Board Of Trustees Meeting News
By Stephanie Mariel Petrellese

St. Paul's was not the only issue touched upon by the Garden City Board of Trustees at their September 13th meeting.

From now on, Mayor Peter Bee and Village Administrator Robert L. Schoelle Jr. will work together to provide trustees with summary sheets for all contracts that come before the Board for approval. Deputy Mayor John Mauk and Second Deputy Mayor Thomas Lamberti expressed concern that it is difficult for trustees to effectively evaluate contracts since they are being forced to go through every page to extrapolate essential information.

Trustee Gerard Lundquist announced that he and Village Clerk Brian Ridgway attended a Sept. 5th meeting of the Citizens Against Railroad Expansion. This meeting focused on the Long Island Rail Road's plan to install a third track along the main corridor. In related news, he said there is another meeting planned regarding the former Pilgrim Hospital site on September 20th. The Village will have a representative at the meeting. It has been al-leged that the LIRR is quietly developing a proposed $110 million, 20-acre freight yard called the Pilgrim Intermodal Freight Transportation Center at the former Pilgrim Hospital site in Suffolk County located near the LIRR's main line.

Resident Bob Bolebruch is concerned about the two fields at Cherry Valley. He is a member of the Garden City Athletic Association and claims they are needed by Garden City teams. The fields are currently being leased by the Town of Hempstead on behalf of the Franklin Square Park District for $16,000. Bolebruch asked the Board not to renew the contract with the Town of Hempstead and have Garden City's Recreation Department allocate their use.

Resident Bill Bellmer asked for the status on construction at the Old Nassau County Courthouse complex at the corner of Old Country Road and Franklin Avenue. Mayor Bee said he is uncertain so Village Administrator Schoelle will look into the matter. Bellmer said that at the Traffic Commission meeting, a request was made to change Fifteenth Street to one-way so more parking spaces can be added.

Resident Pat DiMattia expressed concern over the sandbags along Franklin Avenue in front of the Bookspan property. Robert J. Mangan, director of the Village's Dept. of Public Works, explained that they are needed to prevent flooding in heavy rainfalls. Deputy Mayor Mauk recommended that the Village meet with Nassau County officials to find ways to alleviate flooding problems so the unsightly sandbags can be removed.

Superintendent of Buildings Michael Filippon reported that the developer of the site of the former gas station at the corner of Seventh Street and Franklin Avenue is looking to have retail stores on the bottom floor and six apartments on the second floor. A zoning change would be necessary to allow the residences.

Trustee Nicholas Episcopia said construction is not expected to be completed at the Garden City Public Library until December. On a sad note, he said Library Director Alan Roeckel's wife passed away suddenly on Sept. 10th.