1999-06-BOS-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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61-375 Selectmen's Meeting - June 28, 1999 with people as they would like, that he doesn't return phone calls, doesn't respond to issues that citizens raise as well as they would like him to. I would like to see us work on a way of insuring that those issues are addressed because as far as I am concerned, there is nothing that happens more than the Town Manager being a communicant for the Town and I think it is important that we work to resolve those issues. I also have some personnel questions. I had raised questions about the number of people who had left the town employ. I have certainly raised questions about the relationship with the Fire Department. I think he has done a very good job working on the senior staff model but I do think that has left other employees feeling they are not being included in the decision making process. I am also very concerned with the amount of time and effort that we have had our consultant spending in the community. Three years at $116,000 on employee management consulting. That is a role that should be with the Town Manager and not be paid at that kind of level. I do have some budget concerns. I would like to be able to count on backup being delivered with the materials so that people who want to delve into the details of the budget are able to. As I indicated tonight, I have a lot of concerns about the salary adjustment area. I back the whole concept but I do worry about what the criteria is and how evenly it is being applied and I have some concerns about the notion on the reserve fund that we have been using for years is things that are not truly unforeseen. So I hope that as we go forward, we can work on ways to improve some of these things and really make the Town Manager work for the citizens in the Town and for the employees. With that, I will vote against his reappointment at this time. Mrs. Abbott: I intend to vote for reappointment and will be happy to do so. I think it is important that Mrs. McKenna has been able to air her concerns. I would have preferred to see a mechanism that would have allowed a little more time for some of this discussion and perhaps not for so many specific concerns to come up as part of public discussion. Although it is not inappropriate, it is somewhat difficult. I would like to be able to see us in the future have perhaps a clear understanding as members of the Board and especially Mrs. McKenna and myself as the newest members of the Board as to what (I view any question is an appropriate question to ask) might we expect when we seek information from anybody in the Town Manager structure or anybody on an elected or appointed Board if there is information that if for some reason should not be given, either a legal issue or confidentiality issue, that it would be helpful for us to know that. I think I would leave it to the discretion of the Chair of the Comittee to decide whether he or, in some future date, she might want to be advised as to the kinds of questions that are asked (I am not seeking an oversight of the question asking) but I am seeking a way that we can make it as easy as possible for all of us as Board members to get information. My experience in seeking information and receiving it has been good so I don't want to reflect that I have not been given information that I have asked for.