Patricia Scimone-Almasy picketing in front of Village Hall with her husband.

by Carolyn James

On every Monday and Wednesday afternoon, Pat Scimone-Almasy and her husband carry picket signs in front of Babylon Village Hall. They hope to gain public support for their plight, they said, and to coerce the Village government to permit them to construct a single family home on a substandard lot they own Marlborough Road. To date, the Village Zoning Board of Appeals has denied that request, and a recent court ruling has upheld the decision, saying it was not an abuse of the board’s discretion.

But according to the attorney representing Scimone-Almasy, both decisions are simply wrong. There are many similar sized plots within the area that have been developed, and denying his client’s right to build is essentially denying her use of her land.

"The area maps show the whole area has homes built on similar-sized lots," said Joseph Buzzell of Mineola, the attorney representing the land owner. And though he acknowledged that none have been built within three to five years when the Village established a policy against approving substandard building lots, the zoning board failed to measure the benefits to the landowner against the community.

Village law provides a balance test the Zoning Board must apply, said Buzzell, weighing the interest of the applicant against the impact on the community. "Here the interest is overwhelmingly in favor of the application because there will be no impact on the community since the lot is in conformity with those in the surrounding area," said Buzzell.

The Village is represented by David Roth, an attorney from Massapequa. He declined to speak on behalf of the Village saying it was inappropriate. However, other sources said that recently a change in state law has given local zoning boards greater authority to refuse variances on substandard lots, something the Babylon Zoning Board appears to have done.

Scimone-Almasy has decided to bring her case to a higher court rather than to appeal the first decision handed down in favor of the Village. Papers are expected to be filed in that case in November. In the meantime, the picketing, which does not change the merits of the case, is simply a way for Scimone-Almasy to "exert her frustrations" over being denied use of her property," said Buzzell.

For her part, Scimone-Almasy, who lives in West Babylon, said she wants the community to know that she is paying taxes in the Village without receiving a single benefit. "I have paid taxes but have not been able even to obtain a parking permit for the Village lot so my commuter husband doesn’t have to pay for a private lot," she said, appealing to the public for support. "They (the Village) are spending a fortune of your hard-earned money to fight me, and people with special situations like myself."