Valerie Cartright for Continuity

In Brookhaven’s District 1, TBR News Media enthusiastically endorses incumbent Valerie Cartright (D-Port Jefferson Station).

While we feel her opponent, Tracy Kosciuk, has a lot of good ideas and plans to back them up, we are concerned that her schedule may already be packed with nursing, union and family responsibilities. Despite the best time management skills, sometimes commitments are scheduled at the same time. While we know Cartright’s assistant, Jennifer Martin, will sometimes attend meetings or events for her, most of the time we have seen the councilwoman present when invited, and many residents have found her approachable when bringing issues to her attention.

While giving Kosciuk more than a month to confirm a date for a debate, she was still unable to attend our meeting of an hour or so and was not present for the Oct. 25 debate.

The councilwoman represents the lone Democratic voice on the board, and also represents diversity as a person of color. She is willing to work with her fellow members, but we often respect her for being sometimes the lone dissenting voice on a number of issues. Single party rule is never a good thing.

Cartright has been at the forefront of revitalizing Port Jefferson Station and the Route 25A corridor in the Three Village area. She has made connections with businesses, developers, civic associations and residents to create visioning plans for these areas, and we are confident she has the passion and enthusiasm to see these projects through completion if elected to serve a fourth term.