Darcy out of Valley Stream mayor's race

Jim Darcy will not run for mayor of Valley Stream next month, leaving two candidates vying for the position. Darcy submitted his letter of declination to Deputy Village Clerk Bob Fumagalli shortly after 4 p.m. on Monday, the deadline to accept or decline nominations for the village election.

Darcy had filed his petitions to qualify for a place on the ballot on Feb. 1 and had sought the United Community Party line. However, the ticket of Ed Fare, Dermond Thomas, Vincent Grasso and Bob Bogle had filed its petitions for the same party line an hour earlier. Fumagalli said that Darcy had until Feb. 9 to pick a different party name, but did not do so.

Darcy, who was Valley Stream’s mayor from 1995 to 1998 before leaving to serve in the State Assembly, is a member of the Hempstead town board, the councilman for the 3rd District. He cited personal reasons for his decision to withdraw from the mayoral race.

That leaves Fare, on the United Community Party ticket, to face Joe Margolin, running on the Citizens Independence line. The winner of the March 15 election will serve a four-year term. Fare, a trustee on the village board for the past seven years, is a technology teacher at South High School. Margolin, a Gibson resident and retired teacher, has been a vocal opponent of the Federal Emergency Management Agency flood map changes, which have added thousands of homes to a high-risk flood zone.

The other candidates remain the same: Grasso, Thomas, Carol Crupi and Michael LoCascio will vie for two trustee seats. Village Justice Bob Bogle is running unopposed on the United Community Party line.