By Slimmest of Margins, Cindrich Should Return in Mt. Kisco With Farber, Patiño
Opinion Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the author/producer’s interpretation of facts and data.
Presented with a full choice of two mayoral candidates and four Village Board hopefuls, there is plenty riding on next week’s Mount Kisco elections.
Within the past two years, there has been a sudden burst of involvement in the village that hasn’t been seen in a while, sparked by the board’s consideration to potentially relocate a cell tower to Leonard Park. In the nearly eight months since the board correctly scuttled that idea, many other issues have surfaced.
The mayor’s race features two candidates any resident who has been in the village for more than six years should know by now. Deputy Mayor Lisa Abzun, a nearly two-year board member, who survived a Democratic primary in June, and former mayor Michael Cindrich. In his years of political participation, Cindrich has run as a Republican, a Democrat and now as an independent on the Village Inclusive Party.
The trustee’s contest pits longtime former trustee Jean Farber and Karine Patiño, in her first re-election bid, against Cindrich’s running mates of Theresa Flora and Angie Garcia-Guerra.
Both mayoral candidates have strong qualities with promise to serve the community well if they are victorious but have a few sharp differences of opinions. They each also hold a couple of positions that perhaps should warrant reconsideration at some point.
Abzun has been a solid addition to the board, often adding a thoughtful perspective to the conversation.
She has taken on the critically important task of pedestrian safety and is a supporter of allowing accessory dwelling units (ADUs) so the village can contribute additional housing units that a working-class person can afford. The challenge with the ADUs is whether officials can thread the needle and have a workable law that would be effective but not be abused.
As a sort of understudy to departing Mayor Gina Picinich, Abzun and the current board have seen a reasonably vibrant downtown, although with as many storefronts as Mount Kisco has there are always going to be some commercial vacancies regardless of the economy.
Abzun has been resistant to try a part-time ranger to monitor the trails, opting for the village’s DPW, in part because they would be under the supervision of the county, not the village. She also doesn’t see a pressing need to further tighten the village’s ethics code, most notably financial and property disclosure. Given the decades-long problem of a vagrants in the woods, a ranger might be worth a try, and more robust oversight is welcome at even the most local levels of government.
Cindrich, a former longtime law enforcement officer, has had his own successes when in office. Most notably he pushed and eventually executed the merger of the village police department with the county police in 2015. The move has brought stronger policing with more resources while saving taxpayers what has to be into seven figures.
He supports having a ranger, but strongly opposes ADUs. The regulation may not necessarily bring a significant number of housing units to the village but any amount would help. Any argument that it would destroy single-family zones is absurd.
The difference is slight, but with this election cycle being fraught with emotion at times, it would be beneficial to return a known quantity in Cindrich to office in hopes of having difference of opinion and robust discussion. The village would not lose Abzun, who is running from a safe seat on the board. If things don’t work out this time, she could try again.
For the two trustees’ seats, the choice is somewhat clearer. Farber served the village well for a decade on the board. While her soft-spoken manner can sometimes obscure her impact, her experience is strong. Her willingness to reconsider positions and, most importantly, to listen is greatly needed at this time.
Patiño holds an important role. She’s the first Latina ever on the board in a village that is nearly half Hispanic. As time progresses, her involvement could inspire more participation. Moreover, she is able to present nuanced positions on issues such as housing and the homeless in the village from a different perspective than anyone else on the board. Hopefully, she will continue to grow in another term.
Flora should be commended for her passionate advocacy for Leonard Park and now other issues over the past several months. She raised some strong points on why it’s never wrong to push for ethics reform and also highlighted the need for help on pedestrian safety. If Flora comes up short, she should stay involved in some capacity.
Angie Garcia-Guerra also should be praised for becoming involved in the process, providing well overdue competition. With more time in Mount Kisco, she will have a chance to become better acquainted on all of the issues in the future.
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