The following are trustee reports from the Tuesday, Oct. 18, village board meeting.

Deputy Mayor Kevin Greene reported that the department is gearing up for the fall season. He reminded residents not to push leaves into the street; they must be bagged and placed at the curb for yard waste pickup, he said.

Nassau County has just informed the village that starting in November, Plainfield Avenue, between Tulip Avenue and Hempstead Turnpike, will be re-paved.

Deputy Mayor Greene also noted that members of the fire department recently conducted the annual school fire inspections/evacuation drills at each of the local schools. He complimented the school staff and the children for a job well-done. Deputy Mayor Greene also reminded residents and business owners to review their evacuation plans for their homes and businesses. "You may ensure the safety of family and customers during a fire emergency by practicing fire drills and checking smoke and carbon monoxide detectors," he said.

He further complimented members of the department for their quick response to a house fire, Tuesday, Oct. 18. The first fire apparatus was on site within minutes of the alarm and the department was able to contain the fire to the room of origin. The cause of the fire was a cigarette burning in a chair. The owner of the home suffered minor burns and was transported to Winthrop-University Hospital.

Further, the fire department is in possession of the fire safety house. The house was purchased with money made available through a fire prevention grant. The house is designed to help educate participants on fire safety in the home, especially on how to evacuate through smoky conditions. The home is also designed to simulate hurricane and tornado conditions and to teach people how to react in these conditions. In addition to the house being used for fire prevention education, it will also serve as a mobile emergency command post for village emergencies.

Deputy Mayor Greene congratulated ex-Chief Hugo Berta for his 40 years of dedicated service to the Village of Floral Park. Berta is a member of Rescue Company and served as chief of the fire department in 1992. He is one of the most active ex-chiefs in the department and Deputy Mayor Greene applauded him for his many years of hard work.

Trustee Tom Tweedy reported that Session I of the fall season at the Recreation Center is moving along very well. The hockey season was delayed due to the week of rain just experienced. The new surface that was applied to the hockey rink did not bind properly due to the rain and has to be touched up. The sub-contractor is currently addressing this problem.

Recreation Committee meetings have been very well-attended by members and Trustee Tweedy commended them for their proactive interest in the village. A Recreation Committee member is at the gate of Centennial Gardens every Sunday between 1 to 5 p.m. "It is a beautiful time of year to visit Centennial Gardens to see the leaves change color," Trustee Tweedy added.

He also noted he had the pleasure, along with fellow board members, to attend the celebration honoring ex-Chief Hugo Berta for his 40 years of service to the Floral Park Fire Department. Trustee Tweedy said Hugo has always been very generous with his time and very helpful to him when he was fire commissioner. "Thank you to Hugo and his family for 40 years of dedicated service," he said.

Trustee James Rhatigan said he was very pleased to recognize Robert Early for his fine record of dedicated service to the library. "Mr. Early is a wonderful example of someone who, day in and day out, quietly serves his community and makes it a better place by doing so," Trustee Rhatigan said.

Work on the library building continues with the acceptance of the flooring tile bid. Village Engineer Edward Palmer will be conducting a pre-installation meeting in the near future and work will begin shortly thereafter.

The Capital Projects Committee at the library, which consists of representatives from both the library board and village board, have met to further develop appropriate upgrades to the physical structure of the facility. Interim reports have been provided to the respective boards.

Mayor Phil Guarnieri said that, along with Trustee Tom Tweedy, he recently spoke at the West End Civic Association. "Civic associations are the touchstone of the community," Mayor Guarnieri said, adding they are an excellent way in which residents can voice their concerns about the village. He encourages everyone to become involved with his/her respective civics.

Mayor Guarnieri also congratulated ex-Chief Hugo Berta on his 40 years of dedicated service to the Floral Park Fire Department. "A commitment of that duration is truly extraordinary," he said, adding that Hugo takes his firematic responsibilities very seriously and that you can always rely on him being there. "Congratulations to Hugo Berta for his fine service to the Village of Floral Park," he concluded.

The mayor was not surprised to learn that we have received more rain recently than at any time since 1913. The Department of Public Works was out checking the storm drains making sure there were no flooding or ponding conditions. "Fortunately, there were no cases reported. This is attributed to the hard work of our Superintendent of Public Works Ken Tymecki and all his workers in the department," Mayor Guarnieri said.

Mayor Guarnieri said that he recently had the honor of a visit from John Lewis Childs students when they came to village hall to learn about village government. The mayor said it was wonderful to see the children take an interest in the workings of their local government and that they toured Four Village Studio, the police department and fire department. The mayor has received comments from the teachers saying how much they enjoyed their visit. "This is the people's home and everyone is invited to come and visit," Mayor Guarnieri said.

He said that while the Long Island Rail Road third track issue has been dormant since Aug. 31, when the comment period closed, the village just learned that the MTA/LIRR is re-opening the record until Dec. 31 in order to receive more comments. Mayor Guarnieri said the Long Island Rail Road Third Track Task Force Committee will be meeting again soon to see what strategy will be used to address the re-opening of the comment period.

On motion by Trustee Bambrick, seconded by Trustee Tweedy and carried unanimously, Mayor Guarnieri recessed the meeting at 8:45 p.m.