Charter Panel Hears About Cheshire's Town Manager
Charter Panel Hears About Cheshireâs Town Manager
By Steve Bigham
Cheshire Mayor David Borley met with the Charter Revision Commission last week to talk about how the town manager form of government works in his town.
The charter panel is currently studying Newtownâs town charter to determine what kind of changes in government should be made. Due to the townâs growth, some have suggested the town do away with the position of first selectman in favor of a town manager â a person who is hired (not elected) to run the day-to-day operations of the town.
According to Mr Borley, his town switched to a town manager back in 1971 when the town reached a population of 15,000. It was no longer a farming community and the need for a town manager became apparent. Today, Cheshire has 26,000 residents and its town manager system has worked well, Mr Borley said.
âA town manager is not about politics and we think it makes for a smoother operation,â Mr Borley said. âIt provides stability within day-to-day operations of town. That allows you to have a more stable and better work force.â
Mr Borley said a town manager helps to attract staff members who do not want to be hired and fired at the whim of the political changes in town.
Newtown has been fortunate to maintain its staff despite changes at the top of the government.
Mr Borley said Cheshire has been fortunate to have such good town managers in the past 29 years. The first lasted eight years, the second 17 years, the third three years, and the fourth has currently been managing the town for just over a year.
The town manager in Cheshire reports directly to Mr Borley, who heads the townâs nine-member town council. The town manager makes $100,000 per year and maintains the same responsibilities as Newtownâs first selectman.
âThe caliber of town managers out there is very good,â Mr Borley said.
Local critics of the town manager system point out that a town manager is not directly accountable to the voters. A bad town manager is hard to get rid of and a good one is hard to hold on to, they say.