As a lifelong Tucker, incumbent Southold Town Councilman Brian Mealy brings passion and energy for civic engagement to the role. His mantra, “How do you help the most people in Southold?” is one he hopes to carry on if reelected.
His background as an Eastern Suffolk BOCES board member, Floyd Memorial Library staff member, part-time worker at Peconic Landing in Greenport and former Mattituck-Cutchogue school board member has shaped his approach on the Town Board.
As a councilman, Mr. Mealy serves as liaison for the town’s Anti-Bias Task Force, Conservation Advisory Council, Police Advisory Committee and Youth Bureau.
In his four years on the board, Mr. Mealy is proud of efforts to push forward the zoning update, engage the community, mobilize the housing plan and pass irrigation legislation to preserve the aquifer. He prides himself on identifying and listening to experts when making decisions.
The board has also taken strides to increase transparency through zoning update forums and community surveys on issues like cell service.
“People want to be engaged, whether it’s on our committees or just as citizens contacting the board,” Mr. Mealy said. “That’s special to have.”
On housing, Mr. Mealy said he has been the most consistent voice to support housing projects using the town’s “mixed box of tools” to address the issue. He supported the Carroll Avenue development in Peconic and the Love Lane Apartments project in Mattituck — for home ownership and rentals, respectively. He’s hopeful ground could be broken on either project next year.
“We’re always thinking outside the box,” he said of the Town Board in relation to housing. “We’re always trying to tailor to what’s successful because we know [about] the brain drain, where our young people are leaving. We want them to stay here.”
When facing development pressures in Southold, Mr. Mealy said the most important thing is to continue communication with stakeholders and foster positive relations.
He pointed to the evolution of the proposed Mattituck hotel at the former Capital One headquarters — a contentious project that was granted a waiver from the town’s hotel moratorium following community input and Town Board hearings — as a success story between the town and the developer, the Cardinale family.
“When they first unveiled that project, there was a huge cry from the community about how big the development was,” Mr. Mealy said. “And to the Cardinales’ credit, they adjusted it and it wasn’t as big a development as they had initially.”
This story is part of The Suffolk Times’ 2025 election coverage. Visit suffolktimes.com for more on this year’s candidates.