Donald Woodbury has already signed his contract. It is up to selectmen to finalize the deal.
WEST PARIS – Selectmen voted Tuesday to include the signing of a contract for the community’s first town manager on their agenda at the Jan. 15 board meeting.
According to Chairman Wade Rainey, Donald Woodbury of Marietta, Ga., is getting the job.
“I think we have made an excellent choice,” Rainey said.
Woodbury has signed the contract and plans to arrive in Maine on March 2, prior to the March town meeting. Once selectmen add their signatures to the pact the hiring will be official
Woodbury was born and raised in the Lewiston/Auburn area and worked as an executive for the Lockhead Corp. More information on his background will be available after the contract signing, selectmen said.
Selectman Jim Johnston said, “I think Don will be very good for the town. He has excellent qualifications and is eager to come to West Paris.”
Woodbury will assume duties as town clerk, treasurer, tax collector, overseer of the poor and chief financial officer after the March town meeting.
In other business selectmen approved mailing a survey to registered voters asking them their preference for a town meeting day. The survey stems from a controversy over holding the meeting on a Saturday, as has been the case since 1996, or if it should revert back to a Tuesday evening. Some religions do not allow participation in Saturday meetings. Opposing arguments hold that evening meetings tend to interfere with the ability of elderly people to attend the meetings.
The survey, along with a letter explaining the issue, will be mailed Jan. 16. People are asked to respond by Feb. 2.
Rainey said there’s time to change the schedule before the first Saturday in March, the time set for the meeting, if a majority requests the change.
Two junkyard permit hearings were also set, the first at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 22 for Kenneth and Brenda Williams for a new yard on Morse Hill Road, the second at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 12, a renewal for West Paris Metals on Maple Street. Both hearings will be held in the town office.
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