Belgrade’s new town manager is coming from the Town Office in Livermore.

Ernest Rice, chairman of the Belgrade Board of Selectpersons, announced Thursday that the town has hired Carrie A. Castonguay, 46, of Jay, to be town manager. The current town manager, Gregory Gill, is retiring at the end of March.

Castonguay has been administrative assistant to the Livermore Board of Selectpersons since August 2014. Before that she was director of adult education for 14 years in Regional School Units 73 and 61, the Livermore and Jay area schools and Bridgton schools, respectively.

She is to begin her new job March 21, but she will be introduced at Belgrade’s Town Meeting on March 19.

“It will be a good opportunity,” Rice said. “A lot of time people don’t have a chance to meet the town manager.”

Rice said Thursday that the board feels lucky to have hired Castonguay and that a number of other people had applied for the post.

“We’re really hoping that she’ll turn out to be a long-term employee,” Rice said. Rice added that the board is hoping Gill can pass on to her a lot of his knowledge about the town.

Castonguay was hired at a $48,500 annual salary and will be on a six-month probationary period initially, Rice said.

“It just seemed like an exciting opportunity that presented itself at a good time,” Castonguay said Thursday. “I’m looking forward to new opportunities and new adventures.”

In Livermore she also serves as tax collector, the town’s Freedom of Access Act officer, deputy clerk and deputy treasurer.

She submitted her resignation to Livermore officials earlier this week.

Rice said Belgrade advertised for a new town manager in a number of publications and listed it with the Maine Municipal Association.

The board sorted through all the applications and interviewed six candidates, Rice said.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams

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