Southold Town Council Member

REPUBLICAN

Doherty, 55, of New Suffolk, is running on the Republican, Conservative and Independence party lines. She is seeking her third four-year term on the town council. Doherty worked for 12 years as a clerk in the town’s trustee office, and later served six years on the Board of Trustees. She is officer manager and bookkeeper for a landscaping company.

• On housing, she said she will continue to work on a rental code for the safety of tenants and homeowners. Doherty said, “We don’t have enough workforce housing. We need innovative ways to make new housing available, and the town helps facilitate that.”
• As for water quality, she will continue to focus on stormwater runoff and upgrading storm drains across the town to prevent nitrogen and pollution from entering the Sound and creeks in the town.
• She said the town has paralyzing traffic and “we have a lot of issues we are trying to deal with.”

LIBERTARIAN

Gluck, 53, of Southold, is running on the Libertarian line and is making his first bid for political office. He is a graphic artist who runs a design business and also sells real estate. He has served as vice president of the North Fork Chamber of Commerce and executive director of the North Fork Promotion Council.

• Gluck would like to see less government and more fiduciary responsibility and budget accountability. Taxes have doubled in the last 10 years, he said, and he’d make sure there’s a better return on money being spent.
• The town needs more affordable housing so businesses can find workers to hire, he said.
• Better bus service and more regular train service is needed, along with a shuttle to serve the area north of Route 48 to get people to the bus line on the main road, he said.

DEMOCRATIC

Hanlon, 72, of Orient, is running on the Democratic line in his first bid for office. A civic leader with the Orient Association, he is a retired educator and lawyer.

• Housing is key, Hanlon said. “We need homes for people who work here, and for the next generation. Businesses in town have trouble keeping staff because of the drive to get here.”
• Maintaining the quality of the town’s water supply, he said. Homes in Southold are on septic systems and cesspools, and nitrate-loaded wastewater is leaking into the bay and the Sound. He said it’s time to mandate sewage system upgrades for new construction and find money to subsidize it.
• The town needs to address housing scale, he said. Large home sizes can change the character of a neighborhood, and they’re often built to serve as rentals, he said.

DEMOCRATIC

Nappa, 38, of Southold, is running on the Democratic and Libertarian lines and is making her first bid for office. She is a chef and farmer who runs a small wine business.

• Make the business climate welcoming to help preserve small farms and agriculture on the North Fork.
• Encourage small-business growth. The town needs to streamline the process of opening a small business, Nappa said.
• Work to make the town attractive to young families. School enrollment is declining and there’s a serious lack of affordable housing, Nappa said. It’s hard to find child care if your children are under prekindergarten age, she noted, so adding such services will keep young families in town.

REPUBLICAN

Ruland, 70, of Mattituck, is running on the Republican, Conservative and Independence lines. He is seeking his fourth four-year term on the council, where he has been deputy supervisor for five years. A longtime farmer, Ruland also has served 24 years on the Mattituck school board.

• Protecting the town’s environment remains key, Ruland said, from keeping its waterways clean to preserving farmland and open space.
• He said he will continue to work to maintain and upgrade the town’s facilities and programs, as well as its roads and parks, to serve the increasing needs of the town.
• It’s important to look at town zoning codes and town regulations to ensure the codes are appropriate for the current times and preserve the rural nature of Southold, Ruland said.