Politics & Government

New Hyde Park Village Board Notebook

Here are some of the notable points from the Village Board meeting.

If you missed the Tuesday night meeting of the , here are some of the highlights:

  • A resident addressed the board at the outset of the meeting about issues with parking on South 5th Street between First and Second Avenues.  "I believe there are two businesses there instead of one," he said. "They're parking all over my block. They've even been given a special place to park over by the school and that's not even enough for what they've got as far as people coming in and out all day long." In response to this, Deputy Mayor Robert Lofaro said he would check the building file and see what permitted uses that building has. "We will have the Building Department take a look at the file and take a trip down there and make sure that it's within the code," Lofaro said.
  • Trustee Richard Coppola, Jr. mentioned that the of Commerce will be having its annual holiday party at at 6 p.m. on Dec. 16.
  • Coppola noted that construction is underway for a new basketball and volleyball court at Memorial Park.
  • The commissioner election will be on Dec. 14 from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. The election will be at the department's headquarters on Jericho Turnpike. "We ask everybody to come out to the election for a new commissioner," Coppola said.
  • The fire department also passed along a reminder to Coppola about the need to be extra careful with more lights and candles in the house around the holidays.
  • Lofaro notified everyone that a new Public Works superintendent has been appointed in light of . The new superintendent is Tom Gannon, who is also the superintendent of the Buildings Department. "I think if there's a message here, it would be that we didn't have to look very far, because the most qualified person for the job was right in front of us," Lofaro said. "We thank Tom for offering his services to the Village and we're absolutely delighted and excited that he has accepted the position." Lofaro added that the staff at the Department of Public Works was very experienced and that, "Tom will be implementing his own style and his own changes to DPW."
  • Richard Pallisco and his committee were thanked by Lofaro for doing the holiday decorations involved with the  Lofaro also thanked the State Bank of Long Island for sponsoring the entire event, Lisa Miranda and her committe for their efforts with the tree lighting and all of the participants for their work and attendance.
  • "I think we're getting very close to the completion of the theater upstairs," Lofaro said of the William Guild theater. He acknowledged that the plastic wrap, which at the was on the door in the meeting room, has been removed. That door will serve as another emergency exit in the building. "I will say that this building, which was built in the early 1900s, is certainly now a safer building than what it had been," he said. Of the theater construction, Lofaro said, "It was much more than just a theater project; it was about making Village Hall a much safer place to conduct business and host activities."
  • The Building Department issued 37 permits in November, Trustee Lawrence Montreuil said. This number was down 16% from October and down 33% from this time last year.
  • This department also collected nearly $12,000 in fines for building violations, "including a seven thousand dollar violation for an illegal apartment in a single family house," Montreuil said.
  • Montreuil then highlighted the various court cases that are on the docket for Dec. 15. Some of these cases include: a homeowner who replaced a driveway without permission, a store at 28 Jericho Turnpike is being called in for illegal use as a massage parlor and a summons issued for a person to clear up the ownership of a home, among others.
  • "Today, of course, is the anniversary of the Japanese sneak attack on in which 3,500 Americans were killed or wounded," Montreuil said. He offered a remembrance of this day.
  • The Village produces a newsletter about three times a year and the post office has changed how it distributes bulk mail, Lofaro said. Because of this, some people received their most recent newsletter later than usual. "We have to figure out how this mail system works," Lofaro said.
  • Lofaro congratulated the New Hyde Park Patch on its launch this week. "I'd like to congratulate the newest news media source in the Village of New Hyde Park, the New Hyde Park Patch, who officially launched their site yesterday," Lofaro said. "We welcome your information to the Village."
  • There will be a grand opening of the theater at Village Hall. The date hasn't been set yet, Lofaro said, but within a few weeks or so, there may be some kind of rechristening of the area.
  • "The sourcing of the funds for the theater came from State Sen. Craig Johnson," Lofaro said, "who, according to the judge, is no longer the State Senator. It's now Jack Martins. We would like to congratulate on his long election process. I understand that yesterday they did file an appeal from the Johnson camp, but the judge has to find enough grounds to reverse the decision. At the moment, Jack Martins is our State Senator and we will ask him for money as well. We're not bashful; we'll ask whoever it is."
  • A resident asked at the end of the meeting who is responsible for shoveling and cleaning a street corner when it snows. Lofaro said that the owner of the house or business closest to the corner is responsible, but also given how plowing can be done sometimes with mounds that pile up near corners that it becomes a bit of a gray area.
  • A resident and member of the fire department expressed concern about putting medians along Jericho Turnpike. Lofaro explained that there was a lot of thought that went into the idea of the center medians. "When you're looking at blocks like North 11th and North 12th Street, putting in a median will now restrict for people coming out and coming to the East," Lofaro said. "We had to really evaluate what is safer and better." The medians will be similar to those on Hillside Avenue, Lofaro explained, which build up, so that emergency vehicles can go over the medians. It will not be a continuous median and it will only be in certain areas, Lofaro added.

The next meeting of the New Hyde Park Village Board will be on at the Village Hall.


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