New Congressional districts split Valley Stream

A single member of Congress will no longer represent all 40,000-plus Valley Stream residents beginning next year. Effective Jan. 1, 2013, New York state’s Congressional districts will be shifting, splitting Valley Stream into both the new 5th and 4th districts.

A three-judge federal court panel decided on March 19 to reduce the number of Congressional districts in New York from 29 to 27 to reflect the 2010 census results.

U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-Mineola) would continue to represent the east side of Valley Stream, but Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-St. Albans, Queens) would now represent the biggest portion of the community if both are re-elected. McCarthy has represented the 4th District for 14 years.

“It saddens me to lose some wonderful communities I've had the privilege of representing for years now,” McCarthy said. “But I'm also grateful that I'll have the opportunity to continue to represent almost all the same people I do now, with some wonderful new communities added to the 4th Congressional District as well.”

Meeks currently represents the 6th District, which includes Far Rockaway, Jamaica and most of southeastern Queens. In the new Congressional districts, Meeks’s representation will expand to the southwestern areas of Nassau County, including Valley Stream, as far east as Cottage Street.

“The people of Nassau County know they’ll have a champion in me and an advocate on their behalf,” Meeks said. “I will be visible in their communities, and I look forward to sitting down with people in the community and am going to represent them based on what their needs are.”

Mayor Ed Fare said he has a “wait and see” attitude on how the split will affect the village, but he added that he and the village board are up for working with any number of members of Congress. “I’m a little disappointed that we’re going to have two representatives,” Fare said, “but on the other hand, a lot of times you get more when you have two people representing your interests in Washington.”

Mike Scala, who is running against Meeks in the Democratic primary, said that the residents of Valley Stream and Queens face many of the same issues. “I’m very familiar with the area,” said Scala, a Rosedale native, “and I really think that on the whole, Valley Stream is facing the same problems that we’re seeing in southeast Queens and really all across the country.” He cited the lack of jobs and federal funding cuts as issues hurting everyone.

The president of the Mill Brook Civic Association, Marc Tenzer, said he does not like the idea of having Valley Stream represented by a congressman from Queens, although he said he thinks Meeks would do a good job for Nassau County residents.

“I truly believe that we need somebody with Long Island’s interests in their mind,” Tenzer said, “and not New York City’s interest in their mind.”

Mill Brook, a residential community behind the Green Acres Mall, would be part of the 5th District. Yet the rest of South Valley Stream, east of the creek, would remain in McCarthy’s 4th District, as would all of Gibson.

Tenzer said that the issue he is most concerned with is the Federal Emergency Management Agency flood maps that went into effect in 2009. “He really has not taken any interest in it because he didn’t have to,” Tenzer said of Meeks and the flood maps, “but now he has to.” Tenzer added that he would invite Meeks to a Mill Brook Civic Association meeting in the future to gauge his thoughts on the issue.

Fare said that issue is where having multiple representatives in Congress could work to Valley Stream’s advantage. “If I could get two people to advocate to redo the FEMA flood maps, I’d be very happy,” Fare said. “I’m very happy to have a coalition and try and work things out and do what’s best for the residents. I try as hard as I can to keep politics out of it.”