THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JULY 23, 2021 Page 3 Selectmen explain their votes on Town Manager Scott Crabtree’s 3-year contract extension Editor’s note: These are highlights of comments made by each of the selectmen at Tuesday night’s (July 20) meeting when they explained the reason for their vote. Board of Selectmen Chair Anthony Cogliano: “Scott has been the sixth town manager that I’ve had the pleasure of extending or voting for. It started with Ed Collins, Richard Cardillo, Steve Angelo, Andrew Bisignani, John Vasapolli in there twice as a temporary, so this has been the sixth time for me. “And I think Corinne’s right in her statement that when the election was held in 2019 people were looking for change. And I think Scott Crabtree was probably wondering how he and I were going to work together because we had some history in the past. And I think we worked very well together, because at the end of the day, it’s not about me or Scott Crabtree. It’s about the town, and we always put the town first. So, I’m happy that you’re here, Scott, keeping the seat warm for me, hopefully, and I wish you well and congratulations. “The only other thing that I would like to say – that at the conclusion of the vote, I stressed to the manager that regardless who voted for you or didn’t vote for you, everyone is treated the same: fairly. And he assured me that we would all be treated that way. Again, congratulations, Scott.” Board of Selectmen ViceChair Corinne Riley: “On whether to support an extension or not, I think that it’s important to remember that no one – town employee, elected official or anyone else – is all good or all bad. We all have our strengths and weaknesses – no exceptions. “It’s my opinion that in some respects the Manager has done enough to warrant the extension. Specific areas include a conservative fiscal policy, the completion of the ACO and the progress of the school building projects. There are also areas where, in my opinion, more work is needed to warrant an extension. Specific areas include better planning, better customer service and more transparency. I’ll provide more details in the upcoming evaluation. “When weighing all of these things, I also took into considEXPRESSING THEIR SUPPORT Selectmen Debra Panetta (fourth from the left) read from a detailed list of accomplishments she credits to Town Manager Scott Crabtree during Tuesday night’s (July 20) Board of Selectmen meeting. From left to right are Selectman Michael Serino, Board of Selectmen Vice-Chair Corinne Riley, Board of Selectmen Chair Anthony Cogliano, Selectman Panetta and Selectman Jeffrey Cicolini. (Saugus Advocate photo by Mark E. Vogler) eration the wishes of the voters who put me in this seat. Voters spoke loud and clear at all levels of our local government last election and clearly indicated their appetite for change. If they didn’t, then we’d have a very different Board of Selectmen, School Committee and Town Meeting today. The position of Town Manager is not voted directly by the people, but I felt that since the overwhelming number of voters in our last election voted for change, they deserved a seat at the table to have their voices heard. For this reason, I could not support a contract extension. “On the contract itself, I researched the contracts for seven other Town Managers in eastern Massachusetts and compared them to the current contract negotiated back in 2015. In my opinion, the current contract needed work to be fair to the Town. “Specifically, I along with other Board members advocated for a section specifying an evaluation in Open Session, and that any merit increase in salary should be tied to the evaluation. I am pleased that these were included and feel they will provide greater accountability. “Additionally, I advocated for a more limited Indemnification section, details of which will be in the Executive Session minutes. Though Town Counsel did not feel it was necessary, in my opinion, it would provide greater protection to the Town, but the Board did not support changing the Indemnification section. Regarding the length of the contract, I advocate for a shorter duration, specifically 18 months. While I recognize the benefits of stability in the Town Manager’s position, I also did not want a contract to go beyond two years so as to take the extension decision out of the next board’s hands. “The Board has voted to extend the Town Manager’s contract; I accept that, and I want to congratulate the Town Manager, and I look forward to working with the Board and the Manager on all the challenges and opportunities in front of us.” SELECTMEN | SEE PAGE 15
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