Carrie Castonguay named town manager in Livermore Falls

LIVERMORE FALLS — Selectmen voted unanimously Tuesday to hire Carrie Castonguay as the town’s new manager.

The terms of her contract and her salary are being negotiated; she is scheduled to start work Aug. 14.

Carrie Castonguay of Jay was hired Tuesday as town manager of Livermore Falls. She will begin her duties Aug. 14. File photo

Following the vote, Chairman Jim Long thanked fellow Selectmen Ernie Souther and Bruce Peary, along with other members of the search committee, “for all of the work and effort put into the process of finding a town manager.”

According to interim Town Manager Rhonda Irish, Castonguay was chosen from a pool of 14 “good-quality” candidates, many of whom had prior municipal experience.

Castonguay, who lives in Jay, will leave her position as a program analyst with the Maine Department of Transportation. She has been with MDOT since 2019.

Prior to her work there, Castonguay was the town manager in New Gloucester from 2017 until she unexpectedly resigned in 2019. At the time, she told the Sun Journal that she was resigning for personal reasons with no immediate plans for employment, acknowledging that “navigating the political climate” in New Gloucester – including disciplinary issues with the chief and the deputy chief of the fire department — “has been challenging.”

Prior to New Gloucester, Castonguay was the town manager in Belgrade from 2015 to 2017, and worked as an administrative assistant to the Select Board in Livermore from 2014 to 2015.

Before moving into municipal administration, Castonguay was a longtime director of adult education for Regional School Unit 73 and then in Maine School Administrative District 61, the Lakes Region School District, in Bridgton.

From 2002 to 2022, Castonguay also co-owned RCCM Cleaning Services in Jay, a commercial and residential steam cleaning and janitorial services company.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in social and behavioral science from the University of Southern Maine, a graduate certificate in leadership studies from USM and a certificate in human resource management from the University of Maine Augusta.

In her letter of application, Castonguay described herself as a collaborative transformational leader, noting that her prior school and municipal work experiences provided her with “the skills and ability to communicate and empathize with a variety of employees, community members, as well as members of the various boards and committees to which I was responsible.” She wrote that she welcomed “the opportunity to bring my skills as a detail-oriented leader to the Town of Livermore Falls.”

Castonguay replaces Amanda Allen, who resigned as town manager in early June after coming to an agreement with town officials to settle a discrimination complaint she filed with the Maine Human Rights Commission for at least $44,500. The actual amount to be paid is believed to be much higher.

During the investigation and through the signing of the settlement agreement, the town spent $14,267 on attorney fees.

Allen, whose annual salary was $72,000, had worked for the town for over 20 years in various positions, including town clerk, sewer clerk and police dispatcher. She was appointed interim manager in July 2020 and became the full-time town manager in May 2021.

On Jan. 2, selectmen put Allen on paid administrative leave after some residents circulated a nonbinding complaint asking the board to fire her. Selectmen hired an attorney to investigate the allegations and found no wrongdoing. She returned to work on March 20, and then resigned in early June. The settlement agreement was formalized in mid-July.