LI Business News articles from July 2009

LI Business News archives from July 2009

Commentary: Funds for food.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Paule Pachter We've been hearing all about it for months now. A $787 billion stimulus package signed into law by President Obama in February as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, geared toward stimulating the U.S....

The recession revs up auto insurance deductibles.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Claude Solnik Most motorists are maintaining levels of automobile coverage despite the recession, although some are seeking to put the brakes on costs by shopping around or raising deductibles, according to experts and industry...

For Long Island IT firm, move to green HQ can't come soon enough.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Stafford Associates Computer Specialists Inc. expects to move into its brand-new, $15 million-plus, 48,000-square-foot LEED-certifiable building in East Setauket in August. For the family-owned information...

U.S. seeks life sentence for Long Island arson.
July 1, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg Convicted of arson and use of an explosive device for the destruction of a New Hyde Park card store in 2003, Carmine Graziano was sentenced to 15 years in prison Wednesday. Graziano will also have to pay...

More affordable housing for Patchogue.
July 1, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg Suffolk County will begin buying property to make room for new residential development in the Village of Patchogue. The county legislature just approved the acquisitions for the development of Artspace, on...

Commentary: The feds should find the funds to preserve history.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Martin Cantor Long Island's aviation heritage is well-known. Charles Lindbergh, Grumman and Republic Aviation immediately come to mind. Just think where the world's aviation accomplishments would be without them, and the men and...

Commentary: In New York politics, the Davids control the Goliaths.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Jerry Kremer Does the tail wag the dog? Not in real life. But do New York's minor political parties control the destiny of both the Democratic and Republican parties? You bet they do! How is it possible that small, poorly...

Report: Rep. Carolyn Maloney to challenge Sen. Gillibrand for New York Senate seat.
July 1, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale Rep. Carolyn Maloney has decided to take on incumbent Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in the 2010 Democratic primary for the Senate seat once held by Hillary Rodham Clinton, according to a published report. A senior...

New York Governor Paterson's approval ratings rise.
July 1, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale At least Gov. David Paterson's approval ratings are out of the teens. According to a new Marist poll, the governor now has a 21 percent approval rating, up from 19 percent in late April. OK, so Andrew Cuomo...

Petraro Bastardi raises $50K in bid to unseat Nassau County Legis. John Ciotti.
July 1, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale Nina Petraro Bastardi has raised $50,000 since she launched her bid to unseat Nassau County Legis. John Ciotti. Petraro Bastardi's campaign kickoff for the 3rd district seat made national headlines when a group...

Hauppauge-based Globecomm names new COO.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Satellite communications company Globecomm Systems said it has promoted Keith Hall to president and chief operating officer, effective July 1. He had been in charge of the the Hauppauge-based company's...

Long Island Power Authority's plan for offshore wind farm moves forward.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Long Island Power Authority has anything but given up on building an offshore wind farm. In fact, the plan is moving forward. LIPA today announced that the Long Island-New York City Offshore Wind...

Jericho-based Incentient launches device that gives hotel guests room service at their fingertips.
July 1, 2009... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Jericho-based Incentient has launched a new touch-screen device that it hopes will make hotel stays a bit nicer. The company rolled out its SmartTouch system, a computer-like flat-screen gadget that gives...

Sen. Foley: Gov. Paterson should sign vets bill.
July 1, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale Sen. Brian X. Foley, D-Blue Point, has asked Gov. David Paterson to sign legislation that Foley said would help Suffolk County veterans who have lost their homes to foreclosure. The legislation has already passed...

Long Island Nonprofit Briefs: July 2, 2009.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Bernadette Starzee In the name of Amy The Hewlett-based 1-in-9 Long Island Breast Cancer Action Coalition has set up a fund in honor of Amy Mickelson. Mickelson, who has breast cancer, is the wife of golfer Phil Mickelson, who...

Commentary: The current thinking on corporate governance.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Stuart Levine This past month I participated as a panelist at two governance functions - The 3rd Annual Directors Education Workshop sponsored by GE and The Millstein Center for Corporate Governance and Performance at the Yale...

