Brookhaven seeks ideas for making public facilities more accessible

Clifford Hymowitz, of Medford, says many of the people he meets have no idea he's disabled.

The traumatic brain injury he suffered in a car crash about 40 years ago left him with a short memory and other cognitive challenges that make it difficult for him to accomplish daily tasks, said Hymowitz, 70.

But it's an invisible disease that causes some people to have unrealistic expectations of Hymowitz and others who have similar disabilities, he said.

“Even though we have a disability, it’s not visual, so people don’t understand it," said Hymowitz, a liaison to Brookhaven Town's disability task force. "They don’t understand it because they don’t see it.”

Hymowitz and the task force are planning what they hope will be a series of meetings at which disabled Brookhaven residents can discuss their experiences and how to improve town services for handicapped residents. 

The first of those meetings is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at Middle Country Public Library at 101 Eastwood Blvd. in Centereach. The meeting is intended for disabled residents in Brookhaven's 3rd Council District, which includes Lake Grove, Centereach, Selden, and parts of Lake Ronkonkoma, Farmingville, Port Jefferson Station and Holtsville.

Residents attending the meeting will be invited to "share life experiences and general concerns," the town said in a news release, adding topics could include "the accessibility of Brookhaven Town properties, services, streets, sidewalks, bus stops, bus shelters and more."

Each speaker will have up to three minutes to speak, the release said.

Meetings for the town's five other council districts have not been scheduled, town officials said.

Third District Councilman Neil Manzella said the meetings are an opportunity for disabled residents to share concerns about impediments that block their access to town facilities, such as narrow parking spaces and inadequate ramps for people who use wheelchairs and walkers.

He said he hopes to learn “what we’re doing right and what we could do better.”

Manzella said the town's Parks and Recreation Department installed a special swing at a town park at the request of a family with a disabled child.

But some potential impediments are not apparent to non-disabled people, he added.

“Sometimes it’s something that you look at that you don’t realize [is a problem] unless you’re disabled yourself,” he said.

Hymowitz said he hopes to eventually organize a townwide "trauma conference" for disabled people to discuss the special needs of people with issues such as brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD.

“What we can do as a town is bring people together in a nonjudgmental environment so they can have a conversation," Hymowitz said. "Until you get people to talk, nothing’s going to happen.”

By Carl MacGowan

carl.macgowan@newsday.comCarlMacGowan

Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.