The fall street fair, co-sponsored by the Village of Roslyn and the Chamber of Commerce contained a few new attractions from previous fairs. And apparently, it was enough to draw a larger crowd. Nassau County police estimated the crowd at the Sept. 20 fair as between 6,000 and 8,000 despite the fact that the upcoming Rosh Hashannah holidays resulted in only 84 vendors participating in the fair.

Between 2 and 4 p.m., up to 2,000 "extra people" showed up at the fair, giving it a slightly larger turnout than the spring fair. For the fall fair, the village and the chamber added on pony rides and a petting zoo for children. These attractions, village officials said, made the final turnout larger than expected. In fact, at closing time, village officials and local police had to go up and down the street with megaphones to get people off the street. The fair closed down early due to the impending Rosh Hashannah holiday.

The additions were initially a cause for minor controversy. Chamber officials worried that the village was "usurping" their authority. Roslyn Board of Trustee members only claimed they wanted to bring more people, especially young people, to the fair.

While village officials remained generally pleased with such fairs, which after a brief relapse, were inaugurated by the chamber in 1994, local merchants have never been happy with the idea. Last spring, several businesses along Old Northern Boulevard shut down rather than see hundreds of "gypsy" merchants compete for possible customers. But chamber president Frederic Carlton maintains the long-term effects of the fair outweigh the loss of business for one day.

"The fair is not designed to bring business in on the day it goes on," Mr. Carlton said last spring in response to complaints by local merchants. "It is designed to keep the village in people's minds. It keeps people coming back to Roslyn when the fair isn't there. The people who walk around the village come back. That's why other villages in Nassau County have fairs. We don't want to be the village that doesn't do one."

Despite minor disagreements over some specifics of the fair, village officials feel the same way and as such, the twice-a-year street fairs will remain a top priority for years to come.

Earlier this year, the George Washington Manor hosted a press conference featuring "President Washington" and dozens of local dignitaries to announce a planned Long Island Heritage Trail along Route 25A from Great Neck to Port Jefferson. The restaurant was once home to a famous Roslyn family, the Onderdoncks, whose members served as spies for the Colonials during the Revolutionary War and who later hosted President George Washington during the latter's triumphant tour of the island. Before the war, the trail was known as "King's Highway," a name that was dropped after the British monarchy was toppled from power in the 13 colonies.

Since parts of Roslyn are stops along the trail, the village has taken interest in the development of the plan. Last week, Sheldon Silver, speaker of the New York State Assembly, wrote to Mayor Janet Galante to announce that legislation giving historical designation to the route has been passed in both the senate and assembly and signed by Governor Pataki into law. The North Shore, Speaker Silver noted, "can soon be properly recognized for its outstanding natural, cultural and historical contribution to the state."