Mayor SpeakS Out (Cont. from FrontPage)
in Freeport, portions of which
have already gone into effect.
First: I have directed Chief of
Police Anthony Elar and his
administrative officers to closely
monitor the progress of the
Nassau County Civil Service Com-mission
in establishing a list of
qualified candidates for police
officer in the Village. As soon as
these lists are established, I will
recommend to the Board of
Trustees that we increase our
present complement of police
officers by at least six.
Second: I have directed the
Chief of Police and his adminis-trative
officers to establish a
special detail" and/or plan of at-tack
for the patrol" and enforce-ment
of an penal code and ViF-Fage
ordinance violations with
particular emphasis on our parks,
railroad station, Broadway and
North Main Street.
I will not sanction turning over
our parks to the muggers, winos,
drug addicts and other assorted
miscreants who hang around
harassing our residents. Hard
earned tax dollars have beeir
spent to beautify our Village. It
makes no sense to me to tear up
years of work in- a hope that an
absence of benches, tables and
other amenities wiff keep these
hoodlums out of our parks. On
the contrary, we have the Taws,
we have the police, we have the
judges and the prosecutors and
the jails. All shall" be brought to
bear in this area.
Third: I have directed that our
police department cooperate fully
with the various civilian patrol
organizations and directed that
coordination of this activity be
accomplished with the assistance
of the officers of the Council" of
Civic Associations. The police
department will" not only support
this group with statistics needed
to make their patrol" of their
neighborhoods more effective,
but I would hope that the patrols
will be able to immediatley detect
small groups in our parks that are
causing problems, and can relay
this information directly to the
police department and, therefore
avoid the amassing of Targe
groups of people at any one time.
In those rare instances where
patterns of violent neighborhood
:crimes emerge, I see no reason
why the police department cannot
set up an informational network
with this group to alert affected
areas in a responsible manner. A
meeting has been held between
the Chief of Police, Captain
David Meehan, Mrs. Belle
Sylvester (of COCA) and others,
and I trust these meetings will
continue so that an overall pro-gram
for increased patrol and
enforcement wiir be in place
prior to the advent of spring.
Fourth: Here and now this
administration is declaring war
on street crime, drug sales and
prostitution in this Village — in
particular the area of Broadway,
North Main Street and Freeport
Plaza West, where the worst of
these problems occur. The mes-sage
I am sending is simple
and clear — Freeport is a bad
place to be caught dealing drugs
or promoting prostitution. To
this end, at the suggestion of
Senator Norman Levy, I'attended,
a meeting which resulted in a
direction to the Chief of Police to
coordinate the efforts of our ViF-lage
with those of the State and
County Taw enforcement officials
in these areas.
Fifth: As a result of this meet-ing,
District Anthony Denis Dillon
agreed to use his good offices
and best efforts 'to see to it that;
those cases which involve individ-uals
charged with violent crime,
prostitution or drug dealing
particularly, in Freeport are not
plea bargained but tried to a
conclusion if a plea to the charge
is not entered. Note at this point
that the District Attorney's office
has taken a hard-nosed position
with regard to plea bargaining in
alcohoF related charges. CFearFy
this position is welcomed news to
the generaF public fearful" of the
devastation and tragedy caused
by drunk driving. I ask, is the
devastation and tragedy visited
upon the general7 public by
violent crime and drug sales to
our youth any the less significant?
I think not.
Occasionally we hear reference
to a court watch committee. I am
requesting the various civic
associations to unite and form
such a committee so that the
prosecutors and judges respon-sible
for prosecution of these
criminals are aware of the abiding
interest this community has in
the swift and forceful dispensing
of justice.
. Sixth: Our Board of Trustees
passed a resolution which calls
upon the State Legislature to
pass, and the Governor to sign
into law during the present ses-sion,
the strong consecutive
sentencing .bill which has bi-partisan
support and has been
sponsored by Senator Tuffy in the
State. Senate and Assembly-man
Jerry Kremer in the State
Assembly. This legislation would
remove the caps on the maximum
sentence on multiple violent
felony offenders. I urge everyone
to immediately write your state
legislators to pass this legislation
this year. Those who engage in
crime sprees must be made to
understand that they will pay a
very high price — the best years
of their lives — if they choose to
engage in such conduct.
