MEXICO – Selectmen met behind closed doors after their regular board meeting Wednesday night to look into the pros and cons of sharing their town manager with neighboring Rumford.

No action was taken following the session.

Rumford’s charter does not allow for the hiring of a half-time manager, a fact learned after selectmen from both towns met Feb. 20 to discuss the possibility of sharing John Madigan. At that meeting, the two boards suggested that committees comprised of residents and selectmen from the two towns take a year to study some kind of merger of their respective police, fire, public works and other departments.

Mexico Selectmen Chairwoman Barbara Laramee said Wednesday that her board will continue to look into whether the two towns could share Madigan, and will proceed with plans set forth at the special meeting of the two boards.

“It’s inevitable that the two towns would combine,” she said.

Rumford board Chairman Jim Rinaldo, reached by telephone Wednesday night, said his board will go ahead with a previously planned closed session at tonight’s selectmen’s meeting to discuss the vacant town manager position.

But as far as sharing Madigan, in light of the charter’s dictates, that seems moot.

“There’s not a lot of choice. It’s pretty plain in the charter,” Rinaldo said, adding that a resident had pointed out the requirement that a town manager must be available full time.

“This doesn’t mean the end of other things, though,” he said.

Once a new town manager is settled in, Rinaldo said he’d like to see Mexico and Rumford establish committees to study the possibility of merging services.

He was quick to note, however, that his opinion on the dictates of the charter was his alone, and that other board members may think differently.

In the meantime, Laramee said her board plans to meet with the Rumford board on Monday to further discuss sharing Madigan unless she hears differently from Rumford officials.

Madigan believes the two towns should continue looking for ways to work together, which he said would take a lot of study before intelligent decisions are made.

Madigan had served as Rumford’s town manager from 1985 to 1992, and has served as Mexico’s town manager for a couple of years, including a stint as half-time town manager for Dixfield.

Rumford is looking for a new town manager because a superior court judge determined that the town’s charter requires that Rumford’s town manager live in town.

Former Town Manager Steve Eldridge, who had led the town for two years, left last month because of the legal decision.

Rinaldo said at least 20 people have applied for Rumford’s top position.

Mexico Selectman George Byam said he was encouraged by the spirit of cooperation with Rumford at the Feb. 20 meeting.

“This is a tremendous step forward, no matter which we we go,” he said at Wednesday’s board meeting.

Neither Mexico nor Dixfield has a town charter or residency requirement for their managers.