Gray has appointed its second interim town manager in five months. Town Assessor Lauren Asselin was appointed Tuesday to take over the role, replacing Denise Clavette, who is on sick leave.

Clavette took over for Michael Foley after he resigned in November amid financial investigations.

Asselin said her primary focus as interim town manager will be to guide the 2027 fiscal year budget through to the June election. She praised the work that town staff had put into creating a “fiscally responsible budget that addresses Gray’s needs,” and wanted to make sure the process is completed and staff feel supported over the next few months.

“I have been with the town of Gray for more than eight years,” said Asselin. “I have worked across numerous administrations, and have fostered great working relationships with town staff. That experience and institutional knowledge allows me to step into this role smoothly while the town conducts its search for a permanent town manager.”

Tuesday’s meeting also served as a forum for residents to comment on the warrant articles for the June election. The town has prepared 12 warrant articles, which will authorize the 2027 fiscal year budget. Notable warrant articles include Article 4, which would fund the $13 million municipal budget, and Article 12, which authorizes the town’s 10% share of the cost for the Village Transformation Project, to be paid through tax increment financing.

Bob Coleman, a member of the finance committee, said he had spent quite a bit of time reviewing the budget presentations and digging into the numbers. He said that when the town puts budgets together, it focuses on comparisons to the previous budget, which Coleman said makes the town lose sight of the big picture of what’s happened over many years. Coleman highlighted changes between the budgets for the 2023 and 2027 fiscal years, and said the latter, excluding capital projects, represents a 90% increase from the former. Coleman also said the town budgeted nearly $380,000 into categories where either there was no money, or less than $100 had been spent as of January.

Resident Judy Simoneau, who also serves on the finance committee, said the infrequency of the committee’s meetings limited what they could do for the town. Simoneau said she had gone through the budgets of other Lakes Region towns such as Raymond and New Gloucester, and found that Gray’s budget lacks the detailed breakdowns of its neighbors’ budgets. Simoneau also criticized Article 12, which would take $1 million out of the general fund if necessary, saying the move would be risky, particularly in light of the town’s purchase last year of a fire truck with money it did not have.

Former Town Council member Dan Maguire also brought up Article 12, pointing out that the town’s portion on the Village Transformation Project funding would not be due until 2032, and there was more than enough money in the tax increment financing fund to pay for the town’s share. He shared Simoneau’s concerns about dipping into the reserve funds, but said he “sincerely doubt(ed)” it would need to get into the fund for the Village Transformation Project because of the money it will have saved by then through TIFs.