Kurt Ludwig abruptly resigned as South Farmingdale Water Commissioner last week, following a term marked by both controversy and accomplishment. Gary Brosnan, outgoing chief of the North Massapequa Fire Department, will replace Ludwig as commissioner for the South Farmingdale district.

"It was a pleasure to serve my fellow residents in this position," Ludwig said regarding the sudden resignation. "However, I have a lot on my plate as an active resident in the community and a volunteer fire department member with a young family to take care of, and the demands of my job [as water commissioner] were taking away from my home life."

Ludwig submitted his resignation several weeks ago, but the resignation was only formally approved and announced last week.

Ludwig, a North Massapequa resident who works in the Town of Oyster Bay Public Information Office, has served as interim water commissioner for South Farmingdale since 2006, and was recently elected to a full three-year term in December.

In this heated election, he defeated opposing candidate Craig Heller. Heller, a partner at Heller & Verdi law firm in East Meadow, stated that Ludwig used the front page of the water commission's newsletter as a campaign ad for the election. The newsletter was published just prior to the Dec. 11 election.

Following a lawsuit filed by Heller, Ludwig and two other water commissioners agreed to repay the district $333.33 each for the cost of the distribution of the newsletter. The commissioners also agreed that future newsletters would not contain candidate profiles within 60 days of an election.

Despite this incident, the district accomplished significant feats during Ludwig's short term. According to Len Constantinopoli, business manager for the water district, Ludwig played an active role in the district's initiative to seek reimbursement for the outpost monitoring wells they installed at the Liberty Superfund Site in 1997.

"These wells act as early contamination detectors before the water reaches the homes of residents," Constantinopoli said. "The district installed this system in 1997 and Ludwig was active in the process to finally to get reimbursements for these important wells."

In response to Ludwig's vacant position, the district evaluated and interviewed other community leaders.

"The water commissioners met with several candidates and selected Gary Brosnan as the best choice," Constantinopoli explained. "They then went on to submit a formal recommendation to the Town of Oyster Bay and it was the Town who appointed Brosnan as the new commissioner."

Ludwig expressed support for Brosnan as the district's ultimate selection for his replacement, citing Brosnan as being "in touch with the community" and qualified for the position due to "his attractive leadership skills" and the "natural relationship between the water department and the fire department." He said he is confident Brosnan will serve the South Farmingdale Water District well during the remainder of the term.