LI Business News articles from April 2008

LI Business News archives from April 2008

Brookhaven Memorial Hospital eyes maternity ward closure.
April 2, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center is considering closing its maternity ward, citing a $2.7 million annual loss and decreasing community demand for obstetrics services. Critics of the potential closing,...

Melville-based Park Electrochemical purchases aircraft composite business.
April 2, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser Park Electrochemical said Wednesday its subsidiary Park Aerospace Structures acquired aircraft composite maker Nova Composites in Lynnwood, Wash. for $4.5 million. The Melville-based circuit and composite...

Nassau County closes on Grumman property.
April 3, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Nassau County has taken control of 105 acres of the former Northrop Grumman property in Bethpage to transform it into a center for biotechnology, nanotechnology, development of alternative fuels and homeland...

Melville-based Comtech inks Army orders.
April 3, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser Melville-based Comtech Telecommunications said Thursday it received a $3.1 million order from the U.S. Army for satellite communications equipment. The order will be handled by the company's Tempe, Ariz....

Long Island banks announce staffing changes: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Thomas M. Sullivan has joined Safe Harbor Capital Group as director of strategic planning. He has had previous roles at KPMG, Clayton Services and The Long Island Savings Bank. He also served as chief executive and...

Long Island business associations announce staffing changes: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Alicia Figueras was recently appointed the new business development manager at the Hauppauge Industrial Association. Her responsibility is to assist HIA members in doing business through the association and...

Long Island-based J&D Beauty Products announces staffing changes.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder J&D Beauty Products has hired Ricky Kenig as director of urban fashion and merchandising. The company promoted Patrick Huss to vice president of merchandising and graphics, and promoted Megan Hinterman to executive...

Long Island health care facilities announce staffing changes: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Mather Hospital has named Diane Wilkinson to its imaging services medical staff. Prior to joining Mather, she was an attending radiologist at the North Shore-LIJ Health System. The Southampton Hospital board of...

Sterling Glen Senior Living appoints Anthony Palmieri as regional director of food and beverage.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Sterling Glen Senior Living has appointed Anthony Palmieri as regional director of food and beverage. Previously he was chef at Sterling Glen's Plainview residence. He began his cooking career at the Ritz Carlton and...

Long Island law firms announce staffing changes: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder William J. Garry has joined Jaspan Schlesinger Hoffman as a partner. His practice will focus on litigation, real estate and commercial matters. Garry brings more than 23 years of case management experience on the...

Long Island nonprofits announce staffing changes: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder The Family Service League has hired Susan C. Edwards as vice president for development. She will be responsible for managing all fund-raising initiatives and directing all aspects of fund raising, marketing efforts...

Barbara Ford installed as president of the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Barbara Ford was recently installed as president of the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island. She has served as a director for MLS and the New York Association of Realtors since 1997 and as a Long Island Board of...

Commentary: Straight-talk goes off track.
April 4, 2008... Byline: LIBN Staff Editorial In what could be a glimpse into a continuation of irresponsible government oversight, Sen. John McCain gave his views of the subprime mortgage crisis that's decked the markets, led to thousands of layoffs on...

Commentary: In Long Island we trust.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Martin Cantor Who isn't fed up at how New York wants Long Island's taxes and economic activity, but won't give the region its fair share of state spending? For proof, look no further than how Long Island educates 17 percent of the...

Commentary: Don't cap the gas tax.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Gary D. Bixhorn The newly established Commission on Property Tax Relief recently held a hearing in Hauppauge. Diverse ideas regarding a cap, using an income tax surcharge to replace property taxes altogether, school spending,...

Commentary: Spitzer's failures will never be forgotten.
April 4, 2008... Byline: John Kiernan On the day after Election Day in 2006 when Eliot Spitzer had been overwhelmingly elected, I was invited to attend an insurance industry luncheon at Cipriani on Wall Street. Hundreds attended and the talk during the...

Commentary: Bad economy shouldn't lead to school cuts.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Robert Scott The American and, indeed, the global economies have experienced a series of phases over the past 100-plus years. These economic and employment phases range from agrarian practices and extraction technology; to...

