Editorial

Shelter Island Reporter 2015 election endorsements

Human hand checking the checklist boxes

Jim Dougherty for supervisor
Republican Art Williams entered the race for supervisor against incumbent Democratic Supervisor Jim Dougherty by saying elections should be just that and not “coronations.”

President of the Chamber of Commerce and a former supervisor, Mr. Williams is to be commended for always having the best interests of Island residents at heart and running a campaign on issues and not personalities. He has made this race anything but a coronation.

Supervisor Dougherty has campaigned on a solid record of keeping taxes low while providing essential services and being a passionate advocate for protecting the environment.

An able executive, Mr. Dougherty has guided the town with a sure hand to achieve responsible budgets through the difficult restrictions of state-imposed tax caps.

He is working to stop what could be a frightening endgame for the purity of our ground and surface waters. For that commitment and an overall excellent record on the environment, Mr. Dougherty has the prestigious endorsement of the Long Island Environmental Voters Forum.

The supervisor has been out in front on finding solutions to the public health crisis of tick-borne illnesses, promoting and supporting the 4-poster program and advocating successfully for state funds to help in the fight.

A vocal leader on ending excessive aircraft noise, Mr. Dougherty has used his perch as chairman of the East End Supervisors and Mayors Association to push for regional solutions to the problems facing the Island.

The Reporter endorses Jim Dougherty for re-election as supervisor.

Shepherd, Colligan for Town Council
Emory Breiner, a member of the town’s Planning Board, has dedicated himself to serving Island residents, especially as a watchdog of the town code and the rules and regulations regarding our waterways.

But he has strong opposition in the three-way race for two Town Board seats.

Incumbent Councilman Paul Shepherd is a public figure who is most interesting in his contradictions — prolonging a battle over a simple municipal lighting law on the grounds of government overreach, yet plunging into the minutiae of regulating inground sprinklers.

He takes his post seriously and with passion, to the point where he sometimes overstates his case, and his language can get him into trouble.

One example is when he was espousing the most progressive position on undocumented immigrants — finding a way to have them licensed to drive — but came off sounding Trump-like.

He’s an intelligent, hard-working and dedicated elected official who unequivocally deserves another term on the Town Board.

Jim Colligan, president of the Silver Beach Association, a Mashomack board member as well as a member of the Deer & Tick Committee, assistant basketball coach — his list of volunteer work for the Island would take up too much space for this endorsement. We’re lucky to have Mr. Colligan in this race.

He’ll bring his commitment to fairness and sound judgment to the Town Board and we endorse him for election.

Jay Card runs unopposed
No surprise that Jay Card Jr. is running unopposed for a third two-year term as Highway Superintendent. He has proven to be a highly organized leader of the Highway and Public Works departments, who is clearly respected by the team he leads.

Ask him about any accomplishment and he heaps praise on his workers.

In an effort to get town assets on a regular maintenance schedule, he has sounded the call for more money and after four years, has finally won a substantial budget to tackle town roads.

Shelter Island has been well served  by Mr. Card and he deserves a vote of confidence on Election Day.

Steve Bellone for Suffolk County Executive
When Steve Bellone was first elected Suffolk County Executive four years ago, he inherited a financial firestorm.

The county was facing a $500 million deficit and $200 million structural budget gap, as Mr. Bellone, a Babylon Democrat, has pointed out often in his re-election campaign.

Through tough decisions like the elimination of more than 1,000 budgeted jobs and challenging political maneuvers like the closing of the John J. Foley nursing home in Yaphank, Mr. Bellone says he has eliminated the deficit and cut the budget gap in half.

He has been forced to spend much of his first term in office dealing with county budget matters and he has served admirably (and creatively) in this regard without piercing the state property tax cap.

Still, his Republican opponent, James O’Connor, a Great River attorney and former North Hempstead Town Board member and building commissioner, is running almost entirely on the issue of county finances. He’s criticized the incumbent on the new police contracts negotiated in his first term and said

Mr. Bellone has not done enough to cut spending and taxes.

In a second term, we’d like to see Mr. Bellone have some sort of presence here on Shelter Island and the greater East End. He shouldn’t just make appearances for photo opportunities at North Fork farms or when crisis strikes during a wildfire or massive fish kill.

That latter issue of water quality is Mr. Bellone’s greatest opportunity to make his presence felt here. His administration’s recent update to the Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan is a good first step. Moving forward by taking action to reduce nitrogen pollution in our bays should be as critical a goal as any other in the second term he has rightfully earned.

Bridget Fleming for County Legislator
Two intelligent and hardworking candidates are facing off to replace the term-limited Jay Schneiderman to represent the Island in the County Legislature.

Bridget Fleming and Amos Goodman have a thorough understanding of what makes the East End special and share similar views about the importance of fiscal responsibility and environmental protection.

We give Ms. Fleming an edge because she has legislative experience as a Southampton Town councilwoman and has demonstrated an understanding of compromise to achieve her goals.
She will be a worthy successor to Jay Schneiderman.