Commentary: New York Senate stalemate caused by reluctant judge.
July 2, 2009... Byline: John Kiernan The strange happenings in the New York state Senate during the last few weeks have prompted many different reactions from the press and various public officials. The New York Post reverted to superimposing clown...

Faking it: Nothing phony about profits in the knockoff business.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Ambrose Clancy A couple of years ago a building inspector in North Hempstead was checking out a warehouse when he noticed something was wrong with the back gates. As he walked in to inform the owner about the problem, several Asian...

Commentary: Inaction lives on in New York.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Long Island Business News Staff Editorial On the last day of the third week without a functioning state Senate, the Democrats found two minutes to hold a moment of silence for Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. And then they went...

Commentary: The first sign of aging is not being able to open up.
July 2, 2009... Byline: John Kominicki My greatest fear about growing old is packaging. That dark realization jumped me the other day as I tried to open a bag of charcoal briquettes. For those of you who don't really grill - and that includes you gas...

Ones to watch in Long Island's insurance industry.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Claude Solnik Gabriela Constantine Risk Management Consultant RMI Consulting Constantine has been with this Port Washington-based risk management company for more than 17 years. A licensed insurance consultant, risk management...

Commentary: For East End wineries, it may be time to face the music.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Jeff Miller You're in the tasting room of an East End winery, sampling a corpulent, jammy cabernet. Life is good. It gets even better when the guitarists in the corner start playing your favorite song, "Unchained Melody." But...

Commentary: Leadership qualities necessary during times of crisis.
July 2, 2009... Byline: David O. Schwartz The quality of a company's leaders is never more consequential than during times of crisis. In a survey of 770 client organizations, PI Worldwide found that leadership development was their No. 1 priority...

Laid-off workers make ends meet by buying delivery routes.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Frank Magnetico never saw it coming. A Wall Street veteran working on the operational side of big firms for 23 years, he was laid off four years ago from Savings Bank Life Insurance. It wasn't fun, Magnetico...

Economists: Long Island recovery still years away.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Laura Glasser More than a year into a recession that has crippled the Long Island economy, area analysts are bracing the public for more bad news. Despite a federal infusion of stimulus money, the region continues to shed jobs...

Speaking with Suffolk bar president Ilene Cooper.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Ilene Cooper isn't shy and she doesn't mind bragging about her accomplishments. Now, she can add president of the Suffolk County Bar Association to her lengthy resume. The partner at Farrell Fritz became the...

Long Island's East End hospitals go toe-to-toe with Empire BlueCross BlueShield.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Claude Solnik For years, Long Island's East End hospitals accepted lower reimbursement rates, unable to use size as leverage when negotiating with insurers. But after banding together to form the East End Health Alliance,...

Commentary: Helping nonprofits thrive.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Kenneth Cerini For over two decades, Long Island's nonprofit community has relied upon the Association of Fundraising Professionals-Long Island Chapter for questions about fundraising, funding advice and a political voice. AFPLI...

East Hampton plan backfires after residents miss tax deadlines.
July 2, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg Faced with a mounting deficit, East Hampton town officials decided they could save a few thousand dollars by not mailing semiannual tax reminder notices to property owners. But while the town saved the cost of the...

Commentary: The health care agenda in Congress comes with a hefty price tag.
July 2, 2009... Byline: Raymond Keating Many people say they favor health care proposals pushed by President Barack Obama and leaders in Congress. But do they really have a clue as to how this agenda would alter medical treatment and how much it costs?...

Town of Babylon plans to begin Wyandanch sewer project early next year.
July 2, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale The Town of Babylon today said it plans to begin construction early next year on a project that will ultimately bring sewers to -and help revitalize - the economically depressed area of Wyandanch. The town said...

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy plans Albany suit.
July 2, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy on Thursday said he planned to file a suit early next week asking the state Supreme Court to decide who is the leader of the state Senate. Levy said a Declaratory Judgment is...

Long Islanders on the Move: July 3, 2009.
July 3, 2009... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Government Suffolk County Clerk Judith Pascale received the 2009 Wheeler B. Melius Award from the New York Association of Local Government Record Officers. The statewide award recognizes a member who has...

