Anthony A. Piccirillo for Suffolk Legislative District 8

The 8th District covers Islip Town eastward from Oakdale.

The fight in this district focuses on development and infrastructure, as both candidates offer different visions for addressing the county’s housing shortage.

Republican Anthony A. Piccirillo, 42, of Holtsville, running for a fourth term, is being challenged by Democrat Kelly A. Perry-Hyland, 41, from Bayport.

Perhaps the most contentious issue in the district — and between the candidates themselves — is the South Bay Village proposal for the Island Hills Golf Club. Perry-Hyland said the developer shouldn’t be turned away, in part because plans would allow for building a sewer extension into downtown Sayville. Piccirillo rejects any plan that includes condos and said the county’s master plan already identifies other areas for mixed-use developments. He supports single family homes on half-acre plots.

Perry-Hyland blamed Piccirillo for what she said was allowing Sayville’s downtown to languish during his six years in office, saying downtown businesses could expand if the South Bay Village proposal is approved and sewer lines are built. Piccirillo countered that he hopes businesses soon could apply for county grant money for an on-site wastewater treatment system that would allow growth but prevent overdevelopment.

Piccirillo, one of the GOP caucus’ most conservative members, takes exception with Suffolk’s recent move to separate the sewer tax from the overall county tax bill and said he would raise that issue with colleagues during budget negotiations. Perry-Hyland decries the lack of transparency in the budget process.

Piccirillo said he voted for law enforcement union contracts after negotiating improvements such as overtime reform and mental health benefits. Perry-Hyland said those votes only happened to secure union endorsements.

Piccirillo has sponsored several notable bills and has been instrumental in getting sewers for Oakdale and Holbrook. Perry-Hyland, a relative newcomer to politics and Long Island, has energy and ideas that could serve the district well in other roles. Piccirillo has the policy experience needed in his district as it copes with proposed housing developments and infrastructure needs.

Newsday Opinion endorses Piccirillo.

Note: Democrat Kelly Perry-Hyland holds a Ph.D in chemistry but has not held a professorship in that discipline as an earlier version stated.