http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/ Serving Riverhead Since 1857 en-us http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_budget_den Next year's general operating budget, adopted Tuesday evening by a unanimous, albeit reluctant, Town Board, carries a 9.7 percent town tax rate increase and the promise of an unavoidable reworking -- beginning perhaps as soon as January. Board members spent much of Tuesday morning's work session trying to find ways to reduce the $37.4 million preliminary budget so that the town tax rate increase would come in under 10 percent. They came up with $175,400 in spending reductions, dropping the 10.6 percent town tax rate increase called for by the preliminary budget on which the board held a public hearing Nov. 5. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_Maureens_ES After guests are served coffee and offered cigarettes, they sit down to a candlelit dinner at 6:30 p.m. They have a choice of pulled pork, baked chicken, ham, baked beans, buttered noodles and mixed vegetables. A night of television, games, a hot shower and clean bedding awaits. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_Shizen_ES The Southold Town Planning Board deemed the 300-page draft environmental impact statement for the Shizen Hotel Wellness Center and Spa "inadequate" for public comment at its regular meeting Monday night. Town planner Heather Lanza said that the decision to send the DEIS for the 28-building project, proposed for the end of Shipyard Lane in East Marion, back to the developer for revision is based on observations of board members, letters and feedback from community members and a 19-page review from a consultant at the Melville-based planning firm of Nelson, Pope and Voorhis. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_hospitals_jal Area hospital executives could be looking at a double whammy if the New York State Legislature passes state aid budget cuts as proposed by Gov. David Paterson. Not only will hospitals get insufficient aid, but they will be faced with being asked to provide more uncompensated care for patients who lost jobs, and thus, health insurance, during this economic tsunami, said Peconic Bay Medical Center president and CEO Andrew Mitchell. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_school_budgets_jal It's not so much the estimated 10 percent cut in state aid Gov. David Paterson is proposing for the current school year that worries North Fork school superintendents. It's the declining economy that leaves them wondering how they'll handle even deeper cuts anticipated for the 2009-10 school year. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_THN_den The ban on reviewing and processing dock permit applications for structures in the Peconic Bay, Long Island Sound, Block Island Sound and Fishers Island Sound has been extended for 90 days. The Town Board voted, 4-2, to extend the moratorium Tuesday evening, with Councilmen Bill Ruland and Vincent Orlando dissenting. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_OHS_JB Two roads lead east to Orient Point. One winds slowly through snug North Fork hamlets, the other whizzes past endless vineyards, blotched by industrial and self-storage malls, gas stations and ubiquitous retail strips. Then the low road meets the high road, and it is there that you feel the gentle breeze of yesteryear. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_housing Last week's meeting of the Southold Housing Advisory Commission found there is yet another variable to toss into the vexed process of developing accessory apartments in the town -- the economy. "When we started thinking about this all those months ago, times were still flush," said special projects coordinator Phillip Beltz. "So far we really haven't been hit all that hard, but we may well be in the future. Whatever happens, though, we still have the problem that people who live and work out here can't afford it." http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_Police_psh Ever wonder what it would look like if the insignia on Riverhead Town's police cars were replaced with that of the bull representing Suffolk County? Well, you're not the only one. Some lawmakers say the change is worth exploring because it might not only look different to the eye, but also might feel different in the hand -- especially in the pockets of the taxpayers. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_PB_ES A Hudson City Savings Bank and office building complex might soon replace the old North Fork Beer and Soda building on the south side of Route 25 in Mattituck, east of Bay Avenue. Kristy Wisner, a planner for Southold Town, said at a Planning Board meeting Monday night that the board received revised plans from the applicant last Wednesday. The proposed development, which has been in the system since late 2006, consists of two buildings: a two-story, 9,500-square-foot building to be used for office space and a one-story, 3,241-square-foot building to be used as a bank. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_VBN_jal Just who are the Friends of Mitchell Park? And should the money originally earmarked for maintenance of the park in the will of the late Pauline Mitchell now go to the Greenport Fire Department? That's the contention of Trustee Bill Swiskey, who provided The Suffolk Times with a copy of the will Tuesday afternoon following another lengthy and contentious Village Board work session Monday night. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_zoning_jal Greenport Mayor David Nyce ran into a buzz saw Monday night when he asked Village Board members to allow him to schedule a public hearing on considering workforce housing an allowable special use in the downtown waterfront commercial district. "This may be jumping the gun on the zoning committee," Mr. Nyce said, referring to a recently appointed group of representatives from the village's Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals and other officials charged with discussing long-range planning. That group's mission is to identify ways to provide for structures that are needed today but not permitted under existing code. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T102308_NFPO_jal The economic tsunami that has enveloped the nation has had the most devastating effect on the poorest community members, who turn to organizations like North Fork Parish Outreach for assistance. Between June and July, calls for assistance increased by 25 percent. From July to August, calls were up 30 percent, according to the organization's new director, Loretta Hatzel-Geraci. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_park_vote-jal In voting last Thursday, challenger Doris McGreevy toppled incumbent Jerome Zuhoski, who was seeking another three-year term as a Mattituck Park District commissioner. Ms. McGreevy also finished ahead of Thomas Talbot, who also sought Mr. Zuhoski's seat. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_SAVES_JAL Going... Going... Gone! Those are words the members of SAVES -- Spay, Alter, Vaccinate Every Stray -- look forward to hearing on Saturday, Nov. 29, at the organization's fifth annual Art Benefit for Animal Lovers at Martha Clara Vineyards in Riverhead. It's a live and silent auction event that generates about 25 percent of the annual funding to keep SAVES' cat rescue efforts going, according to group president Al LaFrance. http://www2.timesreview.com/ST/stories/T112008_oil_GB With gasoline down to two-something dollars a gallon and Iraq's recent announcement that it will triple oil production over the next 10 years, some of us may be getting the impression that the energy picture looks rosy. But a new SUV may not be a good idea right now. There are those who think this is just the calm before the storm. The days of plentiful, relatively cheap oil, they say, are nearly over and, if we don't start making some changes now, the future isn't going to be pretty.