Highway Superintendent Mike Zaleski and the Town of Riverhead
Lori Lovely — Profile Correspondent - November 2026
Mike Zaleski has received numerous awards and copious attention for his achievements as highway superintendent of Riverhead.
In 2024, the local Times Review dubbed him and the department as Person/Department of the Year for their civic contributions through community programs. Nominated by a reporter, they were recognized for their pro-active engagements. In the same year, Mike and the crew won the AAA Traffic Safety Award.
A member of the traffic safety committee, Mike is a 2024 award winner.
In 2022, Mike's first year on the job, the highway department took third place in the Cornell Local Roads Program with an innovation he designed and built. The Wash Arch was born out of necessity. When the highway crew brought trucks in to wash off the salt, they had to put the truck body at an angle and throw a fire hose up to a man standing on top. “It was dangerous,” he said.
For safety as well as efficiency, he built an arch that allowed crew members to safely stand on and use a mounted hose to wash off the trucks as they drove underneath. It was one of the first things he did as the new superintendent, but he was just getting started.
Last year, the department won first place in the Cornell Local Roads Program for another invention: a pole remover. Riverhead largely consists of flat farmland. With an annual average snowfall of 29 in., the department installs snow fences to keep snow from drifting over roadways when wind speed is high. In the spring, those fences must be removed, but Mike explains that they're not able to drive their heavy equipment on the sod lots out of concern for damaging them, so the crews were removing the T-posts manually … until Mike came up with an idea.
He built a simple wheeled device to pry T-posts out of the ground quickly and safely. It consists of a bar on a wheel, stands about 4 ft. high and is lightweight enough to easily maneuver. A piece of box tubing with a lip is placed over the post before a crew member pushes the handle down, lifting the post out of the ground. “It's easy,” he said.
This year, the pole remover won first place in the Cornell National Award.
Mike had been a field worker and later was in charge of the shop before becoming superintendent, so he understood the need and had the know-how to make something to suit the application. And, he added, it didn't cost a dime because he used an old tire and scrap metal that he welded into shape.
“It's extremely satisfying,” he said. “I love fixing things. I like solving problems. I take a lot of pride in what I do.”
These days, he spends less time in the shop physically fixing things and more time in the office, fixing the roads — because he doesn't do this job for the awards. He does it for the satisfaction of making things better.
Background
Mike, who grew up across the Peconic River in Flanders, was elected superintendent in 2022, but he had been an employee of the highway department for 28 years and deputy superintendent for six.
“I started at 21,” he said. “I was an automotive equipment operator, heavy equipment operator and construction equipment operator, and then I was maintenance mechanic IV. I have always been a mechanic.”
He said that he finally got to where he wanted to be: in charge of the shop. Then the deputy superintendent retired in 2016, and he was asked to step in.
“I was a family man, and this was a higher position that offered more money,” Mike said. “I wanted to make the right decision.”
For the first few years, he did both jobs — shop manager and deputy superintendent. But when the superintendent decided to retire, Mike said the Republican party urged him to run. He won that election and ran unopposed in his second election.
The Long, Short of It
Mike is responding to the same issues that the town's early inhabitants struggled with: Riverhead is a large, long town. Most of the year, workers report to the Riverhead main barn and office, but during snowstorms and nor'easters, six to eight employees are stationed in the Wading River area to maintain that portion of the town, which is approximately 20 minutes from the highway department's main yard in Riverhead. This generates better response times and improves safety.
The town sits in Suffolk County on Long Island and stretches from the Sound to the Bay, with numerous hamlets and beaches. Although much of the area is farmland, with 20,000 of the 35,000 acres located within the town, Wading River is hilly. It currently houses a small barn and an old mobile home for crew offices. Three trucks and a payloader are kept in the yard. Mike hopes to use some of his $1M CHIPS budget and a 10-year loan to construct a new building that will allow the equipment to be parked inside.
“The town of Riverhead highway department is preparing to begin construction of a four-bay truck storage barn at its satellite yard in Wading River,” Mike said.
The 5-acre satellite property currently contains a 250-ton salt barn and a mobile trailer used for employee amenities. The highway department maintains three plow trucks and one payloader at this location year-round.