RE/MAX is not sagging.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Carolyn Weber To the editor: I am writing to you to express my displeasure and concern about the cartoon that you featured in the opinion section of the March 14 Long Island Business News. The cartoon depicts a RE/MAX hot...

Commentary: Out East: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Jeff Miller Local pubs prove there's hope for the small guy It's no news that the newspaper industry has fallen on hard times. But what makes it possibly more painful than many other declines now under way is that newspapers...

Long Island Financial Briefs: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser Chase pumps up its carbon emission credit business JPMorgan Chase acquired carbon offsetting company ClimateCare last week, positioning the bank to grab a larger portion of the $64 billion global greenhouse gas...

Long Island Real Estate Briefs: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: David Winzelberg New coalition to fight for frustrated industry NIMBYs should be worried about LIREO. In a rare atmosphere of solidarity, a new alliance among real estate industry trade groups had its first summit last...

Long Island Medical Briefs: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder The Nassau Health Care Corp. announced the approval of a $55 million expansion, thereby launching the centerpiece of the Nassau University Medical Center's modernization program. The expansion will increase the...

Long Island-based charter jet firm soars on high-priced travel.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Planning a trip to London, with you and 12 close friends? If you've got around $50,000, David Rimmer's got an airplane for you. There it sat, a private jet known as the Legacy, a sleek, beautiful object in a...

How To...Choose a relocation firm.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Because you don't pick up and move halfway across the country every day, you're not an expert in efficiently and sensitively handling the myriad details associated with a corporate move. For this reason, it's...

Richard A. Shlofmitz named chairman of cardiology department for St. Francis Hospital, the Heart Cen.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder NAME: Richard A. Shlofmitz TITLE: Chairman of the Department of Cardiology ORGANIZATION: St. Francis Hospital, the Heart Center FAVORITE MEAL: T-bone steak with french fries St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center...

On the move.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Banking Thomas M. Sullivan has joined Safe Harbor Capital Group as director of strategic planning. He has had previous roles at KPMG, Clayton Services and The Long Island Savings Bank. He also served as chief...

Commentary: For small biz, a ray of hope in the regulatory jungle.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Raymond Keating To tax or to regulate? That is the policy question for many politicians. Elected officials generally prefer regulation over taxation. After all, higher taxes tend to be quite visible, and get voters all riled...

Commentary: Partners in education.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Kenneth R.Cerini For almost 25 years, businesses across Long Island have been assisting our students under the auspices of the School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. Private companies, hospitals and non-profit...

Long Island Nonprofit Briefs: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder $25K grant to IGHL Manorville-based IGHL Foundation, which supports the Independent Group Home Living Program, has received a $25,000 donation from Bank of America. The donation will help to fund programs in...

Auto lending faces uphill climb as car sales take a tumble.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Claude Solnik Automobile lending is downshifting along with the entire auto industry. Ford sales fell 3.9 percent in January, while Toyota and Honda dipped 2.3 percent and Chrysler sales tumbled 12.1 percent according to The...

Subprime might just be tip of 'shadow banking' collapse.
April 4, 2008... Byline: CSBJ Editorial Staff We don't pretend to know what the future might hold for investment banks or for the whole rickety, overleveraged shadow banking system that these institutions both created and profited from, but we surmise that...

The name game: Where to put, and get, your money.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Financial institutions answer to all sorts of monikers. Their names typically include words like thrift, savings and loan, savings bank, commercial bank or credit union, but what do these descriptors mean? ...

Ones to watch: Long Island financial firms.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Claude Solnik Edward Bossong Assistant vice president Bethpage Federal Credit Union Experts in finance and technology are in short supply. Bossong fits the bill, helping the credit union handle its business and growth....

Two minutes with Lawrence Smith, chief medical officer of North Shore-LIJ Health System.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder All eyes are on Lawrence Smith, chief medical officer of the North Shore-LIJ Health System and the newly named dean of the medical school being developed by Hofstra University and North Shore-LIJ. What is the next...

