Frank Zappone, Who Has Remade the Deputy Role Under Three Supervisors at Southampton Town Hall, To Retire

Frank Zappone will officially retire this week from his post as Southampton Town’s deputy supervisor, a role he has held since 2010, through three supervisors’ administrations.

And during his time in Town Hall, Zappone has recast the role of the deputy supervisor — from a position that had traditionally been one of a community liaison and right-hand man to the supervisor into one that in most municipalities would be that of a titled townwide administrator or town manager.

Starting under former Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst, Zappone became the first contact in the executive offices for town department heads on most large-scale municipal projects, drafting the annual budget, and coordinating public response to the COVID-19 pandemic and PFAS water contamination.

Schneiderman asked Zappone, now 78, to stay on in the role even before he was elected to succeed Throne-Holst — who had brought Zappone, then a retired school administrator, into Town Hall after he worked on both her council and supervisor campaigns — and quickly expanded even further the role that the deputy supervisor played.

“Jay had been supervisor before, so he had the experience and the confidence that he basically said, ‘Go do what you need to do and tell me when you need something from me,’” Zappone recalled this week in his office next door to what is now Supervisor Maria Moore’s office.

“The position has really evolved from a ceremonial one into a hands-on management role, more a facilitator for projects, especially projects that touch on a number of different town departments,” he added. “It’s become less supervisor-driven and more driven by the whole Town Board.”

Zappone oversaw the shift to “virtual” public meetings with the onset of the pandemic and also mustered the town’s eventual efforts to help at-risk residents, especially seniors, get deliveries of necessities — which was done using town vehicles and employees who were being paid but not reporting to their usual Town Hall posts.

He also has overseen the planning and preparation for the solar farm currently under construction atop the North Sea landfill, the installation of Suffolk County Water Authority supply mains to homes near Gabreski Airport, where more than 100 drinking water wells were threatened by chemical contamination, and the cleanup of the Damascus landfill in East Quogue. He was also instrumental in securing a $1.9 million grant for the creation of Good Ground Park and personally provided the primary oversight of the park construction work.

Last week Supervisor Maria Moore credited Zappone with creation of the Citizens Response Center in Town Hall to make it easier for members of the community to interact with the town government.

“Having prioritized public outreach and the efficiency and economy of public operations, Frank is the chief architect of the Citizens Response Center and the administrative head of the town’s office of public information,” Moore said on June 25, reading from a proclamation that she gave to Zappone in honor of his retirement. “He is particularly admired for his thoughtful diplomacy and skillful navigation of town policies and procedures.”

“Frank, I’ve gone toe to toe with you from that side of the table, and I didn’t truly appreciate what you did until I got to this side of the table,” Councilwoman Cyndi McNamara added. “You are a voice of reason and are always so calm and collected and keep everybody on task. I don’t think I’ve ever heard you raise your voice, even when the situation might have called for it. It’s really appreciated, what you have done for the town.”

Moore has appointed John Ortiz to take over the post. Zappone will stay on in a part-time consulting role through the end of the year to help his successor and the Moore administration through its first budget drafting process.

The departing deputy says that he has advised Moore and the Town Board that they should consider making the role — under the deputy supervisor title or another one — a more permanent position that is not tied to the typical turnover of a new supervisor being elected. Zappone has remained in the post through two handovers, all of whom have been Democrats, but says the political influences should be removed from the calculations of who holds the post.

“I’ve mentioned to Maria that this position, such as it is now, being subject to the political turns of events is not in the best interest of the town, because the learning curve is very steep,” Zappone said. “It’s rare that you have a supervisor for eight years like with Jay. You could have a new supervisor every two years, and then you have a different person sitting in this seat — and two years is not enough to build the kind of relationships you need to do the job right.”

Zappone has now retired from three careers — the first as a Westchester County grade school administrator, then as an admin at Manhattanville College with a side gig for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation — and says he’s leaving his door open to the next opportunity.

“I never really concern myself with what I’m going to do next — something will come up,” he says. “This has really been great. I’ve enjoyed it, and it’s been good work.”