So Long Simon: Spring Valley Mayor Will Not Seek Reelection

Controversial Spring Valley Mayor Alan Simon will not seek reelection this year, according to several village sources. 

“I’m not sure why he made the decision but the decision was his and I wish him well and I hope he’s going to enjoy his retirement. Not much to add – we all know the history,” Deputy Mayor Yisroel Eisenbach told the Rockland County Times. “We hope for a new future… someone that’s going to unite us, someone that’s a go-getter.”

“There’s definitely room for improvement – there’s no question,” Eisenbach said, rattling off a laundry list of outstanding public works projects. “The list is huge. I want to see a lot of improvement for the village.”

Simon, who has been mayor since he was elected in 2017, could not be reached for comment, maintaining his long-standing history of evading reporters.

Before the New York Commission on Judicial Conduct removed him from the bench in a decision upheld by the state Court of Appeals in 2016, Simon was a judge in Spring Valley, Ramapo and Hillburn. 

He routinely threatened to hold various employees and officials in contempt and “willfully interjected himself into the political process involving the election of an office other than his own,” the commission wrote in their 40-page decision.

The commission wrote that Simon ordered the court officer to arrest then-mayor Norami Jasmin on several occasions and even threatened to have Police Chief Paul Modica arrested.

Simon had been an attorney for 50 years, working as a defense lawyer, public defender, prosecutor and Ramapo’s town attorney during his tenure – but he was disbarred soon after he was removed from the bench.

His work as Ramapo’s building inspector also came under criticism, 

After winning a multi-candidate primary and replacing his predecessor Demeza Delhomme, Simon repeatedly came under criticism for his colorful outbursts toward village trustees and members of the public.

As reported by the Journal News, Simon attempted to remove officials from office but was prevented from doing so by Village Trustees. In 2023 Simon was prevented from removing Spring Valley police chief and school resource officer from their positions, resulting in a meltdown caught on camera. 

Simon appointed convicted felon Anthony Mallia, a former Ramapo building inspector who pleaded guilty to federal corruption for tampering with public records and undercharging contractors for permits, as a confidential aide through 2018. 

Mallia held the position to the tune of $125,000 per year, despite objections from the county Probation Department and the District Attorney’s office, according to The Journal News. The county’s Personnel Department discovered that Simon had bypassed the civil service process by failing to submit proper payroll records until December 2018. After his termination in 2019, Simon rehired Mallia on a contract basis. Mallia’s wife worked as Simon’s assistant.

New York State took over Simon’s dysfunctional building department after the 2021 Evergreen Fire which destroyed a Spring Valley Nursing Home and claimed the lives of Firefighter Jared Lloyd and one Evergreen resident.