DIRECTOR BIOS
Chairperson/Director Michael C. Kalnick is a practicing attorney admitted to the New York State and several Federal bars, including the Supreme Court of the United States. He has served as Mayor of the Village of Kings Point from 1982 until 2022, and has previously served as Deputy Mayor, as a Trustee, and as Chairperson and a member of the Board of Appeals of such village. He is a graduate of New York University (JD) and of the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce of the University of Pennsylvania (BS). He was one of the original founders and an original Director of the Water Authority since 1989. Prior to serving as Director, he served as an original member of the water consortium that founded the Water Authority. He has served as Chairperson of the Authority since January of 1998 and currently is the Representative on the Board for the Town of North Hempstead.
Director Carol Frank has had 15 years of experience as a reporter for a local newspaper, the Great Neck Record, focusing on covering environmental topics. She wrote extensively about issues involving water, both clean water and waste water treatments, and the struggles involved in making sure that polluters are required to commit to responsible and effective clean-ups. She has organized and moderated community forums on water and energy matters. Ms. Frank has a Master's Degree in Social Work, specializing in community organization, from the University of Georgia. She joined the Board of the Water Authority of Great Neck North as a Director in January of 2014.
Director Jay Johneas joined the Board of the Water Authority in September, 2018. He has over 40 years' experience in construction and water management including an extensive history in project management, construction financial and budget management, plumbing and waste management. Director Johneas and his family have lived in Great Neck for 25 years. He is a Vice President at W.H.M. Plumbing & Heating Contractors, a member of the Village of Great Neck Board of Zoning & Appeals, and attended Farmingdale College majoring in Construction Technology.
Director Dan Levy, M.D. was elected the Mayor of the Village of Saddle Rock in 2011. Prior to that, he was the deputy mayor and served as a member of the Board of Zoning and Appeals, was elected trustee later, and served as the Commissioner of Parks and Recreation for the Village of Saddle Rock. Dr. Levy joined the Board of the Water Authority of Great Neck North as a Director in August 2011. Dr. Levy also serves on the Audit Committee. Mayor Levy became the President of the Great Neck Village Officials Association in June 2015. Dr. Levy, M.D., graduated with special distinction from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1984. He is a successful and well-regarded ophthalmologist with a private medical and surgical practice in Great Neck and Manhattan. Before his medical career, Dr. Levy served as both a lieutenant and a commander in the Israel Defense Army during the 1973 "Yom Kippur" war in the Sinai desert front. Dr. Levy is an avid sailor who is dedicated to the preservation and care of the waterfront. In his spare time, he volunteers to support both the Great Neck North High School and the North Shore Fencers Club fencing teams in training, weapons and equipment maintenance. Director Levy has been a resident of Great Neck since 1984.
Director Dana Lustbader, M.D. is the Chair of the Department of Palliative Care at ProHEALTH/OPTUM. She is also the founder of a national home-based advanced illness program delivering care to homebound seniors. Prior to this, Dr. Lustbader worked as a critical care physician where she was ICU Director at Northwell. Most recently she went back to work as an intensivist in the overwhelmed COVID ICUs. She is a Clinical Professor of Medicine at Northwell Hofstra School of Medicine and is triple board certified in Palliative Care, Internal Medicine and Critical Care Medicine. Dr. Lustbader served as Chair of the Village of Kensington Architectural Review Board and has been a Great Neck resident since 1994 where she and her husband raised five children. In her spare time, she plays tennis and walks the dog. Dr. Lustbader joined the Board of the Water Authority of Great Neck North in 2021.
Director Irving Rosenstein has been a resident of the Village of Great Neck Plaza (VGNP) since 2018. He has actively participated in pedestrian-vehicle safety projects in VGNP and serves on the Board of Directors of his building. Irving retired in 2018 after over 46 years in New York City service, including an extended assignment as the Executive Director of NYPD's School Safety Division and a variety of education management appointments. He graduated with an MPA from NYU and has completed executive leadership certificate programs at Harvard University, NYC DCAS and NYC Board of Education. Irving joins the Water Authority of Great Neck North as a Director in 2022.
Director Michael Smiley joined the Board of the Water Authority of Great Neck North as a Director in May of 2017. He has been a resident of Great Neck Estates since 1999. He is a lifelong third generation resident of the Great Neck Peninsula, having graduated from Great Neck North high school in 1982. He is currently an alternate member of the Village of Great Neck Estates Zoning Board of Appeals. Director Smiley is the Chairperson of the Governance Committee for the Authority. He has a BA from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Baruch College. For the past 13 years he has worked for the largest independently owned Property Damage Restoration Services Company in the New York Metropolitan Area where he is currently the Chief Financial Officer.