“There has never been a permanent structure at the Wading River yard for storing equipment indoors,” Mike said. “Equipment that is stored outside is exposed to the elements, which can accelerate deterioration and increase maintenance needs. The existing mobile trailer is also dilapidated and does not provide a comfortable or suitable environment for employees to take breaks or use the facilities.”
A new four-bay storage barn will provide indoor storage for three to four pieces of larger equipment, in addition to numerous smaller pieces of equipment and materials. The building will also provide employees with a clean, safe and comfortable environment to use the facilities and take meal breaks while working at the Wading River yard.
“With equipment stored indoors and maintained in a ready-to-roll condition, the highway department will be able to respond more quickly to changing weather conditions and roadway needs in Wading River,” Mike said. “Employees will also no longer need to travel back to the main yard for meals or bathroom breaks during operations. Keeping both personnel and equipment at the satellite yard will improve efficiency, reduce unnecessary travel and allow the highway department to respond more rapidly to weather-related conditions throughout the Wading River area.”
At the Head of the River
Today, Riverhead is home to the Atlantis Aquarium, Splish Splash Waterpark and the Hallockville Museum Farm, the 1765 homestead built by Ruben Brown, purchased by Ezra Hallock after the Revolution.
Known as Hallockville due to the Puritan tradition of carving out a piece of the family farm for male heirs of marrying age and the fact that many of the houses along Sound Avenue belonged to descendants of Capt. Zachariah Hallock in the 1800s, the museum farm was created to preserve and interpret the history of farming on the North Fork of Long Island.
Before it was Riverhead, it was known as Southold land. The property was purchased by European colonists from local Native Americans and the Shinnecock Indian Nation in 1649. Another portion was purchased from Col. William Smith and divided among settlers in 1742.
After the American Revolution, the town of Riverhead was created when the New York State legislature divided it from the town of Southold in 1792. This was done by the request of the residents who complained that they were unable to attend town meetings and transact business because the town was too long.
In the early 20th century, a great number of Polish immigrants settled in the town, creating Polish Town, a small, quaint hamlet where the annual Polish Town Fair takes place. Mike's crew releveled and replaced broken red brick pavers in the area between the curb and sidewalk one slow winter.
Project List
Slow winters are rare, but they aren't the only times the highway crew works on projects. The first big job Mike did as superintendent was on Cranberry Street, a small roadway approximately a quarter-mile long that serves as a primary connecting road.
“It's a major road to the schools,” he said.
There was no sidewalk for the children to use on their way to school, so when they widened the road, they added sidewalks and curbing, repaved the entire roadway and installed drainage improvements. “The kids are safe and there's no more flooding,” he said.
Flooding is an issue in other parts of the town. One of the biggest projects Mike has completed was resolving flooding issues behind the motor vehicle office on Middle Road.
“We pumped water to a basin owned by the county,” he said.
Working with the department of public works, they engineered a pipe that would carry water into more new basins to alleviate flooding.
Drainage systems have been installed in additional areas experiencing persistent drainage and flooding issues. Signage has been updated throughout the town.
The Riverhead highway crew has paved numerous major roadways throughout the town, including significant portions of Sound Avenue. To assist with that, Mike designed and built a trommel/screening plant as well as a line striping truck.
“We had an old plow truck that had been taken off the road,” he said. “It still ran but couldn't plow or dump. We put a flatbed on it. The striping machine was on a platform that we permanently mounted to the truck. We're very frugal.”
Work, More Work
Mike and his crew of 36 work 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. Andy Dick has been his deputy for a year. Like the boss himself, Andy “came from the back [and] knows what he's doing.”
He's not afraid of making fun of himself to promote a sense of camaraderie. The crew like to laugh and have a good time, he said. But he has earned their respect because he's done every job and can relate to what they're facing.
“I know what it feels like. I know what they're thinking. It helps me as a manager.”
He has 36 personalities to manage. “I don't judge,” he said. “I try to help … and I learn something every day.”
