Eastbayri.com

EAST BAY — Just days after the Bristol County Water Authority board of director named the agency’s new executive director, some people called into question the hiring process.

During recent interviews, Bristol resident and local watchdog Marina Peterson and Warren Town Council member Davison Bolster both challenged parts of the hiring process used by the water authority during its search for a new executive director. (The BCWA board of directors eventually named Pamela Marchand to the post.)

Ms. Peterson pointed to the board's private interviews of the final six candidates: “A lot of people are upset about that. We were promised that the last two interviews were going to be open to the public.”

Ms. Peterson was apparently referring to a comment made by Allan Klepper, a member of the BCWA board of directors. During a Barrington Town Council meeting, Mr. Klepper told the council that the water authority board had planned to conduct candidate interviews in open, public sessions.

On Monday morning, Mr. Klepper said that the interviews of the final six candidates were done in executive session (closed to the public).

“I thought we’d come down to two, that the last two interviews would be in public,” he said. “We didn’t need to. It became obvious (the final selection) with the rating system.”

Mr. Klepper said all nine members of the board of directors had individually ranked the final six candidates during the interview process and that all nine members had ranked Ms. Marchand at the top.

“The numbers turned out to be for Ms. Marchand,” he said, adding that the final vote to hire Ms. Marchand was 8-0 because he was out of town for that meeting.

That answer might not be sufficient for Ms. Peterson and Davison Bolster, a member of the Warren Town Council, who said “My question is [was] the process to find this executive director done in an open and legal fashion?”

Mr. Klepper said he was frustrated with those who have criticized the hiring process, especially considering that the new executive director had not yet started working with the authority.

“If eight of us are wrong, fine, crucify us,” he said, “but do eight members — nine of us, really — who felt that she was the right person for the job, have any credibility?”

Mr. Klepper added that the board enlisted assistance from the town managers of Bristol, Warren and Barrington and a member of the East Bay business community during the initial review of candidates’ applications. He said the final vote to hire Ms. Marchand was done in a public meeting.