BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Limba - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Limba X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://limba.net X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Limba REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20090308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20091101T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20100314T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20101107T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20110313T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20111106T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20120311T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20121104T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110422T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110422T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110422T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110422T040000Z UID:4455-1303430400-1303430400@limba.net SUMMARY:Good Friday- No Meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/good-friday-no-meeting-7/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110415T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110415T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110415T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110415T040000Z UID:4460-1302825600-1302825600@limba.net SUMMARY:Long Island Renewable Energy Forum TBC DESCRIPTION:This morning I asked Gordian Racke\, a man that has been a leader on energy issues for many years to assemble a small panel of presenters. The energy topics he selected were energy planning presented by Al Harsch\, Energy building conservation presented by Mike Murtha\, and off shore wind generation by Tim Daniels \n  \nWhile there was some overlap in some of the information\, these are clearly very different disciplines of energy. \n  \nGordian led off with a review of the problems of energy use and the various approaches to create a more sustainable world. He stated that the issue of climate change is not debatable. Glacier National Park for example had over 100 glaciers in it at one time\, and today there are 26. By the year 2010 there will be none. Then he went into the economic ramifications of shipping $1.3Billion dollars off Long Island that will never be reinvested in this region. (The same is true for the $500 billion rest of the nation). Finally he spoke about the national security exposure we have as long as we have to rely heavily on hostile areas of the world to obtain our oil. \n  \nWhen Al Harsch spoke he discussed solar panel technology and how various factors are important. He stated that solar panels must have a favorable orientation to the sun and even partial shading will have a serious negative effect on the output. He pointed out that there are two basic technologies used solar. There are the conventional panels and the so-called thin film technology. The thin film is a more recent development and it is less expensive to make\, but it does not produce as much electric power. Harsh then went into the wind turbine technology. Wind has an exponential increase in power when the speed of the wind is increased. Increasing the speed of the wind by 2 times will increase electrical output by 8 times. Therefore wind turbines are mounted at heights that preclude the ground interference wind encounters. It also makes off shore wind very effective\, which is what the next speaker handled. Al Harsch is with Green Logic Energy LLC \n  \nMike Murtha\, President\, Murtha Construction Inc then spoke about the energy efficiency of buildings. His experience goes back to a time when the job was simply "plug the holes." Since that time the energy conservation business has created tools that accurately assess and quantify losses. There is now the ability to predict the outcome of the energy conservation work performed. He points out that while this was work that was done by renovators in the past\, it is now a specialized field with its own framework of knowledge. With proper analysis vast improvements in building performance can be achieved. \n  \nThe last speaker was Tim Daniels\, Senior VP\, Deepwater Wind. Deep Water Wind is a company that was created specifically to design and build Off-Shore Wind in the NY-Long Island area. Deep-water placement of wind turbines means that the wind resources will almost always be there. The construction costs are more than on land\, but the rich wind possibilities makes the effort worth the extra expense. Moreover bigger wind turbines can be installed. On land the transportation to the operation site of very large turbines is not practical. When taking turbines out to an offshore location the turbines are floated on large barges. These barges can be any size required. These turbines are getting larger all the time and within a year or two we will have wind turbines in the 8 megawatt class. In contrast when LIPA was considering their proposed offshore field they were using 3.5 megawatt units. The high productivity we expect from wind generation that is approximately 30 miles offshore should be very reliable. \n  \nThe Q&A is sometimes as interesting as the presentations. One question about density turned out to be a good one. Too much density will result in turbulence that will reduce the efficiency of the units. What about avian interference? Not much of a problem 30 miles out. \n  \nThe interest in the topics that were covered was high and we will probably do another one covering different aspects of energy. Perhaps geothermal\, tidal flow and other technologies will be among the topics \n  \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/long-island-renewable-energy-forum-tbc/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110408T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110408T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110408T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110408T040000Z UID:4461-1302220800-1302220800@limba.net SUMMARY:Frank Boulton - Founder & CEO -LI Ducks at Betpage Ballpark DESCRIPTION:This morning’s meeting was held at Bethpage Ballpark\, home of the Long Island Ducks.(Actually located in Central Islip) Frank Boulton\, founder and CEO of the Ducks was our speaker. The Duck Club is where we held the meeting. The room overlooks the ballpark from the perspective of behind home plate. It has a great view of the field from behind a glass wall exposure. The tables are set up as in a restaurant and the variety of food is served. According to Boulton the offerings ranges from a steak to chicken wings. Frank then went over the history of the club and it is an interesting story. \n  \nAfter meeting with his friend Bud Harrelson they decided that a Minor League team would work well for Long Island. They approached the NY Yankees and the NY Mets to see if either of those franchises would sanction a Minor League outpost on Long Island. Neither of those teams were interested. Undaunted\, Boulton and Harrelson decided to create not only a new team\, but also a new league. \n  \nThey entered into a public- private partnership with the County of Suffolk and the Ducks were born. They have been a great success ever since they made their first quack. \nThe county owns the ballpark but the enterprise is self-sustaining and doesn’t cost the taxpayers a dime. The vision of Boulton and Harrelson was to have an affordable family experience that was similar in cost to a night at the movies. That notion caught the imagination of many and they sell out the season tickets and often sell standing room only tickets. The way that works is that there are often empty seats that are prepaid\, and they allow  the empty seats be filled with the SRO crowd\, a practice that would be frowned upon at Yankee Stadium or probably any Major League Park. But this is Long Island and it’s more like friends and neighbors sharing the same sand lot. \n  \nMr. Boulton shared some stories and events that they hold at the park. One of the events is the competition to sing the national anthem. Rank amateurs are out there singing their hearts out and some of them are quite good and the competition lends to the fun of the place. \n  \nBoulton also spoke about his affiliation with the Boulton