Makes top-level appointments
Town of Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino tabbed Columbia Law School graduate and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella to the post of town attorney at the Feb. 14 town board meeting.
Nocella replaces Frank Genova, who stepped down Jan. 9, four days after his ally and longtime Supervisor John Venditto resigned to prepare his defense against federal corruption charges.
Saladino praised Nocella for his long experience in municipal government, having served in the Nassau County Attorney’s Office and also as counsel for the Office of Housing and Community Development.
“It happens to be a rare find—a former federal prosecutor who also has extensive experience in municipal law,” Saladino pointed out, adding that Nocella earned a commendation from the FBI director for his efforts in prosecuting racketeering, extortion, and fraud cases while serving in the Eastern District of New York.
Nocella affirmed Saladino, “has proven time and time again to have the highest moral and ethical standards, as well as a willingness to take on the toughest battles possible to protect the best interests of his fellow citizens….His experience will dovetail nicely with the mission of the Town of Oyster Bay.”
Saladino also named Gregory Carman Jr. to be deputy supervisor. A partner in a Farmingdale law firm, Carman is a former Farmingdale village attorney.
“He is extremely active in the community,” praised Saladino, whose father Joe Sr. and Carman’s father, Gregory Sr., served together on the Oyster Bay town board decades ago.
Greg Sr. was on hand to swear in his son. Saladino praised the family’s public service. Both Carmans are graduates of St. John’s University Law School. The father is a former congressman and was appointed by President Reagan to the United States Court of International Trade, where he served a term as chief justice. He now holds the rank of senior judge on the court.
Of his new deputy, Saladino said that, “I know first hand that he is an amazing administrator who’ll be bringing his talents here to the [town] and whose resume fits very well with the mission of this administration and this board.”
The board also voted to approve Elizabeth Maccarone as commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development and Richard Lenz as the commissioner of the Department of Public Works.
“It’s no secret that great change is needed in the [town],” Saladino stated in introducing Maccarone. “One of the areas where we are tremendously committed to bring great change and to better serve the residents…is in the building department. Well, we have the right person, whose attention to detail, whose commitment to our town and whose résumé and experience is tremendous.”
Maccarone has been employed by the town (with a short absence) since 1989 and has spent nearly half of those years in the department she now heads.
“She’s the right person to get the job done,” praised Saladino, “and the changes you will see in this town [will be] remarkable and unprecedented.”
Lenz, who headed the DPW from 2005-07, “is a man whose experience in this field is lengthy and amazing,” said Saladino, who added that Lenz’s previous tenure was marked by “fantastic results.” He promised that, “there will be exciting news because [Lenz’s] responsibilities will be growing well beyond public works as you see the rebuild of Oyster Bay.”
Summing up the personnel moves, Saladino affirmed that “when you put some of your best people together, the outcome will be something special.
“These four individuals have the best interests of their fellow citizens at heart, and will work diligently to help my administration return town government to the path that it followed for so many years,” Saladino added in a statement. “The [town] and its residents truly are getting the whole package: public servants with unmatched dedication, the highest ethical and moral standards, as well as strong, hands-on administrators.”
