ALFRED — John Sylvester resigned as a selectman Wednesday morning, capping a year at Town Hall that he and his fellow selectmen acknowledge was tinged with conflict and disagreement.

Sylvester, 74, said in a phone interview Wednesday afternoon that there were differences in philosophy, and he felt resigning was the best course of action.

“In the last year or more, I haven’t felt as effective as I’d like to be,” he said. “I wasn’t able to do things I felt were necessary… I became a distraction.”

Sylvester served 21 years and 11 months as an Alfred selectman. Town Clerk Andrew Bors said there will be a special election on March 25 – the same day as the regular election – to fill out the remaining two years of Sylvester’s term.

“It’s a little government,” said Sylvester, pointing to the three-member board of selectmen and the relatively small Town Hall staff. “It hurts if you can’t focus because of a diversion, and I didn’t run to hurt the town of Alfred. I wish everyone well.”

Alfred selectmen’s board Chairman Glenn Dochtermann and Selectman George Donovan accepted Sylvester’s resignation in a hastily-called meeting Wednesday morning after Sylvester placed a resignation letter on Dochtermann’s desk. Sylvester declined to attend the meeting.

No specific reasons were given for the resignation during the brief meeting, but Dochtermann said he had spoken to Sylvester Tuesday evening, and that during the conversation, Sylvester spoke of conflict and opposition he said he had encountered on the board. Dochtermann later described the situation in Town Hall “just like a marriage that doesn’t work out after so many years.”

Dochtermann said no one expects a selectmen’s board to be in total agreement all of the time. However, he added, there was conflict on the board, and with some Town Hall staff.

“Certain matters didn’t get resolved; we tried to work it out,” Dochtermann said, adding there had been group meetings at Town Hall to that effect, among other attempted remedies. “I think things could have worked out. ”

He said matters had been sour most of last year – particularly during the past six months – and that some staff members were “at odds” with Sylvester.

Donovan noted that Sylvester had been a very dedicated selectman for many years. “I respect him for doing what is in the best interests of the town,” he said.

As well as being an Alfred selectman, Sylvester was active with the Maine Municipal Association. Locally, he has been the long-time chairman of the York County Budget Committee, and chaired the 12 Town Group of municipalities west of the Maine Turnpike.

He has given notice to both of those boards that he is no longer a municipal officer, which precludes his membership, except possibly in the case of the county budget committee. That body is comprised of two municipal officers and a public member of each of the five county commissioner districts.

Sylvester said he would be interested in serving as the public member for County Commission District 4 – which includes Alfred, Lyman, Sanford, Shapleigh and Waterboro – if a vacancy occurred, but he has no plans to run for other political offices.

Bors said nomination papers for those seeking Sylvester’s selectman seat will be available Feb. 29, with a March 10 return date. There will be a shortened absentee ballot availability, which is permissible with special elections, and he hopes to have absentee ballots available March 14.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or [email protected].