By Carol Britton Meyer

Former Select Board Chair Jennifer Constable is Hull’s first new town manager in 16 years.

JENNIFER CONSTABLE, HULL’S NEXT TOWN MANAGER.

Following a more than one-hour interview on June 15, Constable was unanimously named to the position by the select board to replace Philip Lemnios, who is retiring at the end of this month.

The other two finalists, Peter Caruso and Thomas Guerino, also underwent extensive interviews during the four-hour meeting. (See related story.)

Chair Greg Grey called Constable, Rockland’s assistant town administrator since 2019, “the perfect fit and the best choice for the citizens of our town moving forward.”

Newly elected select board member Jerry Taverna could not participate in the interviews or vote since the new town manager will be his wife’s boss. Joan Taverna is currently Hull’s health director. He observed the interviews from the audience.

Grey announced before the interviews that no questions or comments from the public would be allowed.

While select board members Grey, Irwin Nesoff, and newly elected Jason McCann said that all the candidates were qualified, they said that Constable’s experience on boards and committees and as a member of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, the MBTA Advisory Board, Massachusetts Municipal Association, and the South Shore Coalition – in addition to her discussions with the Department of Conservation & Recreation as a select board member – will enable her to “hit the ground running.”

Nesoff called Constable’s experience working with the DCR, which owns a great deal of property in Hull, a “significant plus.”

Constable, who resigned from the board in February shortly after Lemnios announced his retirement, said crafting a master plan for Hull would be helpful when addressing proposed residential and commercial developments.

McCann noted that there were “three strong candidates, with a lot of consistency from the perspective of being a strong manager, although they are three very different people.”

All the finalists had experience in grant writing. Constable listed many successful grant applications that she wrote and talked about her background with affordable housing, unions, and financial management.

Her role as Rockland’s assistant town administrator helped prepare her for this position.

“The town administrator and I work collaboratively on most if not all of the town’s [business], so I am part of the finance team,” she said. “I also am acting town administrator [when the current one is not available] and work with the police, fire, and all the other departments.”

Constable accepted that position during a challenging time when there was “a level of mistrust” and a need for more transparency, she explained. The town is now in a much better place due to enhanced communications, including a popular bi-monthly newsletter, that could be implemented in Hull, she said.

Constable’s service to the town over 20 years, including time on the planning board, affordable housing committee, and seven years on the select board, added to her appeal.

Other of her priorities includes understanding the needs of department heads, having a strong capital improvement plan and seeking grants to help finance projects, financial forecasting, and maintaining good communications with school leadership.

“In Hull, 60 percent of the town budget goes to the schools,” Constable noted.

McCann said that while all three candidates had similar management styles, including an open-door policy and a collaborative approach, Constable was “very organized” and gave a comprehensive overview of how her past experience would benefit her in the town manager position.

When asked what she envisions the role of the new assistant town manager approved at this year’s town meeting to be, Constable said it would be “somebody who complements me and is capable of filling in when I’m not available. My strengths are housing and economic development.”

An ideal assistant town manager would also be someone who could handle human resources matters and who knows how to pursue grant opportunities, she said.

During her interview, Constable explained that while her two-decade career has been in public service, she had not envisioned herself working in local government, but it has proved to be a good fit.

“I live here and love this community,” she said. “It’s financially stable and there are a number of focus areas for the future that I think I am well poised and experienced in to help move this community into and through its next chapter.”

While she had pretty much made up her mind to apply for the position, Constable said that community support for her doing so helped her make that decision.

When asked about serving as town manager in a community in which she resides, she saw no conflict.

“One of my strong qualities is wearing multiple hats and understanding those different roles,” she said. “I take my work very seriously and approach it thoughtfully and with honesty. Being a resident might hold me to a higher standard, but that’s OK. I hold myself to a very high standard anyway and am willing to take on that responsibility.”

Search consultant Bernard Lynch from Paradigm Associates noted that a number of communities have town managers who are also residents, and some even make that a requirement.

Constable also said that if chosen for the position, she “would take my experience, love, and understanding of the community and apply it every single day.”

When asked about her management style, Constable said being flexible is important as well as good communication and transparency.

“I would want the select board to set priorities on an annual basis and be sure that the board’s and town departments’[goals] are in alignment,” she said.

The select board interviewed each of the three town manager finalists in alphabetical order, with Lynch assisting with the process.

Caruso is currently the town administrator of Millville, a position he has held for the past four years, and Guerino served as Bourne’s town administrator from 2005 to 2019 and is currently the executive director of the Greenfield Housing Authority.

Following the interviews, board members briefly shared their thoughts about the three finalists, followed by a motion by Grey to hire Constable and a unanimous vote in favor of that recommendation.

Before the interviews, select board members, other than Taverna and Brian McCarthy, read letters they wrote related to the State Ethics Commission disclosing that they have interacted with Constable in a professional capacity in the past and that they would remain impartial and fair in making the new town manager decision.

McCarthy’s letter of disclosure indicated that he has not worked with Constable on any committees in the past and that he, too, would remain impartial and fair in making the final choice.

Grey thanked Lynch for his “above and beyond professional guidance” throughout the process and members of the search committee for their hard work.

“You guided us through a very open process that was transparent from step one, as it is now,” Nesoff told Lynch. “We came up with three incredible finalists from a much larger pool.”

After the decision was made, Nesoff spoke to “the elephant in the room,” referring to social media chatter claiming that “the fix was in” for Constable from the beginning, stating that was not the case.

“Jen is clearly the most qualified, with a smaller learning curve. She will be ready to jump in from day one,” he said. “For anyone with concerns who listened to her interview tonight and read her references and resume, she stands out above the other candidates.”

While Constable holds a master’s degree in public administration already, she considers herself to be a “lifelong learner.”

Constable’s hiring is contingent upon “any and all background checks and the successful negotiation of a contract,” Grey said.

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