DeStefano Delivers $1.9 Million for Safer Streets

A five-year effort to improve pedestrian safety along Buffalo Avenue in Medford has received a major boost, with Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano helping secure $1.9 million for new sidewalks and pedestrian improvements.

Gov. Kathy Hochul included the grant in her latest announcement of $97 million in statewide transportation improvements, with the Buffalo Avenue project receiving the only Long Island award.

“This is about protecting our children and making sure they can get to and from school safely,” DeStefano said. “It took years of persistence, but we never gave up. Now we're delivering $1.9 million to make Buffalo Avenue safer for students, families, and everyone who travels through this neighborhood.”

The project began in 2021 when Patchogue-Medford High School teacher Shaun Carlson and his students identified dangerous pedestrian conditions near their school.

Despite their efforts, the proposal stalled. The Class of 2024 revived the campaign as a legacy project, determined to secure improvements benefiting future students and neighborhood residents.

“What started as a classroom project in 2021 has become a $1.9 million investment in public safety,” DeStefano said. “Shaun Carlson and his students refused to give up, and neither did we.”

Following the announcement, Carlson called the assemblyman enthusiastically, expressing gratitude for his persistence and refusal to abandon the project.

“Shaun Carlson deserves tremendous credit for inspiring his students to take on a real public safety problem,” DeStefano said. “Their legacy will be safer streets for generations to come.”

The students participated in the school's Generation Citizen program, advocating sidewalks along Buffalo and Jamaica avenues.

The grant comes through the Federal Highway Administration's Transportation Alternatives Program, administered by the New York State Department of Transportation.

“This is what constituent service is all about,” DeStefano said. “Listening to the community, following through, and delivering results.”