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Resilience & sustainability director outlines centralized grants, projects and staff roles
Summary
New department director Theresa Kreen presented the FY26–27 resilience & sustainability budget, proposing to centralize grants work, coordinate cross-department projects (EV chargers, Cliff Walk, energy planning) and hire a resilience assistant and grants officer to manage programs and compliance.
Theresa Kreen, director of resilience and sustainability, opened the department's FY26–27 budget presentation and described a unified approach that combines public services, planning, building & inspections, IT and resilience staff into one division focused on climate resilience, infrastructure and efficiency.
Kreen said the office will centralize grant operations and compliance to improve efficiency: "When we get the grant, we high five. That's awesome. But then you need to manage the grant and ensure compliance," she said, noting a recently hired grants officer has already begun centralizing those functions. The division will advance projects framed by the 2025 strategic plan and the pending 2027 comprehensive plan update.
Kreen also previewed staff and projects—Easton's Beach, Cliff Walk maintenance, EV charging at the Gateway Center, energy asset mapping and the municipal-IT and GIS systems that support planning and permitting—and said the department will engage the Environment Energy Commission on a 10-year plan feeding into the comp-plan update. The administration positioned the department as a decision-support hub to defend future investments against short- and long-term costs of inaction.
