Poll: More than half Nassau residents pleased with post-Sandy recovery

More than half of Nassau residents are satisfied with the pace of recovery efforts following superstorm Sandy, while half have some level of confidence that utility service will improve following the state overhaul of the Long Island Power Authority, according to a Newsday/Siena College poll.

The poll, conducted Aug. 18-25, asked 1,715 Nassau registered voters to rate their satisfaction with the county's response since last year's destructive storm.

Fifty-one percent of respondents said they were "somewhat satisfied" with the pace of recovery, 10 percent were "completely satisfied," and a combined 34 percent said they were unsatisfied.

"You have to pay attention to the people who aren't satisfied," said Donald P. Levy, director of the Siena Research Institute. "One-third of residents is still meaningful."

Half of those polled had some level of confidence that giving PSEG of New Jersey near-total control of the Long Island electric system will result in better service. A combined 44 percent lacked confidence in the plan supported by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo.

"The jury is still out on this one," Levy said.Asked whether Nassau was on the right track or headed in the wrong direction, 47 percent said Nassau was headed in the wrong direction, compared to 40 percent who said the county was on the right track.

The dim outlook comes even as 56 percent rated the condition of public parks as good, 43 percent gave good ratings to the quality of Nassau schools, and 54 percent said the county police department was doing a good job at keeping citizens safe.

When asked to rate how affordable it is to live in Nassau County, 59 percent of those polled answered "poor," compared to 29 percent who said "fair" and a combined 10 percent who said "good" or "excellent."

Mary Engargeau, 87, a Republican who lives in Floral Park, said there was "room for improvement" in Nassau. "People are losing their homes, and people have no jobs," she said."It's a mess."

Democrat Celina Martinez, 35, of Hempstead, said she did not believe the county was on the right track because she still sees homes battered by Sandy in need of repair. "There's still so many things with Sandy that they haven't fixed," she said.