Incumbents try to fend off challenger in race for trustee seats in Great Neck

A pair of incumbents and a challenger are vying for two open seats on the Village of Great Neck’s Board of Trustees in next week’s election. 

Incumbents Barton Sobel, who serves as deputy mayor, and Eli Kashi are running for reelection on the Great Neck Greater Village party line. The election is June 21.

Sobel, 59, runs a law practice in Great Neck, and is seeking his seventh term on the board. He was elected in 2010. He said the village is moving in the right direction but will focus on improving the streetscape, continue the revitalization of the village’s business district, introduce new tax revenues to offset high property taxes and help develop the dilapidated areas in Great Neck.

Among his top accomplishments on the board, Sobel said, was helping organize the village’s Centennial Celebration this month, pushing for the relocation of Village Hall and serving residents for more than a decade.

“When you have something nice and new in the middle of some dilapidated properties, I think there’s added incentive to renovate or develop,” Sobel said of the new Village Hall.

His running mate, Kashi, 50, works in the manufacturing industry and is seeking his second term on the board. If elected, Kashi said he wants to hire more building department staff to increase efficiency and continue bolstering the police presence to enhance security and prevent car thefts. 

“I’m trying to put Great Neck back on the right path,” Kashi said.

Challenger Samuel J. Yellis, 63, running on the Together We Can Party line, is a social studies teacher at the Village School, a public alternative high school in Great Neck. He’s running on a platform against overdevelopment in the village, particularly the redevelopment of two storefronts at 733-741 Middle Neck Rd. to construct a four-story apartment building with 60 units.

“I think the village is losing its suburban character,” Yellis told Newsday. “It’s become more urbanized, and that puts a lot of pressure on the schools, and class sizes are going up.”

Yellis said his priorities would be to make the bidding process for contractors more transparent, renew village pride and promote diversity through more festivals, as well as streamlining the building department’s application process for new and existing businesses. 

The trustees serve two-year terms and are paid $4,800 annually, officials said.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Village Hall, 61 Baker Hill Rd.