Powers Is A Finalist For Bellingham Job

HARWICH – Town Administrator Joseph Powers is once again a finalist for an administrative position in another community. He is one of three finalists for the town administrator position in Bellingham, a community of 17,000 residents in Central Massachusetts.

The 25 applicants for the position were narrowed down to four candidates by the town’s search committee. One of the finalists then withdrew. The Bellingham Select Board is scheduled to conduct hour-long interviews with Powers, former Foxborough Town Manager John Coderre, and Lancaster Town Administrator Kate Hodges on Tuesday, Nov. 19, after The Chronicle’s deadline. 

Powers is part way through a one-year extension to his 2021 three-year contract. Under the contract, the Harwich Select Board is required to notify Powers whether he will be given a new contract 90 days before the extension expires on June 30, 2025. 

This is the third time Powers has been a finalist for an administrative position in another Massachusetts community since he was hired as an interim town administrator in 2020.  He was a finalist for the town administrator position in Yarmouth in January 2021 and for the town manager position in Foxborough last January. 

The Bellingham Select Board discussed the process of moving forward with naming a new town administrator in its Nov. 4 meeting. The board agreed the three remaining finalists are strong candidates, and there is no need to add a fourth by replacing the one finalist who withdrew. The search committee interviewed six of the 25 applicants before recommending the four finalists.

Bellingham is seeking “an experienced, knowledgeable, and talented municipal leader with superior communication and community engagement skills, proficient financial acumen, as well as excellent project and personnel management skills, to serve as town administrator,” according to the advertisement seeking a new administrator. The salary would be determined based on qualifications and experience; the current salary is $200,000, according to the ad. Bellingham’s interim Town Administrator Denis Fraine earned $211,280 in 2023. 

With his extension, Powers received a $20,000 pay increase this year. Powers was also provided a cost of living raise for a five-month period said to be owed to him due to a miscalculation. His contract in 2021 provided a $155,000 annual salary with a 2 percent cost of living adjustment each year. He also receives a $2,500 deposit in his retirement account. The vote to grant the one-year contract extension last February was 3-1, with Select Board member Donald Howell dissenting. 

“I’ve made no secret as to the state of the town and particularly staff morale,” Howell said when casting his dissenting vote last February. “I think it’s time for a change and I will not be voting for this extension. It seems like the doors at town hall have exit signs on them.”