As I have discussed on a number of occasions, I consider Main Street and the village the heart of Farmingdale in terms of heritage, commerce and community. Since being elected 1 1/2 years ago my administration and I have worked seven days a week to improve the quality of life in the village. Our efforts to reverse the decades-long deterioration in the Secatogue area and on Conklin Street by vigorously pursuing code violators have resulted in a significant turnaround in a very short period of time. Our Code Enforcement Department has almost tripled in size on our watch. We now have part-time officers who patrol our streets and commercial parking lots Thursday through Sunday nights and are stationed on Conklin Street starting at 6 a.m. during the work week. This increased enforcement combined with the diligent efforts of the Village Prosecutor has resulted in a very high conviction rate for people violating the no-stopping laws on Conklin Street. The number of fines rose from 660 at $75 to 2,000 at $100 in our first year. The fine is now $125 for violators to further discourage stopping on Conklin Street.

Head Code Enforcement Officer Ron Craig has also worked tirelessly implementing this administration's directive to rid the village of illegal apartments by focusing on the numerous absentee-owner homes converted into mini-boarding houses. The results of these three efforts are now becoming evident as 150 Secatogue is being sold to a nationally recognized real estate corporation with a reputation for providing quality housing, Conklin Street is returning to the way it was 15 years ago and one by one our residential streets are being rid of the density that accompanies multiple families living in single family homes.

Many residents have also voiced their concerns regarding increased police patrols and faster response to non-emergency calls. I have spoken with Nassau County Police 8th Precinct Commanding Officer, Monty Gerbush, on several occasions regarding increasing police coverage in the village and the answer is always the same, there are not enough officers to meet the increasing demands of the Nassau communities. We will continue to keep an open communication with the 8th Pct POP (Problem Oriented Policing) officers and continue to lobby for the police coverage we need to keep our village safe. We also are continuing our pursuit to return "the beat cop" to patrol Main Street. We also realize the importance of supporting the many agencies that work within our community that provide other vital programs that affect our quality of life. We are proud to support YES counseling, by doubling our donation to them this year so they can continue to employ a youth gang counselor to help identify at-risk children and have them avoid potentially dangerous situations. You can rest assured that my administration and I will not stop our endless pursuit to improve the quality of life in our community.