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This week in Shelter Island history

REPORTER FILE PHOTO Councilman Peter Reich back in December 2004 pointed to problems with the Town Hall structure that were threatening use of the building unless the Town Board allocated money for needed repairs.
REPORTER FILE PHOTO
Councilman Peter Reich back in December 2004 pointed to problems with the Town Hall structure that were threatening use of the building unless the Town Board allocated money for needed repairs.

50 YEARS AGO IN HISTORY

“Goldfinger” premiered in United States movie houses.“Sex and the Single Girl,” with Lauren Bacall, Tony Curtis and Natalie Wood was also pulling in movie audiences.

The Supreme Court upheld a major provision of the Civil Rights Act granting African-American equal access to public accommodations.

Tornadoes struck Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, North and South Carolina and West Virginia, killing at least two people and injuring about 30 others.

Topping the music charts in the United States was “The Jerk” by the Larks, while the Beatles’ “I Feel Fine” was number one in the United Kingdom.

And on Shelter Island …

50 YEARS AGO
Broken cable spells trouble for LILCO

One of two cables providing power to Shelter Island snapped, temporarily leaving the town without power until LILCO workers were able to switch to a backup cable. That was achieved within about 45 minutes of the blackout in December 1964. LILCO workers toiled in near freezing weather for 48 hours to get to the broken cable beneath the water.

On land, workers were directing the activities of a trawler to get to the cable. Ironically, the trawler was the same one that had laid the cable the previous spring.

POSTSCRIPT: There were originally three cables linking the Island with the substation in Greenport, but today there is one aged cable remaining while PSEG officials explore whether to build a substation here or make another attempt, after the failed effort Long Island Power Authority made two years ago, to run new cables between here and Greenport.

30 YEARS AGO
Drug council continues youth activities

Before there was a Shelter Island Communities That Care chapter, the Shelter Island Substance Abuse Council was meeting with Island youths at the Tuck Shop on Saturday nights to spread the word about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse.

Thanks to support from groups, including the Lions Club and the Shelter Island Heights Fire Department, the Saturday night program was able to offer students video games and other healthy alternatives to drinking or taking drugs.

The Substance Abuse Council also worked in conjunction with the school’s Students Against Drunk Driving chapter.

POSTSCRIPT: Communities That Care, which has been working with students and parents, will cease to exist in 2015. Its parting gift to the town was money left in its coffers that is offsetting the cost of hiring school social worker Jennifer Olsen to work with families on behalf of the town. The hope is that her efforts will reduce incidences of problems rooted in family issues.

20 YEARS AGO
Affordable housing lottery under way

It seems almost impossible to believe that it has been 20 years since the town set up its lottery for affordable houses being built on Bowditch Road. A revisit to those homes a little more than a year ago revealed that they are occupied by the same families, most of whom have seen some improved economic times enabling them to add to the structures.

POSTSCRIPT: In more recent years, town officials have said there’s no real call for another affordable housing project to be launched, although there are certainly some struggling to meet their needs here on the Island.

10 YEARS AGO
Serious structural problems in Town Hall

Just 10 years ago, Councilman Peter Reich was pointing out rotted joists at Town Hall. The foundation under the western portion of the building  — the area where the supervisor and supporting staffers work — had been built too low and not properly graded to counter water buildup.

Mr. Reich, who is a builder, pointed out that years of ignoring the problems had led to mold and termites and needed attention if the former funeral home structure was to continue to be used. The basement structure was also in disrepair with substantial rot through sills and joists and rotted beams that made up part of the foundation. It prompted action to save the structure and make it a safe and healthy building in which to work.

POSTSCRIPT: This year, it was Town Engineer John Cronin who sounded concerns about various town-owned structures. He asked the Town Board during budget talks to start putting money into a fund that could be used for general maintenance in order to create the means of creating a cyclical schedule to troubleshoot before any crisis might present itself.

The board balked, preferring to continue to budget on an “as needed” basis.

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