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Civic associations host informative evening, community hears from area candidates
It was another year of meeting the candidates on Oct. 5. The South Merrick Community Civic Association, in partnership with the Bellmore Civic Association, hosted the annual “Meet the Candidates” night, allowing Merrick and Bellmore community members to hear from those running for office in November, and ask questions on hot-button issues.
The civic associations invite everyone on the ballot to come to an open forum with the community. This year’s evening featured Christopher Carini and Jasmine Pena, who are running for Town of Hempsted Council District 5; Mike Reid for Hempstead Receiver of Taxes; Susan Cools for Hempstead Town Clerk; Joseph Baker and Seth Koslow for County Legislative District 5 and Michael Giangregorio, for Legislative County District 12.
Jeanine Driscoll and Kate Murray, the republican incumbents for Receiver of Taxes and Town Clerk, respectively, were not at the event. Giangregorio’s opponent, democrat Matthew Pasternak was also not present. Both candidates for Town of Hempstead supervisor, Don Clavin and Olena Nicks, could also not make the event.
The event was hosted at the Merrick Golf Course.
“This civic is doing this to introduce candidates,” Berta Weinstein, the South Merrick’s president said. “We do not want to attack each other here. We all live in this community. We all live in Nassau. We all want what’s best for all of us.”
Alison Frankel, president of the Bellmore Civic Association, read this year’s rules. If both the incumbent and opponent were present, the opponent would choose to speak first or last. If there was no incumbent, the opponents would flip a coin to decide who would speak first.
Each candidate was allotted 8 minutes of speaking time, which included a question-and-answer period. Those in attendance were asked to not interrupt the candidates while they were speaking, and to not leave the room in the middle of their speech.
This year, questions for candidates from the community were submitted with an index card system, in which someone would write down their question on a card, and place it anonymously in a box.
“If we have questions for that candidate, we will put it in a box — shake it, and pick out a question, not knowing who it is from, and not knowing what the question is,” Weinstein said. “We feel that is the safest and most logical way, so no one has any preemptive information on what questions are begin asked.”
Topics of concern to the community and candidates included everything from safety, infrastructure upgrades, quality-of-life issues and environmental initiatives, among others.
Plans and ideas regarding the takeover of Liberty Water, a private company that recently requested a 42 percent rate increase from the state’s Public Service Commission, were also discussed. Some residents also voiced their concerns about the proposed Las Vegas Sands Casino in Uniondale, to ask candidates what their thoughts were on that.
The evening concluded with a more casual discussion,ze for attendees to mingle with candidates, and follow up on ideas and thoughts that weren’t addressed during the question-and-answer period.
The next Bellmore Civic Association meeting will take place at the Bellmore Memorial Library on Oct. 17, beginning at 7 p.m., and the next South Merrick Civic meeting will take place on Oct. 19, at the Merrick Golf Course, beginning at 7 p.m.
