The Town Board is poised to finally approve the 2025 budget for downtown Riverhead’s tax funded business group — now cut by roughly a quarter compared to last year.
The Riverhead Business Improvement District Management Association (BIDMA), a nonprofit created to improve the downtown district using tax dollars collected from properties within the district, has been at odds for the past few months with town officials over its budget. Town officials have refused to approve previous budgets drafted by the group, citing the lack of audits for 2023 and 2024, as required by its bylaws.
Council Member Joann Waski, the Town Board liaison to the BIDMA, said in March that obtaining past financial information from the organization was “like pulling teeth.” In April, the Town Board approved a forensic audit of the group’s finances, which is currently ongoing.
The BIDMA’s 2025 budget is set at $133,500 and no longer be supported by the town’s general fund, as in prior years. Last year, the town supplied $42,000 in general fund revenue to the BIDMA. Town officials said the cuts were because the BIDMA is no longer producing Alive on 25 and Halloween Fest, two events that draw hundreds of people downtown. The town has hired a consultant, Main Street Agency, to produce the events. As previously reported by RiverheadLOCAL, the Town Board hired Main Street Agency to take on the job. Town Board coordinator Diane Tucci owns the company.
MORE COVERAGE: Riverhead to order forensic audits of BIDMA group, hire consultant to run 2025 downtown events
The budget cuts cost the BIDMA its executive director. Kristy Vertity, who held the position since 2019, left the BIDMA after its board indicated it would cut Verity’s pay and make the position part-time again. BIDMA has budgeted a $45,000 annual salary for its executive director.
The budget also cuts the part-time administrative assistant position, which assists the executive director with marketing and event planning; that position had been vacant. The part-time BIDMA employee responsible for downtown clean-up and beautification remains funded.
BIDMA Vice President Gary Hygom and Treasurer Linda Lombardi attended Thursday’s work session to present the budget. Town Board members indicated they would adopt it at their next meeting.
“This is very well organized, self explanatory. So I think this is exactly what we’re looking for,” Council Member Ken Rothwell said of the budget. He asked the BIDMA to submit next year’s budget by December, “so we don’t miss a beat next year.”
Previous budgets were “very vague,” Rothwell added.
Hygom said next year’s BIDMA budget will be “far more detailed.”
“We put a lot of work into it as a team, and we went over each line collaboratively and just really put it together,” Lombardi added.
“I’d like to thank Councilwoman Waski very much for pulling this all together and getting it to the point where we have a budget that works and is accountable,” Council Member Denise Merrifield said.
“I agree, but you know what? To me, most importantly, I thank you guys for your work, because you are all volunteers,” Supervisor Tim Hubbard said to Hygom and Lombardi. “Nobody’s getting a paycheck, and this is a lot of work that you guys have taken on to do. So it’s important for the public to know that this is a volunteer board, and the work that you do is tremendous, and we really appreciate it.”
Waski said the BIDMA is “a very strong group now, I think. And I think that you guys are going to knock it out of the park. We’re excited for the future.”
The BIDMA was created to manage the money in the district. Its board members are all unpaid volunteers who represent businesses or commercial property owners in the district.
Editor’s note: This article has been amended since its original publication to add that the consultant hired by the town to produce the Alive on 25 and Halloween Fest events this year was Main Street Agency, a company owned by Diane Tucci, who is currently the Town Board coordinator. Tucci had previously produced the Alive on 25 event for the BIDMA in 2016. The identity of the consultant as Main Street Agency and its ownership by Tucci was reported by RiverheadLOCAL in three prior articles, most recently on June 5.
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