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:20070311T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20071104T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20080309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20081102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20090308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20091101T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080808T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080808T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080808T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080808T040000Z UID:4315-1218153600-1218153600@limba.net SUMMARY:Jovanna Little - Good Shepherd Hospice DESCRIPTION:Jovanna Little\, Good Shepherd Hospice’s development officer\, was our speaker this morning and she gave a wonderfully informative presentation of the mission of hospice. Originally hospice was the place where the dying indigent were cared for. The movement has evolved. Today it represents the services needed by anyone who is suffering from a terminal illness. Jovanna gave us an overview of what hospice is\, and is not. It is not a place to convalesce. It is not a place where curative methods are used. It is a place where those facing death can do so with the physical needs\, and the spiritual needs met while on this final journey. \nWith rare exceptions there is no curative therapy administered. Those curative methods may be used are\, healing bed sores to enhance the comfort of the sick. Palliative care is among the services provided\, They inform the family of the different phases that the patient may be going through as they progress to death. They answer questions that the family needs as they witness the waning health of the patient\, with much love and attention from the family and the care givers.  \nHelp in the preparation for death diminishes a lot of fear and doubt on the part of the sick\, and puts it into prospective for the family. There are no resuscitation orders that must be signed. Hospice wants the family and the afflicted to know that the terms of hospice care are for the final journey\, although that final journey can be long at times. There are funeral arrangements to be made\, and family is encouraged to go about these needs with the confidence that all of this is appropriate. \nGood Shepherd Hospice is completing a new unit for those people \, who for one reason or another\, cannot be cared for at home. They also will be using these facilities for bereavement service and providing a place to stay for family members. The facility is decidedly not hospital like in its’ appearance. Hardwood floors\, wall portraits\, fireplaces\, comfortable seating  and place for families to gather and share meals\, are all part of the mix. \nDeath is a part of life. It may be traumatic\, but much can be done to alleviate pain and fear. That is part of the mission of hospice and they do a great job. \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/jovanna-little-good-shepherd-hospice/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080801T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080801T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080801T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080801T040000Z UID:4314-1217548800-1217548800@limba.net SUMMARY:Kevin Trotman DESCRIPTION:This week our speaker was Kevin Trotman. Kevin represents the New York Islanders. \nThe focus of this morning’s talk was not so much about the Islanders as it was about the community involvement of the team and the facilities. These facilities are a part of the Lighthouse Development plan \n  \nAmong the items that Kevin spoke about was the redevelopment of the coliseum\, which will be accomplished during the off-season. He spoke about the sports Technology Center\, which in conjunction to Hofstra’s newly inaugurated medical school\, will develop a body of knowledge encompassing the science of sports performance\, as well as injury rehabilitation. \n  \nMr. Trotman gave a very brief overview of the Lighthouse efforts\, which will create 20\,000 permanent jobs and encompass 150 acres\, including all the various components of this very substantial project. \n  \nThe Islanders have embarked on a comprehensive program called Islanders Community Extension (ICE). ICE engages the community charities by lending support in terms of making faciulities available and by providing food and beverages for various events. There are ICE sponsored day camp programs as an example. \n  \nThen there is the Islanders Business Club\, which was developed by Execuleaders president Rich Kruse. Rich is presently on staff at the Islanders. The concept is very interesting. It is essentially a networking event open to Islander supporters\, which would include season ticket holders and other important members of the Islander family. An enterprise the size of a professional sports team has many needs that include anything from printing to facilities maintenence. In those gatherings the supporters learn how to do business with the Islanders and with each other. It’s a way of binding it’s supporters to the team and advancing the business goals of the same supporters. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/kevin-trotman/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080725T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080725T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080725T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080725T040000Z UID:4305-1216944000-1216944000@limba.net SUMMARY:Sean McGuinness\, Supt. Fire Island Nat. Seashore-Holiday Inn DESCRIPTION:Our speaker this week was Sean McGuinness\, Superintendent of the Fire Island National Seashore (FINS). This national park is like no other\, in that it encompasses whole independent communities. These communities are part of the mainland townships of Brookhaven and Islip\, yet they fall within the boundaries of the national park. FINS works closely with the various communities when they have needs that must be addressed\, but FINS takes a cooperative role rather than a primary role. As a result of this close cooperation with the towns and communities it has a very complicated role.  \nThe Sunken Forest is a part of the park that is accessible to visitors but there are no residential buildings. This very interesting section has a very dense canopy and even on the brightest days it is usually cool and relatively dark on the floor of the forest. There is walkway about 5 feet above the forest floor and visitors are not permitted to get of the walks. The wildlife in this section is very diverse and it is a favorite visiting spot for school outings. \nThere is also a wilderness area that allows no mechanized activity\, even the park service’s own chain saws are not permitted to be used. \nThe park service maintains this facility on minimum funding about $3.5 million per year. Concessions such as the restaurant at Watch Hill and the snack bar at Sailors Haven do contribute to the park’s revenues by paying a percentage of sales to the park as well as maintaining there own infrastructure. \nThe island and the adjacent mainland property in the Mastic area was originally owned by William Floyd\, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The Floyd home is in Mastic and it is also part of the FINS and it is open to the public as well. \nWhen Robert Moses was riding high he was arguably the most powerful man in the tri-state area\, having a mandate to build the region. He built bridges tunnels\, parks and numerous roadways. Some of his accomplishments were admirable\, but when he came to Fire Island he wanted to build a highway down the spine of the island. This would have destroyed the communities\, the Sunken Forest\, and the wilderness area. LIMBA’s founder Paul Townsend objected\, and built a coalition that was able to convince the US Congress to create the park. It was one of the few defeats that Moses was ever dealt. The Fire Island we have today is the result of that good leadership. