No debate again this year in Westhampton Beach

Although the Westhampton Beach Village trustee elections are shaping up to be as contentious as ever this year, the four candidates vying for the two open board seats will not be participating in a public debate before the June 19 election.

Of the four candidates, only business owner Elyse Richman and current Village Board member Hank Tucker responded to calls from the League of Women Voters of the Hamptons, according to Anne Marshall, the chair of voter services for the organization. The League has previously helped hold debates in other local elections, including those in Southampton Village.

The other two candidates vying for seats on the board, former Southampton Town Police officer Stephen Arrasate and current trustee Joan Levan, did not respond to calls placed by the League, according to Ms. Marshall.

On Tuesday, Mr. Arrasate said he never returned the call because he is new to politics and has been overwhelmed with trying to prepare for his first election. “I’ve been so busy with getting signs and talking to people,” Mr. Arrasate said.

Also on Tuesday, Ms. Levan said she never received a call from the League, adding that any message left on her answering machine at home could have been accidentally deleted.

Elections in Westhampton Beach will be held on Friday, June 19, and voters can cast their ballots at Village Hall between noon and 9 p.m.

Ms. Richman, who is chronicling her campaign on the social networking website Twitter, said this week that it is too bad that there will not be a debate this year. She owns Shock, Baby Shock, and Shock Ice Cream on Main Street in Westhampton Beach, and is running as a member of the Shock Party.

“I think it’s unfortunate for the residents of the village that we won’t have a debate,” Ms. Richman said. “There have been too many things done behind closed doors and explanations are owed.”

The other three candidates also said they are disappointed that there will not be a debate this year. Ms. Levan and Mr. Tucker both declined to 
participate in a debate two years ago; Ms. Levan said she did not think a debate was necessary at the time 
while Mr. Tucker, who also owns Holey Moses Cheesecake in Westhampton, said he was too busy moving his business to participate in 2007.

Mr. Tucker said he would have liked to debate this year so the candidates could explain why they are best equipped to govern the village.

“We should be talking about how to handle the eruv,” Mr. Tucker said, in reference to a controversy generated last summer over a proposal by the Hampton Synagogue to establish a symbolic religious boundary in the village. “We should talk about contracts in the police department and other departments, and record keeping,” he added.

Westhampton Beach Police Chief Ray Dean’s contract expired at the end of last year and board members are now negotiating a new one. Board members are also negotiating new contracts for the employees of the village’s police department and Department of Public Works.

Ms. Levan and Mr. Tucker are running together on the Lightning Party as they look to secure two-year terms on the board. Ms. Levan has served as trustee since 2006, when Mayor Conrad Teller appointed her to the seat he vacated when he became mayor. She successfully ran for election in 2007. Mr. Tucker has been on the board for two years.

Ms. Richman ran for Village Board last year as a write-in candidate after she was kicked off the ballot when her petition was declared invalid.

Mr. Arrasate, meanwhile, is running for trustee on the Osprey Party and now sits on the Westhampton Beach Architectural Review Board.

Ms. Marshall noted that Westhampton Beach resident Clint Greenbaum recently contacted the League asking that it help set up a debate. She explained that her group normally does not initiate debates in villages and will organize such events only if asked by a resident or organization.

“I think that anyone, any candidate running for public office in a contested election, should have an obligation to debate issues,” said Mr. Greenbaum, who also sits on the Westhampton Beach School Board.

The last debate involving Westhampton Beach candidates was held four years ago at the Westhampton Free Library and was co-sponsored by The Southampton Press and the Greater Westhampton/Dune Road Civic Association. In every village election since then, the candidates have not been able to settle on arrangements for a debate.