For autism, Long Island not short on help.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Six years ago Bea Petersen of East Islip gave birth to Jack, her second child. He was a late talker, but her pediatrician told her not to worry, boys often were reluctant to talk, and also being a second child could...

For Esquire Bank, no need for more branches on Long Island.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser Esquire Bank is opening its first branch on Long Island this month in Garden City, but that may be the last brick-and-mortar expansion from the bank for quite some time. Esquire, whose administrative offices have...

Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi's commission prepares its pitch.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels With a deadline approaching, Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi is turning to Long Island leaders for advice on fixing the region's crippling property tax problem. Suozzi, who heads the Commission on Property...

Long Island Business News Follow Ups: April 4, 2008.
April 4, 2008... Byline: LIBN Staff Report Shot in the arm In November, Long Island Business News reported that state Sen. Charles Fuschillo was pushing a bill that would give pharmacists the power to administer adult flu and pneumonia vaccines....

United We Stand: Consolidation is Long Island government's best bet.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Come Together If not statehood,consolidation is the government's best bet. It's 12:03 p.m. on Jan. 20, 2020, and former American Idol finalist Kevin Covais has the spotlight. He's standing at the...

New Deal for bad mortgages.
April 4, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser Sure, the subprime crisis has pushed already sliding real estate prices lower and has led to a run-up in foreclosures. But fear not, local economists said, we've been through this before. Irwin Kellner, the...

Long Island homes head to the highest bidder.
April 4, 2008... Byline: David Winzelberg The gavel seems to be coming down on Long Island real estate. Desperate homeowners, facing the threat of foreclosure, are asking auctioneers to sell their property for them. And banks are also using the...

Regional homes head to the highest bidder.
April 4, 2008... Byline: David Winzelberg The gavel seems to be coming down on Long Island real estate. Desperate homeowners, facing the threat of foreclosure, are asking auctioneers to sell their property for them. And banks are also using the...

Commentary: Deadly woodpeckers turn the streets red with blood.
April 4, 2008... Byline: John Kominicki As you read this, I'm attending my company's annual journalism conference in Scottsdale. Each year, we haul in our editors and publishers from across the country and subject them to three days of seminars on such...

Jaco Electronics scores order to manufacture voting machines for New York state.
April 8, 2008... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Jaco Electronics on Tuesday said it landed a contract to manufacture 4,500 optical scan voting machines to be used through New York state. The Hauppauge-based company, which builds and distributes...

Hempstead board becomes lead agency in Nassau's Hub plan.
April 8, 2008... Byline: David Winzelberg Charles Wang, Scott Rechler, Matthew Frank and other representatives of the Lighthouse Development Group sat in the front row as the Hempstead Town Board declared itself the lead agency Tuesday in the redevelopment...

New York Gov. David Paterson kills Broadwater.
April 10, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Gov. David Paterson became the green governor Thursday afternoon. Standing on the boardwalk of Sunken Meadow State Park with the Long Island Sound behind him, Paterson said the state would not issue the...

Governor of New York expected to reject Broadwater today.
April 10, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Gov. David Paterson is expected to rule against the Broadwater liquefied natural gas terminal Thursday by denying the project's necessary permits, sources told Long Island Business News. The governor's office...

Stony Brook University scores $45 million for law school.
April 10, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Long Island's public schools weren't the only institutions to win big in the latest state budget. Stony Brook University secured $45 million in the budget for the purchase or the construction of a new law...

State of New York passes the budget.
April 10, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels New York lawmakers approved a $122 billion budget Wednesday afternoon that included a record increase in state aid for Long Island schools. The schools will receive an extra $236 million in state money, more...

Alan Hoffman named partner at New York-based Janover Rubinroit.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Alan Hoffman has been made a partner at Janover Rubinroit. He specializes in accounting, tax and business consulting to real estate, construction and facilities management companies. He also advises high-net-worth...

Diana Cherryholmes named Times of Huntington's Woman of the Year in Arts.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder The Town of Huntington presented Diana Cherryholmes, director of the Huntington Arts Council, with the "Times of Huntington's Woman of the Year in Arts" for 2007.

