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BRONXVILLE, N.Y. Newcomer Guy Longobardo was the top vote-getter in the Bronxville Board of Trustees election Tuesday.
Longobardo got 77 votes, and incumbent Trustee Anne Poorman got 76 votes.
Village Administrator Harold Porr said 85 ballots were cast 77 at the poll and eight absentee ballots.
"Considering that it was an uncontested election, and the size of the village, I would say it was a respectable turnout," Porr said.
Longobardo said he was honored to win the support of the community.
"I am looking forward to getting started," he said.
Both Poorman and Longobardo ran unopposed on the Republican ticket for their seats. Poorman was out of town on business Tuesday and was unavailable to comment.
Poorman, 52, has been a Bronxville resident for 19 years, and has served on the village board for seven years.
Poorman, who is an attorney, earlier said she has overseen two most arduous accomplishments in her time on the board, including the first full tax reassessment in nearly 40 years.
Poorman said she would take on three challenges that are facing the village:
- installing improved lighting in the downtown area;
- crafting a plan to comply with the Westchester County Housing settlement;
- keeping taxes down.
"Maintaining high level of services while keeping tax increases to a minimum this is especially challenging with unfunded mandates, increased fixed costs and need to repair infrastructure on a sensible schedule," Poorman said. "Number crunching during budget season seems like a boring item to enumerate as a challenge, but it is the most important work we do. We must present a balanced budget every year."
Longobardo has lived in the village since 1969 and is also an attorney, with a background in finance.
He shares Poorman's priorities of satisfying the housing settlement requirement and keeping taxes low but wants to take on the issue of flooding as well.
"The repeated flooding in the area of the school and Garden, Meadow and Tanglewylde avenues and in the Paxton Avenue/Parkway Road area disrupts the village, in addition to having a financial cost," he said. "It disrupts our school, disrupts our children's educations, disrupts the lives of residents and disrupts businesses in the village.
"FEMA recently recommended funding approval for planning and design work on a project that will help mitigate some of the impact of storms, particularly in the area of the school, and it is essential that this project be assessed and pursued in a cost-effective manner as expeditiously as possible.
"This requires the efficient marshaling of the engineering, planning, financial and construction resources and coordination with the school administration. I believe that this is something that I could help with."
Porr said the village will hold a special meeting on Monday, April 2, to swear in the new board members.
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