May 2017

NCVOA MAY 2017 NEWSLETTER

Published br the Nassau County Village Officials Associatuion

Post Office Box 484, New Hyde Park, NY 11040

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NCVOA MAY 2017 General Membership Meeting

Tuesday, May 9, 2017 -6:30 PM

Westbury Manor, Westbury, NY

Guest Speaker

Mr. Patrick Nowakowski

President LIRR

Patrick A. Nowakowski, a civil engineer and veteran operations manager, was appointed President of MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), the nation’s largest commuter railroad, on May 12, 2014.

Nowakowski is a career railroad professional with broad experience in operations, engineering, infrastructure and planning. Prior to his appointment at the LIRR, Nowakowski served five years as Executive Director of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project, building a 23-mile extension to the Washington, D.C. Metro system. He previously served more than 27 years with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA), including seven years as Assistant General Manager of Operations.

A resident of Garden City, Nowakowski is committed to strengthening the LIRR’s dedication to safety as its No. 1 priority. He also will focus on laying the groundwork for meeting future transportation demands, including preparing the LIRR for new service to Grand Central Terminal (GCT) via the East Side Access project.

As LIRR President, Nowakowski oversees more than 7,000 employees – one of Long Island’s largest workforces – and directs a commuter rail system with more than 700 miles of track that serves more than 86 million customers a year at 124 stations and terminals located in virtually every community on Long Island.

Please mark your schedules for Tuesday, May 9, 2017 to hear Mr. Nawakowski’s view of the future of the LIRR.

From the President’s Desk:

Dear Mayors, Trustees and Friends:

Once again, the recent New York State budget negotiations kept villages on the edge of their seats for several weeks as the governor and state legislators jockeyed for position to ensure that their key initiatives were funded. As I have been communicating to you throughout my tenure as NCVOA President, our main priority has been to advocate a long overdue increase in State aid to municipalities (AIM funding). I believe we made substantial progress in having this message heard in Albany as we garnered the support of NYCOM, the NYS Association of Towns and the Suffolk County Village Officials Association. In the end, while we were unable to secure an increase, we were able to maintain AIM funding without a reduction and secure additional monies to augment our annual CHIPS allocation. I am hopeful that we have set the tone for continuing progress towards additional State aid for villages for the next budget cycle.

Just as important as our AIM initiative was our participation in the joint response to the governor’s original shared services proposal that was included as part of the executive budget. We were successful in obtaining significant modifications to the original proposed legislation. Here is a summary of the approved legislation:

The Chief Executive of each county would create and chair a shared services panel consisting of the chief executive officer of the county and the chief executive officer from every village, town, city, school district and BOCES in the county;
The panel is charged with developing a tax savings plan;
Once completed, the plan would be submitted to the county legislature for the purpose of issuing an advisory report by August 1^st (after holding three public hearings);
The proposed shared services plan then goes back to the shared services panel for its consideration and vote. If approved by a majority of the panel, the plan will be implemented by the Chief Executive officer of the county;
If the shared services panel fails to approve the plan, then the county will release a report to the public on the proposal which will include the vote of the panel and written explanations from each member of the panel stating the reason for their vote. Thereafter, the plan will go back to the Chief Executive and the panel for redevelopment;
Each member of the panel may cause to remove any proposed action that affects the unit of local government that such member represents. Such removal must be done in writing and prior to the vote of the panel;
Counties who implement an approved plan can apply to the State to match demonstrated cost savings resulting from an approved plan. The county and all local governments that are part of the plan will have to jointly apply for matching funding and agree to the distribution of the matching funding;
There is no language in the approved budget allowing for any penalty for non-compliance.

Vision Long Island Executive Director Addresses Membership

Eric Alexander, Executive Director of Vision Long Island, a regional organization promoting smart growth, was the guest speaker at the April General Membership meeting.

Mr. Alexander, a long-time proponent of village government, began his remarks by stating, “Other groups of people want to control your zoning and copy your economic development plans. It is time for villages to stop playing defense and start to play offense.”

