t fit, please tell them to quit,” Cutchogue resident Benja Schwartz told the Planning Board. “This proposal made no sense 30 years ago — it makes no sense now.”
The development was first proposed in the early 1980s for a nearly 46-acre wooded lot on Schoolhouse Road off Main Road in Cutchogue. The latest version of the plan came nearly a year after the developer, Jeffrey Rimland, and the town reached an agreement following a 2009 lawsuit filed by Mr. Rimland that claimed the town “acted with malice” to hinder the development by changing the zoning for the site.
The town has since agreed it wouldn’t change the property’s zoning or allowable uses until the proposal goes through the Planning Board’s evaluation. In addition, Mr. Rimland agreed to reduce the number of housing units and designate a portion of the parcel as open space.
Currently, 124 housing units are proposed, as well as a clubhouse, outdoor swimming pool and tennis court.
In addition to the town’s review of the proposed development, the Suffolk County Planning Commission also has jurisdiction over the proposed site plan because the property is within 500 feet of an agricultural district and state lands. The commission hasn’t made any determinations and is currently reviewing the proposal.
Throughout the town’s review process of the application, residents and environmentalists have said they believe the development would harm nearby waters and the area’s quality of life.
Many of those concerns were renewed at Monday’s public hearing.
Steve Tettelbach, a Cutchogue and biology teacher at Long Island University, said he reviewed the DEIS and believes the development will hurt local wildlife habitats.
In particular, he asked the Planning Board to have the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service study the wooded property since the DEIS found Northern Long-Eared Bats are in the area. The federal government has deemed the species as “threatened.”
“The first planned step of the Heritage is to level and completely remove all vegetation on the 46 acres,” he said. “I urge the Planning Board to put a freeze on the further removal of any trees of the developer.”
North Fork Environmental Council president Bill Toedter said he’s also concerned about the development’s impact to the environment and took exception when he saw a nature trail was added to the proposal.
“Tell me, where’s the nature once it’s been bulldozed?” he asked.
As for the amount of housing density, Mr. Toedter said he believes drinking and surface waters will be negatively impacted if advanced wastewater treatment systems aren’t installed.
“Currently, Southold enjoys a residential housing density of about .5 homes per acre, or one home for every two acres,” he said. “Density for 124 units on approximately 46 acres is around 2.7 units per acre — that’s five times over the town’s current level of density.”
In addition, he said the project estimates a daily water use of residents at 22,500 gallons per day and twice that amount to irrigate the property.
“This is not the type of water level use we can sustain on Long Island,” he said.
Orient resident and Peconic Green Growth founder Glynis Berry stressed the Planning Board should only allow irrigation on the property if its with recycled water.
John Wagner, the developer’s attorney, gave a presentation about the project and said his client is sensitive to the community’s concerns.
For example, while the project is allowed to build up to 130 units, only 124 units are proposed, he said.
As for wastewater treatment, Mr. Wagner said the county doesn’t require the project include a sewage treatment plant.
However, Mr. Wagner said the developer is considering using advanced wastewater treatment systems if and when the county adopts their usage.
“We’re in constant dialog with the department of health with regard to possible alternative technologies that may come online with the health department in the foreseeable future,” he said. “Those systems are not yet approved by Suffolk County … We have constantly indicated our willingness as the applicant to consider these systems as they come online.”
Kevin McAllister, former longtime Peconic Baykeeper and founder of the Sag Harbor-based advocacy group Defend H20, said he believes the town should require the project include alternative systems since the county has been slow to enact wastewater regulations.
“Please find the means of saying ‘no’ to this project until they come forward because, right now, all they are basically submitting to you is smoke and mirrors with respect to the health department,” he said. “That should be unacceptable to this community.”
The Planning Board decided to keep the public hearing open for written comment and plans to reopen hearing at its Feb. 8 meeting.
Photo: The Southold Town Planning Board held a public hearing Monday to discuss The Heritage at Cutchogue’s development plan. (Credit: Jen Nuzzo)
The developers behind a proposed sports facility in Mattituck said gym-goers can choose between tiered memberships in order to maintain affordable options.
During the Southold Town’s Planning Board work session on Monday, Paul Pawlowski and Joe Slovak of Sports East said their goal is to provide affordable fitness services for local residents.
“We don’t have specific dollar amounts yet,” Mr. Pawlowski explained, “but the goal is to tier them … We’ll tier it in a way that it is affordable for every age group to join this club.”
For example, he said memberships will be available separately for tennis, swimming and soccer.
The partners said the facility would be similar to the Southampton Youth Services recreation center, known as SYS, which opened in 2003.
SYS is located more than 40 minutes from Mattituck. The nearest YMCA — after plans fell through to construct one in Calverton or Aquebogue — is in Patchogue. Suffolk Community College recently broke ground on an $18 million 48,000-square-foot public fitness facility at its Eastern Campus in Northampton, but that remains a work in progress and is still more than 30 miles away for some North Fork residents.
Mr. Slovak said Sports East would function as a community center.
“The concept is like a Y,” he said. “We will have some elite athletes there hopefully, but we also want seniors there using the pool and playing tennis.”
As for the configuration of the sports facility, Mr. Pawlowski said fields for loud sports such as tennis and soccer will be located closer to the road. Lighting for the outdoor fields isn’t included in the proposal, he added.
While hours of operation haven’t been finalized, Mr. Pawlowski said he believes the facility could be opened between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. A 32-seat healthy cafe for members is also planned for the facility, he said.
