Southampton Town police arrested a Northampton man Friday morning after responding to reports of several plastic trash bins on fire.
Southampton officers along with New York State police and a K-9 unit from the state police canvassed the area in Northampton and located 25-year-old Joseph Nizza. He was taken to police headquarters and questioned by Southampton detectives.
Police charged him with four counts of fifth-degree arson, a misdemeanor, stemming from the incident as well as three additional incidents that occurred April 26 in the same area.
Mr. Nizza was held for morning arraignment at Southampton Town Justice Court.
The Caboose Pub in Riverhead can no longer sell alcohol after having its liquor license revoked by the New York State Liquor Authority last month.
The action comes after the pub, located at 131 Railroad Ave., faced scrutiny for a number of unruly incidents, including shooting and slashing incidents last year.
“The SLA Board voted to cancel this license at a full board meeting on April 10,” SLA spokesman Bill Crowley wrote in an email Thursday. “The cancelation order went into effect on April 19.”
On Dec. 12 of last year, the SLA charged DGG Corp., which holds the license and owns the building, with four violations based on Riverhead Town police referrals. A public hearing was held two weeks later.
The charges were as follows:
• On May 12, 2018, the licensee, DGG Corp, “suffered or permitted the licensed premises to become disorderly in violation of” the alcoholic beverage control law.
The licensee of DGG Corp is Daniel Gilligan of Hampton Bays, who is also the landlord, according to the SLA. Mr. Gilligan did not respond to a message seeking comment this week.
• On or before Dec. 10, 2018, “the occurrence of noise, disturbance, misconduct or disorder” in the pub or its surroundings, “has resulted in [the pub] becoming a focal point of police attention; all cause for revocation, cancellation or suspense of the license” in accordance with SLA rules.
• On or before Sept. 29, 2018, “the occurrence of noise, disturbance, misconduct or disorder” in the pub and its surroundings “adversely affects or tends to affect the protection, health, welfare, safety or repose of the inhabitants of the area,” which the SLA said was “cause for revocation, cancellation or suspense of the license” in accordance with SLA rules.
• On or before Dec. 10, 2018, there had been a “sustained and continuing pattern or noise, disturbance, misconduct or disorder on or about the premises.”
Riverhead police reported that a man was slashed with a knife Dec. 3at the Caboose, and that an early-morning shooting outside the bar Sept. 29 left a man and a woman seriously injured. An 18-year-old Calverton man was arrested in connection to that shooting in October. The incident occurred after a verbal argument escalated, police had said.
The premises has had a number of violent incidents over the years, according to police, including a 1996 incident when the bar was known as Danny’s Den and a Riverhead man who was bartending was stabbed to death in the early morning hours after closing the bar. The killer in that incident has never been found.
Neither the Caboose Pub nor David Gilligan of DGG Corp were immediately available for comment.
Aubrey Fauvell-Thomas, 39, of Riverhead was arrested in Riverhead Monday for possession of crack cocaine, reports said.
Around 5 a.m., police allegedly found Ms. Fauvell-Thomas sleeping in the driver’s seat of a 2007 Chevrolet Impala on Zion Street. Police approached the vehicle and observed crack cocaine in the center console, a digital scale and several plastic bags inside the vehicle.
As an officer conducted an interview with Ms. Fauvell-Thomas, he noticed a plastic bag containing cocaine protruding from her left boot. It was later revealed the vehicle did not belong to Ms. Fauvell-Thomas.
She was arrested and charged with criminally using drug paraphernalia in the second degree, a misdemeanor; possession of marijuana, a violation; and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third and fifth degree, both felonies.
• Police are investigating a car accident in Riverhead that involved a getaway driver.
An individual reported that last Thursday evening, while her vehicle was parked in the southwest corner of the parking lot at 721 East Main St., an unknown vehicle backed into the rear bumper cover of the car at 10:32 p.m.
Video surveillance captured by the individual and later reviewed by police confirmed that a food truck with the label “La China Poblana” had backed into her 2017 Acura. The front registration plate of the truck wasn’t visible. Police documented the individual’s insurance information and will continue to investigate, reports said.
• Steven Jones, 50, of Riverhead was arrested last Thursday for petit larceny at the Riverhead TJ Maxx, reports said.
Around 1 p.m., police received a report of larceny from a TJ Maxx loss prevention associate, who claimed Mr. Jones removed items from the store without paying for them. Mr. Jones was observed leaving the area with assorted men’s clothing in a handbag. After Mr. Jones was identified by the associate, the associate signed a civilian arrest form. The individual was arrested, transported to Riverhead Police Department headquarters for processing and held. Police determined that stolen clothing was worth $262.84.
• Two people were arrested Monday at the Holiday Inn Express for harassment, police reports said.
Police responded to reports of a domestic incident. Nicole Shoeneman, 19, of Rocky Point reported she gave her boyfriend, Devin McRae, 24, of Middle Island her cellphone to use and he went onto her social media accounts without her permission. After he refused to return her phone, a physical altercation ensued and Mr. McRae allegedly pushed Ms. Shoeneman to the ground and punched her in the face four times.
Mr. McRae, who was located on the third floor of the hotel, told police Ms. Shoeneman became physical with him as well. Shortly afterward, police reports said, Mr. McRae was uncooperative and left the area, fleeing to the nearby Chipotle.
A civilian arrest form was signed by both parties for harassment in the second degree, a violation, and both were taken into custody.
Those who are named in police reports have not been convicted of any crime or violation. The charges against them may later be reduced or withdrawn, or they may be found innocent.
Willow Greinke, 40, of Mattituck was arrested in Riverside last Tuesday afternoon for unlawful possession of a controlled substance, according to Southampton Town police.
