School Board Opposes Transit-Oriented District

The Huntington Union Free School District's Board of Education voted unanimously Monday night to oppose the Transit-Oriented District (TOD) rezoning proposal for an area near the Huntington Long Island Rail Road station, saying that the impact on the schools was unclear. Dozens of the more than 100 people attending the school board meeting rose to their feet and burst into applause and cheers at the vote.

Board member Richard McGrath offered the motion to shift from the board's earlier position this year, which members characterized as neutral, saying the plan was too open-ended because there was no guarantee of how zoning changes would affect future projects in the TOD.

But underlying his remarks, as well as those of other board members and many in the audience, was a sense of grievance that Huntington Station had become the dumping ground for the town's problems.

Board president William Dwyer said that one of his main concerns was "why just Huntington Station?" when the transit plan was being drawn up, and McGrath said he wanted to know why the idea "started with Huntington Station and not Greenlawn or Cold Spring Harbor."

Earlier this year, the board had voted to accept $1.5 million to offset an expected increase in children under the Avalon Huntington Station plan, which would allow for 490 housing units to be built. The Town Board is scheduled to vote Sept. 21 on whether to allow the rezoning of  a 26.2-acre parcel of land. Lobbying on both sides of the issue has been intense.

Several people who addressed the board alternated between thanking members for the vote and criticizing the plan.

"Tell AvalonBay to go to hell!" said Matt Harris, who lives near the area proposed for rezoning. He added that he has petitions showing that his neighbors oppose the plan and that they are proof that the Town Board needs a super-majority vote to approve the rezoning.

Robert Conte told the board that he was "disgusted by Town Hall, which continues to tell us what's good for us" in Huntington Station. Conte, whose brother is State Assemblyman James Conte, noted that his family's roots run deep in Huntington Station and that the board's vote "is very much appreciated" by people in the community.

The board also heard a report from the district's Long Range Facilities Planning Committee, which has been analyzing the district's school needs. District architect Roger Smith said the proposals would cost from $8 million to $32 million. The committee of 32 administrators, teachers, parents and others started with 41 options to consider earlier this summer and have winnowed the list to three major ideas, all offering:

• Four primary schools
• One intermediate school, configured either as Woodhull with grades 4-5 and Jack Abrams with grade 6 or Abrams with grades 4-5 and Woodhull grade 6
• Finley remains as a middle school
• No new buildings

The committee had planned its final meeting for Sept. 21 but said it was postponed because of the Town Board vote on AvalonBay.

One speaker, Donna Blair, told the board that it needed to reopen discussion of the closure of Jack Abrams, a controversial move the board took this summer because of fears about crime in the area near the school.

"There has not been one [agenda] item about what needs to be done to reopen Jack Abrams," Blair said. "You owe it to the people to explain [the next step.]"

Several board members concurred and said the topic would be addressed at a future board meeting.