Ekstrand, Farmingdale 2035 Party Win Village Election

Ralph Ekstrand was elected mayor and his running mates in the Farmingdale 2035 party were elected to trustee positions in the 2012 election Tuesday night.

"We'll continue to move Farmingdale into the 21st century," said Ekstrand, who has served as a Village trustee for the past four years and has been a part-owner and pharmacist at  on Main Street for the past 31 years.

defeated opposing candidate by 176 votes, with a final tally of 815 to 639 votes. Winning Farmingdale 2035 party trustee candidates William Barrett and Thomas Ryan received 823 votes and 784 votes respectively, while Village Independent Party trustee candidates Michael Manchin and Susan Miles received 641 votes and 637 votes respectively.

More than 1,400 residents came out to vote in the 2012 election and there were more than 100 absentee ballots submitted.

Ekstrand will replace George Starkie as mayor, . Ekstrand has served on boards for various Farmingdale institutions, such as the Eagle Scout Review Board, the , the Rotary Club and the . 

Barrett has been a trustee for four years, has an MBA, volunteered as a youth soccer and baseball coach in the Farmingdale community and is currently a member of the Farmingdale School District’s audit committee.

This will be Ryan's first term in office and he currently serves as the CEO of the Farmingdale healthcare company Homecare Concepts Inc. He's also a past member of the  and is currently a board member of St. Joseph's Hospital on the Finance Committee and Quality Committee.

The Farmingdale 2035 party's plan for the next four years focuses on , a project started by the past board. It includes using the area's historic train station as a focal point of development, making rents reasonable for local business owners and other measures.

"[Part of] our plan is to reduce the store owners' rent by allowing landlords to build luxury apartments above Main Street stores. The rent realized from the apartments will be used to reduce the rent paid by the store owners," Ekstrand said.

Ekstrand, Barrett and Ryan will join incumbent trustees Patricia Christiansen and Cheryl Parisi, who were elected in the 2010 election.