Shea Elevated to Interim City Manager Role, Replacing Usry
On Wednesday evening at Rye City Council it was made official.
Assistant City Manager Brian Shea, who moved down from Albany to take his current position in early 2022, will become Interim City Manager. He will replace Greg Usry, who previously announced his retirement and will leave his position on Friday, March 28th.
“Brian’s addition to our team several years ago has been a great added value,” said Usry. “His experience as chief of staff to the mayor of Albany and experience in state government has proven to be invaluable. And I’m sure he will do a tremendous job.”
“We are fortunate to have Brian Shea, a talented assistant city manager eager to take on the challenges of the interim city manager role,” said Rye Mayor Josh Cohn. “Brian has spent the last three years getting to know Rye and came to us after years as the Mayor of Albany’s chief of staff, Albany chief of operations, a director in the NYS Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and staffer to a state assemblywoman. We are excited to see him take on his new responsibilities as the City’s chief administrative officer.”
The show is not over. The Council has hired a search firm and will continue its process to look at various candidates for the permanent position. At this stage, it is reasonable to assume the position is Shea’s to lose. When he was hired, the assistant city manager position had been vacant since Eleanor Militana left in 2018.
The hire was explained back in 2022 as a needed resource and “bench strength” for City Hall. Many believe the City has had a mixed experience as it relates to the quality of past city managers including Marcus Serrano, Scott Pickup and Paul Shew.
Current head Greg Usry has a lot of support, and putting Shea under him back in 2022 can be seen as both an affirmation of that support and a hedge against falling into another poor manager choice. Shea will be supported by other respected leaders in City Hall including Rye City Engineer and Head of the Department of Public Works Ryan Coyne, City Planner Christian Miller and Corporation Counsel Kristen Wilson.
“Brian is a seasoned municipal leader who understands how to prioritize the needs of residents and deliver outstanding services to the community,” Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan told MyRye.com. “As chief of operations for the City of Albany, Brian streamlined our resident portal and reduced response times to complaints for things like potholes and illegal trash. He also helped lead the City’s COVID response, including coordinating delivery of PPE, vaccine access, and aid to our small businesses.”
Brian played an integral part in helping the City of Albany secure historic Capital City Funding, our Downtown Revitalization Initiative, and other significant state and federal grant funding, and also helped manage the City’s intergovernmental relations at the local, state, and federal levels. The City of Rye is fortunate to have Brian take the helm as interim city manager.”
Prior to working for Sheehan in Albany, he served as the Upstate Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Brian received his undergraduate degree from Binghamton University and his Masters of Public Administration from Marist College.
Shea has had a relatively quiet role in Rye, except for his prolific presence on X.com (formerly Twitter). His account on X.com seems to have been significantly edited and a myriad of posts removed recently. In a 2021 article on his Albany departure, the Albany Times Union said “Shea, who served as the city’s spokesman during his role as chief of staff, has also been an acerbic presence on Twitter, attacking media stories or social media posts he deemed critical of Sheehan or her policies.”
In Rye, Shea has taken the lead on the Climate Smart Communities program, grant applications, insurance for the City (such as liability) and running a new IT focused project.
Mayor Josh Cohn with the announcement (turn volume up):
