After months of campaigning, it’s down to the wire for candidates in the Greenport Village election. Voting takes place today through 9 p.m. at the Third Street Firehouse in Greenport.
Candidates include incumbent Deputy Mayor George Hubbard, Jr., who is facing off against local business owner Zuleyha Lillis for the seat left vacant by incumbent Mayor David Nyce, who decided against running for re-election this year.
Vying for two open trustee seats are incumbent David Murray, Greenport coach Jack Martilotta, businessman Douglas Roberts, and retired village utilities superintendent and former trustee William Swiskey.
Here’s a look at who’s running.
Mayor
Incumbent Deputy Mayor George Hubbard:
Following in his father’s footsteps, Greenport Village Trustee George Hubbard Jr. told SoutholdLOCAL, currently Deputy Mayor of Greenport, said that after having served as a Village Trustee for eight years, he’s enjoyed his time on the board. “We have lots of stuff going on and I want to finish it all,” he said.
Many have told him that his father, a longtime village trustee and former mayor, would be proud. After his father’s death, Hubbard carried on his father’s long legacy on the village tree committee, the skate park and in the Greenport Fire Department, also working on the ball fields. “Everyone has said my father would be happy about this,” Hubbard said. “I decided I have to do this, at least once.”
At last week’s SoutholdLOCAL debate, Hubbard spoke on a series of questions, beginning with Mitchell Park. Hubbard said he hopes the moratorium can be lifted soon and, as for mass public assembly permits, perhaps those wishing to host an event can leave a $500 deposit, allowing the village to keep $250 of that in the coffers for maintenance and upkeep. He added allowing village-sponsored events is a good idea, but the board needed to define what constitutes a village-sponsored event.
On the issue of transparency, Hubbard said when he runs meetings, he allows the public to speak. “If you ask me a question, I’ll call you. I have no secrets. The mayor shouldn’t have to use a gavel, he shouldn’t say ‘you’re out of order’. Let’s be respectful and we can get some work done.” Hubbard spoke of fixing a fence to make a field safe for kids and saving $80 on a tool by making his own. He said his family has pitched in to buy food and supplies for the skate park festival last year; the festival raised over $3,000, with funds going toward picnic tables for the facility. On the issue of crumbling infrastructure, Hubbard said, “The roads are bad.”
Ideas for generating revenue beyond the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program, or CHIPS, funding could include renting out the scavenger waste plant site; a possible peaker plant that could bring in $300,000 in rent; the village could once again look to sell Clark’s Beach, he said. While Hubbard feels the idea of adding a $1 surcharge to North Ferry passengers won’t work due to the need to create a special district, he spoke about the potential expansion of the sewer treatment plant east and west.
If elected, Hubbard outlined his top three objectives. “Code enforcement is a big issue,” he said, with it imperative to make things “equal for everybody.” Trying to build a deck was challenging, Hubbard said. He believes applicants to the building department should receive a packet with information that will facilitate the process and make it a fair playing ground for all. Central Avenue, he said, needs to be paved. “It’s really bad,” he said, also discussing other projects that need to be addressed. A new firehouse is something that “definitely needs to be done,” he said. One idea Hubbard had was to put up a building on Moore’s Lane for the fire department to use during construction of the new firehouse, then when that’s done, make the building a permanent road barn, selling the current road barn on Sixth Street to help pay for the new building.
Hubbard said he is always available to listen to constituents, helping an elderly neighbor with her absentee ballot and always willing to talk about the issues. “I drive around the village,” he said, just as his father did before him, in his white truck and chatting with neigbhors. “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. I care about this village — and I want to do a good job.”
Julie Lillis
The Greenport businesswoman said she’s running because the Village of Greenport has “morphed itself into two distinct and diverse villages. The first village is the one we all know and love as the quiet little village on the North Fork of Long Island that we all live in. I say ‘we’ because I have lived in the village for over 25 years, raised my family here and sent my son to the Greenport Schools. I have taught in the Greenport School and am an active member of the Fire Department. The second village is the one that has now been discovered by the rest of the country. It is an inescapable fact that, for better and sometimes for worse, that during the warmer months our home has turned into a tourist attraction. Others have learned about the wonders that is our Village of Greenport. As a community we must figure out how to meld these two villages.”
