The Port Authority's director of engineering and construction who has been overseeing development of the $435 million light-rail extension to the North Shore will leave the agency on Aug. 30.

Officially, Henry Nutbrown, 62, will retire rather than be laid off from his $142,000-a-year administative post.

Unofficially, some board members have been maneuvering behind the scenes to get rid of Mr. Nutbrown for more than a year, frustrated by what they have said is lack of aggressiveness in pursuing public-private development opportunities and criticism about projects such as the little-used Wabash Tunnel and South Hills Village Parking Garage.

Authority spokesman Bob Grove said the move is not entirely a surprise inasmuch as Chief Executive Officer Steve Bland announced a reorganization in March to consolidate departments and reduce the number of top managers from eight to five. While engineering and construction was splintered into four other divisions, there was no indication at the time that Mr. Nutbrown would not continue to head up the controversial T extension that includes boring twin tunnels under the Allegheny River.

Mr. Nutbrown, a no-nonsense professional civil engineer, came to the Port Authority in 1998 after more than 30 years at Pennsylvania Department of Transportation District 11, where he was district engineer for the past 13 years, in charge of department activities in Allegheny, Beaver and Lawrence counties.

The Port Authority said the light-rail project will be managed jointly by Winston Simmonds, now rail operations/engineering manager, and Keith Wargo, rail improvement program director, who has been in charge of day-to-day operations under Mr. Nutbrown for years.

First Published: July 26, 2007, 4:15 p.m.