By Nicole Falco
The challengers, Integrity Party candidates Bill Freda and Mary Salg, and the incumbents, United Community Party candidates Joanne Antun and Deputy Mayor Guido Cirenza, all say that much of Valley Stream's 90 miles of roads are in need of repairs. However, the two sides differ on the best way to get the job done.
Under the current administration, almost three dozen streets have been or will be repaved, including Monroe Boulevard, Hendrickson Avenue and Gotham and Albermarle streets. The village has bonded almost $6 million to complete Phase I of its road repair schedule and continue Phase II. Cirenza and Antun say that, if elected, they, alongside Mayor Edward Cahill -- who is seeking a second term unopposed -- and Trustees Richard Coffman and Joe Zabatta will continue to move ahead with the road repair schedule with Phase III.
The village decides which streets to schedule for repair by rating them, using a 0-100 scale, 100 being the best. To continue with its road-improvement project, which includes an 82-space, metered parking field near the Valley Stream railroad station, the incumbents say that further bonding will be necessary. In addition, Antun pointed out the village's A2 bond assessment rating, which translates into lower borrowing costs or interest rates for the village, which means savings for taxpayers.
Still, the challengers are calling for an end to bonding. "Stop the insane borrowing," Freda said.
"We can't borrow anymore," Salg added.
Instead, the challengers propose that the decision to borrow money be made by residents through referendums. "The referendums can coincide with the November and March elections," Freda said.
To avoid bonding, the challengers say they would manage village funds better to pay for the roadwork. Freda pointed out what he called "colossal wastes of money," including the new clubhouse at Firemen's Field -- "the village knocked down a clubhouse to replace it with a clubhouse," he said -- and the Public Safety Department -- "we pay the police...this is a duplication of funds."
According to Village Clerk Vincent Ang, however, "The village must absolutely finance roads. The village cannot pay for roads out of budget, and anyone who says otherwise does not understand village finances. No one would want the kind of tax increases that would go along with doing the roads."
While the roads are a major component of village infrastructure, they are hardly the only component. "Routinely, when we talk about infrastructure we talk about facilities, the roads, parkland...there are also those kinds of improvements that you don't readily see," Antun said.
Cirenza and Antun, as incumbents, point out what they consider to be accomplishments of the current administration. They include shrubbery, the memorial park, fitness trail, lighting and the bocce court in Hendrickson Park, new, energy-efficient windows and doors at Village Hall, Internet access in the library and the computerization of the Village Court and tax department.
"If you look around town, you can see the evidence of the hard work the administration has done all over," Antun said.
If elected, the incumbents said they would like to see the improvements continue. Priorities on their list include repairs to the pool in Hendrickson Park, overseeing the grand opening of the mini-golf course in the spring, and the continued discussion of the recently proposed skate park.
"What we are trying to give to the residents, the young kids, is something to do other than hanging out on the streets," Cirenza said, referring to the mini-golf and skate park.
Not to be outdone, the challengers have devised a platform that calls for accountability, including a proposal to impose term limits on trustees and the mayor, and public participation, including the publication of the agenda of the monthly board meetings in the local newspaper. Freda and Salg want to see the roads fixed permanently, but they also want immediate action taken to fill potholes. If elected, Freda and Salg said, they would work to "guarantee 48-hour pothole repairs."
"Suppose the project is not done and the person has to call up a second time," Freda said. "Then the resident gets a 10 percent tax credit on next year's taxes. With competent managers and village employees, these things can get accomplished."
Freda also promised to make sure every municipal lot and the community's public parks will be swept of debris and broken glass. Stressing accountability, he added that the village employees responsible for each park and parking lot would be made known to the public.
No discussion of infrastructure would be complete without a mention of the parking situation in the village, particularly along Rockaway Avenue. Neither the incumbents nor the challengers had a definitive plan to address the problem, except to say that it's a priority.
Antun suggested that the village needs to establish an advisory council to examine the community's parking concerns and offer long-term solutions not only for residents but also for businesses.
Freda suggested that employees of businesses along Rockaway Avenue could be made to park in lots on either end of the shopping district in order to free up spots closer to the stores for customers.