Lillis said she wants to work to cut unnecessary expense, increase revenue streams, cut back on consultants and fees. “We need to make our government self-sufficient” while championing the business community.
“Natural gas being clean safe and inexpensive should be available to as many locations in the village as possible, especially to the hospital where it is desperately needed,” she said. “This is a win-win since National Grid pays to bring the lines to the village.” She also advocates for a fee or rent for landing hub privileges from the Shelter Island North Ferry, improving the infrastructure of the village including but not limited to roads and parking.
“My first goal would be to enhance the beautification of our fine Village. I will seek to sanction a study for the creation of the ‘Silver Lake Project’. We would look to create a park, bird sanctuary, and nature walk on village property between Silver Lake and McCann campgrounds. This would serve as a sister park to Mitchell Park, which has brought nothing but accolades, tourist, and revenue to the Village not to mention a wonderful place for the residents of the village to just kick back and enjoy. This project would be paid for by a grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation,” she said.
Greenport, Lillis said, is a beautiful place and we need to do as much as we can to expand and promote what is best about Greenport.”
She added, “I would also ensure that the village implements programs and activities to utilize the existing parks to their full potential. There are many ways in which the parks can bring our residents together as a community to socialize, learn, and grow. One example of such programs would be dog training sessions in Mitchell Park. During the warmer months, resident pet-owners would be encouraged to get professional advice from a ‘dog whisperer’ type professionals.”
As mayor, Lillis said, “I would be actively seeking to bring these programs to the village, and I am looking forward to gathering input and ideas from the residents as to what programs are of interest and will benefit our community.”
Trustees
Incumbent David Murray, owner of Murray Design Build on Main Street, is originally from Georgia. He and his wife Lisa work together in the business; she’s the architect, while he’s a builder. The couple have two children, Megan and Myles.
Murray moved to Greenport in 2002 and said he was inspired by the newly completed Mitchell Park. Restoring an old house on Fifth Street, Murray’s office today is on Main Street so that he can be accessible to constituents who want to stroll in and talk about the issues. After serving on the historic preservation board, Murray said he was encouraged to run for a trustee seat.
Accomplishments of which he is most proud include the electrical upgrade at Mitchell Park, dramatically increased revenue from larger boats at Mitchell Marina, his involvement with Dances in the Park, and the moving experience when, after finishing the Fifth Street basketball park, parents of the young men to whom the park was dedicated, thanked him for remembering their sons for posterity.
Looking ahead, Murray said attention to infrastructure is critical. “Our next big project is the roads and we all know that,” he said. But, he said, the village can be “extremely proud of the refinancing we did with a lot of our debt a few years ago.” As a result, he said, the village has a strong rating and is in a strong position to bond and “do these roads right.” Priorities include a focus on area youth, with a fence soon being erected around the Third Street Park.
Murray stands firm in his belief that while the marina, carousel and ice rink are economic generators, Mitchell Park should remain a park for the people, with only village-sponsored events allowed. “To me, that’s what the park needs to be, an open space,” he said. “It can become a circus, if we’re not careful,” he said. Murray said challenges ahead include Phase II of the electrical upgrade; he’d also like to see the expansion east and west of the sewer district, and attention to the village’s buildings. As a builder, Murray said he has the experience and construction knowledge needed to help in the next phase of Mitchell Park, restoring the clear cedar so that it won’t need to be replaced; a long term capital plan is critical, he said. “The first two years in office are just spent learning the ropes. The last two, you start getting knee deep in things,” Murray said, adding that he wants to continue his mission in working for constituents.
Doug Roberts
In November, Greenport resident Douglas Roberts announced at a village board meeting that he would be running for one of the two open village trustee seats.
Roberts said he’s decided to run because he believes that residents need to be more connected to their government. “The people of Greenport deserve leaders who have the best of integrity, as well as the ability to think outside the box and solve problems.”
