Elmont Online

 Nassau County Executive, Ed Mangano announced the closing of half the precincts in Nassau County.  Among the precincts scheduled to be closed or more accurately turned into community centers is the 5th Precinct on Dutch Broadway in Elmont.

Of particular interest to Elmont residents is the broken promise from county officials to “not close the 5th precinct”.  During the election debate of 2011, ex-county legislator, John Ciotti, emphatically pronounced that the 5th was not on the chopping block.  Central to his argument for reelection was the customary carrot of more services, and immunization from prospective county cuts.

Notwithstanding the proposed fiscal merits of the plan, or the political promises of a county legislator, one Dutch Broadway resident asked rhetorically, “Did Ciotti’s failed reelection bid suddenly make the area covered by the 5th Precinct safer? Of course not, closing the 5th Precinct looks more like political retribution than public safety policy.”  In fact, 3 of the 4 precincts closed are in legislative districts with democratic representation.

The “plan saves taxpayers significant dollars while streamlining duplicative work” said Police Commissioner Thomas Dale.  “Response time will not change. Every police officer will remain on his or her neighborhood post.”

“Keeping the public safe is my number one priority”, said County Executive Mangano, but Nassau PBA President James Carver differs, “We currently have eight police precincts and they’re trying to tell everybody that having four police precincts is a better way to police Nassau County, well they’re dead wrong.”

At a rally in Elmont to save the 5th Precinct Legislator Solages echoed the community’s outcry “Public safety is my community’s primary concern – closing the 5th Precinct is not in my districts best interest and I will support fiscally sound efforts to ensure that it remains open.  Political games should not trump public safety”.  Mr. Solages continued, “How can we believe the projected twenty million dollars in savings when the county has not yet realized the revenues claimed by County Executive Mangano for raising the sewer tax last year”.

The Elmont Community Coalition Council is convening a meeting at the Elmont Public Library to discuss the closing.  “We usually forego our February meetings in the past winters but, we have a very vital issue that affects the Elmont Community to discuss.  We are asking you to attend the February 2 meeting to discuss the recent Nassau County Proposal to close the 5th Precinct” said Joyce Stowe, President of the CCC.