Nassau Legislature Candidates: Meet Carrié Solages

Voters in Nassau County will head to the polls Nov. 5 to cast their ballots for Legislator.

In District 3 — including Elmont, Valley Stream, South Floral Park, Inwood and portions of Lawrence and North Woodmere — voters will select from two candidates: incumbent Democrat Carrié Solages and Republican challenger Nathan Wein.

Patch reached out to both candidates to hear where they stand on important issues affecting the community.

Here are the responses for those who participated. The answers have been lightly edited for clarity.

Carrié Solages

• Age (As of Sept. 1): 40
• Town of Residence: Valley Stream
• Position Sought: District 3 Legislator
• Party Affiliation: Democrat and Independence
• Family: Fiancee, son and daughter
• Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? Yes
• Education: Georgetown University; Boston College Law School
• Occupation: Attorney, 13 years practicing
• Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office: Human Rights Commissioner; Served as a Legislator since 2012
• Campaign Website: www.friendsofcarriesolages.com

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

High Property Taxes. I advocated for the creation of the Inspector General Office, which is responsible for investigating our procurement process to make sure government contracts are not the result of waste, fraud and abuse. I advocated for the a new assessment system that is more fair to my constituents, who for many years paid more than their fair share. In the early spring of 2018, I arranged meetings with the county executive and leaders of the minority community and the NAACP to make sure the new assessment would be fair to working class and middle class communities. I am glad to report that in my district, homes have been reassessed at a lower tax rate compared to other districts, as reported by News12. My job as legislator is to also guide tax payers through the tax grievance system. Despite being one of the first legislators to record and post on Youtube tax grievance workshops, I held workshops in my district in which attorneys provided pro bono services to actually do the application for tax payers. I have and always will go above and beyond for my constituents, who have always been loyal to me.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I unite people and my opponent divides people. I have held Inwood Day for several years. This year, over 500 people attended Inwood Day. Even leaders of the Republican party attended the event, like Bruce Blakeman and James Vilardi, because it is a community event. My opponent learned of this event, which was scheduled and promoted for over six months, and held his own event to compete with Inwood Day. Many leaders in the community were upset with this and expressed their disappointment to my opponent. My opponent is a poor example of leadership, and in these times in which our president is dividing people, we need more leaders who unite people. Inwood is a very diverse community with a large immigrant population. My opponent has failed to condemn the anti-immigrant rhetoric of the Republican party and has failed to give the immigrant community tools and hope in dealing with these negative policies. I have held bi-lingual workshops at the Five Towns Community Center to help immigrant groups know their rights.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform:

I am the only elected official that represents Inwood and does not represent any other major part of the Five Towns. The local senator, assemblywoman and council person all represent major and significant areas of the Five Towns. I think this is important because, for me, the interests of Inwood are primary to me more than other parts of the Five Town. I have been working very hard to address quality of life issues in Inwood that have been ignored for years. For me, Inwood is the 1st of the Five Towns and not the "forgotten town." The school board in Inwood has been closing schools and providing less services, and I have been mobilizing and organizing the local community to know their rights and to participate in School Board elections. Also there have been various efforts to close or privatize the Five Towns Community Center, which is a county community center. Recently, I have held meetings with Inwood community leaders and the county executive in order to extend the lease of the community center to make sure that It remains in our community and is open to all communities.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I am responsible for the re-opening of the 5th Police Precinct, which was closed by the former county executive due to budget mismanagement. I am responsible for advocating for the improvement of Nassau Expressway 878 which, after Superstorm Sandy, it was evident that this evacuation route was inadequate to support safety and traffic concerns. I led a coalition of bi-partisan leaders and made the improvement of this road a priority. I am thankful that Gov. Cuomo listened to our concerns and voices. I advocated for the creation of a LIRR stop at Belmont Racetrack and I am thankful that again Gov. Cuomo heard our community concerns on this issue. One of my other major accomplishments is making Dutch Broadway and Elmont Road safer in terms of pedestrian and vehicular traffic. Under the Mangano administration, several serious accidents and fatalities occurred on these county roads. Yet although I was able to secure capital funding for traffic studies and improvements among my colleagues in the Legislature, the executive did not implement the funding for these projects. So under the new administration, I was able get the projects started in a very short amount of time, despite a long backlog of projects for the DPW, and many improvements were made including but not limited to: school zone established on Dutch Broadway, and six new speed indicators and dozens of safety signs to slow traffic down.

The best advice ever shared with me was ...

IF YOU DONT HAVE AT LEAST FIVE HATERS THEN YOU ARE NOT DOING SOMETHING RIGHT-Katt Williams

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

My faith as a Christian is something that is very important to me and I forgive all those who lied and tried to malign my reputation. I accept the fact that as an elected official, many people see me as a force for good and many others may be intimated by that and may place a target on me by raising falsehoods about me. I do not take such attacks personally. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "I rather see a sermon than hear a sermon." I am moved by this quote and will continue to do good despite the adversities. I just want to continue my work as a servant.