News

Toelex10

Four Sag Harbor residents are running for two open trustee seats in a village grappling with its growing popularity as a resort destination, concerns over pollution in its bays and the challenges of maintaining a police department on a tight budget.
The next village board will also influence the future of Long Wharf, a pier at the heart of downtown, which Suffolk County gave the village in 2011. The village is awaiting an engineering report outlining necessary repairs to the pier.
Robby Stein, 65, the only incumbent, is running for his third elected term on the Windmill Party line. A psychologist with offices in Sag Harbor and Manhattan, Stein was appointed to the board five years ago to fill a vacancy left when Brian Gilbride became mayor.
Trustee Kevin Duchemin is not seeking re-election to the two-year term.
Stein, who has lived in the village for more than two decades, said his priority is protecting area bays from pollution. He wants the village to explore incentives for homeowners to install high-tech wastewater treatment systems and plantings that could reduce runoff. "Ultimately, if you live by the water, you have to think about the water," Stein said.
Sandra L. Schroeder, 57, retired as village clerk in 2010. She ran unsuccessfully for mayor last year. This year she is running for trustee on the Residents Party line.
Schroeder, a fourth-generation village resident, supports a "complete capital plan" for municipal buildings and infrastructure -- including Long Wharf -- and funding repairs while interest rates are low. "We need to maintain and keep ahead of the curve," she said.
John Shaka, 50, a decorative painting contractor who also farms oysters, is making his first bid for elected office, on the Main Street Party line.
A member of the Save Sag Harbor civic group, he has helped craft "traffic-calming" measures at four busy intersections. "We wanted to make it safer for everyone who uses the roads: cars, pedestrians, bicycles," as the village of 2,200 year-round residents grows busier in the summers, he said.
Shaka, who has lived in Sag Harbor for 15 years, also said he wants to help preserve its historic character.
Bruce A. Stafford, 56, served as a trustee from 2010 to 2012. This year he is running on the Sag Harbor Party line. A landscaper, fire department volunteer and a lifelong resident, Stafford said he supports funding capital projects, such as repairs at Long Wharf, little by little, rather than by bonding.
He also said he'd like to closely watch the police budget, which makes up more than half of the village's overall spending.
The election is scheduled for Tuesday from noon to 9 p.m. at the Sag Harbor firehouse.

TOSAG13

Four compete for two trustee seats in Sag Harbor

Muttontown's mayor says she is seeking re-election to help strengthen the village's fiscal stability, while her opponent says he's running for the four-year post because he thinks taxpayer money is being mishandled.
Incumbent Julianne Beckerman, 45, of the Concerned Taxpayers Party, is facing Pericles Linardos, 49, of the People's Liberty Party.
"It's not easy in these days in government to continue to provide services and do that in a way that you show fiscal restraint," Beckerman said, touting the fact that this year's budget had no tax increase.
Linardos said he sued the village in 2011 because the decision to create a local police department was not brought to a referendum.
A State Supreme Court judge denied his petition. "I'm very confused to why my opponent wants to do away with the department," Beckerman said.
But Linardos said he would not abolish the police department, adding, "All I see to do is enhance them" with additional training and equipment.
Linardos also challenged the village's spending, especially on litigation.
He said the village could use the money elsewhere, specifically citing last year's $1.45 million federal jury award to former Muttontown trustee Richard Entel, who sued the village in a land deal.
Entel's attorney E. Christopher Murray said that the village asked for a stay in that jury's award, which his client has agreed to, pending the village's motion for a judgment in its favor.
"Taxpayers haven't had a penny of their funds used to pay for this case," Beckerman said. The village's legal fees were covered by its insurance, but Linardos' suit cost taxpayers, she said.
Linardos said he wouldn't have sued if the decision had been put to a referendum.
Linardos owns the Certification Center in Flushing, which offers health care and safety training. He is also a volunteer firefighter and paramedic for the East Norwich and Port Washington fire departments.
Linardos is running on a slate with the three trustee challengers: George Chalos, Russell Orenstein and James Ronaghan.
Chalos, 43, a resident for five years, is an international lawyer. 
Orenstein, 53, a resident since 1973, is a publishing consultant.
Ronaghan couldn't be reached for comment.
Beckerman, a resident of 21 years, is running with the three incumbent trustees: Julie Albernas, who was appointed to fill a vacancy on the board; Carl Juul-Nielsen; and Salvatore Benisatto.
Albernas, 50, is also the police commissioner and chairwoman of the Site and Architectural Review Board. She is a resident of 14 years.
Juul-Nielsen, an equine veterinarian, is finishing his second term on the board. A village resident for 32 years, he is married and has two children.
Benisatto, 64, an lawyer and resident for 25 years, is finishing his first term as a trustee. He is also the Planning Board chairman.

