New Highway Homeowners Applaud No Parking Signs

Commack homeowners are standing up to applaud Smithtown Town officials quick action to resolve a local issue, one solved easily by the quick posting of a "No Parking" sign.

Melissa Kollen-Rice, a New Highway homeowner, presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Councilman Kevin Malloy at Tuesday's Town Board meeting for his work in helping get "No Parking" signs installed in front of

Kollen-Rice said she first contacted Smithtown Town Board about safety issues on New Highway in December 2011. Teachers, parents and school visitors were parking cars on the shoulder of New Highway, in front of the elementary school, were obstructing the visibility for local homeowners.

"These vehicles block our driveways and obstruct our view when we try to back out of (or pull forward out of) our driveways. At this point, those of us who own the homes on New Highway across from Sawmill School are literally taking our lives in our hands when we try to leave our driveway," wrote Kollen-Rice in a letter dated Dec. 16, 2011.

She continues on to mention there were "No Parking" signs along New Highway for several years, but had been removed recently, creating the recent issue.

Malloy stepped forward to help Kollen-Rice and three other homeowners she represented, acting as liaison between the Town Council and the Traffic Safety Department. Smithtown Town Board approved "No Parking" signs in front of Sawmill Intermediate on New Highway at a March board meeting.

"Malloy helped expedite this issues, making it a much safer place by putting signs up in our area, no only the street we live on but neighboring streets as well," Kollen-Rice said.

Street signs were installed in front of the school in April 2012. While this did not immediately solve the problem, a few phone calls to local police officers helped enforce the new parking rules.

Kollen-Rice and her neighbors agreed to publicly present a certificate to Malloy, and a second certificate to Highway Supervisor Glenn Jorgenson for their direct action in helping remedy the issue.