There is more at stake in the choice for mayor and two trustees in Great Neck Plaza than the average village election and our decision on whom to endorse should be more obvious.
The greater importance of Great Neck Plaza is based on its presence at the entrance of a business district that over a few short miles stretches across the boundaries of four villages and the Town of North Hempstead.
This importance is magnified by the many empty storefronts in a once-vibrant business district blessed with an infrastructure highlighted by brick sidewalks, majestic trees and antique appearing street lamps.
The Plaza, once a magnet for shoppers in Queens and Nassau County filled with iconic businesses, has now become a symbol of business decline.
What should make the choice obvious is that one of the two slates is running on a platform of continuing the course set by the current mayor, Jean Celender, under the United Residents Party Line.
Ted Rosen, the current deputy mayor who has served on the village board since 1985, is seeking to replace Celender, who chose not to run for re-election. He is joined by a fellow longtime member of the “Jean Team” Pam Marksheid and Zoning Board of Appeals Chairman Michael Deluccia.
Rosen is opposed by Leonard Katz, a retirement planner who has served in many local organizations, including the board of the Great Neck Chamber of Commerce. He is joined by newcomers Siu Long Au (Alex) and Robert Farajollah.
They are running on the Revive Great Neck Plaza Party line on a platform calling for downtown revitalization and greater transparency.
Under Celender, the village has earned a well-deserved reputation for being difficult to work with.
For instance, the Plaza is the only government in North Hempstead to bar valet parking for restaurants. As justification, officials have pointed to traffic problems caused by the use of valet parking at Millie’s, a once-popular draw to Great Neck Plazza.
Millie’s is now gone and so is the presence of any restaurant drawing large numbers of people from outside Great Neck.
Shop Delight, a popular kosher food store, was twice turned down for applications to expand its business. The reason given were problems with late night/early morning store deliveries at the store and traffic problems outside the market.
This can’t-do approach to solving problems that thriving businesses can create is exactly what you don’t want from a village government in 2020.
Businesses in local shopping districts need a partner, not an antagonist, to compete with online businesses and shopping centers.
It is true that Rosen appears to offer a kinder-gentler approach than Celender, who presents a rigid, unyielding face to the village.
But Rosen and his running mates simply refuse to acknowledge reality, saying the Plaza could be doing better but the business district wasn’t a problem.
They offer voters little confidence that the village will fairly weigh the needs of the business district against the needs of residents. Or have the imagination to find ways to make both sides happy when they are at odds.
Katz and his running mates have made clear they understand the problem at hand. Hence, the party name – Revive Great Neck Plaza Party.
Katz also offers a willingness to work with different groups and adjacent villages to address problems as well as a pledge to make village government more transparent.
The problems faced by Great Neck’s business districts require a coordinated response among all the mayors and stakeholders. We believe Katz understands the issues facing Great Neck Plaza and the willingness to work with others to correct them.
But it is Katz’s ability to execute these good intentions that has given us pause.
The Nassau County Board of Elections recently disqualified Katz and his running mates from the ballot when it found that the date of the election was incorrect in some cases and improperly changed in other cases on the nominating petitions submitted by the Revive Great Neck Plaza Party.
Katz acknowledged the errors, but blamed the error on village Clerk-Treasurer Patricia O’Byrne, who he said gave him the wrong date “in early January.”
This is hardly the way for someone seeking to be mayor to build relations with the existing staff.
O’Byrne angrily denied she provided Katz incorrect information. O’Byrne said she initially corrected Katz on the date when he announced he was running for mayor.
In response to Katz’s claim of O’Byrne providing him with incorrect information, village Attorney Richard Gabriele provided election petitions from the Revive Great Neck Plaza Party as early as Jan. 4.
The petitions show an “8” written over the originally printed “9” on the election date.
Gabriele claimed Katz corrected the petitions as early as Jan. 4. Katz admitted to changing the petitions but said he made the corrections “in mid-to-late January” when he claims O’Byrne provided him with the correct election date.
Rosen said he was “astounded” to hear that Katz thought he could amend the petition and it would remain valid.
“I think it is astounding and very concerning someone like Mr. Katz, who does not know the severity and importance of the information on a[n election] petition is running for mayor,” Rosen said.
There is no denying Rosen’s point.
But there is also no denying that Rosen has been a member of the village board for 35 years during which time the downtown business district has declined dramatically.
There is also no denying that Rosen and his running mates don’t appear to see the problems in the business district – let alone offer any new solutions.
For that reason, we endorse Katz and his team. And hope he learns from his mistakes.
Correction: The editorial last week originally incorrectly stated that Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas demanded changes to the law after a homeless man who was scheduled to testify against gang members was found beaten to death behind a Long Island home.
