When reflecting on her first 100 days in office, the very first thing Suffolk County Legislator Ann Welker reaches for is gratitude.
“I have a big list of thank-yous and acknowledgments, because I stand on the shoulders of giants,” she said over a recent cup of coffee at Paul’s restaurant in Southampton Village, just steps from her office on Hill Street.
She was referring first, of course, to her predecessor, Bridget Fleming, with whom Ms. Welker said she shares the priorities Ms. Fleming demonstrated during her four terms as a Democrat with the County Legislature — environmental conservation, including water quality and open space, along with infrastructure and good governance.
“Bridget was everywhere,” Ms. Welker said. “She set so much in motion.”
But Ms. Welker also mentioned State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., another “giant” from whom she has received much guidance and inspiration. “I was in a meeting recently where people stood up and clapped when Fred Thiele’s name was mentioned,” she said.
Then there are the immediate past supervisors of East Hampton and Southampton Towns, Peter Van Scoyoc and Jay Schneiderman, and the town boards they led. And so, she says, “on the shoulders of giants.”
The second thing Ms. Welker reaches for is bipartisanship. A Democrat working within a Republican-controlled County Legislature — 12 of the 18 lawmakers are Republicans — she is leaning heavily on her own previous experiences working with a similarly controlled trustee board and town board in Southampton.
“I try not to live in that line in the sand,” Ms. Welker said. “The only way you get things done is by working together. I anticipate, once I build my knowledge base and relationships in the county, which I am working diligently at right now, that although it may take me a little bit of time . . . I will be able to contribute effectively.”
She has already co-sponsored a measure by Jim Mazzarella, a Republican representing the neighboring Third Legislative District, for the county’s first permit for commercial kelp harvesting.
“Kelp has many possibilities,” including as fertilizer, animal feed, packaging, and biofuel, Ms. Welker said. There are jobs to be had in the industry, too. She thinks Suffolk can encourage commercial fishers and lobster harvesters to take up kelp farming during their off-season, just as Maine has been doing for a little over a decade.
She is helping develop legislation to expand Suffolk’s aquaculture lease program in Peconic Bay and Gardiner’s Bay to include native kelp species in addition to oysters. For this initiative, the county is still taking comments, which can be sent in through Tuesday by email to [email protected].
Ms. Welker also supports the passage of the Suffolk County Water Quality Restoration Act, which was voted down by the County Legislature last year after having moved rather swiftly through the State Senate and Assembly. It has been revived, sponsored by Mr. Thiele. The Assembly ultimately approved it by a vote of 147-0 on April 16. “Who gets that done?” an awed Ms. Welker commented.
That piece of legislation, which calls for the addition of a .0125-percent sales tax (12 cents on every $100) to support clean water projects, is now before the State Senate for approval. If it gets to that point, Gov. Kathy Hochul would then sign it into law, and it would go again to the Suffolk Legislature. If the county approves it this time, the measure would go on the November ballot as a countywide referendum.
Ms. Welker supports the bill, which would ultimately help pay for sewer system expansion and individual septic system upgrades. “There are between 350,000 and 400,000 antiquated septic systems in all of Suffolk County,” she said. “According to Christopher Gobler,” a professor at Stony Brook University, “approximately 70 percent of the nitrogen that impacts our waterways and drinking water comes from septic systems.”
Ms. Welker said she supports expanding a program that East Hampton Village residents should already be familiar with: ending the practice of automatic inclusion of single-use plastic utensils and condiments at delis and takeout food operations. “If this is successfully passed at the county level, people will have to ask for them,” she said. “It doesn’t economically impact our small businesses — it’s a benefit.”
Ms. Welker is now working to inform her constituents about the planned overhaul of Three Mile Harbor Road, also known as County Road 40, from Cedar Street in East Hampton to Copeces Lane in Springs later this year. There will be a community meeting at East Hampton Town Hall on May 8 at 7 p.m. to let people know what’s on the horizon.
“Rehabilitation, asphalt resurfacing, drainage repairs and upgrades, and bike safety are the key words for that,” Ms. Welker said, glancing down at a page of handwritten notes. “Those don’t roll off my tongue — yet.”
Besides bipartisan cooperation, Ms. Welker named another big challenge that comes with the territory: “How to get from Hauppauge to Montauk in under two hours.”
She recently bought a suit for the first time, and expects to buy more. “I have somehow made it through my whole life without a suit. I’ve only ever had wetsuits.”
The fact that there is a growing number of women in positions of leadership on the East End excites her. With regard to East Hampton Town Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez and Southampton Town Supervisor Maria Moore, Ms. Welker said, “I’m looking forward to building those relationships.”
And the process of getting to know her district continues. In Southampton Town, where she served three terms as a trustee, people knew her family. Her late father, Ral, was a founder of the marine science program at Southampton College. An example of her family roots in Southampton:Two nesting ospreys at the program’s waterfront station have been named Ral and Mary for her parents.
When she was running for office last year, “I had to introduce myself in East Hampton, but I built all of these things into my conversations,” she said. “Because the environment is such an important conversation on the East End, that was a majority of what I’m taking with me that I learned from the constituents — their respect for and care for the quality of our community, open space, the small villages that are the foundation of the community, and how to retain that character.”
Two people essential to the functioning of her office, Irene Donohue, her chief of staff, and Cheryl Rozzi, a longtime legislative aide, served under Ms. Fleming for years. “Before I said yes to running for the Legislature, I asked them if they would stay on,” Ms. Welker said. “I said to them, ‘The only way I can be successful in carrying on Bridget’s highly impactful work is if you are beside me on this team.’"
There is a new addition to her staff now: Cole Yastrzemski, an energetic aide who took over where Michael Iasilli left off. Mr. Iasilli was elected to the Southampton Town Board the same day Ms. Welker was elected to the Legislature.
“I’m doing my best to manage my expectations,” she said. “My intention is always to do my best with whatever I’m presented with. I have things on my radar that are very important to me that I carry with me — my passion for water quality, open space, and the environment. Now that I’m 100 days in, I’m seeing where I can take the things that are important to me in this community and build on them.”
