The Town Council reorganized, naming Paul Burns as president, Philip Hebert as vice president and Norman Blais as clerk.
View full sizePalmer Town Clerk Patricia C. Donovan swears in new town councilor Blake E. Lamothe, who is representing District 3, at Monday's Town Council meeting.PALMER – District 2 Town Councilor Barbara A. Barry defended herself against online postings about her role in the hiring of the interim town manager, calling them "upsetting" and "not true."
Barry made the remarks at the end of the Town Council meeting on Monday.
The council, at its June 20 meeting, appointed Charles T. Blanchard, of Sturbridge, as interim town manager, and Barry disclosed then that she knew Blanchard and that he was a selectman when she was hired as Sturbridge's finance director. Barry, who participated in the unanimous vote to appoint him, also said she did not have a conflict of interest.
Recent online postings have criticized Barry, saying she does have a conflict of interest and cannot be impartial because Blanchard's wife, Mary, is a Sturbridge selectwoman, and refer to Mary Blanchard as Barry's boss.
Barry said "numerous lies" have been circulating about her on MassLive.com, and said it is true that she received a raise, as approved recently by Town Meeting in Sturbridge, but she said she answers to the town administrator, not the selectmen.
She said the town administrator has hiring and firing powers, and any salary increases are generated by the town administrator.
"It's upsetting to me to read comments that are not true," Barry said.
Barry said that those who have concerns about Blanchard's appointment should call her directly. She said there is "no relationship" between them, and the appointment has nothing to do with his wife's position in Sturbridge.
MassLive.com provides links to alert forum and comment moderators to inappropriate posts. Such posts are removed if deemed inappropriate or in violation of the Community Rules.
Barry said she had a comment removed in the Palmer forum this past weekend that she said was "slanderous" about the Blanchard issue.
Other councilors also weighed in. At-large Councilor Karl S. Williams, who runs the Day & Night Diner downtown, added, "There was never a fly in someone's milk."
District 3 Councilor Blake E. Lamothe told Barry she shouldn't let the comments bother her, and said Blanchard has the right credentials for the job. He added that she has helped move the town forward as a councilor.
"If people have issues, they need to come here," District 4 Councilor Donald Blais Jr. said.
Blanchard submitted his name for the town manager job last summer, but withdrew his application. Barry did not serve on the search committee last summer.
Charles T. BlanchardBlanchard then was interviewed in June by a council subcommittee composed of Barry, Paul E. Burns and former council president Eric A. Duda; their recommendation led to the unanimous vote. Blanchard has said he is not interested in serving as town manager permanently.
In other news, the council reorganized, naming Burns as president, Philip J. Hebert as vice president and Blais as clerk. It also discussed the town manager search.
A council subcommittee of Burns, Blais and Lamothe was appointed to sort through the 36 resumes that have been received for the position so far. The subcommittee will meet Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Town Building.
Hebert spoke in favor of acting "as quickly as we can" so that the town does not lose out on qualified candidates.
"I think it's very important that we have a strong town manager that can lead this town in a forward direction," Lamothe said.
A council meeting may be scheduled the week of July 25 to discuss the next steps in the search.
The council also was updated on the searches for a new public works department director and recreation director, which is a new position. Richard P. Kaczmarczyk, who was the acting public works department director, retired last month and lacked the civil engineering degree that the job requires as outlined in the charter. For fiscal 2012, $66,000 was budgeted as the salary for the position.
Blanchard provided the council with a list of 25-plus communities with populations between 10,000 to 15,000 that have public works directors or engineers, showing an average salary of $86,895. Burns asked for a breakdown of salaries for communities west of Worcester.
While the revised charter gives applicants two years to obtain the required degree,
Burns said he thinks an effort should be made to hire someone with the qualifications, as voters approved the charter and its requirements by a 2 to 1 margin.
"I think we have an obligation to implement the provisions of this charter," Burns said.