Hempstead voters to cast ballots
The spending practices of the current East Rockaway village board, which started to splinter after the unexpected July death of the longtime mayor, was the catalyst for two trustees to step up and contend for the vacant mayor position.
The current deputy mayor, Richard J. Meagher, 72, joined other residents to form the Freedom Party in September, in a village he said previously was a one-party community.
Meagher, former dean of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, said one of his motivations in forming the party "was not to seek or accept" campaign funds from national parties. He is joined by running mates Robert Klose, 51, who works for the Lawrence Village pollution control facility, and Harry Levitt, a local businessman. Klose and Levitt are running for two trustee seats.
Meagher said he plans to try to freeze spending, but if mandates make that impossible he hopes to cap expenditures at a 2 percent increase.
Incumbent trustee Francis Lenahan, 60, a former Nassau police detective, is running for mayor on the Village Pride Party line with trustee candidates Edward Corrado, 65, a retired Time Warner employee, and Stanley Lombardo, 57, a mechanic supervisor for the Town of Hempstead. Lenahan said the three are "raising our own money" with private donations. They want to cut expenditures, especially two positions with salaries of $100,000 or more that have been vacant for the last few months -- building director and village administrator -- as well as a $110,000 outside recreational director position.
Meagher argues that Lenahan was on the board when the contracts were approved, making it "hard to attach credibility" to his opponent's charge that the positions aren't necessary. But Lenahan said, while he did approve the original resolution to create the jobs under the late mayor, Ed Sieban, he now sees the positions are not necessary.
"My mindset is to reduce the expenditures, reduce the costs to the people, which can be done through salary reductions, and not hiring back those two jobs," Lenahan said.
Voting is from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Village Hall and seven other polling places.
Three Valley Stream residents looking for relief from steeper insurance costs caused by a new federal flood map are running for the village board, putting current trustees on the defensive.
Joseph Margolin, 66, a retired teacher and attorney, is running for mayor with Carol Crupi, 60, an executive sales assistant, and Michael LoCascio, 61, a private investigator, on the Citizens Independence Party. The trio are united behind what they say is a failing of the present administration to voice opposition to the new flood map, which put homes in the south end of the district, known as the Gibson area, into a flood zone when they hadn't been in one before.
"The village government had an opportunity to object to the maps and chose to sign off and approved them," Margolin said. "They didn't put a bump in the road."
Crupi said he has been fighting, as a private citizen, with the Federal Emergency Management Agency over the mapping, but said that as a village official, "FEMA would have to deal with me on a different level."
Edwin Fare, a teacher in the district and a current trustee running for mayor on the United Community Party slate, said the federal agency tied the board's hands. "We're on it," he said, saying they have been talking to FEMA. "I'm not sure what new people could do differently."
Dermond Thomas, 34, a corporate finance lawyer, and Vincent Grasso, 38, executive director of the Nassau County Bridge Authority, are running with Fare, and said getting the flood map corrected is at the top of their wish list. But they said they also are concerned about quality-of-life issues, such as more recreational opportunities for youth, revitalizing the downtown and lowering the tax burden.
Voting for the Valley Stream village elections will be from 6 a.m to 9 p.m. at the following locations: Shaw Avenue School, Clear Stream Avenue School, Memorial Junior High School, Central High School, Village Hall, Wheeler Avenue School, Bethlehem Assembly of God Church, Monica Senior Village, Robert W. Carbonaro School, Engine Co. 3 Firehouse, Brooklyn Avenue School, and the William L. Buck School.
Bellerose
The only issue in Bellerose Village where trustee and mayoral candidates can't find common ground centers on communication with residents.
The village of about 370 homes has a website, but it's not updated that often, challengers said.
"Big issues come and go without people in the village being aware of it," said Joseph Juliano, 47, an attorney and Integrity Party candidate for trustee.
"I found that, after talking to a lot of Bellerose Village residents, they are expressing dissatisfaction over the lack of communication from the current government," said mayoral candidate Henry Schreiber, 73, a retired bank officer and Juliano's running mate.