Theater\, a performing arts center. He purchased and renovated the theater\, and gave it to the local YMCA. He retains no management or ownership in the theater. His good friend and celebrated sportscaster Bob Wolf will be holding a book tour event at the Boulton Theater on April 21st. Wolf is now 90 years old but I remember him as part of the regular team doing the sports on News 12. This is Mr. Wolf’s fourth book. \n  \nIt is places like this that keep Long Island from being a cultural desert. And while I still have an opportunity to dump another one of my bad puns. This team is everything it’s quacked up to be. Thanks Frank. \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/frank-boulton-founder-ceo-li-ducks-at-betpage-ballpark/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110401T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110401T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110401T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110401T040000Z UID:4450-1301616000-1301616000@limba.net SUMMARY:Richard Kessel\, Pres NY Power Authority DESCRIPTION:Richard Kessel speaking at LIMBA this Friday began by reciting that the Long Island area was in very good shape as far as electric power is concerned. The building of the Cross Sound cable\, and the Neptune cable has given the island an enormous boost. In addition the clean\, gas fired plant built by Caithness Energy gives an additional asset. \n  \nHe warns\, however\, that these are times when we do not have full employment and that picture will change dramatically as the economy improves. \n  \nAs president of New York Power Authority some of his concerns are with upstate. While Long Island will test the limits of capacity in the coming good times\, upstate will be very stressed. We need more power from transmission links to the Canadian Hydro sources and some local generation. In addition to the traditional generation and transmission strategies Kessel stated that renewable alternatives should be a part of the mix. Power from various sources must be the plan for the future. \n  \nNYPA is building out 100 megawatts of solar\, admittedly a small amount in the grand scheme of things\, but an important start nonetheless. He cited the use of tidal generators such as has been tested in the East River. Those generators failed because the designers underestimated the tidal potential and the swift currents destroyed the blades. That is actually good news because a properly designed unit can exploit that resource at a higher degree. He then addressed the potential savings realized by energy efficiency. We used to call that approach negawatts. Efficiency that saves 300 megawatts is far more desirable than building a 300-megawatt generating facility. Energy that is never created has a 0 carbon footprint and no construction costs. \n  \nRichard spent a little time on taxes imposed on utility plants\, and the inevitable inequities that exist in assessing these plants. Kessel questions whether we should tax the utilities when they only pass the tax to the citizens anyway\, or should we work out a fair tax directly to the end users of the product. \n  \nThe Q&A portion of the meeting led us to talking about stored energy using flywheel systems\, and pumped water. Kessel likes the pumped water systems that allow water stored during the night at high elevations to flow through generators during the high use day. It was pointed out that the Maglev Company can achieve the same results with a much higher efficiency and Kessel said he would look into the matter. \n  \nSuperconductivity was also discussed. This allows the systems to carry three times the amount of power\, and Kessel said recent testing of a section using the technology was very effective. \n  \nThe summary was that we on Long Island are not in bad shape\, but the entire state must continue to plan for the future and the solutions are myriad. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/richard-kessel-pres-ny-power-authority/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110325T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110325T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110325T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110325T040000Z UID:4451-1301011200-1301011200@limba.net SUMMARY:Congressman Hon. Tim Bishop- LIFT sponsored DESCRIPTION:Congressman Tim Bishop first came to LIMBA when he had made a decision to run for the seat held by Felix Grucci in 2002.  He had been provost at Southampton College and he was relatively unknown. Recently he won re-election in a very hard won race. His report and observations were the subject of today’s meeting. \n  \nMr. Bishop began to talk about the budget and how out of balance it has become\, but the portion of the budget that is being attacked is not where the real money is. The budget is currently $1.5 Trillion in deficit and he agreed that must be addressed. He noted that the budget that the congress wants to pass would mean a big setback for Long Island. Money potentially lost at Brookhaven National Laboratories would result in 950 high paying jobs being lost. What is of equal importance is the research work that would be delayed\, thereby losing the future jobs that the research would lead to. \n  \nPell grants are being challenged. Education of 9 million students nationwide would be affected. Again this will hamper job recovery down the road\, "this is eating the seed corn" according to Bishop. Cutting out the heart of innovation and growth makes no sense. All of these cuts are painful and counterproductive. \n  \nIncentives for companies to expand their production and engineering must be stopped. Why incentives a company to manufacture elsewhere? he asked. Why do we educate foreign students to the doctorate level and then make America inhospitable. Why not encourage them to stay instead of forcing them back to their country’s of origin. \n  \nDuring the Q&A someone asked if farm subsidies were in the budget. The answer was yes\, despite the fact Suffolk is the largest farm county in the state Long Island gets none of it. Farm subsidies remain untouched\, and those subsidies are given to the largest agri-businesses in the country\, not the small farmer. \n  \nAnother question on military spending came up\, and how we still have about 650 bases around the world. "Couldn’t we close some of those?" The answer was yes and we could do a lot more. Bishop gave the example of the alternate engine for fighter jets that was rejected by the Secretary of Defense\, is still in the spending bill and that engine will add billions to our deficit. \n  \nThen the congressman quoted the words of the President of Shell oil from a few years ago\, when he said. "If oil prices rise to $70/barrel\, there is no reason that could justify those subsidies. You may have noticed oil prices are $106. \n  \nTim asked when will we see federal money available for public sewer systems. His answer was\, not any time soon. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/congressman-hon-tim-bishop-lift-sponsored/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110318T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110318T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110318T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110318T040000Z UID:4456-1300406400-1300406400@limba.net SUMMARY:Frank Zeman PhD Energy Management NYIT at NYIT campus DESCRIPTION:Sustainability at NYIT was introduced by John Eff an adjunct professor at the school and a long term LIMBA member. \n  \nThe subject was the promise of the Plug-in Hybrid. The expectations for this technology were quite high. After a careful study of the technology in real world experience\, it fell short of the mark by a lot. It was expected that the Plug-in Hybrid might yield the equivalent of 190 miles per gallon. The testing indicated that this promising technology did only marginally better than a Prius or other hybrids. \n  \nAfter being shown various charts and performance graphs\, the audience was prepared to ask questions. The topic\, though technical at times\, was very well presented by Dr. Zeman. The audience asked\, "Why weren’t the mileage goals realized?" Frank stated that there are probably a host of reasons. \nAmong those reasons were; the