Who They Are: Profiles of Our Elected Officials

This week: Nancy Seligson, Town of Mamaroneck Councilwoman

Nancy Seligson, Town of Mamaroneck Councilwoman

( ) As a girl growing up on Long Island's North Shore, Nancy Seligson never imagined she'd one day be part of town government directly across the Sound, in Mamaroneck. But that's what happened, through a series of serendipitous events she outlined for the Gazette.

"I always loved to sail on Long Island Sound," Seligson said."I did collegiate racing at Northwestern, and when I moved to New York City, I raced out of Larchmont Yacht Club and City Island." An economics major, she joined Chemical Bank's management training program after college, then worked as an associate producer for several television news/talk shows.

Another career shift took her into the environmental protection movement, first with Save The Sound, in 1992. Save the Sound is a non-profit, bi-state advocacy group working to restore and protect Long Island Sound. This work took her into the realms of government and policy, with a focus on Long Island Sound issues. She became chairperson of the Larchmont-Mamaroneck Coastal Zone Management Commission in 1995.

After living in Mamaroneck's Orienta neighborhood for several years, she moved to Larchmont in 1993, gave birth to a son in 1994, and became chair of Westchester County's Environmental Management Council in 1998. The Town of Mamaroneck Democratic Party came calling in 1999, asking her to accept appointment to the Town Board to serve out the remainder of Valerie O'Keeffe's term after O'Keeffe was elected Supervisor. "I'd always thought of political office as a good fit for me," Seligson said, "And being appointed was a nice way to do it!" She went on to win re-election twice, running unopposed both times.

Although her focus is on environmental concerns, especially those relating to Long Island Sound, Seligson spends a lot of time on budget and land-use issues as well. "We're lucky to have such a smart, hard-working group of people on this Board," she said. "We get along really well, which is a good thing since we spend so much time together!"

Seligson's smile faded as she talked about one of the most serious problems facing local officials these days: the budget. "Our costs are skyrocketing," she said, "The economic environment of the State of New York since the September 11 attacks isn't helping the Town. There's been a 60% increase from last year in the cost of our liability insurance, health and retirement costs. And we now have to contribute to the employee pension fund, which used to be doing well on its own when the stock market was doing well."

Will Town taxes have to go up? Yes, Seligson says, "About 6-7%, which isn't too bad compared to what other towns are dealing with. Our retirement costs have gone up over $312,000 in the last year, and our insurance costs have increased over $350,000."

Asked to state her most important goals for the rest of her term, Seligson says she wants to start an environmental audit to establish processes and procedures to keep tabs on how the local environment is faring. Another dream is to complete the Greenway Project, which would link a series of hiking and biking trails all over the Sound Shore area in one cohesive trail system. New Rochelle, Mamaroneck, Eastchester and Scarsdale have about 16 miles of trails, and the Greenway Project would provide funding for consistent signage and standards. Communities would have to provide matching grants and volunteers. "We live in such an urbanized, developed area, it would be great to have a trail system close-by, without having to go far up-county," she said.

Another long-term goal is finding ways to fund more affordable housing, especially for the Town's new immigrants. "We're proud of the Hommocks Park apartments," Seligson said, "But we need more units like that."

Does she have plans for higher office? Seligson laughed and said, "I wouldn't mind being a senator or head of the EPA!" But for now, she stays busy enough working full-time for the Town, mothering two children and serving on myriad boards and committees .

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.