Periodically, I like to update the residents on what is occurring around the village. Local government, after all, is about service and meeting the needs of our local residents.

The Village of Floral Park has been a member of the National Arbor Day Foundation since 1986 and has been awarded "Tree City USA" status since 1993. The village continues to plant more trees than they remove each year. The mild weather in December gave our tree-planting contractor the opportunity to plant 124 trees at various locations throughout the village.

The Public Works Department is waiting delivery of a new recycling truck and a new street sweeper. The recycling truck will be replacing an 18-year-old piece of equipment and is the second rear loading compaction truck for the recycling department. These two trucks will not only create a safer work environment for the recycling crews but also result in greater efficiency by allowing them to bring the recycling material directly to the recycling plant instead of dumping it in the Mayflower transfer yard.

The new sweeper will be replacing a 21-year-old sweeper literally on its last wheels. The new sweeper will be equipped with the most recent features and requirements. It will have its work cut out since it will be employed to sweep 37 miles of roadway in the village. Clean streets are a hallmark of life in the village so each street is swept once a week. In our commercial areas, around the churches and the LIRR station, sweepers are out before the cars arrive.

The village is currently in the middle of its road overlay program for 2007/2008. This process affords the village the opportunity to resurface roads at a much lower cost than total reconstruction provided the roads still have a viable substructure. Cisney Avenue was completed in November and Bellmore Street will be completed in the spring.

There has been a slight downturn in permits issued last year. About 5 percent less permits were issued in 2007 than 2006. That the total amounted to 769 permits, of which 167 were building permits, shows just how busy our building department has been. There were also 872 licenses processed for various uses. In the coming winter months, the focus of the Building Department is to catch up on open items. In any given year, up to 20 percent of the permits are left open. If you have an open permit you are urged to call the Building Department to close it out. Most of these open permits are minor items and can be easily resolved.

As you drive around the village you can see a number of new houses being constructed. This has resurrected the concerns of over-building. The village board is currently reviewing further restrictions limiting the building area so new construction can conform to the aesthetic character of our residential districts. I will provide our residents with more information regarding these developments in due course.

The Floral Park Fire Department, all volunteers, closed out the 2007 year by responding to a record number of 1,307 calls. There were 961 EMS calls and 346 fire calls the latter of which resulted for a total fire loss of $852,500. The fire department prides itself on keeping our village fire loss to a minimum.

In the coming year, the fire department will be participating in the village's 100th year anniversary. Alert Engine Company #1 has just completed its 100th anniversary and will be celebrating it with a small ceremony Feb. 11 at Village Hall. Congratulations!

The chief's staff and members of the fire department want to remind our fellow residents that smoke and carbon detectors work but must be maintained with proper battery changes twice a year.

The Floral Park Library is off to a great start this year. With programs like Chi Gong, crocheting, Tots Night Out, teen yoga and AARP tax e-filing there is something for people of all ages.

New services and resources being offered include WiFi (a wireless connection to the Internet for laptop computers), downloadable audio books via the library's web page and a pass that can be reserved to the Long Island Children's Museum.

Our library is more than just books, come and check it out.

As expected, the state legislature has once again postponed awarding a 30-year franchise agreement at Belmont Racetrack. The new deadline has been scheduled for Feb. 13. I will keep you informed as information becomes available.