1976-04-15

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VOL. 57 NO. 22 S.,-, M|. I I'tilSK P
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N . Y . II7. « .< Thursday, April 15, 1976 Copyright I97( i by
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price 1 Si - $ 5 per year
Board Votes School Closing
Parkway Oaks Phase- out
Begins In September
Takes $ 1.16 Jump
TIIK KASTKR BUNNY greets one of his young friends as he passed
out jelly beans Sunday afternoon during the Farmingdale Kiwanis
Club's annual Raster Egg Roll at Weldon E. llowitt Junior High
School. Children from 3 to 10 years of age braved the chilling wind to
roll the plastic eggs for prizes. I Post photo by Rob Starrett I
More Contestants
Sign For Contest
Three more, young ladies
signed up this week to compete
for the title of Miss Hard-scrabble.
Thus far 11 girls have
entered the contest as opposed to
only 3 boys vieing for the title of
Master Hardscrabble.
The contest is open to all boys
and girls between the ages of 4
and 12 years who are residents of
the Farmingdale School District
Parents may enter their children
in the contest any Wednesday
afternoon at Claire Studios, 237
Main Street. Farmingdale.
Contest photos will be taken free
of charge.
The new contestants signing up
this week are Kathy Gohn, age 10,
of 60 Walnut Avenue; Cynthia
llcckman, age 8, of 38 Sherman
Koad; andTara Rooney, age 5, of
10 Paine Avenue.
The Farmingdale Post will
award the winners with a $ 100
savings bond each and each
runner- up will receive a ISO bond.
The winners and the runner- ups
will participate in the Hard­scrabble
Day procession on Main
Street al 11 a. m. dressed in
colonial costume.
Pictures of the contestants will
appear in each week's edition of
the Post until the close of the
contest. Contestants signed up so
far appear on page 20 of this
week's edition
The Farmingdale Board of Education met in a special public session Tuesday
night to render their final decision on the proposed two year phase out of Parkway
Oaks Elementary School beginning next September. The vote, as indicated last
Monday; remained 5 to 2 in favor of the closing of the school. A proposition will be
placed on this year's ballot for the sale of the school after June, 1977 for a fair
market price. According to the plan. Park-
__ , W waY Oaks will become a K- 3
school next year, with students in
grades 4- 6 being distributed
between Woodward Parkway and
Albany Avenue Elementary
Schools. The following year the
school would close completely,
with the remaining students
being reassigned to the two
nearest schools.
An estimated crowd of 100
appeared before the school board
to protest the closing and
presented a petition urging a
delay in the final decision.
Parkway Oaks was cited as the
first district school for closing in
both the Superintendent's report
on future school use and the
Citizens' Advisory Committee's
report. The report compiled by
the school administration
projects a decline in . school
enrollment for the Farmingdale
School District of between 300
and 400 students per year to a low
of 7.200 by 1980 from a high of
13.000 a few years ago.
The majority of the board
indicated that they felt there was
no need to delay further, since
the district is now facing an
economic crisis.
According to a report sub­mitted
to the board Tuesday
night by Dr. William A. Kin/ ler.
superintendent of schools. Park­way
Oaks is ideally located for
senior citizens housing, being
within walking distance of a
shopping center and churches.
The report was the expressed
opinion of a real estate expert
and representatives of the Town
of Oyster Bay Planning Board.
The report cited a need for
senior housing in the area and
under Federal regulations, a
renovation of Parkway Oaks
school into a senior citizens
housing project would be
restricted to seniors only and not
for other low income housing.
The project would be privately
owned and returned to the tax
rolls of the school district, town
and county. The Town of Oyster
Hay would screen all applicants
I Continued on page 91
The cost of living spiral caught
up with the Incorporated Village
of Farmingdale. The mayor and
trustees unveiled their budget
Monday night showing a tax rate
increase of $ 1.16 per hundred
dollars of valuation for the 1976- 77
fiscal year. The rate will jump
from $ 2.82 to $ 3.98.
The $ 1,280,325 budget is $ 119,675
higher than the present $ 1,160,650
budget. Half of the budget total,
$ 782,690 will be realized from
other revenue sources such as
Federal Revenue Sharing, State
Aid, the sale of water, fines and
licensing fees. The remaining
$ 782,690 must be raised through
taxation.
The village rates its valuation
at $ 19,691,282.
Last year the village trustees
were able to maintain the same
tax rate by using up all their
surplus funds and cutting back all
budget allocations to the bone.
This year, however, they have
nothing but current operating
expenses and no surplus to fall
back upon.
In addition to the higher costs
of insurance, garbage pick- up,
light power and fuel, etc.. the
village suffered reductions in the
sale of its water because of the
wet summer last year. Since
residents watered their lawn less,
the village suffered a $ 145,000 loss
in revenue. They also suffer
losses on money borrowed
because of higher interest rates,
while they could not gain the
same amount of interest on
village funds in savings- accounts.
Since 1971, when the village tax
rate was set at $ 2.75, the trustees
have been cutting all the corners
to keep the tax rate down. The
rate increased a total, of seven
cents during this five year
period. They indicated Monday
night that there are just no more
corners left to cut.
Urge Clubs Sign
For Fair Booths
Farmingdale clubs and
organizations who plan to have
booths at this year's Hard­scrabble
Fair on May 22 v are
urged to sign- up for locations as
sopn as possible as booth
assignments will be made on a
first come first served basis.
Local individuals have been
requesting space at a faster rate
than the local clubs.
This year all booths, with a few
exceptions being made for
refreshments, will be located on
the Village Green or in the
parking lot adjacent to the green.
No booths, again with the ex­ception
of refreshment stands,
will be located on the front lawn
of the Main Street School This
area will be the main en­tertainment
area for the fair and
will contain the Town of Oyster
Bay Snowmobile. A full day of
entertainment will appear on the
I Continued on page 91