Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Seaford LIRR 1967 photos

A thread has developed on railroad.net concerning the Seaford station repairs. If you use the link below and then scroll a considerable distance down the discussion, you will find eight black-and-white photos from Dave Keller showing the construction of the elevated station while a temporary station was in place on ground level.
The link is here.
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The same thread reminded us that the Seaford train service was moved to the elevated structure in two steps forty years ago: On October 22, 1968, the westward train service began to use the elevated platform. On November 1, 1968, eastward train service was moved upstairs. I note that this happened before the purchase of the M-1 fleet, so all cars had trap doors and steps. That explains why the photos of the temporary platforms show "low-level" platforms. Until this week forty years ago, passengers climbed onto trains. The steps on the coaches could be slippery in bad weather! When the new station was put in service, the platform was the height of the coach floor, and one merely had to step over the gap.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Three citizens attend Wantagh hearing

The required annual budget hearing for the Wantagh Fire Department was held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, October 21, 2008. Note that the Wantagh Fire district includes parts of Bellmore and Seaford, plus contracted coverage of Jones Beach and Tobay Beach. Three citizens (Larry, Janet, Joe) attended the Powerpoint presentation by Superintendent Michael Antonucci, a clear presentation that can be found in a different format here. Ten uniformed members, including perhaps the five elected commissioners, were present.
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A notice of Public Hearing Policy was distributed to the public prior to the meeting. Item 4 reads: "Please do not expect the Board to answer any questions, as this time has been reserved for the public to inform the Board of Fire Commissioners about their concerns and comments regarding the proposed budget." Two attendees gave their views.
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Some budget items were explained and some answers given. The proposed 2009 budget amounts to $6.403,500. There is no public vote on the budget. The hearing ended at 7:27 p.m.