Mayor Brown Announces Key Senior Appointments to Bolster Public Safety

Mayor Byron W. Brown has announced the appointments of two key senior officials who will assist the City’s response to the upcoming winter season. These appointments include Thomas Luby as Emergency Services Manager and James J. Cross as Fleet Manager.

Mayor Byron W. Brown said, “I am pleased to bring these highly qualified individuals to City government as we prepare for our next Buffalo winter. Their expertise in their respective fields will be a major asset to our team. I am confident that the city, in conjunction with our partners in county and state government, will be as ready as possible for anything mother nature throws our way.”

Thomas Luby has over 30 years of public safety experience with the New York City Fire Department, where he served as a Captain through the terrorist attack on 9/11. Mr. Luby also has emergency management experience with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. He has a Master of Arts (MA) in Emergency and Disaster Management with Concentration in Crisis Management and Continuity of Operations from American Public University and he is also a Department of Homeland Security FEMA Certified Master Exercise Practitioner (MEP). He 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. The City conducted a national search for this position.

Thomas Luby said, “I am grateful to Mayor Brown for choosing me to serve as the City of Buffalo’s Emergency Services Manager. 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.”

James J. Cross 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. Mr. Cross has a Bachelor’s of Arts from the University at Buffalo. He is a lifelong resident of East Buffalo. Mr. 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.

The City also conducted a national search for this position.

James Cross said, “I am excited to join the Brown Administration to manage the City’s fleet of vehicles. 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.”