I am writing to advocate that the Select Board engage a search firm to assist in hiring a new town administrator. As a member of that board from 2000 to 2008 I participated in the selection of the previous two administrators: Paul Cohen and Tim Bragan. The two processes could not have been more different. The hiring of Cohen was controversial. He was the husband of my opponent in the 2000 election for the board and was advocated by the same faction of the board who had encouraged my opponent to run. Elements of the process were handled internally in such a way that an ethics complaint was filed by a citizen.
Paul Cohen turned out to be a great town administrator and worked well with everyone. I was sorry to see him leave. But there was a period of suspicion over his motivations that could have been avoided had the process been handled more collaboratively and openly. The process of hiring Tim Bragan was much more collaborative, he came in without any of the issues surrounding Cohen’s hiring, and has also served the town well.
I am no longer involved in town government but have spoken with Marie Sobalvarro on a number of issues. I think she would be a good successor to Tim Bragan. However, the next town administrator should come in without having questions about whether a great internal candidate was not selected or that a superior external candidate was excluded because the hiring was politically wired. Hiring an external search firm to manage an open process, surface qualified candidates, and perform background investigations on all candidates, will provide a much better starting environment for all involved, regardless of who is hired. It will come at a very small cost when viewed over the likely tenure of that candidate.
Bill Marinelli
Stow Road
