Duties of town post reviewed

Thursday, September 03, 2009

By SANDRA E. CONSTANTINE

sconstantine@repub.com

SOUTH HADLEY - Selectmen hope to amend the job description of the town administrator at a meeting today at 7 p.m. to possibly give the position more responsibilities.

They are not expected to take any votes when they meet in Town Hall, but hope to hammer out a job description to be voted on at a subsequent meeting, Laura Krutzler, the board's administrative secretary, said Monday.

The town has not had a permanent town administrator in place for any appreciable length of time since Patricia A. Vinchesi left the position about two years ago. Michael A. Szlosek, Ludlow's former town administrator, served in the position locally for three months in 2008. Retired Town Administrator Barry L. Del Castilho has helped out by serving two stints as interim town administrator, most recently until June 1. At that time, Personnel Officer/Chief Procurement Officer Jennifer L. Wolowicz took over as interim town administrator with Del Castilho doing some consulting.

Officials had decided to delay a search for a permanent replacement until after the summer months and recently issued a call for residents to serve on a search committee. The town administrator is currently responsible for running the day-to-day operations of the town and carrying out policies and procedures set by the Selectboard.

Among the residents interested in expanding the responsibilities of the town administrator is former Selectman Linda W. Young. She was one of the leaders of a campaign that in April defeated a ballot question calling for dropping the town meeting form of government in favor of having a mayor.

At one of their recent meetings, selectmen talked about the possibility of adding duties and responsibilities to the town administrator job description so it will be more like a town manager. However, Selectmen John R. Hine and Marilyn G. Ishler said that such a change would require a charter change, a process that can be started with a petition.

Selectboard Chairman Gregory R. Sheehan said he would not be opposed to adding procurement and personnel functions to the job.