Scarsdale CNC Announces Candidates for Village Trustee

The Scarsdale Citizen’s Nominating Committee, chaired by Dan Hochvert announced the results of their deliberations for selection of candidates for Village Trustee and Village Justice on Wednesday night January 25th. Trustees Kay (Katherine) Eisenman and Jon Mark were nominated for second two-year terms, and David Lee was nominated to serve a first two-year term. John Galloway III was selected as the nominee for Village Justice – a role he has held for over 16 years, since he served as Acting Village Justice in October 1995. Commenting on the process Hochvert said, “I thank the entire CNC team for working harmoniously together and agreeing upon a set on nominees for the Scarsdale Citizens' Non-Partisan Party's slate, that I believe, if elected, will serve our Village well.

Petitions to nominate these candidates need to be filed by February 7 and the Village-wide election will be held on Tuesday March 20th, followed by a reception at the Scarsdale Women’s Club that night.

Kay Eisenman has lived in Scarsdale for over 42 years and raised three children here. She works as a planner in the Planning Department of Westchester County giving her a broad understanding of land use issues. In her statement to the Nominating Committee, Eisenman said, “As in most municipalities, here in Scarsdale we are constantly called upon to deal with these types of issues, and in the last two years alone have grappled with the possibility of a new community center under the pool house, development in the Heathcote Five Corners area, the possibility of a roundabout and the important issue of property re-evaluation for the entire Village. We oversaw the Popham Bridge reconstruction and a new pump station on Ardsley Road as well as the completion of the new police and fire safety building on Fenimore Road. I think that having started work on all these projects, and with more to come, I would like the opportunity to see them thru to completion in the next couple of years.”

Reached at her desk at 8 am on January 26th, Eisenman spoke about her years as Chair of the Scarsdale Conservation Advisory Council and recollected how difficult it was to get people to recycle in the early’ ‘90’s, a practice that has become routine today. She likened this effort to a new Village campaign to ask residents to mulch their leaves in place, rather than blow them to the curb for pick up. This new practice would require leaves to be finely ground and left on the lawn as mulch, serving to enrich the soil and conserve funds and energy that are required for leaf blowing and pick-up.

Looking ahead, she anticipated continuing to work on storm water management issues to relieve flooding as well as the upcoming Village budget. She is pleased that the Village may be able to propose a budget that complies with the 2% tax cap.

Asked for a comment on her renomination, Eisenman said she felt “she was doing important work,” and added, “Once you start something like this you want to see it through to the end.”

Jon Mark, also nominated to serve a second term grew up in Scarsdale in a family with a tradition of public service. His father served on the Town and Village Committee and his mother was an elementary school teacher at Heathcote, Greeenacres and Edgewood for over 20 years. He returned here with his wife B.K. Munghia to raise their two children and works in corporate law as a partner at Cahill, Gordon and Reindell.

As Chairman of the Land Use Committee during his first term as Trustee, Mark managed a very difficult negotiation with residents and the property owner at 2-4 Weaver Street concerning the sale of a strip of Village land at the site. Listening to both the residents and the developer he was able to draft a term sheet for the sale of the land that addressed concerns about potential development on the property while permitting the developer to move forward.

Mark said, “I am honored and delighted to be re-nominated as a candidate for election as a Village Trustee. Among the issues that came before the Board during the last year and nine months, issues involving budget, land use, storm water management and re-valuation were among those that presented the greatest challenges. These sorts of issues will continue to present themselves in the years ahead. Of course, analysis of budget issues has been made even more complex by virtue of the State property tax cap legislation, the absence of mandate relief in that legislation and the continuing decline of Village property values due to general economic conditions. If elected, I look forward to having the opportunity to address these issues, and other issues that come before the Board, together with the Mayor and fellow Board members.”

First-time nominee David Lee is also a Scarsdale native. He and his wife grew up here and later returned to raise their own family in town. Like Trustees Brodsky and Mark, Lee is a lawyer, and his specialization is trusts and estates. Lee spent many years coaching soccer, baseball and softaball teams in Scarsdale. Most recently he served as Co-President of Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains where he developed and managed the annual budget and worked with many constituencies to build consensus.

In comments about his nomination, Lee said, “ I was thrilled to get the call last night that I had been nominated and given this chance to become engrossed in Village issues. I'm excited about what's ahead - the election, and, assuming I'm elected, getting up to speed on the issues, working with the mayor and other trustees, and meeting and talking with Scarsdalians about what's on their mind. My schooling, professional work, and civic efforts have taught me the value of listening carefully to others, asking questions to help draw out relevant facts, and analyzing issues thoroughly. I have a good bit of experience at working on thorny issues in a group setting and helping the group reach consensus. Most of all, I have deep respect for the process, that it be fair, open-minded and respectful of all who wish to provide input, so that the decisions reached are not only sound but arrived at with integrity.”

And finally, John H. Galloway, III was re-nominated for the position of Village Justice. Galloway has a long resume of service to Scarsdale dating back to 1975. He has served as the Special Assistant District Attorney for the Village of Scarsdale, the Scarsdale Village Prosecuter, the Acting and Interim Village Justice and has held the position of Scarsdale Village Justice since 1996.

Residents will have the opportunity to vote for the nominees in the Village-wide election on Tuesday, March 20, 2012.