Lawrence schools lose, Lino Viola wins

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The Lawrence School District lost its appeal opposing the Town of Hempstead’s Industrial Development Agency’s granting Raymour & Flanigan a 10-year PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) for a warehouse in Lawrence.

The New York State’s Court of Appeals ruled that the IDA’s granting of the tax breaks was not irrational. Lawrence sued the town’s IDA over the PILOT in 2017.

A panel of three judges said that tax exemptions and abatements were not “arbitrary and capricious” in a July 7 decision that upheld a 2017 lower court ruling.

Limiting its review to if there was a “a rational basis” for the IDA’s decision, the Appeals Court said that granting the PILOT was based somewhat on the property’s value determined by the Nassau County assessor. The court said that the IDA’s decision was consistent with what it had done previously in similar situations.

Viola re-elected

With 186 votes in an uncontested election Lino Viola won another five-year term on July 8 as one of the four Sanitary District 1 commissioners. The others are Frank Argento, Irving Kaminetsky and James Vilardi.

Sanitary District 1 is responsible for collecting the trash and recyclables in the Five Towns and surrounding South Shore communities.