2 LI mosques tried to expand. Here's how their towns blocked them. Towns have used local zoning laws to block house of worship expansions, an issue that has grown more acute nationwide, experts said.

My colleague and I spent months meeting with congregants, talking with experts and scanning town and city codes to understand the mechanisms at play when house of worship expansions are stymied. Here's what we found ⤵️
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Oyster Bay weighs future after Commander Oil tanks come down After the demolition of its oil tanks, Oyster Bay sees potential for a developed waterfront.

A demolition crew took down the Commander Oil tanks in Oyster Bay. Here's what officials hope happens next, via @newsday.bsky.social ⤵️
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Records: Oyster Bay's legal bill in mosque case ballooned to $7M The town spent heavily on attorneys before ultimately approving the mosque's expansion as part of a settlement.

The Town of Oyster Bay spent millions defending itself against a federal lawsuit brought by a Bethpage mosque.

I dove into the invoices. Here's what they said, via @newsday.bsky.social ⤵️⤵️⤵️
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Glen Cove raises cops' starting salaries in new contract The city will pay academy recruits and first-year officers a salary of $50,000.

The City of Glen Cove has inked a four-year deal with its police union that raises the starting pay for new officers and contains average wage increases of roughly 3%.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social .
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Nassau County OKs 15-year tax break after Glen Cove said no Critics say the practice resembles "IDA shopping," in which developers play agencies off one another.

A developer asked Glen Cove for tax breaks. The city's IDA said the project would only create one job and didn't feel it was worth a 15-year PILOT.

Months later, the developer went to Nassau County and got a 15-year deal. Here's how it unfolded.
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Glen Cove bans the building of backyard pickleball courts for 3 months The local law prohibits, for three months, residents from building pickleball courts on their property or converting any surface to play the sport.

The Glen Cove City Council started a temporary private pickleball court moratorium. Officials said it will give the city time to make rules for the backyard courts.
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Red Cote Preserve in Oyster Bay Cove to expand with funding The North Shore Land Alliance plans to buy the property, which borders the preserve.

A nonprofit will be able to purchase 5 pristine acres of land in Oyster Bay Cove after the state awarded it $1.29 million for the acquisition, setting the stage for the expansion of the neighboring Red Cote Preserve.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social
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Farmingdale eyes parking lot for community theater plan The village would own the theater and select a company to run it.

Farmingdale is eyeing a downtown parking lot for a new community theater.

Here’s more on the village’s plans, via @newsday.bsky.social ⬇️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

'Four-season' garden to open at Planting Fields Arboretum The concept is to highlight the plants' beauty in different stages during each part of the year, even when they're withering.

Piet Oudolf, the renowned landscape architect behind Manhattan's High Line, is crafting a 1-acre four-season garden at Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay.

More about the project here ⤵️
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Cotillion sues Oyster Bay over denied catering permit Cotillion challenges Oyster Bay's decision to deny its catering permit, citing irrational and unreasonable actions in the ongoing legal dispute.

A legal battle ensues.

The owners of the Cotillion, a longtime eatery and banquet hall on Jericho Turnpike, sued the Oyster Bay Town Board over its decision late last year to deny the restaurant’s permit to operate as a caterer.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Friends of the Bay launches clam seeding initiative Friends of the Bay partners with Oyster Bay to seed clams, aiming to restore shellfish populations and improve water quality in protected underwater areas.

An Oyster Bay nonprofit is centering a new program around the *other* shellfish: clams.

Here's how it fits into the battle to improve dismal shellfish numbers in the town's waters, for @newsday.bsky.social.
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

How an elementary school staff 'moved mountains' to save 5-year-old Sebastian Melendez, 5, became unresponsive during a class lesson earlier this month.

The staff at Theodore Roosevelt Elementary School didn’t hesitate when 5-year old Sebastian Melendez became unresponsive.

Here’s the story about the harrowing morning of Dec. 5, via @Newsday
⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️
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$200G earners rise in Long Island's towns and cities Officials cited higher overtime pay and new retirement incentives designed to reduce the workforce.

A @newsday.bsky.social investigation ⬇️

We analyzed payroll data across Long Island's 13 towns and two cities, using records obtained under the state's Freedom of Information Law.

Local governments paid employees $889 million in 2024, a 5.3% increase from 2023.
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Woodbury's Dirty Taco + Tequila aims for larger space The Woodbury Dirty Taco + Tequila restaurant plans to expand by 1,500 square feet, increasing its capacity beyond 75 people, pending town board approval.

Some very important Dirty Taco news ⤵️

www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Good that this is back, and may I note again that Eagle Scouts have done a lot to put up historical markers all over.

Community restores Deer Lake historical sign after vandalism Kadyn Neale's Eagle Scout project, which he dedicated to his father, Dave Neale, was vandalized in August.

