Four candidates are competing for three seats on the Saugerties Village Board in the election, set for Tuesday, March 16. Polls will be open from noon to 9 p.m.
Incumbents Brian Martin, Jeff Helmuth, and Jeannine Mayer will be joined on the ballot by Justine Tomkiell, running for her first term.Â
Martin, a past chief of the Saugerties Fire Department, is running for his sixth two-year term on the Village Board. He is a retired heavy equipment operator for the village. Martin is the liaison to the Fire Department, Buildings and Grounds Department, Seamon Park Board and Tree Commission.
Jeff Helmuth graduated from Ohio State University Agricultural Engineering He is the chief engineer in the New York City Department of Environmental Protection Bureau of Water Supply. He is a licensed Professional Engineer and holds a Class IIA Water Treatment Plant Operators License.
Helmuth’s memberships include: Sons of American Legion (past commander), Woodstock Artists Association and Museum (past board member) and Ulster Artist Club (meets at Saugerties Senior Center).
Helmuth has one daughter, Kelly, a graduate of Saugerties High School and Syracuse University.Â
Helmuth was appointed to the Village Board in 2016. He was elected in 2017 and re-elected in 2019. He is past a chairman of the Village Planning Board. He is presently the water commissioner, as well as liaison to the Waterfront Advisory Board and Zoning Board.
Jeannine Mayer is a lifelong resident of Saugerties. She graduated from Saugerties High School and Ulster County Community College, and holds an associate’s degree in business administration.
Mayer has been was employed in the banking industry from 1979 until recently. She started with Saugerties National Bank as a teller. With Chase Manhattan Bank she worked in both the loan and mortgage departments. She recently retired from her position with M&T bank is as a relationship manager.
She was a member of the Saugerties Jaycees, holding the offices of secretary and vice president. She volunteered on several community committees including the Fourth of July, Reading is Fundamental and Buckle Up Babes.
She has two daughters, three granddaughters and one grandson.
Justine Tomkeill has been living in Saugerties since January 2019. She has a small art/tarot business, The Traveling Spiritualist. She and her family moved from Troy, NY, mainly because the school district offered a better education for her special needs children.