Wasting little time in finding a replacement for Pinecrest’s departing finance director, Village Manager Peter Lombardi looked across Biscayne Bay and hired away the man who held the same post for the Village of Key Biscayne.

Thomas N. Zannis, who will step into his new $71,500-a-year-post as chief of Pinecrest’s finances on Oct. 18, brings almost a decade of municipal monetary management experience to the Village, serving the city of Sunrise for eight years as assistant finance director and then Key Biscayne as director of finance for almost two years.

"We had several applications for the job, but he was the one that stood out from the rest," said Village Manager Peter Lombardi. "Most of the candidates did not have a lot of ‘hands-on’ municipal government experience and Tom has had several years of it."

Zannis, 63, said he won’t be making a lot more money by shifting from Key Biscayne to Pinecrest, but he said there are intangibles that make the Pinecrest job appealing.

"I’m looking forward to working for Pinecrest," he said. "I live in Coral Gables, so it’s less travel. And it’s going against the traffic, so my commute to and from work will be a lot shorter."

Zannis came to the U.S. from Greece in 1946 at age10 and grew up in South Dade. He graduated Miami High in 1954, then went on to the University of Miami and took an accounting degree in 1958. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1958-62, then worked for the state of Florida as a senior auditor for six years. He subsequently was treasurer and chief financial officer for the architectural firm of Ferendino-Grafton-Spillis-Candelas and then was Vice President for 18 years with another big name architectural company, Post- Buckley-Schuh & Jernigan.

"He’ll be an excellent addition to our staff," said Councilman Leslie Bowe. "He’s experienced in municipal government and he brings a wealth of knowledge to the office."