Christopher Halajian has been very happy to see that the Southold Town Board filled two new vacancies after elections looking at a variety of candidates. Specifically, they have appointed someone to the Zoning Board of Appeals and to the Planning Board. This took place last Monday and Halajian believes that the town is now en route to once again be able to manage its affairs properly.
Christopher Halajian on the New Elections
The Planning Board appointment is that of Mary Eisenstein, who replaces WIlliam Cremers. The latter died a short while ago, while retiring in September. However, Mary has not yet been available for comment other than expressing that she is very happy to be able to serve Southold and Mattiuck now. It is in Mattiuck that she founded the Mattituck-Laurel Civic Association, of which she was president. It is hoped that, once she takes up office on Monday, she will be able to say more.
What is known is that Mary is a Democrat and this is not the first time she has traveled the route of becoming an elected official. In fact, she had tried twice before but was not successful, She lost by 513 vtes in 2013 and again by 34 votes in 2017. One of the reasons for this may be the fact that she is a Democrat, when the Town Board is Republican affiliated. However, despite this, she has now made it through and that is worthy of celebration. She will now be heavily involved in making decisions from the Town Hall, thereby also properly representing the people.
Meanwhile, Robert Lenhart is the new candidate for the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) post. He has been involved in the construction business for over 25 years and many an estate in the area is down to his expertise. He was also part of the Deer Management Task Force in Southold. He believes his experience, including with things such as police management, drink driving arrests along many of the town’s roads, and construction in the area, gives him a unique viewpoint of the particular issues affecting zoning in Southold.
Robert has been a resident of Southold for 18 years now and he is very excited to be able to make an even more meaningful contribution to the time that he calls home. It was this dedication, seen in both Robert and Mary, that made them stand out. They both faced very fierce competition, yet the board were approved unanimously by the board. No discussion was even necessary.
Clearly, the two have been waiting for these positions for a long time and it is obvious that they are appreciated. The town is very excited about the contributions that they will be making and the positive difference they will be able to make to Southold in general. The town itself has gone from positive to positive over the years, and Mary and Robert alike both have the skills and expertise to make this organic growth even stronger and more meaningful.