The measures which I have
taken — and am taking — are
strong, direct and are intended to
deal with the problem of crime in
our Village head on. No single
step will end our crime problem.
Taken collectively, I believe
that the steps which I have
outlined will" have a significant
impact on, and further reduce,
the crime in our Village. If we
work together to solve this
problem which affects us all, we
will, once again, be able to enjoy:
living in our community in safety
and without fear. This is our com-
:munity. We are entitled to no,
less.
Annual Recreation
Center Closing
Residents are reminded that
the Freeport Recreation Center
will be closed for its annual
refurbishing from May 14 to June
10. The contents of all season
lockers must be removed by May
13.
Conceit (Cont. from Front Page)
ing and alT Freeport High SchobF
alumni are especially invited to
come and enjoy this night with
their classmates. Tickets are $5
per person, S3 for seniors and
students.
COMBO, the Congress of
Members of the Band and Orch-estra
are stUT Tooking for the cor-rect'
addresses of many of the
•music alumni, 1936-66, so if
anyone has not received a notice
of the upcoming event and is an
alumni of PROF's, please write:
COMBO, 10 Girard PFace, Mer-rick,
New York 11566 or caff:
623-5967.
Vill
News.
APRIL 1984
A Public Information Bulletin
of The Village Of Freeport
46 North Ocean Avenue
Telephone FReeport 8-4000
William H. White, Mayor
Public Meetings on the 1st. and 3rd. Mondays of the Month, at 8:00 P.M.
The Mayor Speaks Out On Crime
(The following are excerpts
from a talk delivered by Freeport
Mayor William White in February
before a local organization.)
WtThave much to be proud of in
.our community. However, serious,
problems remain to be dealt
with — problems which must be
dealt with decisively. If not, all
the good which has been ac-complished
thus far wilF be to no
avail. The problem which I am
addressing, and which is upper-most
on everyone's mind is
crime. I am talking about the
burglaries which take place dur-ing
the day while your children
. are in school and you and your
spouse are at work. I am talking
about the recent rash of armed
robberies and assaults which
have occurred late at night in
the course of the commission of
burglaries. I am talking about
pocketbook snatches and drug
transactions which have largely
occurred in broad daylight on our
~.main thoroughfares. I am talking
about prostitution which is avail-able
within a stone's throw of our
railroad station and our own jun-ior
high school", and the seedy
.environment that is created as a
ire-suit. .
Do I think that our crime prob-lem
is any worse than that of
other communities of comparable.
size? No, I don't.-In fact, it can be,
argued that some' 'communities
with Targe shopping centers such
. as Garden City, Valley Stream or
Massapequa, have more serious
* street crime problems than Free-port
has, what with the large
number of petty larcenies, auto
thefts, purse snatchings, and
acts of vandalism that occur in
and around such centers. But
proving, that other communities
have a serious crime problem
does not solve our own. Review-ing
statistics which indicate that
crimes in most categories in our
.Village are down in 1983 over
1982, does not make us feel any
better. It is serious; it will not
be solved overnight; and to solve
it will require sustained concerted
action.
In the course of devising a
strategy for a frontal assault on
crime, we have listened to many
voices. We have listened to and
met with the rank and file police
officers who have had to deal with
the problem on a front-line basis.
We have listened to the leaders of
our community and civic associa-tions
who have exhibited a will
and ability to assist the police
in their never-ending battle
against crime. We have listened
to and studied the opinions of
our own Village counsel", one of
whom is also a civicTeader,: who
persuaded me to support vigor-ously
.an application last year for
state "funds for our civilian
patrols and who, with the support
of this administration-, is working
with the District Attorney and
Civic Action Council of Long
Island to prompt the legislature to
pass a tough new consecutive
sentencing bill for felons who
commit multiple violent crimes.
Six-Point
Action Program
. The time to listen is over — the
time to act is now. That is why I
am announcing a six-point pro-gram
of action to combat crime
(Cont. on Back Page) •
Memorial Day
Activities Set
Memorial Day will be observed
on Monday, May 28.
