Unveiling of Portrait for former Mayor Dominick A. Longobardi
Mayor Fitzgerald and the Floral Park Board of Trustees paid tribute to former Floral Park Mayor Dominick Longobardi with his family in attendance for the official unveiling of Mayor Longobardi’s portrait in the Floral Park Village Hall.
Tribute to Mayor Longobardi – Mayor Kevin Fitzgerald
Tonight, we will be unveiling the portrait of Mayor Dominick Longobardi. Each preceding mayor had unique challenges that they all met and exceeded. Mayor Longobardi’s terms were no different and like his immediate predecessor, Mayor Tweedy, he had numerous challenges that he had to face from outside the village and what I would describe as not Business As Usual (BAU) (i.e., normal business for a Village). In fact I think it would be difficult for another Village in New York State to have faced and met so many challenges in the last six years while ensuring the efficient operation of a Village with the scope of services that Floral Park provides.
Mayor Longobardi from someone who experienced most if not all of the trials, tribulations and most importantly successes during your terms, thank you for all of the time and sacrifices that you made to ensure our Village remains the great place to live, work and raise a family.
I know when future generations see your picture, history will reflect very positively on the accomplishments you made in light of the many obstacles that were thrown in front of you. Congratulations.
Tribute to Mayor Longobardi – Trustee Lynn Pombonyo
Tonight we are here to celebrate a very special event – Mayor Longobardi’s, or Dominick’s, return to Village Hall in both two and three-dimensional form. Dominick, Denise, family and friends, welcome!
Six months ago, as Mayor Longobardi was returning to life as Dominick Longobardi, he shared his plans with all of us – one of them being to return to Village Hall with Mayor Kevin Greene and sit in the back row eating popcorn (or throwing it at us) at Board meetings.
Dominick and Kevin, you know you are always welcome. But now, as the Board looks out into the audience, Dominick, you will always be there. Whether it’s for inspiration, words of wisdom, a good laugh, or someone to blame, we will always have you, although we will miss Trustee Cheng’s ringing of the bell when he decided your speaking time was up. Then again, there’s always zoom.
It is a blessing to look at all these great portraits displayed around this room. Mayor Hayden, Mayor Lauria, Mayor Corbett, Mayor Corbett, Mayor Greene, Mayor Guarnieri, Mayor Tweedy, so many others and now, Mayor Longobardi. Mayors, we thank you for your individual and collective service and invaluable contributions to our Village; honor you all tonight; and are confident in the knowledge that we are standing on your shoulders and have your neverending support. Dominick, welcome back to Village Hall, now your permanent home.
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Recreation Department – Trustee Lynn Pombonyo
Summer came to an end with exciting tournaments in our adult volleyball and basketball leagues. Always a summertime favorite, the fun and competition bring out many enthusiastic players and fans. Congratulations go to our summer 2021 tournament champions:
Basketball – Fallons (Over 30 Division); Sharknado (Under 30)
Women’s Volleyball – Some Like It Hot (Recreational Division); New Kids On The Block (Intermediate Division); Crushin’ It (Competitive Division)
Men’s Volleyball – Summer Slammers II (Recreational Division); Brewers (Competitive Division)
We’ll see everyone back again next summer!
Coming attractions at the park now include: our Fall Recreation 2021 season with fitness, wellness and interesting indoor/outdoor activities for youth, adults and seniors. We still have openings so you may call 326-6336 for availability, and register 9am to 6pm weekdays at the rec center. Liz’s Day is back at the park all day this Saturday, September 25th (come out, have fun and support this important local charity). And the Jim Krug Tennis Classic continues at the park in the week ahead. Lots to enjoy there all year round!
Chambers of Commerce and Our Businesses – Trustee Lynn Pombonyo
Building Superintendent Renee Marcus will be providing a Covert Avenue fire reconstruction update on Wednesday, September 22nd. Ms. Marcus has met with both property owners, received construction schedules, and arranged for the replacement and relocation of the current construction fencing. In the coming weeks, it will be replaced with fencing that is more secure and will allow sidewalk and parking space access in front of the reconstruction site. There will be continued monitoring by exterminators. The update will be posted on the fpvillage.org website and the Hillcrest Civic Association facebook page.
Fall is coming, so please SHOP AND DINE LOCAL in Floral Park and Stewart Manor! So much to see, eat, purchase and do!
Department of Public Works – Trustee Lynn Pombonyo
Our DPW reports that the LED installation project continues as the South Side area nears completion and the West End comes next. The business districts and Centennial Gardens/Floral Parkway side installations will complete the project mid-fall.
Meanwhile, DPW has publicized the announcement of upcoming road construction projects and resurfacing due to gas main replacements. See the fpvillage.org website for details, and you may call DPW at 326-6320 with questions.
Conservation Society – Trustee Lynn Pombonyo
Our FPCS volunteers continue to work with our Parks Department and DPW on the clean-up and rearranging of furniture and other items to restore the Gardens to its beautiful form prior to the September 1st Storm Ida. All volunteers who have gardens under their care are asked to contact FPCS president Dennis McEnery or Parks Superintendent Kurt Meyfohrt to gain entry and assistance if needed. We hope to open the Gardens to the public in the next week or so. Watch for further information on our fpvillage.org website and Centennial Gardens facebook page.
