First Lady Chirlane McCray doubled down on Friday — replacing her pricey, sidelined chief of staff with two employees to split the duties in a move that drew instant criticism.

Roxanne John, a longtime family friend who in September was named as the $175,000-a-year executive director of Gracie Mansion, will get a salary bump to take on additional duties as ­McCray’s chief of staff.

John, 47, who lives near Mayor de Blasio’s former home in Park Slope, Brooklyn, will handle both roles out of Gracie Mansion for a combined salary of $200,000.

McCray, who has a separate supporting staff for her work as chair of the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, also appointed former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration official Jackie Bray as deputy chief of staff.

Bray, 32, will earn $125,000 and work at City Hall, officials said.

Some government vets criticized McCray’s outsized role in Mayor de Blasio’s City Hall.

“Chirlane McCray’s chief of staff earns more than some city commissioners? It doesn’t make sense,” former Brooklyn councilman and mayoral candidate Sal Albanese said of John’s $200,000.

Said Republican consultant O’Brien Murray: “It’s obviously overkill for a ceremonial job. At a time when the city needs teachers and police officers, this administration doesn’t have its priorities straight.”

In announcing the appointments, McCray said: “In 2015, we will deepen our focus on issues like mental health, domestic violence and expanding educational opportunities for all our children.”

The duo replaces McCray’s embattled chief of staff, Rachel Noerdlinger, who has been on leave from her former $170,000 gig since Nov. 17. City Hall officials refused repeated requests to specify when Noerdlinger’s leave went from paid to unpaid, though they said she’s currently not ­receiving a salary.

She announced her departure after her son was arrested for trespassing at a Harlem apartment building. Noerdlinger, a former spokeswoman for the Rev. Al Sharpton, was also facing a string of other embarrassing revelations — including that she omitted sensitive information from government security documents and lived with a convicted killer who ranted against cops online.

The city Department of Investigation found that she didn’t disclose that her boyfriend lived with her — but said that was an inadvertent error. She has not resigned, officials said.

On Friday, the same day ­McCray posted a video review of her first year as first lady, de Blasio praised his wife’s work — which he has repeatedly noted is unpaid. “She has devoted herself all this year, for not a penny, to helping people in this city,” the mayor said. “I’m incredibly proud of her and incredibly appreciative.”

City Hall officials said ­McCray’s video was produced in-house at no cost.