Hopkinton Selectmen

Last Update for this page: 11/14/2006 11:01:42 PM

Selectmen vote for Special Town Meeting

Looking to fund new Town Manager position

and Ted Kozak's exit package

by Robert Falcione

Town manger Discussion

November 14, 2006 — The Selectmen basked in the glow of their successes during the hiring of a new Town manager this evening, as they explained the process to the townspeople on television. The candidate interviews and subsequent Selectmen's discussion meetings have been held publicly, and lightly attended, but not televised.

Chairman Muriel Kramer explained that the Charter established the time-line for the hiring for the position.

There were some difficult discussions because Ted Kozak was not included on the list of finalists, Mrs. Kramer said. Mr. Kozak is the town's Executive Secretary and has performed many duties of a Town Manager during the 17 years he has served Hopkinton, and will receive a year's pay as part of his contract upon his termination on June 30, 2007. But he was not chosen by the Town Manager Search Committee as one of the four finalists.

The winning candidate, Anthony Troiano, is currently the Assistant Town Administrator in Burlington, and is in final negotiations for the position; "Nothing that can't be worked out," confided one Selectman.

"The Board decided to engage professional staff to call their counterparts in the towns of the two finalists," said Mrs. Kramer. She explained that the Chief of Police, the School Superintendent, and the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee all called their peers in those towns asking them to weigh in on the candidates.

"The Police Department gave us a favorable report, and we are on track with contract negotiations with Mr. Troiano," said Mrs. Kramer.

"Every person sitting here," said Mrs. Kramer, referring to her fellow Selectmen, "has put their hearts and souls into the process, and I am proud to be a part of the process. We have voted unanimously."

"This part of my tenure as Selectman — all of us has had enormous mutual respect for each other," said Selectman Michael Shepard of the meetings that were not televised. Those meetings were not punctuated by the usual adversarial discourse that citizens see at the regular, televised meetings.

"He [Troiano] is qualified and a very good fit," said Mrs. Kramer, adding that it is important to keep what works and only make changes that are necessary in the town. Then Mrs. Kramer said it time to move onto the problem-solving portion of the discussion: The Town manager's position has yet to be funded. FULL REPORT

In order to appropriate the funds, a Special Town Meeting needs to be called, the official Notice for the meeting posted in the Metrowest Daily News, which Mr. Kozak informed the Board would be in two weeks at the earliest, according to the people he spoke with.

Selectman Ron Clark turned to Metrowest reporter John Hilliard, who was seated in the audience and taking notes for his report, when he suddenly became part of the story, breaking a cardinal rule of conventional journalism — don't be a part of the story! (Photo, right, Selectman Len Holden).

Mr. Clark chided him to move things along with his superiors, promising him "scoops" if he was successful.

The Selectmen voted to call a Special Town Meeting "in late December," which may be held shortly before Christmas.

100 people are needed for a quorum.

Fruit Street Wastewater Treatment

Director of Public Works JT Gaucher and a representative from Earth Tech were on hand to get approval for $86,800 for the first two phases of the construction of a Waste Water Treatment Facility on the town owned Fruit Street property.

Mrs. Kramer said she wanted to address the bidding process, but as soon as the conversation began, Mr. Clark said, "Point of order."

Mr. Clark heatedly insisted that fellow Selectmen Mary Pratt and Michael Shepard, who are abutters to the Fruit Street property, should leave the table and sit in the audience during the discussion, which they both refused to do. Mrs. Pratt is a direct abutter, and Mr. Shepard's daughter lives within an abutter's zone.

Mrs. Kramer said the issue was the contract process and not the Fruit Street property itself, and that it is up to the individuals involved to leave or not leave the table.

By the end of the discussion on the contract process, both had left the table.

The Board voted to fund the WWTF tasks.

The Hopkinton News TM online only at HopNews.com

Last Update for this page: 11/14/2006 11:01:42 PM

editor@HopNews.com

508-435-5534