HANSON – The challenge of attracting and retaining quality town employees was tackled by town officials this week.
The Select board voted unanimously to accept the recission of Town Planner Antonio DeFrias’ recent resignation, as well as new terms of his employment, at its Tuesday, Aug. 15 meeting. The Planning Board had also unanimously accepted the recission on Monday, Aug. 14.
The Select Board also voted to accept the updated job description — meeting later that night as the Wage & Personnel Board — which the Planning Board had approved, including grant-writing and reviewing of grant applications, progress reports and close-out documentation he is already doing. The job description also now includes work he also doing on strategic planning goals, fulfilling requirements to bring the own into compliance with the state’s MBTA family zoning laws,
“Because of Tony’s work on this we are compliant with this, which means opens up eligibility for many grants,” Town Administrator Lisa Green said. He will also continue working with the High Street Park Committee, working with MassDOT as the town’s representative and engineers on the $13 million Maquan Street TIP program.
“He’s already been doing [all of] this, but this solidifies and reflects that he is doing this additional work.”
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett and Green said the town was fortunate to reach an agreement for his return as he was intimately involved in a number of projects including Maquan reuse, the Lite Control property, strategic planning and grant writing in addition to his responsibilities as town planner.
“We are not in an age any longer where employees are a dime a dozen,” Green said “Municipal government is not a place where people are banging down the doors to work.”
She said positions advertised are not attracting candidates for positions.
“We literally have had towns call our employees and try to persuade them to go to those towns for more money,” Green said. “Literally, it has happened in this town.”
‘A lot of poaching’
“Oh, there’s a lot of poaching going on,” FitzGerald-Kemmett agreed. She noted there are at least three area towns looking to hire town planners.
“Currently there are six surrounding communities looking for a Town Planner,” Green said, noting the salary ranges involved.
Duxbury is looking for a planning director at a salary range of $78,000 to $108,000; Rockland is offering $90,000 for a planner; Hanover’s range is $75,000 to $90,000; Acushnet is offering $75,000 and Avon just came online offering $75,000.
Green had suggested that a line item for a grant writer/procurement officer, which was never filled, despite Town Meeting having voted to approve it. The board’s discussion to leave that post vacant and officially shift those duties – which DeFrias has already been doing – to his job description along with all the other additional tasks he is doing.
DeFrais had tendered his resignation in mid-July, which was “met with a great deal of disappointment,” said FitzGerald-Kemmett.
He has been offered $95,000, of which $90,000 which was already been approved at town meeting is effective retroactively to July 1, and when Town Meeting approves the additional $5,000, it will also be retroactive to July 1, along with an additional five days of vacation.
Select Board member David George asked if the salary package would mean taxes would go up and was informed it would not.
A town by-law guides the offer of additional vacation time.
Green said Hanson has been very fortunate in this case because a community pursued DeFrias.
“We are in a time where it’s really important to retain employees,” she said, adding that adding vacation time does not hurt the town. “People now are very focused on a work-life balance. Money is not everything to them.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett also said the board took into consideration the of fact that DeFrias was already doing much more than is typically expected of a town planner. She stressed that he has been doing a “huge portion” of the town’s grant-writing, alone, which had not been part of his original job description. He has also been a huge component of the town’s Economic Development Committee. He is also expected to play a critical role in in the future plans for the Maquan property.
“Universally, the board felt that to try to replace someone of Mr. DeFrias’ caliber and get some traction and actually be able to effectuate change, would probably set us back a year or more – and we’re not being dramatic when we’re saying that,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. The agreement has been universally rejoiced in Town Hall, according to FitzGerald-Kemmett.
“To the person, every employee at Town Hall was thrilled that the board was making this decision,” she said. “It’s the first time that I know of, where the board has aggressively pursued retaining somebody.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett said the board did what any good town would do and discussed with DeFrais what it would take to convince him not to leave as well as why he wanted to go elsewhere. She said there were some personal issues that could not be discussed in an open meeting, but did say salary was one of them.
“We knew a while back, if we did a competitive analysis of salaries in surrounding towns that he was conservatively [speaking] being underpaid anywhere from $7,000 to $10,000,” she said.
With that in mind, they entered into an executive session negotiation with DeFrias and reached an agreement to retain his services.
Green said the terms were that his salary would increase, but he actually accepted a lower salary.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett clarified that DeFrias was initially offered more than the amount settled on, not lowering his salary.
New police officer
In other business, Cameron Carpenter was appointed a full-time Hanson Police officer, contingent on passing a background check, medical exam, psychological exam, firearms qualification and post-certification during the meeting. The appointment would be effective Monday, Aug. 28.
Police Chief Miksch said Carpenter fills a vacancy of more than a year, after the position went unfunded last year.
“It’s kind of tough, hiring cops right now,” he said. “There’s not a lot of people that want to do it.”
He said that, where the department used to receive 40-50 applications for a vacancy, they received 16 this time and, of those, 10 met the qualifications sought. Nine interviews were offered, but three did not show up and they had three excellent candidates out of the remaining six.
Carpenter was offered the position after “a tough decision.”
A W-H graduate who grew up in town and has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Merrimack College, partnering with Mass. Police Training Committee and while attending the academy under that program, he earned his master’s degree in the field.
“He is unique in that he has not worked as a police officer yet,” Miksch said. “That’s a lot of ambition for a young man to take on – for any person to take on.”
He has worked as an assistant caretaker at Camp Kiwanee and has experience in Duxbury as a beach ranger and has also worked as a natural resource officer for Barnstable.
“I’m sure he got used to people yelling at him about birds … so I think he can tolerate some stuff,” Miksch joked.
He has also amassed an impressive resume I volunteer work, including at the Lawrence Boys and Girls Club while at college, WHK youth hockey coaching and for the Hanson’s youth lacrosse program.