TOMUTT12

Muttontown mayoral candidates spar over spending

A battle for control of Bayville pits an incumbent mayor calling for investment in storm preparation against a trustee who says village finances have been mismanaged.
Aside from the mayorship and three open trustee slots, also at stake in next week's election is the long dominance of the Taxpayers Party, aka TIP.
Mayor Douglas Watson, who is running on the Taxpayers Party line, said his main issues are pursuing federal funds to mitigate storm risks, maintaining water quality, upgrading water meters, and preserving the village's small-town quality. "We're committed to being prepared for storms and dealing with the aftermath," he said.
His challenger, trustee Paul Rupp, who broke away from the mayor's party this year to form the Bayville Revitalization Party with three others, said he wants to draw on village residents to form committees on finance, roads and aesthetics.
"Doug and the TIP party do not foster that type of feedback from the residents, and that I plan on doing," Rupp said. "There's a lack of open and transparent government."
The village has faced a stream of bad fiscal news in recent years. Moody's Investors Service downgraded the village's bond rating in 2010. An audit by the state comptroller's office in 2012 sharply criticized the village's financial practices, and last year the comptroller's office cited the village as being in "significant fiscal stress." The village is seeking a settlement with the Internal Revenue Service over an apparent violation of tax laws regarding bonds.
Watson said those problems have passed. "The village is in fine financial shape," he said. "These opponents don't have anything so they're bringing up the same old things again."
Rupp said fixing the village's finances and reputation would be his priority. "The problems aren't solved," Rupp said, suggesting that deferred infrastructure investments have created budget risks.
Rupp denied Watson's suggestion that his opponents want to rezone the village to allow condos and townhomes. Rupp says the village should competitively bid all its contracts, a process Watson says the village handles according to the law.
Watson, 60, the retired former owner of an auto-body shop, served as trustee from 1992 until he was elected mayor in 2010. He has lived in Bayville since 1980.
Rupp, 54, who works as an administrator for a defense company that he asked not to be identified, has served two four-year terms as trustee. He said he has lived in Bayville for 27 years.
Trustee candidates running on the Taxpayers Party ticket are: Kathryn E. Caulfield, 52, a middle school teacher; Gregory H. Reisiger, 59, owner of a construction company; and Joseph M. Paniagua, 51, a financial business consultant.
The Bayville Revitalization Party trustee candidates are: Tim Charon, 31, a waterfront construction project manager; Joe Russo, 53, a retired information technology manager; and John Taylor, 62, an advertising executive.

TOBAYV12

Trustee battles mayor for leadership in Bayville

Eighteen-year incumbent Mayor Stephen Mahler is being challenged by newcomer George Pappas for the Village of Atlantic Beach's top elected two-year position.
Mahler, 75, a Queens lawyer with no major political affiliation, who was a village trustee before becoming mayor in 1996, criticized what he characterized as Pappas' inexperience in the village and his ties to the Republican Party.
"Instead of running for trustee and trying to learn first, he just wants to go to the head of the class," Mahler said. "If the GOP guys ever get in, it would be a terribly regressive step in the village."
Mahler is running on the Atlantic Beach Integrity Party line; Pappas, on the Peoples Party of the Village of Atlantic Beach Incorporated.
Pappas said the criticism was unfounded.
"I'm running this out of my kitchen, supported by friends and neighbors. There is no GOP involvement," said Pappas, 44, who is the superintendent of the Town of Hempstead's independent Sanitary District No. 1, based in Lawrence.
Mahler said things are going "pretty good" in the village, "except we're still recovering from [2012's superstorm] Sandy.
"We're hoping that when the New York Rising money comes in, our main project will be to rebuild our tennis center into an all-year-around facility -- a small recreation center."
The two men differ on issues.
Pappas says Mahler has become too comfortable in the job and is neglecting the community, especially the roads. "Just about everybody I know here," said Pappas, a 12-year resident, "thinks their street is the worst in the village. As for Sandy, the mayor was a no-show here."
Mahler says Pappas, in his town sanitary job, has "a glaring conflict of interest. When there's something like Sandy, I had to be here day and night, helping in all kinds of ways. I work for myself and can do that. Pappas can't. He would have to do it on the taxpayers' dime."
Mahler is a graduate of Adelphi and New York University School of Law. Pappas attended Nassau Community College and studied finance at the New York Technical Institute.