Ms. Greinke was observed making a right turn onto Flanders Road when she crossed over the southbound turning lane and nearly collided with a stopped dump truck, reports said. The driver then passed two vehicles in the center turning lane at the intersection of Flanders Road and Whitebrook Drive, driving at roughly 85 miles per hour, and continued past the intersection of Flanders Road and Donald Avenue at a high speed.
Ms. Greinke was then stopped at the intersection of Flanders Road and Vail Avenue and interviewed by police. She revealed a plastic bag which contained a burnt marijuana cigarette. Police then found another bag of marijuana, a glass jar containing marijuana and a plastic bottle containing a pink liquid which the driver revealed was methadone.
Ms. Greinke was arrested and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, as well as two drug violations and five traffic and equipment violations.
• Police are investigating a report of burglary that occurred in Riverside last Tuesday, reports said.
A caller reported last Wednesday that an unknown person entered her home on Ludlam Avenue around 5:20 p.m. Tuesday and removed valuables that were locked in a bedroom and hidden in drawers. The suspect stole over $3,000 worth of jewelry from the home, reports said.
Police investigated the scene and found the suspect forced a bedroom door open with a screwdriver. The caller stated that family members often leave a bedroom window closed but unlocked in case they forget their house key.
• A Riverhead man was arrested in Flanders Sunday evening for driving with a suspended license, according to reports.
Malcolm Grigg, 63, was allegedly traveling eastbound on Montauk Highway and Springville Road around 9 p.m. when instrumentation alerted police that a nearby vehicle had a suspended registration, reports said. Mr. Grigg was stopped shortly after at the intersection of Flanders Road and Spinney Road, where police confirmed the suspension from an insurance lapse from April 5, 2019.
Mr. Grigg was charged with a misdemeanor and was released on an appearance ticket. He is due back in Southampton Town Justice Court Wednesday, May 22.
• Shah Nawaz, 21, of Riverhead was arrested in Riverside Sunday evening for aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, according to reports.
Mr. Nawaz was allegedly stopped at the Valero Gas station on Peconic Avenue for driving without a front license plate. Police found the vehicle’s registration was suspended from an insurance lapse, and Mr. Nawaz’s license was suspended as well. He was arrested at 10:44 p.m. for two misdemeanors: third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and driving with a suspended registration. He is due back in justice court at a later date.
Those who are named in police reports have not been convicted of any crime or violation. The charges against them may later be reduced or withdrawn, or they may be found innocent.
Riverhead High School principal Charles Regan faces accusations of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old female student last week, according to an attorney representing the woman and her family.
Attorney John Ray of Miller Place said Mr. Regan “predatorily groomed” the student, a senior, for months. He allegedly sent her “sexually-charged licentious texts, a porn meme and near-naked selfie.”
The victim, Anastasia Stapon, who was adopted from Russia at 5, agreed to speak publicly.
“I am here to expose this evil dirty man,” she said at a press conference Monday alongside her parents, Maryanne Wojcik and Theresa Stapon. “I am a victim. The Riverhead police have done nothing. Charles Regan and the Riverhead school have destroyed me.”
He allegedly encouraged Ms. Stapon to masturbate and then sexually assaulted her in his office last Tuesday, April 30, according to the attorney and court filings. Ms. Stapon is filing a $10 million lawsuit against the school district, superintendent and board members.
“She was confused and appalled,” Mr. Ray said in a press release, where he announced a $10 million lawsuit will be filed.
Since January, the attorney said, Ms. Stapon was battling depression, abusing marijuana and alcohol, and turned to Dr. Regan as a guide. The principal then “isolated the student from her family, friends and school counselor,” Mr. Ray said.
Ms. Stapon said she thought of him as a mentor and father figure. She said she believed he was trying to support her and improve her mental health.
Text messages allegedly sent between the victim and Mr. Regan.
The notice of claim states that Mr. Regan assaulted her in his office. He allegedly pulled her by her neck into his embrace and “shoved his tongue into her mouth.”
She went into the office with a friend and shortly after the friend left is when he kissed her, Ms. Stapon said. They “made out for a minute” and then she “got out of there as quickly as possible,” she added.
The attorney displayed evidence of “offensive photos and texts” at the press conference. One photo shows Mr. Regan wearing only a pink towel around his lower half.
“I’m sick to my stomach,” said Theresa Stapon. “He’s broken her and she was already broken.”
Mr. Ray said he believes other members of the district knew what was going on. He described one time where an assistant principal twice burst into the office while the two were together. He said he believes the assistant principal was concerned at what was happening in the office. When the doors are closed, the inside of the office cannot be seen.
Evidence provided by the attorney of a photo allegedly sent to the student.
“This foul creature has done this before,” he said in a press release. “But he has been tolerated. The local police absurdly refuse to act because the student victim is 18. The school district has not suspended him, but only ‘reassigned’ him.”
Mr. Ray said there are other people in the Eastport-South Manor School District who had similar sexual assaults, but he could not reveal additional information yet. The family has been in contact with those individuals, he said.
The principal forced Ms. Stapon to destroy the evidence, the attorney said, but erased messages were recovered through the cloud.
Mr. Ray said a teacher inadvertently alerted Mr. Regan that he was in trouble. At that point he called Ms. Stapon into the office and attempted to delete all the texts.
Riverhead Police Chief David Hegermiller said the “matter is under investigation.”
“I really can’t say much more,” he said. “There’s a lot of evidence to go through.”
Mr. Ray said a Riverhead detective told Ms. Wojcik that there are no criminal charges.
Ms. Stapon leaves the press conference with her attorney John Ray and parents. (Credit: Grant Parpan)
Ms. Wojcik said that Mr. Regan admitted to her, over the phone, that he made a mistake and apologized.
“He doesn’t even say hello,” she said. “He says, ‘I’m sorry.’ There’s a big pause and he said ‘I’m sorry for what had happened.’ He said the district office will be contacting you and will be calling you to ask you questions.”
Ms. Wojcik said she had a meeting with an assistant superintendent.