The indoor/outdoor fitness center is proposed on the same Main Road property where Mr. Pawlowski had previously proposed a mixed-use development and, before that, an affordable rental complex.
This time around, however, Mr. Pawlowski is not seeking a change of zone from Southold Town because the property’s existing residential zoning permits annual membership clubs with a special exception from the Zoning Board of Appeals.
The Planning Board is expected to submit its comments to the Zoning Board of Appeals by Jan. 25.
Photo: From left, Paul Pawlowski of Sports East and town planner Brian Cummings at Monday’s Planning Board work session. (Credit: Jen Nuzzo)
It seems that once the ball drops and Jan. 1 rolls around, people run to the gym using the mantra “New year, new me” as inspiration to get in shape.
Everyone can observe resolution-makers crowding the elliptical machines for a few weeks, but what does the start of a new year mean for the owners and managers of these gyms? And how do other businesses — like bars, restaurants and bakeries — fare as people commit to eating healthier and budgeting their money better?
“This definitely is our prime time,” said Gillian Garjiulo, general manager at Maximum Health and Fitness in Riverhead. She said the influx of customers lasts only a few weeks and tapers off by February.
According to a 2015 study conducted by the Wall Street Journal, fitness center attendance can begin to noticeably decline as early as the third week of January. Additionally, the study found, Facebook check-ins at locations with “health” or “fitness” in their name drops by 10 percent in February.
Ms. Garjiulo said that in order to prepare for the increase of January gym-goers — something she compared to the craze of Black Friday — by adding staff to the East Main Street facility.
“We always put on a little extra classes and have more personal trainers available for the newer people that don’t really know what they’re doing — so that they’re guided and they can achieve their goals,” she said. “We have great promotions too, so that it’s cost-effective for people.”
Sarah Sirico, owner of Fitness Advantage in Southold, said she makes similar changes in staffing to prepare for an influx of members and aims to makes employees more available to clients.
“We make time to meet with new members who aren’t sure where to start and we work to accommodate existing members with health-related goals in the new year,” she said. “This month we are inviting all members to join our team ‘Southold Strong,’ an online wellness program where we all work as a team to make healthier behavioral changes.”
Both Andrea Esposito, owner of North Fork Wellness Center in Cutchogue, and Jesse Swenk, owner of Defined Health and Fitness in Wading River, said staff members at each location make personal calls to gym members if they haven’t shown up in a while to make sure they’re OK and to help them get back on track. They said this tactic helps ensure business is constant throughout the year.
“We have a very small percentage of people that fall off,” Ms. Esposito said.
While gyms reap the benefits of people’s desire to get healthy, other local businesses — such as restaurants, bars and bakeries — experience a decline in sales as people decide to eat healthier and spend less money after the budget-busting holidays.
“We’re fortunate enough that we have a lot of healthier options … So when people come in and are looking to eat healthier it’s not a big deal,” said Ross Cummings, manager of Dark Horse Restaurant in Riverhead. “Overall, though, I do think people tend to stay away [in January]. But I think it’s more so because of the money aspect than the ‘Let’s eat healthy’ aspect.”
Mr. Cummings and Tina Kontoveros, a server at CJ’s American Grill in Mattituck, both said business tends to rise again in March — about one month after most people abandon their fitness resolutions. CJ’s offers winter specials in an effort to draw in more customers.
Blue Duck Bakery, which has locations in Riverhead, Southold, Greenport and Southampton, cuts down on production during the month of January as business declines, said co-owner Keith Kouris. He said sales picks up by Super Bowl Sunday.
“[In January] we do cut back our production and scale back what we’re using, as far as the amount,” Mr. Kouris said. “We also try and promote some of the healthier things, like a lot of our breads. They’re all natural and have no GMOs, just great ingredients. So we try and push that part of the bakery spectrum.”
Photo credit: .v1ctor Casale. via VisualHunt.com
Majorie M. Bunyan
Marjorie M. “Margie” Bunyan, daughter of Max and Marjorie Farr Bunyan, passed on from this life Jan. 9, 2016.
Born in Flint, Mich., July 20, 1924, Margie grew up in Jamaica, Queens. After attaining a degree in ornamental horticulture, she opened a flower shop in Huntington and summered on the North Fork.
Greenport welcomed Margie and her mother to Middleton Road upon her retirement. During her years in Greenport, Margie was an active citizen. She participated as a Sunshine Lady at Eastern Long Island Hospital and engaged support for the carousel and town flagpole. Years ago many people were “sure fitted” at Brandy’s Shoe Store by Margie and she continued to spread sunshine in Claudio’s Gift Shop, where her love of Greenport could shine on both residents and travelers.
Margie adored her yard on Middleton Road. Gardening was her passion and feeding the birds frequenting her garden a necessity. Along with her flowers she is survived by the tremendous beauty and kindness she brought to this world, her caring Greenport friends and neighbors and her cousin, George Barr.
The family will receive visitors Friday, Jan. 15, from 4 to 8 p.m. at Horton-Mathie Funeral Home in Greenport, where a Daughters of the American Revolution service will be held at 4:30 p.m. A funeral service will take place at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 16, at the funeral home, officiated by the Rev. Thomas J. LaMothe. Burial will follow at Sterling Cemetery in Greenport.
This is a paid notice.
Clement Joseph Charnews of Southold died Jan. 12. He was 86.
