The-Leader_1988-12-01

              Olliclal
Newspaper
' Village ol
Freeporl
•
Freeport
School District
•
Baldwin
,School District
\ .
rm
FREEPORT
BALDWN
^j.pppop^MEWORIAUUBW^'"
54th YEAR, NO. 48 FREEPORT, NEW YORK THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1,1988 PRICE 25 CENTS PER COPY
Firemen's Field agreement is lauded
"A significant economic shot
in the arm," was the way Freepott
Mayor Dorothy Slorm described
the recently signed Village
agreement with Philips-Freeport
Associates that will allow for the
construction of an estimated $40
million in retail a'nd office space,
on two sites within the Village.
Philip Pilevsky, a partner in
the company, called the agree-
, ment; "an oppdrtunity to bring
new jobs, new investment and
additional tax revenue into a
community that is successfully
rebuilding its economy." '
$8 million ~~
Philips-Freeport Associates
has agreed to pay the Village S8
million for a 2.S.acre site within
the heart of the Village commer­cial'
center bordered by Church
Street and Sunrise. Highway and
for the 9.S acre former Firemen's
•Training Field bordered by Sun­rise
"Highway and . Buffalo
Avenue. Plans also call for the
. Village to acquire' through con­demnation
property adjacent to
the proposed office complex and
now privately owAed.
"Renaissance" '
Mayor Storm said,"Freeport's
renaissance continues to soar
with the arrival on the horizon of
Phil Pilevsky. 1 am confident it
iWiU be a mutually beneficial
endeavor for both the Village of
Freeport and Mr. Pilevsky."
Plans call for the construction'
' of a five story building with
apprbidmately 60,000 square feet,
of rentable space. The building
will provide offstieet parking
with more spaces available than
required by the Village Code,
185. The parking area wil be
shielded by landscaping. Experts
hired by the firm propose to have
three entrances to the property to
prevent any traflic congestion.
The glass and stone building
would be leased'for mixed pro­fessional
uses, including banking,
real estate and iiuura'nce.
Mr. Pilevsky suted the firm '
also plans to construct a 160,000
square foot shopping center for
national tenents on the site of the
former Firemen's Training Field
on the east end of the Village.
Supermarket
An approximately 50,000
square foot supermarket will
anchor the'center, with covered
brick walkways allowing easy
access to all of the stores. Traffic
experts have' placed the main
entrance on Buffalo Avenue to
ensure that there is minimal
- impact, on. surrounding snaiai
roadways (Merrick Road, Sun- '
rise Highway, Meadowbrook
Parkway). And, like the office
complex, the plan calls for more
parking spaces than required
under Village code, 485.
Playground
Mr. Pilevsky said there are
already preliminary discussions
and_ negotiations with national
retallen and a major super­market
chain, all designed to
complement existing local'mer­chants
within the Village. A play­ground,
presently located on
Firemen^ I^etd will be rebuilt
and relocated at. a cost of
SaOO.OOO and a church adjacent
to the site will be buffered by
trees and shrubs.
"The Village of Freeport has
fought long and hard to regain its
economic health and these pro­jects
will go a long way in secur­ing
its future," Mr. Pilevsky said.
CREATINQ ECONOMIC GROWTH FOR FREEPORT - Freeport Mayor Dorothy Storm rwriewt
plans whh Philip Pilevsky for the creation of *40 million In reull and office spaci virithin the
Villatie. ,
'Ghosts' of Freeport past
Residents seek answers
oh power future
by Sue Morgan
• Following a general mailing
sent by the Village describing
Freeport's plans for meeting
future power needs, which could
include generation by an Inde­pendent
Power Producer. (IPP)
about a dozen residents sought
further clarification from the
Board of Trustees and General
Manager of Electric Utilities Wil­liam
Cominos during the
November 21 Board meeting.
A number of residents seemed
to fear that the inclusion of an
independent producer would
wrest control from the Village
and bring increased rates, and
they questioned the' need and
wisdom of brin^ng'in Independ­ent
generation. Several main­tained
that current power sources
and the Village's own generation
capabilities were sufiicient to
handle Freeport's needs.
But Mr. Cominos reiterated
that the Village .would have to
expend S3S 'iniHion to meet its
' - . |contlnu(donp*9i14l
by Elyse David
Widows, butlers aiid maids
were on the agenda of the Free-port
Old House Society meeting
held last Tuesday at the Freeport
Memorial Library. The joiys and
sorrows of restoring a widows
entraiice, a butler's pantry or
maid's quarters were eagerly dis­cussed
by the more than 30 peo­ple
in attendance. Balustrades
aiid gables, oak mantles and pine
doors, even beam'rot were part of
this group's Ungo.
Homes built in the late 19th
and early 20th centuries were,
represe.nted front Randall, Lutai,
Ocean and Westside Avenues;
Archer Street, fiergeii Place,
West Woodbine' and' Center
Street The current owner's inter­est
in restoring these homes
ranged from contemplation ..to
'completion and everywhere in.
between. Yet, they were all inter­ested
in the history of their homes
and those.who lived and slept
there before. Some expressed
interest in their predecessor's
caste at well, describing layers
and layers of "green metallic"
wallpaper. Apparently, painting' -
a wall in an old house pieans first
stripping away layers «)f interior
.decorating history,r-Pam Carr,
owner of a shingltf style Victorian
on Oceap'^Avenue .wistfully
commented, "There's always
hope'that youll finish."
•'' Bill Dieffenbach, Freeport
High School. Earth Science
teacher came to share bis
expriences in faithfully restoring
.8 Victorian in upstate GrandviUe.
Like Mr. Dieffenbach, many Old
House Society members brought
before and after pictorials-to
share and admire.
Exchanging skills and plan­ning
a directory are some of the
future plans of the group. Cur­rently
guided by' an infonnal
steering committee consisting of
old house owners Katherine
Kuchens, Barbara Behrens and
Gary Quilliam, The Freeport Old
House Society'expects to elect
officers and form committees'in.
January, 1989.
The next meMing of the Free- -
port Old House Society will be
heldonTuesday,Dece(nber20at
7:30 p.m. at the Freeport Memor­ial
Library. The hl^ght of the
evening will be a presentation by
Bob Raynor of what the Holiday
Season was like in Freeponwhen
these old houses were new.
Abandoned vehicle
penalties?
seeijiageS i 'OI<lahoma'at
Baldwin High Scliool
: se$iiage12