Interim planning director hired to fill role permanently

LACONIA — At the end of a three-month-long process, the city hired Kathy Menici as the new city planner. Menici has occupied the post on an interim basis since the end of May.

Menici has more than 35 years of experience as a municipal planner spent in the city of Portsmouth and the towns of Alton, Farmington and Wakefield. 

“I was very pleased with what she's been able to accomplish as the interim planning director, and I think we're going to see her be able to expand what she was able to do for us in this permanent role,” City Manager Kirk Beattie said. “She does have a long history here in the state doing land use regulations and enforcement. Her knowledge base seems very deep, and I think that's going to be a big benefit to the city.”

Menici said in an interview she applied for the full-time position because her time as the interim was so enjoyable. After a 10-year period spent in consulting, which gave her the flexibility to care for her two children, Menici decided to return to full-time planning work. 

“I came into it expecting to just do it for the interim period. But since I've got here and have been involved on a day-to-day basis, I really enjoy the people that I work with here,” Menici said. “There's some real interesting projects coming down the line.”

Menici, chosen from a field of six candidates, holds a master’s degree in urban affairs planning and community development from Boston University and a bachelor’s degree in science with a concentration in local and regional planning from Plymouth State University. Assuming the permanent position Sept. 18, Menici will be paid an annual salary of $107,000, according to a press release.

“I'm really pleased that Kathy has joined the city staff,” Mayor Andrew Hosmer said. “She brings a wealth of experience and a fresh perspective to the job that I think everyone in City Hall is really enthused about.” 

Menici is “all the things you want in a city planner,” Planning Board Chair Charlie St. Clair said. “She knows her job. She’s very skilled” and is also “very easygoing and patient with people.” 

“She’s been a pleasure to work with. ... I’m very pleased she’s been hired permanently,” St. Clair said. 

The planning department is currently short-staffed, Menici said, and in need of an assistant planner and a conservation planner. She spent much of her summer more involved in facilitating the everyday permitting process than a director normally would be, and is looking to quickly fill those open positions. 

Once the department is back to a full roster, she’s looking forward to working with other city leaders to consider ways to improve affordable housing development in the city, to update the city’s master plan and to navigate the development of the former Laconia State School property.

“When I was in Portsmouth, I had the opportunity to work on a couple of major redevelopment projects,” Menici said. “Our role as planners will be to guide them through the process to get all of their necessary approvals. So they can go out and start building ... there's just so much that goes into a redevelopment project of that magnitude.” 

“We've got a number of challenges in front of us and in this city” from a planning standpoint, Hosmer said. In addition to the immense amount of planning work involved in the proposed State School development, Laconia faces a growing demand for affordable housing.

“I'm quite confident that she has the talents necessary to execute accordingly,” he said. 

Menici spoke highly of the team joining her in facing those challenges. 

“The group of people that I work with down here really is a very impressive group of people. They're really nice to work with. They work hard on behalf of the residents of the city. So we will just kind of build on that,” she said. 

Menici was appointed in May on an interim basis while the city began a search for a successor to former planning director Dean Trefethen, who resigned abruptly in May. A criminal investigation into Trefethen led by Laconia Police and involving police in Sanford, Maine, where Trefethen is a resident, is ongoing.