The family will receive friends Thursday, Jan. 14, from 4 to 7 p.m. at DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Southold. The Liturgy of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Friday, Jan. 15, at Our Lady of Ostrabrama R.C. Church in Cutchogue.
A complete obituary will appear at a future time.
Starting this week, North Fork Community Theatre will present “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” Edward Albee’s classic drama where George and Martha host a dinner party, during which unsuspecting guests Nick and Honey are subjected to their toxic marriage, verbally abusive conversations and emotional games.
The play contains adult content and language. The production is directed by James Pritchard, with assistant director Laura Pearsall and producer Deana Andes.
Shows run Friday through Sunday, Jan. 15-31. Friday and Saturday performances will take place at 8 p.m.; Sunday matinees will be held at 2:30 p.m. An opening reception will take place at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 15.
Tickets are $15 and available by calling 631-298-6328 or online at nfct.com. Student rush tickets are $12 and can be purchased 10 minutes before curtain, if available.
Click below for more photos from Katharine Schroeder:
It is with mixed feelings that we announce the sale of the Sound View Restaurant and Sound View Inn, our beautiful resort property overlooking Long Island Sound in Greenport.
The enterprise has been in our family since 1953, when our parents, Jack and Donna Levin, built the Sound Shore Motel and then purchased the Sound View restaurant in 1968.
Over the years, our parents added to the 12-unit motel, which grew into 45 units and a 10-unit Pebble Beach apartment complex. They also added a piano-bar lounge to the restaurant and finally a banquet room for 150 people, which has played host to thousands of events here on the East End of Long Island.
It is with joy and pleasure that we announce the name of the purchaser of the Sound View Restaurant and Inn as Eagle Point Hotel Partners LLC, a company with an excellent reputation as hoteliers in the Sound View tradition. Filament Hospitality Group will be overseeing daily operations.
The company has expressed its intent to continue operating the property as a family resort with the same staff that has served the Levin family and its guests for decades. Eagle Point has taken over the property as of today.
Understandably, it is with some sadness as well as pleasure that we make this announcement.
My sisters Ellen and Jody, our brother, Andrew, who died in 1998 and myself grew up in the family business, and each of us joined in the operation of the Sound View right after college.
Throughout all those years, we have operated the enterprise just as our father taught us: give good value, charge a fair price, and reach out to your community neighbors when they need a helping hand.
Our family business was always just that — a family business — inspired by our father, nurtured by our mother and operated by a loyal staff that is as much a part of our family as our own bloodline.
Speaking personally, we feel blessed to have been born into a job that we have loved for our entire adult life. It has been our life, and our job. We wish our friends and new owners of the Sound View the utmost success and believe it is in good hands and will benefit the North Fork.
The new owners plan to open with business as usual in March.
Circumstances change, family needs change, and we have found it necessary to make this change at this time. It is our hope and expectation that the Sound View will continue to grow and to serve our local residents and visitors to the North Fork communities. Thank you all for you support over the years.
In his first media interview since purchasing the iconic Sound View Inn and Restaurant in Greenport, Eagle Point Hotel Partners co-founder Erik Warner told The Suffolk Times customers won’t notice too many changes to the waterfront property in 2016.
So what exactly does the future hold? That remains to be seen, he said.
Eagle Point, which closed on the purchase of the entire 5.5 acre property Monday, hopes to reopen for the season “as soon as possible.”
The enterprise had been in the Levin family since 1953 when Jack and Donna Levin built the 10-room Sound Shore Motel. In 1968, the couple purchased the neighboring Sound View restaurant and have expanded the businesses over the years with the addition of 35 motel rooms and a banquet room. In recent years, the two businesses have been operated by the Levins’ daughters, Rachel Murphy and Ellen Wiederlight.
The sisters announced the sale on social media Tuesday afternoon.
Soon after, Mr. Warner, who declined to discuss the sale price, shared his ideas for the property and a bit of his company’s history.
The Suffolk Times: What are your plans for the Sound View property?
Erik Warner: For at least 2016, we are going to operate it as it is with upgrades in areas like bedding, pool furniture, etc.
ST: Do you have any plans for construction on the property?
EW: No reconstruction at this time. We need to better understand the community and how the Sound View fits into the community. The experience we have over the next year will help us to understand what direction we should go with the property. The macro plan is to embrace and enhance what we purchased … Not to do too much to take it too far from what it is today. Our management company, Filament Hospitality, is brilliant at creating wonderful hospitality experiences.
ST: What happens with the existing staff?
EW: We have hired most of the staff back — we have a great team. Should be many similar faces when we open.
ST: What attracted you to the North Fork and this property in particular?
EW: We are attracted to the people and culture of the North Fork. There is nothing like the North Fork anywhere and the experience we ultimately create will embrace what we love.
ST: Do you have any other properties in the area?
EW: We do not, but we are looking at others.
ST: Tell us a little bit about your company’s history.
EW: We are a young company that was started over five years ago to invest in hotels where we found opportunity to create value. The value that we are creating ultimately sits with the experiences we create for our guests, employees and community. The better the experience for those groups, the better the experiences for our guests.
ST: How did you personally get into this business?
EW: As a child I had many interests and when the day came to pick a college there were no colleges that had degrees with all of my interests — allowing me to study real estate, finance, food and beverage, design, operations — except for a handful of colleges with degrees in hotel management. I chose Cornell University’s school of hotel administration. It was the best place to learn and a great experience. In order to manage or own a hotel, one needs to have knowldege and skills in all of those areas, and that was the degree for me. The rest is history.
