After the traumatic events of Sept. 11, 2001, people in the Roslyn area could only hope for an uneventful year 2002. While that is asking too much for life in an urban area, this past year's events at least concerned normal, day-to-day problems and situations.

All throughout the year for instance, forums were held on the crime situation in the Roslyn area, especially the burglary problem in the Village of East Hills. Officials with the 6th Precinct said the upswing in burglaries was due to the general economic slowdown and Nassau County's own continuing budget problems, which in turn has forced the county to lay off members of its police force, a fact not lost on the contingent of professional burglars. The crime problem was highlighted by the fatal shooting of a Port Washington cab driver, an incident that took place in early October.

Residents were advised to be on the lookout for unfamiliar faces in their neighborhoods, to keep their valuables well hidden, and to either have a dog or lacking that, to give the appearance that a healthy canine lived on their premises. The Village of East Hills, meanwhile, created their own security force to patrol village streets.

The Village of Roslyn Estates made news by considering amendments to its zoning code, ones that would diminish the number of subdivisions in the village and, in general, to prevent overdevelopment. Public meetings on the issue drew some of the largest turnouts the village has ever seen for such forums.

In Albertson, a brief controversy flared up over the always-thorny issue of affordable housing. In October, officials with the Town of North Hempstead were scrambling to deny that the town had any plans to build low income housing in the Albertson Avenue area of the village. The controversy started at a "Meet the Candidates" night before the Albertson Civic Association and continued at an Oct. 1 TONH board meeting, when council members acknowledged the existence of a housing initiative. Although council members, including Supervisor May Newburger, denied that low income housing was being planned for Albertson, they also reiterated that the town faces a major challenge in creating affordable housing for both young people and senior citizens.

On the business/development side, construction work has yet to begin for the Forest City Daly senior housing complex off Skillman Street in Roslyn. Also in downtown Roslyn, Friend of A Farmer, the popular restaurant on Old Northern Boulevard, was forced to shut its doors in October, while relocating to Locust Valley. Also on Old Northern, a January fire adversely affected several small businesses, but spared the Robeson-Williams Grist Mill, the 300-plus year old structure which is undergoing its own renovation project.

It will be another year before the restoration of the Roslyn Viaduct Bridge begins. A spokesman for the New York State Department of Transportation said his agency is committed to starting construction sometime in 2004. The DOT estimates that the entire construction project will last a good 30 months. Measures have long been planned to keep traffic flowing as smoothly as possible when the renovation goes forth.

Another Roslyn institution, the Bryant Library, will remain in its present location by the Duck Pond. The library came to its decision after determining that alternative locations were not feasible. Still, the library staff has warned the public that the building is at a "crossroads" in its current existence, the main problem being a lack of space to store all the materials needed to serve the public.

Finally, both Roslyn and East Hills held solemn "Remembrance Day" ceremonies on Sept. 11, 2002, to mark the one year anniversary of the World Trade Center terrorist attack and to remember and honor the local citizens who perished in that tragedy. The Village of East Hills dedicated a garden for the victims in Arlene Park, one named after Arlene Fried, an East Hills resident who died on Sept. 11. Meanwhile, the Roslyn Rescue fire company unveiled plaques in honor of Thomas and Peter Langone, the two Roslyn firemen who also perished while performing their duties on that fateful day.

The Roslyn area continues to produce its share of published authors. Jane Leavy, a Roslyn Heights native published a best-selling biography on former Los Angeles Dodger pitching great Sandy Koufax. Also publishing creative efforts were Roslyn resident and C.W. Post professor Norbert Krapf who had a new book of verse, The Country I Come From and Nancy Newman, a Roslyn native whose novel, Disturbing the Peace was about a middle-aged woman looking for her biological mother.

Ms. Leavy and Ms. Newman gave readings at the Bryant Library, where they both recalled their childhood memories of the library itself and what it meant to their development as a reader and eventually, a published writer.

In April, former Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Barak gave a lecture at Temple Sinai, giving his assessment on both the war on terrorism and prospects for peace in the Middle East region.

Both the Roslyn High School varsity boys basketball and boys soccer squads thrilled their fans with championship seasons. In basketball, Coach Jeff Riesner led the Bulldogs to Nassau County Class B basketball finals, while in soccer, the squad coached by Juan Mejia, won the Long Island Class B title and advanced all the way to the state title game.

As always, the passing year saw the departures of notable Roslynites. In June, Nathan Stern, who served as village justice of Roslyn for an incredible 44 years, passed away.

Tragedy continued to strike the Roslyn Rescue Fire Company. On March 25, Captain Allen Frye was killed when he and a fellow firefighter were struck by a vehicle while both were performing a routine training exercise on Glen Cove Road in Greenvale. In August, Emmy-award winning Channel 7 producer and writer Glenn Steinfast, a resident of Flower Hill, died of a heart attack at age 45.

Finally, the year ended on an upbeat note when the New York area saw its first White Christmas in over 30 years, as a winter snowfall, which started on the afternoon of Christmas Day, blanketed the region and put local parks to work as staging grounds for sledding rides by area children.