The Annual Village Memorial
Day Parade, sponsored by the
William Clinton Story Post of the
American Legion, will kick off at
10 am from Freeport High School
and proceed east to tne Memorial
Library where appropriate cere-monies
will be held.
All Village offices will be closed
on Monday, May'28. Please note
that the Freeport Recreation
Center will also be closed for the
annual refurbishing.
Concert By FHS Band
& Orchestra Alumni
The Freeport High School
band and orchestra alumni from
1936-66 who played under the
direction of Dr.: J. Maynard
'PROF' Westtlaufer wiff return
again for their third reunion
concert Saturday, June 2 at 8 pm
in the Freeport High School
auditorium. This concert wiff
not only be a tribute to 'PROF'
and his alumni but also a tribute
to Music Education in the Public
Schools. The FHS alumni wiff be
returning from aff over the-
United States for this • reunion
and. more than 50 of them wiff
be performing in the concert...
some of whom played their Fast
concert in Freeport High Schol
over 40,years ago.
The concert itself wiff include
great band music from classical
to popular, and there, will be
historic exhibits of the Freeport
High SchobFbands and orchestras
over a thirty year span. In general
it wiff be a very nostalgic even-
(Cont. on Back Page)
Trustees: Dorothy Storm, Alfred Sirlin, James Clark, Vincent Di Costanzo
Village Clerk: Thomas DeVincenzo; Attorney: Harrison J. Edwards, Jr.; Treasurer: Thomas M. Molloy
The Village of Freeport has
joined the U.S. Commerce De-partment's
Census Bureau in a
special Neighborhood Statistics
program. The purpose of this
program is to produce demo-graphic
and economic information
based on the results of the 1980
Census of Population and Hous-ing
for officially recognized
neighborhoods.
There are five such neighbor-hoods
in the Village: Northwest,
Northeast, Central, Southwest
and Southeast. Information on
each of the neighborhoods has
been published in the "Village
News" beginning in December.
The series ends this month with
the focus on the Southeast.
NOTE: It is important to keep
in mind that this data was collect-ed
in 1979-80.
Southeast Freeport
For this purpose, the Com-merce
Department defines the
southeast as that area from Atlan-tic
Avenue south to the water;
east of South Ocean Avenue,
exclusive of Woodcleft Avenue, to
the Freeport River.
According to the census, 4,104
persons lived in the area on
April 1, 1980. They comprised
10.7% of Freeport's total popula-tion
of 38,272. Of that number,
3,831 were White; 186 Black;
3 were among the American
Indian, Eskimo and Aleut group-ing;
and 28 of the Asian and
Pacific Islander grouping. Per-sons
of Spanish origin (who may
be of any race) numbered 216.
Among residents of the south-east,
19.6% were under age 15
and 7.8% were 65 or order. The
area's median age was 33.5%
years as compared to total" Free-port's
30.9% years.
The southeast's 1,334 house-holds
represent 10.5% of all" Free-port
households. 11.4% consisted
of one person and 6.7% had six or
more persons.
Among persons in the south-east
age 15 and older, 61.5% of
the 1,628 men and 60.1% of the
1,673 women were married
(excluding separated) at the time
of the census. Of 1,124 families,
83.2% were maintained by a
married couple, 12.5% by a
female householder with no hus-band
present, and 4.4% by a
male householder with no wife
present.
Foreign born in the area as
9.2%. -In terms of ethnic or
national origin 286 persons were
of Irish ancestry, 571 of Italian
and 379 of German.
In the southeast, 1,058 persons
ages three and over were enrolled
in school. They included 51 in
nursery schools, 508 in kinder-garten
through eighth grade
and 323 in high school. Of. the
students in grades K-12, 8.2%
were enrolled in private schools.
Of those over the age of 25, 8.2%
had a grade school education or
less, and 76.6% were high school
graduates, including 31.6% who
.had completed one or more
years of college. About 14.4%
had completed four years or more
of college. Of civilians 16 years
and over, 20.4% were veterans,
including 42% of the males.
