Huntington Town Council Member (2 Seats Open)

DEMOCRATIC

Cergol, 58, of Huntington, is running on the Democratic, Working Families, Independence and Green party lines. Cergol is seeking her first four-year term as a Town Board member. She was appointed to the seat in December 2017 for an unexpired term. She ran for the last year of the four-year term in 2018.

• She said she wants to limit government spending and user fees. She said she has been successful in bringing in more than $20 million in outside grant funding to the town to help finance capital improvement projects, including $1.7 million for the planned parking terrace in Huntington Village and $1.5 million for the James D. Conte Community Center in Huntington Station.
• Cergol said she will continue to improve cooperation and communication both inside and outside of Town Hall to reduce resident frustrations and expedite bureaucracy.
• She said she will continue to sponsor programs that take care of the town’s fragile populations such as our seniors, youth, veterans, disabled and minority communities.

DEMOCRATIC

Cleary, 52, of East Northport, is making a her second run for office. Last year, she challenged Republican state Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan for his 2nd District seat. She is a horticulturist for Bayard Cutting Arboretum in Great River.

• She said her skill set of contract management experience, managing budgets and teams and her ability to bring projects into alignment will make her an effective town board member.
• She has experience as a horticulturist, so she understands work must be done to maintain clean water and manage stormwater runoff.
• She’s dedicated as running as a resident of the town, not as a politician, and plans on representing all the residents, making sure tax dollars are spent well and that there is transparency.

INDEPENDENCE

Cook, 57, of Greenlawn also is running on the Republican, Conservative and Libertarian party lines. Cook is seeking his third term in office as a town board member.

• Cook said the No. 1 issue he would like to address is the Long Island Power Authority lawsuit. He wants the judge to throw the case out because he does not believe LIPA, as a government entity, has the standing to file a lawsuit against the town.
• He would like downtown Huntington designated a historic district to cut down on development and believes that would help the area retain its charm.
• Cook said he also is concerned with water quality issues, traffic and high taxes. “I want our children to enjoy the Town of Huntington, as well as our parents, without being suffocated by the cost.”

INDEPENDENCE

Deegan, 46, is running on the Libertarian line. He is seeking his first elected position.

• Deegan says his No. 1 concern is the environment, specifically water quailty.
• Rapid overdevelopment of the town is also an area he is concerned about, especially the impact on quality-of-life issues overdevelopment brings, such as traffic, impact on the environment and changing the face and character of neighborhoods.
• He said he wants to see more community involvement. “I don’t believe the community is brought to the table with any respect. Time and time again they say we’ve had community input. If that were true, or accurate, we wouldn’t be having hearings where people are up in arms and fighting with the board.”

GREEN

Putignano is running on the Green Party line. She did not respond to requests for an interview.

REPUBLICAN

Sorrentino, 54, of Huntington, is running on the Republican, Conservative and Working Families lines. He is director of town General Services and an elected commissioner of the Huntington Fire Department.

• Sorrentino said his biggest focus is to put the welfare of the people over politics. He would do that by focusing on such issues as water quality and fighting to keep taxes down.
• He said he would like to see the continued revitalization of Huntington Station, and business areas like Larkfield Road, downtown Huntington and the Route 110 corridor in Melville.
• Sorrentino says he would like to see a moratorium on further development in the downtown Huntington area until parking and sewer issues are addressed.