January 17, 2025

Dear Neighbors:

Alex Janow, a former Village Trustee and US Marine, is collecting magazines for our Veterans who are receiving care at the Northport VA hospital. This is a great cause and I hope you can help out. There is a box in the lobby of Village Hall where you can drop off publications for the Vets. I thank Alex for his volunteer efforts at the VA, and his service to both the Country and the Village.

The Village Board of Trustees will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, January 21st at 4pm for the purpose of certifying the unpaid taxes and a few other items:

• Draft Agenda

Village Hall will be closed on Monday, January 20th for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

It looks like we are in for several cold days and maybe a little snow. Have a great weekend, enjoy the football games and stay warm.

Best regards,
Mayor Dr. Gregory Letica

January 10, 2025

Dear Neighbors:

Our hearts, thoughts and prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones and their homes in the California fires. This is especially true for one of our Village residents who lost their home in the Pacific Palisades fire. We wish you all the best as you work to rebuild your lives.

I congratulate Village resident and Northport High School senior Dora Fields on being named a semifinalist in the Regeneron Science Talent Search. Dora extracted keratin from human hair (collected from hair salons) and created a novel compound to support root growth in hydroponic gardening. Unlike the materials that are presently used for this purpose, Dora's novel compound is both nontoxic and biodegradable. Dora is only one of 49 Long Island High School students who received this honor. It is a remarkable achievement. Well done Dora and best of luck as you continue your studies at Yale University next year!

The Asharoken Centennial Birthday/Save the Fireworks fundraiser and dinner dance will be held on Saturday, March 29th. Carole Casamassima has organized this wonderful evening for more than a decade and she expects that this year will be better than ever. The party, held at the Northport Yacht Club, will feature a three-course dinner, DJ music and dancing and awesome raffle prizes. It is a great night not to be missed so save the date. Invitations will be going out at the end of the month. The party always sells out so please RSVP in a timely fashion.

The NYS Comptroller's Office has completed its field work for the claims audit it is conducting on the Village. I anticipate that they will have a formal report coming out in the next several months. I look forward to their recommendations as they can only help Asharoken do an even better job for its residents.

In my ongoing effort to keep you informed of the events in the Village, here is my Mayor's Report from the January Board meeting:

• Mayor's Report: January 7, 2025

I wish you a nice weekend. Hopefully very little snow, less wind and warmer temps.
Mayor Dr. Gregory Letica

January 2, 2025

Dear Neighbors,

At the Board Meeting on Tuesday, January 7th, 2025, a public hearing will be held on a local law to allow the Board of Trustees to override the NY State 2% tax cap. This is the first step in the budget process that the Village has done the last thirteen years. Fortunately, it has never been needed. This legislation provides the Village with the financial flexibility to do what is right for Asharoken without the constraints of an arbitrary tax limit imposed by NY State. Passage of this law gives Asharoken a safety net should unexpected expenses arise or revenue shortfalls occur prior to finalizing the budget. Examples could include extreme snow removal cost, police overtime should we have a significant storm or other unanticipated fiscal events.

The Village is in the very earliest phases of creating the 2025-2026 budget. I would like to stress that adoption of the override law should not be interpreted or assumed to mean that the Village intends to have a tax increase above the 2% threshold. Just as the Village has to finalize the assessment roll, determine expense budgets and revenue streams, the proposed law is part of the Village's due diligence to prepare a realistic budget for the next fiscal year. It is in the best interest of the Village to adopt the law with the hope and expectation that it will not be needed.

Should a tax increase be required, the Board of Trustees will do its best to minimize it. This is even more of a priority with the cap on the deductibility of State and Local taxes on your federal income tax return. Asharoken has a long history of fiscal conservatism. During the last thirteen years when I have been Mayor the average tax increase has been approximately 1% and there was no increase in seven of those years. The Board and I will be striving for similar results for the new budget.

Here are the legal notice and the proposed local law for your review:

• Full Legal Notice
• Proposed Local Law #1 for 2025

You can submit comments via email to mglennon@asharokenny.org. Written comments will be read at the meeting and will be part of the permanent record of the public hearing.

Sincerely,
Mayor Dr. Gregory Letica

December 31, 2024

Dear Neighbors:

Linda and I would like to wish everyone a very happy and healthy New Year. 2025 is the Village's centennial year. The Village has a group of residents who are working on scheduling some events to celebrate this milestone. I will let you know as more information becomes available.

Matt Davies, a Village resident and award-winning editorial cartoonist, has created a logo for the centennial which will be flying at Village Hall. Several other people are also working on centennial flags that will be also displayed as soon as we receive them.

2024 was a very busy year in the Village and some of the highlights are summarized below.

2024 Year in Review

• PSEG installed an underground electrical cable between Bevin and North Creek Road. They also rewired the connection to Bevin Road in order to minimize power outages in the future.
• The Village hired GEI Consultants to create an engineering plan to reconstruct the seawall. This is funded by a $1,000,000 Hazard Mitigation Grant.
• The Asharoken Budget was adopted and stayed under the NYS tax cap for the 12th consecutive year. The NYS Comptroller awarded the Village the highest ranking, No Designation, in the annual municipal financial stress test.
• The Village repaved Bevin Road and Asharoken Avenue from Bevin to Lighthouse Road. This project was paid for by a DASNY grant, PSEG and CHIPS money. Asharoken Avenue was re-striped from Village Hall to Duck Island Lane.
• In one week in early April, the Village had a powerful nor'easter, was rocked by an earthquake, and had a 90% solar eclipse. In October a comet was visible and the Village was treated to a spectacular display of the northern lights.
• The Village adopted a new noise ordinance.
• The Village's Dock Ordinance was upheld by the NYS Court of Appeals.
• Trustees Mel Ettinger and Laura Burke were re-elected to their 7th terms.
• The Village website, run by Eric Maffei, celebrated its 16th anniversary.
• The 4th of July was a glorious day with awesome fireworks. The Village received an anonymous donation of $10,000 to support the fireworks for the upcoming year.
• In September, full time Officer Jeff Josephson accepted the Village's retirement incentive and resigned from the force after 40 years of service. In December he was rehired as a part-time officer.
• The Asharoken Garden Club celebrated its 100th anniversary.
• A total of 119 species of birds were seen in the Village during the year. New birds for the all-time Village list included White Ibis, Black Guillemot, Common Murre and Razorbill.

Wishing you a terrific 2025!
Mayor Dr. Gregory Letica

December 23, 2024

Dear Neighbors:

Linda and I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy Hanukkah! If the weather cooperates it might even be a white one at that.

Santa and Mrs. Claus's visit to the Village on the 15th was a terrific event. Village Hall was swarming with kids who could not wait to share their Christmas wishes with the Clauses. I would like to thank Village Clerk Michelle Glennon for doing a great job setting up the event. There is a nice slideshow of the visit here on the Village website.

Former full-time police officer Jeff Josephson was rehired as a part-time officer at the special BOT meeting last week. It's great to have Jeff back.

There will be no recycling pickup the next two Wednesdays because of the Christmas and New Year holidays. Recycling will resume on January 8th with cardboard and paper.

During the holiday weeks, Village Hall will be open only on Thursday the 26th and Tuesday the 31st. Normal business hours will resume on Thursday, January 2nd.

Wishing everybody
very Happy Holidays!
Mayor Dr. Gregory Letica