Garden City News - January 16, 2025

POAs announce candidates for Village Board of Trustees

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The Garden City Property Owners Associations are proud to announce the Community Agreement Party (CAP) nominees for Village Mayor and Trustees: Ed Finneran – Mayor, Michele Beach Harrington, Rich Catalano and Yvonne Varano. We welcome all Garden City residents to attend a special joint POA meeting to meet the four candidates on Tuesday, January 21 at 7:30 p.m. at the Garden City Senior Center

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• Ed Finneran is currently serving as a Trustee and is running for Mayor. He has lived in the Village for over 38yrs, is married to Mary Cullen Finneran (GCHS ’75) and together they raised four boys in town. His many years of community involvement range from his current position on the Board to 20+ years in the POA’s, dedicated service on Village wide committees and continual focus on addressing issues important to his neighbors. He is a strong listener and consensus builder with valuable experience and possesses a strong work ethic. This term he is serving as Chairman of the Traffic Commission and is a member of the BOT’s Legal Committee. Amongst many other issues, he is an ardent and active opponent of the LV Sands proposal to build a massive casino complex at the Nassau Coliseum. During his career he practiced law for 11+ years before moving to the finance industry where he worked for 25+ years. Ed has had one guiding principal during his service on the BOT…”always doing what’s right by the residents of Garden City”… and that rock solid philosophy will continue unabated if he is elected this coming March.

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• Michele Beach Harrington is a lifelong resident of Garden City and she is currently serving as a Trustee for the Village. Michele serves as Chair of the Finance committee, Co-Chair of the Environmental Advisory Board and she is a member of the Traffic Committee. Prior to being elected as a Trustee, Michele served as President of the Estates Property Owners Association for 2 years. She has been an active Director of Estates for over 20 years. Since 2021, Michele has worked diligently to support our community and its associations such as the POAs. Michele has worked from a platform of transparency and being present for the residents; keeping our government in front of our residents at multiple levels and has made it easier for residents to know what is going on within the Village! Prior to becoming Trustee, Michele was a Managing Director at Merrill Lynch in Fixed Income Sales & Trading where she worked for over 30 years. She is currently an Executive Director of Alumni & Employer Engagement at Long Island University in Greenvale. Over the years, Michele has been involved in many organizations within the Village. She is very proud of our Village, its residents and looks forward to keeping Garden City one of the best places to live for people of all ages.

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• Rich Catalano is a CPA and currently serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of CVD Equipment Corporation. Prior to this role, he was an audit partner at KPMG, until he retired in 2000 after working at the firm for 38 years. Rich currently serves as Co-President and Director of the Estates Property Owners’ Association. He is a leader of the Say NO to the Casino Civic Association, a grassroots organization of residents dedicated to preventing a casino at the site of the Nassau Coliseum. Rich currently serves on the Board of Directors of Farmingdale College Foundation. Rich and his wife, Mary, have lived in Garden City since 1996 and have raised their three sons here. Rich looks forward to bringing this financial expertise to the review of the annual budget as well the financial aspects of any plan for St. Paul’s. He will continue the fight against the casino and is proud that the Board of Trustees of Garden City has led opposition efforts since day one.

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• Yvonne Varano has a long record of volunteering in Garden City for organizations including the CPOA, the Garden City PTA, Centennials, GCAA, St. Joseph’s church and the Girl Scouts. Her professional background is in finance having retired as a Managing Director from a major financial services firm. Ms. Varano is currently serving as an alternate on the Village Planning Commission. Having served on the Citizens Budget Review and Advisory Committee (CBRAC), Yvonne has a solid understanding of the village financials. Additionally, she has held numerous leadership positions in the PTA including President and Vice President of Budget. Yvonne also sits on St. Joseph’s Church parish council and has been a lector at the parish for over 20 years. Yvonne will listen to and represent all residents of the village and approach all decisions with the same meticulous research and analytical skills that have been the hallmark throughout her career. Mrs. Varano is a life-long resident of Garden City and she and her husband have raised their three children in the Village.

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Ed, Michele, Rich and Yvonne will appear as Community Agreement Party candidates on the ballot for Village election on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Additional information on each candidate will appear in future editions of the Garden City News. Residents will also have the opportunity to learn more about Ed, Michele, Rich and Yvonne and meet them at upcoming events.

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