The community surrounding Deer Lake on the North Babylon-West Islip border banded together when Kadyn Neale's Eagle Scout project, which he dedicated to his late father, was vandalized.

On the effort and the return of the historical marker, via @newsday.bsky.social ⏬
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Town denies permit for Cotillion in Jericho over noise issue The company can operate as a restaurant, but not as a banquet hall, according to a town spokeswoman.

Neighbors of the Cotillion, a longtime restaurant and catering hall, have complained for years about excessive noise coming from the property.

Now, the Town of Oyster Bay has denied a permit for the business.

Here’s the latest on the saga, for @newsday.bsky.social
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Village law could incentivize new golf course in Brookville The Tam O'Shanter Club sold in 2019, but a developer's plan for luxury housing there hit a snag over environmental issues.

The Tam O'Shanter Club has fallen into disrepair.

"The geese have taken it over," Brookville Mayor Dan Serota told me.

Here's a story on the village's move to give prospective owners a shot at taking over the defunct greens.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

LI affordability, safety and traffic focus of Newsday forum on poll results The forum discussed the results of an exclusive Newsday-Siena survey analyzing the region's quality of life.

I was in the crowd at last night's @newsday.bsky.social forum on the exclusive @sienaresearch.bsky.social poll analyzing perceptions of quality of life on Long Island.

Here's what readers are concerned about, from housing to school taxes ⤵️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

John Ferretti defeats Joseph Scianablo in Hempstead supervisor race Ten supervisor seats were up for grabs across LI, along with a slew of council positions and a mayoral post.

How did things shake out for Long Island’s town supervisor races?

Here’s what we have after last night ⬇️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Candleworks in Bethpage empowers workers with disabilities The Bethpage nonprofit runs Candleworks and RewearAble, providing jobs for people with disabilities.

For a non-election read: I spent a morning at @ACLD1's Bethpage campus to learn more about their business initiatives -- RewearAble and Candleworks -- that employ individuals with disabilities.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social ⤵️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Park cleanup extracts 460 pounds of toxins in Bethpage An earlier cleanup phase used the technology to remove 1,500 pounds of volatile organic compounds, or VOCs.

The second phase of thermal remediation at Bethpage Community Park extracted 460 pounds of contamination from the ground deep beneath the former Grumman Aerospace dumping ground, state officials announced today.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social ⬇️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Demolition of Budget Inn Motel site in Massapequa moves a step closer as Oyster Bay Town seeks to buy it Last year, a judge ordered the site demolished after Oyster Bay sued the property owners over town code violations. More recently, the owners sought to delay that process.

Oyster Bay Town clears hurdle for demolition of Budget Inn Motel site, seeks to buy it.

Via @newsday.bsky.social ⬇️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Oyster Bay mosque expansion settlement reached after legal battle Oyster Bay agrees to a reduced expansion of Masjid Al-Baqi mosque, ending a lengthy legal dispute before a federal court trial.

NEW: The Oyster Bay town board authorized a settlement Tuesday night that allows for a lesser expansion of the Masjid Al-Baqi mosque in Bethpage, ending a monthslong legal battle as it neared the eve of a federal court trial.

Via @newsday.bsky.social
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Law firm bills town $387G to defend mosque case, records show The Town of Oyster Bay recently hired a second law firm to help with the case at a rate of $1,200 per hour.

The Town of Oyster Bay has racked up $387,000 in outside legal fees defending a federal lawsuit over denying a mosque's expansion plan in Bethpage, records obtained by Newsday show.

That total is expected to rise.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social.
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

This story has been updated throughout the day from an earlier version that previewed the rally. The last rally was held in the rain. The preview photo just hasn’t updated in the link yet.

'No Kings' rallies protesting Trump planned today across Long Island, U.S. The events are part of a national protest day that organizers hope will bring out big crowds to voice opposition to the administration.

We have @newsday.bsky.social reporters at “No Kings” protests across Long Island.

I’m on scene in Garden City.

Follow along here ⬇️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Oyster Bay seeks to delay mosque trial The trial is scheduled for Oct. 27 in federal court.

Lawyers for a Bethpage mosque are opposing Oyster Bay's request to delay the start of a trial over the town's decision to deny the house of worship's expansion plans.

Here's the latest on the case, via @newsday.bsky.social ⤵️
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

'Off to college': Oysters, grown slightly, head to harbors Volunteers are working to place the mollusks in safe harbors as part of a plan to replenish their dwindling numbers.

I spent some time with volunteers working to help restore Oyster populations on Long Island's North Shore.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social
www.newsday.com/long-island/...

Queens church to sell Brookville lot at issue in lawsuit Brookville officials say they will drop their lawsuit against the church if the sale goes through.

A Queens-based church cited numerous times for illegally treating a 2-acre Brookville property as a garbage dump has entered into negotiations to sell the property.

My latest for @newsday.bsky.social
www.newsday.com/long-island/...