GLACKEN ON TRACK FOR MEETING 100 DAY GOALS
Mayor Bill Glacken and Trustees Renaire Frierson-Davis and Don Miller promised Freeport residents alO-Point
Revitalization Plan to return our Village to .prosperity. Within the first three months in office, the Glacken
Administration is delivering on its promises. Real change is taking place as ive address and solve these issues
and concerns. The Glacken team is bringing confidence in government back to Village Hall.
* Restore Fiscal Responsibility to Village Hall A fiscal "swat team" consisting of nationally respected firms in the field of
municipal financial management has been put in place. They will uncover the full extent of the budget deficit we inherited from
the last administration and will help us devise and implement a recovery plan.
* Expand Meaningful Economic Development We have reached an agreement with the Village of Hempstead Community
Development Agency. This arrangement will assist us with federal, state and local agencies to ensure that Freeport receives and
utilizes every possible resource available to promote the economic health of the village. We are developing an aggressive mar-keting
campaign for the Freeport FJectric Department aimed at attracting and promoting new business, both public and private,
for the Village.
* Provide Our Police Department with Additional Resources to Fight Crime For the first time in Nassau County, the District
Attorney has turned over federal forfeiture funds to the Village for use in combating illegal drug traffic and street crime. The
$100,000 grant will be used to cover the cost of overtime patrols. In addition, we have completed the steps necessary to draw
down $66,000 in Federal Funds for additional police presence in high crime areas.
* Code Enforcement More than 1,000 violations of Freeport's building codes have been adjudicated in the three months since
we took office resulting in compliance and, where appropriate, fines. These violations represent a portion of the major backlog
of dangerous conditions including over-occupancy problems that threatened the health and safety of our children.
* Cooperation with Freeport School Board We have met with the members of the Freeport School Board and the PTA
organizations to pledge our cooperation and support in continuing to provide the best educational system on Long Island for our
children. / ..
* Capital Improvement Upgrades We have stepped up revitalization and beautification efforts by awarding a contract for repairs.
to a number of village roads. In the'Meister Beach area, we have begun surveying .work for upgrading construction. We have
identified the five worst streets in Freeport and we have scheduled a repair program for these areas.
* Beautification, Restoration and Revitalization More than 400 new trees have been planted throughout Freeport in the past
three months. They replaced some 260 diseased and dangerous trees which had to be removed and were paid for by Community
Development funds and a donation from the Electric Department. The current program has targeted removal and replacement of
a total of 1,000 trees by the end of the fiscal year.
* Open Government Initiative We are conducting the governing of Freeport Village before the residents at open and honest
meetings providing ample opportunity to hear the comments of every citizen. .We listen to questions and provide clear answers
to the genuine concerns of our residents.
* Protect and Preserve the Quality of Life in Freeport We have formed several .individual advisory committees to protect the
rights and secure the various needs of the diverse members of our population including-'the establishment of a Senior Citizens
Council. •
* Immediate Tax Relief Plan for Homeowners We have met with the mayors and other officials of the neighboring commu-nities
and have formed a coalition dedicated to bringing back to the villages our fair share of the sales tax revenues. This money
will be used to stabilize homeowners' property taxes and ultimately reduce them.
RECORD TURNOUT FOR MEMORIAL DAY PARADE
Bright sunshine was the order of the day as Freeporters marched or rode on the many floats in this
year's Memorial Day Parade. The highlight of the event was the dosing ceremony at Freeport's
Memorial Library that included a short speech from the parade's Grand Marshall, Martin Andrews.
An ex-POW interned in Switzerland during WWII, Captain Andrews is the Commander of the Nassau
/Suffolk American Ex-POWs organization which meets at the Northport Veterans Hospital.
On the reviewing stand: Trustees Don Miller and Renaire Frierson-Davis,
Mayor Bill Glacken, Parade Chairman Charlie Jackson and Grand Marshall Martin Andrews.
