STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- After an eruv was taken down in Westerleigh last month, the applicants are continuing to work with Consolidated Edison to have the religious fencing re-erected, according to the utility company.

Controversy was recently sparked in Westerleigh over Jewish residents from Boro Park, Brooklyn, moving into the community. And the opposition centered around an eruv being installed in the community.

After the eruv became visible, the Westerleigh Improvement Society held a meeting in May -- and both press and non-Westerleigh residents were excluded. At the meeting, an intense discussion among more than 150 people turned into the yelling of “anti-Semitic comments,” multiple sources told the Advance.

In addition, signs saying: “Westerleigh Strong. We’re Not Selling” started popping up on lawns throughout the community.

Members of the Westerleigh Improvement Society say they’re not exhibiting any bias toward any one group.

“Westerleigh is a richly diverse community of residents who have a 100-year-plus history of joining together and enhancing the quality of life for all. The concerns voiced by a few people at the meeting comes from a place of helplessness and fear of the unknown. These concerns are fueled by published articles and events that speak to the changes that occur in neighborhoods when there is concerted effort to populate them,” said the Westerleigh Improvement Society in a statement to the Advance after the meeting.

“The tension was so high, and it was so difficult for many people,” Rabbi Yaaklv Lehrfield, of Young Israel of Staten Island, Willowbrook, told the Advance last month in reference to the controversy sparked by the eruv, which is a wire installed on utility poles.

The Westerleigh Improvement Society said it was opposed to the eruv because it was put up without the finalization of the proper permits.

CON ED WORKING WITH COMMUNITY

After the eruv was taken down, an application was resubmitted to Con Edison, the utility responsible for approving the eruv.

“We’re continuing to work together with the applicants through the process,” said Bob McGee, a Con Ed spokesman, referring to the approvals needed for the eruv to be re-erected.

He couldn’t say how long the application process will take.

Last month, the Westerleigh Improvement Society issued the following statement to the Advance about the eruv: “We are thankful that most of the Eruv has been removed, as it was installed without the required permission, required insurance, and did not follow standard or established details. We are curious why some portions of it remain up without the required items."

The Westerleigh Improvement Society didn’t respond to the Advance’s request for comment about the new application to have the eruv re-erected.

MEETING CANCELLED

A meeting intended to address controversy surrounding the eruv was postponed on May 29 due to weather and crowd concerns.

On that night, residents were handed fliers outside of Immanuel Union Church stating that the annual meeting of the Westerleigh Improvement Society was postponed to a later date.

ERUV DEFINED

An eruv’s purpose “is to make each individual who dwells within its boundaries a part owner of the enclosed area for certain Halachic purposes,” according to Young Israel of Staten Island’s website.

“Without an eruv a woman cannot take her baby stroller to synagogue or to go to a neighbor. Without an eruv, you can’t carry,” Lehrfield said.

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