The-Leader_1970-04-02

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MASSAU CTY HISTORICAL MUSEUM
EISESHOflR PARK
EAST KEADOi, M X 11554
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The LEADER "NASSAU'S LARGEST WEEKLY"
Freeport's
Official
Newspaper
2S,INHI READERS
FREEPORT
Vp Code 1tS20
BALDWIN
i;iii.Co«e tIStp
MERRICK
Zip Code 118S6
ROOSEVELT
Zip Cod« ItlTB
34tli Year, No. 1^ FBEEPORT. N. Y.. THUftSDAY. APRIL 2, 1970 PRICE: FIVE CENTS PER COPY
Inside Freeport
by J o h n Mack
During this past week I had an opportunity to see and hear a
complete presentation on the proposed Community Center planned
for Hanse Park. While the project is currently in the advance-planning
stage, I think you wiO be interested lo know how it is
shaping up. Some features of the emerging plan came as a surprise
to me, as I had visualized more of a general indoor-outdoor play and
recreation area. What is developing, however, is essentially a build­ing,
a very large one. It will dominate the 10-acre park site at Mill
Road and South Main Street. Aside from a sitting area for senior
citizens at the southwest corner, and a parking area at the east end,
the building and its adjoining outdoor swimming pool, will be the
dominant feature. The building complex, in turn, will provide half
a dozen or so major attractions, each with its own special area.
Something For Everybody
The Center is being planned for people of all ages. There will
be a Sports Arena (gymnasium) where many types of athletic ac­tivity
will be in order. Next there will be a Forum Area (audi'-
lorium), with movable seats, to accommodate large meetings, plays,
dances, affairs of all types including dinners. There will be an
Indoor Pool, for year-round swimming. The major attraction from
a participation angle will no doubt be the enormous Outdoor Pool.
Overlooking the pool area will be a refreshment and dining section.
And throughout the building will be many subsidiary rooms for
showers, lockers, and planned activities of many descriptions. Ve­hicular
access to the grounds will be from Mill Road, and also from
an extension of Uberty Avenue leading in from Merrick Road. An
entrance from Main Street at the head of Smith Street will bie
mainly for service vehicles. Also it is contemplated to have a walk­way
leading across Merrick Road from this site to Firemen's Field,
also being acquired from New York City. This other large tract is
to be developed with open-air recreational activities, and thus will
become part of the overall community complex. As I said above, all
this is preliminary. The Village Board has authorized the preparation
ol more detailed drawings by the architect.
» The Financing
Acquiring the extensive watershed properties and developing
them for these purposes will obviously involve millions of dollars.
Substantial grants are being made to us by New York Stale, and by
the Federal Government. The rest is up lo us, and it is presently
contemplated to handle our Freeport share partly by a long-term
bond issue lo be paid of? by future lax proceeds, and partly by a
bond issue lo be repaid from proceeds collected at the Community
Center. The major source of such proceeds will be pool charges.
Present thinking is to have moderate seasonal family and individual
rates for pool use, as well a.s modest daily admission schedules.
There will also quite probably be a schedule of free pool periods
for those who cannot afford to pay admission charge. A valuable
fund of experience is available to Freeport in planning its pool
amortization, in the profitable operation of pools by Nassau County,
Hempstead Town, and many Village and special pool districts around
Long Island.
Long Overdue
Freeport is the boating and fishing center of the east, a com­munity
of water enthusiasts, but it has no local place to go for a
.swim! That situation is about to be remedied, not only with these
two pools in our community center, but with two in-the-ground
pools planned for Stevens Street and Randall Parks. "Hie other in­stallations
coming to Hanse Park, including recreational facilities
for youth, are also much needed. How far off is all this? Not so far.
If you'll drive down Mill Road you'll see a couple of construction
trailers on the site already, as the filling and grading operations get
under way, signalling that one of our Village's dreams b about to
come true. The community seems lo be solidly behind this venture.
The only negative argument I've heard so far is "We have gym­nasiums
and auditoriums in our existing school buildings; why spend
more money to duplicate these facilities in a community center?"
While this point seems to have some merit, there is no question that
the community center will have facilities, an atmosphere, and a
spirit of broad participation, that school buildings could not duplicate.
Welcome Bacdc
The many friends of Agnes Earon, first lady of Freeport, wel­come
her back as a resident. She says that her brief experience in
moving out of Freeport was "ill advised," and that she's glad to be
back home with her friends, Agnes now lives at 76 So. Bergen.
Freeport Chamber
Luncheon Meeting
The weekly luncheon of the
Freeport Chamber of Commerce
will be held today at 12:30 p.m.
at the Windjammer Restaurant,
255 Hudson Ave., Freeport. A
discussion meeting will be held.
The Chamber will hold its An­nual
Installation Dinner-Dance
April 11 at the Malibu.