Community National Bank announces three new hires.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Community National Bank has made three new hires. Alba Spinelli was named branch manager and will manage the day-to-day operations of the branch, business development and customer service. Jay McConie was named vice...

Amityville Public School District appoints John R. Williams as superintendent of schools.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder The Amityville Public School District Board of Education appointed John R. Williams as superintendent of schools. He previously was interim superintendent for the district, and had served as superintendent for both...

Long Island financial firms announce staffing changes: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Cadaret, Grant & Co. will honor Steven Pagartanis as a 2007 top advisor, receiving an award at the company's annual top advisors conference. Anthony M. Calvacca, co-owner and principal broker at New York Business...

Long Island health care facilities announce staffing changes: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Jeffrey Ellis joined North Shore University Hospital and LIJ Medical Center as director of dermatological surgery. He has extensive experience in Mohs Surgery, a procedure for curing skin cancer. The health system...

President of Karp Resources named recipient of Enterprising Women of the Year Award.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Karen Karp, food consultant, president and founder of Karp Resources, has been named a recipient of the 2008 Enterprising Women of the Year Award by Enterprising Women Magazine, which honors women entrepreneurs who...

Long island law firms announce staffing changes: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Certilman Balin, Adler & Hyman has hired Michelle Cohen as an associate in its real estate group. She previously interned at the United States District Court and worked as a legal assistant for the firm in the spring...

Brown Town: Getting funding from state for clean-up of Long Island's brownfields proves daunting.
April 11, 2008... Byline: David Winzelberg They are tainted sites, contaminated with chemical waste and other hazardous materials and require extensive cleanup if ever they're to get a new lease - or lessor - on life. But though Long Island is plagued by...

Yes, LI, there is a Virginia: Property taxes are decreasing in Fairfax, Virginia.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Long Island has nothing in common with Fairfax County, Va. And that's the problem. While local lawmakers are up in arms about this region's escalating property taxes, Fairfax residents pay less tax on their...

Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center to shutter its maternity unit.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder A $2.7 million annual loss and decreased demand for obstetric services is pushing Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center to shutter its maternity unit, pending approval from the New York State Department of...

Commentary: Long Island drivers shouldn't follow their instincts.
April 11, 2008... Byline: John Kominicki I'm wrapping up my patent application for an LED system that can be imbedded in the rear window of your car. The device will come in handy at those times, four or five times a day, when a fellow Long Island...

Tough financial times on Long Island call for creative funding techniques.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Now is the low-tide time of year for nonprofit companies, between the high-water mark of the winter holidays and the growing swell of warm-weather events such as golf outings. Add a struggling local economy and...

Tight market leads to more small biz risks.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser With the credit squeeze forcing banks to back off from funding government-backed Small Business Administration loans, small businesses are turning to their high-rate credit cards for funding. And the move is...

For Long Island hospitals, state budget cuts don't run so deep.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Long Island hospitals, nursing homes and home health-care providers are breathing a sigh of relief after the state Legislature restored health-care cuts proposed in former Gov. Eliot Spitzer's budget. Nineteen of...

Long Island Business News Follow Ups: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: LIBN Staff Report Listen in Here's a hearing aid that not only amplifies sound, it delivers music and phone calls too. Several months after LIBN profiled Advance Hearing Center, the Albertson-based center has added a new...

Two minutes with Ellen B. Deutsch, chief growth officer for Melville-based Hain Celestial Group.(Interview)
April 11, 2008... Byline: Pete Weiss Hain Celestial Group had six brands when Ellen B. Deutsch joined it in 1996 as senior vice president in charge of global marketing. The company now has 40. Deutsch spoke with LIBN about the responsibilities attached to...

Commentary: Hizzoner's plan deserved Albany's vote.
April 11, 2008... Byline: LIBN Staff Editorial This is pathetic, even for the much-maligned legislators of Albany. With an opportunity to lead the nation, to take $354 million in federal aid and implement the most revolutionary congestion pricing plan...

