Three hopefuls vying to run for first selectman this November came together for the first time during this election cycle at a Town Administrator Workgroup meeting July 18.

With current First Selectman Dan Rosenthal departing at the end of his current term, the final decision on what to do with the workgroup’s recommendation will fall to whoever captures the most votes on Election Day. This prompted the workgroup to invite the three candidates to inform them of the work being done and garner their input.

Legislative Council Chairman Jeff Capeci and Legislative Council Vice-Chairman Matt Mihalcik are both vying for the Republican nomination, and Board of Education member Dan Cruson has received the nod from the Democratic Town Committee. Local Republicans and Democrats will see their slates of nominees solidified following party caucuses scheduled for July 24 and 25.

Workgroup member Ned Simpson outlined the three most common types of government in Connecticut towns — first selectman in 110 towns; town manager/town council in 33 towns; and mayor/town council in 29 towns.

The main point of difference is who the town’s chief executive officer is — under the first selectman and mayor model, the CEO is elected, while under the town manager model, the CEO is hired. There are many different variations of those three themes — for instance, five towns with first selectmen also have town administrators.

Simpson also mentioned the difference between a town manager and a town administrator.

Both positions are hired by a town’s elected officials. A town manager works as the town’s chief executive officer, while a town administrator is a position that works under a first selectman or mayor, taking care of day-to-day town duties.

If the workgroup’s final recommendation happens to suggest shifting Newtown to a town manager form of government, it would require a charter change; but a town administrator position could simply be created and hired by the Board of Selectmen.

Capeci commended the workgroup on their efforts, which he characterized as “very insightful.”

“I think the result has to be well publicly documented with strong opinions,” said Capeci. “Whatever the recommendation is, I think you have to consider what we have in Newtown. People seem comfortable and adverse to change. My opinion is any change needs to be more subtle rather than a drastic change.”

Workgroup Chairman Maureen Crick Owen, also a selectman in her final term of office, said the job of first selectman has “gotten more dense,” and a town administrator would “provide additional time for a chief elected officer to do long-term planning that gets lost in the day-to-day business of the town.”

Capeci agreed it was similar to running a business — observing that it’s half running the business and half improving the business. But, he pointed out that finding a balance so both get done can be difficult.

Workgroup member Pat Llodra, also a former first selectman, said the balance has changed in recent years as more responsibility has been put on the community’s top elected leader.

“It’s too much running and not enough improving,” said Llodra. “Something gets lost in the application. You have to run the government and the planning gets sacrificed.”

Cruson said he wanted more information — the more detail in the final report, the better. He said if he is elected and the decision were up to him, he would like to know not just what the final recommendation of the workgroup is and why, but why other options were deemed undesirable.

Cruson said he also wanted to know the financial implications. But workgroup members said issues such as the salary of whatever position is prioritized (if there is any change at all) would be up to the selectmen and council.

Crick Owen asserted that whatever the cost of a hired position, it would be a “blip in the budget.”

“What we’ll get in return will far exceed whatever is spent,” said Crick Owen.

Cruson said, “even if the amount seems like a drop in the bucket, people like to know what we spend.”

Mihalcik asked if there were any towns that reviewed a change and ultimately decided to take no action.

Crick Owen replied saying there were two—- one of which was Southbury, which has taken no action on their final report. Another town, which Crick Owen could not recall from the group’s research, sent a potential change to referendum with other items requiring voter authorization, and it was defeated at the polls.

Mihalcik also wanted to know the average length of contract for potential town managers or town administrators. Llodra responded saying there was “no typical.”

For example, she said some towns stagger the election of their first selectman and the contracts of their town administrators; while other towns align them so that a new first selectman can decide whether to keep a tenured administrator or hire a new one.

Capeci asked about takeaways from the work group members’ interviews with town officials, both good and bad.

Llodra said some towns with a town administrator or a town manager would have residents often preferring to call the elected first selectman or mayor rather than the hired person.

“The buck stops with the elected official,” said Capeci in response.

Another takeaway the workgroup had concerning a town manager was a potential “absence of accountability” between the voter and the chief executive officer.

“The voter is one step removed from the manager,” even though that person is the chief executive in the town, Llodra said.

Simpson recalled a common theme during an April public hearing was residents saying they wanted to be able to vote for the town’s leader.

Crick Owen said the workgroup’s goal is to have a report ready to present to the Board of Selectmen in September. She said that selectmen would not make any decisions on any recommendations — that would be up to whichever candidates win on November 7.

Associate Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.