Dear Superintendent Giordano and Members of the Board of Education:

In response to the presentation by Gregory J. Guercio, Esq. that occurred October 15th, it may be in the community’s best interest to apply the same scrutiny to counsel as we currently do to the faculty. At the meeting, Mr. Guercio informed residents of the community that the school district was on a path to insolvency. Data was presented in a slide presentation that offered no references, citations or information to verify. The presentation highlighted and touted recent efforts to stave off potential insolvency including cuts to several positions. The presentation also addressed challenges due to declining revenues from state and federal aid, and the consequences of the 2% tax cap among others. Mr. Guercio presented a dire picture of Lindenhurst School District’s finances that seemed to conflict with a recent study performed by the Office of the State Comptroller, where our district was not among those cited as being in danger of insolvency.

Several misrepresentations by Mr. Guercio must be highlighted. Without mentioning sources, he states that the median household income for Lindenhurst is $88,356. A web search revealed a record that is attached to this letter that may be the source of the data. The record indicates that the actual median household income of renters in town is approximately $57,683 and median household income of homeowners is $98,093, identical to the alleged average salary of a faculty member that was presented. Lindenhurst has a significant concentration of single family homes with accessory apartments located among single family homes configured for only single family use. A search on the Multiple Listing Service reveals the over the period between 10/27/2013 and today, 270 homes sold inside the Lindenhurst School District. Of those, 43 have known accessory apartments which are identified by having more than one kitchen. No one source can accurately quantify the true amount of accessory apartments within the school district, however a conservative estimated could be at least 20%. Are single family homes with accessory apartments quantified as two households, or one? Are the incomes of all residents within a single family home with an accessory apartment added together, or are they divided by two? Or, are they not included at all? A legal 2 family home occupied by 2 separate families is typically counted as two households. However it is not known if a single family home with an accessory apartment is counted as two households or one household. The most recent data by the US Census shows that homeowners within Lindenhurst occupy 81% of homes while renters occupy 18%. There is no data available by the US Census Bureau that indicates tenants of accessory apartments are counted in the total household income. Therefore renters within single family homes that have accessory apartments are not counted in the statistics that determine HH income on the US Census site. Household income is the basis of several equations Mr. Guercio and The Lindenhurst Board of Education presented to the community. According to the several sources, more than 50% of the households inside the district have household incomes that exceed $120,000. There is strong evidence that basis of the Combined Wealth Ratio is not correct because of undisclosed omissions of data. This must be addressed for the benefit of the community and the school district. The erroneous data was highlighted in a subsequent Newsday piece that broadcasted false information that could easily inhibit interest by those seeking to move to our community, and affect the fragile, recovering local local real estate market.

An analysis of real estate sales data collected post Hurricane Sandy, over the past 6 quarters, or 18 months, clearly shows stability and growth in property values within the Lindenhurst market area. The rise in values is despite the aftermath of Super Storm Sandy which destroyed numerous homes, reduced the overall tax roll, and affected home buying behavior south of Montauk Highway, where many of Lindenhurst’s most valuable properties are located. It is important to remember that assessed values eventually rise as markets recover, and home values appreciate. Mr. Guercio and the Lindenhurst School District Board of Education seems to assert that the local real estate market will never recover, and tax revenue and state aid will continue to decline indefinitely. Information presented in the fact finding report is suspicious, devoid of verifiable facts, and misleading to all stakeholders in the community, either intentionally or ignorantly. As a homeowner, a taxpayer, and a father of two students enrolled in the district, I wish I had the power to demand a new presentation, supported with facts that are compiled from verifiable sources. If we hired a plumber to perform work that was defective, not up to standards, we would expect the problem to be rectified at no additional cost. As a law professor, I doubt Mr. Guercio would have given a student presentation a passing grade that failed to cite sources. Mr. Guercio’s attempt to impugn the faculty in front of the community with misleading data, which was not cited or supported by verifiable sources raises doubts as to the validity of the presentation. There are even more doubts as to the incentive to resolve any of the ongoing labor disputes Guercio & Guercio, LLP is allegedly working on. The burden to cite sources must be expected of Mr. Guercio, considering his experience, credentials, reputation and exorbitant fee. It is his duty to present the community with verifiable facts to ensure we arrive at the best possible outcome for the community as a whole. After the community meeting, I do not expect the parties to negotiate in good faith if one party is going out of their way to make any negotiations into an adversarial process. The parties that gain the most in a long drawn out legal battle are typically the attorneys that charge by the hour. On October 15th, Mr. Guercio essentially misled an entire community with baseless data and painted a picture of a crisis that does not exist by any verifiable evidence. His entire presentation has raised far more questions than answers.

