This week in Shelter Island history
The first docking of two space crafts in orbit occurred when Gemini 8, with astronauts Neil Armstrong and David Scott aboard, docked with the unmanned Agena, causing a wild spinning until Mr. Armstrong could bring Gemini under control.The submarine DSV found a missing American hydrogen bomb off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea.
A small march of migrant workers began in Delano, California, to protest poor wages, hours and working conditions and by the time they reached Sacramento, 250 miles away, they numbered 8,000 people.
Pope Paul VI issued changes to the traditional Roman Catholic laws regulating interfaith marriage that had required the non-Catholic partner to sign an agreement to raise children in the Catholic faith.
When the all black Texas Western basketball team won the NCAA tournament beating the all white Kentucky Wildcats, it ushered in a period where schools competed for the best athletes without regard to race.
And on shelter Island …
50 YEARS AGO
More on parks, bridges and time
Fifty years ago Islanders were focused on preserving land that wouldn’t be developed. At issue then was the concern that if the town failed to provide a means of preservation that others, such as the county and state governments, might move in and buy up the properties.
The result would be a requirement that land then be opened for use to residents of the county or state, not just Islanders.
POSTSCRIPT: Since 1999, there’s a Community Preservation Fund that collects two percent of the purchase price of real estate from buyers and returns it to East End towns to be used to preserve land.
30 YEARS AGO
Councilmen weigh safety of 10k
Insurance was on all minds 30 years ago and the Town Board was weighing a number of circumstances where it feared it could have liability. The June 10k race was among them.
Cliff Clark was race director at the time and said there had always been concern for the town’s potential liability.
Participants signed waivers relieving the town, the Village of Dering Harbor, Town Police and race promoters as well as the Special Olympics that benefitted from the race at the time.
A $1 million liability coverage was in place in the event of bodily injury and a there was a $6 million umbrella policy. But there was also concern for spectators who might step into a runner accidentally.
The decision was to post signs advising spectators of the dangers of stepping onto the race course.
POSTSCRIPT: Planning for the 37th Annual 10k Run/5K Walk is well under way with insurance concerns long ago resolved.
20 YEARS AGO
Proposed school budget calls for slight tax decrease
Twenty years ago at this time, the Board of Education and school administration were wrangling with the budget for the 1996-97 school year and as they neared completion, they put out the word that taxpayers could expect an average cost of $15.26 per $1,000 of assessed valuation to support the spending plan. That represented a drop of 16 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation from the 1995-96 budget.
POSTSCRIPT: That may not seem like much of a drop, but it’s a headline taxpayers wish they could see from the 2016-17 spending plan. For the first time since New York State imposed a two percent cap on an increase in the tax levy, the Board of Education is expecting to have to pierce the cap. That 2 percent addition applied to the first year of the tax levy cap, but year-to-year, it fluctuates based on previous spending. What Shelter Island is looking at for the next school year is a 0.12 percent allowable increase.
Given that the district has practically used up its fund balance to keep from piercing the cap in past years, the Board of Education is working to pare down money requests, but doesn’t see a path to a budget that could stay within the tax levy cap.
10 YEARS AGO
Why have a dock code?
It was a clash in philosophy 10 years ago when Councilwoman Chris Lewis and then Councilmen Peter Reich wanted an explanation why a code affecting docks should exist if it wasn’t going to be strictly enforced.
Mr. Reich held to the attitude that the code affecting docks should be strictly enforced and Ms. Lewis said the entire reason behind the code was to ensure docks wouldn’t be jutting out around the Island that had a proliferation of applications.
Then Supervisor Alfred Kilb Jr. stood behind the need for waivers from the code because some applicants would need relief if they were to be able to have any dock installed.
POSTSCRIPT: To this day, the Waterways Management Advisory Council works to recommend that applicants stay within the code, always concerned that if they do grant a waiver, the situation is unique enough not to set a precedent for other applicants to follow.
The application from Jeffrey Lightcap is a situation where marine contractor Jack Costello has spent much of his time arguing that the situation of converting a commercial marina for private residential is unique enough to merit requested waivers.