ST: Does your company typically deal with existing infrastructure or do you look to build?
EW: We like to find properties that have history and a sense of place. We want to ultimately create an experience that allows our guests to walk away from their stay at the Sound View and have an emotional connection to what we create. Having those two criteria are two of several key ingredients to how successful we will be.
Riddled with lichen, cracking near the base or leaning forward, the headstones at Southold’s Old Burying Ground were in a state of disrepair last spring.
Now — after close to $60,000 was raised to repair the burial markings — nearly half the stones slated for attention have been cleaned and 260 stones have had beds of pea gravel installed around their bases to prevent damage from lawn mowers. Another 192 stones have been straightened and about 50 markers made from sandstone now have temporary covers to protect them from the elements. A team of about 15 volunteers completed a majority of the work.
Cemetery director Jane Andrews said $30,000 was raised through a mail-in campaign, $22,750 came in the form of a grant from the Robert D. L. Gardiner Foundation and additional funds were raised at events to reach the final total.
“I never expected something like this to happen,” Ms. Andrews said of the financial and physical support the Southold cemetery received. “[In our grant application] I said we expected to raise $8,000 from the mail-in campaign.”
Ms. Andrews also hired Joel Snodgrass, an architectural conservator and expert in gravestone preservation, to make large repairs to stones in dire straits. Mr. Snodgrass has removed improper caulking from 36 stones and undertaken “difficult technical repairs” on around 65 markers, Ms. Andrews said.
Given the amount of work accomplished this year, Ms. Andrews believes the project may now take three to four years to complete instead of the originally anticipated five. Volunteers worked at the site alongside Mr. Snodgrass from June through early December. Work will resume around April when temperatures rise, Ms. Andrews said.
The Old Burying Ground is part of the larger cemetery owned by First Presbyterian Church and dates to the town’s founding in 1640. Today, the cemetery spans about eight acres and is still active for town residents who wish to be interred there.
Mr. Snodgrass said about one third of the stones mainly require cleaning, about a third need minimal repairs and the rest need extreme to severe repairs. These repairs range from removing a concrete base to replace it with a more permeable one, using pins to hold broken headstones together, lifting and resetting the 400-pound grave markers, filling cracks with caulk and more.
“It’s an example of someone’s previous good intentions, although unfortunately we now know that that’s not a wise and helpful thing,” Mr. Snodgrass said of damage inadvertently made to the stones by using vulnerable materials like brownstone or slate and basing grave markers in concrete.
(Credit: Courtesty)
“I try to never point criticism at the previous treatments because they’re always done with good intentions,” he said. “They’re normally done with the best technology and understanding at the time. But as time goes on, we learn what works and what doesn’t work.”
To keep track of the stones in question, which inhabit only one of the eight acres the cemetery sits on, Ms. Andrews devised a labeling system. Each stone has a white marker that identifies it in a numerical system. Then stones that have been cleaned have a red marker. Stones that need additional work, such as caulking or resetting, get a purple marker.
Last year, volunteers sprayed the stones with a chemical biocide that makes the algae, lichen and mold dissipate over time.
“That biological growth destroys the stone,” Ms. Andrews said. “The stone is soft and it works its way in and it makes it flake away. You have to be careful even touching the stones because if you touch it too hard the stone will come right off in your hand.”
The slate and brownstone grave markers are first lightly brushed with a soft brush to remove loose growths from the plaque. They are then sprayed with D2 , which works over time and continuously cleans the stones.
Ms. Andrews is already working to reapply for the Gardiner grant and is coming up with new ways to raise funds. Those interested in donating can write a check to The Old Burying Ground and mail it to the Presbyterian Church of Southold.
“How many places do you get the founding of the town laid out in stone?” she said of the OBG, as she refers to it. “This becomes an outdoor museum. The exhibits live in the open air. They’re not protected by a roof; they don’t have glass cases around them. They’re exposed, but just like the exhibits in a museum, they are telling us about our past.”
Cleo Sellers, a longtime Southold resident who was well known around town for his friendly demeanor and his strength, died late Monday night. He was 73.
Many who knew Mr. Sellers described him as genuine, trustworthy and one of the hardest workers they knew.
“As far as Cleo is concerned, a short description is that he really was pound-for-pound the strongest and probably kindest person in Southold Town,” said Jaap Hilbrand, co-owner of the Doofpot in Greenport and a close friend of Mr. Sellers, who could be seen around town picking up odd jobs for many local business owners.
Mr. Hilbrand and Mr. Sellers used to work together unloading 40-foot containers. Items that typically took two to three people to unload, Mr. Sellers could carry on his own, which was something he “prided himself on,” Mr. Hilbrand said. Sometimes, if Mr. Sellers arrived before the container did, he would pick up whatever was around and start working on a nearby yard.
“You always had to watch out that he’s not doing something you don’t want him to do because he didn’t like standing around,” Mr. Hilbrand said with a laugh.
According to a 2010 column written in The Suffolk Times by former publisher Troy Gustavson, Mr. Sellers also did jobs for Aldo Maiorana of Aldo’s Coffee Shop in Greenport, Arlene Marvin of The Cookery Dock in Greenport before it closed in 2015, Lori Feilen who used to own an outdoor furniture shop in Southold and David Markel of Markel Estate Liquidator in Southold, among others.
Mr. Markel said one day he and a friend were moving a safe into his basement when it got wedged in the tight stairway. No matter how hard the duo tried, they couldn’t move the safe.
