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Lee Koppelman, who helped shape the face of modern-day Long Island and influenced more than four decades' worth of decision- makers, resigned yesterday as executive director of the Long Island Regional Planning Board, a post he had held since 1965.
The resignation came one day after new members of the board grilled the planning icon on details of the agency's finances, and as the Suffolk district attorney's office subpoenaed a tape of the meeting as well as financial documents.
His departure ends the career of one of the most well-known and influential public figures of the past 40 years.
Ever a stickler for bureaucratic details, Koppelman, 78, at first refused to comment yesterday, explaining that he had not yet submitted a formal letter of resignation to both county executives. But he eventually acknowledged that he had quit.
"I can't think of a greater challenge than the planning of Long Island," he said. "The rewards for doing the work have been phenomenal."
Koppelman will continue his work as head of the Center for Regional Policy Studies at Stony Brook University.
His retirement had been expected for months after Koppelman helped usher in the new six-member planning board, appointed in February by the two Long Island county executives, and...