By Nicole Falco
The village is now responsible for all snow removal, sanitation and maintenance of the roadway, which stretches from Merrick Road to Franklin Avenue.
"For some reason Emerson was a county road and we [the village] couldn't figure out why because it's probably one of the only residential streets that is still a county road," Village Clerk Vinny Ang said the following morning.
It's basically a win-win situation for all parties involved. The county achieves its goal of cutting costs, the village already handled much of the snow removal and sanitation anyway, and residents will receive better service because the road will now be a priority.
"It looks like we can give better service to the people who are adjacent to Emerson Place, better service than they've gotten prior," said Mayor Edward Cahill.
Before accepting ownership of the road, the village made sure it was fully repaved, including new curbs and aprons. All of the work done by the county was checked by an engineer.
"We wouldn't accept it until it was repaired," Ang said.
Subhead: Mayor appoints new BZA member
Mayor Cahill and the Board of Trustees voted unanimously to appoint Salvatore Pizzolo, who previously served as first alternate to the Board of Zoning Appeals, to complete the unexpired term of Marvin Ronik, who resigned from the board last month. Ronik's term expires April 7, 2008.
Subhead: Library service approved
The Library Board of Trustees is authorized to enter into a 5-year agreement between the Village of Valley Stream and Town of Hempstead to provide library services to the residents of Mill Brook from Jan. 1, 2006 to Dec. 31, 2010.
Last September, a special election was held and residents voted 197 for and 26 against approving the 5-year contract with the Henry Waldinger Memorial Library. Under the new contract, the budget for the first year will be $172,820 (includes election expenses) and carries a tax rate of $2.76 per $100 of assessed value. The tax rate will be adjusted annually for cost of living.
In 2002, residents of Mill Brook who were previously without library services voted to establish the Mill Brook Library Funding District. At that time, residents approved a 3-year contract.
"We were very pleased that Mill Brook chose to re-up with us, sort of speak, for a 5-year period," said village Trustee Joanne Antun, liaison to the library. "I think it reinforces the importance of the library in the community."
Subhead: Residents speak
Al Green, a regular attendee at village meetings, raised a few issues before the mayor and board. Green said that he and his wife were wondering why the Japanese Garden, located on Valley Stream Boulevard behind Village Hall, had been "so drastically changed." Mayor Cahill and Village Clerk Ang explained that the garden had become overgrown. Certain shrubs had to be removed and replaced, and others had to be scaled back.
"It's going to be beautiful again," Ang said. "It's going to fill in and look nice."
Green also said that the American Flag located on the cell tower at the Arlington Avenue garage needs to be replaced. He was informed that T-Mobile, which is responsible for maintaining the cell tower, has already been contacted about replacing the flag.
And Green questioned why dirt is piling up on the green at Sunrise Highway and Central Avenue. Ang said that Hawkeye Construction is using the location as a staging area, and it will be cleaned and restored once the work is complete. Hawkeye was hired to do roadwork in the village. To date, about a dozen roads have been repaired in the West End, including Pilgrim Place, Bucknell Road and Hamilton Avenue.
Steve Franceschetti, a Cochran Place resident, expressed concern that the holiday lights along Rockaway Avenue, which are sponsored by the Valley Stream Chamber of Commerce, do not work properly.
Subhead: Next meeting
The next regular meeting of the Board of Trustees is scheduled for Jan. 23 at 7:30 p.m. in Village Hall. The work session is set for Jan. 9 at 6 p.m. in the board room at Village Hall.