weight of the heavy battery\, and the lack of optimum driver training. In other words the vehicles were driven in a way that would not maximize gas mileage. \n  \nThere were other problems too; They went into this thinking the most charging would take place at night\, when there would be surplus power on the grid. It turns out that there was little difference between nighttime and daytime charging. \n  \nPatent attorney\, Chris Garvey\, suggested that a high-speed flywheel weighing only 55lbs could replace most of the 1000 lb battery. The flywheel would store an enormous amount of energy and unlike the braking recharging that takes place in a Prius at 35%\, the flywheel would capture close to 100%. The feasibility of that was discussed in terms of negative effects that may be transferred to the vehicle\, such as the gyroscope effect. \n  \nThe consensus was that better answers to high mileage vehicles lies in the engineering of lighter but stronger body materials\, and lighter more powerful batteries. Are we there yet? No\, but we’re workin’ on it. The message of today’s presentation is that science needs to be tried and tested again and again. Or\, in the words of Thomas Edison\, "My success is the result of 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration"— Amen URL:https://limba.net/calendar/frank-zeman-phd-energy-management-nyit-at-nyit-campus/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110311T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110311T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110311T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110311T050000Z UID:4452-1299801600-1299801600@limba.net SUMMARY:LIMBA presents Jeanne Fontana for a special program - free DESCRIPTION:Meet the marketing challenge! \n  \nThis morning LIMBA presented a free business educational program. Our Speaker was Jeanne Fontana\, Fontana President and CEO of Synergy3\, a marketing and media firm. Her experience and knowledge puts her in a good position to help her clients select a campaign using various media and approaches \n  \nShe began this morning by quoting the age-old understanding of effectiveness\, 20% of the players do 80% of the business. "You want to make the decisions that make you part of that 20%" \n  \nCreate an understanding of expectations on your business. 40% of your receipts should be profit. Establish realistic sales goals. Create and value your brand. Realize that you must take business away from your competition. Find what is unique about your product or service and develop a marketing strategy around that feature. \n  \nBuild a target and stay on that target. Doing so reduces risk. Understand the strength and weaknesses of the various media available for your marketing campaign. A weak media option for one product or service could be a very strong medial for another. In other words tailor your campaign to what works for your sales effort. \n  \nSome businesses will benefit from a targeted campaign with exposure in a niche market. Jeanne gave the example of the Jordan construction panel company advertising in the construction oriented Hammer Magazine. Hammer is a better advertising media than a daily paper for that product. \n  \nAnother media topic Fontana covered was radio. The people who tune in classical would not be the same people who listen to Hip Hop. You may use one or the other depending the demographic you want to reach. In any case Fontana said you want to focus as much as possible to reach your desired audience. \n  \nFontana\, at one point\, looked around the room and said\, "being here in rooms like this one is important to meeting people and increasing your knowledge." \n  URL:https://limba.net/calendar/limba-presents-jeanne-fontana-for-a-special-program-free/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110304T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110304T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110304T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20190315T055733Z UID:4458-1299196800-1299196800@limba.net SUMMARY:LIMBA presents Walter Copan of BNL- Doing Bus w/Lab DESCRIPTION:  \n  \nAlternate Speaker for Friday’s Meeting\nTest\nWe’re happy to announce that Walter Copan will join us to speak about "Doing Business with Brookhaven National Laboratories"\nMr Copan is manager of BNL’s Technology and Commercialization and Partnerships. \n  \nCome and learn how you can do business with the lab. \nMeeting will take place at the Holiday Inn 3845 Veterans Memorial Hwy\, Ronkonkoma    Hote phone 631 585-9500 \nRegister on-line www.limba.net or call 631 757-1698\n \n \n  URL:https://limba.net/calendar/limba-presents-walter-copan-of-bnl-doing-bus-wlab/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110225T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110225T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110225T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110225T050000Z UID:4449-1298592000-1298592000@limba.net SUMMARY:Covanta Plant Tour- Electric Power from Waste DESCRIPTION:Another in our continuing our series of field trips to important Long Island locations\, today’s meeting was held at Islip Town’s Resource recovery plant next to Long Island MacArthur Airport. \nThe plant is run under contract by Covanta\, burning solid waste and generating around ten Megawatts of electricity\, which is then sold to LIPA.  The town and Covanta share the revenue brought in by the plant.  An additional revenue stream is generated by separating and selling recyclable metals from the waste stream both before and after waste burning.\n\nAs with our meeting at the Northport power station\, the meeting opened with a discussion of safety issues.   The Covanta plant has compiled an impressive streak of over 2270 days that were accident-free\, a testament to conscientious work.  The plant is part of OSHA’s VPP program\, attaining star status. \nWaste to energy facilities have come far from their days where they were simply incinerators of garbage.  European countries with their limited space for landfills have long been the leaders in the waste to energy area.  The LIMA plant is a recovery operation\, getting back energy and metals from the wast stream.  It also reduces the volume of waste\, so that the ultimate end product of ash is a far smaller volume than the original source material. \n  \nAbout 50 pounds of metal per ton of solid waste is recovered\, and about 500 Kilowatt-hours per ton of electricity is able to be generated from that waste.  The recycling of the metals reduces greenhouse gas emissions substantially\, as opposed to new metal production. \n  \nThe plant also operates well under its emissions limits\, producing up to only 5% of the allowable levels.  This is due to the extensive gas scrubbers\, particulate filters\, and the O’Connor combustor design that is employed.  As part of the company’s continuous improvement programs\, projects to further reduce Nitrous Oxides\, Mercury\, and Dioxin emissions are underway.  During the program’s lifetime\, the facility was also part of EPA’s Performance Track program.\n  \nCurrently\, Long Island exports about 800\,000 tons of solid waste per year.  The Islip plant burns about 176\,000 tons per year.  This additional fuel could be used to generate more base-load electricity as the Islip plant does.  Currently\, it puts out an average of 10-12 Megawatts of power.  \n  \nThe plant has been in continuous operation since 1990\, about three years after the saga of the Mobro 4000\, Islip’s infamous "Garbage Barge"\, assuring that there won’t be a repeat of that.  Dealing with the waste stream generated by living isn’t attractive\, but is one of those necessaries.  Landfilling it generates Methane\, a greenhouse gas\, and incurs expensive transportation and landfilling costs.  Burning it generates electricity and recovers some recyclable metals\, but also introduces other kinds of air pollution.  It is a game of the lesser of evils\, that we must address. \n  \nInforming ourselves about the realities that are available to us allows us to make better decisions that are easier to live with.  Understanding the options before us is one of the main missions of LIMBA.  On a rainy late winter Friday morning\, we learned a lot more about one of the ways we can deal with the real issues of our lifestyle.  