Shelley LaRose-Arken, Long Island MacArthur Airport's commissioner for the past nine years, was replaced by her deputy commissioner and moved into a new position by Islip’s Town Board on Tuesday.

LaRose-Arken will now help oversee projects at the airport in the newly created position of executive project lead, according to Tuesday’s resolution. Her replacement, Robert Schneider, is a board member for the MacArthur Business Alliance who has served as the deputy commissioner of aviation at the airport since 2016.

It is unclear what prompted the change in leadership. 

LaRose-Arken declined to comment.

Islip Councilman John Lorenzo, a Conservative who introduced the motion to replace the commissioner, was not immediately available for comment.

LaRose-Arken later released a statement through a spokesperson announcing that she had accepted the new position. She said it "is critical to the success of the town’s airport, the community who relies on it for its travel needs while building a strong economic asset for the region. I look forward to working with Robert Schneider, my longtime colleague and friend who will assume the role of Commissioner to manage the day-to-day operations.”

LaRose-Arken’s new role focuses on “complex aviation projects, airport leases and security matters, and other projects critical to the success of the airport,” according to Tuesday’s town board resolution, which passed 4-0. Democratic Councilman Jorge Guadron was absent. 

Her salary will remain the same. She earned about $161,000 in 2024, according to Islip Town salary data obtained by Newsday.

“I’m sorry to hear that Shelley is gone, but I’m sure that Rob is going to be a wonderful asset for us,” said MacArthur Business Alliance president Chris Coluccio, whose group represents business owners near the airport. “We have full confidence in him. He’s a great representative of the airport. I’m sure he’ll take the great work that Shelley did and move it forward.”

Guadron told Newsday that LaRose-Arken’s position change was part of “an agreement reached yesterday” among his conservative colleagues.

Republican Councilman James O’Connor referred to a ''resolution” being reached to keep her “involved” at the airport.

“I’m delighted that we’re going to continue to have Shelley’s expertise and her experience in running such a critical asset to the region ... I think she’s doing a great job. I never thought she should have been replaced to begin with,” O’Connor said in an interview.

LaRose-Arken will lead the town’s effort to connect the airport with the Long Island Rail Road station in Ronkonkoma, according to a statement from Islip Supervisor Angie Carpenter. It stated, “LaRose-Arken possesses a deep understanding of the nexus of these industries and has the skill set to lead this project and others.”

LaRose-Arken was first appointed to lead Islip’s airport in 2016. Newsday reported at the time that she was a licensed pilot who previously worked for Cincinnati/North Kentucky International Airport and Westchester County Airport.

Schneider has worked for the airport since 2004. He echoed Carpenter’s sentiment about LaRose-Arken’s role in the ongoing airport expansion project.

“I look forward to continuing the great work, which Shelley and I have completed together,” he said in a written statement. “I’m very grateful to have my friend, Shelley LaRose-Arken, on my team in her new role as Executive Project Lead working on this very exciting Terminal Redevelopment Project.”

Matt Cohen, president and CEO of the Long Island Association, the region’s primary business group, said LaRose-Arken would have “a front-row seat” for future development at the airport, including the connection to the LIRR station.

“I think this is a good thing, not just for the airport and the town but the entire region,” Cohen said.

Kyle Strober, executive director of the Association for a Better Long Island, a pro-economic development group, called Schneider “a respected professional” who would be able to build on the airport’s role as a major regional transportation hub.

“We would expect that the airport’s ability to fulfill that role will continue to grow under the new aviation commissioner,” he said.

With Carl MacGowan