Town of North Hempstead Town Board Regular Meeting – June 2, 2026
Town of North Hempstead Town Board Regular Meeting – June 2, 2026
The Town Board convened on Tuesday, June 2, 2026 at 7:00 PM. The meeting opened with a Pride Month proclamation, raising the Pride flag and lighting Town Hall in rainbow colors. The Board addressed 52 agenda items, including resolutions to set public hearings, approve contracts, accept gifts, and make personnel changes. A contentious debate occurred over Resolution 1, which sought to set a public hearing on a local law amending the Ethics Code to restrict official Town communications to matters within Town jurisdiction. That resolution failed. The consent calendar was adopted with the exception of item 4 (stricken).
Consent Calendar
- Items approved unanimously (7-0): Resolutions 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 34, 35, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52. Notable items: setting hearing dates for Inspiration Wharf (mixed-use development in Port Washington), Caribou Coffee drive-through in New Cassel, gym conversion in Williston Park, reserved parking in New Hyde Park, and no-parking ordinance in Albertson; accepting gifts ($5,000 from Four Leaf Bank for Memorial Day fireworks, $10,000 from Cow Neck Peninsula Historical Society for Monfort Cemetery restoration); award of manhole casting and coverings bid; agreements for Dragonboat Festival dock rental ($17,500) and tent rental ($3,460); CSEA retirement incentive MOA; H2M ArcGIS update ($11,678); Women's Roll of Honor breakfast ($35/person); mahjong classes for seniors ($55/hour); various amendments and contract assignments; Pride Month proclamation; Summer of Love adoption fee waiver (July 4 – September 7, 2026); appointments to Waterfront Advisory Commission (Maria Branco, Steve Klyce, Paul Mellink, Joseph Vinarski reappointed; Craig J. Padover appointed); fire department membership actions; and personnel actions (Resolution 48, with sub-items).
- Item 4 (Stoothoff SWC LLC site plan for gym) was stricken by the Supervisor as not ready.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Roberto Bonelli (Albertson) urged the Town to improve spay/neuter and TNR services for cats, criticizing the current once-a-month clinic and lack of a cat shelter. He argued the Town is neglecting animal welfare despite its wealth.
- Hal Uguche (Port Washington) requested the Town press the LIRR to include the Bayview Avenue trestle (between Great Neck and Manhasset) in its capital plan, citing safety concerns from its age.
- Stuart Kroll (cat advocate) thanked the Town for a $200,000 state grant for dog shelter kennels but criticized the shelter's condition and the lack of a cat shelter. He called the Town's inaction on cats "callous" and urged voters to consider the issue at the ballot box. He also disputed the Supervisor's claim that a previous shelter plan was diverted.
- Rushme Grishna Raj (Williston Park) reported severe street flooding at Lipton Lane and Center Street, and complained about utility poles (PSEG and Verizon) not being removed after new installation. She requested speed limit signs on Center Street near schools.
- Carmela Allo questioned the timing of kiddie pool repairs at Clinton G. Martin Park, noting the work would close the pool during summer. The Board explained the pool had been leaking and they prioritized repair over another season of water waste.
- Scott Wolfe spoke on Resolution 1, accusing the Supervisor of hypocrisy for limiting board resolutions to town business while using town social media to express personal views on the Iran war. He urged the Board to set the hearing.
- Francesca Zonner (Port Washington) thanked the Board for Pride Month and the rebate program, but criticized the inconsistency in allowing the Supervisor to post about the Iran war on the town page while blocking resolutions on national issues. She asked for consistency.
- Sean McCarthy (Port Washington) condemned the Supervisor's parliamentary move in February 2025 to block a resolution condemning January 6th pardons. He argued that setting the hearing is essential for democracy and criticized the ban on speech about other governments.
- Vasu Krishnamurthy (Manhasset) argued that if a pardoned J6 rioter moves to the town, it becomes town business. The Supervisor and Councilman Walsh disputed that, stating town business is limited to local contracts and services.
- Tom McDonough (CSEA Unit 7555 President) spoke on consent calendar items 43 and 44, questioning the designation "District 2 Representative" for one appointment. He later thanked the Board for personnel actions.
