Great Neck Plaza honors longtime Town of North Hempstead councilwoman

In honor of her service and commitment to the community, Great Neck Plaza officials have renamed a portion of a village street after longtime North Hempstead Councilwoman Lee Seeman, who is retiring at the end of the year after 16 years on the town board.

Village officials on Sunday held a ceremony, which was attended by nearly 100 people, to dedicate Bond Street between Grace Avenue and Maple Drive as "Lee Seeman Way."

"It’s something very special," said Seeman, who lives on Bond Street. "I love Great Neck Plaza. We have a wonderful mayor there and I’m very proud that they wanted to do that."

Mayor Ted Rosen said many village residents asked for Seeman, a Democrat, to be recognized and the village board agreed.

"It didn’t matter who you were, Lee Seeman was there to support a good cause, and she still is," Rosen said. "You never hear anyone say anything negative about Lee, and for people in public life that’s not always the case."

Rosen said that along with the street dedication, the resolution passed by the village board also proclaimed Dec. 19, 2021, as Lee Seeman Day in Great Neck Plaza.

Seeman, 93, remains active in the community in several roles, including serving as program director of the Great Neck Chamber of Commerce since 1975. She is also a member of the Town of North Hempstead’s COVID-19 Business Response Recovery Workgroup.

Additionally, she is a member of the League of Women Voters, the World Jewish Congress, Hadassah, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Sierra Club. Seeman is also an active member of Temple Beth El of Great Neck and serves on congressman Tom Suozzi’s review board for students who apply to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Air Force Academy, Naval Academy and West Point.

Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush nominated Seeman to serve on the U.S. Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad, a seat she still holds.

Robert Zimmerman, a Democratic national committeeman and Great Neck public relations executive, recalled setting up chairs in Seeman’s living room for meetings when he was a kid. He said he was introduced to public service and activism by Seeman, and praised her work in the community.

"It [the street dedication] was a reflection on Lee’s career of public service, but it also was a reminder of what the future can be with the right dedication and commitment, and that’s what she represents," Zimmerman said.

Seeman, who has served as a New York State Democratic Party committeewoman since 1970, said she will remain active in the Democratic Party and in the community.

"I’m the person that keeps going," she said. "I still have energy."