Come join us to be better educated about the real\, practical issues that are facing Long Island so that we can all make the best decisions together. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/covanta-plant-tour-electric-power-from-waste/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110218T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110218T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110218T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110218T050000Z UID:4446-1297987200-1297987200@limba.net SUMMARY:Presidents Day weekend - No Meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/presidents-day-weekend-no-meeting-6/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110217T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110217T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110217T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110217T050000Z UID:4445-1297900800-1297900800@limba.net SUMMARY:Karaoke at Windows on the Lake DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/karaoke-at-windows-on-the-lake/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110211T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110211T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110211T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110211T050000Z UID:4454-1297382400-1297382400@limba.net SUMMARY:Colonel Anthony Moncayo- Perspectives on Cuba DESCRIPTION:Colonel (ret) Anthony Moncayo\, USAR will discuss his recently completed 17 month tour at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay\, Cuba serving as Director\, Office of Military Commissions – South\, and his interaction with Joint Task Force Guantanamo Bay’s detainee operations. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/colonel-anthony-moncayo-perspectives-on-cuba/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110205T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110205T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110205T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110205T050000Z UID:4641-1296864000-1296864000@limba.net SUMMARY:Wayne Horsely -The State of State Parks-LI DESCRIPTION: There have been numerouse park improvement projects started in the last 2 years. Mr Horsely will give us an update on what has been done URL:https://limba.net/calendar/wayne-horsely-the-state-of-state-parks-li/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110205T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110205T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110205T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110205T050000Z UID:4642-1296864000-1296864000@limba.net SUMMARY:Wayne Horsely -The State of State Parks-LI DESCRIPTION: There have been numerouse park improvement projects started in the last 2 years. Mr Horsely will give us an update on what has been done \n  \n  \n  \n  URL:https://limba.net/calendar/wayne-horsely-the-state-of-state-parks-li-2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110204T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110204T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110204T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110204T050000Z UID:4447-1296777600-1296777600@limba.net SUMMARY:Synergy Presentation by Jeanne Fontana DESCRIPTION:While we do not have the exact title and focus yet we will be discussing strategies for advancing your business. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/synergy-presentation-by-jeanne-fontana/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110128T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110128T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110128T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110128T050000Z UID:4434-1296172800-1296172800@limba.net SUMMARY:Nassau County Executive Hon. Edward Mangano at Adelphi. DESCRIPTION:This morning we were invited to Adelphi University’s beautiful Garden City campus to hear Ed Mangano speak about the current issues facing Nassau County. Our meeting was opened by Dr. Robert Scott\, Adelphi’s President\, who proudly noted the latest energy efficient  LEED certified buildings across the campus on the other side of Long Island’s largest geothermal plant. The plant is hidden by an ample parking lot\, which will come in handy as the University hosts the 2011 NCAA Division II and III Women’s Lacrosse championships this May. \nThis meeting was sponsored by LIFT\, whose Executive Director\, Bill Whalig\, gave us a quick update on the progress on the various programs offered by LIFT\, its cooperation with Brookhaven National Labs and Stony Brook University. He also brought us current on the progress of the Advanced Material and Manufacturing Technology Innovation CenterMorrelly Homeland Security Center\, an important piece of our speaker’s revival of the Grumman property in his hometown of Bethpage.! and the\nConfronting the recent headlines regarding NIFA’s takeover\, Mr. Mangano opened with a review of the progress that his administration has made in its first year. He identified the tax assessment process and their systems as a key factor in the financial difficulties that have built up over the past decade.  This has resulted in a large amount of borrowing necessary to fund the system developments\, fixes and the resulting tax refunds. His team is implementing a plan to get the system back on track where after 2013\, property tax refunds will be funded out of operating revenues rather than being borrowed.\nIn preparation for this\, the Executive recommended that all property owners review their assessments\, because these assessments are provisional right now\, but will be made permanent in 2016. \nMoving on to current events\, Mr. Mangano defended his repeal of the energy tax\, and his balancing of the budget\, noting that 2010 will go into the books has having a surplus. Spending was cut\, and 610 jobs were shed. The budget surplus was accomplished without increasing taxes\, and while more unfunded state mandates were handed down\, along with increased pension obligations. He characterized NIFA’s “drumbeat of doubt” as misplaced. \nFurther outlining accomplishments\, he cited the return of 125 police officers to street patrol through attrition and having civilians fill the administrative positions that were vacated\, reducing expenses and pension obligations. He has opened negotiations with the CSEA union to review their contract. He views NIFA’s intervention as adding uncertainty to the contract renegotiation process and increasing taxpayer expenses by adding a layer of review to several layers already in place that are serving adequately.\nHe asserts that NIFA is sounding the alarm unnecessarily\, especially when ending the year with a surplus. NIFA’s proposed solutions amount to tax increases\, and he has not heard any NIFA recommendations on expense reductions. In closing\, he reiterated that keeping spending flat when stuck with onerous contracts and unfunded mandates is a herculean task. However\, he has emphasized that the public employees of Nassau County are working as hard as their private sector counterparts to maintain the level of services that they have come to expect of the county.\nOnce again it was another opportunity to be at LIMBA meeting with an excellent speaker that you normally can only assess when filtered through the media. Amiable and poised during a stressful point in his administration\, it was a pleasure to host the County Executive in a fine setting provided by one of Long Island’s premier academic institutions. Please join us for these Friday morning sessions that finish the work week off on a high note and never fail to be of value.\nRecap by Craig Plunkett. