TIMELINES 8/11/16

Foodtown Opened Aug 5

A Foodtown grocery store opened in Valley Cottage on Aug. 5, 2016 bringing a new supermarket option for families in Rockland. This is the first Foodtown in the county and has caught the attention of many Clarkstown residents. One Nanuet mom who used to shop at Foodtown in the Bronx is now looking forward to seeing if their prices and value is worth the drive across the county. “You want to give your kids better foods. You don’t want them getting fat and getting all these sugars and stuff,” she said. The store is located in the Lake Ridge Plaza off of Route 303. The store will feature “call outs,” signs under price tags indicating the product’s healthy dietary attributions.  “Rather than spend a lot of time…squinting and reviewing the product, it’s a quicker path for (customers) to get in and out of the store,” Joseph Fantozzi, vice president of customer development for Allegiance Retail Services, said.

New Crystal Run Healthcare Facility in West Nyack

Crystal Run Healthcare opened a new multi-specialty facility in West Nyack this week to offer quick, more convenient access to medial care and specialists for Rockland residents. “Up until this point…there’s no coordination of care between different physicians in different specialties,” Dr. Hal Teitelbaum, Crystal Run’s managing partner and chief executive officer, said. He boasted that anything a patient might need ranging from an infusion room, endoscopy, colonoscopy, CAT scan or MRI is near each other, with specialists often in the same building.

“We can call a cardiologist. We can call a pulmonary doctor. Or we can call a neurologist, saying, ‘Hey, we have a patient here who’s having a problem. You need to come down and see this person,’” Teitelbaum said. The discharge also takes place in the room to make things easy for patients. The two-story, 70,000-square-foot building located at 2 Centerock Road will have regular hours and urgent care hours Monday to Saturday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Fire Reveals Code Violations in Spring Valley Home

When firefighters responded to a house fire in Spring Valley, New York, officials discovered numerous code violations. The house, located at 20 Division St., contained illegal walls and a boarded-up front door along with other violations. Up to 17 people, including children lived in the building, according to one tenant who spoke to News 12.

Governor Passes Sports Fantasy Legislation

On Aug. 3, 2016 New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation to legalize fantasy sports in the state. The bill requires fantasy sport companies to register with and follow regulations issued by the NYS Gaming Commission. Although it is placed under the watch of the gaming commission, the fantasy sports leagues are not considered gambling. “This legislation strikes the right balance that allows this activity to continue with oversight from state regulators, new consumer protections, and more funding for education,” Cuomo said in a press release. Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow believes this will enable the state to generate millions in revenue and ensure a safe environment for fantasy sport fans.

Fed to Require Police Reports of Fatal Incidents by Cops

Police departments in the U.S. will soon be required to report all details of fatal incidents involving officers each quarter to the Department of Justice under a new system for tracking killings by police. This program is to help the federal government “confirm fatal cases seen in media reports and other open sources rather than wait for departments to report them voluntarily” according to an article in The Guardian.  The new program will replace the FBI’s count and increase transparency around the use of force by police. It will be overseen by the department’s bureau of justice statistics (BJS) and document deaths by physical force, Taser shocks and vehicle crashes in addition to fatal shootings by officers.

Local Rockland Athlete Competed in Olympics

Ryan Carlyle, 26, grew up in West Nyack where she attended Clarkstown South. She played four varsity sports and played softball at the University of South Carolina. Carlyle began competing in the international level of Rugby Sevens in 2010. The U.S. team defeated France 19-5 on Monday Aug. 8 claiming fifth place. This is the first Olympic games featuring Rugby Sevens.