Who They Are: Profiles of Our Elected Officials

by Paula Eisenberg

Valerie M. O'Keeffe, Town of Mamaroneck Supervisor

(November 12, 2002) Supervisor. The word suggests a bossy person, someone always giving orders. But when Town of Mamaroneck Supervisor Valerie O'Keeffe talks about her working relationships with other officials and the public, words like "collegial," "friendly" and "respectful" sprinkle her conversation. "There's really unanimity among Republicans and Democrats in the Town of Mamaroneck on setting priorities," she said. "Everybody's interested in the environment and fiscal conservatism, meaning you don't borrow money you don't need. And we're not dealing with foreign policy or big social issues here." Local GOP and Democrat officials all worked together, O'Keeffe said, to preserve the open space of the Bonnie Briar Country Club, to keep the mega-store IKEA project from going forward, and to clean up Long Island Sound.

Supervisor O'Keeffe has held the job since 1999. Before that, she was a Town of Mamaroneck councilperson for six years, after raising her family and working as a lawyer in private practice in Westchester. She has a B.A. in government from Manhattanville College and a J.D. from George Washington University's law school. Her legal background and interest in budgetary matters helped convince her to run for public office in 1993. "I think I won because I knocked on every door in Larchmont and Mamaroneck," she said, "And it seemed like I knew everybody in town since I grew up here."

In a career full of challenges, the Bonnie Briar project was especially exciting, O'Keeffe said, because it dovetailed with her interests in law and environmental preservation. "As a lawyer, I really got into it," she said. "It was a very arduous legal campaign. I must have studied 30,000 pages of documents, trying to make sure the Town was correct constitutionally. It's always tricky when trying to balance private property rights and public needs. There were serious moral and legal issues here, and I took them very seriously."

Asked to name her proudest achievements in public life, O'Keeffe cited the recent AAA bond rating the Town received from Moody's. "I'm a minimalist when it comes to public works projects, and I think 'slow and steady wins the race' is a good motto for government," O'Keeffe said. She is also pleased to have forged a good working relationship with the Mamaroneck School Board and Village of Larchmont officials, and is excited that joint efforts with Cheryl Lewy and Mayor Ken Bialo will result in fast-track improvements to the Larchmont Railroad Station.

She has been instrumental in developing the Hispanic Resource Center, an organization she points to as evidence of the Town's heterogenous, open atmosphere. "The outreach to the recent immigrants is indicative of the open heart of this town," she said. "Suburbs can be sterile and boring," she said, "But we're not. There's a lively intellectual life here, and you can see it in how busy our libraries are. Libraries are a sign of civilization."

Up for reelection in November, O'Keeffe wants to serve again in order to "husband or see through" several major projects, including streetscape improvements and property size legislation. Along with building a grassy median along Myrtle Boulevard to help pedestrians safely cross the road, the Town has plans to improve the appearance of curbs and sidewalks on the Post Road, from Augie's Restaurant to the New Rochelle border, near the Chrysler dealership. And the area around Dillon Road will get a spruce-up too, according to O'Keeffee. "That area has been treated like a step-child in the past," she said, "But Steve Altieri (Town Administrator) has been great at getting federal and state grants for this kind of work."

O'Keeffe's office is continuing to explore quality of life issues like Thruway noise, finding more open space for public playing fields, and limiting the spread of "McMansions" in Town neighborhoods. "We need to accommodate the needs of modern families who buy older homes and want to fix them up, but we don't want the character of our communities to change," O'Keeffe said. "We're studying how other towns are dealing with this, and we hope to have floor area ratio (FAR) legislation ready by December." Again, the problem of balancing private property rights against the needs of the community at large weighs heavily on O'Keeffe.

Another area her office is working on is affordable housing. "We have a social conscience here," she said. "We're always alert to the possibility of affordable housing, so we're waiting for the impact statement on the proposed Forest City Daly apartment project on Myrtle Avenue." The project would involve construction of a six-story apartment building proposed by the firm of Forest City Daly on the parcel at Madison and Byron Place.

Asked to sum up her years of public service so far, O'Keeffe said, "To me, public service is a real calling, and although local office may not be as sexy as higher office, it requires just as much dedication and hard work. I have a bully pulpit here, and I'm very grateful the people are letting me do what I love."

When she's not aiming her considerable energy at public problems, O'Keeffe loves to play golf, travel and spend time with her three grandchildren.

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.