By Anthony Rifilato
At a public hearing last Tuesday, David Stonehill, an attorney from Merrick, criticized the board for what he said was a map that was "riddled with errors," and said that more information about the scheduled hearing should have been given to the media. "This map is presented to the public with inadequate data," said Stonehill. "Members of the Town Council owe residents more."
Although Town Supervisor Kate Murray said that the hearing was legally advertised, residents criticized the process and said that in order to gauge the impact of redrawn council lines, more than one hearing should have been held.
"This map is the product of a closed-door process," Stonehill said, adding that the lines "wreak havoc" in the current districts and that election districts are not included in the map.
Others told the board they were put through a daunting and complicated process in order to get information, and one resident said he was forced to pay $4 for a copy of the new map at the town clerk's office, which Clerk Mark Bonilla said shouldn't have happened.
Others, like Barbara Patton, a Democrat who chaired Nassau County's Redistricting Committee and is running for town supervisor, said more should have been done to notify the public. "The inference that the public couldn't participate is a negative for this process," Patton said.
Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby, who had initially opposed the map, said she was satisfied with the amount of census data provided and new lines. "I am happy to say that the current plan is respectful to voting-rights concerns," Goosby said.