“I walked away for a second, next thing I know [the safe] is on the floor,” Mr. Markel said. “I don’t know how he did it, but Cleo had the strength of 10 men.”
Mr. Hilbrand attributed this work ethic to Mr. Sellers’ upbringing. According to Mr. Hilbrand, his friend was the youngest of “at least seven brothers and sisters.” Mr. Markel said that number might be closer to 15. What they did agree on, however, was that Mr. Sellers grew up in the South and eventually made his way to New York City before settling on the North Fork.
“Cleo spent a lot of time in New Orleans as a child, collecting nickels and dimes in a saloon that B.B. King used to play in,” Mr. Markel said, adding that Mr. Sellers used to fill up beer tins for the music legend. The comparably famous Little Richard also used to play in the area and Mr. Markel said it was rumored that he “patterned his style after Cleo.”
Mr. Markel, who met Mr. Sellers in 1974 at his father’s country store, said they developed a strong friendship and he now knows Mr. Sellers is watching over him, especially when he’s moving furniture for work.
“He was my best friend,” Mr. Markel said. “A best friend is somebody that you can count on and that’s why he was my best friend. Because I knew no matter what, I could always count on him.”
Mr. Maiorana, who’s known Mr. Sellers for 28 years, said he had too many memories of his friend to choose from. He paid tribute to him on Facebook and is currently working on funeral arrangements for the man who was called “a true local legend.”
A GoFundMe page was created Tuesday to raise funds for the service. Within a day the page reached its goal of $5,000.
“He was unique, very unique,” Mr. Hilbrand said of Mr. Sellers. “There was nobody like him.”
Photo Caption: Cleo Sellers in an undated courtesy photo.
I saw my dad for the first time after he narrowly missed winning a $200 million Powerball lottery on the day before my sister’s wedding. Most of my family had already arrived in Montauk to kick off the festivities, so I knew he must have recounted the depressing story 100 times already.
I hesitated about asking. Should I leave it alone?
I tried to play it cool, to not pour salt in the wound. But eventually I had to ask.
On a picturesque Friday afternoon in June 2011, we sat outside my sister’s room at Montauk Manor overlooking the water when I mustered the strength to bring up my dad’s lack of newfound fortune. He could only look down and shake his head.
Two days earlier, 20 of his coworkers at Costco in Melville rejoiced after a shared ticket hit the jackpot. The winning combination of 8, 18, 38, 46 and 56 struck with the Powerball number of 31.
Just like that, 20 people ranging in age from 24 to 73 were millionaires.
My dad was not.
As he explained, he’d previously contributed a few bucks when a co-worker organized the store’s lottery entry. Eventually he backed out, but on the condition that when the jackpot surpassed $200 million, he wanted to be included.
On that particular day, for whatever reason, when the money got collected, no one remembered to ask my dad. The jackpot stood at $201.9 million. At a stationery store in Lindenhurst, an employee bought the ticket that would forever change their lives.
Two weeks after the drawing, the 20 winners posed with the New York Lottery’s Yolanda Vega behind a truck with the Costco logo in the background, each holding up a large check to commemorate their winnings as photographers snapped away.
Each person had the chance to receive a lump sum of $3.2 million.
I’ve never been much of a lottery player. I’m well aware of the staggering odds against winning a gargantuan pile of dough like the current $1.5 billion Powerball that someone may win Wednesday night.
I can’t help but think back to my dad’s story now when I debate whether to buy tickets. On one hand, the odds of all five white balls hitting, plus the red Powerball, are so incredibly slim, I may as well go outside and light a few dollar bills on fire. As a headline on a New York Times story flatly stated Tuesday: “You Will Not Win the Powerball Jackpot.” On the other hand, how could I not try?
A dollar and a dream.
As most people have done over the past two weeks, I’ve allowed myself a brief window to dream of what life might be like with a net worth equivalent to Beyoncé’s.
At 31, I’m too young to simply retire. I’d have to do something in addition to lavish trips around the world, midday cocktails by the pool and parties in Vegas. After all, money can’t cure hangovers.
I like to think I could spend a lot of time writing. Maybe a book. Maybe just as a freelancer where I could develop in-depth features. Maybe just as a stringer for this paper, covering an occasional boys basketball game, using only the finest pen on the market to take notes, of course.
Winning the lottery can be a curse, as many stories go. I think I could manage just fine.
I still wouldn’t be rich enough to buy a sports team (maybe the Arizona Coyotes, but I’ll pass on living in the desert) so I’d scoop up season tickets for all my sports teams. I could kill a lot of time hanging out at Madison Square Garden and Citi Field. I’d buy a house on the North Fork, one of those Dream Homes you see on northforker.com with a wraparound porch on the first and second floors. Maybe add an apartment in the city to avoid late-night train rides home.
With a vast fortune at my disposal, I’d undoubtedly give plenty away. Sorting out which charitable donations to make could become a job in itself, I suppose.
I asked my dad this week how many of those Costco employees are still working. He said about half of them. I asked him if he had his tickets for Wednesday’s drawing and he responded, “Yep! $1.5 billion!”
Maybe, against all odds, he’ll have the last laugh after all.
The author is the managing editor of the Riverhead News-Review and The Suffolk Times. He can be reached at joew@timesreview.com or 631-354-8049.
It was sudden, overpowering and, like a force of nature, devastating.