A comparison of the district's financial statements to those of other districts and found that Lindenhurst’s legal costs are almost 3 times the county average. Smithtown, a significantly larger district in terms of students, budget and facilities is a district that our board members need to examine in detail. Not only are utility, operating and maintenance expenses less, but their legal expenses in the same time frame was were a mere $250k. Only $125k per year. Our budget statement last year reveals $775k allocated to legal services over the last 2 years. No further details, explanation or information is provided on the most recent financial statement pertaining to the district’s legal expenses. No breakdown of settlement payouts, or any detailed explanation is found breaking down the legal expenditures. A search on several legal sources found no major pending lawsuits against the district besides one settled by Ken Mollins, Esq a few years ago. It is not known what else is contributing to the recent surge in legal expenses. Therefore the assumption is that a significant portion, most or all of the $775,000 for legal services have been or are being paid to Guercio & Guercio LLP.

School Districts have a clear potential to be a goose that lays golden eggs for enterprising attorneys. Mr. Guercio represents more than 40 school districts on Long Island simultaneously, and is engaged in multiple labor disputes in other districts including nearby Babylon, where their legal budget is a mere $165k. A real verifiable fact is that last year, Lindenhurst’s legal fees exceeded the median home value inside the boundaries of Lindenhurst School District by almost $100,000. No one informed those in attendance that Mr. Guercio owns a multi-million dollar beach home at 71 Treasure Island Ln, Amagansett, NY, a region where owner’s median income is several million dollars per year. I am sure if we are in the worst position he has ever seen in 40 years, and heading quickly to insolvency, Mr. Guercio would be willing to work with the district on a pro bono basis.

The current strategy is clearly employing costly tactics that may not resolve the current contract negotiations anytime soon. It is no secret who paid the bill for the bogus fact finding report, presented in quality that falls well below typical high school standards. How much movement by any party has occurred for $775,000 in legal fees? There appears to be no incentive to resolve any of the ongoing labor disputes in a timely manner by any party at this time. The current contracts appear to be favorable to any currently being presented. Guercio and Guercio, LLP stands to gain significant revenue by continuing on the current course, which raises doubts as to who really has an incentive to resolve the issue. If Mr. Guercio is held to the same standards as the faculty, Mr. Guercio would be rated ineffective. Steps are typically taken to remove teachers, administrators or other district employees that do not meet standards before they are awarded tenure. Presenting misleading information in the manner he did was inexcusable and offending to many residents, many of whom are educators themselves. Mr. Guercio should be made aware that the community is not as ignorant as he seems to believe. We are not interested in being drawn into a divisive, adversarial process that we elected board members to conduct in good faith. Lindenhurst is a tight knit community that comes to each other’s aid in times of need. Lindenhurst is still in a cycle of recovery. We cannot afford to jeopardize the property values of residents by employing tactics that essentially create crisis when it is really not there. If I were someone looking to purchase a home inside Lindenhurst and read the subsequent piece in Newsday, I would seriously have second thoughts. It may be a good idea to seek other counsel that will present a far more realistic, less reckless strategy that will save the district money, not threaten our hard earned equity, and come to a conclusion where everyone benefits in a timely manner. Why would Mr. Guercio care if he loses a client while he has a whole coop filled with geese that lay golden eggs?

Sincerely,

Concerned Homeowners of Lindenhurst