FARMINGTON – Selectmen are so happy with the way Town Manager Richard Davis has been doing his job that they’ve decided to recap his performance evaluation publicly.

The public discussion of his evaluation, which took place during an executive session in September, is unprecedented, at least in recent Farmington history, selectman and Franklin County Sheriff Dennis Pike said Friday.

It will take place during their next selectmen’s meeting Tuesday night.

So many meetings are held to discuss negative things – problems have to be solved, issues that have to be worked out – that selectmen thought it was time to hold a discussion on something good, Pike said.

“The board thought Dick has done such a good job that we really owe it to the public to let them know how we evaluate him, and how pleased we are with his performance,” Selectman Charles Murray explained.

“Basically, it was a very, very positive and pleasing evaluation,” Pike said.

Davis, who has been with the town for the past five years, is pretty much an exceptional manager. “When questions come up, if he doesn’t immediately have the answer, he researches it fully and gives us the guidance we need,” Pike said.

Davis said Thursday he was “pleased” by his evaluation, and glad the board felt he was doing a good job.

As for how unusual it is to discuss such an evaluation in public, both Pike and Murray were in agreement: This time, it’s necessary.

“This is probably the first public sharing of the executive sessions’ conclusions,” Pike said.

“He’s the town’s key employee, and it’s only right that the citizens know what selectmen like so much about him,” Murray said.

“We’ve had some outstanding managers and we’ve had some others that probably might have not fit our immediate needs, but he’s just been an exceptionally good pick and done an outstanding job, and I’m personally looking forward to his being available to us for, I hope, several more years,” Pike said.