Of the total of 3,912 persons,
five years and older, living in
the southeast in 1980, 23.9%
;had been living in a different,
house in the United States five
years earlier. Of those movers,
43.8% had lived in Nassau
County; 56.2% had lived in New
York State but in a different coun-ty.
None had lived in a different
state. On the other hand, 49.7%
of all householders in the south-east
had lived in their housing
units 10 years or more.
The unemployment rate for
the area in 1979 was 5.1% with
66.2% of alT working age (16
or oFder) persons and 51.6% of
working-age females in the Tabor
force.
Those employed included 446
in administrative support occupa-tions,
including clerical. Another
306 said they were in precision
production, craft and repair
occupations, and 255 persons
were in safes occupations. Of
the 2,028 employed persons,
78.1 % worked for wages or salary
for a private entity. Another
17.7% heFd Focal, state or federal
government jobs. The self-em-plbyed
represented 4% of the
totaT.
The median income in 1979
for families in the southeast was
$24,139. There were a totaF of
158 persons below the poverty
level ($7,412 for a four-person
family) in 1979. There were 25
persons 65 years and over below
the level, or 7.7% of alTelderly in
the area. Of the 30 families be-low
the poverty level, 66.7% had
a female householder with no
husband present.
The census showed that of
the 1,364 year-round occupied
housing units in the southeast,
89.7% were occupied by owners
and 10.3% by renters. Of the
1,197 owner-occupied housing
units, 94.3% were occupied by
White; 3.9% by Black; 0.7% by
Asian and Pacific Islander group-ing;
and 4.3% by Spanish origin.
Of the 137 renter-occupied hous-ing
units, 97.1% were occupied
by White; 0.7% by Black; and
2.9% by Spanish origin.
The census found that about
2.7% of the housing units were
built in 1970 or later, while
21.3% had been built before
1940. Median Value, in 1980,
for owner-occupied homes was
$43,700 compared to $43,900,
total" Freeport median. Median
contract rent paid for. rental
housing units was $294 compared
to total Freeport median of $308.
REVENUE SHARING
HANDICAPPED REGULATIONS
This notice is published pur-suant
to the requirements of
Section 51.55 of the Revenue
Sharing Regulations, as pub-lished
in the Federal Register on
October 17, 1983. Section 51.55
prohibits discrimination against
qualified individuals because of
their handicapped status.
The Incorporated Village of
Freeport advises the public, em-ployees
and job applicants that
it does not discriminate on the
basis of handicapped status in
admission or access to, or treat-ment
or employment in, its pro-
,grams and activities..
The Incorporated Village of
Freeport has designated the
following as the contact to co-ordinate
efforts to comply with
this requirement. Inquiries
should be directed to: Michael" E.
Kirwan, Director, Human ReFa-tions
Commission, 46 North
Ocean Avenue, 378-4000, exten-sion
293, 8:30 am-4:30 pm.
Mayor William White To Be Honored
The Arts Council At Freeport
wilFhoFd its 4th Annual Arty Party
on Sunday afternoon, May 6,
1 to 5 pm, at the Marriott HoteF,
Uniondale. After Fast year's
successful Venetian CarnivaF,
theme of the 1984 event will be
"Fiesta Caribe" with the menu,
entertainment and ambiance cen-tered
around the coForfuF theme.
Freeport Mayor William White
has been selected as recipient of
the 1984 Arty (Art Recognition
Tribute) Award. The award is
presented annually to an individ-ual
who has made an outstanding
contribution in furthering and
promoting the arts on Long
Island. It was during his second
year of office, in 1974, that
Mayor White and the Village
Board of Trustees joined with
the Freeport SchooF District
in the founding and original
funding of the Arts CounciF.
Now in its 10th year, the Council
has brought cultural"programs in-to
the Village incFuding special
.programsfor chiFdren, teenagers,
senior citizens and community
groups. Drawn by the programs,
thousands of peopFe from over
140 Long Islana communities
have come into the community.
A tax-deductibFe, non-profit or-ganization,
the CounciF is sup-ported
by individuals, businesses
and the New York State CounciFof
the Arts. The AnnuaF Arty Party
is a major fund-raising event for
the organization.
