Walter Roll appointed Centre Island mayor after Lawrence Schmidlapp's death

Centre Island officials appointed Walter Roll to serve as the village’s next mayor, filling the vacancy left by the death of Lawrence Schmidlapp.

Centre Island trustees unanimously voted to install Roll as mayor during the village's Thursday afternoon meeting. 

Roll, who was previously deputy mayor, said he "will try to do the job to the best of my ability."

Trustee Andy Warren said Roll "has done a great job in everything he's worked on" ahead of Roll's nomination. 

Roll, who was visibly emotional at the start of the meeting, called for a moment of silence "for our departed friend, Larry, who we will miss very much."

Schmidlapp, who was 80, had been mayor of the village of more than 300 people since 2009. He died Aug. 16 after a battle with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare and aggressive form of bile duct cancer, Newsday has reported. His wife, Carol Schmidlapp, is the village clerk.

A village election for mayor will be held in June, the village's attorney Peter MacKinnon previously told Newsday.

Schmidlapp was elected in June to serve a two-year term after a contentious legal battle brought by a would-be challenger. A judge denied the bid from Andrew Woodstock, ruling his motion was filed too late to be considered. 

Before his appointment, Roll said Village Trustee Anne Glass submitted her resignation from her seat, which he accepted. 

Roll selected Mark DeNatale, a former member of the Lattingtown village board who said he's been a Centre Island resident for five decades, for her seat. He said he's focused on "protecting the character" of the village and encouraged residents to be active participants in the community. He joins trustees Andy Farren and Grace Haggerty as trustees.

Roll said during the meeting the village hopes to fill the now-vacant deputy mayor seat "within the next month."

By Joseph Ostapiuk

joseph.ostapiuk@newsday.com@OstapiukJ