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/sean-mcguinness-supt-fire-island-nat-seashore-holiday-inn/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080718T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080718T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080718T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080718T040000Z UID:4301-1216339200-1216339200@limba.net SUMMARY:Peter Caradonna - Green Architect -at LaQuinta DESCRIPTION:Our speaker this morning was Peter Caradonna. Peter has been an advocate and practicing architect in designing “green buildings” for many years. It appears from the general buzz that someone is listening. While Peter has something of a pioneer\, today there is a proliferation of people who are providers of green technology. \n  \nThe new building materials that are needed are more available\, and people who are designing have sources of supply that either did not exist\, or were expensive and in short supply. Good news for sure\, as we realize our old methods are simply unsustainable. \n  \nPeter pointed out the many benefits beyond the usual metrics of building costs\, and return on investment. The cost of employees is about 91% of most businesses operating expense. The cost of a building to house them is only 6% and the ongoing expense of the building is 2%. Better health and productivity of employees can be gained by putting slightly more into the building\, the small additional investment has a great return. We now have a body of case study to substantiate that claim. \n  \nIn the classrooms the net effect on student achievement is measurable and dramatic. Controlled testing have shown that properly designed classrooms can increase achievement scores by 20% \n  \nThe United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has set standards for building technology. This is a group that was formed to cross-pollinate the ideas of many innovators as well as to set performance standards. The USGBC has grown its’ membership considerably in recent years and is a nationwide network. The Leadership in Energy Design (LEED) program is their standard. All of the levels exceed local code\, which Peter describes as “just above the level where you may be arrested for doing something illegal”. The lowest LEED designation is no more costly than standard construction. The higher LEED designations are more costly to build\, but there are often tax breaks\, and utility grants\, that mitigate costs. With or without subsidies\, there is still a reasonable rate of return. With the ever-increasing cost of energy\, the case for better\, more efficient design is even more compelling. \n  \nMr. Caraddona went into the peripheral considerations of energy site planning. The “heat island” effects of a paved parking lot\, the planting of trees\, the natural treatment of waste water\, Using recycled products\, avoiding exotic imports\, planting naturally indigenous plants and trees all contribute to the stated goal of sustainability. \n  \nEducational institutions have taken on the responsibility of training the new energy practitioners. In particular is NYIT is forming a national building advisory council. Last year they built an energy efficient home that was deconstructed and reconstructed at an exposition held at the national mall in Washington DC. SUNY at Farmingdale has been training solar installers and adding related course to the curriculum\, and of course\, The Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at SUNY Stony Brook is presently being built. Much of this is happening through cooperation with the congressional office of Steve Israel. \n  \nPeter Caradonna’s understanding of the energy efficiency field and the related field of sustainability is very comprehensive\, and goes far beyond his stated discipline of architecture\, but that makes him more valuable because he sees the nuances that may be missed by another equally talented practitioner. We wish we could have had more time. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/peter-caradonna-green-architect-at-laquinta/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080711T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080711T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080711T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080711T040000Z UID:4302-1215734400-1215734400@limba.net SUMMARY:Marc Herbst\, Exec Dir Long Island Contractors Assoc DESCRIPTION:This morning our speaker was Marc Herbst\, Executive Director of the Long Island Contractors Association.  Mark’s backround is deeply rooted in infrastructure technology and is uniquely suited to his position. The contractors that he represents are mostly interested in transportation projects. \nMark made reference to the great empires of the past and the emphasis they had on infrastructure. The Romans were able to build great systems that supported the cities of the empire. These systems were useful in housing\, sanitation\, and defense. America\, and this region in particular\, has stopped building the great infrastructure projects that make living in a region with many people viable. He referred to this allocation of resources as investment. Due to the transit investment of past generations New York City has the most energy efficient transportation  of any state in the union\, but we stopped building these tunnels bridges\, and roads 40 years ago. We forgot what made us successful.  \nWe spoke about the revenue sources for transportation and the shortsightedness of a gas tax "holiday". Without those sources of revenue our situation will be infinitely worse. The first gas tax that was implemented was in the state of Oregon. It was a wildly popular tax because it was dedicated to building modern roads for the newly invented automobile.   \nMr Herbst pointed to other problems we are facing. A few years back we demanded that major construction should be done at night\, which on the surface seems like a reasonable idea. However costs of working nights are much higher than daytime operations. As an example he cited the high lumen lighting stands burn a lot of fuel. The workers are paid a 25% night differential. When paying union rates these costs are substantial. In addition to that the gas tax is a per gallon fee. As people adjust to using less fuel\, revenues drop. All of these factors and some I did not articulate will bankrupt the highway trust fund in one year. Clearly\, this is unacceptable\, and a new commitment to funding projects to make the region and the nation more efficient\, and therefore more competitive with the world will be needed. \nWe spoke briefly about the rail/truck inter modal facilities. The transfer stations will take hundreds of thousands of tractor trailers off the Long Island Expressway and the George Washington bridge\, which is the main conduit for these trucks.  So far they have not been built  because of local opposition and the total lack of leadership on the part of our elected officials. Too bad we can’t hire people in politics with a spine. \nPictured: Bill Miller\, Ernie Fazio\, and Mark Herbst URL:https://limba.net/calendar/marc-herbst-exec-dir-long-island-contractors-assoc/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080704T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080704T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080704T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080704T040000Z UID:4300-1215129600-1215129600@limba.net SUMMARY:July 4th Happy Birthday America - no LIMBA meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/july-4th-happy-birthday-america-no-limba-meeting/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080627T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080627T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080627T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080627T040000Z UID:4299-1214524800-1214524800@limba.net SUMMARY:BlueWater Wind - KC Sahl - at LaQuinta DESCRIPTION:This week our speaker  was KC Sahl of Blue Water Wind. When Mr. Sahl gave his presentation this morning he began with a film of the project that has been proposed off the coast of Delaware. In that region the public response was considerably different from the proposal that was advanced by Florida Power & light here on Long Island. Yes\, there were the usual questions about the affect the towers would have on migrating birds\, but those questions were answered years ago when the original wind farm was placed off the coast of Denmark. \nThe Blue Water presentation showed interviews with the Danes\, and the Danes treated any controversy about wind power as old\, and debunked news. "Birds are not stupid" said one Danish engineer\, "they simply avoid these towers or fly in straight lines between them." Then he went on to show migratory studies that proved his point. Delaware as of last week is a "done deal"\, when a power agreement was signed. There seems to be no controversy about marine life. Everything points to a positive marine life effect. These structures are natural havens for marine growth. mussels clams\, oysters and fin fish are abundant when structures are in place on the ocean floor. \nThe towers that are proposed by Blue Water for Long Island are twice as far away from shore than the original proposal called for\, and the generators will be larger\, at 3.6 megawatts each. Not only will this added distance make them difficult\, or impossible to see\, it puts them in an even more reliable wind field. I asked about the additional cost of the cabling\, which costs $1 million per mile. The answer is that three million extra dollars is not significant as a percentage of costs for a project of this size. \nThe generators for wind power are getting bigger\, and the question came up about putting in larger generators if they were developed while the process continued. KC said that not only would they shift to the new generators if developed during the process\, they would eventually add more towers if they were developed after the original installation. He also said that the cabling being used would be robust enough to accommodate the additional towers and/or er generators. \nThe builders are a $70billion global enterprise with many completed wind projects. They will build\, and maintain the towers\, and generators under a power agreement with LIPA. Since fuel never enters into the picture they can project 30 years out with stable costs. We know that is not something you can say about any generator that uses fuel\, regardless of what fuel you may be talking about.         \nWhen asked what would happen if there was an abundance of power when it was not needed\, as in the dead of night in the middle of winter\, Mr Sahl said the generators would be shut down. I then asked\, “Why not use the energy being produced to elecrolitically produce hydrogen and oxygen from water?” The answer\, perhaps we can. \nPictured: KC Sahl\, Blue Water Wind\, Ernie Fazio\, LIMBA Chairman URL:https://limba.net/calendar/bluewater-wind-kc-sahl-at-laquinta/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080620T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080620T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080620T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080620T040000Z UID:4296-1213920000-1213920000@limba.net SUMMARY:Ken Morelly\, President\, LIFT Held at LaQuinta DESCRIPTION:Ken Morelly\, President of LIFT\, Long Island Forum for Technology\, was  our speaker this morning\, and as promised\, gave us some insights. LIFT is engaged in research\, education and the coordination of efforts among various groups. Morelly stated that the great driver of technology is manufacturing. Using resources to leverage the manufacturing process is among the efforts that LIFT is engaged in. By concentrating on the manufacturing all the disciplines are spurred to perform. He emphasized the transformational nature of the way we educate our skilled engineers and others that are involved in manufacture. According to Morelly there must be the ability to move quickly into a new way of doing things and that open minds must be recognized\, not as a lack of focus but a requirement in a fast moving world. \nKen said something that surprised me. He said that Long Island is a product development community rather than a research community. Many of us think of Brookhaven National Labs and Cold Spring Harbor as centers of research\, and while that is true\, according to Morelly it is a much smaller component of our economy. On the other hand some companies concentrate on research and do very little manufacturing. He gave the example of Corning in upstate NY. \nWe must study the requirements of industry and gear education toward those needs. He then went into the subject of material development. That discussion began with aviation technology\, which\, early on\, was principally based on wood frames and canvas skins. With the advent of aluminum\, aviation was greatly advanced. Presently\, new composites comprise more and more of the aviation parts. These components are stronger and lighter. The first use of new composites were only 2% of the plane\, today we are approaching 50% in the latest aviation technology. \nMaterial research is on a roll.  Advanced Material Research under the direction of LIFT  will be linked to 16 educational units in New York. We spoke about the prospect of using materials that are used in automobile manufacture that are ten times stronger than steel\, and 1/3 the weight. The implications of this technology are enormous. Using these new materials would mean needing much smaller engines that use less fuel. Combining these lightweight cars with hybrid technology would make the fuel consumption even less. I think we could speculate that a mid sized car could conceivably get 80 miles to the gallon. \nWe finished by discussing Homeland Security. $25 million has been set aside for advanced homeland security systems. The many companies that will be participating will be housed at the center. The expectation is that the cross pollenation of ideas in this unit will create new systems that will eventually be deployed. \n\nPictured: Mitchell Pinckney\, US Chamber of Commerce\, Ken Morelly President of LIFT and Ernie Fazio\, LIMBA Chairman\n  URL:https://limba.net/calendar/ken-morelly-president-lift-held-at-laquinta/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080613T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080613T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080613T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080613T040000Z UID:4298-1213315200-1213315200@limba.net SUMMARY:The State of Healthcare with Panel of Experts- TBC @LaQuinta DESCRIPTION:This morning’s program was a panel discussion about health and wellness as well as the aspects of insurance. \nThe panel consisted of three experts with different perspective. Mike Mussler of Edwards Insurance\, Dr Mathew Lewis\, president of Health maintenance company and John (last name will be inserted later)  a health program administrator from St Joseph’s College \nMussler circumscribed some of the reasons health insurance is so expensive. Over use of available resources is one reason and that stems from the fact that the user is not accountable. MRI’s are often ordered simply because the plan will pay\, but that attitude adds to cost without any increase in patient well- being. He then gave several examples. \nWhen Dr. Lewis presented his opening remarks he stunned us with some statistics. According to the doctor 70% of all illness is preventable. Here is how he backed that up. Only 20% of health issues are attributable to genetics. Another 20% is caused by environmental factors\, and 10% is attributable to lack of access to care. The other 50% is attributable to lifestyle. In other words smoking\, obesity\, lack of exercise\, our stress\, and food choices play an enormous role in whether we are healthy or not. There is some very good news here as I see it. We can make a serious impact on our good health probabilities\, if we pay attention to those factors which are largely within our control. \nWhile the above suggests that we can lower costs\, there are other factors. The example of a doctor who spends 1/3 of his income on malpractice insurance drives up costs. We discussed the imposition of a medical compensation board. This would be similar to a workers compensation board. Under such a system all negative medical outcomes would be paid for under a formula. There would be no need to establish culpability under this system. Bad doctors would be ferreted out but the injured patient would be compensated.  This would be preferable to one family collecting many millions\, while another family with a similar case could receive very little\, or nothing. Usually the way things are settled now the lawyers receive 1/3 of the settlement. It would be interesting to see how that system could be developed\, but it may be a good idea. It was also pointed out that most states have limits on medical suits. \nAccording to John\, 40% of all deaths are preventable. He also pointed out that as premium costs increase participation decreases\, and that too drives up costs further as the insured class shrinks. The last staggering statistic is that we spend $3 trillion on health care in the US. That’s more than any country in the world on a per capita basis\, yet we rank 37th in good health outcomes. Obviously this system needs work. \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/the-state-of-healthcare-with-panel-of-experts-tbc-laquinta/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080606T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080606T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080606T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080606T040000Z UID:4295-1212710400-1212710400@limba.net SUMMARY:Lawrence Gray held at LaQuinta DESCRIPTION:Lawrence gray was a prosecutor that has had notable success prosecuting corrupt public officials in the city of New York and seems to have a keen sense of smell when dealing with official corruption. As our guest this morning\, Mr Gray was forthcoming and  disturbing. Disturbing if you think your public officials are always doing things in the best interests of the people they serve. He gave the example of how the highway departments in the various towns have enormous economic power. The highway department has the responsibility of buying goods and services\, such as asphalt concrete\, lumber and a number of other commodities. Strangely the contributors of the parties political campaigns also get the contracts to do business with the town. This is not confined to a specific town. It’s just the way the system operates\, and it is corrupt.  \nGray did get specific about the town of Smithtown only because that is the town in which he lives\, and he is most familiar with the antics that are practiced there. He was involved in exposing the malfeasance of a former highway superintendent\, Edmund Lynch. An investigation into Lynch uncovered by Gray showed the  direct correlations of money donated to bids let. Lynch was prosecuted for the various charges against him. \nAnd don’t rely on local newspapers\, according to Mr. Gray. These journals are the handmaiden to the corrupt politicos because they derive so much revenue from the legal notices that every town uses. One of the local newspapers is run by David Ambro\, and that newspaper has been rewarded handsomely and as a result\, they have been the chorus for what ever comes out of town hall. Having two newspapers does not seem to matter either. He calls them Pravda and Izvestia. \nIn listening to this\, I was trying to determine if it was the Republicans of whom he was most critical\, but as he spoke further\, he was clear that he was no kinder to the Democrats. "Corruption is to New York what racism is to Mississippi" and then he said that remark was unfair to Mississippi. Gray quoted John Mc Laughlin when he asked his panel one Sunday morning\, "What posses the most danger to America?" the answer "Official corruption\, bye bye" URL:https://limba.net/calendar/lawrence-gray-held-at-laquinta/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080530T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080530T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080530T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080530T040000Z UID:4294-1212105600-1212105600@limba.net SUMMARY:Gary Besemer\, Long Islanders for Educational Reform DESCRIPTION:This past Friday our speaker was Gary Bessemer. Mr Bessemer represents a group called Long Islanders for Educational Reform.  Mr Bessemer’s message pointed out some problems that are costing the taxpayers a lot more than our educational system should. His contention is that good stewardship has not been practiced. This was borne out by some of the things that we learned at the meeting.  \nWhen comparing the administration costs of similar upscale areas such as\, Montgomery County in Virginia we are very top heavy. Administration staffs are excessive and continue to grow. Several school superintendents earn more than the US president\, and there are well over 100 of these positions on Long Island\, whereas there is only one in Montgomery County. Newsday reporter\, John Hildebrand wrote about this earlier this year. \nWhile not bashing unions\, he did say that the educational unions call all the shots\, and politicians are fearful of bucking the tide. The result is whatever they want\, they get.  Including 4 to 6% COLA increases while many of the taxpayers are losing wages. Salaries of $100\,000 for teachers are commonplace\, but that’s not the whole problem. There is no correlation between salaries and teacher competence. In order to fire an obviously bad teacher we must be prepared to spend $300\,000 in legal fees. Any citizen that comes to a school board meeting to challenge anything\, is ignored and marginalized. \nSchool administrations have no fear\, because they know that only 14% of the eligible school district voters actually vote. When a school budget is voted down\, the school will take something away from the children\, such as band funding\, but scheduled increases in salaries happen despite a failed  budget. School budgets are often passed by people who have a direct relationship to the school\, that is; teachers administrators\, and other staff that live in the district \nGary also took on the costs of teaching autistic children\, $50\,000 per child. He did not object to the program’ but insisted that the local district should not be totally responsible its funding. He noted that autistic group homes set up in a district can stress a  budget and should be paid for by the state. \nNear the end of the Q&A period we discussed the reason for such low bvudget voting turnout. Most people agreed that they simply did not know when the budget was being voted. There was a suggestion that the school budget should be voted on in November. It would then be just another item to vote on while you were at the ballot box anyway. The audience seemed to like that idea\, but someone threw out the fact that the school budget comes up earlier in the year. So….? Change it! Change the budgets so they co-incides with the November election. Bessemer liked the idea. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/gary-besemer-long-islanders-for-educational-reform/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080529T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080529T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080529T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080529T040000Z UID:4297-1212019200-1212019200@limba.net SUMMARY:Karaoke Networking Evening DESCRIPTION:LIMBA will be holding its second Karaoke Networking evening. We will be holding it again at Dave & Busters in Islandia. We have asked the fabulous Anita Bloom to run the Karaoke and perform. She was great the last time and will be again. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/karaoke-networking-evening/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080523T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080523T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080523T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080523T040000Z UID:4291-1211500800-1211500800@limba.net SUMMARY:Memorial Day weekend -NO MEETING DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/memorial-day-weekend-no-meeting-2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080516T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080516T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080516T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080516T040000Z UID:4292-1210896000-1210896000@limba.net SUMMARY:Scott Passeser DESCRIPTION:Scott Passeser\, Director of Industrial Outreach for Stony Brook University’s Economic Development programs\, spoke at LIMBA this morning             \n Scott was able to provide some interesting stats on the needed workforce. While we are lamenting the existence of high paid manufacturing jobs there is no shortage of high tech jobs. There is\, in fact\, a dire need of high tech workers\, according to Passeser. There is a projected need of 5 million tech jobs nationwide\, but that does not take into account the industries that are transforming themselves into high tech enterprises. In on other words that is just the tip of the iceberg. \nIn Europe\, Scott told us\, the government intercedes when critical needs such as trained worker shortages occur. Philosophically\, we do not believe in that kind of help to the workforce. And the problems are getting worse. SUNY has always been a leader in graduating computer science majors. Yet today the number of computer science graduates is actually falling over the last three years. \nHe also informed us that the top 10 jobs that are emerging didn’t even exist 5 years ago. The fields of bio-tech and alternative energy have been around for a long time\, but they never employed more than a very small percentage of the population. Today they are among the fastest growing fields of endeavor and the schools cannot keep up with the needs of those industries. \nThe inability for America to produce the workers that are needed has caused the US to fall into the 19th ranking in broadband coverage. Even Luxemburg is ahead of the US on that score. That’s the bad news. The good news is that the only way to go is up.  \nScott spoke about the transforming effects that The Center for Excellence in Wireless Information Technology ( www.cewit.org)  and the Advanced Energy  and Research  Center at SUNY Stony Brook  (www.aertc.org) will bring. They are creating emerging technologies that are desperate for people to understand them and work in those fields.  