Roslyn Harbor shaves 3 hours off time landscapers must finish work on Saturdays

Roslyn Harbor trustees have passed a law amendment that shortens the time that landscapers can work in the village on Saturdays. 

The amendment states that landscapers   may work only 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. They previously could work until 5 p.m. Deputy Mayor Sandy Quentzel said residents have complained in recent weeks about excessive noise from lawn maintenance equipment, prompting trustees to approve the change, 3-0. Mayor Louis Badolato and trustee Jasun Fiorentino were absent for the June 25 vote. 

“If you want to have company over that day, they don’t want a lawn mower running around next door to you,” trustee Jeremy Rosof said. “I doubt that they [landscapers] are here after 2 anyway. They come earlier in the day.” 

Trustees held a public hearing about the amendment during last week's board meeting, then approved the measure that evening.

Quentzel said the amendment does not apply to residents who perform their own yard work and that landscapers will continue to find work in Roslyn Harbor despite the law change. 

“Landscapers are not going to not work here because they have to finish up at 2,” Quentzel said. 

Trustees said that they heard from a resident recently who said that neighbors on each side of her property use the same landscaper and that the lawn company visits both homes on the same Saturday. 

The village allows landscaping work 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays. No landscaping can be performed on Sundays, as is the case in many communities in North Hempstead Town. 

Roslyn Harbor’s neighboring villages also have Saturday restrictions on landscaping, and most nearby municipalities give landscapers more time to work. Roslyn allows landscaping from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. but bans leaf blowers of any kind. East Hills allows landscaping from 9 a.m. to sundown, with a 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. restriction on lawn mowers. Roslyn Estates allows landscaping from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and Old Westbury allows it from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., as does North Hempstead Town.

Quentzel said the amendment dovetails with the trustees' larger goal of making sure residents have peace and quiet on weekends, noting that the village has already banned commercial construction on Saturdays and Sundays.