Gov. Kelly Ayotte continues to shape leadership within state government with appointments to three key roles.
On Wednesday, Lucy Lange was confirmed by the Executive Council to oversee the New Hampshire Department of Economic and Business Affairs, or BEA.
Lange most recently worked as head of the Manchester Media Group, and has extensive experience in commercial radio. She will now oversee an agency tasked with growing the state’s private sector, including rural economic growth.
She fills the seat vacated by former BEA commissioner Taylor Caswell, who was first appointed by former Gov. Chris Sununu and had Ayotte’s backing for another term, but faced opposition from a majority on the Executive Council.
The Executive Council also approved Adam Crepeau to serve as interim commissioner for the New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, the agency that oversees state parks and more than 220,000 acres of public lands, as well as the New Hampshire State Library.
Crepeau has been a top staffer at the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services.
Sarah Stewart resigned as Natural and Cultural Resources commissioner on Monday at the request of Ayotte. Stewart faced withering criticism from elected officials about why she lacked awareness of an application her office received by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to purchase a warehouse in Merrimack. Stewart previously announced she would resign later this summer.
There will also be new leadership at the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, as longtime Commissioner William Cass heads into retirement. Cass has received near-universal praise for his leadership of the agency, and over his long career has been involved in major projects including the construction of the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge and the widening of Interstate 93.
David Rodrigue of Webster, who has served as Cass’s assistant commissioner, has been nominated as his replacement. A vote on his nomination could come later this month.
