FEBRUARY 23, 2006- Continuing with his pledge to open Brookhaven Town government to all residents, Supervisor Brian X. Foley recently became the first Town Supervisor in decades to meet with the Brookhaven Senior Citizen Advisory Commission. The purpose of the meeting was to begin a substantive dialogue which the supervisor hopes can lead to improved services for the Town’s senior citizens.

The Commission, in existence since 1967, is comprised of 15 members from the community that are appointed by the Supervisor and the Town Board. The Commission meets once a month to discuss issues pertaining to Senior Citizens within the Town and to make recommendations.

“The Advisory Commission appreciated his historic visit,” Chair Louise Massaro said. “This is the first time in decades a Supervisor has participated in one of these meetings. We deeply appreciate his interest and commitment.”

An issue of interest was the STAR Enhanced Program, which offers senior property owners relief from school taxes. Supervisor Foley listened to the concerns of the Commission and spoke of improvements that he intends to look into for next year’s tax season. These improvements include greater access to the Town Assessor’s Office for senior citizens to get help with applying to the STAR Enhanced Program and increased outreach and communication to the senior community about the program.

“The meeting was a very productive one,” said Supervisor Foley. “A lot of ideas were discussed and hopefully we will be able to move forward with increasing knowledge of the STAR Enhanced Program and the application process so that more of our senior citizens will be able to take advantage of this tax relief.”

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