Town Inauguration Ceremony Draws Big Crowd
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By Connor Beach
cbeach@longislandergroup.com
Hundreds of Huntington residents, dignitaries and past and present elected officials from all levels of government packed Tuesday night into the Performing Arts Center at Walt Whitman High School in Huntington Station to witness the swearing in of newly-elected Town of Huntington officials.
The town inauguration ceremony was the sixth such for Councilman Mark Cuthbertson, but a first for each of Supervisor Chad Lupinacci, Highway Superintendent Kevin Orelli and Councilman Ed Smyth. Lupinacci formerly served in the state Assembly, but both Orelli and Smyth are first-time politicians.
Orelli was first to take the stage, being sworn in by Suffolk District Court Judge Patricia Grant Flynn, and later thanking his predecessors Peter Gunther and Bill Naughton for their work in the office.
“We are here to celebrate the election of two Democrats and two Republicans,” said Orelli, who owns a drainage and excavation contracting firm. “We all want to make our town a better place, but we might not agree on which road to take.”
State Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset) administered the oath of office to Smyth, who thanked his family for their love and support. Smyth compared the town to a battleship whose captains may come and go, but that has a consistent crew.
“As politicians come and go, the people who run the boat stick around,” Smyth, a Huntington-based attorney, said. “For the people in the Town of Huntington, I ask you to stick around to keep running the boat.”
Suffolk Supreme Court Judge C. Randall Hinrichs administered the oath of office to Cuthbertson, who spoke about the changes that past town boards have had to address, and that the new town board will face.
“One of the keys to our success in this town has been our ability to adapt to changing times,” Cuthbertson said. “We made it easier to build apartments over stores, we allowed The Paramount to locate in Huntington village, and we changed our code to allow Canon to be built in Melville.
“The real challenge for us is to think about the future and respond.”
Cuthbertson, Lupinacci and Smyth will be joined on the town board by recently-appointed Councilwoman Joan Cergol, a Democrat, and incumbent Councilman Gene Cook, an Independence Party member.
The inauguration ceremony, which ran over two hours, was planned by Huntington Town Clerk Jo-Ann Raia and presided over by Jon Jay LaValle, chairman of the Suffolk County Republican Committee, who served as master of ceremonies.
Rep. Thomas Suozzi (D-Huntington) was also in attendance.
“I have been to a lot of inaugural ceremonies across Long Island in the last two days, but Huntington wins for the most highly attended,” Suozzi said.
The extensive color guard for the event was provided by members of veterans’ organizations from around Huntington, volunteers from the town’s fire departments and ambulance corps and the U.S. Coast Guard.
