Release #335-00

 

Contact:

Sunny Mindel/Curt Ritter(212) 788-2958

Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today named Iris Weinshall as the City's new Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner. Ms. Weinshall, who currently serves as the First Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS), will oversee all operations of the Department of Transportation effective immediately.

"I am proud to appoint Iris Weinshall as Commissioner of the City's Department of Transportation," said Mayor Giuliani. "Iris has a long and distinguished history of public service and is a proven leader, manager and administrator. She has served the City and the people of New York for the past 20 years and has the managerial skills and expertise needed to be an effective Commissioner. I welcome her to the Department of Transportation and look forward to working with her as we continue to build on our many accomplishments."

As head of the Department of Transportation, Commissioner Weinshall will oversee a budget of $468 million and a staff of 3,917. The DOT maintains City bridges, streets and arterial highways; plans for street reconstruction; regulates parking and operates parking facilities; manages the streetlighting system and traffic signal network; oversees private bus and ferry operations; and operates the Staten Island Ferry.

Commissioner Weinshall said, "I am deeply honored that Mayor Giuliani has given me this opportunity to continue my service to the City of New York. I look forward to this new and exciting opportunity and plan to work hard to ensure that the Department operates in an efficient manner to provide for and fulfill the needs of the various communities throughout the City."

Prior to serving as First Deputy Commissioner of DCAS, from 1988-1996 Commissioner Weinshall served as Deputy Commissioner for Management and Budget at the Department of Environmental Protection. Before this she was President of the Financial Services Corporation, a nonprofit organization which functioned as the financing arm for the City's economic development initiatives. Prior to this, she served as Regional Vice President of Integrated Resources, Inc. where she structured limited partnerships for property acquisition and operation. Previous to this, she held the position of Senior Vice President of the New York State Urban Development Corporation, where she oversaw the development and implementation of the State's overall economic development program.

Commissioner Weinshall earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Brooklyn College and a Masters in Public Administration from New York University's Robert F. Wagner School of Public Administration. A lifelong resident of Brooklyn, she has two daughters, Jessica, age 15, and Alison, age 11. She is married to U.S. Senator Charles Schumer. As Commissioner, she will earn $150,500.