Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr., State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle, and other state and local officials attended the East Hampton Village Board meeting on Friday to pay tribute to Mayor Paul F. Rickenbach Jr., who will be resigning on Tuesday, more than six months before his term is up.
Mr. Rickenbach, who is the longest serving mayor in village history, has held office since 1992. After the board addressed its agenda for the meeting, including resolving to accept the mayor’s resignation, the accolades began.
Richard Lawler, the deputy mayor who has known Mr. Rickenbach since their days as local police officers, served as M.C. for the occasion and began by highlighting Mr. Rickenbach’s history of public service.
“He began his public service career in the U.S. Army and served in the Panama Canal Zone,” he said. “He joined the East Hampton Police Department in 1958, rose to the rank of detective sergeant before retiring in 1982, and he was appointed trustee in 1988.” Mr. Rickenbach had served two terms as a trustee, and was appointed mayor after the death of Mayor Kenneth Wessberg a few months before the 1992 election.
A few of the mayor’s “greatest legacies,” said Mr. Lawler, are the establishment of the Hook, Huntting Lane, and Ocean Avenue Historic Districts in the village. He had also led the village’s effort to acquire the Gardiner Mill cottage, the Thomas Moran house, and the Dominy workshops.
Under his leadership, Mr. Lawler continued, the village adopted its first comprehensive plan, and had passed environmentally friendly legislation, including laws that banned single-use plastic shopping bags, plastic straws, and Styrofoam. Mr. Lawler presented Mr. Rickenbach with a proclamation honoring his “years of steadfast and loyal service.”
Mark Woolley, the regional director for Representative Lee Zeldin, praised Mr. Rickenbach for his grace, dignity, and quality of leadership. “The congressman wanted to make sure we were here for you today to present to you a certificate of special congressional recognition,” he said. He then opened up a box that contained an American flag. “We will fly a flag over the U.S. Capitol on your behalf and in your honor,” he said.
When he announced his resignation in June, Mr. Rickenbach said he planned to spend more time with four grandchildren. Mr. LaValle lauded that decision, and congratulated him on his distinguished career.
“Paul Rickenbach, this is your life,” joked Mr. Thiele at the beginning of his remarks. “We don’t see you simply as a colleague in the realm of political service, we see you as a friend. Somebody who we love, somebody who we trust, somebody we know we can always count on, and that is the true testament to your career in public service,” he said.
Larry Cantwell, the former East Hampton Town Supervisor who had served as village administrator under Mayor Rickenbach for decades, teared up as he recalled their days working together. “I had a ringside seat for much of your work. It’s hard for me not to get emotional about this,” he said.
Mr. Cantwell recounted a story from when the East Hampton Library was proposing an expansion. The project divided the community, he recalled, state officials had gotten involved, and then-Gov. George Pataki had been preparing to sign a bill that would have exempted the library from local zoning rules. Mayor Rickenbach was furious about it, he said, because he thought the village should have the final say. Prior to the signing, the governor was in Montauk on a summer weekend, and the mayor showed up unannounced and convinced him to reject the bill. “Those were the extra yards that Paul would go to,” said Mr. Cantwell.
Debra Stein, the cantor at the Jewish Center of the Hamptons, also noted Mr. Rickenbach’s dedication to the village. “You’re at every vigil, out in the freezing cold, when it’s hot, honoring those who have died, attending a baseball fund-raiser,” she said. “There’s a word that I will use, that I don’t use lightly, the word is ‘mensch.’ You are truly an incredible human being, and it has been my honor to know you.” Rabbi Joshua Franklin presented the mayor with a proclamation on behalf of the center.
Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc described the mayor as someone whom he relied on for advice. Sara Davison, the executive director of the Friends of Georgica Pond, thanked him for ushering through legislation that would encourage the installation of low-nitrogen septic systems in the village. Steven Schwartz, a member of the East Hampton Group for Good Government, complimented the mayor for exemplifying the “highest level” of virtuous conduct.
“What you’re hearing today is people appreciate everything that you did,” said Kevin McDonald of the Nature Conservancy.
“The environmental community thanks you for your service.”
Mayor Rickenbach then addressed the audience, which included his wife, Jean, his daughter, Cynthia, and two of his grandchildren. “I had no idea that my family members were going to be here today,” he said. He said he accepted with humility the compliments that had been offered to him, and added, “but I didn’t do it by myself, and wouldn’t want to be so arrogant to portray that message.”
“In the first place I had my wife, she’s my baby, and I had the benefit of dealing with colleagues that cared about the village, the town, the county, and the state.”
He thanked the village board members, the village administrator, Becky Molinaro Hansen, the Police Department and ambulance service, and the village employees, whom he referred to as “the spokes in the wheel.”
“You’re only as good as the people you surround yourself with,” he said. “And as I look out at the audience today, you guys are special.”
After the meeting, Mr. Rickenbach thought back on his first days as mayor. He remembered sitting in the office chair, swiveling, and finding a Milk Bone dog biscuit left behind by Mayor Wessberg, who had dogs. “I looked at the ceiling and said,
‘Well you’re the mayor, where do we start and what do we do?’ ”
He also thought ahead to his last day. “It’s going to be a day like all the others, just knowing that I’m turning the last page and closing the volume, but it will be fine, everything will be fine,” he said.
After he resigns, he said, “I’m going to be around, and happy to be a part of a conversation.” One project he’d really like to work on, he said, is resurrecting the idea of creating a Peconic County made up of the five East End Towns: East Hampton, Southampton, Shelter Island, Southold, and Riverhead, and separate from Suffolk County. The East End is different from towns farther west, he said, and shares distinct environmental and economic goals. “I’m talking speculatively,” he said. “But I’d love to be a catalyst, have the discussion one more time.”
When asked what he would like his mayoral legacy to be, he gave a two word reply: “He cared.”
