Long Beach Democrats Name Jack Schnirman New City Manager

Jack Schnirman, a former chief deputy supervisor at the Township of Brookhaven, has been tapped to become the next city manger at the City of Long Beach, according to the incoming Democrat-majority City Council.

Currently the vice president of management consulting at Bowne Management Systems, an information technology company, Schnirman will join the new council that takes control Jan. 1, 2012.

“I thank the members of the City Council for their confidence,” Schnirman said in a statement released Tuesday evening. “I look forward to working with the City’s workers to implement the council's reform agenda, restore Long Beach's finances, and save taxpayer dollars. I’ve stepped into a challenging fiscal situation before and helped reform a government. I am ready to dive right in and hit the ground running to serve all Long Beach residents.”

The new Democrat-led City Council -- consisting of members–elect Adelson, Scott Mandel and incumbents Mike Fagen and Len Torres -- selected Schnirman among nearly 200 candidates that submitted resumes from across the nation.

“[T]he new council majority has chosen an outstanding individual to manage our administration,” Fran Adelson, who was elected to City Council along with Democratic running mates incumbent Len Torres and Scott Mandel in November, said in a statement.

Before joining Bowne, Schnirman supervised the day-to-day operations of about 1,200 workers at Brookhaven, whose total budget was nearly $300 million. He will replace outgoing City Manager Charles Theofan.

The new council said they based their selection for city manager on criteria pertaining to fiscal management issues facing the city, according the the transition team's press release. “Knowing the myriad problems facing our city, we looked for an individual with municipal administrative familiarity and the skills to move our city in a new direction,” Torres said.'

John McLaughlin, the lone Republican on the council, expressed support for the new city manager. “I am confident that Mr. Schnirman is up for the task ahead and he has my full support,” McLaughlin said.

Schnirman has served in the nonprofit sector as part of the founding team of United Leaders, a fellowship which mobilized young people into public service; as deputy press secretary to U.S. Senator John Kerry; as a member of U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg’s legislative staff; and a member of the National Environmental Trust’s media team, attending the UN Climate Change negotiations in Bonn, Germany.

Schnirman served as a career advisor to the NYU Wagner School of Public Service’s Fellowship for Emerging Leaders in Public Service. He is also a board member of the New York League of Conservation Voters Long Island Chapter, as well as the New Leaders Council, serving as co-chair of the New Leaders Council New York Fellowship’s Curriculum Committee.

Schnirman holds a Masters in public policy from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and a BA in International Relations from Tufts University.

* Patch will update this story as more information becomes available.