Glen Cove budget advances after testy council meeting and Democratic objections
Incumbent Glen Cove Mayor Pamela Panzenbeck, a Republican, left, and her Democratic challenger, Councilwoman Marsha Silverman. Credit: James Escher
Glen Cove's 2026 budget advanced after a contentious council meeting in which Democrats accused Republican city officials of fast-tracking the plan with limited review.
Democrats on City Council objected to a Republican-led effort to close the public comment period after Mayor Pamela Panzenbeck gave a brief presentation on the $69.3 million budget.
Then, Republicans on the council moved to vote on the budget. Democrats accused the city of denying the public opportunity to comment on the plan. In the past, the city has held two public hearings before a vote is held, Democrats said.
The vote was 3-2, with one abstention. Four votes are required to approve a budget, but according to the city charter, any budget that's not approved becomes adopted by the fourth Tuesday of October.
Democratic Councilman John Zozzaro said the push to vote on the budget was “ridiculous,” adding the decision was effectively “pulling the wool over the eyes of our residents.”
Panzenbeck, in an interview on Wednesday, said she was "a little bit surprised" by the blowback. "We're freezing taxes, so who wouldn't want that?"
Two Democrats — Councilwoman Marsha Silverman, who is running for mayor, and Zozzaro — voted against the budget. Councilwoman Danielle Fugazy Scagliola abstained, while Republicans Grady Farnan, Kevin Maccarone and Michael Ktistakis voted yes. The mayor does not vote on the budget.
Silverman said the decision “is cutting off the public conversation,” before telling Panzenbeck: “The way you’re running this city is irresponsible.”
“Shutting out your council people and the public is a new low for Glen Cove politics,” Fugazy Scagliola said in an interview on Wednesday. “It’s distressing.”
Farnan said it was the city’s “prerogative to close out” the public hearing.
Ktistakis said it’s a “no-brainer for us to move forward and keep this city in the path that it’s going.”
The plan boosts spending by $3.9 million over the 2025 budget, which raised property taxes by 2%. The 2026 budget does not include a property tax hike.
Democrats said they feared the city was overestimating sales tax revenue.
Earlier this year, Glen Cove opted to receive a part of the local sales tax revenue up front. For decades, the city received the sales tax from Nassau County in the form of a property tax rebate, Newsday reported.
The budget projects $3.1 million in sales tax revenue next year.
City officials have said by accepting the revenue up front, they can use the funding to address budget shortfalls.
The $3.1 million estimate is a “conservative” guess of “what we feel the revenue generation would be for sales tax," City Controller Mike Piccirillo said in an interview.
Fugazy Scagliola said it's still unclear how much the new revenue stream will generate. "We just don't really know what that looks like," she said during the meeting.
The city is expecting building department revenue to decline, going from $2.5 million in 2025 to $1.8 million next year.
Piccirillo said the city expects fewer projects to come to fruition in 2026.
The spending plan includes $850,000 in termination payments — a $350,000 increase over 2025 — as city officials expect more retirements next year. The budget also allocates $350,000 related to an expected legal settlement, officials said.
The city's previous financial struggles landed it on the state comptroller's annual fiscal stress list. The state removed the city's fiscal stress designation in 2024 for the first time in seven years.
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