Mattituck overwhelmed Bishop McGann-Mercy, scoring the first 15 points of the high school girls basketball game and busting out to a 25-4 lead in the first quarter on Wednesday night. The Tuckers pressed, created turnovers, scored points off steals and rattled the Monarchs in what Mattituck’s coach, Steve Van Dood, said was the best quarter the team has played this season. At one point during the quarter, the Monarchs threw the ball away with an errant pass and the team’s mascot, a lion standing on a stage behind one of the baskets at Bishop McGann-Mercy Diocesan High School, winced.
By the time the damage was done, the Tuckers had a resounding 76-47 win, a firmer hold of first place in Suffolk County League VII and had clinched their ninth playoff berth in 10 years.
Talk about a feel-good victory.
One of many things for the Tuckers (9-1, 8-1) to feel good about was the sensational play of Katie Hoeg. The senior forward has been playing exceptionally well of late, and her performance at McGann-Mercy might have been as impressive as any of them. In the three quarters that she played before being pulled to the bench for the night, the 5-foot-10 Hoeg scored 21 points to go with 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 6 steals and 2 blocked shots.
Liz Dwyer recorded 11 of her 14 points during that paralyzing first-quarter assault. She shot 6 for 13 from the field.
Jane DiGregorio, a sophomore, put up a career-high 10 points toward the victory, Mackenzie Daly added 9 and Brianna Perino had 8.
After the Tuckers pulled away to a 29-7 lead early in the second quarter, the Monarchs (6-3, 6-2) ran off an 11-2 burst of their own, but even then they were still behind by 13 points and the Tuckers soon started an 18-2 run of their own.
The Monarchs suffered some bumps and bruises, too. One of their forwards, Juliana Cintron Leonardo, who had 12 points, took an elbow to the face that left her with a bloody nose. Mia Behrens, a guard, was helped off the court with 1 minute 41 seconds left in the third quarter without putting any pressure on her right leg. Coach Meghan Macarthur said Behrens had a calf issue and indicated that it wasn’t serious.
Fiona Faherty brought the Monarchs 10 points, Rita Ellis added 8 and Melina Santacroce battled for 7 points and 11 rebounds.
The Tuckers made good on 13 of their first 22 field-goal attempts and finished the game shooting 47 percent. The Monarchs were held to 31-percent shooting and turned the ball over 31 times.
For a game involving two teams that could face each other in the Suffolk Class B final, the trouncing was unexpected.
It was Mattituck’s second win over McGann-Mercy in six days. The Tuckers had defeated the Monarchs by 20 points in their first meeting, but a closer game was expected in the rematch in McGann-Mercy’s small gym.
Photo caption: Mattituck’s Mackenzie Daly takes aim at the basket while Bishop McGann-Mercy’s Chastin Giles plays defense. (Credit: Garret Meade)
Here are the classifieds for Jan. 14, 2016. If you are interested in placing an ad, please call Karen, 631-354-8029 or email kcullen@timesreview.com.
Suffolk Times Service Directory for Jan. 14, 2016. If you are interested in placing an ad, please call Karen, 631-354-8029 or email kcullen@timesreview.com.
A Mattituck farm owned by a famous cheese-making family, which became a site for the illegal dumping of yard waste, is now being reincarnated as a hops farm.
The 19.7-acre site on the north side of Route 48 has been the source of many questions from residents and officials who have noticed the large poles erected on the site and wonder what is going on.
“I’ve seen it and assumed it was going to be for hops,” Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell said. “No one’s approached me about it, so I don’t know who is going to operate it. We are starting to see the cultivation of hops around town but, to my knowledge, this is the first large-scale operation.”
The land is currently owned by the Ruth Pollio Revocable Trust, but it’s in contract to be sold.
A real estate broker for the site said the new owners do not wish to be interviewed until the sale is completed later this month, though he did confirm the land is planned for a hops farm. He did not identify the buyer.
The Pollio family founded the Polly-O string cheese company in 1899; it was sold to Kraft in 1986. Ruth Pollio, whose name is on the trust that currently owns the farm, died in 2014.
The property is part of Suffolk County’s Farmland Preservation program since the development rights have been purchased by the county and only agricultural uses are permitted there.
Since growing hops is considered an agricultural use, a building permit or site plan approval from Southold Town isn’t required.
“It’s encouraging to see new agricultural uses,” said Southold Town Planning Director Heather Lanza. “It’s great to see new farmers coming to town.”
Suffolk County Legis. Al Krupski (D-Cutchogue) also said he’s glad to see the new use.
“It’s certainly welcome that someone is taking that over for agriculture,” he said. “It’s being sold to someone who’s going to use it as a farm, and it’s been cleaned up.”
The yard waste dumping at the site was not considered an agricultural use by the county, and both the county and the state Department of Environmental Conservation took enforcement actions against the property owners to require a cleanup.
“They had taken in truckload after truckload of municipal lawn waste, mainly leaves, but it was mixed with other debris,” Mr. Krupski said.
Charles Cuddy, the attorney for the Pollio family, did not return a call seeking comment.
Hops, a key ingredient in the production of beer, is a budding industry on the North Fork, with several farms already in existence. Condzella Hops in Wading River, Farm to Pine on the C.J. Van Bourgondien Greenhouses land in Peconic, Long Island Hops on Sound Avenue in Jamesport, Route 27 Hops in Manorville and North Fork Hops on Horton Avenue in Southold are among the operations to pop up in recent years.
Cliff Cornell of North Fork Hops said it takes about three years before the crop can be fully harvested. The expansion of local operations is good news for the many beer producers who have also come to the North Fork in recent years.