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/nassau-county-executive-hon-edward-mangano-at-adelphi/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110127T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110127T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110127T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110127T050000Z UID:4500-1296086400-1296086400@limba.net SUMMARY:BlureWater Wind DESCRIPTION:The technology of wind generation is a constantly improving science and we have a leader in the field to give us an overveiw of what we can expect for Long Island (more dtails to follow) URL:https://limba.net/calendar/blurewater-wind/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110121T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110121T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110121T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110121T050000Z UID:4437-1295568000-1295568000@limba.net SUMMARY:Joseph Perri CEO Gold Coast Bank DESCRIPTION:  \nGold Cost Bank will host this meeting. "The perspective of an active community Bank" will be the topic. \nJoseh Perri\, president will speak on behalf of the bank. \nMeeting will be held at Gold Coast Bank Main office located at\n2929 Expressway Drive North\nIslandia\, NY 11749\n  URL:https://limba.net/calendar/joseph-perri-ceo-gold-coast-bank/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110114T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110114T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110114T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110114T050000Z UID:4440-1294963200-1294963200@limba.net SUMMARY:LIMBA Tour of Northport Power Plant & Happy New Year DESCRIPTION:January is powerplant season at LIMBA! This year we visited the largest power station on Long Island and one of the largest on the east coast. Last year at this time\, we hosted the Caithness power station. This year\, those presenters were in attendance for a great presentation by the NPS. Attendees were treated to a tour of the power station that rivaled an episode of “The Worlds Toughest Fixes”  or “Big\, Bigger\, Biggest”.  In the words of Bob Bender\, the meeting’s sponsor\, it was a chance to look “Behind the Switch” and get a picture of the people\, technology and business behind delivering this vital commodity.\nBob Allen\, the general manager of NPS\, opened our session with a Safety Moment. In a facility this large and with the levels of power involved\, things can go bad in a hurry\, and preparedness is paramount. Our tour would take us to one of the two control rooms that control the four units\, across the turbine deck\, and up alongside one of the units undergoing an upgrade and maintenance. Bob reviewed the architecture and operations of the NPS\, the largest of 5 steam power stations on Long Island. \nA short segment on how power is purchased by LIPA from National Grid and other generators followed\, and a breakdown of the National Grid power station management organization. There are about 700 employees that operate\, maintain\, and manage the powerplants. A quick tour of the steam plants’ history\, from Far Rockaway’s start in 1898\, to Island Park’s last burning of coal in 1964\, to the gas conversion of Northport finishing in 2008.  \nWe then heard the impressive parameters of NPS; its gargantuan capacity of 4150 Megawatts of generating power\, its oil storage capacity of 2 Million barrels\, the million gallon per minute cooling water flow\, and 1000 degree 2500 PSI steam operation\, illustrating its brawn.   Operating this behemoth efficiently within the extensively regulated environment is a ballet performed by the dedicated staff that takes great pride in their plant and work. Balancing environmental regulations designed to protect fish\, with getting the proper mix of oil and gas burning within air pollution requirements\, and then coordinating the electrical output minute by minute with the New York Independent System Operator is an effort that demands constant attention to detail.\nThe plant is fueled by #6 fuel oil supplied by tankers that moor two miles offshore and by the Iroquois gas pipeline which terminates on the property. This discussion segued into a description of the other ways power is generated on and brought to long Island. The NPS used to provide 45% of Long Island’s total power needs\, but as the region grew and new plants and transmission lines were added\, this share has declined. The Neptune cable from New Jersey brings 600 Megawatts of cheaper power onto LI\, but that power is generated by coal-fueled plants\, which drop their pollution onto us. The NPS has had over $100 Million invested over the last 15 years to reduce its environmental footprint. The fuel oil they burn has been reduced in sulfur content from 3% or liquid coal\, to much cleaner 0.7% sulfur content. The ability to burn cleaner natural gas was introduced. Electrostatic precipitators capture solid p! ollution.\nThe latest efficiency upgrade was on view during our tour. The steam turbines that turn the generators\, are being upgraded to a “Dense Pack”\, which increases their efficiency by 3 percent. These retrofits were on full view during our tour. As the turbines are being changed out\, the rest of the shutdown  unit undergoes extensive maintenance and renovation. We were also able to peer inside the 40 foot square combustion chambers that contain huge fireballs when in operation. \nIn all\, this was a master class in the mechanic\, economic\, environmental and human factors involved in operating an integral piece of Long Island’s infrastructure. We extend our thanks to National Grid for allowing us to be one of the ten tours that are granted each year. It was a special opportunity to go “behind the switch” and see where our electricity comes from and get to know the facility and people that keep the lights on. An educational opportunity not to be missed. \nRecap by Craig Plunkett \nCraig Plunkett is Managing Director of CEDX Corporation\, a New York consulting firm\, specializing in wireless and IT product strategy and technical deployment. Most recently\, he served as VP of Wireless Market Development for Cablevision’s OptimumWiFi\, North America’s most advanced 4G network\, leading the initial network launches and auto-authentication user experience initiative. Craig is a recognized pioneer in the architecture design and deployment of wireless networks serving the consumer\, transportation\, resort and quick service restaurant vertical sectors. He developed the first fleet-wide motorcoach Wi-Fi service on the Hampton Jitney and is the founder of the Fire Island Wireless WISP URL:https://limba.net/calendar/limba-tour-of-northport-power-plant-happy-new-year/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20110107T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20110107T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20110107T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20110107T050000Z UID:4433-1294358400-1294358400@limba.net SUMMARY:Extended holiday recess- no meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/extended-holiday-recess-no-meeting/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101231T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101231T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101231T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101231T050000Z UID:4443-1293753600-1293753600@limba.net SUMMARY:Holiday recess- New Year message DESCRIPTION:LIMBA’s focus has been on economic issues that center on infrastructure that will create efficiencies in commerce and does so with lees pollution than that which we are trying to replace. 2010 was a challenging year for most of us\, but there are a few items in any year that are worth acknowledging. ….. more  at   limba.net/news.html URL:https://limba.net/calendar/holiday-recess-new-year-message/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101224T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101224T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101224T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101224T050000Z UID:4442-1293148800-1293148800@limba.net SUMMARY:Holiday recess no Meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/holiday-recess-no-meeting-2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101217T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101217T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101217T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101217T050000Z UID:4435-1292544000-1292544000@limba.net SUMMARY:Dr Stanley\, President \, SUNY Stony Brook- "The Future" DESCRIPTION:This morning we were back in at the MacArthur Holiday Inn with a full room of members and friends ready to hear an update on what is happening at SBU\, one of Long Island’s most important institutions and its largest single-site employer A biomedical researcher by trade\, Dr. Stanley came to SBU eighteen months ago from Washington University in St. Louis\, a very different place than Long Island. Much of the time since his arrival has been spent getting to know Long Island\, and the state government that SBU is part of. Part of his getting to know the island has been learning of its special gifts and challenges. The university sees its core mission of education as a primary tool in helping to address those needs.