Brookhaven’s roads are notoriously bad. From potholes that lay dormant for seasons at a time, to unplowed residential roads, and storm drains that flood entire blocks, town residents are fed up. We pay too much money to have road infrastructure this bad - it’s embarrassing. If I’m elected Supervisor, the Brookhaven Highway Department will be the number one budget priority. The Supervisor’s office will make yearly recommendations on best practices, and provide strict oversight on the bidding process for town highway contracts. Many of our town contractors are some of Supervisor Ed Romaine and Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro’s biggest campaign donors. That practice must end.
I grew up in a highway household - my dad spent his career working for the Smithtown Highway Department, and my brother works there now. Municipal highway issues were part of my kitchen table talk. I’ve also spent the last 7 years as a senior contract manager for the City of New York, running the bid and RFP process for million dollar public contracts. I know what it looks like when a contractor is overcharging for services, and if I’m elected, the donor-contractor political patronage system at the Highway Department is going to have a short lifespan.
My Road Infrastructure Plan:
Make road infrastructure the top budget priority.
Clean up highway contracts; end political patronage.
Explore shared services contracts with the County and State.
Strict departmental oversight.
Yearly recommendations.
Mandate the creation of specialty crews, made up of highway employees who can pave, plow, cut trees, service storm drains, and perform a variety of functions at will. Tie implementation of this proposal to increased town funding.