After a vacancy was created on the Newburgh Town Board in March of this year when James Presutti resigned to take over as Park and Recreation Commissioner, Anthony LoBiondo was appointed. However, now he runs against the democratic nominee, Rich Steger.

Steger also ran for the position last year. Despite his loss, he decided to put his name in the hat once again and run this year as well.

Steger is a Valley Central physical education and health teacher and has been a union advocate for more than 25 years.

He is an active member and officer of the Valley Central Teachers’ Association, where he is currently the president of the association and serves over 650 members. Additionally, he is the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) Political Actions Coordinator for District 39.

Steger is also active with the Hudson Valley Area Labor Federation.

One thing he sets out to do if elected is to help people in the Town of Newburgh be a part of the conversation and to know what is going on in the legislature.

“Being an educator, one of the things I’d like to see is the Town Council do a better job at educating the public on things they’re voting on,” said Steger. “It’s important for us to know what our tax dollars are being spent on.”

Transparency is extremely important to him and he hopes to be an advocate for the people and bring their voices to the table.

He also hopes to improve traffic and road work by studying traffic flow in crowded areas and ensuring service companies like Central Hudson don’t tear up newly paved streets.

If elected, he plans to also reach out to constituents and see what their hopes, concerns and issues are with the Town.

“It’s important for Town Council to be extremely accessible and I’d like to see more dialogue back and forth,” said Steger.

His endorsements include the Town of Newburgh Democratic Committee, Orange County Democratic Committee, Latino Democratic Committee of Orange County and Hudson Valley Stonewall Democrats. He’s on the working families and democratic party lines.

He is a lifelong resident of Orange County who holds a Master’s Degree from Mount Saint Mary College and graduated from the Newburgh Free Academy back in 1989.

When he’s not out rallying behind his beliefs, he is spending time with his two daughters and enjoys mountain biking and hiking.

However, Steger is running against LoBiondo, who currently holds the seat and is actively serving as Town Councilman. LoBiondo is a Town of Newburgh native and recieved his Bachelor’s from Binghamton University in 1988 and Juris Doctorate from Albany Law School in 1991.

His legislative history began in 1991 where he was the Assistant District Attorney for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. He was there until 1997.

Since then, he has been in a private practice and co-owns LoBiondo Law Offices, based out of Newburgh, with his wife Juliana.

LoBiondo is the Vice President and a founding member of America Rows and Swims Newburgh, a not for profit organization which teaches people how to swim for free after school and during the summer.

He is the co-founder of the LoBiondo Family Foundation, providing scholarships to a select number of high school students who are going off to college.

LoBiondo is on the republican, independence and conservative party lines. He has been endorsed by a number of organizations including the New York State Fraternal Order of Police, Hudson Valley Building and Construction Trades Council and Laborers’ International Union of North America Local 17.

Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus, Orange County Legislator Leigh Benton, Town of Newburgh Supervisor Gil Piaquadio and Town of Newburgh Deputy Supervisor Scott Manley have also endorsed him.

Some of the things he believes the Town of Newburgh needs include body cameras for Town police officers, continued fiscal responsibility, economically viable green development, an expanded bus transportation system and a new activity center to provide both youth and senior activities.

“I think Newburgh needs councilmen with legal and business ownership and experience, who promote small businesses and are active in community service,” LoBiondo added in.

In his free time, LoBiondo enjoys sailing with his friends and family on the Hudson River, fishing and biking at Chadwick Lake and playing guitar and piano.