Southeast

Robert Cullen has spent over 20 years policing the streets of Yorktown. Now he wants a shot to restore order to the Southeast Town Board. “I just feel that I’m a breath of fresh air,” he said.

Like many of the candidates vying for a seat on the Board, Cullen sees bickering and infighting as the main problems. “They have to get along and start talking to one another, that’s the most important thing,” he said. “They keep going over the same things over and over again and nothing is getting done.” Cullen believes his experience as a police officer helping neighbors resolve disputes will be of value to the board.

Cullen has been married to his wife, Elizabeth, for 17 years, and together they have two daughters, Madison, a fourth grader at C.V. Starr, and Emily, who is entering the second grade at J.F.K. Elementary. He received his B.S. from Iona in criminal justice.

The longtime police officer noted that Southeast had the lowest taxes of any town in Putnam County, and said “I pledge to keep it that way.” He promised to go through the budget to cut waste, not services. “I don’t want to cut the library,” Cullen said. “I don’t want to cut the funding of recreation or museums, or senior services. That’s something that people depend on.”

Cullen is running with Liz Hudak under the banner “Southeast First.” Endorsed by the Republicans, they are matched against the hard-charging young candidates Neuringer and De- Poala. And Cullen is not shy about raising questions as to how his two rivals received their Independence Party endorsement. “I’m not saying they bought it,” Cullen, said, “ But we were never interviewed. They donated $1,000 within days of being interviewed. It’s just something I question.”

Cullen and Hudak believe that their deep roots in the community, as homeowners, and as parents, give them an advantage over their challengers. “We’re just independent people,” Cullen said. “We’re not old guard; this is our first run for office.”

Asked what he loved about Southeast, Cullen said, “It’s a great place to raise a family. I love the rural character of the town. There’s elbow room up here.”

In the hotly contested race for Southeast Town Board, Cullen will soon find out that having elbow room, means there is room to throw an elbow, as well.

—Michael Brendan Dougherty