Defeated Valley Stream candidates plan civic association

Although they were unsuccessful in their bid to capture seats on the village board, the Citizens Independence Party candidates still plan to stay involved in the community. Carol Crupi, who ran for trustee, is leading the effort to start a new civic association in Valley Stream.

Crupi would be president of the Valley Stream Community Association, which would be a village-wide civic group, and is hoping to have the first meeting in the next two months. “We’re going full steam ahead,” she said, noting that civic organizers were having a meeting this week to get the administrative work in order.

Crupi ran along with Michael LoCascio for the two trustee seats, and Joe Margolin completed the ticket as its candidate for mayor. The three live in Gibson. “We gave it our best shot, we really did,” she said. “We worked hard. We’ll move forward.”

Crupi said she wishes the winners the best of luck and hopes they are able to move Valley Stream forward and work in the best interests of residents. She added that the goal of the Valley Stream Community Association will be to have a solid relationship with the village government. “I’m sure we can work together,” she said.

During the campaign, Crupi said, many residents asked her about efforts to form the civic organization. And the interest wasn’t confined to the Gibson section, she said, but rather was in evidence all over Valley Stream. Crupi said she is confident that when the Valley Stream Community Association does get off the ground, people from all corners of the village will be interested in joining.

The group will continue to fight the flood maps implemented by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which left many homeowners in Gibson with four-figure annual insurance premiums. But the association will invite residents to raise any and all concerns.

Margolin said that this is a crucial time in the flood insurance fight, because after 2012, flood insurance rates will spike. Homeowners who were placed in the high-risk flood zone in 2009 have been given a two-year reprieve when renewing their policy, with annual premiums of about $400.

“The next 21 months will be devoted to our total efforts to have the flood maps that FEMA made rescinded,” Margolin said.

Crupi hopes to have monthly meetings and bring in guest speakers, including elected officials as well as those from outside the political realm. She would also like to host events for families and children.

The vice president of the organization will be James Giordano, and the treasurer will be Joe Barbaro. Margolin will also play a prominent role, Crupi said, and his experience as an attorney has been helpful in the preparation of the paperwork.

Marc Tenzer, president of the Mill Brook Civic Association in South Valley Stream, has given Crupi advice on running a successful civic organization. She said that the Valley Stream and Mill Brook associations could work together, especially on the FEMA issue, which affects both communities.