Tekulsky, Irace Face Off in Sag Harbor Justice Election

In the only contested race in Sag Harbor Village this year, East Hampton Town Justice Steve Tekulsky will face off on June 20 against attorney Carl Irace for a four-year term as village justice.

Tekulsky of East Hampton defeated Irace in a 2013 race for town justice and has remained on the bench ever since. He also has been appointed annually since 2019 as associate village justice under the current village justice, Lisa Rana, who is retiring.

He said the race comes down to experience. “Do you want someone who knows how to be a judge or do you want someone who has to learn?” he asked, noting that the winner will have only 10 days after the election to prepare for the job — a far cry from the two months he had to observe the court daily after his initial election in East Hampton.

“If it’s me. No problem. I know how to do it,” he said. “If it’s Carl, there is a learning curve.”

“You don’t have to be a lawyer to know what makes a good judge: balanced temperament, fair play and inclusiveness,” countered Irace, a village resident whose law practice runs the gamut from real estate to defense cases.

Irace said he was asked to run for the position by Trustee Tom Gardella, who is running unopposed for mayor to replace Jim Larocca, who is not seeking a second term. He said Gardella knew he was a village resident and involved in village issues. “Tom asked me to step up,” he said.

Tekulsky, who was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Connecticut, is a 1977 graduate of St. John’s University Law School in Queens. His first job as a lawyer was as an assistant district attorney in Manhattan, where he prosecuted violent crimes. He and his wife, Stefanie, moved to East Hampton in 1988, where they raised their two children.

“Although I have threatened to hang a shingle, I never have and have run a successful law practice working in a corner of my basement,” he said. What started out as a general law practice has largely focused on real estate since his election as a judge.

“I have no plans to retire,” said Tekulsky, who is 70 years old. “I love everything I do in my professional life, and I enjoy being a judge, which is not an easy job.”

Irace, who is 48, grew up in Garden City and attended the University of Pennsylvania and Villanova University Law School. He became an East Hampton Town deputy attorney in 2010, when he advised the Zoning Board of Appeals and other town departments. He and his wife, Alice Cooley, who is also an attorney, have two children.

Irace left the town in 2012 to open his own law practice. “The area in which I excel and have a passion for are criminal cases,” he said. “I find them to be the most fulfilling because the stakes are high and I like helping people.”

Irace said he was honored to be named to a criminal justice panel, which is a list of attorneys found to be qualified to practice in U.S. federal court for the Eastern District of New York.

While he acknowledged he did not have experience on the bench, he said he has served as a judge for mock trials held by East Hampton High School for the past six years and that his experience around the courthouse would help make him a quick learner if elected.

“I have a scope and breadth of experience that is far deeper, wider, and richer than many attorneys my age,” Irace said.

Irace, who has appeared before Tekulsky many times, said he enjoys a good relationship with him and called him to let him know he was running for the position.

Otherwise, it is expected to be a quiet election in Sag Harbor unless there is a late write-in campaign.

Gardella, who runs a plumbing business and is an active member of both the Sag Harbor Fire Department and Volunteer Ambulance Corps, has one remaining year on his third term as trustee, but he announced he would seek to replace Larocca after the mayor announced he would not seek another term earlier this year.

He will be joined on the ballot by Aidan Corish, who is seeking his fourth term as village trustee, and Bob Plumb who is running for his third term.

In North Haven, Trustee Terie Diat is seeking a second two-year term, and Trustee Peter Boody, who was appointed last year to complete the term of Chris Fiore, who was elected mayor, is seeking a full, two-year term.

The elections are Tuesday, June 20, in both villages. Voting in Sag Harbor takes place from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the firehouse on Brick Kiln Road. In North Haven, the polls are open at Village Hall from noon to 9 p.m.