The relationship between Mr. Regan and the student dates back to early January, according to court filings. Mr. Regan pretended to counsel her while isolating her from her family, friends and school counselor, according to court filings.
“Her principal who had been her mentor, her hero, is in fact just a pervert who used his power over her to ensnare her in his dirty sexual traps,” a statement from the attorney said.
The attorney said while the relationship began in January, Mr. Regan “turned it up” in March.
On April 18 and 19, the attorney said, the principal threatened to kill two male students who expressed interest in her.
Mr. Ray said there are at least three criminal violations that can be taken from Mr. Regan’s actions including second-degree harassment, third-degree sexual abuse and second-degree unlawful imprisonment.
Earlier in the exchange he encourages Ms. Stapon to talk to her parent about stopping counseling and says that he would be her counselor.
Charles Regan pictured at graduation in 2018. (Credit: Madison Fender/file)
The school district announced last Tuesday that Mr. Regan had been “administratively reassigned” pending an investigation into a personnel matter.
Assistant principal Sean O’Hara is serving as acting principal, Superintendent Aurelia Henriquez said.
In the statement sent by the school district last week, Ms. Henriquez said: “While we understand that there will be questions surrounding this matter, the district is legally prohibited from sharing further details on it. We appreciate your patience as we perform our due diligence regarding this matter.”
The district declined further comment, referring only to its statement posted last week on the district website.
Mr. Regan, 48, of Quogue earned $187,693 in 2018, according to SeeThroughNY. He is married with two boys. He replaced David Wicks as high school principal in 2013 when Mr. Wicks became the district’s assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. Mr. O’Hara then filled Mr. Regan’s position as the assistant high school principal.
Mr. Regan had been assistant principal since 2006 and had previously worked in the Eastport-South Manor Central School District.
Fellow students at Riverhead High School described the news as shocking.
One student, a junior, said she had thought Mr. Regan was a great principal and someone she respected.
“I didn’t see this coming,” she said.
Another student, a freshman, said: “As a man trying to grow up, I just have to learn that that’s wrong. It’s not OK.”
Top photo caption: Anastasia Stapon at Monday’s press conference. (Credit: Grant Parpan)
Models perform to Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” to kick off the show.
A photo of Demitri Hampton sat atop each table Saturday inside the Riverhead Elks Lodge.
It was in Demitri’s memory that the group gathered for the “A Family Affair” Fashion Show to raise money for a scholarship in his honor. The D.Q.H. Scholarship Fund allows graduating high school seniors to further their education.
Demitri died in 2013 at the age of 21 when he was shot during a home invasion. He was a Riverhead High School graduate attending Suffolk County Community College with dreams of pursuing a career in forensic science.
The scholarship was expanded this year to include students in Bridgehampton, Southampton and Westhampton as well as Riverhead.
Demitri’s mother, Juanita Trent of Riverhead, opened the show Saturday night walking out to “I’m Blessed” by Charlie Wilson featuring T.I. Kids from a wide range of ages then took turns modeling, wowing the crowd with their moves and looks.
See more photos below by Elizabeth Wagner:
Decorator Tonya Miles of Riverhead (left) with Demitri Hampton’s mother, Juanita Trent of Riverhead (middle), and model Nina Trent of Riverhead (right).Will Austin of Riverhead walks to “Drip 4 Sale” by Plies.Gionni Reddick of Riverhead walks to “Pineapple Skies” by Miguel.Nina Trent of Riverhead walks to “Girl on Fire” by Alicia Keys.Youth models of the D.Q.H. Scholarship Fund fashion show.Azharia Allen of Riverhead and Jamaya Daniels of Riverhead walk to “Return of the Mack” by Mark Morrison.Azharia Allen of Riverhead walks to “Way too Fly” by A Boogie wit da Hoodie. Raleesha Sykes of Riverhead walks to “Fall” by Davido.Diamond Rainford of Riverhead performs “Money” by Cardi B.Cash performs to “Leave Me Alone” by Flipp Dine.Donye’ Hope of Westhampton Beach walks to “Bad Idea” by Ariana Grande.Aniya Trent of Riverhead walks to “Single Ladies” by Beyoncé.Taraji Langhorn of Riverhead walks to “Roar” by Katy Perry.Mahagony Brown of Riverhead (right), accompanied by Diamond Rainford of Riverhead (left).Cash and Gianni model at the fashion show.Host Juanita Trent of Riverhead opens the show by walking to “I’m Blessed” by Charlie Wilson ft. T.I.Models and volunteers prepare for the D.Q.H. Scholarship Fund fashion show.Juanita Trent of Riverhead (right, wearing her son’s image in memory of him) poses with his cousin, Alicia Langhorn of Riverhead.A photo of Demitri Hampton.
A Riverhead High School student appeared alongside her attorney and her parents Monday at a press conference announcing a $10 million lawsuit against the school district.
Anastasia Stapon, 18, said the lawsuit is in response to a sexual assault by high school principal Charles Regan, who was administratively reassigned last week.
Attorney John Ray of Miller Place and parents Theresa Stapon and Maryann Wojcik joined Anastasia in fielding questions from the media about the series of incidents between administrator and student they say led to the reassignment and lawsuit.
The question was posed to Matt Maloney: Can his Mattituck/Southold girls lacrosse team live up to the high standard set by last year’s New York State Class D champion Tuckers?
Without hesitation, the coach replied, “I believe so, a hundred percent.”
Recent results back up that belief, too. Mattituck defeated Mount Sinai for the first time in program history Friday, 5-4, on Kaitlin Tobin’s game-winning goal. And that came after the Tuckers fell behind, 4-1, by halftime of the Suffolk County Division II game.
“Honestly, I blacked out during the whole thing,” Mattituck defender Lauren Zuhoski said. “It was just so surreal. Honestly, it was just the best feeling ever.”
While Monday’s 9-5 non-league win over Riverhead might not have been as intoxicating, it still goes down as a quality win over a high-ranked Division I opponent.
Mattituck was officially the home team and wore its home whites even though Monday’s game was moved to the field turf at Pulaski Sports Complex in Riverhead. The Tuckers’ home grass field in Cutchogue didn’t handle recent rain well.
Regardless, the Tuckers (10-4, 8-4) looked at home en route to their fourth straight win. They never trailed, and each of the three times Riverhead (9-5, 9-3) drew even, they had an answer.
The game between two teams whose players are familiar with each other (some had played together on PAL and travel teams) featured an intriguing matchup of pairs of sisters — Mattituck’s Mackenzie and Riley Hoeg and Riverhead’s Kayla and Megan Kielbasa.
After Riverhead’s Emma Conroy evened the score at 4-4 off a pass from Lauren Kenny 3 minutes, 57 seconds into the second half, Mattituck gained separation. Mackenzie Hoeg, Julie Seifert (her second goal of the game) and Francesca Vasile-Cozzo scored for a 7-4 cushion with 9:16 to go. Vasile-Cozzo’s goal came with one second left in a man-up situation for Mattituck.
Conroy scored her second goal before Mattituck closed out the game with strikes by Maddie Schmidt and Riley Hoeg.
“When you play a slow-paced game, every possession does count and you can’t have stupid plays because you may not get another opportunity,” said Mackenzie Hoeg, who had two goals, two assists, five draw controls and two caused turnovers. “The important thing is to keep improving every single game.”
Vasile-Cozzo had three assists to go with her goal. Halle Foster also scored for Mattituck, which received four saves from Claudia Hoeg.
Riverhead, meanwhile, suffered a loss within the loss. Katie Goodale, a starting defender playing as a defensive midfielder, came off the field with an injury to her right ankle late in the game. Another injury was the last thing the Blue Waves needed. Injuries have already taken a big bite out of their lineup, forcing coach Ashley Schandel to move players around like pieces on a chessboard.
Schandel believes Goodale has a mild sprain. “She’s one of my best players,” Schandel said. “I think she’ll be OK, though. She’s tough, she’s strong. I think if she rests, she’ll be alright.”
Kenny, playing lower right attack, had two goals and two assists. Megan Kielbasa also scored. Sofia Salgado made seven saves.
“As a team right now we’re battling some injuries,” Kenny said. “We’re trying to mesh new people with each other, get some chemistry flowing. I think we played one of our better games, just a couple of mistakes that they were able to capitalize on.”
Schandel said: “I can’t say that I’m disappointed in the way that we played. We probably did the best ride that we’ve ever played all season. We got quite a few forced turnovers on the ride. We had some good pressure with our attackers out there. Our defense wasn’t too bad, either. We had a game plan and they stuck to it.”
Maloney said the win over Mount Sinai was “huge. I mean, that was such an awesome moment.”
“The sport is about overcoming adversity,” he continued. “You’re not always going to play your best. You want to. We haven’t had the best starts to games and maybe made some mistakes early in games, but when it’s been coming down to crunch time, I feel like they’ve kind of learned how to win in those moments and learned how to execute in pressure situations, which should hopefully prepare them for a playoff run.”
That triumph over Mount Sinai makes for a nice memory, but Zuhoski knows full well that more big tests await. She said, “We didn’t win anything just yet.”
Photo caption: Mackenzie Hoeg, who had two goals and two assists for Mattituck/Southold, tries to find a way around Riverhead’s Emma Panciocco. (Credit: Daniel De Mato)
Take four fast runners, put them on a fast track and — voila! — you get a fast time. In this case, a school-record time.
The Riverhead High School record for the 4×1,600-meter relay, an unusual event, was shattered at the 48th St. Anthony’s Invitational in South Huntington Friday.
Gabe Burns, Sean Allen, Ryan Keane and Ryan Carrick— none of whom had ever run the 4×1,600 before, not even in practice — ran it 30 seconds faster than the previous mark, set in 2011. Their time of 19:08.20 brought them sixth place. Eastport/South Manor was first in 18:41.80.
The four Riverheaders are all seniors except for Burns, a sophomore. The school record was on their minds from the start.
“We just went for it and really got it,” said Carrick, who ran the anchor leg in 4:36. “We were thinking about the record the whole time. That was the main reason we ran it, just because we thought it was a very obtainable [record]. We really crushed it, so it was really exciting.”
Burns said: “We were taking photos, we were hanging out, hugging. It was an awesome moment.”
It was believed that a key to Riverhead’s record pursuit was Burns’ ability to crack 5:00 in the opening leg. He ran it in 4:56.
“We were really fortunate to have a sophomore step up to the plate for us,” said Carrick.
Allen, running 1,600 meters for the first time this season, handled his leg in 4:43, the fastest he had ever run that distance before. Then Keane followed up with 4:50 before handing off to Carrick.
By then, the Blue Waves said, they sensed the record was in the bag.
Keane said: “It’s pretty funny because we started off the race very intense and very solemn because we were all focused and we were all kind of thinking [about] what we had to do individually, but by the time we handed off to Ryan — he was the last leg — we looked at the clock and we all just sort of took a big exhale because we got it … We just knew that Ryan was going to bring it home.”
Keane himself was an interesting story. For the last week of the spring break he was ill with a high fever. He said he woke up Monday feeling better, having burned off the fever. “I felt weak, but I knew what I had to do,” he said. “I kept running.”
The beautiful new Mondotrack at St. Anthony’s High School’s Cy Donnelly Field has bounce and runners like it because it’s a fast surface. Carrick declared it his favorite track to run on. “The track feels so fast,” he said. “When you run on it, you really feel like you can accelerate a lot faster. I love it.”
The 4×1,600 is rarely contested at meets. That doesn’t mean it didn’t win over some runners like Burns. “That was definitely different, but it was something I really enjoyed,” he said.