Commentary: The inside scoop on Pay to Click ad campaigns.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Patrick Macri Given the seeming simplicity of creating pay-per-click campaigns, many Long Island companies large and small have begun to manage their own efforts using applications such as Google AdWords and Yahoo Search Marketing....

Commentary: Statehood focus misguided.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Richard Kessel With all of the recent clamor about making Long Island the nation's 51st state, you would think elections for governor could be as soon as this November. Melville as state capital? Hey, what about Merrick or Montauk?...

Commentary: We must depend on renewable solar energy.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Nicholas J. Mauro At this moment, the energy question on everyone's mind is: "How would you solve the energy problem on Long Island?" Reflecting upon our energy challenge one might begin by stating that a solution to such a complex...

Commentary: Congestion pricing was dead, to begin with.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Jerry Kremer Albany's defeat of congestion pricing this week should come as no surprise. Regional planners and business leaders jumped on board quickly when Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed an $8 entrance fee for autos entering...

Commentary: Let's start early.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Paul Arfin I read with interest the Long Island Business News column by Bob Scott, president of Adelphi, with the headline "Bad economy shouldn't lead to school cuts." While I wholeheartedly agree with Dr. Scott's concern for...

Commentary: Out East: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Jeff Miller Funny math aside, the Hamptons holds their own What's going on with George? On the East End, where real estate is somewhere between showbiz and a religion, George is almost a one-name phenom, like Cher or Sting....

Long Island Financial Briefs: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Laura Glasser Economy drove down angel investing in 2007 Angel investing stalled in 2007, increasing just 1.8 percent nationally over the previous year, according to a study by the Center for Venture Research at the University...

Long Island Real Estate Briefs: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: David Winzelberg State passes tougher sex offender law for agents The state senate this week approved a proposed law that would keep misdemeanor sex offenders from getting or having a real estate license. Current state law...

Long Island Medical Briefs: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder Copying Medicare, Empire refuses to pay for errors Hospitals beware: Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield is the first health insurer to formally announce that it is following Medicare's example and will not pay for...

Long Island imaging firm sees profits without paper.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Tom Doyle wants to ease your pain. No, he's not an MD or a masseur, but he believes he can take the stress out of key areas of your business to maintain and grow a healthier bottom line. Doyle, chief...

High-energy Long Island real estate agent gets boost.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder NAME: Sandi Lefkowitz TITLE: Vice President ORGANIZATION: Daniel Gale Sotheby's International Realty EXPERTISE: North Shore Real Estate Sandi Lefkowitz has been named vice president at Daniel Gale Sotheby's...

Long Island nonprofits announce staffing changes: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Alison Snyder James Boisi, retired vice chairman of JP Morgan and founder of the Mentoring Partnership of Long Island, was inducted into the Long Island Volunteer Hall of Fame, honoring his advocacy for mentoring. The Long Island...

Long Island Environmental Briefs: April 11, 2008.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Vitamin manufacturer keeps environment healthy Country Life Vitamins was not comfortable using packaging that required the felling of trees to create. Even recycled paper had too large a carbon footprint for...

Consultant offers business owners some life coaching.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Ambrose Clancy The tools necessary to succeed reside within you, and the way to find them is to work with someone who will help you get out of your own way. This is not a new concept - Socrates figured it out 2,500 years ago -...

Getting a grip on rising insurance costs.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Claude Solnik Anyone who thinks it looks like health-insurance rates are dropping should probably have their eyes, and wallets, examined. HMO rates nationwide jumped 10.7 percent in 2008 after rising 9.9 percent in 2007, 15.8...

When the big one comes to Long Island, you may be on your own.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Bernadette Starzee State Farm Insurance Co. recently announced it would not renew or write new insurance policies for homes within close proximity to the North or South Shore of Long Island. This business decision came on the heels...

Insurers grade MDs; methods get mixed reviews.
April 11, 2008... Byline: Claude Solnik Health insurers are rolling out systems designed to rank doctors, providing a way for consumers to make choices and raising concerns among physicians regarding accuracy and fairness. "There's a trend, bringing...