Janine Sartori never expected to end up in Mineola. But after growing up in Staten Island, living in New Jersey and Brooklyn, she has been living in the village for about 25 years and has become its deputy mayor.

“It was a happy blessing. When I landed here, I was in awe of it,” Sartori said. “It was a pretty lucky coincidence that I landed in Mineola.”

She said she was immediately impressed by the government’s responsiveness and accessibility, even down to the friendly sanitation workers who would come to her house to collect garbage.

“I could not believe how transparent the government was here,” she said. She got to know many of the government officials personally, she said, including Mayor Paul Pereira, whom she met because they had children around the same age.

She said that friendship eventually led her to become interested in contributing to the village government. She said she pursued a seat on the zoning board to become more involved in the community.

“I think it’s important that we all contribute to the place that we live,” she said about the zoning board. “It was a learning curve, but it was a very cool experience, understanding the ins and outs of how this all works.”

In 2021, after two years on the zoning board, Sartori wasappointedto the village board by Scott Strauss, the current county legislator and mayor at the time, followingDennis Walsh’s vacatinghis seat to join the North Hempstead town council.

She said her five-year tenure on the board has included important community-focused work, such as supporting businesses and hosting village events.

“Part of that is the invigorating of our downtown. We were able to secure money through the state, which will help us to make it a wonderful place to be,” she said, referring to the village’s New York Forward Grant from the state. “Now it’s really vibrant down there. There are great restaurants, people living there, and it adds to the sense of community of the village.”

The $4.5 million grant was awarded to the village in early 2024 and is meant to support local governments in revitalizing business districts. She said the grant was a big win for the village and that she hopes to use it to the fullest extent possible in a second term, should she win reelection.

Source: LI Press