The village's 1999 pool application has been mailed to residents during the past week. If anyone has not received a copy, please call the Recreation Department at 465-4075.

Please be aware that this year applications will only be accepted at the pool office, 52 Cherry Valley Avenue. Residents wishing to deliver their applications in person should do so at the pool office. Applications will not be accepted at the Recreation Office in Village Hall.

On Monday, May 31, under the direction of the William Bradford Turner Post - American Legion, the annual Memorial Day observance in our village will commence with the memorial church services at 9 a.m. at the Cathedral of the Incarnation.

The traditional Memorial Day Parade will step off promptly at 10 a.m. at the intersection of Stewart and Cherry Valley Avenues. It will proceed north on Cherry Valley Avenue to Tenth Street, east on Tenth to Franklin Avenue, south on Franklin to Seventh Street, west on Seventh Street past the Reviewing Stand, which will be located just west of the library, and then on to the middle school where official ceremonies will take place. Residents are urged to honor the men and women who gave their lives for our country by attending these services.

Retail sales will be prohibited in the village on May 31 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with certain exceptions. The village ordinance, which follows closely the state statute, provides that all trades, manufacturers, agricultural or technical employments, are prohibited, as well as all manners of public sale or offering for sale of any property on Memorial Day between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Exceptions are: restaurants, catering services, prepared items such as tobacco, bread, milk, eggs and so forth, service station products, medicines, delicatessen items and alcoholic beverages.

Working in cooperation with the village, merchants have placed tables and chairs outside their shops and restaurants for our enjoyment. Please stop by to let the merchants know that you appreciate their efforts.

I urge our residents to become familiar with their local merchants and businesses and to shop in Garden City. You will be pleased with the selection, quality and commitment to customer service.

With the arrival of spring, we all have the task of cleaning up our community to make it look like a "Garden City." Our village employees are busy sweeping up the sand, dirt and other debris which accumulated on the streets over the winter. Other crews are readying the parks, playgrounds and green belt areas for the summer season.

Spring in Garden City brings great beauty to our community. It also marks a time of year when several unwelcome conditions annually appear. Through the awareness and cooperation of our residents, these deleterious situations can be prevented.

The practice of seeing landscape gardeners blowing grass clippings into the street after they have mowed a resident's lawn has become all too commonplace in this village. The effects of this carelessness is not merely a matter of aesthetics. More significant is the fact that our Department of Public Works is required to sweep the streets and clean storm drains more frequently than should be necessary. Consequently, a significant and unnecessary amount of taxpayer's dollars is being expended.

Please cooperate with your village by instructing your landscape gardener accordingly.