The Home
of Champions
"Seaport At Freeport" Opens To Cheering Crowds
It was a great day on Woodcleft Ave. as the Long
Island Marine Education Center officially opened
its doors May 22nd. Among the state, county,
town and village officials on hand to celebrate
the Grand Opening was New York State Parks
Commissioner Bernadette Castro, who performed
the christening ceremony.
Because the Marine Education Center is affiliated
with the South Street Seaport in New York City,
it is unofficially known, as the "Seaport At
Freeport." The 6,500 square-foot building houses
historic maritime displays including several
authentic boats which were part of Freeport's
early history. The well-known speed boat,
'Tempo" owned'by Guy Lombardo, attracted the
attention of many Freeport residents who
remembered the famous band leader using it to
commute to the Jones Beach Theater.
"The opening of the Seaport at Freeport marks
the rebirth of our Village as a thriving maritime
center," stated Mayor Bill Glacken. "Freeport has
a long and respected history of commercial and
recreational fishing and boating and we plan to
revive and restore that tradition beginning here
•on Woodcleft Ave." •-"
The Director, Deana Preziosi, said the center's
hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday
and is closed on Monday and Tuesday.
Educational programs for school children will
begin in the Fall.
Isabel Drach, President of the Freeport Historical Society; Peter Neill, President of the South Street Seaport; Bernadette Castro, NY State Commissioner of Parks; Dennis Dunne, Nassau County
Legislator, District 15; Angie Cullin, Hempstead Town Receiver of Taxes; Tom Gulotta, Nassau County Executive; Al Grover, the Freeport resident who started it all, Darlene Harris, Nassau County
Legislator, District 1. Alexander Treadwell, NY Secretary of State, Mayor Bill Glacken and Trustee Don Miller.
Dear Freeport Neighbor,
This is a time of sweeping change and new beginnings. On behalf of all of us elected
to serve, I thank the people of Freeport for their trust, and their call to action.
Our purpose and principal accomplishment will be to unite this village. Together, we
will express a new integration of action with compassion and heart. Our village will come
together with people contributing their individual resources and talents for a thriving com-munity
and a healing tide. Together, we will restore leadership and confidence in govern-ment
and reconnect it with the values of the people of Freeport. Together, we will fight for
the soul of Freeport.
We will immediately implement a revitalization plan for a better Freeport. We will
restore fiscal responsibility, expand meaningful economic development, and give Freeport's
Police Department the resources needed to combat drugs and street crime. We will maximize
code enforcement. We will work closely with the school board to ensure and outstanding
school system for our children. We will implement an aggressive capital improvement pro-
. gram as well as accelerating beautification, restoration and revitalization programs, and we
will implement an immediate tax relief plan in order to protect and preserve the quality of
life for all Freeport residents.
This administration is about the beauty for new beginnings. There is no limit to the pros-perity,
success and happiness awaiting us together as a community.
Some of my most cherished memories are of being in Village Hall as a child. When my
father became Mayor of our great village, I learned the importance of
protecting a community with lower taxes, less spending, safe streets for our children and a
thriving, prosperous community. I pledge to continue the tradition of excellence my father
started in 1953.1 love our village and will work tirelessly to protect it.
I am truly honored and humbled at the opportunity to serve you, as the Mayor of
Freeport. Our village consists of unique and diversified individuals, but we have now come
together, as a family. As a family, working together towards our shared goals, there is a
miraculous sense of things to come, of new beginnings.
The success of this village in becoming a thriving, prosperous, proud
community will be a direct result of all us working together as a team. This village belongs
to us and I take great pride in working together to make Freeport great once again. Limitless
new horizons await us, this is only the beginning!
