AMHERST — Maria Capriola, the choice of a divided Select Board to be the next town manager, has withdrawn after contract negotiations fell through.
The Select Board, which voted 3-2 to offer the job to Capriola on May 5, now turns to the last of three finalists, Paul Bockelman, director of administration and finance for the Massachusetts Municipal Association.
The board announced its unanimous decision following a 50-minute executive session Wednesday evening. The town will now attempt to negotiate a contract with Bockelman, who served as town administrator in Manchester-by-the-Sea during the 1990s and is an elected School Committee member in Somerville. He is a Hampshire College graduate.
Capriola is the assistant town manager in Mansfield, Connecticut.
A third finalist, longtime Montpelier, Vermont, city manager William Fraser, withdrew his name from consideration May 4.
Select Board Chairwoman Alisa Brewer told Town Meeting that after trading proposals back and forth, Capriola informed the board that the overall compensation and benefits package was not sufficient for her to leave her current position and relocate her family. The position was advertised with a starting salary of $155,000, depending on qualifications.
“We were pleased to receive three very qualified finalists from the preliminary screening committee, and we appreciate the support of both staff and residents as we navigate these challenges,” Brewer said. “We wish Ms. Capriola every success, and look forward to welcoming Mr. Bockelman to our community.”
Board members Andrew Steinberg and Douglas Slaughter, along with Peter Hechenbleikner, the interim town manager, and Human Resources Director Deborah Radway, will continue to form the negotiating team. It is not certain when negotiations with Bockelman will begin.
Though the board initially selected Capriola as the permanent replacement for late Town Manager John Musante, who died in September, members during their discussion praised Bockelman for his extensive experience, his connections to officials at the state level and, in particular, his answers to how he would create a more diverse workforce.
Brewer said he gave concrete examples of promoting diversity, including when as town administrator in Manchester-by-the-Sea he used the state’s minority intern program to recruit a person of color to work for the town. At the MMA, he has reached out to Somerville schools to find students who do not have a parent advocating for them for available summer internships, giving those youngsters a better chance of success.
Steinberg said Bockelman is a town manager who can command instant respect from town employees and would bring financial skills, a necessity for the job with Finance Director Sanford “Sandy” Pooler leaving his position in January.
When Bockelman was interviewed last month, he told the board he wants to hear from residents and staff about concerns to improve his work.
“The town manager also has to be open to listening to anybody and be welcoming to insight and information from people,” Bockelman said.
He also described the University of Massachusetts, Amherst College and Hampshire College as bringing positives to Amherst that “just can’t be calculated” but that the college population come issues for the community, such as graduate students at UMass who bring families that live in tax-exempt housing and whose children may not speak English as their primary language.
“They’re in houses that aren’t paying any taxes and their kids are going to (Amherst) schools,” Bockelman said. “UMass should recognize there is an impact.”
Brewer wouldn’t elaborate on the statement she read to Town Meeting, saying it speaks for itself. Other board members said they would refer all questions about the town manager search to Brewer.
Calls and emails to Bockelman and Capriola were not immediately returned.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
