SUFN Monthly Meeting Summary - November 7, 2022

• With tremendous progress towards SUFN’s initial goals of restructuring of the Selectboard and town management, the focus now shifts to:

  • Continuing to recruit candidates for the upcoming election in March 2023, and

  • Proactively supporting the current Selectboard for the remainder of its term.

• Some residents have expressed concerns that SUFN’s public statements have been antagonistic. Given the crisis in town, we felt we had no choice but to make our voices heard.

• The SUFN working groups have been meeting to identify ways to solve the Town’s issues. We’ve been working diligently to keep our comments productive while tackling a crisis of a scale that Norwich has never before seen.

• Attendees discussed encouraging the SB to reduce unnecessary expenses - e.g. settle lawsuits, reduce unplanned, professional services, in order to increase pay.

• Continue our outreach and positive messaging to the community - post approval for improvements on the listserv, put a table up outside D&W, reach out to MCS parents.

• Invite more folks to contact us if they want to run for SB or have ideas on who might be interested.

Interim Town Manager Search

• Mary Layton (SB member) has asked SUFN for assistance in identifying and recruiting an interim town manager. If you have recommendations on potential candidates please let us know.

  • Basic Qualifications:

    • Experience with town management in New England, especially budgeting, grants, and rural infrastructure.

    • Proven track record of creating positive and productive working environments.

    • Experience negotiating collective bargaining agreements.

    • Passionate about working with community volunteers to tackle critical town decisions.

    • Good at hiring managers and delegating authority to department leads. Inspires staff to make decisions that benefit the town as a whole.