The-Leader_1989-09-07

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Freeport • Baldwin
THE LEADER
55lh Year, No. 36 Freeport, N.Y. ll!520 OfTicial newspaper of the Village of Freeport'Freepon and Baldwin School Districts Thursday. September 7.1989 25« Blight or benefit? Marina and neighbors disagree
Proposed Jefferson Indoor Marina
ARCHITECTS REHDERINQ OF PROPOSED n«w Jatforaon Indoor Marina.
by Maurice Forge
Residents of Jefferson
Stre«t and nearby homes are
I looking to State Supreme
Court Justice Alfred S.
I Robbin* to resolve their
dispute with Jefferson Indoor
I Marina over the construction
of a facility on the Hudson
Canal which they claim will
be a "blight" and a "safety
hazard" and the owners
assert will be a "boon" to the
Freeport waterfront as the
most 'modern, safe and
convenient facility on Long
Island."
On October 10, when
Justice Robbins reviews the
postponed case, the under-lying
Issue will be whether
tfie marina owners' structure
complies wilh Freeport
zoning and land-use laws or
whether the Village had a
right to cancel a permit on
environmental grounds and
residents" objections.
According to Harrison J.
Edwards, Village special
counsel, 'we have made the
best case and it is up to
Justice Robbins to rule who
is in the right." The Village
seeks to have the developers
conduct an environmental
impact and traffic and fire
safety study and to modify its
plans.
Phillip Bensi, attorney for
the marina owners, told the
Leader that the proposed
facility, now under con­struction,
'complies with the
lecter and spirit of the roning
and use taws" and is 'the
first indoor marina on the
East Coast."
Some of the residents who
are opposing the project
diso^ee. Bob Rutherford of
89 Jefferson Street, across
from the mariiia, says "this is
a blight" and that by its size
it will "attract more traffic
and overcrowd the water­ways."
He hopes that the
judge will take into con­sideration
"the welfare and
feelings of the home owners
who have substantial invest­ments
and not only the
investors of the marina."
Wesley Ford and Donald
Van Holt, partners in
Jefferson Marina, claim that
they had driven 400 piles^ did
a good part of the concrete
work, received iron beams
and other material for the
building before the Village
raised its objections. "All we
are doing." Sir. Ford claims,
(contfuM on paga 3)
Future uncertain for
Freeport pharmacist
The proprietor of the Cannon
Pharmacy contemplates his
uncenaio future as be finds him­self
is Ibe throes of a process 001
of his making and o\-er which he
has no control
Bhag\anji T. Patel has been
running his Cannon Drug Siore
for fnx >'ears, after bujing it from
(he retired previous ownet. He
has fiUed preschpnons. sold o\^
the counter drugs and various
pharmaceutical speciatlies and
the sundry goods that Amcncan
drugstores vend lo people in the
immediate residential area and to
commuters at ihc nearby Long
Island Rail Road Sution.
Vow (he VilUge plans to con­demn
the propeny and raze it to
make room for phase one of the
urban renewal pUn m conjunc­tion
with the rest of the area
where once stood the Frcepor:
Theairt.
Mr. Paiel utidcrsiands the ViW
lage^ needs and says that he is
"not a fighting man" aixl wants to
cooperate. But this building b not
just cement blocks, bricks.
lumber arid roofing. "It is my Irve-lihood."
he sa>-s. "and 1 look for*
«^rd to getting the kiruj of coop­eration
from Freeport officials
that will help me get
re-esublisbed."
The drug store once stood at
the triingle behind the cannon
munumem. which is now a park­ing
field, and then mo\ed to the
cast side of Mam Street just
below the elevated railroad Mr
Palcl had looked forward to
spending the rest of his active life
there. Now the prospects ha\e
-changed drastically. "I wish, hope
and i*ill itn%e to have the Village
authontKS handle this fatrl> and
inimanel> "*
VOLUNTEER FREEPORT POUCE UEUTENAtfr JOSEPH BOUVNO dl»cut»B» tha now
R»aport Auxiliary Pollca unR wHh applicant PstrlcU Nauburgsr. As of last wMk sha was one
of 13 local rfsldftnts plciclr>g up sppHcattons to Join th* vokintMr unfformed fores whh::h wit)
assist poOctt otficsrs st parsdss and othsr tvsnts s s wen as ntalnUtn a two person motorized
patrol An between the ages of 16 and 65 wilUng to volunteer a minimum of four hours per
month are urged to caQ Police Headquarters at 378-0700 brvnedtatsty.