This Week in Riverhead history: Town hires first black female cop
20 years ago
Town hires first black woman cop
As misty eyed parents looked on, six new police officers were sworn into the Riverhead Police Department on March 29, 1993, including the first black female police officer, reporter Cheryl Clark wrote in that week’s issue of the Riverhead News-Review.
Evelyn Hobson, now a detective, remains the only black woman in the Riverhead Police Department today.
Minority hiring in the department became a major issue that year, after Sgt. Donald Green, then the only black officer in Riverhead, “went public with allegations that the town has systematically excluded African-Americans and other minorities from the department,” we reported.
“I am ecstatic over her hiring,” Sgt. Green said that week. “We must not put aside, however, that this is only the first step of many steps that need to be taken to complete the job.”
5 years ago
Feds approve Broadwater proposal
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved Broadwater Energy’s application to build and operate a floating liquified natural gas terminal in the middle of Long Island Sound five years ago this week, we reported in the March 27, 2008 issue of the Riverhead News-Review.
The terminal would have been located in the waters off Shoreham.
The proposal was shot down by New York State three months later when Governor David Paterson ruled Broadwater’s plan was inconsistent with the state’s Long Island Sound Coastal Management Policy in a decision to deny the company necessary permits.
25 years ago
High-speed chase leaves three dead in Wading River
An 81-year-old woman and her 80-year-old male friend were killed when the car they were riding in was struck by a Medford teen who was attempting to evade police in a stolen car, we reported in the March 31, 1988 issue of the News-Review.
Lillian Feigle, a resident of Glenwood Village in Riverhead, was being driven home by Frank Kehlenback when they were killed.
The driver of the allegedly stolen car, Edward Gotch, 18, also died in the crash, we wrote. He had taken the car from the parking lot of Suffolk County National Bank on Second Street in Riverhead.
30 years ago
School district aid restored
It’s a similar story every year: The governor proposes massive cuts in state aid to schools in January before the state Legislature restores funding in late March.
In the March 31, 1983 issue of the News-Review we published an info box showing how much aid to each district would be increasing or decreasing in the 1983-84 school year.
So how much has state aid gone up in the past 30 years? Take a look:
Riverhead
1983-84 — $3,457,575
2013-14 — $20,451,658
Shoreham-Wading River
1983-84 — $1,946,661
2013-14 — $8,924,075
75 years ago
Supervisors continue fight for bridges
The County Board of Supervisors showed its support of a plan to explore the feasibility of building loop bridges at Smith Point and Shelter Island in March 1938, according to a Suffolk Times story.
Riverhead Town Supervisor Dennis Homan had proposed a bill to rescind a $60,000 appropriation to create a “fact-finding committee” on the bridge issue, but eight of the board’s 10 members voted against his bill.
80 years ago
County cuts $50,000 in expenses
County workers making more than $1,000 a year agreed in March 1933 to a 15 percent reduction in salary. The agreement, along with several other expense adjustments, was expected to save Suffolk County $50,000 annually, according to an article in the March 31, 1933 issue of The Suffolk Times.
Among the other cuts: Heads of departments agreed to receive just 50 cents a day in food allowances, down from $1 the year before.