TOATLA11

Incumbent Mayor Stephen Mahler faces challenge from newcomer George Pappas

Village finances, legal costs and empty storefronts are key issues cited among three political slates vying for leadership in Manorhaven.
Three candidates are running for mayor, and six are seeking two trustee spots, all two-year terms. Voters go to the polls on Tuesday.
Challengers to Mayor Giovanna Giunta and trustees Mark Lazarovic and Dorit Zeevi-Farrington say a change in leadership is due. They point to a state audit in February that listed Manorhaven as one of four villages statewide to be labeled in "significant fiscal stress."
The report said short-term debt of $485,000 in fiscal year 2013 was nearly 11 percent of the village budget, when less than 5 percent is recommended. 
Officials in the village of 6,700 said the report did not account for expected federal reimbursements for damages from superstorm Sandy; and incumbents said the audit mischaracterized finances. They said the administration fixed years of fiscal mismanagement it inherited.
But challengers also cited a 52 percent increase in the commercial tax rate that fueled a legal challenge from businesses in the village. Officials have adjusted the rate to lower than before and a payment of $104,000 to the business owners who sued has been proposed.
Giunta, 41, a co-owner of Giunta Transport and a paraprofessional for the Port Washington School District, leads the Manorhaven Revival Party. 
Elected in 2012, she said she has improved record-keeping, beautified the village's streets and environment, and enhanced safety and transparency. There are solar-powered traffic signs in place, more disabled-accessible features, a quarterly newsletter, a dock being revamped, and an active village dog park and nature preserve, she said.
Running for mayor on the Manorhaven Residents Party line is James M. Avena, 70, a former trustee. Avena, a former president of Cantor Fitzgerald, cited the audit and said he would "tighten" the budget, which village officials say is now balanced. Avena said he would seek input from area business owners to make the village more business-friendly.
John O'Reilly, 55, is running for mayor on The Manorhaven People's Party line. A superintendent at the Albin Gustafson Co., O'Reilly said securing grants is key to funding repairs to roads and sewer systems. Lawsuits have hurt the village's finances, he said. And he vowed to consider housing for young professionals and to fix infrastructure. 
Incumbent trustee and Revival Party candidate Zeevi-Farrington, 53, has served on the board since 2012. Owner of the Manhattan Steamboat Co., she said the administration has worked to beautify the area and become more transparent and fiscally prudent.
Her running mate Lazarovic, 68, who runs the Swan Harbor Homes building company, touted the village's handling of the aftermath of superstorm Sandy and said it is a priority to seek re-enforcement for the village's pump station.
Avena's running mate is Kevin M. Gately Jr., 46, a project manager for a large global technology consulting firm that he declined to name publicly. He said his financial experience would help ensure more austere practices.
Running with Avena and Gately is Priscilla von Roeschlaub, 77, an associate broker for Douglas Elliman who wants to see the business corridor thrive, seniors stay in the village, and housing codes enforced for landlords.
People's Party candidate for trustee John S. Popeleski, 54, is a water plant operator for the Port Washington Water District and a volunteer firefighter. He said he would focus on revitalizing village infrastructure and enforcing local codes for illegal parking and housing.
Jonathan K. Davis, 47, a trial attorney with Queens-based Mallilo &amp; Grossman, said the village should be involved in fewer legal battles, and he criticized the commercial tax hike. He said the village must lure residents to the waterfront and convene discussions with business owners.

TOMANO11

Three slates seek seats in Manorhaven

The Brightwaters deputy mayor and a trustee are facing off in the race to become the village's next mayor, while four challengers are vying for the two open trustee seats. 
All positions are two-year terms and unpaid.
Mayoral candidate Denise Gibson, 47, was elected trustee in 2012 and has served as deputy mayor for a year. She's a Brightwaters native who received a bachelor's degree in electronic journalism from Hofstra University, and has retired from television advertising. She is running on the Citizens Party line with trustee candidates Steven Pertusati and Gregory Rabin.
Gibson, who's vacating her trustee seat to run for mayor, said if elected she would "continue to improve the infrastructure and protect the place we all love to live," she said. "I certainly hope to practice a very careful and conservative view of budget responsibilities -- protecting the taxpayers' dollars, but also trying to find the many different revenue streams that we need."
Mayoral candidate Joseph McDermott, 46, was elected trustee last year. He grew up in New Hyde Park and moved to the village 12 years ago. He's a structural iron worker. He is running on the Unification Party line with trustee candidates Diane Urso and Donna Barnett. 
His goals are to bring "communication and transparency" to village governance. 
"I'm running for mayor to make sure the people's voice is heard, to open up the community to the residents," he said. 
Trustee candidate Barnett, 54, grew up in Bay Shore and received a bachelor's in international business and an MBA in finance from C.W. Post. She is the village treasurer for Amityville, and moved to Brightwaters in 2011.
She wants "to use my municipal financial experience and background. I think there could be a little more transparency in the budgeting process and the purchasing process, and a little more outreach to the residents."
Pertusati, 54, is a financial services adviser for the KPMG financial firm. He grew up in Commack and received a bachelor's in secondary education from Stony Brook University. He has lived in Brightwaters for 15 years. 
"I know there have been some supposed challenges to how this village manages the finances, with the budgetary process and the financial analysis of the monies," he said. "I want to provide the expertise to manage the fund properly."
Rabin, 46, is a Brightwaters native and works as a private manager for a Fire Island contracting company. He wants to work on village redevelopment. 
"Our village is a beautiful place, but there are areas downtown where lighting is just horrible," he said. "I want to find solutions to problems and not just complain. I want to get rid of the negativity."
Urso, 45, also ran for trustee in 2012. She grew up in Providence, Rhode Island, and moved to Brightwaters in 2008. She has a background in clinical social work and received a bachelor's in political science from Drew University in New Jersey, and a master's from Fordham University in social work.
She wants to improve "the roads, and there are some issues with the canal," and also questions what the recent tax increases have paid for. "If we are going to raise taxes, are we going to see anything from it?"