“We’re all waiting with baited breath for someone to make more,” said Dan Burke of Long Ireland Beer Company in Riverhead.
The problem, Mr. Burke said, is that hops need to be “pelletized” in order to have a longer shelf life.
The non-pelletized hops, or wet hop, as he called it, “have a short window to be usable as a viable product locally and in New York State. That window is basically from the second week in August to the first week in September.”
Mr. Burke said a pound of “wet hop” costs about the same as six pounds of pelletized hopes.
“So as much as I want to support the local guy, it’s going to cost me six times more to do so,” he said.
Mr. Cornell said Long Ireland and Greenport Harbor Brewing Co. have in the past made a beer from non-pelletized hops, but that is limited to using the hops “exactly when they are ripe” — toward the end of August and beginning of September.
“It’s a fresh brew hop,” he said. “You’re literally taking the hop off the vine and within 24 hours getting it into a vat and brewing it.”
North Fork Hops does have a pelletizer, but Mr. Cornell says that machine can be expensive, ranging from $15,000 to $60,000, depending on size.
So far, he said, other hops growers have not sought to use his pelletizer.
Rich Vandenburgh of Greenport Harbor Brewing Co. said his company doesn’t use whole leaf hops.
“The hops would need to be pelletized,” he said.
Consistency is important in hops, Mr. Vandenburgh added.
“It’s so much easier for us to know, when we put an order in with one of the largest hop providers, that we’re going to get a pretty consistent product,” he said. “As much as we want to support local, we don’t want people drinking our beer to blame us for the fact that it doesn’t taste what it’s supposed to taste like.”
Photo: The sudden build-out of wooden poles used for hops farming has led many in the community to wonder exactly what is planned for this farm on Route 48 in Mattituck.(Credit: Chris Lisinski)
When Mattituck’s Anthony Howell became an Eagle Scout at 15, it was quite the achievement.
After all, only about seven percent of eligible Scouts even reached the rank in 2013, and they did so on average at age 17, according to statistics from the Boy Scouts of America.
But six years later, Anthony’s two younger brothers, Edward and Chris Merz Jr., are following in his footsteps with an even rarer accomplishment. Edward, 16, and Chris, 14, officially became Eagle Scouts themselves at a ceremony Sunday in Baiting Hollow, meaning this Mattituck family has three boys who all became Eagles before turning 17.
“I am just thrilled,” said Terri Romanelli, scoutmaster of Mattituck’s Troop 39, of which Chris and Edward are members. “They’re wonderful. They are really great role models as Scouts — they’re everything you want in a Scout.”
Ms. Romanelli said her troop promotes roughly one Scout per year to Eagle Scout, so to promote two brothers at the same time is unusual.
“[Chris and Edward] epitomize what a good Scout is and does,” Ms. Romanelli said. “It’s nice for them to learn at such a young age what an accomplishment this is.”
For the two younger teens, Anthony’s promotion to Eagle Scout in 2010 — and a bit of friendly sibling rivalry — served as inspiration.
“It was a great motivation for me becoming an Eagle Scout,” Edward said.
Chris, who turns 15 next week, noted he became an Eagle Scout one month faster than Anthony.
“I’m kind of proud of that,” Chris said with a wry smile.
And as he puts it, success with the Boy Scouts is just “a family thing.”
“I’m proud that they’ve done it at such an early age, so now they can move on to different experiences and other challenges,” said their mother, Colleen Merz. “I think this rank gives them confidence to do more and go to the next challenge.”
Ms. Merz also noted the similarities among their achievements.
All three boys were involved with Troop 39 as well as the national honor society Order of the Arrow. Edward, a sophomore at the private Sappo School in Commack, is the assistant patrol leader for Troop 39 and visited Michigan over the summer to participate in the National Order of the Arrow Conference. Chris, a freshman at Mattituck High School, is the troop’s senior patrol leader and is also a member of the school’s NJROTC program and a three-season runner.
To become Eagle Scouts, the brothers each had to acquire 21 different merit badges (Chris’ favorites were swimming, robotics and wilderness survival, while Edward liked archery, chess and rifle shooting). They also had to each complete an individual project designed to benefit the community.
For their contributions, the boys focused on the New Suffolk waterfront — Edward constructed three benches to go in the nearby community garden, and Chris built two picnic tables for the area.
“It was tough to build benches, but with the help of my dad [Chris Merz Sr.], who is a carpenter, he helped me a lot,” Edward said. “It was a learning experience.”
Edward finished his Eagle requirements in April and Chris finished his in October, but they were finally recognized as Eagle Scouts during a formal ceremony on Sunday, Jan. 10. Their brother, now 21 and an engineer assistant in the U.S. Navy, came home to participate in the ceremony.
“We’ve been doing this for so long, and to get this achievement, it’s just mind-blowing,” Edward said.
Photo: Brothers Edward Merz (from left), 16, Anthony Howell, 21, and Chris Merz, 14, outside the Eagle Scouts ceremony on Sunday. (Credit: Katharine Schroeder)
Toss out the old pizza party playbook: Mattituck High School just made “salad party” the new standard for classroom events.
The name is fairly self-evident, of course. But the students in Eric Frend’s environmental science classes didn’t just wear festive hats while eating a bunch of healthy greens purchased from a store. They grew the crops themselves — in the classroom.
Mattituck High School had been planning for months to offer an innovative environmental science program that emphasized agriculture in a greenhouse on the school’s property, but when the greenhouse was stalled by the state Department of Education, the school didn’t let the state ruin their plans. The teachers simply moved the program inside.
