At the Dec. 1 Farmingdale Village Board Meeting, officials ran through a regular agenda which included myriad items.

Farmingdale resident Dylan Cruthers was seeking approval to use Village Hall on Dec. 7 from noon to 2 p.m. for his annual toy drive. The 14-year-old has been hosting this toy drive for needy children since he was 4.

"Residents like you put Farmingdale on the map," Trustee Ralph Ekstrand said.

Cruthers also serves on the village's Downtown Revitalization Committee. His voice offers a "youth perspective," says Mayor Butch Starkie.

Additionally, the board approved the use of the Village Green for the Farmingdale Christian Church to sing carols on Saturday, Dec. 20 at 12:30 p.m.

The board then approved switching administrators of the Length of Service Award Program. LOSAP is a pension eligibility program for volunteer firefighters. Volunteer firefighters begin accruing pensions at five years of service and are fully vested after 20 years. This one-year agreement was researched by Trustees Ekstrand and Bill Barrett.

"They did an outstanding job of bringing this information back to the board," Mayor Starkie said.

A request for subdividing the Liberty Property site has been submitted to Nassau County. By law, when such property is located near a village border, applicants must notify the municipality and allow that municipality a chance to comment on the proposal. The Liberty Site is within 300 feet of the village border.

"Under these circumstances, normally a village will have nothing to say about it," Village Attorney Kevin Walsh explained.

The board voted to send a letter to the Nassau County Planning Commission stating that the village has no objection to the subdivision.

Deputy Mayor Pat Christiansen, who also heads the Village Beautification Committee, noted that the holiday decorations are almost finished. She added she was very pleased with the results and thanked volunteers for their time and dedication.

"I would also ask that if anyone sees any of the decorations go askew, please call Village Hall," she added.

Village resident Frank Gatto inquired about the road refinishing project. The road improvement project began in 2001 with the previous administration and was halted halfway through completion due to lack of funds.

"It's not on our radar for this fiscal year," Mayor Starkie responded.

According to Ralph Ekstrand, it would cost the village over $16 million to complete the village roads. Over 6 miles of road need to be completed at a cost of $2 million per mile, Trustee Cheryl Parisi added.

"We're still paying back bonds that we all thought would do all of our roads," Mayor Starkie said. "I just don't think the public would tolerate their taxes being doubled or tripled to get the roads done."

Gatto said his taxes were already doubled when the project first began, only his road wasn't refinished.

Trustee Christiansen assured, "this certainly is not an issue we're ignoring."

"It's something we talk about monthly," she added.

Thirty-year village resident Carole Provenzale mentioned constant flooding issues at her Van Cott Avenue home. Her home is across from a storm drain, which when blocked, backs up and floods the street. Provenzale said her basement flooded and after losing everything, had to have the area demolished. Contractors found black mold contamination in her walls. Provenzale said she was forced from her home after severe respiratory problems began occurring from the mold.

"The end result was $32,000 just for the mold cleanup and an additional almost $10,000 to grade my property to try to protect myself," she wrote in an April letter to the editor.

One day after her son spoke at an August village meeting, Department of Public Works Superintendent Andy Fisch said he visited the site and cleared the drain.

"My fear is that this is going to happen again," Provenzale said.

"The resolution will be that we have to keep those storm drains clean," Mayor Starkie responded.

Provenzale is seeking remuneration for remediation work and personal suffering from the village's insurance company. However, Village Administrator Dave Smollett said the decision is "under investigation" at the insurance company to see what, if any, financial responsibility the village has.

"We will follow up with the insurance company," Mayor Starkie added. "We have to rely on insurance for things like this."

The next village meeting will be held on Monday, Jan. 5 at 8 p.m. at Village Hall. For more information call 249-0093 or visit www.farmingdalevillage.com.