Village of East Hills voters will choose between two incumbents and two civic activists who have engaged in a heated election race when the polls open on March 12.
In Roslyn Estates, residents will be asked to vote for two seats on the Board of Trustees, but have only one candidate on the ballot for whom to vote.
And in Flower Hill and Rolsyn Harbor, five trustees, two mayors and a village justice are up for re-election — all unopposed.
Election day in Roslyn will vary from village to village.
In East Hills, former Country Estates Civic Association president Jana Goldenberg and Neil Foster, an alternate on the village’s board of appeals, both running under the Resident’s Party line, have been embroiled in a bitter campaign with Deputy Manny Zuckerman and Trustee Clara Pomerantz in the run up to the March 15 elections.
Goldenberg, who has served on several village committees and backed Zuckerman and Pomerantz four years ago, has accused current trustees and Mayor Michael Koblenz of meeting in violation of public meetings laws and the trustees of not standing up to what she said was Koblenz’s bullying.
Foster said last month that what he wants is a more open government in East Hills where residents have direct access to the board, village budgets and its expenditures. Foster, who works as a personnel recruiter, and Goldenberg said they want to institute an outside Budgetary Advisory Committee similar to what is being done in the Roslyn School District.
Zuckerman and Pomerantz have both rejected Goldenberg’s accusations of meeting in violation of open meetings requirements and of not standing up to Koblenz who she has called a “bully.”
Pomerantz said Koblenz is not a bully and members of the board feel free to disagree with Koblenz, who works to resolves differences by consensus.
Both sides have taken to their party’s Facebook pages to connect directly with voters, tout their accomplishments and disprove of each other’s allegations.
On March 2, Goldenberg posted a FOIL request of payments made by the village to Sagat & Burton, village attorney, Bill Burton’s law firm since 2005 totalling over $1.59 million.
Koblenz responded on the East Hills Connection page, often used by supporters of the village board, explaining the legal services Burton provides to the village.
Goldenberg, who as president of the County Estates Civic Association helped secured a partnership between East Hills and National Grid to extend village gas lines to residents, has also clashed with Koblenz and the trustees over an offer for Goldenberg to serve as the village’s liaison with National Grid for the project.
Zuckerman said she requested $100,000, Koblenz said Goldenberg was offered $20,000 and Goldenberg said she requested $125 an hour but was not serious in her request. She said she was just responding to what she said was an effort by Koblenz to take credit from her on the project.
Both Pomerantz said they are running for re-election based on their records as well as what they intended to do in the future.
We were able to freeze taxes in the village for the past six years and that’s a huge accomplishment,” said Pomerantz, who was appointed by the board in 2010 when Linda Nathanson moved to Florida and ran in 2010 and 2011, both contested elections.
Pomerantz, who has been a Hebrew and nursery school teacher at Temple Sinai for almost 19 years, also pointed to the activities she has established for children and seniors at the Park at East Hills as supervisor of the Kids in the Parks Committee and the Senior Activities Committee.
Pomerantz was appointed to her trustee seat in 2010 after former Trustee Linda Nathanson moved to Florida. She retained it in a 2011 special election and 2012 general election.
Among his accomplishments, Zuckerman said, was his work in the village’s purchase of the property for the Park at East Hills and subsequent development as well as the villages’s agreement with National Grid to install gas lines throughout the village with the assistance of a grant obtained by state Sen. Jack Martins.
Zuckerman was first elected as a trustee in 2000, having previously served as president of the Nob Hill/Lakeville Estates Unified Civic Association for 10 years. He was selected by Koblenz as deputy mayor in 2010.
said she is challenging for the deputy mayoral seat on a board of trustees she said are intimidated by longtime Mayor Michael Koblenz.
Zuckerman and Pomerantz both get paid $27,500 and $22,000 respectively.
Voting will be held in the theatre building at Village Hall at 209 Harbor Hill Road from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The villages of Roslyn Estates and Roslyn Harbor will see changes to the board of trustee come March 15.
