The town of Richmond has chosen Janet Smith, a Durham Town Office employee, as its new manager.

Smith, of Wiscasset, will start in her new role Sept. 10, about three weeks after Richmond’s previous town manager, Marian Anderson, left for the same role in Wiscasset. The details of the three-year contract haven’t been finalized.

Smith, the town administrator and administrative assistant to the Durham Board of Selectmen, said besides wanting to work closer to her home, she accepted the position because there seems to be a lot of excitement around Richmond.

“Having been in the area, seeing all the stuff that’s going on in Richmond, the economic development, it’s a very appealing town,” she said. “It has a very big community feel and has kept its ruralness as well. It just seemed like the perfect fit.”

Smith, 48, has worked for Durham since February 2011. Before that, she worked as West Bath’s treasurer and tax collector for seven years and at the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office for 11 years in the corrections division and as an armed transport officer. She said she grew up in Jefferson.

The chairman of the Board of Selectmen, Peter Warner, said in a release that the board unanimously agreed that Smith best fit what the town needed and would foster a positive atmosphere for both employees and citizens.

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Warner said earlier that the town didn’t hire an interim town manager because the board members and the staff would be able to handle the manager’s duties.

“I want to personally thank each of them publicly for their willingness to put forth the extra effort during this process,” he said in the release. “We have asked a lot from them and they have proven that the Richmond staff is second to none.”

Paul Koenig — 621-5663

pkoenig@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @paul_koenig


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