Bethpage-based Cablevision Systems promotes Dave Pistacchio to president of Optimum Lightpath.
July 3, 2009... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Cablevision Systems Corp. in Bethpage announced the promotion of Dave Pistacchio to president of Optimum Lightpath. Pistacchio was formerly executive vice president and general manager. As president,...

Hempstead hearing on Lighthouse.
July 6, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg The Town of Hempstead will schedule a public hearing next month on the $3.7 billion plan to redevelop 150 acres in Uniondale. The town is expected to clear the 6,500-page environmental statement for public...

New York appellate court rules Home Depot can skip rent.
July 6, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg When the Home Depot chain moved its Farmingdale store to Airport Plaza several years ago, it was still paying rent to its former landlord. But an appellate court has ruled that since there were cracks in the...

Cold Spring Harbor lab gets hefty rebate.
July 6, 2009... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The renovations at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory haven't gone unnoticed by the The Long Island Power Authority. The region's energy authority has sent the lab, famous for its work in analyzing DNA, a rebate...

Long Island Tech Bytes: July 6, 2009.
July 6, 2009... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II After a long relaxing weekend, what better than these bytes to get you back in work mode: Long Island MidSuffolk Business Action leader Ernie Fazio visited a Smithtown television program to discuss one of...

Government whistle blowing pays off.
July 7, 2009... Byline: Claude Solnik Want to make millions? You may want to buy a whistle. As billions in government money flow to hospitals, defense contractors and others, the federal and New York state government are increasing incentives and...

Courtroom illustrations more fiction than fact.
July 7, 2009... Byline: Claude Solnik When Bernard Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison on June 29, the eyes of the world focused on the hearing, but since federal courts ban photography, no cameras were allowed in the courtroom. Instead, a gaggle...

Melville-based OSI Pharmaceuticals moving to Westchester.
July 7, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale In what could only be considered a blow to Long Island's biotech industry, Melville-based OSI Pharmaceuticals has agreed to relocate its headquarters, and high-paying research jobs to Westchester County. Long...

New regulations in New York seek to limit debt collection.
July 7, 2009... Byline: Michael H. Samuels Debt collectors could be dealing with stricter regulations on their ability to collect money if bills proposed by the governor and New York state Assembly ever get passed by the state Senate. Before the state...

Commentary: Reform IDAs.
July 7, 2009... Byline: Mike Fishman In the debate over reforming industrial development agencies, most people agree the Legislature should let nonprofits access much-needed capital and get on with their business. But with IDAs ready to channel almost $2...

New York Court of Appeals upholds homebuilder's rights.
July 7, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg The Town of Hempstead can't stop a Woodbury-based developer from building 79 single-family homes on a former Army base in North Bellmore, according to a court decision handed down Monday. Upholding a May 2007...

Liberty Moving and Storage moves into new headquarters in Commack.
July 7, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg Liberty Moving and Storage has moved into a new 75,000-square-foot headquarters on Moreland Road in Commack. The new building, located in the Hauppauge Industrial Park, has 14 loading bays to accommodate the...

East Hampton building inspector found dead.
July 7, 2009... Byline: David Winzelberg Donald Sharkey, a building inspector for the Town of East Hampton was found dead at his Amagansett home Monday, according to a story from the East Hampton Star. A police detective said that the inspector's...

Commentary: Ignoble New York Legislature is a gallery of rogues.
July 7, 2009... Byline: George Marlin When America's national and state governments were created, the founders expected elected officials to be driven by what Thomas Jefferson called "the energetic principle of a Democratic republic," i.e. political...

What if New York Governor Paterson dies?
July 7, 2009... Byline: David Reich-Hale Gov. David Paterson has already turned down an invite to the National Governors Association's annual meeting in Mississippi starting July 17, and he already skipped a Connecticut wedding last month. The...

Cablevision Systems ups on-demand library.
July 7, 2009... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Cablevision Systems toady announced it has added a new stable of on-demand programming to its iO television service, latest service upgrade in its ongoing turf war with Verizon. The company said its free...