Now, a previously unused classroom is filled with boxes of lettuce and bok choy plants, some in soil and some floating in a hydroponic box on the floor. Students file in every day to spray the plants with water, adjust the overhead lights and, of course, snack on their projects.
“Things kept getting held up,” said Sam Shaffrey, a senior in the class. “It was sort of like, ‘We need to grow something, like, now.’ So we decided that we’d take the ideas we had for outside and move them inside.”
The program was designed as part of the district’s sustainable agriculture initiative. Jamesport farmer Carl Gabrielsen donated and built the 1,200-square-foot greenhouse outside, but so far the school has not been able to use it because it does not meet Department of Education code.
So in October, teachers joined forces and came up with a solution: use an empty classroom and do the agriculture indoors. Last week, the students celebrated their first harvest — which led to festive in-classroom salad-eating.
Mr. Gabrielsen donated the lights that hang over the boxes for indoor growing. Mr. Frend, who also teaches earth science and meteorology, took the lead and garnered support from others in the building.
John Roslak, a TV production teacher (who was named The Suffolk Times’ Educator of the Year last week), handled the electrical setup, carpentry teacher Mike Jablonski built the boxes and earth science teacher Chip Henke set up the irrigation systems. Peconic’s Sang Lee Farms also helps the class with advice and consultations.
“This is so interesting because it’s like agriculture of the future,” said senior Raven Janoski. “It’s taking one more step into the farming of today.”
Mr. Frend teaches a lecture every day; every other day the students also have a lab period. But the level of independence and student involvement is apparent on a visit to the classroom. Students walk around the room with bottles to water the plants and scissors to trim them, and whenever questions arise about the amount of light or the variation of lettuce, they simply shout them across the room to Mr. Frend.
They have also learned how to manage a hydroponic box, a system in which plants essentially float atop a pool of water while they grow, thereby saving water and soil.
This level of hands-on learning is one of the main goals of the class, Mr. Frend said.
“Historically, this [farming] is what we’ve been doing out here,” he said. “Hopefully, some of the kids can find a job in this in the future, or a way of life. Hopefully, they can stay here when they get out of college.”
And the students themselves are aware of how important that hands-on learning is, especially in a region where agriculture is such a key industry. Sam, for example, has grown his own garden at home for years.
Raven, too, has worked at Long Season Farms in Aquebogue for five years, and she is “very passionate” about environmental science. Now, she can get even more of an idea about what a career in agriculture is like.
“It’s such a great opportunity for public schools to have this, especially in Mattituck, where a lot of kids are really passionate about environmental science and taking that extra step forward,” Raven said. “Farming is such an integral part of the North Fork and has been for centuries.”
The program isn’t finished evolving, either. Within a few months, Mr. Frend and his students should have virtually an entire miniature ecosystem set up within a single classroom. Fish will be grown in a tank and then moved into the hydroponic boxes to make them “aquaponic” boxes. Students will then need only to add fish food; fish excrement will serve as nutrition for the plants, which will in turn filter the tank.
The class will also experiment with “integrated pest management” by introducing ladybugs or aphids.
They won’t be getting any pizza when they arrive.
Photo caption: Madison True (left) and Raven Janoski, both seniors, work in a soil box in Mattituck High School’s indoor agriculture lab. (Credit: Chris Lisinski)
A Barth’s Pharmacy, complete with a drive-up window, is headed for the former Capital One property in Jamesport.
The Main Road site was recently purchased by Louis Cassara, owner of the Barth’s Pharmacy in Westhampton, who confirmed that he has targeted May as an opening date if not sooner.
“I was taking a drive with my family, cruising the North Fork when I saw the building there,” said Mr. Cassara, 50, of Westhampton Beach. “It’s such a beautiful spot.”
Capital One closed its Jamesport branch last April.
Mr. Cassara is also the owner of Barth’s Pharmacy locations in East Moriches and East Quogue, which he opened after purchasing the Westhampton location and the Barth’s Pharmacy name from Barry Barth in 2004. He is not the owner of the Barth’s Drug Store in Riverhead, which was taken over this month by Bhaskar “Bobby” Gunjupali of Manorville following the retirement of Mr. Barth.
For the first time in 98 years, none of the Barth’s locations are owned by a member of the Barth family.
Owning pharmacies is a “competitive business” Mr. Cassara described as a “labor of love.” But like the Barths, it’s also becoming the family business for the Cassaras as his son attends pharmacy school.
“It’s kind of like if your dad owned a bowling alley and there’s not that many bowling alleys around anymore,” he joked. “We’re a dying breed but, hey, we’ve found something we’re good at.”
With a drive-up window and no other drug stores in an eight-mile radius, Mr. Cassara believes the Jamesport property is an ideal location to expand his operations.
“Having that drive-through is definitely appealing,” he said.
Mr. Cassara added that he’s trying to keep some of the bank features in place for the pharmacy to give it a unique feel.
Since the property is already zoned for a bank or pharmacy, much of the approvals he needs from Riverhead Town relate to signage and renovations, including modifying the bathrooms to make them ADA compliant and installing fixtures. He’ll also need a license from the state to operate the pharmacy in that location.
“We definitely have some things to do before opening, but we’re looking forward to it,” Mr. Cassara said.
Photo caption: The future site of Barth’s Pharmacy in Jamesport. (Credit: Barbaraellen Koch)
