Candidate Profile: Thomas McCarthy For Smithtown Town Clerk

SMITHTOWN, NY — Republican Thomas McCarthy is competing against Democrat William Holst for the position of Smithtown town clerk. One will be elected on Nov. 7.

Patch reached out to both candidates to hear where they stand on important issues affecting the community.

Here are the responses for those who participated. The answers have been lightly edited for clarity.

Name

Thomas D. McCarthy

How old will you be as of Election Day?

68

Does your campaign have a website? If so, include the URL here.

https://www.smithtownteam.com/

What city or town do you live in?

Smithtown

What office are you seeking?

Smithtown Town Clerk

If you are running in a district, you can specify the district here.

N/A

Party affiliation.

Republican/Conservative

Education.

John Jay College

What is your occupation?

Over 40 years working in the private sector in the field of security and business management. Government experience: I have also served on the Smithtown Board of Assessment Review and am the Vice Chairman Smithtown Conservation Board.

Do you have a family? If so, please tell us about them.

My wife Debbie is a successful director for a communications company. My son Thomas works for the parks department.

My 4-legged son, Dude, is a Westie, who rescued our family.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No political roles. My son works for the parks department.

Have you ever held a public office, whether appointive or elective?

Served on the Smithtown Board of Assessment Review
Vice Chairman Smithtown Conservation Board

Now we'd like to ask a few questions about your reasons for running and your general views on politics and government. First, why are you seeking this office?

I couldn't stop thinking about the recent scares and breaches in other levels of government. I have played a small role in public service over the last 4-5 years and found myself in a unique position to do more for my great town. I believe my background working in security in the private sector can serve the Office of the Town Clerk, to harden our cyber security defenses, streamline records management, improve ease of access for online permits, and expand on services for residents. My overall objective is to provide the people of Smithtown with a well-operated, orderly and welcoming experience at the Town Clerk’s office.

Please complete this statement: The single most pressing issue facing my constituents is \_\_\_, and this is what I intend to do about it.

I believe it's the economic climate. This affects us all. Whether we're filling up at the gas tank, or buying groceries, our dollars just don't go as far as they used to compared to a few years ago. I believe in thinking outside of the box to give residents more without a financial burden. For example, we have very popular concerts at Long Beach and Hoyt Farm over the summer months. Many guests from outside of the township attend these events, despite the parks being exclusive to Smithtown residents. I'd like to create a simple, online and in-person process for guests to purchase day passes to access our parks.

I'd also like to start a kayak/canoe storage rental program for people to leave their recreational vessels in a secure place at launch sites for their own convenience. These examples create additional revenue streams for the town, which in turn can be used to offset the operating budget costs, thereby lowering property taxes for homeowners.

What needs to be done to address water quality issues on LI?

Two words: nitrogen reduction. The town already has a plan to complete or build new wastewater infrastructure in the three downtown business districts. But we can also ramp up our aquaculture programs for oysters and clams. By adding these little nitrogen eaters to the bay we can help to rebuild the shellfish population. Adding shellfish like clams and oysters to the bay also provides a boost to the shellfishing economy.

What do you think can be done to help improve our infrastructure, highways, etc?

State-of-the-art camera technology is already being used by our Highway Department to identify, track and fix broken pipes, sinkholes, kinks, rootballs. By identifying risks to the infrastructure they can prevent major (costly) damage from taking place, plan road work according to the highest risk and prevent major flooding. Additionally, I think our highway crews are the very best when it comes to maintaining and cleaning recharge basins and plowing snow. Finally, identifying projects that propose a major safety threat, such as the recently completed Long Beach Road elevation, and finding aggressive grants to fund these projects has been a highly successful SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) plan.

How would you plan to help local business owners, who are struggling because of high rents, inflation and labor shortages?

This is technically not the role of the Town Clerk. However, I would gladly assist in the distribution of information to businesses to help them with shortages, inflation and low rent opportunities.

What is your stance on the current migrant situation affecting New York? And migrants were to be directed to shelters on Long Island, how would you prepare/plan for that?

I think it's a very sad humanitarian crisis, one that should have never gotten so out of control. Suffolk County is currently not participating in taking in migrants from NYC as it lacks the resources and funds to do so. Even if that was to change, Smithtown does not have hotels or similar housing options which would be considered habitable.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

My private sector experience in business development, project management and security assessment gives me a leg up on identifying, predicting and preventing common trends in security breaches. I'm also happily retired which means I can do this job on a full time basis, which is how it should be. It is my intention and hope is to operate a highly successful service-based office, with a team of very talented individuals.

If you are challenging an incumbent, in what way has the current officeholder failed the community?

NA

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

Given the current state of the economy, and the uncertainty regarding if we will be facing a wartime era in the coming months ... I think government should be hyper-focused on how decisions made affect the average citizen. Town government is service based, which presents us with an opportunity to help alleviate the burdens of our current National economy. Additionally, with so many unfunded mandates coming down from Albany, I really look forward to rolling my sleeves up to identify ways of saving money for the taxpayer through the use of new technology. I believe we can cut costs by using an online filing system. Also, I would like to build on the Veterans Resource Center. I think we can do more for our Veterans, current service members and their families.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I’ve had the distinct privilege of implementing major risk management plans, client retention and restructuring campaigns for major corporations over the years. I managed a 30% growth rate of the commercial client base for a Fortune 500 company, which delivered a 25% increase in operational income. It is my hope, to implement my business operating plans and background into the already fantastic Town Clerks office. Together with a talented team, we will bring the office to the next level, giving residents the options of in person or online permit registration, access to their own records and public documents, while expanding on services and resources available to our community.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

My mom used to say something to me, (which full disclosure I learned later as a young adult, was her quoting Eleanor Roosevelt): "It is not fair to ask of others what you are not willing to do yourself."

What she meant was that most people don’t like being told what to do. If you are going to be a good leader, manager, director, etc., you need to inspire, motivate and instill passion in each member of your team.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I am seeking office because I want to give back to my community and I believe public service is a perfect conduit to do so. I look forward to going out of my way to accommodate a marriage license for a couple in love. I will travel through inclement weather, day or night to be there for a grieving family who requires a death certificate. I will treat every resident who enters the office of the Town Clerk with decency, respect and empathy. It would be an extraordinary honor to serve the people of Smithtown, my family, neighbors, and friends as your Town Clerk. I humbly ask for your support on Election Day, November 7th (or vote early Oct. 28 - Nov. 5.) My name is Thomas D. McCarthy and I am the official Republican Party candidate and Conservative Party candidate for Town Clerk. You can find my name on the ballot on either row B or row C.