Politics & Government

Cuomo Details Budget, Coliseum Workers Filing Asbestos Lawsuits

A weekly look-in at the news of Nassau County.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo this week detailed the more than $4.7 billion included in the 2013-14 budget to support public transportation systems across New York State.

To maintain services and help protect straphangers, Cuomo and the legislature increased support for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) by a 9.2 percent increase – more than $358 million – bringing the total MTA budget to $4.2 billion. The budget also includes more than $454 million to support Upstate and Downstate public transportation networks, in addition to millions of dollars in new capital grants.

The budget also continues support for the MTA capital program, reauthorizing spending for $770 million in state capital funding that was committed for the MTA 2010-14 capital program and approximately $570 million for the continued spend-out of the MTA's 2005-09 capital program from reappropriations of the Rebuild and Renew New York Bond Act of 2005.

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The Budget also includes $21 million in new funding, including $16 million in grants and an additional $5 million in NY Works Capital Assistance, to support Downstate Suburban and Upstate public transportation capital investments (Non-MTA). Those grants are outlined below:

Transit System/Sponsor $16M Grants $5M NY Works Capital Assistance Total New Funding Long Beach $123,164 $38,489 $161,652 Nassau County $706,303 $220,720 $927,023

Coliseum Workers Filing Asbestos Lawsuits

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More than 100 workers from the Nassau Coliseum will be filing lawsuits in the coming weeks regarding asbestos exposure while working at the Uniondale arena.

Newsday [paid link] reported:

The plaintiffs, including a widow of a heating and air conditioning technician who filed a wrongful death action, will seek $500 million to $1 billion from 21 defendants including Nassau County, the New York Islanders and facility manager SMG, said attorney Joseph Dell, who is handling the cases.

Of the more than 100 plaintiffs, roughly 20 percent have been diagnosed with "asbestos-related illnesses," Newsday reported.

According to Asbestos.com, "an exposure to asbestos can lead to a variety of respiratory illnesses, including forms of mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis. There is no cure for mesothelioma."

Sandy-Damaged Photos Can Be Saved

Victims of Hurricane Sandy can gather their photos damaged in the October storm and take them to a free scanning event at Nassau Community College (NCC) on April 7, where the images will be scanned, digitally retouched and preserved for their owners.

The event, a team effort between the NCC Art Department and CARE for Sandy (Cherished Album Restoration Effort) will be open to NCC staff, faculty, students and Nassau County residents. Each individual or family will be eligible to bring up to 50 photos to be scanned. Once they have been scanned they will be posted on the CARE for Sandy website to be “adopted” by approved retouching volunteers. Once digitally restored, the high-resolution images will be provided to the photo’s owners. The original photos will be returned after they are scanned.

To participate in the event, photos must be separated, reasonably clean and dry. Images that are wet cannot be scanned and slides, negatives and VHS tapes are not being accepted at this time.The process will take several months to complete.

All guests will need to sign in on the first floor of the G Building at the NCC campus, One Education Drive in Garden City On April 7, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. NCC IDs are required. All other guests will be required to sign a waiver to participate. Scanning will take place in the Photo Lab/Rm GC 23 (in the basement).

Firematic Awards Ceremony Set for April 17

The Nassau County Fire Commission Annual Firematic Awards Ceremony will be held April 17.

The awards will be distributed  beginning at 8 p.m. in the Chambers of the
Nassau County Legislature, located at 1550 Franklin Ave., Mineola.

The ceremony will consist of presentations to Nassau County Fire Departments and individual “Medals of Valor” to first responders who have acted above and beyond the call of duty in protecting the residents of Nassau County over the past firematic year.

There will also be special First Responder presentations in connection with the response to Superstorm Sandy

2013 RXR Long Island Marathon Weekend Announced

Nassau County has announced the 2013 RXR Long Island Marathon Weekend, which will be held May 3-5.

The races begin on May 4, with the 1-mile run starting at 8 a.m. Shortly thereafter, the 5K commences at 8:30 a.m. Both the 1-mile and the 5K races start on Charles Lindbergh Boulevard and finish at Mitchel Athletic Complex. The last race of the day, The Kids Fun Run, will begin at 10:30 a.m. on the Mitchel track.

On May 5, the marathon, half marathon and 10K will take place. All participants will assemble at the starting line on Charles Lindbergh Boulevard for an 8 a.m. start.

Advanced registration is available by mail until April 15 or online until April 28. Costs are as follows: Full Marathon $67; Half Marathon $57; 10K $37; 5K $32; 1-mile $19. Late registration will be accepted on May 3-4 during the Marathon Expo for an additional fee. For any additional information or to register, please visit www.thelimarathon.co, or call (516) 986-5537.


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