Long Island, NY Reptile Expo in Trouble

[Homebody]

Changes to the Long Island Reptile Expo

Dear Vendors and Loyal Visitors to the Reptile Expo:

As some of you already know, we have only recently been made aware that it is illegal to buy, sell, or own constricting snakes, and many spiders in the Town of Islip. Unfortunately, the Suffolk County Community College in Brentwood is located in the Town of Islip. We have been informed by the Town of Islip Supervisor that we can no longer hold the Long Island Reptile Expo there.

We have fought this decision since October. Our lawyers have worked tirelessly to find a way to continue the Expo. The College has been marvelous and has supported us every step of the way. They are devastated to lose us.

We are looking for a new venue for the show. It is challenging because we have found that many towns on Long Island (in both Nassau and Suffolk counties) have similar laws on the books. Nevertheless, we are in discussions with venues that we hope will allow us to have the October 6, 2024 show. We will keep you posted.

In the meantime, Suffolk County Community College has asked us to try to continue to address this decision and have suggested we hold onto our October date with them. We will be emailing you with ideas on how you can help us in this fight.

As you can imagine, we are absolutely heartbroken. Nevertheless, we will persevere. We have identified some venues that may not have prohibitive laws and we will have our lawyers researching if it is legal to use them. If you know of a venue that is at least 13,000 square feet that may be able to house us, please email Layne at bruce@reptileexpo.com. You just never know what is out there.

Stay on top of all of the Reptile Expo's news! You can sign up to be on our mailing list by going to our website, www.reptileexpo.com, and scrolling down the page until you see the sign up link. Or follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/reptileexposition.

We are strong and we will overcome this. Stayed tuned.

Sincerely,
Meredith and Layne

[Bogertophis]

Terrible news, but as Meredith & Layne said, "We are strong and we will overcome this. Stayed tuned."

[Homebody]

I looked up the law. It was passed in 1981. I guess no one knew about it because it's a stupid law that no one ever bothered to enforce.

[Armiyana]

The law was actually updated again in 2000. I knew because I moved out of the boroughs (Staten Island to be precise) with my ball python that year.

I honestly don't know why more people in the area aren't aware of this... But then again I feel like I still have seen a few BP breeders listed as NYC.

*Shrugs*

[mistergreen]

Amazing. Who knew!
How about the Nassau Colesium. Theres also Stony Brook, maybe the Selden Campus of SCC.

[Armiyana]

You would have to check the laws for those particular counties.... And then from there, I'm sure renting out Nassau collesium is not cheap .. >_>;
I don't know how the laws are for the whole of Long Island are...but given the close proximity to NYC they may also have similar restrictions in place.

Upstate New York would probably be fair game since they still allow Ball Pythons from what I remember

[Homebody]

The Long Island Reptile Expo has a new home! Hello Everyone: We have found a new home for the Long Island Reptile Expo. It is St. Joseph's University-Long Island. Here is the address: Danzi Athletic Center 155 W Roe Blvd, Patchogue, NY 11772 The venue is about 25 minutes Southeast of Suffolk Community College. The Danzi Athletic Center is large, and we are excited about the possibilities it holds. We are going out to take a look at in May. St. Joseph's was able to schedule the October show for the date we had intended to be in Suffolk. It has worked out perfectly. So, MARK YOUR CALENDARS! The Long Island Reptile Expo will take place on October 6, 2024! We will keep everyone updated on how the show is progressing on through email, on our website, and through our Facebook and Instagram pages. A huge thanks to everyone that shared ideas with us to keep the expo going. We are extremely grateful! Meredith and Layne

[Bogertophis]

Great news!