Despite both being Republicans, the current county executives of Nassau and Suffolk have never presented a united front on local or national issues or even fostered any sense that they rally around the same flag.

Tuesday afternoon should be different.

Suffolk’s Edward P. Romaine and Nassau’s Bruce Blakeman, who are poles apart on their public personas, political philosophies and governing styles, will appear at their first ever joint news conference at the village hall in Farmingdale, a location that straddles both counties.

So what’s that important to bring "Steady Eddie" and "Brimstone Bruce" together in one photo op? It’s the dates of local elections. No, really. It's a hot topic that influences the fates of local officeholders even as most voters are unaware of the consequences.

The state law changing town and county election years was engineered in 2023 by Democrats, who control all state offices. Last week, an appellate court in Buffalo responded to one of the GOP challenges by upholding the law that moves many local elections, including those of town supervisors and county executives, to even years. Those are the years of congressional and presidential races that typically have higher Democratic turnout. And the ads of those electioneering for the White House, Congress or Albany would drown out the local suburban issues that have usually favored Republicans.

The news conference is another tent pole supporting the recurrent GOP message that Albany Democrats bigfoot local decision-making including on such issues as when town highway superintendents are chosen.

"Voters will find 50 names on the ballot, it will be exhausting," Romaine told The Point. "It nationalizes the election, local issues should stay local," he said.

If the law survives court challenges — both counties are plaintiffs but in different lawsuits — and remains in place, the Nassau executive race, for example, will be on the ballot in 2028, a presidential year, instead of 2029, and the Suffolk executive race will be held in 2030 instead of 2031. Overall, Republicans are complaining that local races, instead of driving the train in the odd years, are now the caboose. And the GOP is not wrong. Newsday’s editorial board twice criticized the shift, in July 2023 after it was passed with little notice and then when we urged Gov. Kathy Hochul on Nov. 30, 2023, not to sign it.

So enjoy the moment; it’s unlikely considering their views and styles that there will be more Romaine-Blakeman get-togethers in the future.

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The Nassau Hub is on the agenda for the next meetings of both the Nassau County Legislature and the Hempstead Town board — even as no one seems to know whether the Hub is a location that will be pitched by bidders for a downstate casino license next month.

At the end of the Hempstead Town board’s agenda for its meeting Tuesday is a resolution calling for a public hearing, scheduled for May 27, to address proposed zoning changes that would create an "integrated resort district" at the Hub. Two hearings — at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. — will take place that day, according to the resolution. According to town attorney John Maccarone, the May 27 hearing will include a presentation from "the developer" on the zoning change and time for public comment.

The resolution kicks off the town’s zoning process. The proposed zone establishes a lengthy list of permitted uses for the Hub, including gaming facilities, restaurants, hotels, theaters, spas, office space, research and development laboratories, entertainment uses, a convention center, supermarket, stadium or arena, medical center, day care facility and housing.

The proposed zone would allow nonresidential buildings, other than hotels, to be up to 50 feet tall in most cases, though some buildings on larger lots could go up to 100 feet. Hotels could be up to 280 feet tall.

Meanwhile, the county legislature is moving forward with the state environmental review process. At the legislature’s May 19 meeting, it will take up a resolution that adopts and officially files the final environmental impact statement, or FEIS, for the Hub property. County lawmakers will vote on whether the FEIS fully responds to previous comments and satisfies state review requirements. That vote kicks off another written comment period. The legislature will then need to meet again, likely in June, to address any of the comments received and to officially issue the FEIS.

The activity comes just weeks after Las Vegas Sands officially announced it would not bid for a downstate casino license. But sources have told The Point that Sands is in conversations with another company that might bid instead. Since then, however, Sands has been quiet — and it’s unclear where those conversations have led.

Downstate casino bids are due June 27.

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