New Head Of Southampton Town Public Safety Appointed, With Some Dissent

The Southampton Town Board approved the appointment of the head of the town’s new public safety division—although two board members argued, again, that the position was a waste of town funds.

Councilman Stan Glinka, who is the board’s liaison to the Code Enforcement Department, and Councilwoman Christine Scalera argued that enforcement issues should be addressed through clear direction from the Town Board rather than by appointing a new administrator to oversee the newly created department. They made the same case when the position was created earlier this year.

“Being top heavy [on the] management side is not always the answer,” Mr. Glinka said. “Quite honestly, I don’t think this is going to solve our problem right now. I really think we have to look at the staffing levels.”

Supervisor Jay Schneiderman argued that leadership within Code Enforcement was needed to make the department more efficient, similar to efforts made in the Police Department, with the hiring of a new police chief.

“We could add five more [code enforcers], but without that administrative leadership, those five people wouldn’t be effectively used,” the supervisor said.

Ms. Scalera noted that her disapproval of the position, and that of Mr. Glinka, was not personally targeted toward Steven Troyd, a 28-year law enforcement veteran with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for whom the board ultimately voted 3-2 to head the municipality’s newly created Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

Mr. Troyd, who lives in West Babylon, most recently served as the supervisory special agent of the New York Metro Gang Task Force, whose members included both FBI and New York Police Department members.

Code enforcement issues hit close to home for attendees of Tuesday’s Town Board meeting, held in the Hampton Bays Senior Center, as Hampton Bays has long been a hub of illegally crowded motels and rental units that are not up to code.

In 2014, when Code Enforcement was first reorganized under the administration of the town attorney’s office and had seven officers, 54 notices of violation were issued to the owners of 14 rental properties in the North Road neighborhood of Hampton Bays within a week’s time. But now five code enforcement officers are spread thin throughout the town, frustrating many in Hampton Bays who see the issue as a local crisis.

Hampton Bays resident Gayle Lombardi, a member of the Hampton Bays Citizens Advisory Committee, addressed the Town Board on Tuesday, raising concerns about the illegal use of motels within the hamlet. She told the board she is legally blind, describing her ability to see as “missing pieces of a puzzle.”

“Why do I look to the Town Board and say you made decisions as if you’re legally blind?” she asked. “I find the Town Board in Hampton Bays is … spending money based on spotty information. You’re not taking the time, energy and patience to make sound decisions on our behalf.”

The town’s new Public Safety Department was created earlier this year and added to this year’s budget by Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman. Mr. Schneiderman said he hopes to add another code enforcement officer position in the 2018 town budget.