Danvers Interviews 2 Town Manager Candidates, Decision Due Next Week

DANVERS, MA — The Danvers Select Board is set to discuss interviews of the two town manager finalists and vote on a chosen candidate next week after former Swampscott Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald and Gloucester Chief Administrator Jill Cahill each answered public questions for more than an hour on Wednesday night.

Both stressed their collaboration and communication skills, their extensive town management experience, and their ability to negotiate the tough fiscal decisions necessary to run a community as strengths during the interviews with development, the MBTA Communities Act and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives among the key questions from Select Board members.

• Danvers Down To 2 Town Manager Finalists

Cahill called the opening "once-in-a-lifetime" and said "when these opportunities come up, you go for it." She said her approach to town staff and management is "honesty and transparency," adding that she is not a micromanager, but that she intends to cultivate a staff she believes in as she makes sure staff members follow through on achieving goals and objectives.

Fitzgerald said one of his priorities at previous stops has been to "coach and support" staff as municipal jobs have become harder and harder in recent years.

Cahill said of the MBTA Communities Act — which the Supreme Judicial Court recently ruled is a constitutional law that forces many cities and towns in eastern Massachusetts to increase multi-family, by-right zoning or lose state grant funding — that while divisive in many communities, including Gloucester, "like it or leave it, it is the law."

"It's state law and as municipalities we follow state law," she said. "We all swear to do that when we take these jobs. ... Does that mean that we like it? No, not necessarily. The impacts are real. We're feeling it really strongly in Gloucester. ...

"The process has been really challenging for our community. It's really torn our community apart to some extent. But we do know that it is a state mandate. We do know housing is a challenge that is going to affect all of us, so we work hard to meet those state laws in a way that is best for our community."

Fitzgerald said that while he is not a fan of a "top-down" approach of a state mandate, he believes the concept of increasing housing inventory should be embraced.

"Development is not necessarily a bad thing in the sense that it comes with new growth," he said. "Your budget is so tight and you're so close to your (tax) levy you need some responsible development to help grow your real estate tax base."

Fitzgerald said it could be considered "disconcerting" that Danvers taxes nearly to the maximum of its levy each year. During his seven years in Swampscott, he looked to back away from the tax levy brink, occasionally to the criticism of those who said the town was forgoing necessary revenue for schools and other municipal needs.

Cahill said being a town manager must mean making the tough fiscal calls, whether they are always popular or not, but trying to do them in a way where those most effective can be shown the reason for them.

"You've got to walk in the room with people who may or may not like you when you walk in there but you've got to be ready to listen," Cahill said.

On DE&I initiatives in the current political environment, Cahill said "it's tricky" but that she would work with the Human Rights Commission to create a welcoming environment for all residents and employees as a means to hire and retain the best people during a challenging time for recruiting municipal employees. She said one way that has successfully been done in Gloucester is by hiring some staff and managers outside of traditional municipal employment background and experience.

Fitzgerald was a bit more emphatic about the need for proactive DE&I initiatives now more than ever.

"I am someone who has spent a lot of time around a lot of bigotry and hatred," Fitzgerald said. "And I see it as ignorance. I see it as an opportunity for us to be more engaging. I support diversity, equity and inclusion. I support that down to my toes. I believe that we need to see infinite value and infinite dignity in every person that we meet.

"It's hard. There is more hatred out there than there was five years ago. More vitriol. We have to combat that with more kindness and more careful conversations."

Fitzgerald was questioned about three discrimination complaints brought against him and the town during his seven years in Swampscott, which he characterized as a misunderstanding of a question during an interview with a female police officer candidate, an unfounded accusation of what he called "reverse discrimination" while the town transitioned from civil service, and a pandemic-related layoff that was under disputed circumstances.

He noted that a Select Board investigation concluded that no town policy was violated or bias determined.

Video of both full interviews can be found here.

The Select Board voted after the two interviews to delay a discussion and vote on making an offer to one of the candidates until its next Tuesday night meeting on March 18.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)