In July, A Megan’s Law notification alerted residents that Daryl Holley, a registered sex offender was living at the Travelodge on Northern Boulevard in Manhasset. Holley has recently been removed from the establishment after uproar from the community reached local government officials that represent the district.
On June 15, 1995, Holley was convicted of rape in the first degree after having sexual intercourse with seven-year-old female on July 25, 1993. He was sentenced for two to six years in state prison and got off probation in 1999. Holley is a registered level two sex offender for life, but has no restriction on where he can live, including nearby schools, parks and places of worship.
“Travelodge is in close proximity to the [Manhasset Secondary School] and St. Mary’s School and Church so the placement at that location is not good,” Presiding Officer Richard Nicolello said. “They should not be placing anyone with that type of background there.”
Nicolello was first notified by the Council of Greater Manhasset Civic Associations (Greater Council) in late July. Richard Bentley, the president of the Greater Council found that Holley was currently under probation for minor narcotics charge, but still had to register his new address under Megan’s Law.
“Even though the law did not help us, it did notify us of the individual and we were able to get a location change,” Bentley said.
The Travelodge is approximately 680 feet from the Manhasset Secondary School, 1,500 feet from St. Mary’s Elementary and High School and 850 feet from Manhasset Valley Park. The Travelodge’s parent company, Wyndham, did not to respond to comment on whether they knew a sex offender was staying at their establishment.
“I watch prostitutes, drug deals, pedophiles and drug users come and go,” one resident said in an email to the Greater Council. “We see police activity and ambulances [at the Travelodge] all the time. I watch them walk down my street to make drug deals and we have watched grown men urinate and defecate on my front lawn.”
Another issue at hand is the children that live in Manhasset walking to school every day, specifically in Terrace Manor, which is across from the Travelodge. There is no bussing to the public school so the children must walk, usually near the motel.
“I, and many other residents, went to the superintendent and the principal and begged for bus service because of the illegal activity we saw going on at the hotel; in addition to the level 1 and 2 sex offenders that live there,” the same resident said in their email.
Nicolello sent a letter to Wyndham CEO and President Geoff Balotti in early August condemning the local Travelodge’s activity.
“The complaints we’re getting from the community indicate that the people that run the [Travelodge] are not doing what they’re supposed to be doing,” Nicolello said.
As of publication, Wyndham has not responded to Nicollelo’s letter, but community members are not relenting.
“We’re trying to bring community pressure on the motel owner and [Wyndham] to clean up the activity that seems to be surrounding this facility,” Bentley said.
