Village Board ‘Encouraged’ by Meeting With Verizon Execs

If you haven’t heard by now, some residents are none too pleased with Verizon or the Village of Garden City. In fact, a disgruntled group of homeowners vented their frustrations at the most recent village board meeting. The residents, who live on 13th Avenue in Mineola, insist the noise and odor emanating from the nearby Verizon Wireless facility is deteriorating their quality of life.

Up until now, it seemed that most of the people who are being affected by the building lived solely in Mineola. Dina Silva spoke on behalf of her Portugese-speaking father, Rui Salsinha, to explain her parents are the only Garden City residents who live on the block bordering the Verizon facility, which is located on Herricks Road. For months, the residents have complained that the generator tests have caused an increase in noise and black smoke from the building.

GC School Board Holds Public Hearing

Administrators Agree to Zero Percent Salary Increase for 2010/2011

During a budget public hearing on May 11, School Board President Colleen Foley announced that the Garden City Board of Education and the adminstrators’ bargaining unit have reached a two-year agreement for a zero percent salary increase for 2010/2011, and a two percent salary increase for 2011/2012.

Among the administrators represented by the bargaining unit are principals, assistant principals, directors, and coordinators. Foley stated there will also be a zero percent increase for administrative positions in the central office or “cabinet staff,” which includes the assistant superintendent of business, the assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, the assistant superintendent of personnel, administrative assistant of business, transportation supervisor, the assistant transportation supervisor, the director of facilities, informational technology officer, accountant, treasurer, food service director and public information coordinator. Additionally, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Feirsen has agreed to a zero percent increase next year.

Tensions Rise at Town Hall Meeting

Residents ‘Fed Up’ With Contractual Salary Increases

It was definitely not ‘business as usual’ as Garden City residents vented their frustrations at a Town Hall meeting on May 4 in the high school auditorium. The forum, hosted by the four Property Owners’ Associations, gave members of the community one last chance to discuss the 2010-11 school budget proposals before the final vote on Tuesday, May 18.

MTA Third Track Plan Derailed

Local Communities Hold Victory Celebration in Floral Park

A little rain could not spoil the victory party for Town Supervisor Kate Murray, local mayors, government officials and community activists who gathered together at the Floral Park Train Station on May 3. The event celebrated the MTA’s recent announcement that it has excluded the LIRR Third Track project from its 2010-2014 Capital Improvement Plan. Murray said the MTA recently voted that the long-disputed proposal for a third LIRR track would not be included in their five-year plan. The news was a major coup for local communities who have been rallying against the project for more than five years.

Flying Low in Garden City

EAB Requests Meeting With FAA Over Aircraft Noise

If you’ve noticed low-flying planes over the Village of Garden City, you’re not alone. Members of the Environmental Advisory Board (EAB) met on April 28 to review the ongoing nuisance of aircraft noise that has been affecting the quality of life of residents for many months.

NCC Professor Arrested for Sexual Abuse

Third Squad detectives report the arrest of a Dix Hills man for sexual abuse that allegedly occurred on April 19, at 11:30 a.m. in Garden City.

GC Board of Education Adopts 2010-11 Budget

Residents Heading to the Polls May 18

After months of lengthy work sessions, the Garden City Board of Education officially adopted the 2010-11 budget during a meeting on Monday, April 19. The total budget is $98,275,256, with a budget-to-budget increase of $3,059,669 (or 3.21 percent). The public will go the polls on May 18 to vote on the proposal, which has a projected 4.52 percent tax levy increase (with STAR).

Martins Considering Legal Action Against Verizon, Village of Garden City Over Plant

Village Officials Meet in Effort to Resolve Noise, Safety and Health Concerns

The Verizon Wireless plant is once again the source of dispute for the Villages of Mineola and Garden City. Months after angry residents spoke to Anton Community Newspapers about the loud noise emanating from equipment, the mayor of Mineola announced the possibility of initiating a lawsuit against not only Verizon, but also the Village of Garden City.

John and Ida Ferrieria, longtime members of the Mineola community, who own the “For Birds Only” store on Jericho Turnpike, have lived in their home on 13th Avenue in the Village of Mineola for the last 32 years. They say their quality of life has been disturbed by the noise levels generated from an ongoing construction project at the Verizon facility, which borders the Mineola neighborhood where they live.

Traffic Commission Recommends ‘Fair’ Parking Compromise

Fair Court Parking Permits to Be Enforced Beginning April 26

During the Traffic Commission’s monthly meeting on April 15, trustee Dennis Donnelly announced that the Village of Garden City would convert 25 permit spots to two-hour spots and begin re-enforcing the parking permits in the Fair Court parking lot. The temporary parking spots would provide a solution to what has been a heated argument for months between the village and the landlord and tenants who utilize the Fair Court parking lot.

Garden City Chamber of Commerce News

Deputy County Executive Reports to Chamber

On March 25, at the Garden City Hotel, members and guests of the Garden City Chamber of Commerce heard Patrick Foye, deputy county executive, discuss the efforts of the new regime to reform the county’s property tax assessment system.