Learn more about the technology efforts that are being conducted at SUNY using the links above URL:https://limba.net/calendar/scott-passeser/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080509T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080509T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080509T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080509T040000Z UID:4293-1210291200-1210291200@limba.net SUMMARY:Nassau County DA Kathleen Rice DESCRIPTION:This morning our speaker was Nassau County District Attorney\, Kathleen Rice. Kathleen has all the youthful enthusiasm we get from newly elected officials. She told us that she never remembers having political ambitions growing up\, and her ambition today is to serve two terms and leave. That’s a promise often made and rarely kept.  In her case however\, she may be intellectually honest about that.\, given that she has moved from one success to another in the past. \nShe spoke about the failure of law enforcement in the area of "white collar crime." According to Ms. Rice white collar crime is not some innocuous crime we can easily ignore. The effects on society are damaging to family lives of the victims. We don’t know how much family violence\, divorce\, and suicide are attributable to say\, a collapse of ENRON. We may not know exactly but we know there is wide spread pain. Rice said her office treats white collar crime as a serious problem\, and has addressed it appropriately. \nAnother big issue with this DA is DWI. Kathleen stated that the innocent victim has no control over the reckless behavior of a drunk driver. We can do all the right things and still be killed by an irresponsible drunk. She gave the example of the drunk driver that drove the wrong way on the Meadowbrook Parkway killing the little girl and the limo chauffeur. DA’s can do a lot in this area and she challenged the audience not to be inured to the consequences just because of the frequency. \n Guns\, drugs\, and gangs are a scourge to some communities. Rice’s answer that situation is the enlistment of the community while at the same time boosting police presence in the area. By this means the community residents are empowered by taking charge. Once there is a feeling that we are all in this together\, they can maintain the safety of the area even after the police presence subsides to normal patrols.  \nRelated to community involvement is the "weed and seed" program. Here the residents clean up a play area removing trash and debris and then plant flowers and shrubs to enhance an area. And because the community as a whole had so much invested\, there is a tendency to protect that rehabilitated playground. DA Rice says that the program has been quite successful. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/nassau-county-da-kathleen-rice/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080502T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080502T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080502T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080502T040000Z UID:4289-1209686400-1209686400@limba.net SUMMARY:Marie Zere and panel-Commercial Real Estate Perspective DESCRIPTION:This morning we had a panel discussion on real estate led by Marie Zere of Zere Real Estate. The other participants were Ted Sasso president of Renaissance Real Estate Service and Don Gallagher president of Gallagher Associates \nSasso began by telling us there is more office & commercial space on Long Island than in all of Boston\, making Long Island larger entity than most cities. With all that large space is in limited supply. A bright spot according to Sasso is that downtowns are flourishing. They are doing well for various reasons\, among them is the choice of lifestyle\, and energy conservation. From an owners perspective rents are slowly climbing\, but the net profits are being squeezed by costs. Financing is available\, but not at the asking prices of many properties. \nMarie Zere’s take on the real estate scene is that it is still a sellers market\, but the commercial will eventually suffer some of the problems being experienced in the residential sector. She went on to state that the higher end residential market in the Hampton’s experienced a 7% drop in prices recently\, while at the same time the luxury part of the spectrum\, $3million plus is still on the rise. She told us that small companies are reducing their need for space because some\, or all\, of their staff people can work electronically. With transportation fuels being what they are\, there is even more pressure on companies and individuals to work from their computers at home. Zere spoke about the concept of cond-ing a residence\, essentially making it a two family house. And she advocated for a more robust program of accessory apartments. \nWe learned that there is a lot of activity in small retail space\, medical buildings\, and restaurant settings. On the other hand deals are more tenuous and can easily fall apart in the 11th hour.  We also learned today that real estate comprises 40% of the Long Island economy.  \nGallagher\, who has enormous experience in IDA bonds\, said that the use of IDA Bonds are happening less and less. There are several factors for this\, among them is these are more complex dealings\, and since all financing is cheaper the IDA’s are less attractive. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/marie-zere-and-panel-commercial-real-estate-perspective/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080425T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080425T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080425T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080425T040000Z UID:4290-1209081600-1209081600@limba.net SUMMARY:Hon. Ed Romaine\, Suffolk County Legislator DESCRIPTION:Suffolk County legislator\, Ed Romaine was our speaker this morning. Mr. Romaine is adamant that the need for sewers must be recognized and addressed. There are issues where the the county executive and him differ\, but this is not one of them. Ed gave us some back-round on why county government has been gun shy about going ahead with sewers\, but despite any previous reluctance\, there is a consensus that we must move forward. \nAccording to Romaine new development is severely constrained without this infrastructure asset in place. He noted that developers were required to build small sewer systems on the premises of their projects over the years and the result is a hodgepodge of 182 sewer districts that do not connect with each other\, and are expensive to maintain. Romaine suggested that these sewer districts are an on-going expense and should be turned over to the county and maintained in a larger county owned system that the county can fully integrate\, and operate at a lower cost. Having a good system will allow for housing density instead of continuing the sprawl development we have seen in the past. That in turn will make affordable housing possible. \nMr Romaine pointed out that sales tax revenues are diminished\, and the county relies heavily on those taxes. There is a more stable property tax\, but that only accounts for $50 million in a budget of 2.3 Billion\, therefore sales taxes are of paramount importance. \nThe county has been on a pay-as-you-go basis. According to Romaine County Executive Levy is asking the legislature to approve borrowing to support the operating budget. Romaine isn’t buying it. Nor is he very happy with the proposal to capitalize the tobacco settlement monies.Under this scenario the county would give up about $25 million a year for a cash settlement. On the other hand he would be willing to securitize tax liens because that would be collecting money from the past and not eating into on-going future revenues. These issues are somewhat esoteric\, and sometimes difficult to understand\, but they are important. \nMr. Romaine was also critical of Mr. Levy’s proposed county land sale in Yaphank. Mostly because there has been no public discussion. In a discussion with me after the meeting Ed was critical of President Bush’s economic stimulus plan\, saying it would be much better to invest in infrastructure. Putting people to work solves myriad problems. Of course\, we at LIMBA\, have been saying that all along. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/hon-ed-romaine-suffolk-county-legislator/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080418T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080418T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080418T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080418T040000Z UID:4288-1208476800-1208476800@limba.net SUMMARY:Theresa Rizzuto\, MacArthur Airport manager DESCRIPTION:This morning we had the distinct pleasure of greeting the new Commissioner of Long Island MacArthur Airport (LIMA)\, Teresa Rizzuto. Her disarmingly modest and self-deprecating manner temporarily masks the display of a deep knowledge of the airline industry\, garnered through over two decades of experience. That experience started with slinging eighty pound bags as a ramp service worker for United Airlines (UAL) in 1992. In that day\, the petite powerhouse needed to lift twice as many bags as her male counterparts to be taken seriously. After having gained entry to the business through UAL’s diversity program\, her hard work and talent drove her up the ranks\, eventually supervising UAL’s operations at Newark Airport\, in charge of a $30 million dollar budget\, and a terminal that served six airlines. \nShe capped her stay at UAL with an assignment as hub manager at Dulles International in Washington DC\, leading a staff of 1\,600.  