Meanwhile, enjoy a stroll outside the Gardens, early morning, throughout the day and at sunset. Always a memorable experience!
Third Track Project – Trustee Archie Cheng
Trustee Cheng reported that there are no new updates tonight. Trustee Cheng stated that he will have a new status report of the Third Track Project posted on the Village website in the near future.
Trustee Jennifer Stewart
It was truly an honor to participate in the Village’s beautiful 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony. Thank you to all groups who made it a morning of beautiful reflection and prayer.
I was fortunate to have another honor last week, I was present at the Nassau County Police Department Graduation Ceremony in their brand-new training building where I, along with Police Commissioner McAllister, presented PO John Clune with his diploma. It was truly inspiring to watch 183 men and women from all over the county receive their Certificates of Completion as they prepare to protect and serve the residents of this great county. We welcome PO Clune and wish him a long safe career here in our village.
Pool Department – Trustee Jennifer Stewart
The only report is the pool is empty and work is beginning in the 2022 Season
Floral Park Public Library – Trustee Jennifer Stewart
There are so many amazing things happening in our library. The New York State Association of libraries, during its review of its minimum standards for information that must be publicly available, noted in its report that the Floral Park Library, “has one of the very best results among member libraries in already meeting the standards”, meaning that even before the review, our library met and exceeded the standards.
The fall events calendar is filling up quickly. Sunday 9/26 will be a Fall Family Festival on the lawn from 1:30PM – 2:30PM, including a fantastic bubble show, and Leather Jewelry Making with Cathy Buckley on Thursday, October 28th at 6:30PM, as well as the weekly programs such as Made with love knitting group, the book club, and family pre-school hour. So many activities to choose from, there truly is something for everyone.
The Friends of the Library is a volunteer group whose mission it is to support the many programs of the library both financially and by helping put on some of these many wonderful programs. The Friends is truly in need of volunteers, particularly those who can assist at one or more of these truly engaging events and help with set up, break down or general supervision. If you have been looking for a way to become more involved in our community, becoming a “Friend of the Library” is a great place to start. Please call the library for more information.
Floral Park Police Department & CREW – Trustee Chiara
On October 23, 2021, our Floral Park Police Department and our Coalition Resources for Education & Wellness (CREW) Committee will be coordinating with the Drug Enforcement Agency another “Drug Take Back Day”. The Floral Park chapter of the Lions Club will also be assisting by volunteering their services.
This is great opportunity to rid your household of any unused, expired or no longer needed drugs that a resident may want to dispose of. The process will be very easy; drive up to Police Headquarters and place any unwanted drugs in a container and drive off between the hours of 10am – 2 pm on Saturday, October 23rd. Relevant handouts will also be distributed. Please save the date for this event.
For CREW, the Jam Music Workshop will be starting back up on Wednesday evening, Oct 13th in the Rec Center. All young adults are invited to come and share their musical talents with musician, author Marco Corelli and his associate musicians. It is a great opportunity to have some fun while learning some helpful information on playing an instrument; song writing and tips on how to perform in public. All are welcome to attend.
New Residents Committee – Trustee Chiara
Our New Residents Committee will be participating in the Floral Park Chamber of Commerce Business Expo on Oct 13th from 6pm to 9pm in Floral Park Firemen’s Hall. The committee is sending out invitations to recent new residents to invite them to this event. The committee will be staffing a table to welcome new residents and share some valuable information about our Village. All new residents are welcome and encouraged to attend. It will be a great opportunity to become familiar with our local businesses and obtain information on our community.
The Business Expo is open not only to new residents but to all residents. Local businesses will be on hand to share their business model and provide information on services they offer. Most are small business with strong ties to our community. Our local businesses are a valuable segment of our community. They offer local services; establishments for patrons to enjoy fine dining and/or areas to mingle with friends. These local businesses are very supportive to many of our local organizations, often participating or supporting community events. Please support them whenever possible. Thank you.
Mayor Kevin Fitzgerald – Mayor’s Report
Last week with the help of the Board of Trustees, Village Administrator Gerry Bambrick, Village Clerk Susan Walsh, Building Superintendent Renee Marcus and Superintendent of Public Works Kevin Ginnane, the Village of Floral Park applied for the ‘Downtown Revitalization Initiative Application’. By way of background, each year New York State awards $10mm to a community in each of the 10 state regions, one of which is Long Island. This year the state is awarding 2 $10mm or 1 $20mm to a community in each region. The basis for Floral Park’s application is centered around input from our Business District Advancement Committee (which consists of residents and business owners) and input from our outside consultant NV5. I hope to provide an overview of our submission in the next month or so. We feel that our application is a strong one inclusive of some concrete initiatives that can have significant value in increasing the viability of our business districts.
I would like to especially thank Village Clerk Susan Walsh for the for the heartfelt 9/11 ceremony recently held for the 20th anniversary. Susan has been coordinating this event for many years for the Village and we thank her.
