Monday, December 2, 2024
Emily Austin, a social media influencer from Hewlett Harbor, was appointed the newest commissioner of the Nassau County Bridge Authority on Oct. 22.
Austin, 23, joins four other commissioners, and will serve as an unpaid volunteer for five years. The board has monthly meetings, and she will attend her first one in December.
From taking part in the Miss New York competition to marketing her own skin care brand, People’s Beauty, Austin has experience in various industries, she said. A 2019 graduate of North Shore Hebrew Academy, she attended Hofstra University, where she studied journalism, and landed an internship at the United Nations. After dropping out of Hofstra, she earned a liberal arts degree from Touro University in 2023.
She became known on social media in 2019, when she competed in Miss New York, before serving as a judge for the 2022 Miss Universe competition, in New Orleans.
When her father, Ron Austin, ran for mayor of Hewlett Harbor in 2020, Emily served as his chief of staff. Austin lost to Mayor Mark Weiss.
As she became more involved in the community, Emily Austin attended political events hosted by U.S. Rep. Anthony D’Esposito and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman. A member of Chabad of Hewlett, she attends High Holiday events and speaks on religious issues.
“I always made it clear that one day I know I have a future in political office,” Austin said, “but I just want to start small, and not take on more than I can handle.”
In September 2024, Blakeman told her about the opening on the bridge authority. He explained the importance of the bridge, its infrastructure and, she said, “how the community takes this very seriously.” She studied documents on the bridge’s history.
“I took a week or two to study the papers, and told the county executive that if you nominate me, I will take this responsibility seriously,” she said.
Having experienced Hurricane Sandy at age 12, and knowing the damage the bridge sustained, helped Austin understand how devastating it was for the community, and how important the bridge remains.
“I learned that we’re the only bridge that doesn’t receive taxes, so that’s why we’re so dependent on the tolls that, sometimes, people get so upset about,” she said. “I had to learn the concerns of the community with the priorities of Nassau County.”
One of her strengths, Austin said, is problem-solving. “I want to use my platform to make sure there’s open communication between the residents and the board, and really utilize technology as much as I can to have dialogue within the community,” she said. “Just bring a little bit of a young Gen-Z aspect to it — we’re the technology gurus. If I can make sure everyone’s voice is heard through what’s easiest, social media, anything technological, then, I’ll be the one to do that.”
Blakeman nominated Austin to be a commissioner at an Oct. 6 ceremony in Cedarhurst marking the anniversary of Hamas’s attacks on Israel.
“Emily Austin is deeply committed to Nassau County,” Blakeman wrote in a statement, “and has demonstrated through her advocacy, especially on social media, that she is a serious and professional individual who will contribute greatly to the continued success of the Nassau County Bridge Authority.”
