Inside Freeport 2011-07

              Inside Freeport
a PUBLICATION OF THE INCORPORATED VILLAGE OF FREEPORT J U L Y 2 0 1 1
Freeport Promotes Economic Development
Mayor Andrew Hardwick
greets residents at Freeport's
First Community Forum
On Wednesday, June 15,
2011, the Village of Freeport
and the Freeport Community
Development Agency (CDA)
hosted the first of a series of
Community Forums designed
to inform Freeport residents
about economic development
initiatives and other related
issues within their neighbor-hood
and surrounding area.
During the forum, held at the
Zion Cathedral on Grand
Avenue, residents and Free-port
officials heard from rep-resentatives
from Nassau
County who provided an up-date
on the status of the
North Main Street Corridor
Project. This multi-million
dollar effort, primarily
funded by Nassau County,
represents one of Nassau's
largest public works projects
in years and includes plans to
create a pedestrian friendly
environment and improved
accessibility by resurfacing
the road, reconfiguring curbs
and sidewalks, as well as add
decorative lighting, trees, and
seating areas. Nassau County
Legislators Kevan Abrahams
and David Denenberg were
joined by Deputy County
Executive Rev. Dr. Phillip
Elliot who was representing
Nassau County Executive Ed
Mangano as well as Ken Ar-nold
from the Nassau County
Department of Public Works.
Currently, the county is pre-paring
extensive drawings as
part of the overall design
process and reported that it
expects to finalize those plans
in the near future. After that,
the next step will involve
bidding out the work to be
performed.
Freeport developer Greg
Saunders also gave residents
an overview on the parcel of
land on Sunrise Highway
across from the Meadow-brook
Commons proposed to
be the future site for a retail
shopping center, anchored by
a major department store.
According to Saunders, this
project will create approxi-mately
300 new jobs and add
approximately $100,000 a
month to the village's tax
rolls. "Economic develop-ment
continues to be an im-portant
focus of my admini-stration
and the success we
achieve in strengthening our
commercial tax base will help
ease the overall tax burden on
our residents," said Mayor
Andrew Hardwick. "It also
further solidifies our ability
to maintain our A-l bond
rating, which Moody's re-cently
awarded to Freeport
Village as a result of its sta-ble
financial condition."
To close out the session, Mi-guel
Bermudez, Chief of Po-lice
provided statistics on the
Freeport Police Department,
and discussed some of the
strategies and tools being
used to help keep our village
safe. In his report, Chief
Bermudez indicated overall
crime decreased by over 26
percent between 2009 and
2010. And in the most recent
figures available covering the
past 60 days crime has con-tinued
to spiral downward,
particularly in areas involv-ing
assaults and robbery.
The well attended Commu-nity
Forum is the first in a
series that are being sched-uled
to take place throughout
the Village. The next gather-ing
is expected to occur in
September with an actual
date still to be determined.
"These forums are a great
opportunity for our residents
to stay abreast of the most
current economic related is-sues
affecting our village and
learn more about the work
that is being performed to
grow business and create
much-needed jobs in our
community," Mayor Hard-wick
said.
During the month of June the
Village of Freeport also
hosted its first Franchise
Seminar, organized by the
Kensington Group 'and the
Freeport CDA. During the
seminar, participants heard
from franchise experts on
how to succeed with low-cost,
recession-resistant busi-nesses
by some of the leading
experts in franchising. This
free educational event was a
great way to learn if business
ownership is a good option
worth pursuing.
"Freeport's growing eco-nomic
climate and cultural
diversity provides an excel-lent
foundation for new busi-ness
development in our vil-lage
and franchise ownership
is a significant part of that
component," said Mayor An-drew
Hardwick. "This semi-nar
provided valuable infor-mation
for anyone interested
in exploring this exciting
field of business enterprise
that could lead to securing a
piece of the American Dream
by running your own busi-ness."
As always, stay tuned to the
Freeport Channel, channel 18
for Cablevision subscribers
and channel 44 for Verizon
subscribers for more informa-tion
on our upcoming events.
You will also find informa-tion
by visiting our website:
www. freeportny. gov and
clicking on the community
calendar for details.
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13th Annual
US Naval Academy
Visit
On Friday, August 5th approxi-mately
50 midshipmen and officers
of the US Naval Academy Sail
Training Squadron will arrive at the
Esplanade on Freeport's Nautical
Mile, and will depart the morning of
Monday, August 8th. While in port,
the US Naval Academy's sailing
vessels will be open to the public for
tours daily. The midshipmen and
officers will also be available to dis-cuss
the US Naval Academy's col-lege
program.
For the last 13 years the Village of
Freeport has been selected as a port-of-
call for the US Naval Academy
Sail Training Squadron; and their
visit has become a welcomed addi-tion
to the Nautical Mile. Join us in
welcoming the US Naval Academy
Sail Training Squadron on Friday,
August 5th at approximately
10:00a.m. The midshipmen's arrival
is based upon the tide.
For more details on the Naval Acad-emy's
13th annual visit, please call
the Village of Freeport's Public Re-lations
Department, (516) 377-2246.
Mayor Andrew Hardwick Appoints New
Leaders to the Freeport Police
Department
From left to right are Police Chief Miguel Bermudez, Freeport Mayor Andrew Hardwick and
Deputy Chief Raymond Horton
The men and women serving in the Freeport Police Department are under new
direction. This spring Mayor Andrew Hardwick swore in two long time mem-bers
of the Freeport Police Department as Chief and Deputy Chief of Freeport's
Finest. Chief Miguel Bermudez, is a long-time Freeporter, a 25 year member of
the Freeport Police Department, and longtime member of the Freeport Fire De-partment,
that has been serving the Freeport community for many years. Second
in command is Deputy Chief Raymond Horton, a native of Freeport, who has
also spent 25 years rising through the ranks of the Freeport Police Department.
Mayor Andrew Hardwick says "for the first time in many years the Freeport
Police Department is being lead by a Chief that lives in the Village". The Mayor
says he is proud to have the two top positions within the Freeport Police Depart-ment
filled by individuals who have lived in the Village for many years.
While the leadership of the department has gone through recent change, the
level of commitment continues. Due to the efforts of the Freeport Police Depart-ment,
recent figures covering the past 60 days show that crime has continued to
spiral downward, particularly in areas involving assaults and robbery.
Mayor Andrew Hardwick reminds residents "if you see something, say some-thing".
To contact the Freeport Police Department for non-emergencies call
(516) 378-0700. As always, emergencies should be reported by dialing 911.
Facing Foreclosure? The Mayor's Office
Wants to Hear from You
If you are a Freeport resident facing foreclosure and are having difficulty re-modifying with any lender or mortgage company,
and need assistance fighting your battle, the Office of Mayor Andrew Hardwick wants to hear from you. Please contact the
Mayor's Office, Monday - Friday, 8:30a.m. - 4:30p.m., (516) 377-2252.
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