4th Annual Friendship
Ball Plans Completed
Village Board To
Reduce Nunnber
Of Roomers
Freeport Mayor Robert J
Sweeney announced that the Vil­lage
Board had directed the Vil­lage
Counsel to prepare aT|
amendment to the zoning ordin­ances
which will cut down the
number of roomers permitted in
residential zones.
Under the new Jaw the owner
of a one-family house will be
permitted to rent only one room
to one person, whereas up to now
the law has permitted two room­ers
in one room.
The Mayor said that the pear-missable
use for roomers had
been intended for elderly people,
or a single person without family
ties. Other situations, he said,
were really family situations and
should not be allowed in homes
in residential areas.
After the ordinance i.s drafted
by the Village Counsel a public
hearing will be announced before
it i.s put vgio effect.
"Head Start"
Seeks Directors
The Summer Head Start pro­grams
in Freeport and Roosevelt
are stacking people to fill job va­cancies
during the summer. 1970.
The Freeporl Multi-Service
Center announced openings for a
director which requires a Mas­ters
Degree in Early Childhood
Education and Administrative
Experience, 10 teachers with a
B.A. Degree in Early Childhood
Education or Certified Common
Branch subjects.
Also needed are Teacher Aides
who are residents of Freeport,
with High School Equivalency or
related experience. All communi­cations
should reach the office of
Mr. Frank Anderson, Acting Di­rector
by April 25 at the Free-port
Multi-Service Center, Inc.,
65 West Sunriije Highway, Free-port,
N.Y. 11520.
In Roosevelt, a Director is
needtd who has a B.A. or B.S.
degree, plus two years experience
in pre-kindergarten teaching for
the 8 week period. 5 teaching
positions are open for those who
are certified teachers possessing
a New York State license. There
is also an opening for a Nurse-
Teacher (R.N.) Anyone inter­ested
in applying should contact
Mr. William H. Linwood, Acting
Diiipclor of the Roosevelt E.O.C,
55 Mansfleld Avenue, Roosevelt,
N.Y. 11575 or call 37B-5700.
The 4th Annual Friendship Ball of Our Half Radaemer ParUb
wUl be held FridAy. AprU 10. 1970. at the Malllm S|iora a n i l.
Lido Beadi. The committee heeded by Antkony Wayne •bown
ahorm, 3okm O'Neill, SoUdtalioiia Chairmaa (•laadlag) and Mrs.
MaritB Noone. Co-Director, also John DiGrada. Charlei C
Mebimann and Gene Cunie are Co-IHreciois.
Arrest 4 Nassau Youths
For False Bomb Scares
Nassau Police Commis.sioner Francis B. Looney has announced
the arrest of 4 Na.ssau Youlhs, m four separate instances, within the
last week for falsely reporting an mcidenl (bomb .scare).
i want to serve notice lo any would-be telephone prankster,"
Looney said, "There is no guaranteed cloak of secrecy in any anony-mou.
s 'phone call. Our detectives I ~
have demonstrated their tech­nical
capabilities to track dciwn
' these telephone calls, identify the
ealU'r.s, and make the arresl.s.
I "Parents and young people
'alike .share a joint responsibility
I to help us'eliminate these coward-
• ly acts of public harassment, es­pecially
the false bomb report.
"I do not regard these annoy-nin|
4 acl.s aimed at cau.sing pub­lic
disruption, annoyance, and
alarm. These i a.se.s will be in-vestigali'd
and nccc,s.sary arrests
will be made.
"In a foolish moment, a young
person might consider a false
telephoned bomb report as a
harmless prank; but, they jeopar­dize
public .safely, liberty, and
ing calls as innocent larks. Many security; and face arrest with the
of them are surrepticious, cun- | resultant grief and sorrow."
Sentenced To Jail In
Sanitation Crack-Down
Freeport Village Justice Edwin J. Freedman sent an East Dean
Street resident to the County Jail for two days last Friday, when
the home owner was found guilty of a sanitation violation. The home
owner was remanded to jail after he refused to pay the $25.(K) fine.
A summon^ had been issued by Sanitation Inspector M. A.
Hasidi, for debris, junk and old
furniture around the house and
grounds. The summons was given
in copnection with the recent
amendment tightening up the
sanitation ordinance which spe­cifically
mentions the prohibition
against old furniture on the prop*
erty. Mr. Hasidi had taken pho­tographs
of the conditions, which
were presented in court as evi­dence.
The resident contended that the
material kept on the premises
was ant^ue furniture or old fur­niture
being refliUslied tor future
use. The Judge held, however,
that the material was really Junk
as indicated in the photographs.
There was also a guilty verdict
on another sanitation case on the
same day, which involved all
apartment r^ident leaving gar*
bage in the bpUwacy. S^e safcl ^
during the trial that the g|izlii{ij|i ^
was -deliberately placed there | | '
a protest against ttie Ibndlor^'t ^.
failure to provft|e proper dispoiai \
facilities near her apartment, .ilS'^'-'ESIji'li
though she was paying' A"ailjS>-,Jir|>^|l^
stantial rental of |34(M)0 -p»^^M
month. ••^•'^:-^i||»
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