The town of Rindge has narrowed its search to replace departed Town Administrator Jane Pitt.
During Wednesday’s Select Board meeting, chair Robert Hamilton said the board was scheduled to interview three candidates throughout the day in non-public sessions on Friday.
“We have three interviews tomorrow, but we might have a few more referrals from the search committee,” said Hamilton, in an interview Thursday afternoon. “We have a few more applicants that need to be processed.”
Overall, the search committee has received 10 applications, according to committee chair Charlie Eicher. Most of the applicants, according to Eicher, are from New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
The town of Rindge has been looking for a new town administrator since Feb. 24, when Pitt tendered her resignation to the board. In the interim, the Select Board has been meeting on Tuesday mornings to pick up some of the slack; Finance Director Ellen Smith and Executive Secretary Katy Robbins have also shouldered some of the load. Hamilton said the board will likely keep the job at 30 hours per week, which is what Pitt worked.
There is currently around $38,000 left in the town administrator line item to pay a new person, although Smith says money could be encumbered from other lines to increase the pay package.
In April, the board estimated the town could pay a new administrator $925 a week, or about $39 per hour under a thirty hour work week.
Using the same figures, the town could pay a new town administrator about $53 per hour, provided the role is filled by mid-July.The hourly figure would not include any benefits; Pitt’s contract did not provide her with a benefits package.
Nicholas Handy can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 235.