For the past 69 years, the Birchwood Civic Association has provided a wide variety of services, from community rallies to concerts in the neighborhood.
Most recently, the East Birchwood resident group received county approval to install 20 license-plate readers in their Jericho neighborhood to help deter crime.
The project, which came to fruition in January after a five-year campaign, received unanimous approval from the Nassau County Legislature. Now, the association is sourcing resident opinions on what its next project should be, hoping to once more meet the needs of its residents.
“We’re not a homeowners’ association; we’re not a city; we’re not a town. We’re just a group of 1,100 families,” said Roy Chipkin, the civic group’s president. Chipkin, who works in real estate, has lived in the area since 1987 and has served as president since 2014.
The association, founded in 1956, comprises about 800 families of the approximately 1,100 homes in the community. Chipkin said they attend town meetings and contact local officials regarding development. According to the association’s website, the group meets monthly and shares information on the Jericho and Syosset schools, town laws and real estate development.
In the past, Chipkin said the group led the “No Mall Here” protest in 2011, which opposed a mall development in the current Amazon property in Syosset. The group also spearheaded a program that planted over 70 trees on the community’s curbs, which are town property.
Most recently, Chipkin said the association worked with state Assembly Member Charles Lavine to receive a $250,000 state grant for the installation of 20 license plate readers in the area. He said the group had pursued the grant in hopes of deterring crime in the area.
“It’s a deterrent for crime in the neighborhood,” Chipkin said. He said the readers will be located at the neighborhood’s entrances and will help locate stolen vehicles.
Now that the county has unanimously approved the readers’ installation, Chipkin said the civic group is looking ahead to its next project. He said the association sent out a survey via mail and email to garner resident feedback on what kind of project they hope to see, with options ranging from beautification to recreation to safety.
“We wanted to get a flavor of what the community is up to… we want participation,” Chipkin said.
In the past 12 years that Chipkin has served as president, he said that many new families have moved into the area, changing the wants and needs of the neighborhood. By distributing a survey before starting its next project, Chipkin said he hopes to fill the needs of the community.
