July 2013

Village Board Meeting Minutes    

In response to requests from our residents, following the August 18, 2013 Village Board Meeting and every meeting thereafter, minutes from said meetings will be available for viewing on the Village Website.    

Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) UPDATE!
 

A Letter of Intent has been submitted on behalf of the Village for infrastructure mitigation. Specifically, $37M for drainage and roadway and $3.3M for bulkheads has been applied for to protect our Village and increase our resilience against weather conditions and future storms.

Information Available Around the Village  

In an effort to accommodate our residents who do not have daily access to a computer, the Village staff has distributed hard copies of information regarding current events in the Village at the following locations:    

       ·         Bank of America
 ·         Chase
 ·         Doris the Florist
 ·         Hair Pro
 ·         Island Park Library
 ·         Island Park Senior Housing
 ·         Island Park Post Office
 ·         Jewish Center of Island Park Congregation Beth Emeth
 ·         Sacred Heart Parish Center
 ·         Village Office 
 

Please visit these sites and pick up a copy at your convenience.  The Village will be periodically updating these locations with more information as it becomes available.

Island Park Library Re-Opens             
 

The Village is thrilled to announce the Island Park Library officially reopens, Monday, July 29, 2013 at 10:00 AM, after the devastation sustained by Hurricane Sandy.  

The Library will be operating with the following reduced hours: Monday 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM; Tuesday through Friday 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM; and closed Saturdays for the month of August.  The Library will resume its regular hours Tuesday, September 3^rd.    

UPDATE!            

A Meeting was held on Sunday, July 28, 2013 amongst Trustee Joseph Annarella, Trustee Irene Naudus, and Village Clerk, Constance Conroy, regarding the donation of a brand new playground at the Waterford Road Park by Kaboom, another outstanding organization that has found its way to Island Park.  Village Officials made a site visit to the location at Waterford Road and, in a collaborative effort with Columbia Ciccimarro, an application to Kaboom is currently in progress.  Please check back soon for further information regarding this fantastic project. 

New Playground at Masone Beach
             In Memory of Caroline Previdi  

The spectacular organization, The Sandy Ground Project, has selected Masone Beach as one of the homes to a playground dedicated in honor of a very special young child.  On July 22, 2013, the founder of the organization, Bill Lavin, presented the project to our community at the Island Park Fire House where we had a beautiful turn out.  Many wore pink in honor of Caroline, 1 of 26 Angels that were senselessly killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown Connecticut.  The Playground will be built and dedicated in honor of this precious Angel.  How fitting that Caroline’s Park will be built here at Masone Beach as she was an avid swimmer and huge Yankee fan.   A volunteer group comprised of firemen, policemen, teachers and many others will come together and donate their time and talent to construct this invaluable addition to the Island Park Community.  It is a privilege and an honor to have been selected as 1 of 26 locations where the Sandy Ground Project will forever honor and commemorate the 26 precious angels that were senselessly taken from this world far too soon.    The project is expected to begin in September. 
 

Village Applies for FEMA Funding            

Since Superstorm Sandy, the Village Board of Trustees, the Village Office and Public Works have been extremely proactive in seeking financial assistance and reimbursement from FEMA to recover from damages sustained to Village owned property, vehicles and buildings as a result of the storm.   To date, the Village has applied for funding in excess of $6 Million dollars.  

Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP)  

Governor Cuomo has announced over $500 million dollars in funding for Hazard Mitigation Grants to build stronger, more resilient communities impacted by recent natural disasters.  The Village is currently working with Cameron Engineering, who will be submitting a Letter of Intent on our behalf for such grants relating to infrastructure mitigation.    

New York State Community Reconstruction Zone Planning Program (CRZ)  

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo introduced the Community Reconstruction Zones (CRZ) program, a community based program that will provide assistance to areas severely damaged by Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Irene, or Tropical Storm Lee to develop comprehensive and innovative local rebuilding funded by the state and federal government.  The Village will be working with Regional Director for Nassau County, Laura Munafo.  Island Park Fire Chief, Anthony D’Esposito, and Tommy Asher. They will be members of the Committee designated to servicing our area.  There will be a meeting in Albany this week and we will be updating our residents as information is ascertained.  

Island Park Fire House  

The Village is happy and excited to announce that our Fire House is in the final stages of repair after Superstorm Sandy.  This has been a longtime coming and much anticipated event.  The devoted members of our fire department did not let the devastation sustained to the firehouse in the wake of Superstorm Sandy slow down their efforts or dedicated service to our community thus making this reopening a that much more special and memorable event.  The Village is forever indebted to our hometown heroes, as well as for the invaluable service and assistance from outside departments.  

Telephone System at Village Hall  

The Village is happy to report we are in the final stages of restoring the telephone system which was in place prior to Superstorm Sandy.  It has been a long and involved process and we wish to send our sincere gratitude to the residents of Island Park for their continued patience and understanding during this transition back to a more appropriate and efficient system.   The Village Hall is open Monday – Friday from 9:00 AM to 4:30 p.m.  We are currently working with one telephone line and until the pre-storm telephone system is restored, callers receive a perpetual ring in lieu of a busy signal.  We apologize for the inconvenience and anticipate a resolution in the very near future.

Long Island Rail Road  

The Village has been corresponding with to the LIRR requesting a complete removal and cleanup of the Island Park Substation.   

Verizon FIOS    

As a result of a continued interest from our residents to bring FIOS to the Village, we have initiated correspondence with Verizon requesting a meeting to establish a Franchise Agreement to introduce FIOS to the Village.