TOP FINANCIAL TEAM BEGINS BAILOUT PLAN FOR VILLAGE
Three major municipal financial management firms form the core of the fiscal "swat team" hired by Mayor Bill Glacken to solve Freeport's current
budget deficit. "Unfortunately, the Wissler Administration left us with an immediate cash flow shortfall of $2. 5 million and a deficit of at least.$7 to
$10 million," explained Mayor Glacken. "Acting on the advice of the bond counsel firm of Nixon, Hargrave, Devans and Doyle, and professional
financial advisors including Evensen Dodge Inc., we have negotiated a bridge loan from Freeport's Electric Department to cover this shortfall," he
added. The team is also preparing a debt restructure plan that will result in repayment of this loan by August 1997.
The loan will give Village Hall the cash required to meet its payroll and cover the medical claims of its employees. "With the help of our fiscal
experts, we plan to put in place the remaining pieces of a financial bailout package that will return Freeport to full financial health" said Glacken.
The Mayor, along with Trustees Renaire Frierson-Davis and Don Miller, met with other members of the Village Officials Association to promote leg-islation
to return a portion of the sales tax revenues to the village. "Freeport should realize some of the sales tax money that originates here and use
it to reduce property.taxes in the Village," said Trustee Miller.
and Ftowetr® Around the Vil
Members of Scout Troop 23 and Cub Pack 225 planting flowers at the Village of Freeport sign on Merrick Road.
Mayor Bill Glacken and Trustees Don-Miller, Renaire.Frierson-Davts and Ernest D'Angelo congratulate'
Scout Sean Mormon (second right in back row) and Scout Master Jim Tonon (third left back row) at Village Hall.
When the new administration, the Glacken Team,
swept into Village Hall it brought with it a breath
of fresh air and a healthy crop of young trees
planted throughout Freeport. More than 400 new
saplings of Oak, Maple, Linden and Cherry were
used to replace approximately 260 older trees
which had to be removed due to disease or
hazardous conditions. Community Development
funds, along with a donation from the Electric
Department, paid for the project. Mayor Glacken
has beefed up the program by requiring tree
replacement to match tree removal.
Meister Beach neighbors will be happy to know
that the surveying work required for upgrading in
their area has begun. And residents on Mayfair,
Mayflower, Meadowbrook, Rutland and Sagamore
roads will see potholes and other hazardous con-ditions
remedied soon. The Village recently
awarded a contract for repairs to those streets.
Freeport has Sean Mormon and other members of
Scout Troop 23, along with Cub Pack 225, to thank
for the beautiful flower bed surrounding the
Village of Freeport sign on the north side of
Merrick Road just west of the Meadowbrook
Parkway. Sean organized the group and complet-ed
the community service requirement necessary
toward his Eagle Scout badge with the project.
Trustee Frierson-Davis praised Sean. "Dozens of
young people, just like Sean, are working on pro-jects
like this every day. We, in Village Hall, plan
to acknowledge these youngsters and commend
them for their contribution to the community and
their civic pride," concluded Ms. Frierson-Davis.
Over-Occupancy Violations Top List of Cod® Enforcement Summonses
After less than three months in office, the Glacken Administration has delivered on its promise of protecting the well-being of the citizens of
Freeport by disposing of more than 1,000 code enforcement violations since April 8th. These cases involved a variety of housing violations,
including over-occupancy problems. "Our office is determined to protect the health and safety of Freeport's residents," stated Harrison J. Edwards, Jr.,
Freeport Village Attorney. "Over-occupancy is a quality of life issue that particularly threatens die welfare of young children. Our office, in
conjunction with the building department and the Village court staff, is working overtime to clear up, through fines and other legal actions, the
backlog of these violations left by the previous administration"
Edwards added, "We will not compromise' the safety of any resident of Freeport. No child should live in dangerous housing.conditions. We plan to
end the bureaucracy, cut through red tape and eliminate over-occupancy problems because the safety of our residents depends on it."
The Building Department maintains a 24-hour, seven-day a week, telephone hotline at 377-2230 for reporting problems and complaints.
All information is kept confidential and the caller's identity is protected.
