DeSena says she interceded to aid probe

Continued from Page 1

Gordon Tepper, who was appointed by the Town Board, said the Building Department’s initial response to the request was that it was outside the scope of the audit period and asked for clarifcation from the comptroller’s ofce.

“Subsequently, the comptroller’s ofce clarifed by expanding their audit period so the documents could be provided, and they then asked for a multitude of additional documents,” Tepper said in a statement to Blank Slate Media. “The Building Department provided the requested documents on Tuesday, Jan. 31 — two days prior to the comptroller’s deadline. The Building commissioner actually responded within a week, despite the comptroller’s substantial expansion of the audit period.”

Wendy Goldstein, the comptroller’s spokeswoman, told Blank Slate Media that the audit scope has not been expanded and record requests are a routine part of the audit process.

Councilmember Veronica Lurvey, a Democrat, criticized DeSena for involving herself in the audit.

“I have great concerns over the appropriateness of the supervisor’s interference in the audit process. We expect an independent audit, and it would be deeply disturbing if the supervisor were trying to politicize or unethically infuence the audit,” Lurvey said in a statement. “Politicizing the audit would be an unfortunate way for the supervisor to shift attention from her empathic endorsement of George Santos.”

North Hempstead Supervisor Jennifer DeSena recently called on Building Department officials to cooperate with the ongoing audit.

At the upcoming meeting on Feb. 7, the Town Board will hold a hearing to consider a law requiring DeSena to turn over the “complete and thorough review” the supervisor said she conducted of the Building Department over the frst six months of her administration before asking for an audit.

The Building Department, led by Commissioner John Niewender, has been frequently criticized by elected ofcials and residents for long delays in processing permits.

The comptroller’s ofce, which is headed by Republican Elaine Phillips, announced in August it would audit department operations from Jan. 1, 2020 to “present time” at the request of DeSena, who campaigned on streamlining government operations.

The request, made in July, was supported by Democratic Town Board members.

Last year, several pieces of legislation were passed by the Town Board intended to make the Building Department more efcient.

In 2007, fve Building Department ofcials were indicted after a 16-month investigation by then Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice for receiving favors and payments in exchange for granting permits without inspections.

All fve were later convicted, including former Commissioner David Wasserman, who was sentenced to one year in jail in 2008 after pleading guilty to grand larceny and falsifying business records.