by Mike Schnitzel
The board's decision to repeal Local Law No. 3 of 1968, which was passed by a referendum put to the voters that year, means that the mayor, trustees and village justice will no longer be limited to two consecutive four-year terms.
After much discussion amongst themselves, the trustees felt that the term limits law was unnecessary, and that voters should be able to elect whomever they want regardless of their length of service to the village.
"There's no reason we should have an archaic, rudimentary rule on who can be [the village's] leaders," said Trustee Edward Sieban. "We have a democratic system where people choose their leaders through elections, and that's what we're trying to get."
Discussions among board members and the audience grew heated at times during the portion of the public hearing that focused on the law. Former village Trustee Murray Eskenazi objected fervently to the repeal of term limits, saying that the law had given East Rockaway "good, clean government for the past 38 years."
East Rockaway resident Jane Brezenoff said she was in support of repealing term limits, but that she believed the board was going about it in the wrong way. "Although I believe in ending term limits, it was changed through a referendum and should be repealed through a referendum," said Brezenoff.
According to Village Attorney Anthony Guardino, however, a referendum is not the proper method for a repeal and, in fact, the village's 1968 referendum to impose term limits was not legal, according to guidelines established by the New York Conference of Mayors.
Deputy Mayor Richard Meagher, who previously supported term limits, supported the repeal, and read a statement explaining his position to the audience, in effect saying that through research and consultation with Guardino and the Conference of Mayors, he came to believe that term limits at the village level were unnecessary, and that the system is "flushed effectively and thoroughly through village elections."
Former Trustee Patricia Sympson accused the board of acting in its own self-interest, saying that the measure was being considered to benefit Sieban and Meagher, who would otherwise be ineligible to run for office once their current terms expire. Sympson added that "such permanence leads to malaise, malfeasance and unresponsiveness" on the part of village officials unencumbered by term limits.
"If any members of the community have any objection to me or anyone else on this board, there's a way to say that, and they're called elections," said Mayor Joseph Carrigan. "That's what America is based on."
Ken Clark, vice president of the East Rockaway Chamber of Commerce, spoke up on the board's behalf, calling it "a damn good administration" which, in his opinion, is the most responsive administration East Rockaway has ever had. "To me, pulling a lever to change an administration would be fine," said Clark. "We shouldn't have a law that prevents that. These are good people, and they've always done right."
Other items discussed at the meeting included zoning code amendment proposals from the firm Saccardi & Shiff of White Plains, which was hired by the village to do surveys of existing conditions and make recommendations for zoning code changes. The recommendations were presented by representatives of the firm, and packets were passed out detailing the proposed changes. According to David Shiff, residents would be given the opportunity to look over the information in the package and then voice concerns or comments at a later date.
Local Law No. 11 was passed unanimously by the board, giving seniors tax breaks on village taxes. See sidebar.
Comments about this story? MSchnitzel@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 265.