AFso to be honored at the May 6
luncheon is Geoffrey HoFder, the
well-known actor, choreographer
and designer who is currentFy
featured in the "Never Had It,
Never WilF," 7-Up teFevision
commerciaF. Other celebrities
serving on the Tuncheon's Hon-orary
Committee are Terry
Burrel, star of Broadway's
"Dreamgiris," and ABC-TV
anchorwoman Doris McMilFon.
Arty Party tickets are $75 per
person (tax-deductible) and in-clude
the cocktaiF hour, fulF-
' course dinner, open bar and
music by the Trinidad Serenad-ers.
Again a most unusual and
prize-studded raffle wilF be heFd
in conjunction with the Arty
Party. Past prizes have included a
European trip, home computers,
helicopter rides, etc.
For further information, please
calFthe CounciFat 223-2522.
Freeport Mayor WuTiam
White, at the request of Munici-
8al Electric Utilities Association
vIEUA) Executive Director
Frank Noble, is again asking Vil-lage
residents and business
people to write New York State
legislators to voice their op-position
to the proposal" to take
away much of the Tow-cost
hydroelectricity which alFows
Freeport consumers to pay eFec-tric
rates some 50% Fess than that
of LELCO consumers. The Mayor
joins NobFe in pointing out that
the proposed state-wide distri-bution
of hydroeFectricity wouFd
double Focal" eFectric bifls. "An
important point to keep in mind
is that at the same time such a
pFan woiiFd only lower the bilFs of
customers of LILCO and other
investor-owned utilities by some
$1 per month. There is just not
enough energy avaiFabFe to make
any appreciable difference when
it is distributed on a state-wide
basis," White said.
MEUA's Noble, in speaking of;
the Governor's recent appoint-ment
of a Commission to make
recommendations to the state
legislature as to future alloca-tion
of Bydropower, warns that
"if these recommendations are
enacted, upstate consumers and
those in Freeport, RockvilFe
Centre and Greenport on Long
Island, will have their rates in-creased
dramatically. Now is the
time for everyone — ruraF and
domestic, cpmmerciaF and in-dustrial,
municipal and investor-owned
utility customers alike —
to speak out on this potential
economic disaster," Noble said.
"Everyone has to understand
that the Commission is advocat-ing
shifting much of the hydro-power
away from upstate utilities
(and Freeport). This wilF affect
the residentiaFas welFas the com-mercial
and industrial consumer.
The consumers could face rates
more than double their present
rates."
Noble points out that by
dramatically increasing the rates,
the Commission would risk the
closing of many commercial
establishments and face the
danger of reductions in employ-ment,
goods and services. "With-in
municipal" systems (such as
Freeport), increased rates will
have deleterious consequences
to hospital's and school and
municipal buildings as well" as
to commerce and industry. This
will mean increased tax rates to
the already overburdened tax-payers."
In other words, accord-ing
to Noble, "when the rate-payers
are hit with double bilFs,
they wilF be presented with in-'
creased tax bills in order to pay
the increased costs of municipaF
and school"district services.''
"The MEUA membership is
very concerned that this stripping
of hydropower from the indus-triaF,
commerce and residentiaF
consumer of municipal" systems,
Tike Freeport's, could lead to the
creation of new pockets of poverty
within New York State, said
Noble. "It doesn't make eco-nomic
sense to us to take power
from municipaF systems that wilF
certainly cause hardship, in order
to send it to investor-owned
utilities where the economic im-pact
wilFbe minimaFat best. The
ultimate irony of this attempted
plunder of power is that utility
consumers, such as those in
Freeport, paid for the St. Law-rence
and Niagara projects which
allow for the generation of hydro-power.
Now, if the Commission's
recommendations are carried out,
they willlbse the benefits of their
investments."
State legislators representing
Freeport are Senator Norman
Levy, Assemblyman Armand
D'Amato (south of Atlantic
Avenue) and Assemblywoman
Barbara Patton (north of Atlantic
Avenue).
A Special mailing has been prepared by the ViDage for alFFreeport
eFectric consumers which contains Fetters to state FegisFators which can
be simply signed and mailed.