Together, they maintain 250 lane mi., only a few of which are gravel. In the winter, they run 17 plow routes, which take eight hours each. Fifteen routes are plowed by two trucks; only the smaller routes get just one truck.
One man stays in the shop to load salt. The department has three salt barns that store 2,000 tons.
“We use straight salt when we can, but I worry about running out if we have a lot of snow,” Mike said.
When temperatures hit the single digits, and in Wading River, he uses a salt/sand mix.
“Every storm is handled differently,” he said. “Conditions matter: ice, wet snow, dry snow…”
But regardless of the conditions, his crew comes in before the snow and stays after the snow.
“Then they go home to their own driveways that aren't plowed.”
It's a lot of work all year-round — and the superintendent said that more is being put on their plate all the time, especially as the town grows. The current population is roughly 36,000, but development is ongoing.
The highway department assists other departments. They use their boom truck to help the water department. They perform traffic control for the police department. They also sweep the streets and trommel their own sweepings, cleaning them up for reuse.
To complete all the work on their list, the crew makes use of approximately 125 pieces of equipment, including:
• 50 plow trucks
• two snow blowers
• two Vactor trucks
• one basin cleaner
• five payloaders
• one bulldozer
• one grader
• one backhoe
• five skid steers
• two dump trailers
• one lowboy
• two roll-off trucks
• two 10-wheelers
In addition, the town has numerous pickup trucks, utility trucks, small dump trucks, forklifts, brine trucks, tow trucks, hot boxes, pavers, rollers, seam sealers, mowers and other miscellaneous equipment.
The town garage services the fleet, while the highway department services the equipment. Mike said they need new plow trucks and mowers.
“I try to stay current with updating the fleet,” he said.
His $8 million budget helps, but there are a lot of things that gets spent on besides equipment.
Giving Back to the Community
The father of one created and implemented three programs for the local children. “I don't like to sit still, so I created opportunities to give back,” Mike said.
While he was still a deputy, he launched the Plow Safety Program. Each November, the highway department brings plow trucks to local elementary schools to teach first-grade students about plow truck safety and winter roadway safety. After a half-hour safety demonstration, he distributes homemade coloring books to the students.
The annual Christmas toy drive started after town residents noticed Mike running. “I run 10-15 miles a week. During COVID, I ran for awareness of the healthcare workers. That got media attention.”
Now, he runs three miles during the winter to encourage residents to drop off toys at the highway department, which are then distributed to children of all ages within the town. “I decorate a trailer and get some school staff to help distribute the toys.”
In the summer, the department hosts a truck show similar to a “Touch-a-Truck” event, featuring a picnic and other activities for children and families.
These activities help develop good relations with the community and open communication.
“I don't do it for votes,” he said. “This is our town. I'm thankful and appreciative that I am where I am … that the public voted me in because they trust me.”
Private Time
The superintendent who won't sit still on the job is just as busy in his personal time. In addition to running, he plays golf about once a week. “I like to be outdoors, enjoying the landscape and the scenery,” he said.
He likes to relax in his yard, doing some gardening, sitting by the fire pit or watching his birdfeeders.
“I feed birds a lot and watching them brings quiet time tranquility.”
His two tuxedo cats, Fat and Boo, “are my buddies and help me around my house.”
Although he'd like to ignore the phone calls and emails during these peaceful moments, he is dedicated to his job, so his phone is always at his side. “I feel responsible. I can't turn it off. They get 100 percent of me when I'm working, and if the guys are working, I feel I should be, too.
“Being a highway superintendent is not a 9-5 job,” he added. “It's 24/7, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. In my 33-year career, I never missed a snowstorm. I'm the first in and the last out. When I retire, the first thing I'm going to do is throw my cell phone right through the chipper.”
With no immediate plans to retire once his current four-year term ends in 2028, he said he hopes to be remembered as a good father. “My son Ryan [21] is everything to me. We enjoy going to car shows together and playing Air Soft.”
And, while he can look at his awards after he retires, it's more likely that he'll be looking at the thank-you cards sent by the residents. “I have every thank-you ever sent,” Mike said with emotion. “I don't do it for the awards. Thank you means the most to me.”