I am both pleased and saddened with the fact that my assistant town manager has been appointed as the new Wells town manager. During her three-year tenure with the town I suspect many of you have had interactions with Larissa, perhaps it was in the course of her normal duties around Town Hall. If not, Larissa found different ways to interact with residents such as attending a knitting group every Saturday morning, or perhaps it was while she was researching an article for the e-newsletter, or assisting with registering your vehicle in her office, or directing traffic at Town Hall while we navigate life in the COVID environment.
Regardless of the occasion you may have interacted with Larissa, I suspect you found her to be engaging, competent and incredibly compassionate. Her personality and genuine willingness to help, coupled with her skill as an administrator, is a winning combination, and I am certain that Larissa has a long and successful career to look forward to. Larissa has made Scarborough a better place and I wish her all the luck in the world as she moves forward in her career.
Vacancies provide the opportunity to evaluate the best way to fill the need. Although the Assistant town manager position is relatively new, Larissa being the first, it has become a critical position for the town and one that we cannot do without. Part of the evaluation includes a critical analysis of internal opportunities, and in this case I have several members of my senior staff that aspire to be town managers someday. Cultivating internal talent is one of the most rewarding parts of my job.
I am excited to announce that Liam Gallagher will expand his responsibilities beyond human resources director and assume the title and expanded duties of the assistant town manager. Given his knowledge of the town, the pertinent issues and deep connection to staff, Liam is ideally suited to step into this role and perform immediately. I trust you will find Liam to be open and resourceful and I look forward to what he will bring to the management team.
One of the advantages of promoting from within the organization is that it provides financial resources to advance key initiatives. Good communication with the residents is essential. We have understood the importance of good consistent communication for some time, but have been unable to dedicate resources to meet this need. However, through this reorganization I will be able to bring a communications specialist on staff so we can expand our capabilities and effectiveness in this area.
So as one door closes, another one (or two) opens. I look forward to implementing this reorganization and continuing to provide services to meet the needs of our residents.
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