He went on to say that villages must quantify the economic benefits resulting from their vibrant downtowns. Of the 27 Nassau County downtown areas experiencing growing main streets, 19 are villages. Mr. Alexander particularly referenced ongoing main street growth in Westbury, Farmingdale and Mineola.

“Compared with unincorporated areas where there is widespread stagnation, village governments are working. People have more trust in their local governments. Don’t be shy – plant your flag. We believe in how you are managing your main streets and we want more of it.”

We thank Mr. Alexander for appearing at our meeting and his organization’s staunch support of villages.

Long Island Railroad President to Speak at May 9^th Meeting

If you have residents commuting to Manhattan, chances are that recently they are not very complimentary about the Long Island Railroad. The LIRR is under intense scrutiny as commuters have been subjected to an onslaught of delays caused by derailments, broken tracks and malfunctioning switches. You will have the opportunity to hear directly from the LIRR’s top executive as President Patrick Nowakowski will be the guest speaker at our May 9^th General Membership meeting. He will provide an update on the LIRR’s plan of action to address ongoing challenges as well as take questions regarding issues directly impacting your village and residents.

Please make your calendars for Tuesday, May 9^th at the Westbury Manor. I look forward to seeing you.

Yours in good government,

Bernard D. Ryba – President NCVOA

Officers Wanted:

As previously reported the NCVOA is accepting resumes for a chair officer’s position in the Association. At present, the Nominating Committee, under the direction of Mayor Peter Cavallaro’, is looking for candidates to fill the positions of President, 1^st Vice President, 2^nd Vice President and Treasurer.

The term of office will be for a period of one year. Chair officers meet with the other members of the Executive Board on the last Thursday of the month, unless order wise posted.

The election for office will be at our June 29, 2017 General Membership meeting and will be held in the Westbury Manor.

Interested candidates may send their resume’s to the Executive Director at exec@ncvoa.org.

Thank you

Warren Tackenberg

Executive Director

April 2017 Meeting Attendees

Vision Long Island Executive Director Eric Alexander was the evening’s guest speaker and discussed the positive impact of villages’ downtown revitalization projects	NCVOA President Bernie Ryba updated the membership on the items impacting villages in the 2017 New York State budget

East Williston Mayor and NCVOA Past President David Tanner with guest speaker Eric Alexander, executive director of Vision Long Island	Farmingdale Mayor and NCVOA Treasurer Ralph Ekstrand with Lynbrook Village Administrator John Giordano

Former Great Neck Mayor and NCVOA Past President Ralph Kreitzman with Thomaston Mayor Steven Weinberg	Great Neck Plaza Mayor Jean Celender with Freeport Mayor and NCVOA 1st Vice President Bob Kennedy

Great Neck Plaza Trustee Jerry Schneiderman and North Hills Trustee Elliott Arnold	Great Neck Plaza Trustee Pam Marksheid with newly elected Great Neck Estates Trustee Ira Ganzfried

Mineola Trustee Paul Cusato, Baxter Estates Mayor Nora Haagenson, and former Great Neck Mayor and NCVOA Past President Ralph Kreitzman	Mineola Trustee Paul Cusato, Village Clerk Joe Scalero, and Mayor Scott Strauss

Newly elected Hempstead Trustee Charles Renfroe with newly elected Mayor Don Ryan and Special Assistant to the Mayor Sedgwick Easley	Newly elected Sea Cliff Mayor Ed Lieberman, Old Brookville Mayor and NCVOA President Bernie Ryba, and Upper Brookville Mayor Elliot Conway

North Hills Deputy Mayor Dennis Sgambati, Mayor and NCVOA Past President Marvin Natiss, Trustee Elliott Arnold, and Town of Hempstead’s Bert Patterson	Plandome Heights Mayor Ken Riscica with Baxter Estates Mayor Nora Haagenson

	The Last Word: “Learn from the PAST. Live in ther Present. Plan for ther Future.” Anon