Brian Finegold, who is running unopposed under the Sunshine Party ticket, is seeking a sixth two year term as Trustee in Roslyn Estates.
But Trustee Sandy Joel Siff has declined to run for re-election and no candidate has stepped forward so far to run for his spot.
According to village clerk, Brian Rivera, the board of trustees will select someone to take Siff’s seat should there be no write-in candidates by the March 15 elections.
In Roslyn Harbor, Deputy Mayor Louis Badolato is running unopposed for Mayor David Mandell’s seat whose term ends in May and have decided not to rerun.
With Badolato’s trustee seat open, Roslyn Harbor resident Jasun Fiorentino is running for a spot on the board.
Trustee Jeremy Rosof is also running for re-election.
Terms lengths for board of trustee members in Roslyn Heights and Roslyn Harbor are two years and unpaid.
Efforts to reach Rosof and Badolato were unavailing.
Roslyn voters will cast ballots March 15 at Village Hall at 25 The Tulips.
In Flower Hill, trustees Randall Rosenbaum, Karen Reichenbach and Gary Lewandowski are running for re-election as well as Mayor Elaine Phillips and Village Justice Dennis Reisman. All positions are unpaid.
Reisman is running for the first time 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 was honored to accept the appointment,” Reisman said. “In order to continue in that position, I am now required to run for election.”
Reisman, who also serves as Flower Hills’ village justice, said he has been in legal practice for more than 38 years and has extensive litigation experience. He also served for 20 years as an arbitrator in the Nassau County District Court, adjudicating civil actions.
“As the acting justice of the village, I have presided over hundreds of traffic violations and village code violations giving me the experience to serve as the regular justice of the Village of Flower Hill,” Reisman said.
He said village justices deal primarily violations of traffic laws and ordinance.
“In dispensing justice, I have always tried to be just and fair yet courteous and compassionate with all the individuals who have come before the court charged with violations,” Reisman said. “I will continue in the same vein.”
Phillips is seeking a third term as mayor and said she plans on updating the village website and get more online, to help residents fill out forms.
“This is a big step for government,” she said. “We think we a new website and it’ll make things easier for permits.”
During her administration, Phillips said there haven’t been any tax increases due to strong fiscal management by her and the other trustees.
“I’m as good as the team around me,” Phillips said. “I believe we’ve done a great job.”
She also said one of problem areas in the village is the traffic along Port Washington Boulevard. She said she wants to use traffic cones on Port Washington Boulevard to help reduce congestion.
“Traffic gets backed up into middle lane,” Phillips said, referring to the left hand turn on Middle Neck Road. “It’s an accident waiting to happen.”
Reichenbach, who is running for re-election as two-year term trustee in the Village of Flower Hill, said she has represented the residents of the village fairly and with integrity and will continue to do so if re-elected.
“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 has headed the Tree Committee, working with the Board of Trustees, Mayor and Village Administration to achieve Tree City USA status with the National Arbor Day Foundation. She is also the village’s representative on the Hempstead Harbor Protection Committee.
If re-elected she said she intends to continue to monitor the villages finances and make sure the expenditures are necessary to maintain the quality of life in the village.
She said one of the biggest problems in the community has to do with the safety of drinking water.
“The mayor and I serve on a committee sponsored by Residents for a More Beautiful Port Washington that has been very effective in serving the Port Washington and Manhasset peninsula’s water issues,” Reichenbach said. “Gov. Cuomo has just funded a study of our aquifer. The committee also successfully stopped Queens from opening wells that were closed for many years, which would have had a negative impact on our drinking water.”
All board positions are unpaid according to village administrator Ronnie Shatzkamer.
Voting will take place at Village Hall at 1 Bonnie Heights Road from noon to 9 p.m.
Village of Roslyn Deputy Mayor Marshall Bernstein and Trustee Craig Westergard are both running for re-election.
Bernstein has served on the Board of Trustees since 1995. Westergard was first elected in 2000.
Both won their most recent two-year terms in unopposed 2014 bids.
Roslyn voters will cast ballots March 15 at Village Hall at 1200 Old Northern Blvd.
