By:John C. O'Connell
DiNapoli, Suozzi ready for Sept. 11 Democratic primary
With only three weeks to go before Democrats head to the polls to choose their party's candidate for county executive, contenders Tom DiNapoli and Tom Suozzi are taking every opportunity to point out their differences and highlight their respective strengths.
The two met at the Hewlett-Woodmere Public Library Monday night, under the auspices of the League of Women Voters of the Greater Five Towns, co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Long Beach. MaryLou Urban, secretary-treasurer of the NY State League of Women Voters, moderated the spirited yet congenial debate.
DiNapoli, 47, the assemblyman from Thomaston on the north shore, and Suozzi, mayor of the gold coast's City of Glen Cove, both seemed at ease with themselves and accustomed to each other's jibes. Prepared by previous forums to market their talents and experience, each deftly and politely slighted his opponent's abilities to handle the job.
Responding to questions from the packed library auditorium - several dozen people standing in the aisles and the back had to leave the room to satisfy the fire code - each candidate spoke of his accomplishments, skills and goals. Both reiterated specific plans to help right the county's listing ship of state.
Suozzi spoke his well-worn campaign slogan, saying that he knows he can do the job because he has already done the job, referring to his experience as mayor of one of the county's two cities.
"Everything that I've done in my life up to this point has prepared me to be the county executive," said Suozzi, who turns 39 this month. A CPA and an attorney, the eight-year mayor said he has been "the chief executive officer," "making the hard decisions," negotiating contracts, putting ideas into action, and actually getting things done.
Suozzi touted the performance evaluation system he implemented in the city, contract negotiations he's conducted with city unions including the city police union, his waterfront revitalization project and the financial health of Glen Cove as some of the evidence of his qualifications for the county's top job.
With an adept left hand, Suozzi complimented DiNapoli on his legislative skills, but said, "the county executive is an executive management position" that requires exactly Suozzi's own talents. "I can say I can do it because I've done it."
DiNapoli praised Suozzi as being "a good mayor of a city of 26,000 people," but he said, "the fundamental problems of Nassau County are larger and more complex." He said the county executive job "needs someone who's had experience with the large issues."
DiNapoli said he was that man. "I have already been delivering solutions for the county. I have already been fighting on the large issues, and I have delivered." He said he fought for debt relief for the county in the Assembly and helped create the Nassau Interim Finance Authority oversight board. He said he had a 10-point plan for assessment review that will bring order out of the current reassessment chaos.
"My strengths are in building a team that cuts across party lines. I've already been a partner in making change in Nassau County and I want to complete the task," DiNapoli said.
Asked what their first priority would be if elected, Suozzi said he would "break the culture of machine politics." Suozzi pledged that no political leader or "party official will be allowed to be a department head in a Suozzi administration."
The mayor pointed to the performance evaluation program he instituted in Glen Cove as a means of getting politics out of employment. He said he would also "audit all county contracts." Suozzi said that, "no one person can solve all the problems the county has. You need to build a team and praise those with good performance."
The big issues
Keeping to his theme of saying that he's the one who's dealt with the big matters, DiNapoli said his priorities would be assessment review and deficit reduction.
"We must address the largest issues. The other stuff won't cut it. There needs to be a top to bottom review of every department in the county and a clear review of county contracts," DiNapoli said. He could achieve a 15 percent reduction in contract costs by such a review, the assemblyman said. "We need to do more of this work in-house."
DiNapoli said he would set a target of "$8 million to $8.5 million savings in eliminating vacant positions."
"I don't think anyone has done more than I have for the county," DiNapoli said. "Look what I've already done in Albany. Imagine what I can do if you bring me back home to work directly on the county issues. It has to be a new day in planning for the future."
But Suozzi used DiNapoli's admitted Assembly achievements to highlight his own perceived strength in the competition. "You know, there's a remarkable difference between a legislator and a chief executive," the man from Glen Cove said. "The chief executive's sole responsibility is to implement these changes. I have negotiated contracts. I have made decisions."
Suozzi said he could cut $40 million through streamlining the county police department, getting police officers who now do civilian tasks back out into the community.
Affordable Housing
On the question of affordable housing, Suozzi said that lower-cost apartments should be built near commercial strip malls so that people will live within walking distance of shopping, and residential communities won't balk at affordable housing construction in their neighborhoods.
DiNapoli said that affordable housing is one of the major issues facing the county. He said he has been a "convener of interests" on housing, saying "you need to have towns and villages and cities work with developers to do more on the issue. The problem needs a leader who's collaborative."
Human Services
Suozzi and DiNapoli had a clear difference of opinion on whether the Department of Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation should be merged into the county's Department of Health. Suozzi said yes and DiNapoli said no.
DiNapoli said that drug and alcohol issues are not the same things as other health issues dealt with by the health department. "These issues need to stand alone and can be in a better position as a separate department to leverage more state help for those problems."
Speaking in broader terms, Suozzi said that "human services are being completely mismanaged" and that "the political culture must be eliminated."
DiNapoli agreed, saying, "We need to put a priority back on human services. We need to expand such services in the county and we need to work together to do this."
Medical Center
On a question concerning the Nassau University Medical Center, Suozzi said he'd visited the hospital and learned that three floors were vacant. "Prime county property is going empty," when it should be "rented out." He said the problem with the medical center is that it is being "run by political people." He would "bring in the best and the brightest people from other hospitals" to manage it better.
DiNapoli thought that was a terrible idea and used it to criticize Suozzi. "You see, that's the difference between handling curb cuts [in Glen Cove] and handling health care in Nassau County." Bringing in help from private hospitals, DiNapoli said, "is absolutely the wrong way to go." He said the county's private hospitals would like nothing better than to have access to patients now getting public care. He said the number of beds in the emergency room need to be expanded. "I have the vision and the leadership to turn things around," DiNapoli said.
Managers and leaders
In closing, DiNapoli said that what "gives my life joy is being of service to people in this way. The issue is not who's been the better manager, it's about who's been a leader." He said Suozzi, as a member of the County Board of Supervisors during his first year as mayor, "had the chance to do it and he didn't do it. I want the opportunity." DiNapoli said, "I've made the Democratic Party competitive again, helped restore its credibility. It wasn't easy, but I got it done."
Suozzi said he and the assemblyman have "two different kinds of skill sets." While applauding DiNapoli for his accomplishments in Albany at the state level, and for his achievements within the party, Suozzi said his own chief executive experience qualified him best for the county executive position. "I'm the only one in this race who's actually negotiated contracts, cut overtime, put in performance evaluations. I have brought people together to accomplish all we've done on the waterfront. I can bring those skills to work for the people of Nassau County."
Each candidate said they would endorse the winner of the Democratic primary on Sept. 11.