TOBRIG10

Brightwaters candidates face off for mayor, two trustee seats

A move to pay volunteer board members in Huntington Bay has spurred at least one resident to run for village mayor.
Elizabeth "Betty" Wood, an 18-year resident, said the compensation plan would make the village government more politicized.
"The big issue at this point is the salary issue that I equate to a tax increase," Wood, 58, said. "It's imposing a cost to residents that is never going to disappear, and it's never going to go down."
But 10-term Mayor Herb Morrow, 63, who has tried for two years to get pay for the mayor, trustees, the police and road commissioners, and the zoning board members, says the jobs are considerable and time-consuming.
"Mayors throughout the state have acknowledged this is not a voluntary position; it requires an enormous amount of work and time in terms of understanding documents and laws and mandates from the state," he said. 
In April, the village board voted to create a local law that defines compensation for the mayor, the four trustees, two commissioners and the five zoning board of appeals members. If adopted, the law would be subject to a referendum that would require a petition from residents.
The board also placed $43,000 in a contingency fund in case residents support a salary of $1,500 a month for the mayor; $250 a month for trustees; $250 a month for the police and road commissioner; and $125 per meeting for ZBA members.
Wood said the village of 1,620 residents, and 14 road and beach associations is not big enough to warrant paid boards and should try to seek more volunteers for newly created committees and perhaps create a planning board to help current volunteers.
"They are putting a cost in place that many of us have said we don't agree with, yet we have to pay for it," Wood said.
Morrow said roughly 4 percent of residents attended two meetings this spring where the compensation issue was on the agenda, and not all of them opposed the idea.
"Just because the loudest people are against it doesn't mean the majority of the people are against it," Morrow said. "Clearly I took a risk bringing compensation up, but I really believe it should be discussed."
Wood, a middle-school aide, retired in 2002 from a 25-year career in finance, including management jobs at Bank of America, Schroders and Deutsche Bank. She has been a member of her beach association in the village for 12 years and is in her fourth year as president. This is her first run for office.
Morrow touts his record of financial stewardship, including the village having no debt, no tax rate increase for 2013, 2014, 2015 and projected 2016, and getting the village police department accredited with the state division of criminal justice.
"If the compensation issue is the only thing Betty is running on, that says a lot," Morrow said. "I think I'm producing really positive results."

TOHUNT10

Salary central in bid to lead Huntington Bay

huntington bay comp

The future of the Port Jefferson power plant is a central issue in the race for two seats on the village board. 
Incumbent Bruce D'Abramo and challengers Jill Nees-Russell and Bruce Miller are competing for the two open trustee seats, which carry two-year terms and pay $7,000 annually. 
The top two vote-getters will win the seats. 
D'Abramo, 66, a retired buildings and grounds superintendent for the Westhampton Beach and Hampton Bays school districts, is seeking his second full term on the board. He was appointed to the board in 2011 and won a full term the following year. 
Nees-Russell, 44, is president of Russell Relations, which provides marketing and public relations services to the village. If elected, she said she would relinquish the public relations job. 
Miller, 69, is a former teacher and Port Jefferson school board trustee. 
Long Island Power Authority officials have said they plan to upgrade the Port Jefferson plant, which is owned by National Grid, after completing the proposed Caithness II power plant in Yaphank. 
But many residents have voiced concerns that the Port Jefferson plant -- which accounts for about 30 percent of the village's property tax revenue -- may be shuttered. 
Miller, co-chairman of the Grassroots Committee to Re-power Port Jefferson, said village officials have not done enough to try to save the plant. 
"It is a giant issue here," he said. "For some reason, the people in government have been hushing this and ignoring it." 
D'Abramo and Nees-Russell defended the village, saying trustees and Mayor Margot Garant had lobbied LIPA and state and federal energy officials. D'Abramo said he was "cautiously optimistic" that LIPA would repower the plant. 
"Every step of the way, we are following very closely what's going on with LIPA," D'Abramo said. "We want to make certain that this plant continues to stay open." 
Nees-Russell said village officials "are completely poised to take action" to save the plant. 
"Nobody wants to see the power plant go," she said. "We all need to stand in unison." 
In addition to the power plant, Miller said he was concerned about village spending and taxes. 
"Is the money being well spent? I don't know," he said. "We need to see that the services we pay for are the services we're getting." 
D'Abramo said he supported plans to rezone the village's Upper Port commercial district in hopes of attracting new businesses. 
Nees-Russell, who has two children in elementary school, said she would advocate for young families if she is elected. 
"There's not really representation of my demographic in village government," she said. 
Voting is 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on June 17 at Port Jefferson Village Center, 101 E. Broadway. The Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce plans to host a meet the candidates night at 7 tonight at the Village Center.

TOJEFF09

Port Jefferson Village election centers on future of power plant

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Northport voters will pick a mayor on Tuesday, choosing between eight-year incumbent George Doll and challenger Joseph Sabia, a member of the local school board. 
Northport, a village of about 7,500 people, has set a budget for next year of $18,837,596. Protecting and restoring Northport Harbor and improving the village's aging roads and sidewalks are among the issues the board faces. 
Sabia, 57, a mechanic, said he decided to run for the four-year position because of what he called high taxes in the village and the deterioration of its infrastructure. 
"I am looking for effectiveness and efficiencies," said Sabia, who is running on the Citizens Party line. "I want to go after ethics. . . . There is a lot of nepotism in this village." 
Sabia, the owner of Sabia's Car Care, has served on the Northport-East Northport school board for three years. 
His priorities, if elected, would include improving the village's roads and sidewalks, he said. 
Sabia also cited reforming the village building department, which he said is "too slow." 
He said he feels he is a good candidate for the job because of his decades of business experiences. 
"I believe we can turn this village around," he said. 
Doll, 69, a longtime commercial fisherman, said he first decided to run for mayor because "things weren't running smoothly." 
"It was a 'somebody should do something' situation . . . and they were all looking at me," he said. He is running on the Pilot Party line. 
In the past eight years, the biggest issue facing the village has become money, Doll said, including funding mandated projects such as the $9.3 million sewage treatment plant upgrade. 
Seventy percent of the project is being funded by reimbursable grants. Village officials have said they anticipate the rest will be funded by a 30-year bond. 
The village probably will also have to update its storm-water drainage infrastructure, Doll said, predicting it would be costly. 
Doll said he and other village officials have tried to keep taxes as low as possible, but doing so has been difficult given the recession and increased pension payments. 
Doll also said the roads are "terrible," adding that the village depends on state grant money to do the work and that funding hasn't kept up with the need. 
"I want to continue the atmosphere we have here," he said. "I want to see some of the projects through to the finish." 
Polls are open Tuesday from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Village Hall, 224 Main St.

TONORT14

Two candidates run for mayor in Northport

Three Farmingdale natives running for village trustee say they want to balance development with suburban living while keeping down taxes.
One first-time candidate, Craig Rosasco, and two incumbents, Patricia A. Christiansen and Cheryl Parisi, are vying for two part-time slots.
Christiansen, who has served for four terms, said the most important issue in the next two years is "to continue the revitalization" of Main Street.
The village needs to resurface roads, address roadway drainage issues and replace fire department and public works equipment, she said.
She said she approved payments in lieu of taxes, or PILOTs, which municipalities use as a subsidy to attract development and business by reducing their property taxes for multiple years. "When a developer comes and talks about it, I'm not averse to it," she said.
Christiansen, who manages real estate holdings for a law firm in Locust Valley, declined to give her age. She is a registered Republican running on the Green Leaf Party line.
Newcomer Rosasco, 45, is a partner in a law firm that has offices in Long Island and New York City, and specializes in disability suits. He said he would bring his legal skills and experience to the village, which has a budget of about $5.6 million. A housing discrimination suit filed by Latinos in 2006 should have been settled sooner than it was in January, he said.
"There was some liability there, and I probably would have liked to settle it a long time ago," he said.
The village of more than 8,000 residents needs to either improve services or lower taxes, he said.
Rosasco criticized the use of PILOTs for two recent developments in Farmingdale, but said the tool can be used appropriately. "There's no reason a contractor should come in and take our money out of the taxpayer's pocket and put it into theirs when they're willing to do it without the benefit," he said.
Rosasco, who does not belong to a political party, is running on the Renaissance Party line.
Parisi, who has been a trustee for six years, said the big issue facing Farmingdale is taxes. "We have to figure out how to work within our means," she said.
Parisi said she has written successful grant proposals for the village. "We have to be able to secure funding that will allow us to work on projects without burdening the taxpayer," she said.
Parisi said she was happy with the direction of downtown development. "We have the ability to keep young professionals in our area with development going on" near the train station, she said.
Parisi, who runs a graphic design business, is running on the Green Leaf Party line, but declined to identify her national party affiliation. Records show she is a registered Democrat. She also declined to give her age.
Voting for the posts, which pay $12,000 a year, is Tuesday noon to 9 p.m. at Village Hall, 361 Main St.

TOFARM14

Three seek two trustee seats in Farmingdale

Three candidates are vying for two trustee seats in Head of the Harbor. 
Incumbent Judith Ogden and newcomer Gordon Van Vechten are running as a team on the Village Party line. Newcomer Theresa O'Brien will face them on the Box Party line. 
Ogden, 52, has lived in Head of the Harbor for eight years and is serving a second two-year term as trustee. She has owned Ogden's Design &amp; Plantings, a landscape design firm, in the village for 23 years. 
"Running a small business is much like running a village, because you have staff that you have to help . . . and you have to deal with balancing the budget," Ogden said. 
She said that as one of four trustees she has helped balance the village budget, and assisted in implementing an email notification system for weather-related emergencies and a village newsletter to provide information to residents. 
"I want people to feel connected to their village," she said. 
Van Vechten, 69, is a 33-year village resident. He co-owns Framerica Corp., a picture frame, floor and architectural molding manufacturer that he co-founded in 1969 in Yaphank. 
Van Vechten said he is running for trustee to share his business knowledge and ideas. 
Among his platform issues is improving communication between village officials and residents, expanding natural gas in the village and repairing and paving village roads. 
"I am willing to commit my time to improving the village," Van Vechten said. "I think I have the vision to see what needs to be done, and the ability to get those things done." 
O'Brien, 46, who has worked as a fourth-grade teacher at Joseph A. Edgar Intermediate School in Rocky Point for 18 years, said she is running to improve communication in the village and engender "more of a positive tone." 
"Sometimes phone calls weren't returned from village officials when we had questions regarding village rules and policies," said O'Brien, who has lived in Head of the Harbor for three years. 
If elected, O'Brien said she would implement a written policy ensuring residents' concerns are addressed -- something that she said was lacking when her street sign went missing for six months. 
"For the people who choose to work hard to live here, they deserve someone that will work equally hard for them," O'Brien said. 
Voting takes place from noon to 9 p.m. at Village Hall, 500 N. Country Rd., St. James.

TOHEAD13

Three candidates vie for two Head of the Harbor seats

head of harbor comp

Munsey Park, which last year had its first contested election in two decades, faces another one next week, with incumbents Susan Auriemma and Jennifer Noone, and challengers John Lippmann and Eileen Cuneo, running for two trustee seats. 
Auriemma, 45, of the Village Party, has been on the board for two years. She is a stay-at-home mother. 
She is a 13-year resident of the village and co-chaired the Coalition for a Safer Manhasset, an advocacy group focused on pedestrian safety. Auriemma cited her experience in government and working with other elected officials as setting her apart from other candidates. 
"No one has the experience that I have in working within the local government structure," she said. 
She said she wanted to expand the village email list and resume its print newsletter, adding that the village needed to address its roadway infrastructure and tree replacement after superstorm Sandy. 
Cuneo, 48, joins Auriemma on the Village Party line. Cuneo has lived in the village for 21 years, and is a sales lead at Crate and Barrel in Manhasset. 
She said she wanted to increase communication between the village and its residents, in addition to increasing the village's social-media presence to reach younger residents. She said she also would like village meetings to be live-streamed online. 
"I'd like to have more involvement and more interaction, and hear more about what residents think," Cuneo said. 
Noone, 35, is running on the Residents for a Better Munsey Park line for her first full term. She was appointed to the board in September. She was a corporate attorney before becoming a stay-at-home mother. 
Noone served on the village's architectural review board, and was co-president of the Manhasset Newcomers' Club. She has lived in Munsey Park for seven years, and said she wants to stay on the board to continue projects that she's undertaken, such as working on roadway improvements and overseeing a new garbage contract. 
"Our roads are in terrible condition," Noone said, adding that the board will have to work to include funds for repair in the next budget. 
Lippmann, 37, is running for trustee, also on the Residents for a Better Munsey Park line. He is a commercial real estate finance professional. 
He has lived in Munsey Park for three years, and serves on the village's building advisory committee and the Manhasset school board's citizens advisory committee for finance. 
Lippmann said serving as a community liaison during last year's dispute over an antenna the Manhasset-Lakeville Water District erected in the village made him realize he wanted to serve in government. 
He said his experience in real estate would help in future infrastructure projects in the village, and said it was important to maintain a balance between change and tradition. 
"My talents, my energy and my background could be applied to help the village where I live," he said.

TOMUNS13

Four candidates vie for 2 Munsey Park trustee seats

Controlling taxes is cited as a key issue among the three candidates vying for two one-year terms as trustee on the Stewart Manor village board. 
Two of the candidates are appointed trustees seeking to serve the year remaining on the terms of those they replaced. The third candidate is a political newcomer. 
Village Party candidate Mary C. Schafenberg, 64, an elementary school principal in Long Island City, lost a bid for trustee last year, coming in third in a race for two trustee seats. But she was appointed to replace Gerard Tangredi, the Village Party candidate who was elected mayor. 
Schafenberg said she is running in order to continue in the same office she now holds. 
"We would like to continue what we've started and are concerned about maintaining village finances and continuing village services without raising taxes," Schafenberg said, referring to the other Village Party candidate, Orlando Sa. 
Schafenberg did not respond to requests to elaborate on her campaign position and provide biographical information. 
Sa, 51, was appointed trustee in November after Deputy Mayor/Trustee James Lynch retired for personal reasons. Sa said he essentially agreed with Schafenberg in that "we've got to keep taxes reasonable and maintain a vibrant 'Main Street.' " 
Sa retired in 2005 from the New York Police Department after 20 years of service, first as a patrolman, then a narcotics detective and finally, a sergeant in charge of the trademark counterfeit squad. 
Challenger, William Grogan, 76, said one of his reasons for running is that he dislikes the idea of "government leadership by appointment," referring to Schafenberg and Sa. 
"Let's do this the American way, and let the voters decide," Grogan said. 
He said he retired as a senior account executive from IBM when he was 71 and that he is an active member of the village fire department. 
"I want to keep taxes as low as possible, while still delivering essential services to taxpayers," Grogan said. 
"Moreover, I have the time and the business knowledge to make a positive difference in this great small-time village."Stewart Manor village trustees are paid $2,000 per year. The election will take place March 18 between noon and 9 p.m. at Village Hall, 120 Covert Ave.

Long Island

Nassau

TOSTEW12

Taxes among top issues for Stewart Manor candidates

The Amityville village board race gives voters a choice between two candidates, incumbent Nick LaLota and Wesley Powell, and the outcome will preserve or end a three-member majority on the board. 
LaLota, part of a majority that includes Mayor James Wandell and Deputy Mayor Jessica Bernius, has often provided the administration's public voice for initiatives like term limits for trustees and a freeze on base pay for some police officers. 
The chief of staff for State Senator Phil Boyle (R-Bay Shore), LaLota, 35, ran the Amityville First campaign that elected Wandell and Bernius last year and was appointed by Wandell when Deputy Mayor Peter Casserly resigned. He is a member of that party. 
Powell, 55, of the Union Party of Amityville, is a funeral home director in the village, the son of former trustee Wesley Powell and father of an Amityville volunteer firefighter. If elected he said he would focus on roads and quality of life issues like faster pothole repairs, implementation of a five-year road improvement plan and stronger code enforcement. He is a member of the downtown revitalization committee, a position to which Wandell appointed him before Powell announced his candidacy. 
The winner will serve out the remaining year in Casserly's term. 
Wandell and Bernius have endorsed LaLota, while trustees Kevin Smith and Dennis Siry attended Powell's campaign kickoff and Siry said he supports his campaign. 
And, while LaLota, Wandell and Bernius took voluntary 20 percent pay cuts soon after taking office, Powell said he would take no pay at all until all potholes are filled, the village beach is fully open after superstorm Sandy related repairs and the deficit is eliminated. 
LaLota highlights his stewardship of village finances, including what he said was the first ever village budget to come in under the 2 percent tax cap and the voluntary pay cut that he said permitted the elimination of municipal beach fees. 
Referring to LaLota's call for a freeze in village police base pay, Powell said last month he doubted whether police spending could be reduced because the current contract, which lasts until 2018, calls for salary parity with the county force and was renegotiated in 2013. 
"I would love to tell you the police are going to renegotiate their contract every year," he said. "But the fact is, they're not going to." 
Voting is March 18 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Polling place locations are online at amityville.com.

TOAMIT12

Three-member majority at stake in Amityville village election

Former Mastic Beach Village Mayor Paul Breschard, who resigned midway through his first term, has returned to the ballot box seeking a trustee seat against five other candidates. 
Breschard, 64, who assisted in organizing the village's code enforcement and public works departments, said he left in February 2012 largely because of health issues brought on by friction between trustee members. 
"It was either resign or wind up in a hospital," he said. 
Six candidates are vying for two trustee seats in the March 18 village election. Incumbents Gail Cappiello and Robert Morrow are running on the A United Party line; challengers Breschard and Frank Fugarino are running on the Founders Reform party line, and Bruce Summa and Maura Spery are running of the New Horizons Party line. 
If elected, Breschard, a retired English teacher who taught at William Floyd High School, said he will work to cut down on municipal spending. Those challenging him don't believe he should come back. 
"I think it's a mistake. He failed as a mayor and made promises he couldn't keep," said Cappiello, 68, who retired in 2002 from a job as a Stony Brook University grant writer. 
Breschard, the village's first mayor, said, "We promised a fully municipal government with a court and no tax increases. We walked in with nothing." 
Spery, 54, has spent 20 years working in the painting and plastering business. She said she wants to hold the board accountable for not recording public meetings despite receiving a $10,000 grant from Cablevision to do so three years ago. 
"We have an opaque government that doesn't want the public to know what they are doing and they violate open public meeting laws," she said. 
Morrow, 67, a retired Verizon field technician, would serve a third term if re-elected. He touts as accomplishments the board moving into a new village hall and the trustees cracking down on blight. He also said he wants to replenish sand dunes, raise houses that are threatened by storms, and improve wetlands. 
Summa, 60, who works part time as a hairstylist, maintains village officials haven't provided services such as picking up litter or sweeping streets. 
"No quality of life can improve until you can drive down the street and not be depressed by litter," he said. 
His vision for the village includes tearing down blighted homes, creating pocket parks or selling the lots to a contractor for development for owner-occupied homes. 
Fugarino, 69, is a part-time consultant with the New York City Board of Education and president of Pattersquash Creek Civic Association in the village. 
He believes the board "hasn't set the right priorities, adequately addressed housing concerns or quality-of-life issues and must fairly award contracts." 
For her part, Cappiello said her two years on the board hasn't been long enough to implement all of her ideas. 
"I want to finish the work that I started," she said. 
She wants to start a program to bring military families and businesses willing to hire veterans to the village. 
Residents can vote from noon to 9 p.m. at 265 Neighborhood Rd.

TOMAST11

Six vie for two trustee seats in Mastic Village

breschard

Need for improvements to Bellerose Village's business district and infrastructure top the list of priorities among the three trustee candidates running in the March 18 village elections. 
The three candidates -- two incumbents and a former mayor -- are competing for two, two-year seats on the five-member village board. 
Incumbent Margaret Hagan is running for re-election on the People's Party line, and incumbent Kenneth Moore on the Village Green Party line. Former Mayor Donna Sherrer is running on the Community Party line. 
Hagan, 56, a program manager for U.S. Customs &amp; Border Protection, was first elected to the board in 2008 and is running for a fourth term. She has been a village resident for 27 years, serves as a commissioner of the Bellerose traffic authority and is a member of the Bellerose Village Code Revision Committee. 
She said she spearheaded the village's residential rehabilitation program paid through a $50,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Block Grant Development program. The program offers residents a chance to get repairs done to their homes.&nbsp; 
"We're a very small and old village," Hagan said, adding the community of 1,200 people has a budget of about $1.25 million. "Every little bit helps." 
Moore, 52, an organizer for Sheet Metal Workers Union International, is running for his third term as trustee and has been a village volunteer firefighter for nine years. He has lived in Bellerose for 20 years. Moore said he wants to beautify the village by planting new trees, and repairing sidewalks and streets. He also wants to focus on attracting new businesses to the business corridor on Jericho Turnpike and improving storefront facades. 
"Businesses have been empty in the last four years and we want all the properties rented out," Moore said. 
Sherrer, 57, who was mayor from 2005 to 2011, has lived in the village for 33 years and was a member of the village's Board of Architectural Review for 12 years. She said she would like to create a plan to improve village roads and curbs. She also wants to work with the business district to foster economic growth. 
During her tenure as mayor, Sherrer said she led campaigns against the Long Island Rail Road's third-track project, which would have put a third track between Floral Park and Hicksville on the Main Line. She said she secured the preservation of the village hall, firehouse and police booth in 2006. They were added to the National Register of Historic Places. 
"Preserving these classic structures protects the character of our village, home values and may have been responsible for the LIRR's announcement that the third track would not impact Bellerose Village," Sherrer said. 
Polls are open from noon until 9 p.m. at Bellerose Village Hall, 50 Superior Rd. 
An earlier version of this story mischaracterized Hagan’s role in securing federal funds for repairs to the Fire House Emergency Operations Center.

