Richard H. Schaffer, Supervisor, Town of Babylon

RICHARD H. SCHAFFER

Democratic

BACKGROUND:

• Schaffer, 57, of Babylon, is the chair of the Suffolk County Democratic Party, chair of the Suffolk County Supervisors Association and a board member of the Suffolk County Landbank. He is also running on the Conservative Party line.
• He was a Suffolk County legislator from 1988 to 1991 until resigning to become Babylon Town supervisor in 1992, a position he held until 2001 before being appointed again in 2012.
• He has a bachelor’s degree in political science from SUNY Albany and a law degree from Brooklyn Law School.

ISSUES:

• Schaffer wants to continue to work on the economic recovery of the town, using federal money to give grants to small businesses and come up with "creative ways of helping the community pivot" out of the pandemic.
• He said he will continue to work on quality-of-life issues and wants to create an amnesty program whereby problem properties will have an opportunity to come up to code before the town takes enforcement action.
• He will have the town move further along on infrastructure projects, particularly the town’s 10-year road improvement initiative.

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.