Long Island City has acknowledged in court that the transportation expert it hired, Jeffrey Buchholz, held views that could be seen as bigoted. This acknowledgment came after the town decided to fire him and withdraw its previous defense of his actions.
The Town of Oyster Bay terminated Buchholz just hours after the Post highlighted his history of anti-Muslim commentary on LinkedIn, along with his admission under oath that he could be viewed as a bigot, as revealed by officials and court documents.
Buchholz was initially brought on to assess traffic conditions around local mosques amid ongoing legal disputes with a Long Island Muslim organization that aims to expand mosques in Bethpage.
Oyster Bay Superintendent Joseph Saladino expressed shock and outrage, stating they were immediately discharging Buchholz from the case upon learning of his statements.
In a deposition on October 3, part of a federal lawsuit filed by the Muslim groups against the town, Buchholz admitted that his opinions on Muslims and immigrants could be perceived as bigoted, according to public records.
He faced backlash for his more extreme views, including comments he made on social media. For example, he liked a post stating “Muslims can run away,” and he controversially commented on another about Mayor Eric Adams declaring a holiday for the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday, saying, “They want to conquer us.” He even made a quip about alligators in reference to immigrants on Alcatraz, as shown by documents and social media screenshots.
Buchholz described the U.S. as a “Christian nation,” criticized the idea of “importing foreign cultures,” and labeled the Islamic call to prayer as “atrocious.” He also controversially claimed that a New York mayoral candidate posed “a greater threat to New York than the 9/11 hijackers,” according to his affidavit.
Yet, Saladino’s strong condemnation starkly contrasts with earlier comments from Town Attorney Frank Scalera, who vigorously defended Buchholz prior to the Post’s report. Scalera had dismissed objections to Buchholz’s traffic analysis as biased and called the motion to bar him from testifying a political maneuver by a “foreign-based law firm.”
He accused the opposing attorneys of employing “dirty tactics” and trying to politicize the case by invoking controversial figures like former President Trump.
Just a day after the report surfaced, Oyster Bay officials began distancing themselves from Buchholz, claiming they were unaware of his troubling posts and deposition content until recently.
This reversal adds another layer to an ongoing federal discrimination suit where the Department of Justice has intervened on behalf of the Muslim organization. Oyster Bay officials have also acknowledged, under oath, to fabricating a witness related to zoning laws impacting non-Christian places of worship.
In response to Buchholz’s dismissal, attorney Muhammad Faridi, representing the Linklater family, remarked, “We welcome the town’s decision to withdraw Mr. Buchholz.” He emphasized that Buchholz’s blatant bias represents the discrimination at the heart of this case and indicates that the matter was never truly about legitimate land use but rather about unfair treatment and misjudgment.
