Smithtown Town Council Election - Four Candidates - Two Positions - You Decide

Howard Knispel - Teresa Haft - Edward Wehrheim - Robert Creighton 

By Stephanie Healion

Smithtown voters will go to the polls again on Tuesday, November 8^th 2011 for the Smithtown Town Council Election.  Out of the four positions on the town council, two positions will be filled this election, each for a four-year term.  Town Council members Edward Wehrheim and Robert Creighton are both running for re-election alongside newcomers Teresa Haft and Howard Knispel.

Main Street safety is one of the biggest issues in this year’s election, and it’s one that all the candidates have commented on passionately.  Democratic candidate Howard Knispel, a local attorney with an office in Commack, is a supporter of the Mark Mancini plan that has been submitted as a possible change for downtown Smithtown. Knispel says, “The Mark Mancini plan will accomplish a lot of things, including making Main Street safer and more pedestrian friendly.  This will create a more business friendly environment, filling up those closed storefronts.  There needs to be an advocate on the town board that’s going to push this as a priority, and that’s what I’d like to do.”

Creighton has been on the board since 2008 and is actively involved in The Cleary School for the Deaf and the Knights of Columbus, among numerous other organizations.  Councilman Creighton discussed the changes already made on Main Street as well as hopeful changes for the future.  “We no longer have right turns on red, we have changed the lighting sequence, and we have improved the buttons on the poles to make it easier for people to cross the street.  The DOT are the ones that need to finish it, and they are the ones who did all that, but at our pushing and encouragement.”  Creighton is also a supporter of the Mancini plan, and explains an altered version of the plan that the DOT may be put into action, “The DOT seems to indicate that the plan we have put out, a simplified version of the Mancini plan, is the way they are going to go.  The plan is one lane in either direction with a long turning lane in the center, and that will be done by paint markings, not by barriers (medians) in the middle of the road like the original Mancini plan.  I’m not opposed to that but to get the state to put the barriers up would take several years.  What we have is the same plan using viable yellow paint that indicates where traffic must go.  It also provides a little bit of flexibility in case it is found to be not workable.  It will accomplish slowing down traffic.”

Councilman Edward Wehrheim, a board member since 2003, wants people to know that there are changes in the works, “There is some new overhead traffic signaling that is in the works as we speak, it’s not initiated yet but it will be.  We have put some LED lighting in Smithtown, which gives much brighter light on the street. The state has put, at our recommendation, the wrought-iron fence on the south side of Jericho, which is prohibiting pedestrians from jaywalking and pushes them to the crosswalks.  We made a recommendation to the DOT for additional research as to narrowing down into two lanes in the business district instead of four.  The state DOT will be taking all those ideas into consideration so my guess is that at some point there will more improvements.”

Democratic candidate Teresa Haft, graphic designer and dedicated Red Cross volunteer, takes a different approach to the issue, citing general road safety education and enforcement as a main concern.  “Education is really important.  There are people jaywalking, walking when there’s traffic.  We need to make those hazards more known.  Another thing is enforcement.  There used to be a cop who walked the beat on Main Street, and after he left he was never replaced.  Maybe it takes bringing someone back to make people aware.  There needs to be enforcement.  I know that it’s a state-owned road, but it’s a state owned road coming through our town.  We have to be able to have a say about what happens in our town and we have to be able to keep our community safe.”

Another issue being discussed is the communication between the town and the residents.   Howard Knispel believes that there definitely needs to be more such communication saying “We need a newsletter with the events that are happening around town:  This is what’s happening at the library, this is what’s happening in Nesconset, in Kings Park, in St. James, in Hauppauge.  These are the things that are going on.”  Candidate Teresa Haft would also like to spearhead a change in the way information is shared, both within the town council and with residents of Smithtown, with an emphasis on the town’s website.  “Communication is everything, communication within the town council and our own departments but communication with the community and the surrounding communities, with our representatives has to be enhanced.   It takes all of us.  Our website needs to be the electronic gateway to the community.  Not only our community but to people looking at our community.  Our website needs to be a marketing tool for our community and what we have to offer.  The website is a great tool; it can be a portal for everything that’s happening in Smithtown.   It’s important for residents to feel like a part of a community and that the community is looking out for them.”

Councilman Robert Creighton on the other hand believes that communication is better now than it ever was.  “What I’m most proud of is bringing some civility back to the town board.  Things are running smoother than they had.  Before there was such animosity on the board, there was fighting and there was no communication.   Now we can sit down with people, work with them and get things done.”  Councilman Wehrheim is also confident in the ability of the town to communicate with residents, but says if it is felt that the website needs to be more informative, than they can certainly make it so.

An issue that has been coming up throughout this election is the amount of representation in Kings Park versus the southern parts of Smithtown, such as Commack, Hauppauge and Nesconset. Knispel expressed his concern at the lack of representation on the board from the southern part of Smithtown, citing the relocation of the Nesconset Library as an example.  “It took over a decade to move the Nesconset library out of the dilapidated building they had and into the armory. Maybe if we had someone from Nesconset on the board, they could have said “Hey we have this building here that we can use for the library, let’s get cracking on that!”  When half the council is from Kings Park, you have to wonder if they know what’s going on in the other part of town.  I’m not saying I would represent only the southern part of town, but I would be that voice for them that the town board is lacking now.”

Councilman Wehrheim believes that the Town Board, despite three out of the five members being from King’s Park, adequately represents all parts of Smithtown equally.  “I worked on the Charles P. Toner Park facility and the Nesconset library from the day I got on this board.  If you ask Nesconset and Commack residents I believe I would be comfortable if they had any issues here, certainly we would answer them.  We deal as diligently in those southern communities of Smithtown as we do in the north.   I believe those communities are well represented.  I am very active with the Nesconset Chamber of Commerce and the Commack Civic Group and nothing has ever been lacking.  Those communities, when they need something from us they get it.”

Voters have four viable candidates for this year’s Town council election.  There are two available positions on the council, perhaps to be filled with familiar faces, new faces or a mix of both, to help Smithtown function at its best.