Sands Point civic group to host Jack Martins, Tom Suozzi

Noah Manskar

The Sands Point Civic Association, Inc. will host 3rd Congressional District candidates Jack Martins and Tom Suozzi July 13, their first joint appearance as they vie to replace U.S. Rep. Steve Israel.

Martins, a Republican state senator, and Suozzi, a Democrat and former Nassau County executive, will discuss issues and answer questions from the crowd at Sands Point Preserve Conservancy, civic President Peter Forman said.

“Steve Israel was a great representative of our community. Those are very big shoes to fill,” said Forman, also the Village of Sands Point’s deputy mayor. “We are excited and looking forward to learning more about what these two current and previously elected candidates, Jack Martins as state senator, and Tom Suozzi as former county executive, what their vision is for representing us at the congressional level.”

Suozzi, of Glen Cove, beat four other Democrats in a June 28 primary for his party’s nomination in the North Shore district stretching from Whitestone, Queens, to Kings Park in Suffolk County. The counties’ Republican committees endorsed Martins, of Old Westbury, in March, making him the likely GOP candidate as challenger Philip Pidot tries to force a primary in federal court.

The non-partisan Sands Point Civic Association regularly hosts elected officials, Forman said. 

Martins addressed the group the summer after his election to the state Senate in 2010, he said, but has not met with Suozzi.

The group is particularly concerned about federal “regulations and mandates” that make local government more expensive, Forman said.

“Our residents have a broad diversity of interests and views on federally addressed subjects, but on the local level I think that local municipal costs are a great unifying issue,” he said.

A village of about 2,700 people with a median household income of about $207,000, Sands Point is much more affluent than the district as a whole, which has a median household income of about $101,000, according to U.S. Census data.

Sands Point’s voter enrollment roughly matches the district’s, state and county data shows. About 37.7 percent of its 2,146 active voters are Democrats, compared with 38.2 percent across the district; 29.4 percent are Republicans, compared with 30.2 percent district-wide; and 28.2 have no party affiliation, compared with 25.7 percent district-wide.

The meet-and-greet with Martins and Suozzi will start at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 13, at the Sands Point Preserve Conservancy at 181 Middle Neck Road. 

The event is free to Sands Point Civic Association members. The public can purchase tickets for $40. A light dinner and refreshments will be served.

Share this Article