Who They Are: Profiles of Our Elected
Officials
This week: Village of Larchmont Trustee Chris
Verni (Verni did not run for re-election in 2003)
by Paula Eisenberg
(December 17, 2002) When Chris Verni and his wife
Kate were house-hunting in Westchester and Connecticut,
they saw properties all over both areas. But they kept
coming back to Larchmont, seeing in its small size,
tree-lined streets and friendly people a vision of what
a hometown should be. "It looked like a great  place
to raise children," Verni said. The Vernis must
be satisfied with Larchmont's child-friendly ways, because
they're still here, and baby number three is on the
way.
Verni, who was born in Bronxville and grew up in Scarsdale,
attended Iona Prep. He graduated from Georgetown University
with a degree in government, then worked as a congressional
intern and in public relations and advertising. But
when his family's real estate management firm needed
help, his career changed direction. "My grandfather
started the business, and my dad grew it from there.
It seemed a shame for it not to continue, so I came
in to work with my family. Eventually, when my father
retired, I took it over,"" he said. His experience
in building management has helped him understand many
of the issues facing Village government, he said.
Why did he decide to run for office?
"I just thought it was the natural thing to do,"
Verni told the Gazette. "I'd been to a Village
Board meeting shortly after moving here, and an elderly
gentleman stood up to speak about something, and he
was so passionate about it. I thought, 'Wow, that's
great that somebody cares so much about local issues.'
And then I got involved in the IKEA fight as a member
of WRAIN and Parents Advocating Safe Streets."
The best birthday present he ever had, he said, was
when IKEA announced it was pulling out of the New Rochelle
project...on his birthday.
Verni, a Republican, ran for and won a Village Trustee
seat in 2001. He actually enjoyed campaiging, he said.
"It was great to meet people, get out in the community
and hear what people had to say. It was pretty intense
at times." He ran, he said, because he wanted to
work toward keeping Larchmont beautiful and affordable
for everyone, especially for young families coming in
and for retired residents who want to stay. "We
need to find ways to keep our taxes as low as possible
while retaining the services people really need,"
he said. "We're actually in competition with other
communities, when you think about it, and we need to
stay competitive."
Sprucing up the business district is another goal Verni
considers important. "Larchmont has great bones,"
he said. "But of course the business district could
use some improvement. The trick is not to overwhelm
what's there with a heavy hand." Citing the crucial
role of parks in the life of a community, Verni spends
a lot of time as liaison to the Parks and Trees Committee
and with the Flint Park Conservancy. He is also liaison
to the planning, library, recreation and human rights
committees and also oversees Village invoices. This
last job, while it may sound mundane, he said, helps
him understand how the Village really works.
Asked why he puts in the long, sometimes inconvenient
hours of a Village Trustee, Verni said, "It's done
out of love. I really love the work and the people,
and this is a good time for me to be doing this. My
kids are still really young (ages five and three), and
it'll be harder to do this when they get older and have
lots of activities on weekends."
When he does have some free time, Verni plays tennis,
golf and basketball, and goes running with Casey the
Wonderdog, the family's exuberant black Lab.
We have contacted all of the elected leaders in the
Village and the Town, and the profiles will appear in
the order in which the interviews were conducted. Check
back frequently for more profiles.
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