Community Development Agency seeks new board member

The mission of the Village of Patchogue Community Development Agency (CDA) is to provide a viable community for all village residents through the development of community improvement projects and ensuring the availability of safe, decent, and sanitary housing conditions for low-income families.

The CDA was formed in 1980 under New York State Urban Renewal Law.  The five-person board is currently seeking to fill a vacancy. The chair is Donald Wachsmuth and the current members are Toni Dean, Camilo Salazar, and trustee Lizbeth Carrillo.

Currently, Margherita Proscia serves as the alternate. Recent former members include Patrick McHeffey, prior to his appointment as trustee; Carrillo, also before she served as trustee; Kaetlyn Jackson and Ryan McGarry, David Reese, Betsy Marino, and Ernie Swinson.    

 The CDA is a New York State Class C Public Authority.  The CDA has an annual budget of $3 million. The executive director and staff consists of two full-time and two part-time employees, who manage the day-to-day operations of the agency. 

The CDA board, according to executive director Marian Russo, is charged with overseeing the operation of the village’s federally funded Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program and the Community Development Block Grant Program. 

Members attend monthly CDA meetings, which are held on the first Thursday of each month at 6 p.m.  Meetings run about one hour.

The position will, however, require additional time for training and preparation for meetings. These obligations average to about two hours per month during the first year. All members are appointed by the Board of Trustees for a one-year term. Then, members are re-appointed at the annual meeting in April. 

Those interested in the position must be a resident of the Village of Patchogue, complete Public Authority Board Member Training within one-year of appointment, and must provide an annual financial disclosure statement.  

“It would be a great asset to have a member with a background in accounting,” Russo added.

When asked about reasons for serving on the on CDA board, she said:

“I call it the ‘incubator board’ because often, members of the CDA move on to the zoning and planning boards. Serving on the PCDA board is a good entry into local government.”

Also, she said, members learn compliance requirements for state laws related to, for example, purchasing and open meetings.

Information about the Community Development Agency is posted at the CDA webpage on the village website, https://patchoguevillage.org/176/Community-Development-Agency, and the Agency Charter and Annual Reports are posted at https://patchoguevillage.org/177/Community-Development-Documents.