Community watch: NENDATF asks for support regarding safety issues at Crab Meadow

The following public service announcement was written and submitted to the Journal for publication by the Crab Meadow WorkGroup, made up of members of the Northport/East Northport Community Drug and Alcohol Task Force.

Frank P. Petrone Crab Meadow Beach has long been the crown jewel of the Town of Huntington park system. The beauty and diverse wildlife habitat complement its popular use by community beach and park goers.

Unfortunately, the wooded area, gazebo and creek area southeast of the parking lot has become a consistent place of heavy alcohol and hard drug use with parties, and campfires by local and sometimes out-of-town youth. 

The park is being heavily damaged, not to mention the safety issues related to this kind of activity. Drug-use items such as syringes, empty vape devices, and other paraphernalia, along with hard alcohol bottles, are consistently found just beyond the gazebo area, where young children play in the sand, as well as in the wooded areas. This poses an obvious and significant threat to the safety of our youth and small children who use the area. 

As park stewards, the Northport/East Northport Community Drug and Alcohol Task Force (NENDATF) and 1Life Youth Coalition have been meeting with the Second Precinct on various occasions, hoping to develop a community-involved beach watch initiative which may help alleviate the misuse of the beach. 

Second Precinct leaders are asking the community to report obtrusive gatherings of youth parties in the wooded and creek areas, especially if campfires are present. Fire chiefs have indicated the likelihood of a forest fire if this continues. Dialing 911 is the police department’s recommendation to respond and log these activities.

The Northport/East Northport Community Drug and Alcohol Task Force has been meeting with Town of Huntington officials since September 2022 to review quarterly beach scan/cleanup reports and recommended solutions based on a safety-first premise. Officials have also met with us for an onsite survey of the park areas in question, and while they share our concern, they have not yet responded to our recommendations. 

We also arranged a meeting with the Second Precinct and Town of Huntington officials, where the police agreed better access to the secluded area would increase safety efforts. With the more recent and consistent syringe findings where kids play and youth gather, there is a growing concern that tragedy may strike. We are hoping that the Town of Huntington may still act in accordance with their safety-first stance on the new park playground, and include the entire park with some of the police and task force safety recommendations before completing the Crab Meadow Beach project. 

One of the primary recommendations would be to make the back area of the park more accessible to first responders and foot patrols. 

Please follow our Second Precinct’s request for help by dialing 911 to report unsafe activities in the beach area. Thank you for your cooperation in ensuring the safety of Crab Meadow Beach. Your vigilance and support are greatly appreciated.