Roslyn firm, headed by municipal ethics expert, will advise Town on proposed changes
As part of the ongoing effort to examine and revise the Town of Huntington’s ethics code, the Town Board voted at its February 10 meeting to hire a Roslyn law firm with expertise in municipal ethics as the new counsel to the Town’s Board of Ethics and Financial Disclosure.
Steven G. Leventhal and the firm of Leventhal, Cursio, Mullaney & Spector will actively assist the Town in the revision effort, which has been ongoing for several months and will include public comments and suggestions. The effort began when Supervisor Frank P. Petrone asked Councilwoman Tracey Edwards to research ethics codes in other jurisdictions and to explore revisions. Councilwoman Edwards has been working with Howard Glickstein, dean emeritus of Touro Law School and the Ethics Board chair, on possible changes.
Mr. Leventhal and his firm were chosen based on their qualifications, in response to a request for proposals issued late last year. At the time, Supervisor Petrone noted that the RFP process was designed to ensure transparency in the selection process and to attract the most qualified firms.
“I am excited that the request for proposal process has attracted someone with Mr. Leventhal’s impressive credentials,” Supervisor Petrone said. “I expect his advice to be invaluable as Councilwoman Edwards, Dean Glickstein and I work on the revisions that will best serve the public.”
“The process is on track, and I look forward to tapping Mr. Leventhal’s expertise in municipal ethics matters as we move forward,” Councilwoman Edwards said. Councilwoman Edwards said the revisions would also incorporate comments from the Ethics Board’s annual public meeting, scheduled for March 5. The meeting is held annually for the Board to take testimony from the general public on whether the Code is functioning effectively and to hear recommended improvements
Mr. Leventhal is a former member and chair of the Nassau County Board of Ethics who has lectured and written extensively on the subjects of government, legal and corporate ethics. He has been engaged frequently to provide ethics advice, training and continuing professional education to municipal officers and employees throughout New York State, municipal associations, bar associations, law firms and universities. He also serves as co-chair of the Ethics and Professionalism Committee of the New York State Bar Association’s Municipal Law Section.
" Steven Leventhal is a well-known and highly respected authority on government ethics,” Dean Glickstein said. “I am sure that he will provide a valuable service as counsel to the Huntington Board of Ethics and Financial Disclosure."
He will replace James Matthews, who was elected to the Suffolk County District Court. The Town Board resolution sets the firm’s compensation at the rate of $200 an hour, with a maximum annual amount of $15,000.
In other action, the Town Board:
-- established a Huntington Beautification Fund to be used to assist in financing the Town’s revitalization, anti-blight and community renewal efforts. The funding will come from part of the registration fees assessed against properties placed on the Town’s Blight List.
-- granted permission for Concerned Long Island Mountain Bicyclists (CLIMB) to continue in the maintenance of mountain bicycling trails at Meadowlark Park, which is part of the Veterans Park complex in East Northport. The single-track trail in Meadowlark Park is the only such trail in a Town park. CLIMB’s volunteers donate about 250 hours a year to the trail’s maintenance.
-- approved transferring $500,000 from Highway Fund reserves for the Highway department to purchase additional snow removal materials.
-- extended for 90 days the time to consider an application for a zone change that would allow construction of a QuickChek convenience market and an LA Fitness center on the site of the former Tom Rice/Hagstrom Buick property in Huntington.
-- scheduled a March 10 public hearing on a proposed update to the Town’s Plumbing Code to make it conform to changes in state law, including revised licensing requirements for conducting plumbing system installations and revised permit requirements to facilitate installation, alteration or repairs to plumbing systems in the Town.