The $1.3 million 2012 road improvement project in the Village of New Hyde Park has been completed and it appears likely that the final phase of the village’s Operation Mainstreet project to upgrade the Jericho Turnpike business district will gain final approval from the state Department of Transportation by year’s end.
At Tuesday night’s village board meeting, Village of New Hyde Park Deputy Mayor Robert Lofaro said top coats had been laid on the road surfaces and road apron repairs had been completed by the contractor retained by Westbury-based Roadwork Ahead, the contractor retained by the village.
Completion of the latest phase of the village’s 12-year road repair initiative was delayed by Hurricane Sandy, Lofaro said.
He reported that roadways damaged during the hurricane had also been repaired and all debris left by the storm had been removed from village streets. He said the village Department of Public Works is continuing tree inspections in the village and checking on sidewalks disrupted by uprooted trees.
“All the repairs and mainstream work from Hurricane Sandy have been completed,” Lofaro said.
Lofaro said the village intends to issue a $1.3 million bond at 1.84 percent for 13 years to pay for the road repair project. He said Standard & Poor’s had issued a double-A rating on the village’s general obligation bonds and said Standard & Poor’s had described the village’s financial position as “strong” with its debt at a “moderate” level.
Village Trustee Donald Barbieri said plans for the final phase of Operation Mainstreet “fundamentally have all been reviewed” by the state DOT.
Based on a conversation he had with a DOT representative on Tuesday, he said, anticipates final DOT approval of all aspects of the project will be completed by year’s end. He said he expected the village board could seek bids on the upgrade work in late January or early February.
“Hopefully we will see this project built out in late March or early April,” Barbieri said.
Aesthetic improvements are planned to make the area more pedestrian-friendly for shoppers. Plans designed by Saratoga Associates include bulb-outs – rounded corners that would extend slightly into the roadway – to be added at locations yet to be determined, along with installation of solid medians with plantings and access to water sources to maintain the plantings.
Benches will also be installed on sidewalks, which would be paved with the same rustic red brickwork already in place in some sections of the road near the intersection of Jericho Turnpike and Lakeville Road.
Work on the project, including the road resurfacing, is expected to take four or five months to complete.
The New Hyde Park project is being funded through a federal transportation appropriation of $1.425 million secured by U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy under the community block grant program.
The DOT will coordinate the Jericho Turnpike repaving work and install count-down traffic signals preceding the village’s upgrade work.
In other developments:
• Village Clerk Cathryn Hillman said she is awaiting a Federal Emergency Management Agency project manager to inspect the village so FEMA claims can be filed for damages sustained during Hurricane Sandy. Lofaro said the village sustained approximately $300,000 in damage, but is still compiling final figures.
• The village board conditionally approved two special-use permits, pending approval by the county planning commission.
Mohammed Younos, owner of the 99 cent store at 1335 Jericho Turnpike, is seeking permission to sell packaged food at the discount variety store. Attorney Christopher Gomoka, representing Younos at a public hearing on the application, said the store planned to sell canned goods and cake mixes, and no prepared foods.
In response to a resident expressing concern about maintenance of the dumpsters behind the store, Village of New Hyde Park Mayor Daniel Petruccio said he would direct Tom Gannon, superintendent of the village Department of Public Works to monitor the dumpsters. Gomoka said Younos would comply with any requirements for garbage maintenance the village board stipulates.
Gomoka also represented Hidir Yildiz, owner of the Ultra gas station at 1501 Jericho Turnpike, on his application to build a Mini-Mart convenience store on the property. Gomoka said Yildiz was seeking to expand use of the property by building the Mini-Mart at the gas station, which is located on the northeast corner of the intersection of Jericho and New Hyde Park Road.
Petruccio and Lofaro suggested repositioning two of the eight parking spaces on the Mini-Mart site plan. Petruccio said the changes would “create a better traffic flow” on and off Jericho.
“We want to lay out a plan that works for everyone,” Gomoka said, and promised to submit a more formal plan to the board.
• Former Illustrated News editor Maggie Whitely was honored by the board for her longtime coverage of the village before leaving her position earlier this year.
“She covered our village in a great way,” said Petruccio, who presented her with a village proclamation and flower bouquet.
Mark Laytin, president of the Greater New Hyde Park Chamber of Commerce, also commended Whitely, as did village recreation director Richard Pallisco, who is also an assistant scoutmaster for a village Boy Scout Troop. Village historian Carol Nowakowski made Whitely an honorary lifetime member of the New Hyde Park Museum.
