Five current members removed before terms end
The state Senate on Thursday (July 23) approved the appointment of a new, seven-member board for the New York Bridge Authority, the independent agency that oversees five Mid-Hudson Valley bridges.
The new commissioners include Lou Lanza, a Garrison resident who owns six Peekskill restaurants, and Joan McDonald, a Mahopac resident who is the director of operations for the Westchester County executive.
Board members are volunteers who serve five-year terms.
The New York Bridge Authority operates entirely on tolls collected at the Bear Mountain, Newburgh-Beacon and two other bridges. It also oversees the Walkway Over the Hudson. Gov. Andrew Cuomo earlier this year met resistance from Hudson Valley elected officials when he proposed a merger of the Bridge Authority with the state-run Thruway Authority, which operates the Mario Cuomo Bridge, formerly the Tappan Zee.
The Bridge Authority voted in December to raise tolls at its bridges over the next four years to finance repairs of the Bear Mountain and Rip Van Winkle bridges, replace the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge’s north span deck and painting and paving projects, as well as the transition to all-electronic tolling.
At a meeting of the Senate Finance Committee held by video conference on July 23 to question the seven nominees before their names were sent to the floor, Sen. James Skoufis, a Democrat whose Mid-Hudson Valley district stretches along the west side of the river, asked each candidate how he or she would respond if the governor pressured the board to allow a merger.
The Newburgh-Beacon Bridge (Wikipedia)
Cuomo was given the power to nominate seven new commissioners for the board, which had two vacancies, during state budget negotiations. At the time, four of the five members had one or two years left on their terms but those were immediately expired under an agreement with state legislators. The Bridge and Thruway agencies will also work together to share services.
“We all expected the governor would take this action,” said Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro in a statement. “The real test for these individuals and the governor is whether or not they’ll guarantee bridge authority revenue and expenses remain for Hudson Valley bridges. Fleecing hardworking commuters to support another bloated or broke state agency or authority would be offensive at best.”
During the Finance Committee meeting, Skoufis asked each candidate if he or she would oppose a merger.
“I would not go for a merger or anything like that based on what I’ve been told and what I’ve read about it,” said Lanza, who was nominated to serve as one of the board’s two Westchester County representatives. “I would definitely be for the Bridge Authority and its best interests.”
Skoufis asked Lanza if he would be “insulated and resistant to any political pressure. The governor’s office calls up and says, ‘I want you to vote this way’ — what can you do to assure us you’ll be impervious to that kind of political pressure?”
“Based on my reputation, I always do what’s best for the community, and the residents and the businesses,” Lanza replied. “I consider that part of my integrity and I’ll stay that way. I wouldn’t have to be worried about being pressured by the governor.”
Sen. Patty Richey, a Republican whose district is northeast of Syracuse, also asked Lanza about his independence. He replied: “Being a resident of Garrison and having Peekskill businesses, the Bear Mountain Bridge has been a big part of my life for last 15 years. I feel strongly about the importance of the bridges and that they stay pristine and stay affordable and they continue to do what they are doing, I can separate church and state, for sure.”
Skoufis next asked McDonald, who was nominated as the Putnam County representative, if she would commit to be among “the vocal opposition” to any proposed merger.
“I can’t say one or another, what I can say I will look at all sides of the issue,” she replied. She said discussion of a merger “is more than anything a dialogue with the Legislature, not the purview of the Bridge Authority.”
Besides Lanza and McDonald, the other new commissioners are:
■ Michael O’Brien, a Dutchess County resident who worked at IBM for 35 years, including most recently in mergers and acquisitions, and served 15 years on the Fishkill Planning Board;
■ Ilan Gibert, a former Yorktown supervisor;
■ Alex Berardi, the president of Trailways.com, who lives in Ulster County;
■ Maria Bruni, the director of community development for Middletown; and
■ Colin Jarvis, the executive director of Newburgh Ministry.
The Finance Committee advanced all the nominees for consideration by the full Senate, although Skoufis supported Lanza and Berardi only “without recommendation” and Richey did the same for McDonald.
The board members whose terms were expired are Richard Gerentine (first appointed in 2006), Roderick Dressel (1997), Diane Jablonski (2016) and Henry Stanton (2016). Roger Higgins, whose term would have ended this year, was nominated and approved as the Dutchess County representative on the Stewart Airport Commission.
Before the Bridge Authority vote, Sen. Sue Serino, a Republican whose district includes the Highlands, warned stakeholders “to remain vigilant in monitoring the measure to ensure that it does not result in a de facto takeover.”
“What is the reason for cutting short the terms of these dedicated public officials if not to replace them with people more apt to agree with your position?” she asked.
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Cuomo, Senate Replace Bridge Authority Board - Highlands Current
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