Bryan Rivera might be new to the Village of Roslyn Estates, but he is no stranger to the political world.
The 34-year-old Franklin Square resident, who was sworn in as the new village clerk at the board of trustees meeting May 13, began his political career fresh out of college in 2003 as an aide for former city councilman Tony Avella, now a state senator, and for current city Councilman Mark Weprin, when he was a state assemblyman.
“I like helping people, I’ve always been interested in government and good government, more specifically,” Rivera said. “Government and politics tend to go hand-in-hand, especially in New York and in New York City, so when this opportunity came up I thought it’d be a good opportunity to get back into it.”
Having taken over May 15 for former clerk Stephanie Butt, who resigned last month, Rivera said village government is “really the place where government starts at its purest form.”
“If there’s a pothole or a tree that needs taking down or your neighbor is doing illegal construction, you’re not going to call you’re local congressman,” Rivera said. “They’re responsible for many more constituents and the process could take awhile. If someone’s doing illegal construction next to your home, that’s going to affect your quality of life. We’re here so that you can call us and we’ll make sure the problem gets fixed in a timely manner.”
Rivera earned his bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in counseling from Queens College in 2001. He then began working for local politicians while working toward his master’s degree in public administration from C.W. Post, which he earned in 2006.
Rivera last worked for the environmental consulting and contracting company Enviro Trac, based in Yaphank, where he served as a business developer in sales and marketing.
“I was there for a long time, but lately I had been thinking about getting back into government and I kept my ears open and when this position came up, it was something I really wanted to pursue,” Rivera said.
When he’s not at Village Hall or running around with his two young daughters, Rivera said he works with the local Freemason civic groups on their various community service endeavours like organizing blood drives and its Child Identification program, which aids in the recovery of missing children.
“My wife says I’m the neighbor who will go knocking on people’s doors going, ‘Do you know about this problem? What are we going to do about it?’”
Rivera said his work as village clerk serves as an extension of that willingness to help better people’s lives, because after all, “somebody’s got to do it.”
Rivera said he had to immerse himself in the village’s daily routines and balance answering phones, meeting with residents and government officials and working on projects in preparation for meetings and other events.
“If there’s a problem in the village, they’re calling the mayor or Village Hall, so it’s a big responsibility making sure the bills get paid, making sure the building looks OK and all the responsibilities you have are handled,” Rivera said.
One of Rivera’s first major tasks as clerk, he said, was to aid in the annual calculations of the village’s taxes and organize and mail those bills out to residents, which are due July 1.
“I had to really jump into it and learn the tax program,” Rivera said. “Fortunately, I had a lot of help from the deputy clerk – she was a great help in terms of the transition – and I also knew I could call up our village attorney or assessment advisors if I needed to, but it was a pretty big undertaking.”
Though he said he doesn’t necessarily consider the village clerk to be the “bottom” of a village government, Rivera said the clerk’s position allows him the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of effectively operating a government, which will aid him at this level and any other he pursues in the future.
“What happens here is a reflection on the mayor and the board of trustees, so we have to do a good job because we’re the really the boots on the ground making sure their vision is put into practice,” Rivera said. “The guys I’ve worked with in the past and are working for now share the drive I have to help people, and I’ve been very lucky in that sense.”
