A SAFE, SANE AND ENTERTAINING 4TH OF JULY
AT THE FIREWORKS AND FIREMANIC EXHIBITION
JULY 4TH EVENING AT FREEPORT MUNICIPAL STADIUM
SPONSORED BY THE FREEPORT VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT
(RAIN DATE, SUNDAY, JULY 7TH)
Youth Day in the Village of Freeport sponsored by the .Freeport Lodge of
Elks, found the chairs of municipal government occupied by students, left to right,
seated, "Mayor" Maureen Collins, "Deputy Mayor" Ellen McNamara, "Village
Trustee" Anita Boomstein, "Trustee" Robert Andrews, "Trustee" Curtis Addision,
and standing, deposed for the day as Village Trustee, Thomas J. Lovelidge; Elks Ex-alted
Ruler Douglas Wilson, "Village Attorney" William Donald, and "Village
Treasurer" Robert Powell.
CORRECTION
Due to a typographical error, the omission of a line of type, last month's Vil-lage
News incorrectly listed William Noll as Superintendent of Recreation. He is
rather, Superintendent of Buildings. The Superintendent of Recreation is Richard
Hanak.
A PUBLIC INFORMATION BULLETIN OF THE VILLAGE OF FREEPORT
46 NORTH OCEAN AVENUE TELEPHONE FReeport 8-4000 ROBERT J. SWEENEY, MAYOR
Public Meeting On The 1st Monday Of Month Only During June. July, Aug.. Sept.
June, 1968
FOR A MORE BEAUTIFUL FREEPORT
The Village of Freeport Beautification Committee celebrated Arbor Day by
planting a Poplar on a barren triangle of land at Sunrise Highway and Grove Street.
Mayor Robert J. Sweeney, left, lends encouragement to committee members Mrs.
Harvay Sinkler, Robert Burns, Eleanor Gibbons, Chairman Hildegarde Schubert and
Mrs. Elfrida Phelps. Mrs. Schubert said newly planted trees at curbsides may not sur-vive
the hot weather ahead unless residents care enough to bring them a couple of
buckets of water during hot spells.
Trustees: Heniy M. Altengarten, Frank W. Someis, George H. Fairbeig, Thomas J. Lovelidge
Village Clerk: John J. MacDonald - Treasurer Leonard D.B. Smith - Counsel: Oatdey Gentry, Jr.
The quest for suitable recreation facilities brought Mayor Sweeney, left,
youth committee members, Recreation Superintendant Richard Hanak, Village
Trustee Frank Somers, Park Commission members and other interested persons, to
inspect the old firehouse on North Main Street on a Saturday afternoon. In the photo
at right, Superintendent Hanak discusses renovation possibilities with ad hoc commit-tee
member James Miller and Park Commissioner Mannie Messing. The Building, un-used
for several years and offered for sale by the village, has been vandalized on sev-eral
occasions. A preliminary arthitectural report found the building in serious dis-repair
and estimated the cost of reconstruction fora recreation center at $637,000.
The report also said some of the recreation uses would have to be "forced" into the
building, since it was not originally designed for such a use. Floor space needed for
athletics, dances or large meetings was available only on the second floor, the archi-tect
said, instead of the ground floor, which would be the proper location. Existing
stairways did not meet fire and safety standards for a place of public assembly.
PLANS JELLING FOR RECREATION FACILITIES
Two major steps were taken last month towards enlargement of the village's
recreation programs. The policy of cooperative effort undertaken by the municipal
government and the Freeport Public school system bore fruit in an agreement to be-gin
an eight-week summer recreation program in the junior and senior high schools.
As a result of discussions among Board of Education members and. Village Board
Trustees George Fairberg and Thomas Lovelidge, School Board President Hugh Erwin
announced that the schools' gymnasiums and other rooms will be open five nights a
week for recreation, staffed with village personnel-and under the supervision of Free-port
Recreation Superintendent Richard Hanak. Mr. Hanak said the program will ber
gin on or before July 1, and is being set-up with the aid and suggestions of a youth
committee. In addition to gym activities there will be a lounge for music and dancing,
refreshments, arts and crafts.
The Village Board last month also authorized Village Treasurer Leonard B.D.
Smith to prepare a bond issue of $650,000, to finance construction of a permanent rec-reation
center. This was about half the amount proposed in original plans. The cost re-duction
would be achieved by eliminating an auditorium wing, which the Village
Board felt would be a duplication of existing facilities in the public schools. Other
large floor area in the recreation center could also double as auditorium, by use of
portable equipment. Tentative plans call for locating the recreation center on the Vil-lage
Green, south of the Village Hall on North Ocean Avenue. By eliminating the
auditorium wing, an architectural study found, the village would be able to retain the
sit-in park area and present parking facilities, and avoid the condemnation of any
private property.
STUDYING WHEN TO VOTE ON URBAN RENEWAL
'" ' The Village Board has been studying the question of when and how to hold a
public referendum on whether or not Freeport will proceed with a proposed urban
renewal project for the Bennington Park section. Under the present state law, Urban
Renewal Director Stanley J. Roth reported, only property owners would be allowed
to'vote on a bond issue for urban renewal; Many Freeport residents would not be
eligible, he said, including the majority of those living in the proposed project area.
Legislation pending in the state legislature would allow an "advisory" referendum for
all voters during a general village election, which would be in March of next year.
A resolution was proposed by Deputy Mayor Henry Altengarten and seconded
by Trustee George Fairberg, to eliminate the public vote and proceed with urban re-newal
by "permissive referendum" action of the Village Board. This step was sug-gested,
the resolution said, because a restricted vote would not be representative of
the total community and to wait until next March would unduly delay the program.
The resolution was defeated when Trustee Frank Somers and Mayor Robert J.
Sweeney voted no, and Trustee Thomas Lovelidge abstained.
A decision on the voting qiestion was postponed last month, until the outcome
of the pending state legislation could be determined.
