Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Just as the City of Buffalo released its Winter Snow Plan for the upcoming winter season, Mayor Byron Brown confirmed to WBEN on Tuesday that two key positions have been filled for Emergency Services Manager and Fleet Manager.
The two positions were created and approved in the aftermath of one of the worst winters in Buffalo's history, including a blizzard last December, that resulted in 47 deaths in Erie County.
"We finalized interviews late last week and made offers to the two individuals
on Friday," said Mayor Brown. "Those offers were accepted over the weekend."
A national search was conducted for both positions.
The Emergency Services Manager is Thomas Luby, who has years of experience in that field after serving the New York City Fire Department for more than 20 years. Brown said he also worked during the attack on America on Sept. 11, 2001.
Luby will serve as the city’s liaison on emergency preparedness issues, coordinating training programs and emergency operations drills, and assisting departments with their emergency and mitigation plans.
"I am grateful to Mayor Brown for choosing me to serve as the City of Buffalo's Emergency Services Manager," said Luby in a statement. "This is an exciting opportunity for me and my family, and I believe my experience and training will enable me to hit the ground running."
Meanwhile, the new Fleet Manager is James J. Cross, who has more than a decade of experience in vehicular fleet management. He most recently worked as the Assistant Fleet Operations Manager for AAA of Western and Central New York.
Cross has a Bachelor’s of Arts degree from the University at Buffalo, and is a lifelong resident of East Buffalo. Cross will be tasked with overseeing the fleet of city-owned equipment and vehicles and is the primary contact concerning vehicle fleet maintenance and operations.
"I am excited to join the Brown Administration to manage the City’s fleet of vehicles," said Cross in a statement. "My first order of business will be to fully inventory and assess the city’s current vehicle fleet to help plan for the future needs of the fleet moving forward."
The Common Council does not have to approve the hires, but the mayor indicated he will refer the credentials of both to the council.
"I'm glad that after national searches, for both positions, we feel we found the
right people for these roles, that will do a good job for the residents of both the city and the region," said Mayor Brown.
On the Snow Plan, the mayor indicated that this is the most comprehensive snow plan in the recent history of the city of Buffalo.
Among the highlights, is a three-tiered system for storm classification, from a general snow event to a localized extreme snow event, to a citywide/regionwide extreme snow event.
As a storm’s severity increases, more resources would be available and equipment pre-positioned.
One million dollars has been allocated for emergency snow removal. Those funds will be issued to private contractors.
Communication improvements are also being made in the form of emergency texts through the BuffAlert and digital message boards will be placed in high traffic areas around the city.
A warming shelter has been designated in each council district, for a total of 9 shelters.
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