Taking some time off the flight line in 1993\, she stepped into her family’s orthotics business in Freeport in the role of Operations VP\, before bringing here fashionably-shod feet to LI MacArthur Airport in February of this year. Her talk opened with a recap of her experience and an expression of delight at coming back to Long Island after her stint in the Garden State\, followed up by a description of the economic importance that LIMA has to the Town of Islip and Long Island. The meat of her presentation concerned the plans that she and the Town have to revitalize the airport\, which has been underutilized in recent history. Some of her goals are adding carriers\, redeveloping the west side of the airport\, ( where I once took BOCES Airframe and Powerplant vocational courses\, longer ago than I care to remember)\, renovating the western portion of the main terminal\, adding wi-fi to the airport\, and marketing LIMA as a more convenient alternative to the Port Authority Airports. \nMs. Rizzuto also wants to accomplish these goals while keeping the airport the good neighbor that it is today. She emphasized the necessity of picking the right carriers to partner with\, that will be in it for the long haul\, and be a true partners\, where the destination compliments the carrier. \nOnce again\, the Q and A was lively\, and I will summarize and paraphrase here: \nQ: What are the largest kinds of aircraft that we could expect to see?  \nA: LIMA is capable of handling large aircraft such as the 767 and 777\, but it would probably not be economical for carriers to use those types at LIMA. Most likely\, we could see the mid range Airbuses\, and 757s\, and the forthcoming 787 Dreamliner. \nQ: What is keeping LIMA from becoming an International Airport?\nA: A chicken and egg problem. Customs needs to establish a facility here for clearance\, and needs the traffic to justify it\, and the carriers need the clearance facility. A novel approach would be to introduce flights to and from Pre-Clearance locations\, such as the US Virgin Islands\, Shannon Airport in\nIreland\, and several other locations. These possibilities are being researched. \nQ: What impact does the Port Authority’s marketing of Stewart Airport have on LIMA?\nA: Stewart’s marketing machine is in full gear\, and they have a longer runway\, having been a former Air Force Base. LIMA has better transportation infrastructure surrounding it\, such as the LIRR and is closer to NYC than Stewart. The Port Authority also has deeper pockets to promote and improve Stewart. \nQ: Why is it more expensive to fly out of LIMA?\nA: The carriers generally run smaller aircraft out of LIMA\, and as such have to spread expenses over fewer seats than those run out of the Port Authority airports. One of our audience members contributed the suggestion that the cheaper price of a NYC airport ticket is offset by the expense ( car service )\nand aggravation ( traffic ) of getting into a Port Authority airport\, and no real savings is realized. \nQ: What do you see for the airline industry in the near future?\nA: The industry is completing another life cycle\, where there will be a few carriers left after the mergers of Delta and Northwest\, plus she sees some other large carrier mergers in the offing. After that\, there will be another period\nwhere startups working the seams of the industry come alive and grow. \nMs. Rizzuto’s visit was warmly received by our group and we look forward to her fantastic attitude infusing the airport with a long overdue shot of enthusiasm and accomplishment. We look forward to her next visit\, where I’m sure she will regale us with tales of airport improvements\, and adventures in the airline industry. \nRecap by Craig Plunkett of Fire Island Wireless. \nPictured: Bill Miller\,  Teresa Rizzuto and Craig Plunkett URL:https://limba.net/calendar/theresa-rizzuto-macarthur-airport-manager/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080411T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080411T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080411T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080411T040000Z UID:4286-1207872000-1207872000@limba.net SUMMARY:Terrell Cass\, President WLIW Channel 21 DESCRIPTION:Our invited speaker this morning was Terrel Cass\, the president and General Manager of WLIW channel 21. He is a dyed-in-the-wool television executive with a long and deep backround in Public Television. In his stewardship role at WLIW he has presided over a remarkable change in technology and production capabilities. WLIW is the third most watched public television station in the nation\, and produces many original programs for distribution to other public stations. \nHe began by discussing the diversity of media that is available to us. And while the diversity of delivering information has expanded dramatically\, we have sufferred a paucity of good content. He panned internet sites like You-tube and Myspace as well as those dumb-ass (my words) "reality" shows. Showing people eating worms were not among his favorites. An audience volunteered that daytime soaps be included. Terrel said soaps are a "cultural oasis" compared to what’s out there. \nCass then went on to speak about the political landscape changing in the ways that issues are brought to the people and how money is raised. He implied that there were pluses and minuses in modern day media as it relates to politics. \nHis societal concerns were discussed and he had little good to say about the trend\, while conceding that programs like "John Adams" were excellent. The News Hour" with Jim Lehrer is a good example of in-depth news. This model has been emulated by programs like 20/20 but the usual good reporting on news has been relagated to cheap entertainment because good reporting doesn’t come cheap. WLIW also owns the US distribution rights to BBC World News. BBC offers Americans a better window on the world in that it is not American-centric. Lastly\, we discussed the ethic series productions and the productions of "Visions" A series that has taken us to many places in the world with the most sophisticated and breathtaking aerial photography URL:https://limba.net/calendar/terrell-cass-president-wliw-channel-21/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080404T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080404T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080404T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080404T040000Z UID:4287-1207267200-1207267200@limba.net SUMMARY:Ken Morelly\, President\, LIFT DESCRIPTION:The Long Island Forum for Technology (LIFT) has been a strong advocate and facilitator for the benefit of technology driven companies on Long Island. There are many services available to these tech companies under the guidance of LIFT professionals. Join us at LIMBA and hear from President Morelly of LIFT\, and learn more. \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/ken-morelly-president-lift/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080328T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080328T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080328T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080328T040000Z UID:4283-1206662400-1206662400@limba.net SUMMARY:Irwin Kellner PhD. What's Next? DESCRIPTION:Dr Kellner is always an interesting participant at LIMBA. We get good insights on the local and national economy. Please join us. \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/irwin-kellner-phd-whats-next/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080321T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080321T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080321T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080321T040000Z UID:4284-1206057600-1206057600@limba.net SUMMARY:Good Friday No Meeting DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/good-friday-no-meeting-4/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080314T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080314T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080314T040000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080314T040000Z UID:4281-1205452800-1205452800@limba.net SUMMARY:Strategic Alliances with SUNY institutions-LarryWeber PhD DESCRIPTION:This morning our speaker was  Lawrence Weber PhD.  