The Mineola police referendum was decided two weeks ago, but it still remained the topic of discussion last week. Mayor Jack M. Martins said that the voters have clearly spoken and it's time to move on to other issues that are important to the village.

With the overwhelming defeat of the Mineola police proposal on Dec. 5, residents have made it known that they want to continue to be patrolled by the Nassau County Police Department 3rd Precinct. The Nassau County Police are glad the residents made the decision they did and neither police commissioner James Lawrence or 3rd Precinct Inspector Bob Turk harbors any ill will toward the Village of Mineola nor Mayor Martins for holding the referendum.

"I don't think the people would have voted this way if they didn't have confidence in the service we supply," said Lawrence.

The commissioner said the Nassau Police Department would continue to work with the mayor and holds no hard feelings against Mayor Martins for seeking a village police force. "I think the mayor was doing what he considered the best for the people of Mineola," he said.

Inspector Turk believes the residents of Mineola voted against the referendum because they didn't think they had all the facts about a village police force totally secure. Turk is pleased the Mineola residents chose the Nassau County Police 3rd Precinct. "Don't get me wrong. Would I like to have five extra guys from time-to-time to handle any issues? Sure. It would be great if I could have a footman walking in Mineola every day. But right now with our current makeup of personnel in the precinct, I don't have that luxury every day. That doesn't mean I can't do it once in a while," Turk said.

The inspector said he would continue to meet with Mayor Martins on a regular basis. "There are no ill feelings," Turk said. "There are seven villages in this precinct. He is the only mayor that I actually have a formal meeting with once a month."

While there are no ill feelings between the village and the county police department over the referendum, there may still be some ill feelings among those who supported a village police force and those who opposed it.

The night after the referendum vote, Mayor Martins canceled the public meeting of the village board because he felt there should be a cooling off period because tempers may have been running high. But, last week, the village board met and the police department referendum was still a subject of discussion.

Trustee Paul Cusato, who, along with Trustee Linda Fairgrieve, opposed the police department proposal, objected to the newsletter that was sent out prior to the vote informing residents of the referendum. The newsletter included a question-and-answer section about the proposal, which Trustees Cusato and Fairgrieve found to be objectionable.

Trustee Cusato voted against paying a bill for $1,329.16 for the postage to send out the newsletter and a postage bill for $1,242.70 for the cost to mail out the task force operational report, which also went out to all residents.

"There were things in that newsletter that were opinion - not facts. It should not be paid out of village funds," said Trustee Cusato.

The trustee also objected to letters that were sent out by the village assessor to seniors pointing out that taxes would be less with a village police department.

Mayor Martins said that the newsletter wasn't prepared by anyone on the board, but by village staff, based on information from the police task force, as was designed to give residents information about the proposal. The newsletter is sent out before every vote, either for an election or a referendum, he pointed out. The 156 letters went out to senior citizens who qualify for the village's senior citizen tax exemption. Mayor Martins said those are the people who are most impacted by taxes.

Mayor Martins then accused Trustee Cusato of political grandstanding and said the police department issue was soundly defeated by voters and it's now a dead issue.

Mayor Martins believes the Hometown Party, the party to which Trustees Fairgrieve and Cusato belong, are trying to keep the police department issue alive for another campaign season since the village election is in March. The Hometown Party has been campaigning on the police issue since it was first proposed by the mayor a few years ago.

The mayor believes the village should move on and address other issues that are important to the village. He cited property tax reform, the village's recreation facility and fields, the revitalization of the downtown area and the MTA proposal of a third track as issues that should command the board's attention. "We have too many things to work on," he said.

Still, Trustees Fairgrieve and Cusato are calling for an investigation of how the public funds were spent in terms of the information sent out to the public concerning the police department referendum vote. Mayor Martins said that the people had a right to the information and points out that he promised the residents the opportunity to vote on the proposal and now that they have, the issue has been decided.

"It wasn't a victory for any political party. It wasn't a defeat for anyone," the mayor said. "Not many communities have that opportunity but we did and the people voted."

When it came time for the residents to speak, some addressed the police department issue. One resident said the negative vote on the police proposal was a statement against property taxes in general.

Resident Peggy May looked at the positive side of the referendum vote when she said that the issue got people out and the vote ran smoothly.

Perhaps, future village elections and referendums will be held only in village hall since the centralized location seems to work well.