Immediate Release                                     Contact: David Chauvin

November 16, 2006                                                (516) 869-7794

Town Announces New Building Commissioner

New Management Team Set to Revamp Department

Manhasset, NY – North Hempstead Supervisor Jon Kaiman and the Town Board have announced that former Republican Councilman Jim O’Connor has been picked to head the Town’s Building Department. Mr. O’Connor, who was appointed with unanimous bipartisan support, will head the Department’s new management team.

“Jim O’Connor brings the necessary leadership, knowledge, and skills as a manager and attorney to help us build an open, modern, efficient Building Department,” said Supervisor Kaiman. "This position calls for someone who can apply the rules, codes, laws and policies to the construction and development industry in our town and manage the personnel who are our front line in enforcement and inspection. Jim O'Connor is just the man to do this."

An established litigator and manager, Mr. O’Connor has served as Special Deputy Superintendent of Insurance of the New York State Liquidation Bureau and was previously appointed by the governor to serve as Chief Legal Officer for the New York State Insurance Fund. A former North Hempstead resident and graduate of Carle Place High School, Mr. O’Connor served as a Town Councilman from 1998 to 2001.

“I am honored by the confidence that the Supervisor and the Town Council have entrusted me with and I look forward to this opportunity,” said O’Connor.

The Town Board had previously approved the appointment of Jay Lal as the Departments Chief Deputy. Mr. Lal previously served as Director of Special Projects for Nassau Community College and has held senior positions with the New York City School Construction Authority and the New York City Housing Authority.

In addition, the Town has hired Cecelia Ward as a consultant overseeing the department’s information technology integration. Ms. Ward is the former Commission of Planning and Economic Development of the Town and Director of Construction Services Bureau for the City of Fort Lauderdale Florida.

"This management team brings skills, leadership, integrity, and commitment to public service all to the table at once,” added Kaiman. “With this new management team, the new technology and the modern management procedures that we are bringing to this department, the North Hempstead Building Department will be a model for others throughout the country within a year's time.”