Councilman Ken Rothwell wants to maintain ‘business sense’ if reelected

According to Councilman Kenneth Rothwell, Riverhead Town needs to be “run like a business.” In his view, this doesn’t mean town officials just “tax and spend,” but they have to heavily invest in the prosperity of the town and its hamlets. 

Mr. Rothwell is running for his second four-year term. He was first appointed to the Riverhead Town Board in 2021 for a one-year term, filling the seat left vacant by Assemblywoman Jodi Giglio. Although a learning curve for the local funeral home director, he said this first year was “a nice introduction to town government.” 

“There were issues [in Riverhead] that seemed to just be repetitive over the years,” Mr. Rothwell said. “Continuously talking about downtown, continuously talking about the EPCAL property, and it just seemed like Riverhead was spinning their wheels.”

In his first campaign, Mr. Rothwell said he wanted to help revitalize Riverhead’s downtown and get the wheels turning towards a comprehensive plan for the new Town Square. Four years later, the demolition phase of the long-awaited project is on the horizon. 

“The ultimate way to get everything started was we had to apply for grant funding,” Mr. Rothwell said. “I’m proud to say that since I’ve been in office, we’ve gotten over $50 million in grant money — that’s unheard of for any small local town to achieve.” 

As a volunteer firefighter with the Wading River Fire Department for over 20 years, Mr. Rothwell said he understands the critical resources and equipment local first responders need to handle emergencies. 

The councilman said he has been instrumental in the design process and in helping secure donations for Riverhead Volunteer Ambulance Corps new headquarters on Osborn Avenue. So far, the project has raised over $2 million, with matching donors. 

In order to ease any burden on the taxpayer, Mr. Rothwell worked with RVAC to create a self-sustaining medical billing system to help pay off the remainder of the bond for the project. 

When it comes to the development of the EPCAL property, Mr. Rothwell said while it is important to bring in high-tech, high-paying jobs in the area, it is equally critical to protect its natural habitats and species. 

He acknowledged that throughout Riverhead Town, farmers are struggling. There have been discussions within the Agricultural Advisory Committee about a Transferable Development Rights program, where farmers receive financial incentives to preserve a portion of their land, while development can happen in appropriate, designated growth areas.

Although he said he is not pushing agritourism, Mr. Rothwell supports the philosophy of developers purchasing TDRs in other areas to balance out the development.

“Farmers can sell TDRs, but if there’s nobody to buy them, then it doesn’t become beneficial way,” Mr. Rothwell said. “[Last year,] we were telling developers to do a balance of 30% development and 70% preservation, I still stand by that. You have to protect our rural corridor.”

When Mr. Rothwell first entered public office, it was brought to his attention that there was not a voice in town government for the many residents who migrated from Spanish-speaking countries.

He decided to take this feedback and work with other communities to establish the first Hispanic Development, Empowerment and Education Committee. The multilingual task force is comprised of entrepreneurs, church leaders, school district employees and other individuals who live and work in Riverhead.

When he understood communication barriers would deter people from seeking help, he worked with the committee to improve the town’s new website where now with just one click, the entire website can turn into any language of the user’s choosing.

Mr. Rothwell said he and the committee are in the process of putting together a town-wide “healthcare day” in the spring for any resident who is due for screenings or needs medical care, but doesn’t have health insurance.

“That is the best way to make sure that every person that comes into Riverhead, every person that settles here and wants to make this their home and their future, that they feel welcomed in that matter, that they have a voice for the matter,” Mr. Rothwell said.