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Town officials continue negotiations with Therrien

Date: 9/4/2012

By Chris Maza

chrism@thereminder.com

LONGMEADOW — Bonnie Therrien was in Longmeadow on Aug. 27 as negotiations regarding her contract to become the next town manager continue, however, no specific timetable for the completion of a contract has been set.

"We've been at this for a week or just over, so as you can imagine this is coming down to just one or two items we're working on as part of the overall contract negotiation," Selectman Mark Gold told Reminder Publications. "Ms. Therrien was back in Longmeadow yesterday [Monday] as part of this negotiation, so this is going to be settled sooner rather than later."

Therrien, who is currently serving as the interim town manager for the town of North Branford, Conn., was the unanimous choice to enter into negotiations with at an Aug. 17 Select Board meeting that took place two days after she and three other candidates — Michael Dutton, the former town administrator of Oak Bluffs, Nick Breault, town administrator of East Longmeadow, and Kenneth Walto, town manager of Dalton — participated in a second round of interviews for the position conducted by the board.

In addition to her work in North Branford, she has served as the town manager of Hebron and Wethersfield, Conn., and was the deputy city manager for Hartford, Conn.

The board decided to host the four new candidates from the list provided to the town by the Edward J. Collins Center for Public Management at the University of Massachusetts Boston and continue to consider Peter Graczykowski, city manager of East Providence, R.I., a candidate from the first round of interviews, after it failed to agree on a contract with Thomas Guerino, the town administrator for Bourne.

Gold said that while the board is aware of the importance of having someone fill the position, which has been vacant since former Town Manager Robin Crosbie left to take the same position with the town of Ipswich at the end of June, its focus is on making sure the contract negotiations are conducted properly.

"The Select Board is committed to getting a town manager and an employment contract that is representative of what the residents of Longmeadow expect, so to that end we're taking our time to make sure it's done right," he said.

Therrien and the board are negotiating a contract with an anticipated salary range of $105,000 to $115,000. The original salary range suggested by the Collins Center was advertised in the initial national search it conducted as $115,000 to $135,000.

Crosbie's salary in 2011 was $98,561 and Select Board Chair Paul Santaniello said during a discussion regarding the town manager search on April 16 that she had not received a raise in four years.

Santaniello did not return a call requesting comment as of press time.