For 25 years, since the inception of the “Jean Machine Regime,” I have been the proverbial gadfly on the wall of the Welwyn/Shoreward neighborhood. I have watched the quality of life in my neighborhood—as well as in the entire village—dwindle to a non-existent state, with stress levels for residents and businesses constantly climbing.
I have attended village meetings, met with members of the administration, joined committees, and more, to try to effect positive change for my neighborhood and my village; and I have been shut down every step of the way.
Under the “Jean Machine Regime,” constituents’ input and suggestions have been thoroughly ignored, and village committees that have presented important information, not to the mayor’s liking have been disbanded. The projects that moved forward in the last quarter of a century were largely the mayor’s vanity projects, for which she extracted millions of dollars of grant money from the state for “improvements” that have rendered our village unnavigable.
And when Celender received a grant to repave village streets that were in disrepair, she used a portion of that grant money to repave Overlook Avenue – where she just happens to live – a street that was not in bad shape. However, she did not repave the highly trafficked Barstow Road, between Middle Neck Road and the roundabout, or Welwyn Road, between the post office and Gilchrest Road, leaving them in a state of disrepair akin to the streets in a bombed-out inner-city neighborhood.
During all of that time, Deputy Mayor Ted Rosen and his running mate Trustee Pam Marksheid stood by, sitting on their hands and closing their eyes to the political ineptitude, self-aggrandizement, and selfishness that has turned our village into a dirty, unsafe, chaotic, over-regulated and underserved place to live and work.
As a close and constant observer and participant in the workings of the Village of Great Neck Plaza, I truthfully cannot recall a single thing that Ted Rosen has ever done to make it a better place. From personal experience, I know that he does not respond to phone messages or emails, and if one happens upon a personal encounter with him, his response to any inquiry about the status of a current project has consistently been “I can’t talk about it”—his catchphrase for burying any sort of political transparency.
This village cannot afford to have another minute of a “do nothing, except if it benefits yourself” administration. That is what Ted Rosen learned very well from Jean Celender over the past two decades to prepare him to become her “heir apparent.” The only thing that is apparent to me is that residents of Great Neck Plaza need to be proactive by coming out to vote for Leonard Katz and his team on March 18th to give our village a fresh start.
Leonard Katz, Robert Farajollah and Alex Siu Long Au will work to revitalize the village, remove useless regulation, set term limits for officials and be transparent with the residents about what is taking place. They will listen to the people’s suggestions and formulate viable plans to deal with such things as the terrible parking problem and congestion that plague the Plaza.
Leonard Katz has the experience and expertise to revive our village. He has served as Great Neck’s Rotary Club president and as a board director and member of the executive committee of the Great Neck Chamber of Commerce. He understands what makes a village viable and what does not.
The population of the Village of Great Neck Plaza is approximately 7,000 residents living within only one-third of a square mile. Yet over the past two decades, voter turnout at village elections has averaged less than 200 people. This voter apathy has allowed the current administration to remain in power for over 25 years.
The people of Great Neck Plaza have the mandate to vote for leadership that will repair this village. We are all neighbors and we need to elect an administration that will have our best interests at heart.
On March 18th, go with your neighbors to the Great Neck Plaza Village Hall to vote for Leonard Katz and his team. Use your voice and your vote to make our Village of Great Neck Plaza right again.
Muriel Pfeifer
Village of Great Neck Plaza
