As the redistricting saga turns

Daily Point

NY’s titanic map war stretches to 2024

The legislative lines for this year’s June 28 and Aug. 23 primaries and the Nov. 8 general election are finally set. The revised period for petition filing ended this week.

But on Friday, New York’s political world learned that the redistricting drama that brought months of major court action and chaos is due to extend into next year in advance of the 2024 elections for the state Assembly’s 150 seats.

State Supreme Court Justice Laurence Love declared that like the congressional and state Senate maps a court master already redrew for 2022, the Assembly lines previously crafted by the legislature in Albany violated the state Constitution.

Because those lower-house lines were not challenged in time, he ruled, they won’t be changed for this year.

Behind the court’s delay in addressing the Assembly is that Republicans who derailed the Democrats’ House and state Senate lines had no real problem with the one map set by Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie.

With a 103-47 advantage in members, Heastie faced no loss of his majority, so he saw fit to allow district lines that protected Republican incumbents. No members were put in each other’s districts as occurred in the other maps. More than a dozen Republicans even voted to pass the Democratic plan.

In fact, this latest case was led by two dissident Democrats and a maverick Republican who alleged a corrupt bipartisan deal left Heastie’s Assembly lines unchallenged. Both party establishments were reluctant to rock that boat.

Election experts told The Point on Friday that the ruling poses unique questions in the way of what is supposed to happen next.

One possibility is another special court master. A more intriguing prospect is that the legislature could try to have the bipartisan Independent Redistricting Commission reassembled to follow the constitutional plan by which it agrees on maps and sends them to Albany for approval.

That legal design failed this year. The commission deadlocked as expected along partisan lines. But if both parties were fine with the Assembly lines as originally proposed, why couldn’t they get the IRC to agree on a map similar to the one now struck down — and put it into effect next year?

But some election wonks point out that the current “independent” system does not allow for off-cycle redistricting — so the solution of sending it back to the IRC might not be any more practical than the commission’s earlier role proved to be. It could require a constitutional amendment approved by both houses, then the voters.

The judge, who sits in Queens, happens to be a former staffer for ex-Assemb. Audrey Pheffer, now the borough’s county clerk.

Formally, Justice Love writes: “The matter is remanded to the Supreme Court, New York County for consideration of the proper means for redrawing the state assembly map.” Thus the trials of this jagged process linger on.

— Dan Janison @Danjanison

Talking Point

Unlocking at last

After a monthslong standoff between Hempstead Town and community leaders, the renovated Elmont Road Park is slated to reopen on or before June 28. During a lengthy Community Advisory Committee virtual meeting Thursday night, the Town of Hempstead came to an agreement with state elected representatives, officials from Empire State Development, members of the community and New York Arena Partners, the developer of the UBS Arena at Belmont Park, to get remaining safety issues resolved and open the park.

“After talking over the issues, we came to a resolution that by the last day of school, the park should be open,” Assemb. Michaelle Solages told The Point Friday. “We have a path to move forward to make sure the park is open.”

The various parties agreed to try to get the park open even earlier, if the safety concerns can be resolved sooner. 

New York Arena Partners spent $3 million renovating Elmont Road Park but Hempstead officials have refused to open it citing a list of outstanding issues, some safety-related, some not. The reticence to open generated anger among state elected officials like Solages and State Sen. Anna Kaplan, leading Hempstead Town Supervisor Don Clavin to meet with officials from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office Thursday.

Clavin wasn’t on the Thursday night call, but other town officials raised a host of issues that were not safety-related, including the scoreboard they said wasn’t appropriate for football, and the size of the basketball court. But Elmont residents pushed back, continuously steering the conversation back to the specific safety concerns that the town said had to be addressed before the park reopened. The group went point-by-point and came up with solutions to each. Drain grates in the field will be covered, as will exposed wiring in the light poles. As for the concrete bench town officials said was too close to playground equipment, those officials admitted during the meeting that the bench met safety requirements set by the town itself, but still wanted a fix to the problem. Participants proposed covering the bench with foam or another soft material to address that issue.

Solages noted that if additional issues arise, they could be addressed after the park opens.

“The park needs to be open for the children of Elmont,” she said.

— Randi F. Marshall @RandiMarshall

Pencil Point

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Puzzle Point

In the news

Welcome to this week’s news quiz, based on recent events. As usual, provide the answer for each clue, one letter per blank. The first letter of each answer, taken in order, spells the name of the U.S. senator who opened a climate change hearing by saying, “This is a five-alarm crisis for the American West … When hurricanes and other natural disasters strike the East Coast, or the Gulf states, Washington springs into action to protect those communities. But we haven’t seen anything like that kind of response to the Western water crisis, even though its consequences are far more wide-reaching and sustained than any one natural disaster.”

A link to the answers appears below.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _   The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention raised the alert level for this exotic virus to 2, warning travelers to take “enhanced precautions.”

_ _ _ _ Middle Eastern country that sentenced a 66-year-old geologist from Britain to 15 years in prison for trying to smuggle artifacts out of the country.

_ _ _ _ _ _     _ _      _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _   A Navy F-14 Tomcat jet fighter in front of a vacant former Grumman office building will be moved to this museum.

_ _ _ _      _ _ _ _ _   Seville, Spain will be the first of several major cities — like Los Angeles, Miami and Athens, Greece — to give names to these summertime weather conditions, as is done with hurricanes.

_ _ _ _ _ _   A bill passed by New York’s legislature targeting the use of warehouse productivity quotas was directed at practices used by this company.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _   A bipartisan group of Long Island leaders called for the Long Island Rail Road to do this to the Port Jefferson branch.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _   The U.S. Justice Department opened an investigation into reports of beatings of primarily Black men by state police from this state.

_ _ _ _ _      _ _ _ _ _ _ _   The major country prime minister who survived a no-confidence vote by his Conservative Party and will continue to govern.

_ _ _ _      _ _ _ _ _ _ _   Long Island town that began the process of closing its airport after litigation prevented it from limiting takeoffs and departures.

_ _ _ _ _      _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _   Long Island municipality whose redistricting commission released four options for a revised district map.

_ _ _ _ _      _ _ _ _ _ _   A forever first-class postage stamp honoring this former first lady was issued by the U.S. Postal Service.

_ _ _ _      _ _ _ _ _   New York City elected official who testified before Congress and called for gun control legislation, saying, “It is high noon in America.”

_ _ _ _ _ _ — _ _ _   Age at which New Yorkers are now permitted to buy semi-automatic rifles, after a new law signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Click here for the answers to the clued words and to the identity of the mystery senator.

— Michael Dobie @mwdobie