Bethpage-Tribune_1975-06-12

              BETHBAGE Kimtntt mm
BT R8
BETHPAGE LIB
47 POWELL AV
BETHPAGE NY 11714
OLDBETHWGE
abo serving I S L A N D T R E ES
PLAINVIEW PLAINEDGE SEAFORD
VOL. 9 No. 29
Thursday, June 12, 1975
Marching Along - Marching Along
10 cents per copy
THE BRASS BAM) swings along the Old Bethpage Village road.
From the moment the Old
Brass Band swings into view in
authentic Dragoon uniform and
the high-pitched sound issues
from the saxhorns and cornets, a
sound and look new to this cen­tury
but familiar to Long
Islanders of the 1850s dominates
the Old Bethpage village
restoration.
Painstaking historical
research by the museum staff of
Nassau County into the type of
band playing on Long Island in
the pre-Civil War era- its music,
uniform and instruments - form
the base on which the brass band
was created two years ago. Old
newspapers provided accounts
and photographs of the bands of
the period and announced the
occasions on which they ap­peared.
From old photos and other
original source materials,
researchers designed uniforms
true to the style of the 1850s. More
durable than the uniforms, which
to be tailored to order, were the
old horns and drums found for the
band by an antique musical in­strument
dealer and restored to
playing condition.
A search of archives for music
of the 1851-54 period provided the
selections and arrangements
which form the Old Bethpage
Brass Band's repertoire. In­cluded
are durable selections
familiar to modern audiences
such as Hail Columbia written in
1798.
When the 15 Old Bethpage
musicians prepare to march to
the bandstand near the Noon Inn,
they are dressed in military garb
because bands of the 1850s were
associated with local militia
units, setting the beat for parades
and drills and, in addition, per­forming
as they pleased par­ticipating
in concerts and ap­pearing
at local ceremonies.
Recreated U.S. Army Dragoon
uniforms capped by red-plumed
black leather shakos are worn by
the Brass Band members. The
coat is fire-engine red with yellow
piping, the trousers cavalry blue
with yellow stripes.
During the summer, the Brass
Band will perform at Old Beth­page
village on Saturday, June 28
and Sundays on June 29, July 4, 6
and 20. Auaust 1 and. August at.
On concert days at 2 p.m., the
band will march along tht farm
road, where the only tfaTO
encountered will be the horse-drawn
wagons, to the bandstand
where three half-hour concerts
will be given until 5 p.m.
The Old Bethpage village
restoration, operated by the
Nassau County Department of
Recreation and Parks, is located
on Round Swamp Road in Old
Bethpage, one mile south of Exit
48 on the Long Island Ex­pressway.
Admission to the
restored pre-civil War Long
Island farm community is $2 for
adults and $1 for children.
Nassau County Leisure Pass
holders pay $1.50 and 75 cents.
Hours of operation are 10 a.m. to
5p.m., seven days a week. For
further information,call 420-5284.
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Photos - In - The - News
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Off The Press.
Anticipating the impact of
today's sweeping decision from
the New York State Court of
Appeals mandating that all
property in the State of New York
be assessed at current full
market value, Chairman of the
Nassau County Board of
Assessors Abe Seldin unveiled a
package of legislative proposals
geared to protect homeowners
from the expected higher
property taxes.
"We have been watching the
Heilerstein case in the courts and
have been preparing for the
decision for months," asserted
Seldin. "Our proposals should not
only help Nassau County
homeowners, but homeowners
throughout the state."
Specifically, the Court of Ap­peals
decision strikes down lower
court rulings which allowed
assessors throughout the state to
assess property at a percentage
of full market value. The new
ruling mandates strict com­pliance
with Section 306 of the
New York Real Property Tax
Law which states:
"All property in each assessing
unit shall be assessed at the full
value thereof."
Today's decision mandates a
full reassessment of all property
in the State of New York at 100
per cent of current market value.
"In Nassau County, as in most
parts of the state, the value of
residential property has in­creased
at a much higher rate
than commercial property,"
stated Seldin. "Therefore,
revaluation at current market
value will cause a greater in­crease
in assessments on
residential properties than on
commercial. The result will be a
greater increase in property
taxes on residential properties."
The three-part legislative
package being proposed is
directed at revisions in the Real
Property Tax Law of the State of
New York.
1) Cost of Revaluation- -
Estimated cost for a revaluation
as ordered by the Court in Nassau
County alone would be $6,000,000.
It is recommended that the state
share in the cost of the
reassessment for all
municipalities by providing
$10.00 per parcel initially and
$2.00 per parcel per year for
updating the assessment rolls.
2) Homestead Exemption- -
Would allow the first few
thousand dollars of assessment
(based on a fluctuating regional
scale) on residential property to
be exempt from property
taxation. This would help negate
the shift of property taxes to the
homeowners.
3) Circuit breaker- - The
program would provide relief for
a family through a system of
state income tax credits and
rebates when property taxes
.exceed a set percentage of the
family's income. A graduated
scale would be used as to the
amount of money credited or
rebated. In addition special
schedules would be established to
replace the present veterans and
senior citizens exemptions with
different income limits and
percentage rates.
"The impact upon the public's
confidence in government during
the revaluation must be con­sidered,,"
said Seldin. There
must be a full disclosure of the
methods and criteria used in
arriving at the new assessments
as well as an explanation of the
(Continued on Page 6)
ROAD WORK: Paving their way to progress, Oyster Bay Town
Councilman Salvatore R. Mosca, right, goes over the road surfacing
plans with Construction Engineer Ed Morrissey during the im­provement
repairs of Beverly Road in Bethpage.
Nassau County.Executive Ralph G. Caso poses for a picture with
various dignitaries at the 1975 Scout-o-rama held this past week at
Eisenhower Park in East Meadow. Scout-o-rama featured 200
demonstrations by Cub packs, Scout troops and Explorer posts from
all over Nassau County. From left to right are Nassau County Parks
Commissioner Richard A. Fitch, who served as general chairman of
ScoUt-o-rama; Francis B. Looney, president of the Nassau County
Boy Scout Council; Jim McCaffrey, president of the Long Island
Tomahawks professional lacrosse team; and Tomahawks players
Bill Hoculick and Ted Greves.
LHTE BULLETIN
Bethpage
Yes 1089 - No 757 - $13,676,181 budget approved Tax Rate $14.59 per
$100 of assessed valuation.
Plainedge
No 2,630 - Yes 948 - Proposed $15,606,954 budget defeated. Tax Rate
would have jumped to $19.19 per $100 of assessed valuation.
Trustees Elected
Bethpage - Anthony Cotton, Marie Hurley, Basil Karpiak, Library.
Plainedge - James H. Edelmann, Lillian Goldner, Nancy Lindon,
Library Trustee.
Propositions to lease Picken School to BOCES passed. Proposition
to reduce Board members from 7 to 5 approved.