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North Shore villages scored below average in a Press Club of Long Island audit that graded Long Island municipalities and government agencies on New York State Freedom of Information Law requirements. The audit, which was conducted over 16 months and graded the responsiveness of 195 municipalities on a 0 to 100 scale, found that villages on the North Shore averaged a 66.2 or D rating, lower than the C average for all governments and agencies. Three North Shore villages, Flower Hill, Thomaston and Roslyn Estates, all received A grades, while seven received Fs. Twenty-four percent of the governments and agencies “failed to maintain their own FOIL policies required by law,” the audit found, while 64 percent failed to respond to the Press Club’s request within the legal deadline. The audit was conducted by Timothy Bolger, managing editor of the Long Island Press and  freedom of information chair for the Press Club, the Long Island chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. “If the Long Island governments and agencies we tested were high school students with a cumulative grade of a C, they would not be getting into the college of their choice,” Bolger said in the report. The Press Club  … Read more

There is a new addition to the Flower Hill Park that greatly expands the recreational opportunities in the park. We have installed a major climbing and play apparatus suitable for children ages 5 to 12. The Explorer Dome is aptly named because it will allow our children to climb, slide, balance and swing all while using their imaginations and getting great exercise.   The Dome was installed using a ground surface called Fibar, which consists of engineered wood fibers that knit together to form a safe playground surface that is soft enough to cushion falls yet firm enough for wheelchairs.  Fibar is manufactured with only virgin wood and meets all safety standards. This great new piece of equipment expands the current recreational offerings of the park which includes a playground for children ages 2 – 5 and a regulation size basketball court.

The Village has created a pedestrian path along the south side of Stonytown Road, from Manhasset Woods Road to Flower Hill Park.   Mayor Elaine Phillip had observed that Stonytown Road is a very popular walking/jogging route but cars tend to speed on the road as it is fairly straight.  The Village has tried many methods of slowing traffic down including speed signs and radar enforcement resulting in fines and penalties.  By narrowing the road to create the path, Flower Hill has accomplished two things at once. They created a safe route for walkers and the narrowing of the traffic lanes forces cars to drive at a lower rate of speed.  The lane is marked by a rumble strip that warns cars if they veer too far to the right as well as high visibility pavement marking symbols, increased path width, high visibility road signage and reflective markings making it very clear that the path is intended for pedestrians.