Dunn looks to retirement after nearly 2 decades leading Gilford Town Hall

GILFORD — One month from now, longtime Town Administrator Scott Dunn will be trading his second floor office for a beach chair in Wells, as he enters well-earned retirement.

Sometimes, leaving a position after so long can be bittersweet. Dunn is proud of what he's accomplished in Gilford, and is ready for the next phase of life, split between Maine, and Florida.

Dunn grew up in Southbridge, Massachusetts, then went off to study at nearby Nichols College, where he received his bachelor’s degree in public administration. He received his master’s degree in the same at the University of New Hampshire, with a concentration in parks and recreation. After he graduated, he became parks & rec director in Southbridge.

Dunn made it back to the Granite State, becoming parks & rec director in Plymouth, 1990-92, and then became Alton town administrator, a job held for the next eight years.

He continued his trend of working in beautiful New England communities, moving up to Stowe, Vermont, where he was town administrator, before becoming the town administrator in Ogunquit, Maine.

He took some time off from the public sector, in a job with food supply shipments to the military during the second Gulf War, then decided to take a role in Seabrook, as its town manager for two years, before landing in Gilford, in 2008.

He admitted he never envisioned staying 18 years, saying his plan was to maybe stay four to five years, before moving on. He likes an adventure, but this community became his home.

Dunn and his wife, Debbie, settled in the neighboring town of Gilmanton, made lots of friends, and have a great social network. They fell in love with the area, and while they are moving to other communities, it will always be near to their hearts.

He also doesn’t expect he’ll be a stranger, as he loves to see shows at BankNH Pavilion, has friends to keep up with, and enjoys the Lakes Region.

“Eighteen years here, hard to believe, but this is a great community, without a doubt,” Dunn said. “A community in every sense of the world.”

From parks & rec to leading Town Hall

Dunn always wanted to be a park ranger, hence his collegiate focus on parks & rec and public administration. Through schooling, he found he had a knack for public service management.

“I grew up in the generation that revered John F. Kennedy, and that public service model, if you will,” Dunn said. “Management sort of comes natural to me, so it seemed like a natural thing to do.”

Dunn said he was likely hired in Alton, based on his potential to do good. Alton was good to him, and good for him, and put him in a position to succeed and make a name for himself.

“I realized, I feel I am cut out to do this sort of work,” Dunn said.

In Gilford, Dunn thinks he was constantly given the proper opportunity to succeed. It's fairly rare to have the top job in town held by one person for so long. Equally as rare is working under a selectboard who is mostly of the same cast of characters since he started.

“Very stable,” Dunn said. “I think, for the most part, it is a good thing for the town. I think it’s probably rare to have selectmen who are so familiar with what it takes to be a selectman.”

Dunn said the boards he’s worked for have appreciated what he brings to the table. He said having these familiar members has been helpful, and also hopes younger people get involved in town government. He sees the need for female representation on the selectboard, and urges interested people to run for office.

Dunn said, in any town, there will be bumps in the road. There have been some in his case, but he said it has been mostly amicable.

“I respect my role and their role, and my role being subservient to them as a board,” Dunn said. “I think that has certainly helped me survive my 18 years here.”

The town offices are full of employees who have been there for years, including former Police Chief Kris Kelley, who was named Dunn’s successor. Dustin Parent was promoted to chief, after working his way up through the ranks.

“All of which is indicative of the fact that Gilford is a great place,” Dunn said. “The work culture here is very good, better than any place I’ve ever worked. I’d like to think I’ve contributed to the positive work culture when I got here, but it was fairly well established.”

Evolution of a town

Dunn is proud of how he's helped Gilford achieve so many milestones and complete projects that will last for years to come. He said it didn’t come without the help of a great staff. He said these are people who truly care about their jobs, and doing well for the taxpayers.

“That includes the guys in the public works department out on the streets, certainly police and fire, Town Hall, you see it at the library,” Dunn said. "You walk into the town clerk’s office, and you’re greeted with a smile. Across the board, that has been my experience with our employees.”

Dunn has focused on bringing in employees who live by that philosophy, and is proud he was able to hire so many.

Brick and mortar accomplishments can be a double-edged sword. There have been huge projects, and the town has spent a lot of money. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the price of everything has skyrocketed.

“The [public works] building was originally conceived as a $3.5 million project, and then quickly seen as a $5.5 million project, and we ended up at $11.2 million,” Dunn said. “It is an awful lot of money, but the whole process of getting to where we are today, to build that building, is a team effort in every sense of the word.”

Dunn has always been a proponent of resident involvement for projects of this magnitude, creating committees representing taxpayers, employees and stakeholders.

“That building’s going to be here for an awful long time.”

The town replaced the aging bathhouse at the beach, as the former building was approaching 70 years old. In another team effort, Dunn is happy with the final product.

One of his first tasks was building the police station. Everything there was a challenge financially, but it doesn’t even compare to what would have happened if they waited.

“It was a $1.6 million project, and you couldn’t come close to doing what we did now,” Dunn said. “We really made the use of what we had here, as far as an expansion to the Town Hall.”

The Arthur A. Tilton Ice Rink went from being a seldom-used facility of maybe two dozen days a year, to an upgraded destination that now includes a pickleball court. He envisions the facility being used a couple hundred times a year, and something the whole community can enjoy.

The solid waste center is one of the most widely used facilities in town, and Dunn said while the project was difficult at times, it was another team effort, with the citizen’s committee, town staff, and selectboard.

“It’s hard to take pride in the dump, but when you get up there, it’s a working waste processing facility, and a great facility that certainly meets the town’s needs.”

Dunn also said the Town Hall itself was in tough shape when he arrived, and the roof was replaced three times. The walkway was chipped concrete, with trip hazards, and was improved. The siding was replaced, along with windows, and a new metal roof was added, which is expected to last.

“This building was really fixed up, as well,” Dunn said.

He takes pride in his ability to write policies, which has proven beneficial by saving legal fees. An example is the winter rules for the town beach.

For nearly two decades, Dunn has been leading the vacation community, through a time of growth.

BankNH Pavilion provides superior musical entertainment, as Dunn well knows. He'd seen The Guess Who just the night before his interview. Gunstock Mountain Resort attracts skiers and snowboarders in the thousands in the winter.

“We’ve got Gunstock, the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion, Lake Winnipesaukee, and we’ve got the Glendale facility,” he said. “Our town beach is beautiful. We’ve got an airport in town. Hospital right around the corner. We have a good relationship with all our surrounding communities.”

Looking to the future

Kelley will be working as assistant town administrator in a transition period between Aug. 3 and 14. Then, it's all in Kelley’s hands, and Dunn can focus on things like playing golf and pickleball, and family.

The Dunns sold their home in Gilmanton, and will be renting a summer spot in Wells, where he and his wife lived when they first started dating. Dunn’s wife has three children living in Wells, and seven grandkids. He has a son who lives in Seattle, who is about to become a father.

When the winter months hit, they’ll be down at their new home in Ocala, Florida.

“I have worked really hard in my personal life to get everything I own paid for: houses, cars, and all that stuff,” Dunn said. “The journey to retirement. Tucking that money away. All those things came together. I’m still relatively healthy and I’m looking forward to retiring while I’m still relatively healthy, being active, and having fun.”