Northport Clarifies Moratorium Policy Amid Twins Memorial Request

NORTHPORT, NY — Two weeks after Lori Kuhn launched a petition to lift Northport's moratorium on bench memorials to honor her identical twin brothers, the village told her to submit the placard request in writing, and clarified the freeze isn't an official policy.

Gordon and Jeff Kuhn died three months apart last year at the age of 53. The back-to-back losses rocked the Kuhn family, and their younger sister Lori has spearheaded an effort to cement them into the village's legacy forever. She wants plaques placed on two benches near locations that hold a special place in their hearts. One would go near the harbor where they often visited as kids, and the other would go near a farm sanctuary close to their childhood home.

But due to limited space, village trustee and parks commissioner Mercy Smith told Patch a moratorium was implemented on installing plaques at Northport and Cow Harbor parks. The policy was implemented five or six years ago, before her appointment.

On Thursday, a representative for the village appeared to contradict that notion, telling Patch there was no official moratorium on the memorial practice. The board is trying to come up with criteria for who will be eligible for bench memorials in the future, the representative said.

The clarification comes after Kuhn talked to board members at a public forum Tuesday, during which they also clarified it was more of a policy than a formal moratorium, she said. Kuhn was told to submit a written letter to the panel about her memorial request, both the village and Kuhn confirmed. She must also attach photos of the two benches she wants to use.

"They were very nice," she said. "They were very considerate of the time they allowed me and I appreciated that. I really did. I felt the community at that point."

Trustee Smith called Kuhn's presentation "amazing."

"She spoke from her heart and I know the Mayor, my fellow Trustees, the attendees, and I truly felt the love and admiration she has for her two brothers as well as the pain her family has endured and continues to endure as they go through the grieving process," Smith wrote in an email Thursday evening. "We were all intrigued by her suggestion of honoring their memory at the Lewsis Oliver Farm."

Kuhn's letter can be submitted as soon as she has all the necessary materials, the village said. A potential timetable for how long it would take to evaluate wasn't known.

More than 430 people had signed Kuhn's petition by Thursday afternoon, and she expects more will come in soon. Reaction to her efforts has been mostly positive, Kuhn said, with many people leaving "beautiful sentiments" on the petition.

Kuhn plans to attend the next board meeting in August should she not hear back by then.

"I'm motivated to keep pushing," she said.