But Donna Sherrer, 54, who has been mayor for six years and is a member of the Community Party, points to achievements during her tenure such as the extension of the Village Hall senior center, the renovation of the historical police booth, and the creation of a master beautification plan -- which this year will include sidewalk work and bus depots on main streets, and upgrading the parks, much of it paid for with grant money. "I was able to get $600,000 in grants," she said.
"We have been working together to improve the look of Jericho Turnpike," said Laura Tamparo, 60, a two-year trustee running with the Community Party.
"We've planted over 100 trees in the past four years," said Ronald DeSouza, 54, an architect and eight-year trustee running with Sherrer. He also said the website was recently updated.
Still, civility remains through the campaign.
"We all want to get together as neighbors," said John Tweedy, 65, who is running for trustee on the Integrity Party line with Juliano and Schreiber. "I respect the work being done by those in charge now. But maybe it's time for a change."
Voting is from noon to 9 p.m. at Village Hall.
Taxes are taking center stage in the Stewart Manor campaign, where two challengers and one incumbent are running for two open trustee seats.
Keeping taxes in line is crucial to helping the village retain its quaintness, said challenger James Lynch, 45, a physician running on the Unity Party line.
"I think the biggest thing is keeping this tiny, cute town operating in difficult economic times," Lynch said. "Everyone is getting hit, but with this little town, it's economy of scale . . . We all have different ideas on how to do it."
Sally Martino-Fisher, 67, who is running on the Independent Party line, is retired as a New York City employee, most recently as a manager in the city's Department of Consumer Affairs. She would like to expand services for senior citizens and work on infrastructure issues such as potholes, she said, while keeping taxes down.
"I personally love this village," said Martino-Fisher. "I would hate to think I need to pick up and leave an area I enjoy because I can't afford the taxes."
Gerard S. Tangredi, a trustee, could not be reached for comment.
Voting is from noon to 9 p.m. at Village Hall.
Two incumbent Freeport trustees paint themselves as independent watchdogs on the village board and say the two challengers represent the mayor.
Home Rule Party trustee William H. White Jr., 55, a partner at a general insurance agency in Freeport, and two-term incumbent Jorge Martinez, 48, director of business development for an insurance company in Lynbrook, pointed to Mayor Andrew Hardwick for the lack of economic development in Freeport. "I consider the village a business," said Martinez, who has lived in Freeport for more than 35 years and is a past president of the Long Island Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. "We need to make sure the money we make goes back out again."
Freeport First Party challenger Annette Dennis, 51, a senior analyst for National Grid who has lived in the village for 14 years, said she wants to promote economic development in Freeport through projects like North Main Street redevelopment. She also supports development around the Freeport Long Island Rail Road station.
"We need economic development in the village," said Dennis, chairman of the Mayor's Citizen Advisory Committee.
Jane Dugan, also running for the first time for the Freeport First Party, is the owner of JC Cove Restaurant in Freeport. Making the village more business friendly is the focus of her campaign, she said.
"As a business owner I had experienced a lot of ups and downs in trying to open up a business," said Dugan, a former president of the Freeport Chamber of Commerce who has lived in the village for 17 years.
Voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at various polling locations.
Hempstead Village
Concerns about crime and the economy led five candidates to run for two Hempstead Village trustee seats.
Incumbent Perry M. Pettus has partnered with a newcomer, the Rev. Waylyn Hobbs Jr., to run on the Democratic Party and Community Party lines, while the other incumbent, Donald L. Ryan, is running with first-timer Jean Bligen under the Unity Party. The fifth candidate, Michael G. Abrahams, is running on the Change Now Party line.
Ryan, 68, a high school teacher for 33 years, has been a trustee for almost 10 years. The Hempstead native said the North Main Street redevelopment project could help create more commercial development and jobs, and help reduce taxes for village residents.
He also called for a village budget advisory board and "greater involvement by trustees and department heads about what stays on the budget and what does not."
Bligen, 60, the former principal of Barack Obama Elementary School, said her main concern is that the village offers too many tax breaks. Both candidates said they want to expand youth programs to help lessen gang violence and drug use.