\nThe large academic health center that SBU runs is an important part of maintaining quality of life on Long Island\, and the research performed at it helps drive innovation and economic development. Dr. Stanley reminded us that sponsored research from the NIH and NSF helps address the imbalanced flow of Federal tax dollars out of New York State\, and urged the audience to support that research in the budget.\nA manager at the top of his game\, Dr. Stanley demonstrated an encyclopedic knowledge of his business’s metrics\, letting loose with a torrent of statistics about the characteristics of the student body and SBUs ranking among its fellow research universities in North America. An institution with a $2.1 Billion dollar budget\, 3 Nobel Prize winners\, and a medical center that is visited almost 300\,000 times per year. SBU is an integral part of Long Island. Co-running Brookhaven National Lab with Battelle\, the university partners with other research institutions like the Cold Spring Harbor Lab. It also develops its own particular research centers and incubators\, such asLIHTI\, which spawned James Simons’ Renaissance Technologies\, CEWIT and the new Energy Center\, which will have the first Platinum LEED! certified building on Long Island.\nEnergy research should be a primary focus for the 53 year old institution. To accomplish this and cement SBU into the same group as UC Berkeley\, University of Michigan\, and University of North Carolina it will take the capture of federal dollars to perform that cutting edge research. The challenges to that mission are the current state budget situation and the need to grow the faculty ranks. Dr. Stanley had Bain consulting come in and assess the opportunities to trim costs\, but the real solution is to grow your way out of the situation.\nTo foster this robust growth will require growing tuition revenue to bring SBU from the lower levels of state schools to a more average level. This growth will fund more faculty\, support staff\, smaller classes\, more student support and more research and lab space. It would also enable the university to support more than three thousand additional students.\nAnother aspirational goal is to create a children’s hospital\, which doesn’t currently exist in Suffolk County. The chair of the children’s hospital task force\, hotelier John Tsunis was in attendance and excited about the project. State funding had dried up last year\, but through the community’s embrace of the project and realization of its importance\, the project is beginning to move forward. Good news looks to be on the horizon for the project.\nThe Q and A was extensive\, where we learned that SBU has gotten permission to create a department of Civil Engineering. The focus of most of the questions was how to keep SBU grads on Long Island and how to get them interested in Science\, Technology\, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programs. To that end\, the U wants to be an engine of economic opportunity for those grads\, and a partner with the K-12 system to foster that interest in STEM\, especially among girls and build a pipeline of local students that will end up attending SBU.\nOnce again it was another educational opportunity to be at LIMBA meeting with an excellent speaker and learn more about a Long Island institution that serves as a keystone of the local economy and a beacon for innovation. Please join us for these Friday morning sessions that finish the work week off on a high note and never fail to be of value.\nRecap by Craig Plunkett. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/dr-stanley-president-suny-stony-brook-the-future/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101210T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101210T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101210T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101210T050000Z UID:4432-1291939200-1291939200@limba.net SUMMARY:Annual Special breakfast with entertainment DESCRIPTION:Members and friends\, this morning we gathered to wish each other the best of  the holiday season and promote our optimism for the future.  Our  sponsors for the meeting were Ruskin Moscou Faltischek\, M & T Bank\, the RB Bender Group\, Greenman Pedersen\, Terry Townsend\, Covanta Energy\, the Long Island MacArthur Holiday Inn itself\, Zere Real Estate Services\, Marken Music and Long Island Business News. \nAfter the opening by Ernie\, LIBN’s own John Kominicki took the podium to deliver a wickedly entertaining adaptation of “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”.   \nA riotous gift opening/roast of Ernie Fazio was conducted by Michelle Zere and Cheryl poking fun at his well-known liberal bent.  Special gifts from Fidel Castro\, Che Guevara\, Hu Jintao and Vladimir Putin were bestowed on Comrad Ernie. \n\nViolinist Jim Graseck entertained us both solo and accompanying  Ernie as he crooned Christmas classics.  Ventriloquist Vince Dantone and his partner George returned with their most definitely non-PC  skewering of prominent audience members.  A good time was had by all. \nThe meeting was coverered for FiOS1 by Waldo Cabrera’s MyLITV.com and taped by Pro Image Studios. \nWe didn’t have a speaker with a topic\, but we most definitely learned something at LIMBA today\, about how thick some folks’ skins are\, and how generous the holiday spirit is among our members.   \nJoin us most Fridays to become a member of the LIMBA community and partake of the opportunity to learn more about Long Island\, the issues that it faces\, and meet the people addressing them. \n\n— \nCraig Plunkett URL:https://limba.net/calendar/annual-special-breakfast-with-entertainment/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101203T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101203T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101203T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101203T050000Z UID:4444-1291334400-1291334400@limba.net SUMMARY:The Shinnecock Indian Nation DESCRIPTION:This morning we held our LIMBA gathering in the beautifully arranged ballroom of the  MacArthur Holiday Inn to a near overflowing crowd.  Michelle Zere of Zere Real Estate was the main coordinating force behind one of the most significant meetings in LIMBA history today.  One of the oldest self-governing Native American tribes and the newest Federally recognized tribe came to us to discuss its culture\, history\, and plans around its newly recognized status.  As the meeting gathered\, we were treated to lively holiday music by Mark Seratoff of Marken Music. \nThe meeting opened with the pledge of allegiance to the US flag\, and the sovereign nation contributed a benediction by a reading of the Lord’s prayer accompanied with a native dance by artist and tribe member Edith Wharton Collins.  This was followed by a drum and dance performance from Gordell Wright (drum and vocals)\, Miss Teen Shinnecock Autumn Rose Williams\, a student at the Ross School\, and Miss Junior Teen Shinnecock\, Mattah Wright\, a Southampton Intermediate School student.  After their performance\, the ladies most elegantly introduced themselves in Algonquian and English. \nBefore the main remarks by Senior Trustee Lance Gumbs\, a ten-minute video was shown illustrating the tribe’s history\, some of its culture\, and its modern economic history\, including attempts to foster industry on the reservation\, from aquaculture to paint manufacture.  An account of its current main revenue source\, the annual labor day Powwow was included.  A highly professional production\, it provided a preface to Trustee Gumbs’s talk on Indian Gaming and can be viewed at the Nation’s website. \nTrustee Gumbs opened his talk by explaining the meaning of the word Shinnecock.  It is translated into English as “level land”.  As is well known\, this level land has not been a level playing field for Native Americans since 1640\, the first time the Shinnecock encountered European explorers entering Peconic Bay.  The nation has been an unknown quantity for the most part\, surviving in substandard conditions while surrounded by great wealth and hemmed into a 900 acre reservation. \nThe nation has survived by engaging in many businesses.  They were the earliest whalers and manufacturers of wampum currency.  The first mint on Long Island\, as it were.  In 1792\, New York State imposed a governing structure on the nation.  This Board of Trustees has had annual \nelections each year for 218 years\, making it one of the oldest self-governing tribes in the US.  Ironically\, after such a long documented history of governance\, the nation had to battle thirty-two years before finally being granted Federal recognition as an “official” Native\nAmerican tribe. \nWhat Federal recognition conveys is access to federal programs and the right to operate Indian gaming.  Trustee Gumbs had kind words for President Richard Nixon and his efforts to improve the lot of Native Americans\, providing them more access to resources and creating the Indian gaming industry.  This opened a line of discussion regarding many misconceptions about what gaming does for tribes and how it affects the surrounding communities. \nAcross the United States\, there are vast disparities in the physical resources that tribes control and have access to.  The Pine Ridge reservation encompasses 3 million acres\, compared to the Shinnecock’s 900.  After much analysis and many attempts at industrialization\, the space\, land and finance picture for the Shinnecock all point to Indian gaming as a way to improve the future of the tribe.  The 2000 census put 60% of the Shinnecock nation below the poverty level.  The recent rainouts of the Pow-wow\, the main source of revenue for the nation’s government\nand development programs\, focused the leadership on moving forward with gaming.  Trustee Gumbs and Trustee Barre Hamp went through an exhaustive presentation of the economic benefits and regulatory environment surrounding Indian gaming.  Indian gaming is also regulated very differently from the gambling environments of Las Vegas and Atlantic City.  The resources generated by Indian gaming are regulated as to how they can be used and distributed\, unlike the large corporately owned Vegas and AC casinos. \nA very strong case was made for the economic benefits of Indian gaming to both the Shinnecock and Long Island and New York State.  There were at least ten elected officials and staff members in attendance hearing this message at the town\, county and federal levels.  The concerns around massive traffic jams were addressed and alleviated\, and the nation’s commitment to place a gaming facility where it is welcome was heard.  Their determination to succeed in this effort was also firmly demonstrated and supported by the audience. \nOnce again it was another educational opportunity to be at LIMBA meeting with a chance to learn more about Long Island culture and our neighbors that have toiled in relative obscurity for many years. Being able to get beyond the short stories in the print media and sound bites on  television was invaluable.  Please join us for these Friday morning sessions that finish the work week off on a high note and never fail to be a great experience. \n \n  \nRecap by Craig Plunkett\,  Managing Director of CEDX Corporation\, \n  \n \n  \n \n  URL:https://limba.net/calendar/the-shinnecock-indian-nation/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101126T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101126T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101126T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101126T050000Z UID:4427-1290729600-1290729600@limba.net SUMMARY:Thanksgiving Friday no meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/thanksgiving-friday-no-meeting/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101119T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101119T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101119T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101119T050000Z UID:4421-1290124800-1290124800@limba.net SUMMARY:Mark Lesko\, Supv Town of Brookhaven DESCRIPTION:Supervisor Mark Lesko of Brookhaven Town was our speaker this morning. He began by citing the shortsightedness of stopping the Avalon proposal in Huntington. He believes good projects must be built\, but did not go into why it was stopped. Nor did he assign any blame. What was clear is that he didn’t want to see that kind of resistance in Brookhaven. \n Brookhaven had its’ budget debate last night. He tells us it was not a pretty sight\, but in the end a budget was passed. With a great deal of push-back on the unions\, the unions finally agreed that they too should share the pain and concessions were made. According to the supervisor the negotiations allowed them to move forward. \n The infrastructure needs sewers were discussed\, and while new sewers are not possible because of serious budget restraints\, there are creative ways of better using those sewers that presently exist. These assets are essential to support beneficial growth. \nLesko pointed out that advances have been made in his "Blight to Light" program where otherwise run down and degraded properties are used to create new\, and useable redevelopment. \nHe asked us to reframe the whole notion of development. We must adopt a wealth development mentality. Instead of an economy based on defense and healthcare\, (both of which are supported by tax dollars). We need to explore our ability to mine the research assets that we have. We have these assets in more abundance than most places\, and now we have to keep the fruits of that research here and create the next CA\, the next google\, the next whatever. Mark stated that other sections of the country are doing it and sometimes they are snatching technology from under our noses. (My words not his). We have the good stuff\, but we are not capitalizing. \nThe supervisor pointed out to us that the state controller has to invest huge sums of money to support the state pensions. Only 2% of that money is invested in ideas emanation from the Long Island Region. We must work on our entrepreneurial pace. If we do not\, we will create technology that will lured to other places. \nThe ripple effect has broad implications in every other economic sphere\, but real estate in particular. Homebuilders are another important economic segment. Historically entrepreneurial efforts create a lot of losers and a few winners\, but those few winners far outweigh all of the losers and often create unimaginable success. When the transistor was invented even the inventors were not sure of the applications. They certainly did not imagine the level of electronic sophistication that we have today\, the myriad of products\, and the enormous wealth that followed. \nLesko indicated to us that Long Island is not business friendly and that has got to change. Taxes and utility rates are a substantial part of our discouragement of business. Taxes are exacerbated by municipal pensions on every local level because of a pensions system that is called a define benefit plan. When we have a poorly performing stock market\, pension funds shrink. The shortfall must be made up in the only way it can be made up\, you guessed it\, raise the taxes. Atlas is about to shrug and enlightened leaders like Lesko know it. \nDuring the Q&A the questions were pointed and filled with concern. A few ideas were proffered and the supervisor was listening. One idea from Marie Zere was a business incubator that would embrace any viable sounding business rather than the technology specific model that we are used to. Mr. Lesko liked the idea. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/mark-lesko-supv-town-of-brookhaven/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101112T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101112T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101112T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101112T050000Z UID:4428-1289520000-1289520000@limba.net SUMMARY:Empire National Bank/Doug Manditch DESCRIPTION:Commercial Banking Update.  Meeting at Empire Headquarters. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/empire-national-bankdoug-manditch/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101105T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101105T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101105T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101105T040000Z UID:4431-1288915200-1288915200@limba.net SUMMARY:Phil Nolan. Town of Islip\, Supervisor DESCRIPTION:This morning we were back in our usual MacArthur Holiday Inn location to hear from Phil Nolan about the state of the Town of Islip in general\, and the role of Long Island MacArthur Airport (LIMA) in particular.  The affable\, animated supervisor has been a LIMBA speaker in the past and opened his talk with some reminiscences of meetings and events with the familiar faces in attendance. \nComing off of last night’s Town Board meeting where the new budget was approved\, Mr. Nolan gave us the high and lowlights of town finances during his administration.  To the good\, the town’s general fund tax rate remained flat from last year.  The recession has dried up ten to fifteen million dollars per year in revenue\, mostly from the decline in Mortgage Tax revenue over the past few years.  The supervisor has responded by downsizing the town government\, shrinking the number of employees by 25%\, mostly through attrition.  Last year however\, he did have to lay off thirty seven people\, one of the most personally difficult things that he has done in his career. \nLIMA has felt the recession also\, with passenger emplanements currently running at 1.9 million per year\, down from a peak of 2.3 million.  In spite of this\, it is still the crown jewel of the town and is a great driver of jobs and economic growth.  Mr. Nolan is very enthusiastic about the business community’s embrace of LIMA as a business facility.  He was also kind in his remarks on former supervisor Pete McGowan’s role in building the airport up during his predecessor’s tenure.   \nGreat praise was also in store for the current airport commissioner\, Theresa Rizzuto\, who has injected great energy and private sector business acumen into the airport’s current operations.  Ms. Rizzuto and her staff are working with all sectors of the aviation industry and all regions of the hemisphere in drumming up new business for the airport.   \nThe west side redevelopment of LIMA will be underway soon\, with $70MM of investment in the works to create new homes for the major FBOs at the airport\, Shelt-air\, Mid-Island Aviation\, and ExcelAire.  The supervisor claimed that each business jet based at LIMA generates 5 jobs and a million dollars per year in revenue.  Increasing that revenue\, especially on the commercial aviation and airline side\, is a tall order.  Sales cycles for these arrangements are complex and very long\, subject to a lot of pressure from outside factors.  The supervisor told the tale of Spirit Airlines who were done in almost overnight by the massive run up in oil prices. \nThe net of Mr. Nolan’s talk was that  the airport has been and will continue to be a prime driver of economic development for both the town and Long Island as a region.  With prudent fiscal management and smart management\, it has been transformed from a sleepy general aviation field to a modern facility that provides an excellent alternative to the Port Authority airports to the west. \nOnce again it was another educational opportunity to be at LIMBA meeting with an excellent speaker and learn more about a Long Island institution that served as one of the reasons for LIMBA’s founding.  Please join us for these Friday morning sessions that finish the work week off on a high note and never fail to be of value. \nPictured:Terri Townsend\, Ernie Fazio\, Supervisor Nolan\, Marie Zere URL:https://limba.net/calendar/phil-nolan-town-of-islip-supervisor/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20101029T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20101029T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T054845 CREATED:20101029T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20101029T040000Z UID:4424-1288310400-1288310400@limba.net SUMMARY:Kirk Kordeleski Bethpage Fed Credit Union. DESCRIPTION:This morning we held our LIMBA gathering in the offices of Bethpage Federal Credit Union (BFCU) and were educated about credit unions in general and BFCU in particular.  Kirk opened his talk with a primer about credit unions’ structure and history.  Credit unions have been one of the few success stories to come out of the financial crisis.They are not banking institutions; they are financial cooperatives that offer banking services.  Their charters are such that they were restricted from engaging in the risky investment strategies that proved to be so damaging to many banks and other financial institutions  This has resulted in BFCU having a strong capital base to work with as we emerge from the recession. \nOne of the interesting things about a credit union is that it cannot raise capital by selling equity as the large banks have been doing recently to recapitalize themselves.  Their capital comes from deposits and the success of the instruments and products that they\ninvest those deposits in.  Their boards are all volunteer\, and have evolved from being oriented around a single company’s employees to serving defined communities.  The founder of Filene’s department stores is credited with fostering legislation and founding\norganizations that lead to the popularization of credit unions for corporate employees to obtain reasonably priced financial services. \nBFCU was founded by Grumman employees in the early 40’s\, and grew through adding company associations with some of the larger employers on Long Island\, including its next door neighbor Cablevision and Computer Associates in Islandia.  Membership was also restricted to employees of those companies.  Subsequently\, its charter was changed to include all of Nassau and Suffolk counties so that anybody that lives\, works\, worships\, or regularly conducts business in Nassau and Suffolk can become a member.  BFCU has invested heavily in their community strategy since changing their charter and it is beginning to show results.  Their sponsorship of the Jones Beach Air Show both honors their Grumman roots and serves their expanded Long Island community. \nUnder Mr. Kordeleski’s guidance over the last ten years\, BFCU has grown from $950MM in deposits to nearly $4B and 180\,000 members.  It is the #1 credit union in the country measured by deposits.  It has twenty four branches with three more under construction.  BFCU plans to open three to six each year to grow eventually to fifty or sixty branches. \nValue\, service and convenience returned to the shareholders are are its guiding principles.  Since BFCU is a co-op\, they don’t have the same profit pressures that retail banks do.  As a result\, community involvement is a foundational principal.  BFCU is expanding its focus to help underserved communities\, placing branches in disadvantaged neighborhoods and communicating with a multicultural marketing strategy.  Convenience is emphasized with surcharge free access to ATMs in 7/11 stores\, Walgreens\, Costco and King Kullen.  The King Kullens in Commack and Levittown also host BFCU branches. \nThey are expanding into business services also.  The initial focus is on real estate\, but lending products and SBA supported lending is forthcoming.  Another strategy is to price their product to be number one or two in the markets that they serve\, whether that is interest\nrates earned on deposits or charged on loans.  These approaches have resulted in consistently high JD Power rankings for satisfaction. \nOnce again it was another educational opportunity to be at LIMBA meeting with an excellent speaker and learn more about an underappreciated Long Island institution that can serve us all. \nPlease join us for these Friday morning sessions that finish the work week off on a high note and never fail to be of value. \nRecap by Craig Plunkett. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/kirk-kordeleski-bethpage-fed-credit-union/ END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR