All 15 candidates running for re-election in the villages of Manhasset ran unopposed on Tuesday. All 15 won.
The lone non-incumbent to win was registered nurse Dianne Sheeha, who received 108 votes to replace trustee Lynee Aloia, who decided against running for re-election.
Mayor Kenneth Riscica said at the March 10 board of trustees meeting that Aloia had decided to take a break from service.
Riscica, who received 104 votes to win re-election in a race in which he was unopposed, said he was delighted that Sheehan is willing to volunteer her time to serve the village.
“She will make a terrific trustee,” said Riscica, who first won the mayoral elections in 2012 after serving two terms as a trustee.
Sheehan, who also works part time in her family’s real estate management business, moved to Plandome Heights in 1991 with her husband to raise two children.
Trustees Silva Ferman and Alvin Solomon also won re-election in unopposed races.
Ferman, who was elected to the board in 2004, received 106 votes, while Solomon received 103.
Solomon was first elected in 2006 and has served as trustee since.
There were no write-in candidates.
In Flower Hill, trustees Randall Rosenbaum, Karen Reichenbach and Gary Lewandowski were re-elected as well as Mayor Elaine Phillips and Village Justice Dennis Reisman. All board positions are unpaid, according to village administrator Ronnie Shatzkamer.
Lewandowski, who won with 41 votes, said he ran for village trustee again to continue to work with the mayor and board of trustees in pursuing their goals of running an efficient, transparent and supportive local government while also enhancing and protecting the beauty and livability of the Flower Hill community.
“I am very proud to be associated with the current administration which has responsibly managed the village budgets for the last several years and has kept tax bills in check,” Lewandowski said.
Reisman was elected as village justice with 44 votes. This was his first time running after being appointed village justice by Phillips after Justice Bruce Byrne moved out of the village and resigned his position.
Prior to his appointment, Reisman had served as acting justice for five years, filling in for Byrne when he was not available.
“I plan on fulfilling my duties as Justice and dispensing justice in the Village fairly and treating all who come before me with respect,” Reisman said after he was re-elected.
Phillips was re-elected a third term as mayor with 46 votes.
“We truly appreciate the people that took the time to come out, and those that didn’t but have supported us all this time,” Phillips said after finding out the results.
She said her plans include updating the village website and get more online, to help residents fill out forms.
“Away from paper and more online,” Phillips said.
She also said one of the problem areas in the village is the traffic along Port Washington Boulevard and wants to use traffic cones on Port Washington Boulevard to help reduce congestion.
Reichenbach, who was re-elected to a two-year term in the Village of Flower Hill with 42 votes, said she has represented the residents of the village fairly and with integrity and will continue to do so.
“I have faithfully carried out my duties to the village for two terms,” Reichenbach said. “Experience in village governance is important to maintain momentum. Right now, we have a great group of trustees anchored by an excellent mayor. We all make every effort to represent our residents in an honest and straightforward manner. Each of us brings different skills to the board, which results in a good balance of knowledge and experience. The Village of Flower Hill is in good hands.”
Reichenbach added she will start planning for the 2016 Arbor Day Event.
“We will be planting a tree in an island within the community in honor of Arbor Day and our Tree City USA commitment,” Reichenbach said.
Randall Rosenbaum was re-elected for village trustee with 43 votes.
In the Village of Munsey Park, Deputy Mayor John Lippmann and trustee Jennifer Noone both won re-election in uncontested races.
Lippmann, who was elected deputy mayor in 2014 received 72 votes.
He moved to Munsey Park five years ago, works in commercial real estate finance and as an adjunct professor at New York University’s Schack Institute of Real Estate.
Lippman has served the community on the village’s building advisory committee as well as the Manhasset School District’s Citizens’ Advisory Committee for Finance before running for deputy mayor in 2014.
He said he has worked with other trustees, the mayor and other municipalities to improve governmental transparency and quality of life for residents of Munsey Park.
“I was humbled by the outpouring of support we received, when running for re-election,” Lippmann said. “Many residents volunteer their time, contributing in different ways to make the community such a wonderful place to live and raise our families.”
Before his reelection, Lippman said he initiated traffic safety plans that eliminated traffic congestion around Munsey Park Elementary School.
He said he is working with board members on a financial plan that will decrease the debt service associated with the current outstanding bonds.
“I am honored to serve a second term as a Village of Munsey Park Trustee,” Lippmann said.
Noone, who received 72 votes, joined the village’s architectural review board in the spring of 2013 and was appointed to the board of trustees in September to finish the remainder of former Trustee Matthew Seidner’s term.
She said her professional experience as a former corporate lawyer eased her transition to serving on the board.
Noone and Lippmann ran on the Residents for a Better Munsey Party ticket in 2014 and defeated Trustee Susan Auriemma, and trustee candidate Eileen Cuneo who ran on the Village Party line.
Noone was elected to her first term as trustee in 2014 after receiving the highest number of votes among the four candidates vying for two spots on the board with Lippmann receiving the second highest.
“I’m honored to be representing the village again for the next two years as a trustee,” Noone said in a statement.
She said the board of trustees have been working on a few projects good for the community and aims to see it through.
“I live here because we all care about our community and we want to raise our children in the best environment possible,” Noone said. “If I can improve on this in any way, I have done my job successfully.”
She was appointed to the board in September 2013 to finish the remainder of former Trustee Matthew Seidner’s term, joined the village’s architectural review board in the spring of 2012.
Munsey Park Clerk Barbara Miller said there were 76 total votes with five write-in votes that were thrown out for misspellings.
Two incumbents in the Village of Plandome Manor each were re-elected to two-year terms in an uncontested race.
Patricia O’Neil and Tony DeSousa both received 11 votes and 10 votes respectively.
“I’m happy about the re-election and that the residents placed their trusts in me,” said DeSousa, who is a real estate investor.
He said Plandome Manor is a small village and he will continue to work to repave the roads and improve infrastructure in the village.
Efforts to reach O’Neil were unavailing.
In the Village of Plandome, incumbent trustees Andrew Bartels and Ray Herbert were each re-elected to the board on the Citizens Party Line.
Herbert received 37 votes, while Bartels received 36 votes. Write-in votes were cast for Roger Goodwin and Robert Erb.
Bartels was appointed to the board in 2011 to finish the term of late Trustee Peter Kenny and re-elected to a full two-year term in 2012. Herbert, the village’s deputy mayor, was first elected in 2002.
Efforts to reach Bartels and Herbert were unavailing.
