James Reichman is used to getting his hands dirty and he’s hoping that’s exactly what the Village of East Williston needs.
Before spending the last two years as a lieutenant in the New York Fire Department, Reichman worked in construction and then served his country in the U.S. Army. It was this experience working with his hands that inspired him to run this year for one of the open seats on East Williston’s Board of Trustees. After seeing his neighbor’s frustrations with the village’s recurring water quality issue over the time he’s lived in East Williston, Reichman felt he needed to take action himself to fix the problem.
“I love the village,” said Reichman. “I love every minute I live here, but this lingering issue has affected whole sections of the village and we need someone who has the experience and who’s willing to use resources we already have to address the issue.”
Reichman, who moved to East Williston five years ago, also participates in the village’s volunteer firefighter service. It’s his connection to the community and his extensive experience working with town construction that he believes will help him give East Williston residents the quality of life they deserve. If elected, he claims that he will personally involve himself with the issue to make sure that residents are no longer affected by the water quality problems.
“When you look around and see your neighbors, the people you know affected by things like this, and nothing is being done, I just felt like I needed to take action,” said Reichman.
Reichman is running for one of the open seats vacated by deputy mayor Bonnie Parente, who left the board to run for the position of mayor, which was vacated by David Tanner when he revealed that he would not be running for reelection. There are two seats available for the current three candidates who also include East Williston resident Rafaella Dunne and trustee James Iannone who is running for reelection.
The village election will be held on Tuesday, March 19, from noon to 9 p.m. at village hall, which is located at 2 Prospect St.
