A look back: 2020 in review

January

Not knowing what the year would bring, the Advance launched its complete redesign. Brookhaven National Lab was tapped for a one-of-a-kind ion collider and Patchogue Village announced a possible ban on new bars. We honored our Man and Woman of 2019, Keith Caputo and Kathy Fallon, and Grucci lit up the sky on New Year’s Eve after Patchogue’s ball rose during Midnight on Main.

February

Patchogue and Bellport villages talked about fines and bike confiscation for reckless bicycling. Bellport’s Shannon Gibbons was on “American Idol” and we reported on Burlington’s possible move to Bob’s Stores location. We pushed the need to be counted in the 2020 census and Of Colors Creative Collective celebrated Black History Month at ArtSpace. Also, the decades-old Wustenhoff case was reopened after a push from his surviving children.

March

COVID-19 officially hit Suffolk County. Patchogue Village discussed the possibility of moving the St. Patrick’s Day parade to July, though it never grew any traction. We also talked about three ways to learn at home. After a complete shutdown, local theatres and businesses were coping with the effects. Construction began at the Waverly Avenue spur and David’s Shoe Emporium in Patchogue announced they were to close.

April

High school seniors discussed what it was like to lose their senior year, and Patchogue Theatre rehired two employees after letting go their entire staff earlier in the month with plans to close until September. A Medford girl made masks for the community, the Easter Bunny made an appearance in Patchogue Village and LI Community Hospital honored first responders. Also, the former Foley nursing center was considered for a long-term COVID-treating solution and Better Man Distilling Co. started making hand sanitizer.

May

The Gateway in Bellport began featuring drive-in movies, Memorial Day in Patchogue Village was live-streamed and Alive After Five went virtual. Beaches opened Memorial Day weekend, the Town of Brookhaven clerk’s office was overwhelmed by COVID-related death certificates and the proposed Sunrise Highway exit project for Mastic-Shirley at Barnes Road was nixed. Also, a plane went down in Mastic.

June

Local school districts celebrated drive-in style graduations, beautiful in their own right, and budgets passed across the board. COAD collected money to distribute food, libraries planned for reopening and we featured “Voices for Equality” OPEDs in honor of Juneteenth. We also featured our mask contest winners, Elizabeth and Henrietta Edmonds of Bayport. Restaurant owners rallied to reopen and hundreds marched for social justice.

July

Schools began reopening plans, Brookhaven Town installed a new fence at Lakeview Cemetery and the Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts sold out their first live event since the shutdown, “Music Under the Marquee.” Baseball came back and Bellport’s sailing program was in full swing, despite restrictions. The Patchogue Arts Council also featured a new “Perfect Vision” 2020 mural on Terry Street. Earlier in the week, Fourth of July was celebrated at the Four Corners in Patchogue and four-story apartments were proposed for Waverly Avenue.

August

In honor of anniversary of the 19th Amendment, we featured local women who fought for their right to vote, we wrote about the possible creation of an ashfill in Brookhaven Town and were cleaning up after Tropical Storm Isaias. Saint Liberata fest was cancelled in Patchogue and Bellport welcomed the Bellport Brewing Co. with a code amendment. We also talked about going back to school with PPE and featured our last part of our “Unmasked” series.

September

The Gateway announced their “Haunted Woods Drive” and “Scary Stroll,” a COVID-19-friendly version of their annual haunted playhouse. Patchogue Village’s sewer project to hook up 500 South Shore homes was ready to go, but extra funds were needed and the DEC suggested a possible solution to the sediment problem at Canaan Lake. Also, a former greenhouse parcel in East Patchogue was preserved by the Town of Brookhaven and the Brookhaven Fire Department was scolded for displaying a Confederate flag on a truck. We earned major New York Press Association Awards for 2019 stories as well as a First Place Spot News photo.

October

The Friends of Bellport Bay hit their one-million mark of oysters planted. The new Lake Street traffic circle opened, Patchogue Village signed a project development agreement for a detailed energy audit, and county executive Steve Bellone signed legislation to reduce nitrogen levels. Earlier in the month, the Avery property was beginning the preservation process and the William Floyd School District reached a 90 percent graduation rate.

November

It was Election Day, a historic one at that, nominating our first woman vice president Kamala Harris. Locally, Patchogue Village hosted Small Business Saturday with the Elf on the Shelf. Toast and Harmony Café partnered to provide Thanksgiving meals and the second wave of the pandemic closed in on us. Winter Bros. also announced their idea to move waste by rail and wind farm cables were proposed at Smith Point Beach.

December

Last month, the Gateway gave us a drive-in performance with the “Rat Pack is Back!” on New Year’s Eve, the Patchogue Arts Council displayed their ever-beautiful MoCa L.I.ghts Merry and Bright on the Congregational Church, and holiday events were celebrated in a pandemic way. Over 400 partygoers were busted at a Brookhaven Hamlet rental. Patchogue Village announced the possibility of employee parking at the National Grid lot on West Main Street rendering the parking garage no longer necessary, and the Garden Club planted 10,000 daffodils. Later in the month, we were hit by Winter Storm Gail, leaving us with over five inches of snow.