By TORY DENIS
[email protected]
BELLOWS FALLS, Vt. — With the Rockingham and Bellows Falls municipal manager’s contract set to end this June, town and village officials have agreed to use the Vermont League of Cities and Towns search services to find a replacement.
Municipal Manager Shane O’Keefe said on Monday that he is beginning to make plans for June, when his contract ends, though he declined to go into much detail.
“I’ve got several things I’m working on, both personally and professionally,” he said.
The Bellows Falls Board of Trustees and the Rockingham Selectboard each voted at a joint board meeting on Wednesday to approve a proposal to use VLCT’s services, which typically include advertising, background checks and reference checks.
After discussion and amendments to an initial motion, the Board of Trustees and the Selectboard each voted to have the total expenses for the town and village municipal manager search with the VLCT not exceed $7,000, including advertising, and to split the cost 70-30 between the town and village, respectively.
A previously-formed Manager Search Committee, which includes Michael Bruno, Rockingham Selectboard Chair Susan Hammond, Bellows Falls Village President Myles Mickle, selectboard member Gaetano Putignano, Richard Cowen, and Bellows Falls Trustee James McCauliffe, had requested a quote from the VLCT and also from Municipal Resources, Inc. (MRI).
MRI’s quote was $15,000, while the VLCT quote showed a range of $4,000-$7,000 depending on the size of the advertisement and ad placement, along with whether or not the service would include background checks and reference checks.
That proposed price range would also include pre-screening candidates, reviewing applications and arranging for interviews.
Hammond stated at the joint board meeting that the search committee members contacted the towns of Ludlow, Hartland, and Bethel, all of which used VLCT for their own manager searches, and that all were happy with the service they received within the past 1-2 years.
Deborah Wright, a Bellows Falls trustee, expressed hesitation to take on the search services through VLCT, and said she thinks the village cannot afford the cost of the service.
The alternative to an agency search process would be to do the search in-house, and that would have to be conducted by the search committee, Hammond said.
Wright pointed out that some search tools, such as sample ads and sample job descriptions, are available for free on the VLCT website.
Mickle said that the search committee plans to design its own ad and to advertise regionally in the New England area, and that this will reduce the overall cost of the VLCT’s service to include the background and reference checks.
Selectboard member Peter Golec, with a mention that he understood the Bellows Falls Board of Trustees may be hesitant to spend half of the anticipated cost, suggested that the cost be split 60-40 or 70-30 percent by the town and village.
Trustee James McAuliffe motioned at that time to amend the proposal to include that the cost be split 70-30 between the town and village, and the amendment was approved.
With only three months until O’Keefe’s contract expires, the VLCT has provided an estimated timeline of 8-12 weeks to complete the search process.
The VLCT also noted that most of these stay in a position for only two to three years, and that the town and village are not unique in the municipal manager turnover they have experienced in the past several years, all according to Hammond.
O’Keefe said on Monday his current annual salary is $86,700, but that he did not know that the salary for the incoming municipal manager would be.
O’Keefe announced his resignation on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2017 to village and town officials, with his last day set for June 30, 2018 when his contract expires.
In his resignation letter, O’Keefe said it is in the best interest of all parties to “hand off the reins to a new manager more focused on an extended term of service to the community,” and that he wanted to allow ample time for the boards to find a replacement.
O’Keefe took on the role of interim municipal manager in November 2016 following the departure of previous town manager Willis “Chip” Stearns.
O’Keefe had been previously employed as Rockingham and Bellows Falls municipal manager from 2002 to 2006.
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