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Shelter Island Reporter Endorsements for Election 2024

Lisa Shaw for Town Board

Shelter Island voters are fortunate to have three excellent candidates to choose from to fill the vacant seat on the Town Board.

Republican Tom Cronin, a lifelong resident, has served with distinction as a Shelter Island police officer and a Fire Department volunteer for more than two decades. He and his wife Susan have raised their children here, and Mr. Cronin’s was one of the voices raised — and heard — over a controversial school policy on empathy among students that was ill-conceived, and eventually scrapped.

We know Mr. Cronin, win or lose, will continue to be an engaged, thoughtful Islander on the issues of the day.

As we have noted before, Democrat Arnott (Gordon) Gooding is an exemplary public servant, a clear-eyed, intelligent person who has dedicated his career here to preserve Shelter Island’s open spaces as the longtime chairman of the Town’s Community Preservation Fund Advisory Board.

Under his leadership, Mr. Gooding has led the CPF to create management plans for the properties to stay secure from development. We all owe Mr. Gooding a debt for his conscientious work, and for stepping up when some would infringe on the task of taking tax money and buying land that will be undeveloped forever and owned by all Islanders.

Lisa Shaw, an independent candidate running under the Island Action banner, has shown extraordinary leadership skills and dedication to the Island. As the longtime leader of the West Neck Water (WNW) District Board of Directors, she has shown outstanding attention to detail and a talent for crunching numbers with the best of them.

She negotiated hard and persistently with professionals from the Suffolk County Water Authority, and her patience and intelligence put a 40-year contract in place with the SCWA. It took countless hours reviewing technical proposals, always keeping in mind the best interests of those who depend on the WNW District for responsible management and delivery of clean water.

Ms. Shaw’s work through the years provided her with the basics of volunteer service on Shelter Island’s Water Advisory Committee, where she has contributed mightily to that group. Her efforts with respect to water systems have gone above and beyond what is expected.

Ms. Shaw will bring that energy and knowledge to Town Hall as well as a needed independent voice to deliberations, and is the Reporter’s choice for Town Board.

Stanley Birnbaum for Town Justice

Michael Carey is an accomplished attorney and a person who has the best interests of Islanders in his bid to be elected Town Justice. However, Stanley Birnbaum has been an exemplary judge, and had hands-on-knowledge as an attorney representing clients before the Shelter Island bench.

Judge Birnbaum has our endorsement for another term.

Anthony Palumbo for State Senate

Two able politicians are vying to represent Shelter Island in the State Senate — Sen. Anthony Palumbo is seeking re-election and Sarah Anker is challenging him for the seat.

Long before Democrat Anker was elected to public office, she was a community activist in her hometown of Mt. Sinai, working to make a difference in the lives of her neighbors. In the County Legislature for more than a decade, she had previously worked in Brookhaven Town government to provide solar-powered electricity to 500,000 residents.

A strong environmental champion, she chaired the Coastal Erosion Advisory Board, a special task force created to save the East End beaches.

Republican/Conservative Anthony Palumbo was elected to the State Assembly in 2013 where he served until he was elected in 2020 to the seat long held by Republican State Sen. Ken LaValle.

Mr. Palumbo has a strong environmental record, which is critical to the 1st Senate District. He voted for a bill intended to kick-start a kelp industry on the East End; voted to modify the Community Preservation Fund to include up to 20% for clean water and infrastructure.

Those funds can also be used not just for preserving, but maintaining historic properties.

Mr. Palumbo was out in front on the vote for the Peconic Region Community Housing Fund bill, to raise money for affordable housing on Shelter Island and three other East End towns, where housing is a crisis.

He has been an able successor to Sen. LaValle in his dedication to hearing the voices of his constituents and acting on their needs, as well as seeking bi-partisanship to get things done.

The Reporter endorses Sen. Anthony Palumbo for another term in the State Senate.