His career, Roberts said, involves helping clients to do just that; he’s an entrepreneur whose business focuses on educational technology, working with former teachers or technologists to solve problems in schools, as well as connecting with school district leaders to seek answers. “My business is one of connecting people with people. That’s the kind of work that needs to get done in government. We need to return government in Greenport to a place where village residents trust it.”
Explaining his platform “We Are Greenport,” Roberts said, ” It’s the idea that all of us should be able to understand what our government is doing and participate in its processes. We Are Greenport is the most succinct way to describe why I want to serve as a Trustee. Right now when I walk around town I see a lot of different Greenports. I see a Greenport with thriving businesses in the summer but many that struggle to get through the winter. I see a Greenport of bedroom community homes, a Greenport of vacant second homes, a Greenport of neglected and unsafe homes, and a Greenport in which landlords earn a buck while putting tenants — including young kids — in harm’s way through unsafe living conditions. I see a Greenport where the main issues challenging us are a lack of career-oriented jobs and the tourism-ization of the economy, and I see a Greenport where businesses believe the village needs to do more to increase tourism via events like Tall Ships. I see a Greenport where long-time homeowners want to participate in the booming tourism economy through legal short-term rentals in legal 2-family homes, and a Greenport where B&Bs and hotel owners want those who rent short-term rooms to be held to the same standards as they are.” His priorities are kids, safety and transparency, he said.
He added, “I am not running for Trustee because I have the answers to all these problems. I am running for Trustee because I think I have a good shot and building the coalitions and organizing community members to come up with compromises on which both sides can agree. I’ve been doing this work for 15 years in the private sector and with school district administrators, and now I am hoping to have the opportunity to do it on your behalf.”
William Swiskey
Former superintendent of utilities and trustee William Swiskey said he has the experience for the seat,with over 40 years of working for the village, and over 30 in supervisor roles.
“I understand not only how things work physically, but also financially. I can understand every financial document the village has.”
Priorities, he said, are to determine the actual financial condition of the village and get to work on getting the roads and the firehouse fixed, as well as to determine the condition of the power plant project and get it on track again.
Challenges, Swiskey said, include tackling debt and finding new revenue sources, codes and code enforcement problems, as well as “a public who feel the village officials care more about themselves then the people they work for.”
As for why voters should choose him on Election Day, Swiskey said, “I care about the village, its people and its future. I don’t need a lengthy learning period or expensive consultants to understand the villages problems. I will hit the ground running and will never disrespect or lie to the citizens of the village.”
Jack Martilotta, a teacher and football coach for the Greenport Porters, said he felt compelled to run for public office. “I feel that it’s important in our democracy to participate, and in doing so, we make the institution stronger. Also, Greenport is such a great place to live and raise a family, I would like to ensure that the village continues to thrive, yet maintain its charm.”Martilotta said his professional experience gives him unique qualifications. “As an employee of Greenport High School, I have the pleasure of working with some really great kids and in a outstanding community. My job also affords me an opportunity to communicate with community members in a way that might be difficult for people with a different profession.”
In addition, as 14-year veteran of the United States Army and NY National Guard, 1-69 Infantry, and as a Sergeant 1st Class, “I have been to multiple leadership schools, where I have learned the importance of communication, how to properly set and achieve goals, and move an organization in a specified direction. I feel that all of these skills will be helpful on our board,” Martilotta said.
If elected, Martilotta already has goals. “We need to figure out how to open up Mitchell Park to events as soon as humanly possible,” he said. “That park drives so much business to our downtown, and we need a workable solution.” Martilotta, who has lived in Greenport for over six years with his wife Jaime and three children, Jack, 4, Sophia, 2, and Emma, one month, said the village has “so much potential. We need to continue to forward if we are to realize that potential.”
Greenport’s greatest challenges, Martilotta said, include “infrastructure, creating a 12-month economy, extracurricular opportunities for our young people.” His hope is to build a YMCA and create a long-term vision for Greenport. Martilotta said he believes if elected, he can bring a unique perspective to the board. “I will work hard, be fair and honest, and I am willing to listen. As an Senior Leader in the US Army, I have been tasked with large projects filled with challenges, and I have found success. I will give the same effort in order to find success on the village board well.”
Here what all the candidates had to say in a video of the SoutholdLOCAL debate last week.
