Last week, the village board approved a five-point public safety plan to address issues that were brought up during the police hearings. The plan was proposed by Trustees Linda Fairgrieve and Paul Cusato and approved unanimously.

Mayor Jack M. Martins wants to get to work on the plan and has assigned each trustee, as well as himself, a part of the plan to research and report on to the public. The mayor also scheduled a timetable for the trustees and himself to follow. Mayor Martins has scheduled a Feb. 7 meeting to discuss the five-point plan with the public.

Trustee Fairgrieve, who presented the plan at the Jan. 3 meeting of the board of trustees, doesn't believe the mayor's procedures are the right ways to go about putting the plan into motion. Fairgrieve suggested having Nassau County 3rd Precinct Inspector Robert Turk come to a public meeting of the village board and give a presentation concerning the neighborhood watch. "This is not the way you work together," she said of the delegation of duties concerning the plan.

However, Mayor Martins said the board adopting the plan was a very positive thing and believes the board should get to work on the proposal. "I don't think we should be waiting. The public expects us to move forward," he said.

In order to further the plan, Mayor Martins appointed each of the trustees, as well as himself, and area to develop. Trustee Cusato has been appointed to organize community volunteers for a neighborhood watch program. His first task is to present to the board the rules and regulations governing a neighborhood watch program at tonight's meeting. At the Feb. 7 meeting, he is expected to give a presentation to the community of the neighborhood watch community including sector assignments.

Trustee John DaVanzo has been assigned investigating the establishment of a property crimes investigator in the building department. DaVanzo is expected to consult with village building department Superintendent Dan Whalen and present to the community the legality, feasibility and cost of establishing a property crimes investigator at the Feb. 7 meeting.

Trustee Fairgrieve has been assigned with organizing the homelessness advisory committee and is expected to come up with a mission statement as well as research the existence of any other such committee in any municipality in the state by tonight's meeting with a presentation on the committee to be made at the Feb. 7 meeting.

Trustee Werther is charged with a community-based lobbying effort to ensure that the village is getting its money's worth when it comes to police coverage. He is assigned with ascertaining the current level of police coverage relative to the tax burden by tonight's meeting and his full presentation of a community lobbying plan is expected at the Feb. 7 meeting.

Mayor Martins is responsible for proposing to the community and to the board of trustees a report on the feasibility and operational procedures for a public safety task force with his presentation scheduled for the Feb. 7 meeting.

Trustee Cusato said he is disappointed in which the way the board is going about the implementation of the plan but will do the work that is being assigned to him.

Among Trustee Cusato's tasks is to consult with the village's insurance carrier to see if there are any liability issues that will affect the village as a result of having a neighborhood watch and creating a sector plan for its implementation.

"When we first started this out, we were going to sit down and talk about what we can do and the mayor has just blown this thing wide open. I know he wants to get this thing going and so do I," Cusato said, adding that he doesn't mind doing the work but is disappointed the trustees will be working on the tasks individually and not as a board.

Mayor Martins disagreed with the trustees Fairgrieve and Cusato's assessment and said the board is working together on the plan by each of the trustees taking an aspect of it and researching it. "How is it that the two people who proposed the plan are reluctant to do the work on it?" he asked.

Mayor Martins added that if the two trustees were so concerned about sitting down as a board then they wouldn't have gotten together on their own and not only formulated it without the help of the other members of the board but also prepared a press release. The mayor also pointed out that the two trustees didn't bother to contact Inspector Robert Turk of the 3rd Precinct, the village's building department or Mineola Auxiliary Police Chief Mike Spae. "It wasn't about getting things done. It was about making a proposal," Mayor Martins said. "Once they came up with the proposal, it absolutely seemed like a good idea at the time. There are still elements there that I think should be explored. My only concern at this point is why didn't they do any leg work at all prior to making the proposal. What they put out was a five-point wish list, it's not a five-point plan."