BOARD OF SELECTMEN

McAuliffe Hearing Room

APRIL 27, 2006

Present:  William Christensen, Roger Challen, Bonnie Phaneuf. 

The Board convened their meeting with a discussion of the interviews held on April 25, 2006 for Town Administrator. 

Mr. Christensen felt the town would be well-served by all applicants but did note he favored Jean Kitchen.  He approved of her emphasis on goals, process and operations in her current town.  He felt Groton was very similar to Southborough and she has the experience to help Southborough face its current challenges.  He closed by saying he felt she was a good fit for the town and we were a good fit for her. 

Mrs. Phaneuf said she supported Mr. Rollins and felt he has already dealt with many issues in Hanover that Southborough is facing now.  She appreciated his commitment to work with the staff.  She also felt the finalists would all serve the town well.

Mr. Christensen said Ms. Vinchesi was not as strong as Mrs. Kitchen and Mr. Rollins, although he stated her work is very highly respected and she provided several good work examples.  Mr. Christensen announced that the Town Administrator Search Committee recommended Jean Kitchen.  Mrs. Phaneuf told the Board she was concerned the applicants were not ranked by the consultant or the search committee.  She again stated she favored Mr. Rollins due to his strong financial background.  Mr. Challen agreed with these points though he was convinced by Mr. Morse’s report that Mrs. Kitchen’s focus on staff empowerment, goals and facilitation with committees was impressive. 

Mr. Challen made a motion to appoint Jean Kitchen as town administrator and enter contract negotiations, with a start date to be determined but shall be no later than July 1, 2006.  Mr. Christensen seconded the motion.  Mrs. Phaneuf did not support this vote initially.  When the vote was called, Mrs. Phaneuf did vote to appoint Mrs. Kitchen and the vote was unanimous.  The Board delegated Mrs. Phaneuf and Mr. Millholland to handle contract negotiations with Mrs. Kitchen, with the assistance of town counsel.      

The Board voted to go into Executive Session at 8:20 a.m. to discuss contract negotiations, not to return to open session. 

Respectfully submitted,

Vanessa D. Hale, Assistant Town Administrator