Hastings Democratic Committee
VOTE DEMOCRATIC
Nicola (Niki) Armacost has served as Mayor since 2019 and before that as Village Trustee for nine years. She has lived in Hastings since 2002 with her husband, Tim, and sons Zak and Cole, who each attended the Hastings schools.
Both as Mayor and Trustee, her focus has been on village finances. She led efforts to keep taxes low, increase revenue through grants, build a solid reserve fund and improve financial transparency. She has championed responsible investments in our village infrastructure, from accelerating road and sidewalk repairs, to creating an earmarked reserve fund for our parks. She has also been a champion of sustainability, promoting energy efficiency and stewardship of our natural resources. Under her tenure Hastings-on-Hudson adopted the New York Stretch Energy Code, expanded access to energy efficiency through Open C-PACE financing, passed a Low-Embodied Carbon Concrete Resolution, invested in EVs, alternative fuel infrastructure and resiliency planning, promoted “buy local” initiatives and dedicated more than 85% of municipal-owned open space as parkland. Under Niki’s leadership, Hastings-on-Hudson is currently the highest-ranking Climate Smart Community (CSC) in New York State.
Niki is a member of the Executive Committee and the Treasurer of the Westchester Municipal Officials Association (WMOA), where she Co-Chairs the Sustainability and Housing Sub-Committees. She is also a member of the Environment, Energy and Technology and the Women’s Advisory Committee of the New York Conference of Mayors (NYCOM).
Niki has been active in the Hastings community, working with the Cub and Boy Scouts, the Take Me to the River music festival, the Hastings Education Foundation and the Hasting Co-op Nursery School.
Niki is Founder and Managing Director of Arc Finance, Ltd., a not-for-profit organization that finances clean energy and water in the developing world. She is also an advisor to a number of solar companies and microfinance organizations that work in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
She holds a BA from the University of Toronto (Canada), an LLB from Queen’s College Law School (Canada) and an LLM from Osgood Hall Law School (Canada).
Douglass Alligood grew up in Hastings, graduating from Hastings High School in the class of 1981. He moved back to Hastings in 2001 with his wife Eva and their children Jordan and Leah, who also went through the Hastings schools.
Douglass’s experience as an architect makes him uniquely qualified to help our village navigate issues of development, sustainability and diversity.
Douglass has been an architect for more than 40 years, working on a wide range of project types: super tall office and residential towers, museums, airport terminals and adaptive reuse projects. Notable projects include The Spiral, a supertall tower in New York City; The Smile residences in Harlem; the Isenberg Innovation Hub at the University of Massachusetts Amherst; the National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth; and Samson Stages in Brooklyn. He also works on master planning and urban design projects, such as The Battery Park Coastal Resiliency project, that involve community outreach and engagement throughout the design process.
Douglass is a partner at BIG, an architectural firm dedicated to innovative design. As a LEED AP, he has advanced knowledge in green building. He studied architecture at City College and Construction Management at NYU.
Douglass focuses on BIG’s technical expertise in design and building-performance. In addition to design work, he performs project scheduling, architectural detailing, construction administration, code, building systems research, consultant coordination, project budget analysis, and work plans, encompassing all phases of a project. Douglass is a Fellow in Urban Design Forum and a member of The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA). Douglass shares his architectural knowledge by mentoring young professionals and architecture students to elevate the next generation of design leaders.
Douglass has always believed in volunteering in his community. He has been a member of the Green Building Code Committee, the Waterfront Infrastructure Committee, and the Waterfront Preservation Committee. As his children grew up, he coached Little League baseball and softball.
Tom Drake has served as a Village Trustee for the past two years. He is a true son of Hastings: he was born in St. John’s Hospital; grew up in Hastings; and married Hastings native Julia DiSalvo. They now live in Tom’s childhood home with their three children: Joseph, Grace and Timothy.
Tom is currently working as an emergency management consultant for school districts after twenty-three years in law enforcement. Tom retired from the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office where he was tasked with investigating public corruption, organized crime, economic crimes, and dignitary protection. Other assignments included SWAT and performing as a member of the NYPD Band (playing saxophone). In addition, Tom is a seasoned instructor who has taught everything from cultural awareness and basic recruit training to officer survival and firearms. Tom also served his country honorably in the US Navy as a Hospital Corpsman.
Tom has enjoyed working with his fellow Trustees, the Mayor, and other village employees on a wide array of issues affecting the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson. Tom most recently volunteered to be a Trustee Liaison to the Comprehensive Plan/Local Waterfront Revitalization Program. Over the past two years, Tom has worked on important issues including environmental protection and advocacy, improving Village infrastructure, and repairing and improving the Chemka Pool and its surrounding area following Hurricane Ida.
Tom’s background includes a long history of volunteerism. He has been a member of the Riverview Manor Fire Company for more than 25 years, and has served as Captain of both that engine company and the Hastings Ambulance Corps. Tom is a Past Commander of the Admiral Farragut American Legion Post 1195 and is a member of the Hastings Little League Board.
Tom holds a BS from Excelsior College and an MPA from Pennsylvania State University.
Peter Kolbert has served as the Associate Village Justice since 2020 and as Village Justice since July of 2023, following the passing of Judge Joseph DiSalvo. Peter and his wife Veronica have lived in Hastings since 1992, raising three sons here, who all graduated from our public schools. Peter has been actively involved in village life, having volunteered for the Hastings Coop Nursery school, the Hastings Education Foundation, and as ethics officer for the Village.
Peter practiced law initially in public service as an Assistant Corporation Counsel representing The City of New York as well as many New York City entities, divisions, and departments. In private practice for more than twenty years Peter represented some of New York’s premier hospitals, hospital systems, and medical professionals. For the last 14 years, as Senior Vice President of Healthcare Risk Advisors, Peter has worked with many New York hospital systems advising them on Insurance, Risk and Litigation Management issues.
As an attorney Peter has appeared in Village, State and Federal court, trying more than two hundred cases involving numerous areas of the law. Peter has extensive experience in Civil, Criminal, Landlord-Tenant, Municipal as well as Insurance Law.
Judge Kolbert is devoted to using the law as a tool to ensure that all individuals are treated fairly, ethically, and in accordance with the law. To accomplish this goal, he steadfastly believes our court must work to ensure that it possesses a thoughtful and complete understanding of the facts in dispute in each matter. Moreover, Judge Kolbert is committed to treating all adolescents who appear in Village court with sensitivity to promote the proper outcome.
Judge Kolbert fundamentally recognizes that our Village court must reflect our values as a community, should be well run and be accessible to all.
Peter is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts & Brooklyn Law School, and is admitted to practice before the New York Bar.
The Hastings Democratic Committee meets via Zoom on the first Wednesday of every month at 8:00 p.m.
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