On March 20, the Hometown Party will be asking residents of the village to change the leadership of village government. Trustee Linda Fairgrieve is running for mayor and Peggy May is running for trustee on the Hometown Party line.

This election will certainly decide which party, the Hometown Party or New Line Party, will control the village board. If any of the two Hometown Party candidates emerge victorious, the Hometown Party would control the village board. If Fairgrieve is elected mayor, she would appoint someone to fill her trustee's position thus giving the Hometown Party the majority of the board (the other Hometown member of the five-member board is Trustee Paul Cusato). If May is elected, the Hometown Party would hold three of the five seats on the board.

Hometown Party candidates Fairgrieve and May, both classmates of Mineola High School Class of 1972, pledge to make Mineola more friendly. They believe the police department referendum held in December divided the village among those who supported and those who opposed a village police department.

Fairgrieve and May, who serves as finance director for Friends of Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, also believes the village government has to be more civil and cooperative with village residents. Fairgrieve, who is married to former trustee and current district court judge Scott Fairgrieve, has a son and a daughter. She pledges to treat everyone with respect and courtesy no matter what their position is on an issue.

May, who is married to Mineola Library Board President Paul May, and has two daughters and a son, wants to work with Fairgrieve on securing more grants for the village and revamping the village's website.

May is a newcomer to running for public office as this marks the first time she has run for elected office in the village. She has been a longtime resident of the village and has worked on numerous committees and organizations such as school PTAs and the Mineola Village Pool Board.

Fairgrieve vows to make village meetings more civil and said that village meetings would continue to be televised and that board votes will be taken in public, but would provide more information and would encourage communication with the board, employees and residents.

In terms of instituting any changes in the way village meetings are held, Fairgrieve said she would give the board members an agenda in advance and would give the board updates on meetings she holds with other entities, but said, "All village business, all votes will be in front of the television."

As mayor, Fairgrieve vows to be fiscally responsible and favors zoning incentives as a way to expand the tax base. Zoning incentives and exceptions that can be granted to developers who want to develop property in Mineola in exchange for certain amenities the developer can grant the village. However, Fairgrieve is against any development that would exceed six stories in height.

Fairgrieve was first elected to the village board in 2000. She points to placing reflective strips on stop signs for improved safety, an increased notification to 400 feet for commercial hearings for around the property the hearing is on and proposing a public safety plan, along with Trustee Cusato, that includes a neighborhood watch as some of the her accomplishments on the board.

Voting will take place on March 20 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at your designated polling place. You will be asked to vote for a mayor and two trustees. The candidates for mayor are Jack Martins and Linda Fairgrieve and the candidates for trustee are Larry Werther, John DaVanzo and Peggy May.