Recently Larry assumed a position at SUNY Stony Brook in business development. The topic was "Strategic Alliances with Sony Brook University." \nThe university created a unit that forms cooperative situations with innovators and established businesses to develop marketable ideas. The premise is that most of the people that have ideas may be missing an important ingredient. Sometimes it is research money\, or staffing\, or sophisticated equipment needed to carry out the research that is needed to develop a product or procedure. \nAfter discussing the needs and the terms of cooperation the university will enter into a written agreement with the innovator. All the questions of patent ownership\, responsibilities of the parties\, and other concerns should come up at that point. Usually the university retains a portion of the ownership. The royalties are then re-fed back to the university and used to further new research. Faculty and graduate students work hand in hand with the innovator \nThere are a number of successful joint ventures that have resulted in millions of dollars coming back to the university\, but most of those millions are the result of the success of one drug. In the meantime there are many efforts that came to fruition in terms of a granted patent. However they\, for one reason or another never resulted in any earnings. These patents may be useful to someone else if that person can see the value. If that is the case\, they can be\, by agreement\, be released to another person or company. These patents can be viewed by the public on line. If you see a marketable use for any of these patents\, the university will gladly enter into an agreement to release them. \nThis unit is a powerful engine for research and development on Long Island and has been under the leadership of Dr. Yacov Shamash since its inception. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/strategic-alliances-with-suny-institutions-larryweber-phd/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080307T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080307T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080307T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080307T050000Z UID:4280-1204848000-1204848000@limba.net SUMMARY:Steve Levy- County Executive DESCRIPTION:Members and friends:  \nFriday our speaker was Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy. Mr. Levy\, as most of you know\, is a very engaging speaker. He began by reviewing the financing of the budget and pointed out that a relatively large decrease in county taxes makes a small impact on the taxes we pay\, because most of our taxes are absorbed by the school districts.\n \nHaving made that point\, he stressed the need to reduce or contain taxes is important on every level. His efforts at redeploying the police from desk jobs to street jobs put more police in effective crime fighting duties and fewer desk assignments. The desk assignments were filled with less critically skilled civilians that drew commensurately lower pay\n \nServices vs. taxes is the balance that an executive must constantly make. Should we retain or expand services at the cost of raising taxes? IASked Levy. n the days of Long Island’s economic expansion that question was less of a dilemma. With a wildly expanding economy we can and did expand services\, and that money was well spent.\, according to Levy. Today we have circumstances that demand that we spend the taxpayers money wisely. We must not make living here so expensive that we lose our tax base and further exacerbate the problem. “Don’t sacrifice the good for the sake of the (unachievable) perfect” was his closing remark on that topic.\n \nHe gave the example of having the County operate a nursing home. According to Levy the County loses $11 Million per year on that nursing home. Mr. Levy says that the private sector can do that same job cheaper even if it 100% funded by taxpayer money.\n \nProviding major infrastructure is now more difficult because in the past state and federal monies provided 87% of the funding\, today it is zero. Bubkis\, if you will (bubkis has been described as a big zero with rim removed).\n \n\nOptimistically\, as Steve was winding down his talk\, he cited our capacity to be the energy-centric region of the country\, creating thousands of jobs in the emerging green energy industry. Coupling the various research and learning centers such as Brookhaven Labs\, SUNY Stony Brook\, and Cold Spring Harbor Labs\, with major industrial entities\, such as Keyspan/National Grid\, we can win the global battle for energy independence and create those high paying jobs. He also had similar remarks about the developments in wireless communications that are being advanced at Stony Brook \nErnie Fazio URL:https://limba.net/calendar/steve-levy-county-executive-2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080229T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080229T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080229T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080229T050000Z UID:4285-1204243200-1204243200@limba.net SUMMARY:Polemeni Tunnel Discussion- Vincent Polemeni DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/polemeni-tunnel-discussion-vincent-polemeni/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080222T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080222T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080222T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080222T050000Z UID:4279-1203638400-1203638400@limba.net SUMMARY:Kevin Law\, Chairman LIPA -Repowering and other issues DESCRIPTION:This morning’s meeting was blessed with snow. I say blessed because we had a  filled room\, and many people showed up "out of the blue". Accommodating those people and every person who indicated he or she would come\, would not have been possible. Our speaker was Kevin Law\, the recently appointed President and CEO of LIPA.\n\nMr. Law began by giving the audience an overview of what LIPA does and explained that the poles and distribution facilities are owned by LIPA\, but the generating facilities are not. To add further to the confusion the LIPA trucks are manned by Keyspan/Grid employees\, the trucks belong to LIPA\, but the employees wear LIPA helmets. Ya got it? It’s pretty confusing.\n \nThen Kevin explained the structure of the cost of power. 55% of your bill is dedicated to paying for the fuel that is used to produce electric. 13% is used to pay interest on the debt\, and another 11% is used to pay taxes or payments in lieu of taxes. Taxes on a municipal power company are unusual. Other municipal power companies do not pay taxes\, but to mollify the effected local school districts\, these concessions were made.\n\nAs difficult as may be to accept\, much of our LIPA bills are immutable. The good news is that while some municipal bonds are being hit with high interest rates at this time\, LIPA has not experienced this because of the way the contracts were written.\nRepowering is an agenda item for LIMBA because modern plants pollute a lot less while producing more power. But according to Mr. Law repowering is a very expensive proposition and at best\, could only be achieve incrementally.\n\nGoing forward LIPA will investigate conservation measures that may include time of day metering. Conservation is counter-intuitive to a utility company\, so rates may actually increase while total billing may fall. As an example a consumer who lowers his consumption by 50%\, may lower his billing by only 30%. That would bode well for the consumer without undermining the financial structure of the utility.\n \nAccording to Law\, alternative energy sources will be investigated with renewed vigor\, solar\, wind\, geothermal\, bio-fuels are all worthy of a new look.\n \nLastly\, Kevin stated that the gifts to charity are not condoned by state law\, and they will be discontinued without regard to the merit of these organizations. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/kevin-law-chairman-lipa-repowering-and-other-issues/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080215T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080215T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080215T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080215T050000Z UID:4277-1203033600-1203033600@limba.net SUMMARY:Presidents Day weekend NO MEETING DESCRIPTION: URL:https://limba.net/calendar/presidents-day-weekend-no-meeting-3/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080208T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080208T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080208T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080208T050000Z UID:4278-1202428800-1202428800@limba.net SUMMARY:James Moore “Redevelopment Challenges and Opportunities”. DESCRIPTION:This morning our speaker was Dr James Moore of HDR Engineering. HDR is a nationwide firm that employs 6700 people throughout the country and will open an office on Long Island in a few weeks.