Matinecock Court Decision Expected in March

The Suffolk County Department of Health Review Board is expected to announce its decision on a variance request submitted by developers of the proposed in March, according to DOH spokesperson Grace Kelly-McGovern.

Public correspondence has flooded the DOH since the last variance hearing on Nov. 17 for relief of minimum separation distance requirements of a proposed on-site sewage treatment plant. Housing Help, the nonprofit affordable housing agency behind Matinecock Court, is now reviewing the correspondence and preparing a response which will be read at a public hearing likely to be scheduled for March 15. The DOH will subsequently announce its official decision.

Housing Help needs needs this variance relief because of the proposed plant's proximity to surrounding structures such as the railroad track, a LIPA substation, and the proposed housing development itself. Opponents also cite the plant's proximity to the and as a point of concern.

Both Senator John Flanagan, R-East Northport, and Senator Carl Marcellino, R-Syosset, signed off on a letter to the DOH, opposing the variance because of "dangerous chemicals and toxins" used at the plant. The also sent an opposition letter citing, "odor, noise, and possible release of pathogenic airborne microbes," as their primary causes for concern.

Housing Help stated in a response letter that concerns over storage, spill, and hazmat response at the proposed plant will not be an issue due to extensive testing and precautionary measures.

All three letters are attached to this article as PDFs.

If approved, the variance could mean the end to Housing Help's with residents, opposition groups, and the Town of Huntington to build the 14.8 acre, 155-unit, half-ownership affordable housing development.

Editor's Note: An updated fact sheet from Housing Help was attached to this article as a PDF on Jan. 26.