Town of North Hempstead Supervisor May W. Newburger announced last week that she will not seek a sixth term in November. "It's time," she said in an interview on Friday, April 25. "I have the same feeling I had in Albany." She was referring to her decision not to run for a fifth term in the New York State Assembly. It was after she stepped down from the Assembly that she ran successfully for the North Hempstead Town Board. When the North Hempstead supervisor Ben Zwirn chose to run for Nassau County Executive, Ms. Newburger succeeded him as supervisor. FULL STORY

The Port Washington Board of Education adopted its 2003-2004 budget on April 15. This year's increase is $6,379,080, up 7.67 percent over the 02-03 budget of $85,418,510. The 2001-2002 budget was $80,701,714. However, because of reduced monies on the revenue side of this year's budget, particularly in the $800,000 plus loss of state aid, the tax levy will be 8.1 percent. FULL STORY

We know spring has really arrived when we see frostbiters sailing in shorts. But that is exactly what landlubbers would have seen if they looked carefully out on Manhasset Bay on Sunday, April 27. The Frostbite Ocean Race, the last race of the season, which was originally scheduled for Saturday, April 26, but because of the monsoon, took place on Sunday, on a beautiful sunny day. John Browning, who in the past has made it his duty to challenge his fellow frostbiters by wearing shorts in the middle of winter (though he didn't wear them much this winter, if at all), was joined by several competitors and led the fashion parade of "shorts wearers" on Sunday. But it is not quite the same when the weather is a balmy 60 degrees. In any case, eight teams of racers competed in the Ocean Race, which this year took about 80 minutes to cross the finish line. RC set a course way out almost to "M" near Kings Point, and then back into Manhasset Bay off the Whitney Boat house, with a surprisingly close finish off the dock at the Manhasset Bay YC. In the end, it was Pedro Lorson/Mimi Berry, #536, who took top honors. At the completion of racing, skippers and crew, the Race Committee, spouses, children and friends gathered at the Manhasset Bay Junior YC for the long-awaited clam bake that is the traditional end-of-frostbiting picnic - always a good time with excellent food. This year the picnic was especially fun because these hearty sailors didn't get together much this past winter because racing had to be cancelled at least nine consecutive Sundays because of high winds or because the bay was frozen. RC and sailors alike can't remember, in recent history, so many cancellations due to ice. So it was great fun to gather and talk of the "missed season" and look forward to the upcoming warm weather sailing. Correction: On Sunday, April 6, third place winners for the day were Greg Corckett and Ralph diBenedetto in #538. FULL STORY