\n \nThe nature of their work is large scale projects\, and they encompass buildings\, roads\, and rail systems.\nDr Moore began with the statement that estimated cost of bringing present infrastructure into class A  status is $2 trillion. Yes\, that’s trillion. In addition there are numerous opportunities for urban rebuilding. Moore stated that we have seen numerous pictures of visionary refurbishing and there is a long divide between pictures and reality. The reason according to Moore is the conventional zoning we have adopted will not let us get there. A whole new systemic approach is needed to make real progress.\n \nDr Moore explained in some detail the problems of zoning. We build parking lots near office buildings and then mandate that no housing can be built in the same relative space. If we had multi dwelling housing across from the office buildings the parking spaces would be used by the residents when the business day was closed and the residents returned to their homes. In addition any such mixed use campus must have transit interwoven into the fabric of the community. Sewers are also needed for a comprehensive plan.\n \nIt’s not that we are overbuilt\, but that we are dumbly built (my words\, not his). I brought up to Dr Moore an experience I had in London in 1985. While on a tour bus we passed a cemetery where 65\,000 people who perished during the plague were buried. I said to the tour guide "while 65\,000 people is a large number in relative terms with the size of London\, it does not seem like a large proportion of the population." He informed  me that there were only 100\,000 people in London at that time. London was "overcrowded"\, but overcrowding is relative to the infrastructure you have to support the population.\n \nOur present land use policies makes our present day Long Island overcrowded. There are ample redesign possibilities that would render being stuck in traffic a most unusual occurrence. Unusual because either a car was not needed to get to where you want to go\, as in downtown living such as Northport or Great Neck or easy and frequent inner city transit as we have in New York City.\n \nThe picture painted by James Moore was very encouraging. He showed numerous examples of redevelopment schemes that worked in other cities.  He also warned that one size does not fit all. Each situation needs to be looked at considering its unique geography\, and desired outcomes.\n \nLong Islanders who wish to maintain open space\, need to plan the space they want to use more thoughtfully.\nIn that way we will have ample living spaces\, mobility\, and easy access to entertainment and commercial centers. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/james-moore-redevelopment-challenges-and-opportunities/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080201T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080201T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080201T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080201T050000Z UID:4282-1201824000-1201824000@limba.net SUMMARY:Open Round Table Discussion DESCRIPTION:Members and friends\n\nOur meeting this morning was a round table discussion that was as interesting as any meeting we have had.   We reviewed  the three active LIMBA agenda items\, namely;\n \n    Repowering Electric Generating Plants\n    Increased Rail Freight\n    New Ferry Service to CT\n \nThe public conversation on REPOWERING has changed substantially. Instead of discrediting the idea\, LIPA is going to study repowering and publish a report on feasibility. The Barrett facility will in all likelihood be repowered. Other facilities such as Northport and Port Jefferson pose different problems\, but these plants also could\, with proper planning\, be repowered according to former LILCO VP\, Matt Cordaro. The discussion continued encompassing cost\, reduced emission\, and fuel flexibility. In that context Broadwater came into the conversation. Dr Cordaro stated that he knew the technology of liquefied natural gas and considered it safe. He then posed the question "If the environmental people want the plants repowered using natural gas\, where do we expect to get that gas?\n \nINCREASED RAIL FREIGHT- With less than 2% of our freight coming into Long Island on rail\, we are essentially left out of the national system. According to rail freight company\, Fred Krebs\, we could raise that percentage to 10% and remove 325\,000 tractor trailers from our roads each year. This improved service does not rely on the planned 3rd track on the main line\, but it does require some work on track and bridge infrastructure amounting to about $60 million. This is not a daunting amount\, but our public officials have failed to secure those funds. Another requirement is a rail/truck transload facility such as the one that is planned for Brentwood. There is local opposition to the transload operation\, but that can be overcome if an access road can be built to service it. The price tag on that item is $104 million. Costly? Yes\, but is it going to get cheaper if we wait? I don’t think so. The politicians need to show some leadership here and get it done.\n \nNEW FERRIES TO CT. The LIMBA proposed ferry route from Shoreham to New Haven has caught the attention of the people on the North Fork. Those people object to the heavy traffic on their narrow\, over-trafficked country road leading to the Orient Point Ferry. The traffic that will feed the proposed Shoreham  ferry point will be isolated from residences and business. They have vowed to press for the establishing a new ferry system to relieve what is a legitimate problem. The new ferry system will use new surface effect technology that is not presently being used anywhere but the US Navy. This will be a high speed\, high volume\, ferry technology that will be at least twice as energy efficient as present equipment. Nobody wants to be inconvenienced and I don’t blame them. The providers of the new service must be able to provide a service that minimizes or eliminates perceived problems\, and we believe they have. The ferry proposal is available in the library on the website. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/open-round-table-discussion/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20080125T000000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20080125T000000 DTSTAMP:20260423T020252 CREATED:20080125T050000Z LAST-MODIFIED:20080125T050000Z UID:4276-1201219200-1201219200@limba.net SUMMARY:John M. Kennedy\, Suffolk County Legislator DESCRIPTION:Suffolk County Legislator John Kennedy spoke at LIMBA this morning. The topic was expanding the sewers systems in the county. Suffolk County aborted its efforts to create a comprehensive sewer system when the Southwest Sewer district was completed during the 70’s. There were many problems when that system was built and politicians were circumspect about opening up that can of worms. Now we are at an impasse\, and we recognize the need to expand sewers. \nToday we are dealing with the restrictions on growth that not having sewers imposes on us. It is not that sewers were not built since that time\, but the sewers that were built were small. Now we have 22 sewer districts in Suffolk that do not connect to each other. \nThese systems have failed to meet the needs of commerce and industry. The limitations also dictate how housing can be constructed. Building houses on 2 acre plots\, 1/2 acre plots\, or even 1/4 plots\, does not get you to the point where you can have "affordable housing" because the real estate is so valuable. Without adequate sewers we cannot achieve clustered\, and therefore\, affordable housing. \nAccording to Mr. Kennedy we have to plan to tie those existing sewer districts together\, upgrading them to tertiary status\, and expanding them. This could be achieved under the auspices of a sewer authority\, similar to how the Suffolk County Water Authority is organized. \nThe looming question we have now is\, how do we finance an ambitious sewer plan? When the Southwest Sewer District was built\, more than 90% was paid by the state and federal government. Presently we do not have that largess on which to rely. URL:https://limba.net/calendar/john-m-kennedy-suffolk-county-legislator/ END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR