Brightwaters mayor appoints new trustee

A new trustee joined the Brightwaters board Monday, completing the new administration's overhaul of village hall.

Mayor Joe McDermott appointed resident Laurie Elliott to the board, and she was sworn in at Monday's board meeting.

Elliott, 50, fills the vacancy left by trustee Donna Barnett when she resigned from the board last month to become the village clerk.

Aside from McDermott, who was elected in June after serving as trustee for a year, the village's four trustees are all new to the board this year. One was elected in June, two were appointed in August, and Elliott is the fourth appointed to the board.

Elliott is a 16-year resident of Brightwaters and grew up in Mansfield, Massachusetts. She received a bachelor's degree in management from Tulane University in New Orleans and moved to Long Island in 1995. Elliott is a stay-at-home mother of two children and a former executive at Bethpage Federal Credit Union.

She said McDermott approached her to become a trustee in part because of her years of involvement with village activities such as the parks committee's plant sale.

Elliott said her goal as trustee was to work on good governance. "As a group, we're looking to bring a lot more focus on transparency," she said. Other priorities include "deciding what capital initiatives we need to look closely at."

Also at the meeting, McDermott said he'd received complaints about the aesthetics of a cluster of lights recently installed near village-owned Cascade Lake. He said he understood the complaints, comparing them to lights at "used car dealerships," and he said the lights would be temporary.

The new lights will better fit the look of the village, he said. "Before the lights get installed, we will review the code," he said.

McDermott also announced village hall will now be open from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays starting Jan. 3 to assist residents.