Discussion Items
- Resolution 1 (Setting hearing for Ethics Code amendment): Councilman Troiano proposed a resolution to set a July 14 public hearing on a local law to limit official Town communications to matters within Town jurisdiction. Extensive debate ensued. Supporters (Troiano, Liu, Dalimonte) argued that residents deserve a public hearing on the issue, and that denying a set date disenfranchises the public. Opponents (Walsh, DeSena, Scott, Levy) contended that the resolution itself would restrict free speech, and that the current practice of allowing unlimited public comment already protects speech. They noted the Town's social media posts are not official business but personal expressions. The motion failed 3-4.
- Resolution 36 (Amending meeting schedule): The Supervisor moved to change the July 14, 2026 meeting from 10 AM to 7 PM to accommodate the public hearing on the Inspiration Wharf project. Councilman Walsh requested better communication before such changes. The resolution passed 7-0.
- Resolution 31 (Summer of Love adoption fee waiver): Passed 7-0. The Supervisor encouraged residents to adopt dogs from the shelter.
- Resolution 48 (Personnel actions): Passed with most sub-items unanimously. Sub-item 48-100 (salary increase for Deputy Receiver of Taxes) saw Councilwoman Liu and Dalimonte vote no, citing a 20% increase over two years as excessive. Councilman Troiano recused himself due to a supervisory relationship with the employee.
Key Outcomes
- Resolution 1 – Failed (3-4). Ayes: Troiano, Liu, Dalimonte. Nays: Walsh, DeSena, Scott, Levy. No public hearing date set for the Ethics Code amendment.
- Resolution 2 (Inspiration Wharf public hearing) – Adopted (7-0). Hearing set for July 14, 2026 at 7 PM.
- Resolution 3 (Caribou Coffee drive-through hearing) – Adopted (7-0). Hearing July 14.
- Resolution 4 (Gym conversion) – Stricken by Supervisor.
- Resolution 5 (Reserved parking) – Adopted (7-0). Hearing July 14.
- Resolution 6 (No-parking ordinance) – Adopted (7-0). Hearing July 14.
- Resolution 36 (Meeting time change) – Adopted (7-0). July 14 meeting moved to 7 PM.
- Resolution 31 (Adoption fee waiver) – Adopted (7-0). Fees waived July 4 – September 7, 2026.
- Resolution 48 (Personnel) – Adopted with sub-items except 48-100: Ayes on 1-99 and 101-131 (7-0). On 48-100 (Deputy Receiver of Taxes salary increase): Ayes: Walsh, Levy, DeSena (3); Nays: Liu, Dalimonte (2); Troiano recused. Passed 3-2.
Meeting Transcript
Okay, good evening, everybody. We have a special guest, Deputy Town Clerk Russo. Would you please call the role? Good evening, everybody. Welcome to the town board meeting for Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026. For the roll call. Councilman Triano. He's in the building. Councilman Scott. Here. Councilman Walsh. Councilwoman Liu. Here. Councilman Levy. Yeah. Councilwoman Delamanti. Here. Supervisor De Senna. Here. And Councilman Triano is here. Councilman Triano. Okay. Okay. Thank you, everybody. I apologize for being five minutes late, but I came bearing gifts for my town board member colleagues. These are smushtinis from Smusht on Main Street in Port Washington. These are a special Be the Rainbow flavor. And uh and a dollar will be donated to Be the Rainbow for every purchase this month. So I have these mushtinis for everyone. Feel free to have them now, or I'll go put them in the freezer for afterwards. Is that good for the sure? Oh, sorry. Okay. Sorry. You could just look. And thanks, Mary. And as this is Pride Month, we have uh raise the Pride flag at Town Hall. It will be up for the entire month of June. And as you leave tonight, you will see town hall lit in rainbow colors. It will be lit for the remainder of the week. This is to make sure that everyone in North Hempstead knows that they are respected and included. And we stand with them. Oh actually, yes. And so by the way, we're doing exactly what you asked. We're doing the flag as you asked, and the um and the lights, exactly as you suggested. Um I I did speak with a few people, and and by the way, the only person who approached me about what we're doing was was uh Robert Zimmerman. And so we just we discussed what we have done. Um, for instance, last month when it was Jewish Heritage Month, we had speakers come to the board meetings so that uh they'd be part of the record and and they'd be part of our video. Um unfortunately I asked Mr. Zimmerman if he would please speak tonight, uh, but he had another engagement that he could not get out of.
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