On Saturday, the second day of the meet, Riverhead junior Tyreek Parker finished fourth in the 110-meter high hurdles in 15.95 seconds.
“I want to say it wasn’t bad,” said Parker, who is chasing the school record of 14.8. “That is what my goal is by the time I graduate,” he said of the school mark. “If I work hard, I can definitely get it.”
Parker also joined Dennis Lowe, Jah ’Keem Young and Quintel Mason in the 4×100 relay, taking sixth in 45.04.
In other events:
Shoreham-Wading River sophomore Blake Wehr cleared 6 feet, 4 inches to finish fourth in the high jump. Riverhead senior William Borges pole vaulted 12-0 to take seventh.
The St. Anthony’s Invitational is one of the prestigious meets on Long Island’s calendar, drawing athletes from throughout the metropolitan area.
“This meet definitely means a lot to me,” Allen said. “I’ll always remember it. It’s just an experience … This meet has so much excitement around it. There’s definitely an aura around this meet.”
Photo caption: Gabe Burns, Sean Allen, Ryan Keane and Ryan Carrick, from left, broke the Riverhead High School record for the 4×1,600-meter relay by 30 seconds in the St. Anthony’s Invitational. (Credit: Courtesy Justin Cobis)
The following statement from Superintendent Aurelia Henriquez was posted on the district website Tuesday:
“As a school community, we value the safety of our students and are extremely disappointed to learn of the allegations made against Riverhead High School Principal Charles Regan. Please know that aggressive steps were immediately taken from the time we were made aware of these complaints last week, beginning with our first step, which was to reassign Dr. Regan to home. Since Dr. Regan is a tenured employee, the district does not have the right to unilaterally suspend him or terminate his services without the opportunity for a full due process hearing.
Additionally, in accordance with legal mandates, the district completed the necessary child abuse forms, reported the information to the Riverhead Police Department, and a complaint was filed with the unit of the New York State Education Department that addresses allegations of moral turpitude. In short, the district promptly reported the allegations to all appropriate authorities. He has been directed not to be on school property pending the outcome of the investigation.
While Dr. Regan’s hiring predates our current administration, fingerprinting was conducted prior to his hiring. The district is legally obligated to conduct an investigation, and as this is a matter of personnel, we are limited in sharing specific details, but please be advised that the district takes this matter seriously and will continue to keep our students’ safety a top priority.”
A sound consulting firm is recommending that Stop & Shop construct a 15-foot high acoustic sound barrier, which absorbs noise, along its southern property line with several neighbors in Glenwood Village and that it also construct a similar acoustic sound barrier south of the loading docks there.
Stop & Shop operates a regional warehouse for its Peapod delivery system out of the Riverhead story that serves the entire East End.
Some residents of Glenwood Village, who live along the border with Stop & Shop, have said that the Peapod operation has generated noise behind their homes for the past 10 years.
In January, the Town Board considered taking legal action against Stop & Shop.
“For 10 years, the residents of Glenwood Village have had to suffer with the delivery service of Peapod, which seems to be growing on a daily basis,” Councilwoman Jodi Giglio said at the time.
She said it had become a major distribution center and they have had noise violations in Justice Court.
But the board ultimately agreed not to take legal action and instead authorized the hiring of a noise consultant to measure decibel levels at Stop & Shop.
That study is now complete.
Sean Harkin of Sound Sense Acoustics (as well as a 2011 Riverhead High School graduate) gave the report at last Thursday’s Town Board work session.
Mr. Harkin said Sound Sense Acoustics took noise samples from Stop & Shop March 13, 2019, between 7:32 am and 3:34 p.m. from the neighboring property. They also reviewed noise studies done by Stop & Shop’s consultant VHB Engineering. There was little wind or outside noises on that day, he said.
Mr. Harkin said there’s a difference between a constant noise and an impulsive noise, and that the latter are of greater disturbance to neighbors.
“In order to really reduce noise further than that, we’d be talking about a canopy to enclose some of the area,” Mr. Harkin said.
That, he said, would reduce the noise significantly.
Supervisor Laura Jens-Smith said VHB has seen the town’s report.
A Stop & Shop spokesperson said the company remains committed to finding a resolution to reduce noise levels.
“We’re continuing to work with the Riverhead community on a plan for sound mitigation, which will include the construction of a sound barrier,” said Stefanie Shuman, Stop & Shop’s external communications manager.
The Riverhead Town Board voted down a proposal Tuesday to authorize litigation aimed at overturning the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency’s 10-year tax break package for the Suffolk County Community College Culinary Arts building on East Main Street.
The vote was 3-2, with council members Jodi Giglio and Tim Hubbard voting to pursue litigation.
“Twenty-year tax breaks should not become a habitual practice,” Ms. Giglio said.
Mr. Hubbard questioned why the building owner sought Suffolk County tax breaks when there is a Riverhead IDA. Culinary Arts Riverhead LLC had already received a 10-year incentive from the county IDA, officials said.
The county IDA had previously granted Culinary Arts Riverhead LLC a variety of incentives. Ms. Giglio said the building owner paid about $30,000 in taxes this year and would have owed $129,231 without the abatement.
She is hoping to get a state law passed banning people from towns that have their own IDA from pursuing tax breaks elsewhere.
The Culinary Arts building is owned by Ron Parr and leased to the college .
Councilman Jim Wooten said filing a lawsuit “is a little heavy-handed.”
“I think it’s been a good addition to our Main Street,” Councilwoman Catherine Kent said.
“They’ve been a good addition but I don’t think we should have to fight them to get their taxes paid,” Mr. Hubbard said.
The town, the Riverhead school district and the county IDA reached a consensus in January on the tax breaks.
“Suffolk, I don’t feel, needs to be operating in the town, when we have our town IDA we would use,” Mr. Hubbard said.
North Fork Cheer has a motto: “Anything is possible through hard work and commitment.”
That apparently includes national championships.
Three teams representing Cutchogue-based North Fork Cheer competed in The U.S. Finals this past weekend at Providence Convention Center in Rhode Island, and two of them went home as champions. North Fork Cheer teams finished first in Level 2 and Level 3 while its Level 1 team came in third among 27 teams.
“It was just incredible,” said Stephanie Piraino, a coach and co-owner of North Fork Cheer along with Lauren Berry. “I think the kids were ecstatic. I don’t think they expected it.”
North Fork Cheer, which is in its sixth year servicing youngsters from Riverhead to Orient Point, has 50 cheerleaders ages 5 to 16, said Piraino.
The cheerleaders performed two-minute routines, full of music, with stunting and tumbling.
The level 2 team. (Credit: Stephanie Piraino courtesy photo)
“I have to say that all three teams gave us flawless performance,” Piraino said, noting that there were no deductions on the scoresheet for the Level 1 and 2 teams. “The energy that we felt from all three teams was just outstanding,” she said. “You could tell from their performance just how invested they were.”
Piraino, who is also the Riverhead High School varsity cheerleading coach, oversees all the teams along with Berry. The team specific coaches are Brittanie Rocco for Level 1, Chelsea Cawley for Level 2 and Ben Berlinder for Level 3.
The three teams each have card-related nicknames. Level 1 is the Red Hearts, Level 2 the Black Diamonds and Level 3 the Golden Spades.
Piraino said, “They’re part of a whole deck working together … They are a really consistent group, but this is like a real deal national competition … This is a huge accomplishment for them.”
Top Caption: The level 3 team celebrates its victory. (Credit: Stephanie Piraino courtesy photo.)
A nonprofit organization could be formed to mitigate some financial woes that have burdened the Riverhead Parks & Recreation Department in recent years.
“We’ve had no money, therefore we can’t do any kind of capital improvement projects,” said Brian Mills, who chairs the Recreation Advisory Committee. “The only way we can get money is through the sale of new homes, or a matching grant.”
But in order to receive matching grants, the town has to put up money; a catch-22.
At a Town Board work session Thursday, Mr. Mills proposed creating a private nonprofit organization that could fundraise for various park improvements throughout the town.
It would operate in a similar way to Riverhead Townscape, which was established in 1976 to beautify the town and has sponsored the annual Riverhead Country Fair for many years.
Board members applauded the idea and councilwoman Catherine Kent pointed out that many of the Riverhead School District playgrounds were built with community support.
Supervisor Laura Jens-Smith questioned the legality of such an organization. Deputy town attorney Anne Marie Prudenti said the town may accept donations from a private entity and could set guidelines on how the funds are used.
“It is permissible under the law for the town to accept a donation wherein the donation has set forth certain conditions on how to spend it,” Ms. Prudenti explained at the work session.
Mr. Mills said that the committee has identified parkland at the Enterprise Park at Calverton and Stotzky Park as two areas that are in need of upgrades.
After nearly a decade on the committee, he sees this as one of their few options to fund improvements.
“I’m at my wits end and the rest of the board is at their wits end,” he said.
The advisory committee was formed to oversee park and recreation funds that were captured through new home construction in Riverhead.
“Back in the late ’80s and early ’90s, there was a healthy amount of money in [the fund] and a lot was accomplished,” Councilman Tim Hubbard said. “We don’t have that source of funding coming in anymore because the building is down.”
Ms. Jens-Smith said that though those funding sources may not be as active, the town budget should address the upkeep of park facilities.
“It still can be captured in the general fund, especially if funds are not coming in to help maintain the parks,” she said. “I think it needs to be a priority in the budget.”
Julia Volonts sits across from her new teenage client in a combination art studio and office in Brooklyn. A blank piece of paper sits on a table in front of him. She prompts the teen to use colored pencils to draw a shape representing himself.
She then asks him to illustrate how he’s feeling inside the shape. What surrounds the circle is his current environment. She believes such visuals can tell a story that talking might not reveal.
She takes note of certain parts of his work — the use of shape, lines, color — and asks why he chose them. But she allows him to draw his own conclusions from it.
After their session, Ms. Volonts creates her own artwork inspired by the teenager’s work — response art, or work created by art therapists to process their clinical work.
Ms. Volonts, 30, is a licensed, board-certified art therapist who grew up in Riverhead, attended Riverhead Middle School and graduated from Shoreham-Wading River High School in 2006. She’s been with New York Creative Arts Therapists in Brooklyn for about three years.
But come September, thanks to a Fulbright scholarship award, she’ll take her skill set to Riga Stradins University in Latvia, which is bordered by the Baltic Sea between Lithuania and Estonia.
Art therapy has been integrated into psychotherapy in the United States since the 1940s, Ms. Volonts said, but in Latvia, art therapy has been established only in the past 10 years. She plans to use the scholarship, which runs through May 2020, to research art therapy practices there.
Her work will focus on response art, she said, which is not common in Latvia. She’ll work with graduate students and professors at Riga Stradins to examine how Latvian therapists can use response art to process transgenerational trauma, or trauma transferred from first-generation survivors to subsequent generations, she said.
“What I’d like to do is work with clinicians to introduce what response art is,” she said. “Then I can study how that helps, or informs, art therapists there.”
Julia Volonts
The country has a history of oppression, she said. It was occupied by the Soviet army during World War II and tension within the country still exists, she said.
“In Latvia, they are dealing with the effects of World War II with the Soviet occupation and exiting the Soviet Union in 1991,” she said.
She said the Fulbright is a two-way street: She’ll introduce something to her Latvian peers and they’ll teach her about the mental health profession in their country.
The Riverhead native, who received a Master of Professional Studies in art therapy in 2017 from the School of Visual Arts, has roots in Latvian culture. Her father was raised in a Latvian community in Brentwood and her grandfather and extended family are from Latvia, she said.
