What’s happening around East Meadow?

The Council of East Meadow Community Organizations, best known by the acronym, CEMCO, held its first meeting of 2024 on Feb. 20 at the East Meadow Public Library. On the agenda were several key items affecting the East Meadow community, as well as information pertaining to upcoming plans and events in the coming months.

“Thank you all so much for coming, it’s been a while since we’ve held a general meeting,” CEMCO President Joe Parisi said. “We have a number of things that we would like to inform the community about.” 

Following a treasurers report, Parisi turned the meeting over to Norma Gonsalves who leads CEMCO’s Crime Watch. The Crime Watch is a subcommittee of the organization that meets with problem-oriented police officers in the precincts that encompass East Meadow, as well as other key leaders in the community.

The East Meadow Union Free School District administration has long been involved in these meetings, but under previous administration, Crime Watch fell out of touch with district officials. Gonsalves was happy to report that under Kenneth Rosner’s leadership, the superintendent of the district since last September, the relationship between Crime Watch and the schools was restored.

“We have everybody back to the table,” she said. “I am talking about the principal of middle schools and high schools, thanks to the new superintendent Ken Rosner. When I first met him, I said to him ‘You got to do us a favor. We want the principals of the schools at the table.’ Because there are things they see and they bring to our attention, and vice versa.”

On CEMCO’s Facebook page, Gonsalves posts a recap of all Crime Watch meetings, in an effort to share with the public what was discussed, and what they should be looking out for.

Agenda items included discussions about the proposal for a Chick-Fil-A to be built on Hempstead Turnpike in East Meadow as well as information about the bird sanctuary that CEMCO maintains.

The Chick-Fil-A proposed site is located at the corner of Hempstead Turnpike and Merrick Avenue. There was Town of Hempstead board zoning meeting on Nov. 29 in regards to the proposal, because it needed a few variances in order to be approved.

Parisi said he wrote to the attorney representing Chick-Fil-A to get an update on the proposal, and she responded.

“The Board of Appeals granted the special exception and the variance application at the public hearing on Nov. 29,” he said, referring to an email he received from the lawyer. “The site plan application was filed thereafter and it is currently working its way through various departmental reviews.”   

Concerns about how drive-through lines for the restaurant may bleed out into Hempstead Turnpike and Merrick Avenue, as the intersection is heavily trafficked, were brought up by meeting attendees. However, other attendees cited the parking lot design of the Levittown Chick-Fil-A that opened last year, also on Hempstead Turnpike, which keeps the drive-through line strictly contained to the restaurant.

It is still unclear what design the restaurant will use, as the plans are still in the approval process, but CEMCO will provide updates about the proposal as it continues to be worked through.

CEMCO maintains a bird sanctuary off Tremont Place in East Meadow, just behind Speno Park, which has its front entrance on East Meadow Avenue. The area of land has been left to the wildlife for more than 25 years, and maintain by CEMCO through cleanups, projects and other community partnerships.

While CEMCO has a cleanup date set for May 4, there’s been consistent vandalism issues within the sanctuary, mainly due to its fences, which Parisi said “are in pretty bad shape.” CEMCO is working with different officials at the town and county level to see if a new fence can be put in, but its been a long process and will likely be costly.

“This particular piece of property is a beautiful area — it really has a lot of wildlife,” he said. “The problem is that it does have water, and that’s why the bird are there. But if a kid gets in there, a young kid especially, that’s the concern.

“It’s no longer about the bird sanctuary,” he added. “It’s about liability for somebody getting hurt, really seriously hurt.”

Parisi announced that East Meadow’s Community Day will take place on June 8 at Speno Park. More details are to follow, but several East Meadow organizations come together to make the day an enjoyable affair for children and families.

The next CEMCO meeting will take place on March 20 at 7 pm. at the East Meadow Public Library. The library is at 1886 Front Street, East Meadow. For updates, visit the group’s Facebook page, Council of East Meadow Community Organizations.