Democrats Say They Want To Keep Control, Supervisor asserts he and his board will 'deliver' promises

ses may be the currency all politicians deal in, but this year, the Democratic candidates for East Hampton Town supervisor and town board say they aren't promising anything they do not have the means to achieve.

"We will deliver on this. We don't make empty promises," Supervisor Bill McGintee said on Friday, after the Democrats presented their 2006 platform.

Mr. McGintee is running for his second two-year term. He is joined at the top of the Democratic ticket by Councilwoman Pat Mansir, who switched her party affiliation from Republican to Democrat earlier this year, and Brad Loewen, chairman of the town planning board for two years and a member for 16. Before Ms. Mansir changed parties, she was the only Republican on the five-member town board.

In looking to retain their majority, the Democrats are focusing on the town board's accomplishments since the 2003 election. Foremost among them, they say, is completion of the town comprehensive plan.

The Democrat controlled board "had the political backbone and the political courage" to pass a comprehensive plan "that had languished," Mr. McGintee said. The town first began to revise the plan during Jay Schneiderman's first administration in 1999.

In a top 10 list of achievements, the Democrats also point to the passing of a vegetation law limiting the amount of clearing allowed on residential properties and a buried fuel tank removal law that offered monetary incentives for getting old tanks out of the ground. They tout their commitment to build 10 units of affordable housing, which are under construction now, as well as another 35 units that are "nearing the go-ahead," and praise the board's efforts to help preserve over 400 acres of land.

"In 20 short months," Mr. McGintee said, the board has also revised the town zoning code; strengthened the Code Enforcement Department by hiring more personnel, increasing investigations by 27 percent; created two historic districts "to preserve our local heritage," and upgraded the town's computer systems "to streamline government and give the public greater access to government information."

In a second term, Mr. McGintee said he would "continue to produce honestly balanced town budgets. . . . There will be no maneuvering of numbers . . . to make things look good or bad." The Democrats were harshly criticized for their 2005 budget, which brought a nearly 9-percent tax increase for most town residents. Democrats claimed the increase was necessary because of poor financial management on the part of the previous Republican administration and pointed to an auditor's report stating that the town had not used its operating budget effectively to control expenditures.

Mr. McGintee pledged Friday to correct any auditing and budgeting errors found in that report, to pay bills on time and keep capital spending in check and below debt service, and to create the position of internal auditor to review town assets and financial paperwork from all town departments.

More effective code enforcement was a cornerstone of his previous campaigns. While he had praise for his administrations' efforts in that direction, the Democrats' 2006 platform calls for hiring still more code enforcement officers "to combat overcrowding and noise." The Democrats also want to start a comprehensive review of permitting and licensing processes that would include revising contractor licensing procedures. The goal, said Mr. McGintee, would be to "prevent our local contractors and landscapers from being undercut by people who are not following the rules."

To reduce density in the town, the town board has upzoned a number of areas in the past year - a move often met with harsh criticism and even lawsuits. In the next two years, the Democrats plan to "substantially increase" the town's purchase of small lots in densely populated areas, such as Springs. "People in their community deserve some green space, some open space," Mr. McGintee said.

The Democrats want to continue buying open space in general, but plan to look specifically for wetlands and wet lots.

"Open space is the key for protecting our heritage and it's an important part of the economy," Mr. Loewen said.

The Democrats also want to identify and preserve historic buildings in town and find ways to support what is left of the fishing and agricultural industries.

"We need to preserve fishing and farming not only as an economic mainstay of our town, but we need to preserve them as the cultural heritage of our town," said Mr. Loewen, who is a commercial fisherman and the president of the East Hampton Town Baymen's Association.

Mr. Loewen has proposed a townwide economic audit, which he described as "an economic comprehensive plan," to more closely examine who comes to East Hampton, what jobs and industries are here, and how those might be made more economically sustainable. "We can build a better East Hampton with that knowledge," he said Friday.

Along the same lines, Ms. Mansir said she wants the town to provide more space for businesses such as contractors and landscapers, including space for them to park and store their equipment.

It would be impossible to run for office in East Hampton without mentioning affordable and middle income housing, and once again, the Democrats say they hope to provide more housing for workers, young families, seniors, and "the children of our longtime residents," and find different options for financing such housing.

The Democrats promised to complete the new Springs Park, the Springs Youth Center, and the first phase of the Montauk Playhouse project, and to increase support for after-school and preschool programs.

Now that the comprehensive plan has been adopted, the Democrats want to see that its land and water use recommendations are fully implemented and that recommended projects such as a Montauk dock and downtown study and a Wainscott hamlet study are implemented.

Ms. Mansir wants the town to complete a comprehensive plan for the East Hampton Airport that "supports local aviation while minimizing intrusive noise."

The Democrats support the efforts of the East End Transportation Committee and the Five Towns Rural Transit Committee to create a light rail service with shuttle bus connections on the East End that might be managed by a rural transit authority.

They want to work with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to rebuild the Cranberry Hole Road bridge in Amagansett so that fire trucks and ambulances can use it safely. They also plan to finish efforts to alleviate flooding along parts of Route 114 between East Hampton and Sag Harbor and in the "presidents streets" off Montauk Highway in Montauk. Finally, the Democrats say they plan to "prevail in the fight to preserve our ferry law from attacks by Southampton Town, Shelter Island, and Cross-Sound Ferry interests so that East Hampton does not become the route to Connecticut casinos."

The questions the South Fork faces now "are going to decide whether we're going to be a totally suburbanized area," Tim Motz, the Democratic candidate for county legislator, said on Friday.

"This is where we begin, and the cornerstone, if you will," Mr. McGintee said. "We're looking forward to 2006 and 2007."

With reporting by Joanne Pilgrim