West Enders Make Travel Plans for Election Day

California Street resident Ken Parr is ready to serve as a chauffeur on Election Day, in the wake of a decision by the Nassau County Board of Elections to keep a voting site closed in Long Beach’s West End.

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William Biamonte, the Democratic commissioners of the Nassau County Board of Elections, disapproves of reopening West School as a voting site that was transferred to Lindell School for the Nov. 5 primary election, despite that the school was reopened for classes in early September after repairs were made to the Hurricane Sandy-damaged building.

“I’m willing to drive all day long,” Parr said to a crowd of about 20 people that gathered outside West School for a declared rally Monday evening. “If they can get here, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., I will be here to take people there.”

Jerry Romanoff, vice president of the West End Neighbors Civic Association, led the rally and held up a petition, with more than 500 signatures from residents throughout the city, which he submitted to the Board of Elections two commissioners, urging them to reopen West School for voting next Tuesday. A note accompanying the petition stated that residents want to vote where they live and that many residents don’t have transportation to drive to Lindell School, nor can they take a bus that would take them directly to the school.  

On Wednesday, Romanoff told Patch that that the Republican commissioner, Louis Savinetti, acknowledged receipt of the petition and agrees with its purpose, but Biamonte had not responded to him. Both commissioners must agree to open an election site. 

West School and Lindell School are more than a mile apart. Romanoff called “ridiculous” and “nonsense” those who claim that it is the same effort for some West Enders to travel to Lindell School as it is to travel to West School.

Rachel Caruana, a Kentucky Street resident, concurred, saying that not everyone can easily make it to Lindell School. “You have a lot of senior citizens who don’t drive,” she said. “Some people say ‘well, you can walk.’ Yes, if you’re able to walk.”

Caruana noted that City Hall provides residents with free bus transportation for such events as the fireworks extravaganza in July and the Polar Bear Super Bowl Splash in February, and she questioned why city officials could not do the same for West Enders looking to travel to Lindell School to vote next Tuesday.

Asked to address the issue at a WENCA meeting last week, City Manager Jack Schnirman, who emphasized that he doesn't get involved in election-related matters, indicated that residents could use city-run buses to travel to Lindell. But others noted Lindell is not on the routes of such buses. On both Monday and Wednesday, Romanoff said that the city has not responded to his requests to provide buses to Lindell School.

Nassau County Legs. Denise Ford (R-Long Beach), who called a press conference at West School for Monday evening, said that she hoped the decision to close the site in her neighborhood would not deter people from making the effort to vote. Ford, who is running unopposed for another term as legislator, and Romanoff said they would try to work with local taxi cab companies on an agreement to provide West Enders transportation to Lindell School.