BELGRADE — Some residents are concerned about the forthcoming impact of losing a town manager.

Lorna Dee Nichols’ resignation is effective May 1.

While a group of residents is supporting Mary Vogel, Belgrade’s longtime town clerk and tax collector, the Select Board has yet to announce an interim town manager. Vogel held the interim position in 2022, before Nichols was hired.

Since the board announced Nichols’ resignation last week, many residents have questioned why it has not named Vogel as interim town manager as May 1 approaches. Belgrade is currently in the process of reviewing its municipal and school budgets, and will hold its annual town meeting in June.

Several residents, including Melanie Jewell, a former Select Board member, and Anthony Wilson, former town manager and current budget committee member, suggested the board not immediately selecting Vogel is a “personality” issue unrelated to her ability to do the job.

At the April 7 Select Board meeting, the board said it did not know when it would name an interim town manager. The board held executive sessions concerning a personnel matter this past Monday and Tuesday, but did not announce a decision.

In an email to the Select Board on March 31, Vogel said it had come to her attention the board was considering hiring an outside interim town manager. In the email, Vogel said she would like to be the interim manager, and that while she plans to retire in a few years, she would stay on longer “if there was positive change.”

“I would hope the decision to look outside for an interim town manager is not being influenced by subjective judgement or beliefs,” Vogel wrote. “This town deserves continuity and familiar faces of people they know and can trust.”

Vogel declined to comment when by reached by a reporter.

Melanie Jewell, a former Select Board member who served five terms, read Vogel’s email at the April 7 meeting, and called on the board to name Vogel as interim town manager immediately. Board members did not respond to Jewell at the April 7 meeting.

Jewell said she believes certain board members hold undue power over others, and may be allowing personal conflicts to influence their decisions on appointing an interim town manager.

“We have to have an interim town manager who’s got intimate knowledge of the inner workings of Belgrade’s budget,” Jewell said. “You can’t have somebody come in from outside and think that they’re going to be ready to be up and running in time for town meeting in June.”

The board accepted Nichols’ resignation, which cited health concerns, on March 31.

In Nichols’ time as town manager, Belgrade transitioned to a July 1 fiscal year, in the hopes of improving its financial stability. In the town’s announcement of her resignation, it also touted successful paving efforts and a federal grant for the construction of a new fire station.

Nichols said her resignation was a hard decision, and declined to comment further. She wrote in the announcement that “serving this community and working alongside such a dedicated and compassionate team has been one of the greatest honors of my career.”

Around 10 people attended a Select Board meeting Tuesday in support of Vogel, with some holding signs. Several people said that the board had not responded to Vogel’s email, although Vogel clarified that Selectpersons Doug Sawyer and Michaelyn Smith did respond. Sawyer, she said, extended his support to Vogel, and Smith wrote “thank you for all your emails.”

Residents Lisa Gagne-Sengendo and Susan Randall both spoke in support of Vogel during public comment at Tuesday’s meeting. Board members did not specifically respond to residents’ requests that they consider Vogel for the position. The board chair and vice chair declined to comment.

“We’re in the middle of the town budget, school budget, a new fiscal year for our town and an election year,” Gagne-Sengendo said. “Mary is the only one that can run this office, she knows it inside and out.”

Penny Morrell, a member of the budget committee, disagreed with Gagne-Sengendo’s criticisms of the board.

“I’m sure we’ll know in due time, and they will make the best choice,” Morrell said. “Even though there’s a lot of you here tonight, you don’t represent the whole town.”

Residents said Vogel has been a fixture in the town, with a wealth of knowledge, they said she’s someone familiar to rely on.

Vogel thanked residents for their support, and clarified that she does not want to be town manager, but would happily step up as interim town manager.

Before Tuesday’s meeting, Wilson, the budget committee member, called Vogel an “extremely competent public servant.”

“As someone who attends the Belgrade town meeting, there are a lot of times when Mary was looked to to answer questions, even though, in her role as town clerk, there probably should have been someone else answering the question, whether it was the town manager or a department director or a Select Board member,” Wilson said. “That just speaks to the depth of her institutional knowledge of how things have been done in Belgrade.”

At Tuesday’s meeting, attendees and board members looked to Vogel to answer questions six times.

In a town Facebook post, the board wrote that “Lorna has worked tirelessly for the town for nearly four years, while also dealing with a serious illness. We are extremely grateful for her dedicated service and respect her decision to focus on her health at this time.”

Barbara Allen, vice chair of the Select Board, said “the Select Board has the best interest of the town, and we’re working for a smooth transition,” and that Nichols served and represented the town well.

“There’s been a lot of balls that she’s been juggling,” Allen said. “She’s been doing a fabulous job of keeping everything moving for the town.”

Allen declined to comment on the ongoing search for both an interim and a permanent town manager.