About 100 people attended the most recent meeting of the Roslyn Heights Civic Association, which was held March 22 at the Roslyn Community Center.

Among the issues discussed were the construction of oversized residences, the frequent requests for variances to the Town code, the increase in church parking on both sides of Willis Avenue, the latest requests for variances to build a synagogue and center on Coolidge Avenue, and the proposed expansion of the Heights School.

Town of North Hempstead officials who attended the meeting included Councilwoman Doreen Banks, Commissioner of Planning Michael Levine, Town Planner Linda Brickman, and Commissioner of Community Services Anne Croce. Civic leaders from Port Washington, Great Neck, and Greenvale who plan to work with RHCA on similar development issues were also in attendance.

RHCA Vice President Betty Krukowski introduced Councilwoman Banks and reported on their previous meetings and conversations regarding parking and traffic problems in the Heights area, especially the "troublesome" conditions in the Burnham and Willow Street areas. For her part, Councilwoman Banks pledged to try to alleviate the congestion in the neighborhood and also preserve the historic identity of the Heights.

While introducing the next speaker, Commissioner Levine, RHCA President Delphine McLean discussed the increase in new construction in the Heights, and the residents' complaints of inappropriate size and style of these buildings for the neighborhood. There was a display showing photographs of large new homes dwarfing adjacent homes, and houses built so large that they cast shadows on each other.

Ms. McLean said that the RHCA was not opposing construction of homes that were congruent with surrounding houses and neighborhoods, and the display also showed photographs of a house under construction that conformed in size and style to existing houses. There was also a picture of a "tastefully" renovated and enlarged older home.

Commissioner Levine discussed some of the proposed zoning code changes, including issues of minimum lot area, building height, and variance laws. He urged residents to comment on the proposed zoning changes as they are being developed and stressed that mature neighborhoods like the Heights had special needs. He stressed that the residents had to actively support code changes if they are ever to be realized.

The second half of the meeting was devoted to variance requests for the construction of a Sephardic synagogue and center on Coolidge Avenue. After a lengthy discussion the consensus of those in attendance was that the community would not accept any variance on this parcel of land. Speakers referred to the fact that the Heights is already being impacted with parking and traffic problems, due in part to the six houses of worship or religious centers already in the area.

According to the residents, the building of another such facility on one of the shortest streets in the Heights would not only present unacceptable hardship to the neighbors on Coolidge and Harding, but on the surrounding neighborhood because of the poor access to Coolidge Avenue from the Long Island Expressway service road.

The next item on the agenda was the proposed extension of the Heights school. Mr. Galinski of the Roslyn School District spoke on the need for more classroom space owing to the projected increase in the student population in the early grades. A discussion followed with many residents questioning the fairness of adding more traffic to an already congested area.

In addition, there was concern about the reduction of open area for the school. Ms. McLean informed the residents that the issues of the school renovation as well as the proposed synagogue were so important that many workshops and meetings would be held in the near future.