Tommy John Schiavoni for State Assembly

With the retirement of Assemblyman Fred Thiele Jr., who served 29 years representing Shelter Island and the East End in Albany, the two candidates running to replace him — Stephen Kiely and Tommy John Schiavoni — have big shoes to fill.

Republican/Conservative Stephen Kiely, a Mattituck resident and currently Shelter Island’s Town attorney, has a long and impressive record in roles as assistant town attorney for Southampton, Southold and Brookhaven. In addition, he was a deputy county clerk for Suffolk County.

Mr. Kiely knows the issues that concern Islanders, including affordable housing. He has stated that the Shelter Island model to bring affordability to the real estate market is by far the best solution, and is especially in favor of creating the structure needed to bring more accessory dwelling units on the market. Mr.  Kiely is a bright and dedicated public servant.

Democrat Schiavoni of Sag Harbor has had an extraordinarily varied career working in education, private business and as a public servant. He’s a retired high school social studies teacher of 32 years; comes from a family with a plumbing and heating business; and has extensive experience in government, currently serving on the Southampton Town Board, and formerly a member of the North Haven Village Board.

For his experience in education, hands-on knowledge of small businesses in the region, as well as knowing how government works and experience in meeting goals, the Reporter endorses Tommy John Schiavoni to represent Shelter Island in the State Assembly.

John Avlon for Congress

East End voters are fortunate to have two strong and qualified candidates vying to represent them in the U.S. Congress for the next two years. Democrat John Avlon, a journalist, author and presidential historian, making his first run for public office, is challenging Republican incumbent Rep. Nick LaLota.

Mr. LaLota has established his bona fides when it comes to protecting the natural environment of the East End. He introduced a bill in 2023 to designate Plum Island as a National Monument to protect the federally-owned property from future commercial development.

He has been a vocal advocate for protecting the Long Island Sound, securing some $40 million in federal funds to ensure the health of the vital waterway. He has also garnered $3 million in funding for the restoration of the Mitchell Park bulkhead in Greenport Harbor.

Mr. LaLota supports the expansion of H2B and H2A worker visa programs that are vital to the area’s agricultural and hospitality industries.

He has been criticized for his views on the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade —  praising the draconian ruling at one point — but has since said he will not vote for a national abortion ban.

Mr. LaLota has been steadfast in his support of the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election and has joined a bi-partisan group of fellow legislators in pledging to certify the results of this year’s vote. That said, he has an unfortunate tendency to show excess fealty to the Republican Party hierarchy, speaking at a Trump rally in September and throwing red meat to the MAGA crowd.

And if elected, and the House of Representatives remains in control of the Republicans, he will continue to be part of a group that at the end of 2023 passed into law a sorry total of 27 bills, the tiniest number in almost 100 years. Can the U.S. afford two more years of a “do-nothing” Congress?

John Avlon has run a smart, informative and open campaign, emphasizing a non-partisan, “common-sense” approach that he pledges to bring to Washington. He has stressed the need to “rebuild the middle” in terms of politics and the economy, to increase opportunity and break the cycle of hyper-partisanship that has all but crippled the legislative branch over the past several years.

He recognizes and supports the need for comprehensive immigration reform and streamlining the process for adjudicating asylum seekers.

Mr. Avlon supports preserving open space, while recognizing the need to find viable solutions to the region’s affordability crisis, and would seek to incentivize, through tax breaks, homeowners and small businesses to take steps to enhance coastal resiliency and combat climate change.

Mr. Avlon has left little doubt he would be a level-headed and effective public servant, and has the Reporter’s endorsement for election to Congress.

Vote yes on ballot propositions

Two propositions will appear on the back of your ballot. The State proposition banning unequal treatment based on gender would ensure reproductive autonomy is constitutionally protected. This is long overdue and ensures New Yorkers will be free from restrictive legislation, on what rightfully should be personal decisions.

The County proposition would add a 1/8th of 1% percent to the sales tax with the money used to create a Water Quality Restoration Fund to modernize sewer and septic systems. For too long, too many residents have been subjected to drinking substandard water; this is a small investment to help turn around a big  problem.