Incumbent trustees Mary Bess Phillips and Julia Robins and challenger Paul Kreiling are in a three-way contest for two open seats on the Greenport Village Board in tomorrow’s general election .
Paul Kreiling
Kreiling, a sailing instructor and owner of Easterly Sailing, has lived in Greenport on and off for over 25 years and is a newcomer to electoral politics. He says he’s running on the “Harbor Party” ticket.
“The water is a whole dimension that Greenport has used as a resource but hasn’t really respected. What’s actually going on with the harbor? I don’t know anybody who’s done studies on the water or the quality of water. I think our waterfront needs more local access. We have a wonderful marina that makes a lot of money for us, but we should be able to use it. I’m all about making the village just a little bit better.”
Mary Bess Phillips
Phillips, owner of Alice’s Fish Market in Greenport, is seeking re-election to continue the work that’s been done on the light plant, the sewer plant and the roads. She is also committed to helping the village work out the changing housing market.
“We’re a community but also a destination and years ago the code was changed to deal with the times to avoid having all the housing going to all second home owners. I think we need to work towards becoming a community again, looking at the code that the zoning board and the planning board are struggling with and dealing with housing. Communities change and the code needs to change. We need to really look at bringing in the younger people to live within the village and the code needs to be reviewed.”
Julia Robins
Real estate agent Robins, a former contractor, is a proponent of infrastructure and is the utilities liaison for the board.
“I have spent countless hours learning about municipal public power. I am passionate about my participation in meetings and conferences with N.Y. Association of Public Power. I care about the quality of life in the village, and think that we should put our resources into what we do well.”
Former trustee William Swiskey Sr. said last week he was considering running as a write-in candidate, but the status of that effort remains unclear. Swiskey did not return a phone call seeking comment for this article.
Polling takes place from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. tomorrow at the Third Street firehouse.
The three candidates discussed a wide range of local issues in a March 13 forum sponsored by SoutholdLOCAL and The Suffolk Times.