TOBELL11

Bellerose Village candidates seek to improve business district

Island Park attorney Glenn Ingoglia is running for mayor of his hometown with a message that the village's ruling Unity Party has been entrenched for too long and allows local government to function like a private club. 
His opponent, Mike McGinty, a member of the Unity Party, said he and his slate of trustee candidates have a better understanding of village government and a better chance of helping the 4,600-resident village continue to recover from superstorm Sandy. 
Ingoglia and McGinty are running for mayor in a year of turnover in Island Park government. Mayor James Ruzicka, a Unity Party member, is retiring after eight years, and two trustee seats are up for grabs. Four candidates are vying for the two seats. 
The election is the first contested one in Island Park -- where the Unity Party has controlled Village Hall for decades -- in more than 20 years. 
Ingoglia, a Democrat running on the Voice Party slate, said the Unity Party harbors a bias in favor of Republicans. 
"What we notice from our local village is they will only deal with Republican officials," Ingoglia said. "We need to take the politics out of village government." 
McGinty, a Republican, said the village's government represents everyone. 
"I'm running for mayor because I don't have a political agenda," he said. 
Ingoglia, 45, practices family, personal injury and commercial law. He is also president of the Island Park Chamber of Commerce. 
Ingoglia's Voice Party slate includes trustee candidates Columbia Ciccimarro and Laura Hassett. Ciccimarro, 39, is a special-education teacher in the Herricks school district. Hassett, 39, is a registered nurse at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan. 
"It's just dominated by that one party," Ciccimarro said. 
McGinty, 60, was a finance and budget director for the Nassau County Legislature, and its precursor, the Board of Supervisors, for about two decades, ending in the mid-2000s. He has also worked as chief deputy receiver of taxes in Hempstead Town for about five years in the 2000s and is a former Island Park zoning board member. 
McGinty's running mates are trustee candidates Matthew Paccione and Joseph Annarella. Paccione, 27, is government liaison for Assemb. Brian Curran (R-Lynbrook). 
Annarella, 56, a nine-year trustee, is the only incumbent in the race. He is also the superintendent of sanitation for Hempstead Town. 
"The thing that's important is the revitalization of the downtown," Annarella said. 
The winning candidates will join two Unity Party members -- Irene Naudus and Stephen D'Esposito -- on the board of trustees. 
The election is from noon to 9 p.m. on March 18. The polling places are village hall, at 127 Long Beach Rd., and the Island Park Fireman's Exempt Hall, at 432 Long Beach Rd.

TOISLA10

Mayor's office, two trustee seats up for grabs in Island Park

Island Park -- cropped

Three candidates are running for two at-large trustee seats in the North Shore village of Old Field.
Former trustee Jeffrey B. Schnee is running on the Solar is Cool line against newcomers Robert E. Whitcomb of the Common Sense Party and Timothy Hopkins of the Shamrock Party. Each seat is a two-year term.
Schnee, 55, grew up in Flushing and received a bachelor's degree in economics at Stony Brook University. He was the chief information officer for Manhattan public relations firm Weber Shandwick Worldwide, and is now a partner in a Port Jefferson-based solar energy firm.
In 1999, he served the remaining eight months of a trustee's term after that trustee moved from the village. He lost a bid for re-election the next year. He's a member of the village planning board.
Schnee is running on his experience in management and accounting. "I've managed a multimillion [dollar] budget. I believe I can help with the village's financial matters," he said, adding, "I believe we have a lot of fiscal constraints that we have to deal with." 
Robert E. Whitcomb, 59, grew up in Huntington Station and attended Suffolk Community College and Hofstra University, where he received a bachelor's in business administration. He is the chief executive of his family business, the Whitsons Culinary Group, a food service management company in Islandia.
Whitcomb said he was motivated to run for the board out of "a sense of civic duty," adding, "I just want to make sure I'm doing my job up there and I can help the community, and have good common sense on regulations and codes that help the community but don't hurt the residents."
Timothy Hopkins, 60, grew up in Springfield, Mass., and received his bachelor's in political science from College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. He was president of merchandising for Borders Group, the former chief executive of Seattle-based Sur La Table, and moved to Long Island in 2005 where he was the chief operating officer for 1-800-Flowers in Garden City. He left the company last year and is now an independent consultant.
He's on the board of directors for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County. He said he was compelled to run for trustee as a way of "giving back to the community and serving the general public."
"We enjoy our neighbors and our community at large," he said, and pledged to work on "bonding with the neighborhood and our quality of life."
Voting is from noon to 9 p.m. March 18 at Village Hall at 207 Old Field Rd., Setauket.

TOOLDF10

Three vie for two trustee seats in Old Field

Old Field -- cropped

2014 Long Island village election coverage

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