“I’m American, but I do know the culture to some extent,” she said. “I have a relationship with the country that is meaningful.”
Her parents are “creative in their own way,” she said. Now retired, both had worked as educators on Long Island. Her father, Janis, was a BOCES administrator and her mother, Marguerite, was a music teacher in the Riverhead Central School District.
“She’s worked so hard to get to where she is now,” her mother said. “I’m so glad she’s doing what she loves.”
Last week, Ms. Volonts traveled to the capital, Riga, to lecture and present on response art at the Latvian Art Therapy Association’s annual conference.
In this week’s episode of Closer Look, Times Review reporter Kate Nalepinski and editor Joe Werkmeister join host Grant Parpan to discuss the allegations against Riverhead High School principal Charles Regan, who is accused of maintaining and inappropriate relationship with a student.
In the episode, we’ll hear clips from the young woman who made the claim, Anastasia Stapon, and her attorney John Ray.
Riverhead High School acting principal Sean O’Hara told Riverhead community members how the district plans to support students, faculty and staff following the recent sexual misconduct allegations against former principal Charles Regan.
Mr. Regan, 48, allegedly exchanged explicit text messages and photos with 18-year-old student Anastasia Stapon and “sexually assaulted” her in his office Tuesday, April 30 — the final act that led the relationship to be exposed publicly, according to court filings and an attorney representing the victim.
Attorney John Ray of Miller Place said the former principal “predatorily groomed” the student since January. Ms. Stapon is suing the former principal, the school district and its board members for $10 million, she announced alongside her attorney and parents Monday.
“This has obviously been a very difficult week and a half,” Mr. O’Hara said at Thursday night’s Riverhead High School PTSO meeting, without specifically referencing Mr. Regan.
Alongside assistant principal Nicole Taylor, Mr. O’Hara said administrators will continue to remind students, faculty and staff that they’re supported, the year’s events will proceed as normal and the district will get through this “tough time” together.
He said the district’s main goal is to ensure students have the kind of high school experience that they expect and deserve.
“It’s basically as simple as … We’ve always been proud of how our community, our building, our teams react in difficult times,” he said. “In a very special way, in Riverhead, there’s a camaraderie, a brotherhood, a family atmosphere where people get together and watch out for one another, they support one another, they have resources to offer.”
Another part of the message, he said, encourages students to be mindful of their actions on social media.
“An event like this provides an arena for people to come in contact with material that maybe they don’t want … maybe they’re urged to respond to,” he said.
Support services have been made available to students, staff and faculty through school counseling services, he said. Family Service League offered additional services for students Friday in addition to counseling.
“It would be a horrible thing for them to leave here and this is what they remember,” he said.
The acting principal said members of the district are finding out the news “in real time” just as the students are.
He said there were no current plans for an administrator from an outside district to step in to Mr. Regan’s role.
“I’m going to do this and take on this role,” he said. “Why disrupt another building? This is a completely capable team. We got this, and we’re going to get through this together.”
When he was initially asked to be the acting principal until the end of the academic year, he said he couldn’t speak.
“In all honesty, and I share this with the kids, too, for about three days, I couldn’t talk to anybody without crying uncontrollably. I couldn’t eat, I was having nightmares,” he said. “But about three days later, when I was able to separate the emotion and understand what took place — the clarity hit us all at once: we can do this.”
PTSO president Mary Maki, who has two boys in 10th grade, said she believes most students want to discuss the recent allegations.
“I think parents also have a responsibility to talk to their students at home,” she said. “They want to vent, they want to get their frustrations out at home.”
Mr. O’Hara suggested Family Service League make their services available to parents and family to talk about the situation. Ms. Maki, secretary Joyce Podlas and treasurer Kristy Wilkinson supported the decision.
Parent Dhonna Goodale said the greater community needs to be vocal about problems. She said district administrators are often lazy when it comes to problem solving.
“I think with the past principal, and the past system, that it’s become a lazy system….It’s fallen into a pattern, a safe haven, of ‘This is how we’re going to do it.’ It’s lazy. ‘Let’s put them in in-school suspension and just write it off. We don’t even have to deal with them anymore.’”
She added that Mr. O’Hara has taken a proactive approach to problems and has improved the music program in his role as assistant principal.
“That music department is on point,” she said. “You’re wonderful, and you’re new, and you’re about the only principal — because I keep my ear to the grindstone — that people say really does something.”
Parent Yolanda Thompson, who attends most board meetings, said the district needs to improve communication between parents, faculty and administrators. A Board of Education meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.
“I never felt that parents are fully welcomed into the situation,” she said. “When you have parents that want to be involved, don’t shut the door. We want to work with you.”
Photo caption: Acting Riverhead High School principal Sean O’Hara speaks at Thursday night’s PTSO meeting. (Credit: Kate Nalepinski)
Suffolk County Community College officials welcomed students, staff, faculty and local residents Friday morning to the eastern campus’s long anticipated Health and Wellness Center grand opening.
The 40,000-square-foot facility in Northampton houses an ADA-accessible, eight-lane, indoor swimming pool, which is the first public pool available to East End residents. The 25-yard pool was built for sanctioned competitive swimming and diving and includes bleachers, an interactive scoreboard and sound system as well as LED lighting. Also included in the $21 million building are a gym, a weight room and two classrooms.
“We’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time,” said Irene Rios, eastern campus CEO and executive dean. “Increased access, enhanced academic opportunities and expansion of our resources are just a few of the envisioned outcomes that this new facility provides.”
The center’s 11,500-square-foot gym features an indoor track, six backboards, a divider and striping for basketball, volleyball and badminton. The 2,200-square-foot weight room, meanwhile, comes with treadmills, stationary bikes, ellipticals and nautilus equipment as well as free weights. Also included in the weight room is an eight-station climbing wall, with a belay bar at each station.
