The dysfunction of the Town of North Hempstead Board is apparent at nearly every meeting where Democrat vs. Republican councilmembers lock horns over various issues.

In a recent letter to Blank Slate Media, Councilmember Mariann Dalimonte contended that dysfunction exists beyond the monthly meetings as she cited a lack of communication from Supervisor Jennifer DeSena.  In response, the supervisor defended the public quarrels and called for Dalimonte to stop holding up town procedures with her personal interests.

“She can’t have it both ways and this petty political game she is playing needs to stop, for all our constituents’ sake,” Dalimonte wrote in her letter. “I will always remain willing to work with Supervisor DeSena on anything which improves the quality of life for the residents of District 6 and the Town of North Hempstead.”

DeSena, a registered Democrat elected as the town’s first Republican supervisor in decades, took office in 2022 and stepped onto a Democratic-majority board. This dynamic for her first two years in office fostered many examples of divisiveness between the board’s Republicans and Democrats, who held a 4-3 majority.

But after November’s election, the Town Board flipped to a Republican majority that took over in January. The divisiveness and public displays of dysfunction have continued in the first three months since Republicans assumed their 4-3 majority on the board.

“At my first inaugural, I stated that my goal was to remove the politics from Town Hall,” DeSena wrote in her letter to Blank Slate Media. “Councilwoman Dalimonte’s letter is precisely the type of partisan squabbling I was referring to as it quickly leads us to dysfunction and inefficient government for our taxpayers.”

The councilmember, who is a Democrat, provided five examples of dysfunctionality in town hall and cited DeSena as the catalyst in all five.

This included her invitation for the supervisor to discuss District 6 items that has not had a response, DeSena disinviting Dalimonte from a meeting with the Port Washington Police District about the new headquarters purchase and Dalimonte’s unanswered requests to the supervisor to get the previous agenda items uploaded to Novus Agenda – the town’s agenda building software.  She also mentioned DeSena’s lack of response to requests about establishing the annual shrink wrap recycling program and meeting to discuss the reopening of Manorhaven Beach Park.

Some of the requests, Dalimonte said, have been repeated multiple times and spanned months.

DeSena described Dalimonte’s grievances as a calculated distraction from the town’s broader responsibilities.

“While I know that addressing her letter might unfortunately perpetuate the issue, I believe it’s time we get to the truth of the matter: it’s a blatant effort to have a personal agenda take precedence over the everyday business of the Town,” DeSena wrote. “My challenge as your supervisor is to keep the collective goals of our Town foremost for our team and to prevent that work from being undermined by any one person.”

Dalimonte said the letter was sparked by criticism from DeSena and Walsh at the town’s March 5 meeting where they alleged that she did not make enough of an effort to inform the supervisor and her administration before presenting an item on the installation of the town’s oyster gardens ahead of the vote.

“Several times during Town Board meetings the supervisor has publicly accused me of not working with or informing her about issues I am working on, when the reality is that she does not respond to my meeting requests and actively cuts me out of important meetings affecting my district,” Dalimonte wrote.

Dalimonte said that the same radio silence she has received from the supervisor is also affecting residents, citing examples of residents speaking at Town Board meetings about reaching out to DeSena and not receiving a response. She said this has been occurring at almost every meeting for the past year.

“Based on my own experiences trying to work with the supervisor’s office, I believe what these residents are saying is true,” Dalimonte said. “This is shameful and not how good government works.”

While the oyster garden initiative was passed unanimously by the board, Dalimonte described the incident as a public scolding, which she said had occurred before.

DeSena refuted that description rather calling it “discourse and due diligence” by her and the board.

“Is the councilwoman publicly suggesting that her partners in government pass her initiatives without debate and abdicate their role as stewards?” DeSena wrote. “Perhaps her past experience as part of a majority somehow convinced her that colleagues should not offer viewpoints and simply rubber stamp each other’s initiatives”

DeSena said that while Dalimonte’s letter calls for an end to partisan bickering, the letter itself is a blatant example of that issue.

“Sadly, it exemplifies what has become a recurring problem at the Town – how we address the ongoing displeasure and complaints of one elected official,” DeSena wrote. “It’s a pattern of disruptive behavior that has spanned 27 months and is now culminating in her unwillingness to cooperate with myself or the new majority on the Town Board.”

While DeSena said she respects Dalimonte’s dedication to her district, she will continue to debate legislation, vote for resolutions she supports and continue her efforts to rebuild the town’s government. She said she won’t let the town be “held hostage by one person.”

“I regret that the back-and-forth, sometimes noisy exchange of good government has the councilwoman so unnerved, but that’s how we know it’s alive and well,” DeSena wrote. “It’s no place for hurt feelings or imagined insults.”