Harckham Appointed to Cuomo’s Administration; to Resign BOL June 1
Four-term County Legislator Peter Harckham (D-North Salem) announced Wednesday that he has been appointed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to serve in his administration and will resign his Board of Legislators effective June 1.
Harckham, 54, who decided against running for re-election to a fifth term earlier this year, will leave to become the assistant director of the Office of Community Renewal in Manhattan. He said the job will require him to work with local governments throughout the lower and mid-Hudson Valley on issues of economic development, construction of more housing and using Community Development Block Grant (CDGB) funds for community renewal projects.
Harckham said that earlier this year the governor’s office reached out to him to see if he was interested in a position using his experience.
“I’m honored to have been appointed by the governor and this is an opportunity to go back to my roots and work on some of the issues that I’m familiar with,” Harcham said. “This is a great opportunity.”
Before being elected to the Board of Legislators in 2007, Harckham had worked with A-Home, the Pleasantville-based organization that transforms properties to create affordable housing for seniors and the disabled in northern Westchester.
Harckham, who will start his new job on June 3, is expected to submit his resignation after the Board of Legislators’ June 1 meeting. He said the board will appoint an interim legislator to serve the district for the remainder of the year, but that appointee is not allowed to run for the seat under the terms of the county charter.
Last week Mount Kisco Village Trustee Karen Schleimer announced her bid to run for the seat for the Democrats to succeed Harckham.
Democratic Majority Leader Catherine Borgia (D-Ossining) congratulated Harckham on his appointment and said his expertise will be missed.
“Pete’s commitment to serving all of the people of Westchester has been at the core of so many positive things that have happened in Westchester in the past decade,” Borgia said. “While we will certainly miss him, there is no doubt that he will continue to work on behalf of the people of Westchester.”
Harckham said while he will be based out of New York City, the job will require him to work in the field with local governments in Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess Ulster and Sullivan counties.
Although he is looking forward to the new challenge, Harckham said he carries fond memories of his time on Board of Legislators.
“I’ll miss the job, I’ll miss my colleagues, I’ll miss all of the staff that I worked with and I’ll miss the people that I work for–the people of the district,” he said.
Harckham, who served as majority leader for four years, is one of seven people appointed this week by Cuomo to the administration.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