Officials prepare to cut the ribbon. (Credit: Mahreen Khan)
Ms. Rios said the center affords the eastern campus’ 4,000 students the ability to complete physical education requirements and lead healthy lifestyles. It is also a space where sporting and community events may be hosted, she said. Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman said the town plans on using the facility, too, to train lifeguards and police department rescue divers.
Calling community colleges a “gateway to higher education,” State Senator Ken LaValle said it was essential that SCCC have the facility on site.
“The people of our county deserve nothing less,” he said.
State assemblyman Fred Thiele Jr. said that for many years, local officials lamented the fact that the eastern campus did not provide students will a full college experience. The facility has, after all, been in discussion since the early 1970s.
Exercise equipment is also available in addition to the pool. (Credit: Mahreen Khan)
“Not only does this incredible facility represent an investment in community health, but as a coastal community, it allows a valuable opportunity for residents to develop a safe relationship with the water,” Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming said.
Officials cut the ribbon to the building in the pool area Friday morning, but the facility has been open to students since February. Annual membership fees for the center – specific to Suffolk County residents – are $275 for adults, $220 for children up to grade 12 and seniors who are age 60 and over and $720 for families (head of household, spouse, dependents under 18 years or under 23 if enrolled as a full-time student).
“This isn’t something just for the college,” Mr. Thiele said, “it’s something for the community as a whole.”
See more photos below:
The pool features eight lanes. Riverhead Supervisor Laura Jens-Smith (from left), Legislators Bridget Fleming and Al Krupski and Southampton Supervisor Jay Schneiderman.Assemblyman Fred Thiele delivers remarks.Fitness equipment. The outside of the building.A basketball court inside the new facility.
Two high school baseball teams stepped back in time Saturday and changed history.
It was a change Shoreham-Wading River could have done without.
Miller Place’s protest related to its 6-5 loss to SWR on April 23 was upheld by Section XI, Suffolk County’s governing body for high school sports. Miller Place complained that some SWR players were behind the backstop and using a radar gun while his pitcher warmed up in the first inning.
“Under the bench and field conduct rules, it says that no coach or player can enter the area behind the catcher while the opposing pitcher and catcher are in their positions,” Section XI executive director Tom Combs told Newsday. “Shoreham had players directly behind the backstop during the warmup and the umpire did not ask them to move.”
Miller Place coach Rick Caputo said he “wasn’t surprised at all” when the ruling came down in his favor Thursday because he had read the rulebook. “It was a rules infraction that the umpire wasn’t aware of, so that’s how protests take place,” he said.
The protest didn’t sit well with SWR.
“It’s a really nitpicky kind of thing, that’s why I’m surprised they went in favor of the protest,” SWR coach Kevin Willi said. “It’s just disappointing, that’s all … Everybody played well and it was a real tight game and really there’s a huge amount of playoff implications and league-title implications from that particular game.”
It was ruled that the game be replayed in the bottom of the first inning Saturday with no score and individual statistics erased from the April 23 meeting.
This time, though, it was all Miller Place. Gavin McAlonie was splendid in handling the bulk of the work, sharing a two-hit shutout with Kevin Bowrosen in an 8-0 defeat of the Wildcats.
That result moved first-place Miller Place (14-3, 10-2 League VII) two games ahead of SWR (12-4, 8-4). Miller Place has a three-game league series remaining against Mount Sinai (12-4, 8-3). SWR has a more forgiving three-game league series left against winless Amityville (0-17, 0-12), as well as a non-league game against Connetquot.
“I thought it was unnecessary and unfair and I thought it was very shorthanded of them to try to come out and steal a game from us even though we beat them fairly,” SWR designated hitter Peter Minneci said after Saturday’s game at Kevin Williams Memorial Field in Shoreham. “It definitely didn’t affect the game, the thing that they protested. The fact that we had two kids behind home plate definitely didn’t win us the game. It’s ridiculous that we had to replay this game.”
SWR players said the upheld protest had no impact on the team’s play Saturday, which was well below SWR’s standards. Not only did the Wildcats commit five errors (“And they were bad errors, too,” said Willi) and surrender four unearned runs, but their usually potent offense was curiously quiet.
Chalk it up to a bad day.
“It wasn’t our day,” first baseman Everett Wehr said. “We had a few errors and were just not putting good swings on balls.”
Of course, McAlonie had something to do with that. The only thing separating the junior righthander from a no-hitter for much of the way was Wehr’s one-out looped single in the fourth. The ball dropped within feet of three fielders in shallow right-centerfield.
Jared Sciarrino was responsible for the only other SWR hit of the day. Sciarrino sent a one-out single to centerfield in the seventh, and that was the last batter McAlonie faced. McAlonie finished with six strikeouts and four walks.
“He was good,” Wehr said. “He was able to hit his spots, mix in a good breaking ball. He really kept us off-balance and he was able to shut us down.”
Miller Place took a 2-0 lead in the third when McAlonie pounded a single through the middle. That allowed Jordan Syperski (2-for-2, two runs, two walks) to score, and Jake Giacchetto followed him home on a wild throw.
Things crumbled apart for SWR in the sixth when Miller Place rang up five runs on three hits and three errors. Two of those hits were Bowrosen’s booming RBI double and an RBI single that Tom Nealis (2-for-3, stolen base) smacked.
The final run of the day came courtesy of a Giacchetto sacrifice fly in the seventh.
“All we can do at this point is just do our job and win three games against Amityville and hope for some luck or some help from Mount Sinai,” said Minneci.
Asked about SWR’s league-title chances, Wehr said, “They were pretty good coming into the day, but I think they got a little lower.”
Photo caption: Shoreham-Wading River’s D.J. Brown receives a late throw as Miller Place’s Kevin Bowrosen steals third base in the sixth inning. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)
