Waterville City Council moves ahead with search for new city manager

WATERVILLE — Councilors moved forward in the process of choosing a selection committee Tuesday night to help in the search for a replacement for Waterville City Manager Michael Roy, who is retiring at the end of the year.

Waterville City Manager Michael Roy

Roy proposed city employees police Chief Joseph Massey, Human Resources Officer Bobbie-Jo Green, City Clerk Patti DuBois and Executive Assistant Sarah Bowen to be on the committee. The council passed Roy’s proposal 4-1. Councilor Rick Foss voted against the measure, and council Chairperson Erik Thomas did not vote because he had a conflict of interest.

Tuesday’s meeting was in the Mid-Day Cafe at Mid-Maine Technical Center at Waterville High School.

A successful motion added Flavia Oliveira, D-Ward 2, to the selection committee and made Bowen a nonvoting member.

Ultimately, the city council picks the next city manager.

“While the council will make the final decision, the people who will be here long term … I think it’s a valuable list and I am recommending to keep it,” Mayor Nick Isgro said.

Two or three members of the public will also join the panel.

The city hired Maine Municipal Association (MMA) to help with the selection of candidates from the 70-person applicant pool. MMA will cut the list and send it to the proposed search committee where it will be culled further before going to the council.

Isgro and Councilors Mike Morris, D-Ward 1, and Claude Francke, D-Ward 6, have also seen city manager applications.

Many motions were proposed throughout the discussion, ranging from asking for a special council meeting to who exactly will make up the selection committee in addition to those already proposed. The council will choose members of the selection committee at its next meeting, which is Sept. 1.

Erica Pelotte and Jennifer Bergeron of the Lion’s Den Tavern addressed the City Council seeking approval to move forward with a request to extend outdoor dining beyond Nov. 1.

Both the state and the city are involved in the process if anything were to change, but Bergeron and Pelotte are getting the process going. There will be a vote next meeting to extend outdoor dining across the city.

“We want to go to the state saying our city council has been extremely supportive,” Bergeron told the council.

Mayor Nick Isgro also supported extending the practice.

“I’m supportive of any creative idea like this,” Isgro said. “It’s a mutually beneficial thing.”

Councilor Sydney Mayhew, R-Ward 4, described the Lion’s Den’s current outdoor dining process as “an oasis in a desert.”

City Solicitor William Lee spoke about an Emergency Powers Ordinance, which would allow the city manager to declare an emergency after consultation with the council chairperson. The declaration cannot last more than five days unless the council extends it. The council can meet 24 hours after the declaration of the emergency in order to modify the provisions of the ordinance.

“I hope it’s something that will never be used,” Lee told the council.

Councilor Rick Foss, R-Ward 5, proposed the city manager be required to consult with both the council chairperson and the mayor in order to enact the ordinance. A motion to postpone discussion of the proposal until the next meeting passed 5-1. A revised ordinance will be revisited Sept. 1.

Councilors voted unanimously in favor of a plan for a collaboration between Waterville Fire and Delta Ambulance, a nonprofit ambulance service. A final vote, which is required, will come in September.

The plan is designed to increase revenue for the city and improve service and response times. The proposal calls for the department to hire three full-time firefighters as well as one per diem firefighter.

Councilors voted to declare a vacancy in Ward 3, which was previously held by Democrat Meg Smith, who recently resigned. One candidate has taken out petition papers for the seat which will be on the November ballot.

The council also:

• Established The Elm at 21 College Ave. as the polling place for the Nov. 3 election.

• Accepted a $332,128 Federal Aviation Administration grant for completing a paving project at Robert LaFleur Municipal Airport.

• Waived the vehicle bidding process in authorizing the Police Department to purchase a 2020 Plymouth Voyager from Central Maine Motors Auto Group for $28,300.

• Approved the purchase of a boiler for the Waterville Fire Department.