Three-time trustee Pettus, 54, the owner of a towing company in Hempstead, also addressed concerns about crime and his support for the North Main Street project, which he said he hopes will reduce the tax burden on residents. Pettus has lived in the village since 1964.
Hobbs, 48, the pastor of Coney Island Cathedral Church, former village code enforcement officer and volunteer firefighter who has lived in the village for 40 years, stressed reducing residents' tax burden and attracting new businesses.
Abrahams, 44, a former Hempstead Village administrator, said he wants to prevent crime, fix roads, clean up litter and hire more government employees who live in the village. Abrahams, who has lived in the village for 33 years, said the level of village employee salaries and pensions needs to be addressed.
Voting will take place from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at various polling locations.
A tea party candidate faces two incumbents from the Independent Party for two Malverne trustee seats.
Challenger Dr. John Hassett Jr., 41, a pulmonologist in Hempstead, medical director of the Malverne Volunteer Ambulance Corp and physician for the village police department, is running for the first time. The 38-year resident has challenged the board for privately conducting work sessions, paying the police chief what he said was "too much money" and for providing lifetime health insurance benefits to employees and elected officials with five years' tenure with the village.
"They should be public servants," said Hassett, "not act like public officials."
Incumbent Michael T. Bailey, 56, a marketing and advertising executive finishing his first four-year term, cited among his accomplishments helping to save Grossmann's Farm. The 25-year resident said he plans to develop the first community center in the village on a parcel donated by the Grossmann family.
He also wants to expand the Malverne Volunteer Ambulance Corp. and improve its response time, Bailey said.
James Callahan III, 42, attorney and commissioner of the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management, has been a trustee for 12 years. Callahan, who has lived in the village for 16 years, cited creating the village's Emergency Management Committee as among his accomplishments. He previously served as the village's emergency manager and its prosecutor. In addition to public safety issues, Callahan said he has focused on pocketbook issues by keeping taxes from increasing rapidly.
"We need to keep taxes as low as we can," Callahan said. "In a small village . . . that is very important."
Voting will be held from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Malverne Fire House, 30 Broadway.
The need for change brought three newcomers, under the Garden City Residents Party, to challenge Garden City's long-standing Community Agreement Party for the five open trustee seats.
Raymond J. Rudolph, Ronald A. Tadross and Thomas J. Trypuc formed the Residents slate after claiming that the village property owners association kept choosing the same candidates for the Community Agreement Party.
Tadross, 39, a financial adviser, had an unsuccessful write-in campaign last year. The village's administration lacks accountability and needs to be more transparent, he said.
Trypuc, 59, a retired auditor and accountant, called for reduced spending, saying benefits given to the village staff are "too generous." He served on the Garden City Budget Committee in 2009.
Rudolph, 43, owner of a general construction company in Queens, said the board needed more people with financial expertise to help review the budget.
The three candidates hope to defeat one-term trustees Laurence J. Quinn, Dennis C. Donnelly, Andrew J. Cavanaugh and Community Agreement Party candidate John A. DeMaro.
Quinn, 53, a science teacher at Sewanhaka High School for 30 years, cites the fact the mayor and the seven trustees serve without compensation.
Donnelly, 64, a former director of government affairs for Verizon, said he planned, as chairman of the village's War Memorial Committee, to put all the memorials throughout the village into a new plaza.
Cavanaugh, 64, a retired businessman and lawyer, said he opposed the plan to build the Nassau Hub near the Nassau Coliseum because "overdevelopment can take away the suburban character of the neighborhood."
DeMaro, 43, an intellectual property attorney and president of the Garden City Estates Property Owners Association, is running for the first time. He said he wants to survey residents about issues affecting them.
Voting will take place from noon to 9 p.m. at Garden City Village Hall, 351 Stewart Ave.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 15: LI's top basketball players On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay take a look top boys and girls basketball players on Long Island.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 15: LI's top basketball players On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay take a look top boys and girls basketball players on Long Island.
