Brookhaven loosens hiring restrictions

Brookhaven officials have amended a residency law that required commissioners to be town residents, a move some said is unfair to qualified job applicants who live locally.

Town officials defended the move as a way to broaden the talent pool when Brookhaven looks to hire top administrators.

Under the amended law, commissioners and deputy commissioners can live in Suffolk or Nassau counties for the duration of their employment with the town. Previously, the town was limited to hiring Brookhaven residents as commissioners and deputy commissioners.

The new law gives Brookhaven the flexibility to hire people from out of town who come with "very high recommendations," said Councilwoman Jane Bonner.

But Mike Wilcox of Miller Place said the law change is unfair to Brookhaven residents who apply for town administrative positions. "It's a sham," Wilcox said. "There aren't enough people in Brookhaven who are qualified to do this?"

The town's seven-member board unanimously approved the law change on March 29.

Shortly thereafter, town officials hired Huntington resident Gerard Olsen as deputy commissioner of parks and Kathryn Scott of Riverhead as deputy finance commissioner.

Scott will earn $95,000 and Olsen $75,000, town officials said. Bonner said Brookhaven had been without either deputy for more than a year.

Supervisor Mark Lesko sponsored the law change at the March 29 meeting. It states that to "provide quality services and leadership . . . in a town of this size, it is often necessary to reach out to experienced people who reside outside of the town but within the Long Island region."