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The East Hampton Town Board will decide how to reorganize the Natural Resources and Planning Departments. The placement of Natural Resources Director Larry Penny will also be discussed. Photos by Aaron Boyd

East Hampton - The East Hampton Town Board convened for a public hearing Thursday, July 17 at 7 p.m. at Town Hall to discuss the fate of the Natural Resources Department and, de facto, department director Larry Penny's job description.

The town board met previously at an unofficial town meeting on June 19 to consider placing Natural Resources under the authority of the Planning Department. Despite a mistake in official noticing of the hearing requiring a five-day grace period, Penny received a massive showing of support from community members and civic leaders who turned out to speak on behalf of keeping the Natural Resources Department intact and autonomous. Before the hearing ended, Penny's career was the main topic of discussion as the debate held his job in the balance. In light of the notice mishap and sensing the growing controversy over the consolidation proposal, the board rescheduled the meeting for July 17 to discuss the matter further.

Penny in his 'natural environment.'

Councilman Brad Loewen, board liaison to Natural Resources, originally proposed the merger in an effort to streamline both departments, saving the town approximately $175,000 as well as reign in the self-styled watchdog of all things environmental on the grounds that the department was loosely organized.

Town Supervisor William McGintee maintains the reorganization is necessary and justified. "The Natural Resources Department has not been functioning properly," he stated, alluding to problems with Penny's management style. McGintee also downplayed the boisterous support at the June 19 meeting, claiming that the vast majority in attendance were relatives, friends and "operatives of the Republican Party."

Heart Of The Debate
At the heart of the community's debate is the concern that Natural Resources priorities will lose clout and the department its footing if it is rolled up under the Planning Department's purview. Proud of East Hampton's long-standing leadership in environmental protection, many contend the move is motivated by squabbling over personnel issues. "The board needs to decide how to move forward with a combined department," Jeremy Samuelson, an environmental advocate for the Group for the East End, said in support of Penny's stewardship.

Suffolk County Legislator Jay Schneiderman, a Montauk resident and former East Hampton town supervisor who has voiced criticism of the McGintee administration, is in favor of more targeted management in the department. Nevertheless, he views the reorganization as an attempt to remove Penny's position. Under civil service law, the town cannot fire Penny directly, but they can eliminate the position he holds, according to Schneiderman.

Penny has been director of Natural Resources, through its many forms, since 1983.

Penny's lawyer, Louis Pechman, agrees. In a June 9 letter addressed to McGintee, Pechman provided a laundry list of complaints against the town board regarding the manner in which they've dealt with the situation. The accusations include political and ageist discrimination, improper defamatory statements by the board in open session, and restraining Penny's freedom of speech. "We will do whatever we need to do to protect Larry," Pechman said, discussing the option of bringing suit against the town, "Hopefully we won't have to."

Much of the work currently being done by the Planning Department falls under the jurisdiction of Natural Resources in the code, according to Councilwoman Julia Prince and Planning Director Marguerite Wolffsohn. The two sat down and complied a list of where the two departments overlap in an effort to assess the situation and rework the code. The amended town code fixes the procedural redundancies, leaving the Natural Resources Division as an educational bureau, with Penny as the town's "environment guru."

Efficiency A Concern
This plan corresponds to what has been happening in the departments for some time now. Natural Resources became more concerned with monitoring ecological projects over the years, while the Planning Department handled day-to-day procedures involved with permits and environmental review, Schneiderman explained. "The departments should be working side by side," he contends, however, "Natural Resources needs to stand on its own."

"Larry may not be the most efficient administrator," Schneiderman granted, "but he is arguably the most knowledgeable environmentalist in the Northeast."

"It would be a big mistake to take away the department's autonomy," Schneiderman warned, "There needs to be an unbiased commentator on how development and other changes impact the environment."

The board's plan places Natural Resources under the jurisdiction of the Planning Department.

Wolffsohn says the Planning Department will be ready to "accommodate the change," if necessary, yet stresses that she maintains no stake in the board's decision. "We would still have an agency [the Natural Resources Division] fully devoted to the environment," Wolffsohn pledged.

It would be difficult to imagine environmental protection in East Hampton without Penny, who has held his position as director since 1983. "I know just about everything about the environment," Penny boasted, speaking of his life-long commitment to civil service and the environment that, in his opinion, still makes him the ideal candidate to steer the department.

The most intensive part of the director's job is successfully securing grant money. The department acquires about half of the grants Penny applies for to fund its work. "There are a lot of hoops to jump through" in the application process, which can go quickly if you know the hoops beforehand, Penny explained.

Natural Resources currently tallies $275,000 pending in state grants, to be collected over the next two years. Penny estimates that he has had a hand in collecting around $1 million in grant money since 1983. "I've paid my way," he proclaimed proudly.

Penny is worried that Natural Resources and the environmental concerns it represents will be deregulated in the wake of reorganization. The State Department of Environmental Conservation oversees environmental advocacy throughout the state, although local governments have the ability to enforce stronger regulations. "We're tougher than the state and federal government," Penny pointed out.

He plans to make sure that never changes. "We have a full platter, that's why I want to hang in."

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