Shackett Resigns Gilford Posts

Takes County Administrator Job July 1

Gilford’s Acting Town Administrator and Finance Director Debra Shackett resigned both positions at a work session of the town’s Selectboard yesterday morning, where she announced she would become the Belknap County administrator and finance director on or about July 1.

Her appointment to the top county administrative post was confirmed by Commissioner Christopher Boothby.

While board Chair Connie Grant and Selectman Gus Beneavides simultaneously wished Shackett good luck in her new position, it was clear that the two, along with Selectman Kevin Hayes, were surprised, if not shocked, by the resignation. It came on the heals of a board decision at its meeting two weeks ago that directed Shackett to prepare an advertisement for citizen volunteers to screen applicants for the town administrator position that has been vacant since mid-March, when Evans Juris was fired.

The board accepted the resignation (formal acceptance came at the regular board meeting last night), and all three members expressed their appreciation for Shackett’s willingness to stay on the job until June 30.

In addition, Hayes commented after the meeting that “Gilford’s loss was Belknap County’s gain. I am personally grateful for the amount of time she has devoted to her town duties, especially during the past couple of months. Unfortunately, I am bothered by the town’s loss of two key administrators in such a short period of time.”

Former board chair Alice Boucher later echoed Hayes comments, saying, “Good for Debra! Her departure will be a big loss for the town, but the new job is an awesome opportunity for her.”

When he heard the news, former selectman Dennis Doten said, “her departure is unfortunate for the town, but the wheels for it may have been set in motion a couple of months ago.”

Grant said she wants to focus on the positive. “While her departure is a loss for the town, it gives us an opportunity to implement a plan of action for assembling a new administrative team. It is even possible that the board might be able to save money in the process.”

That plan may involve recruiting one of the town’s other department heads to assume the town administrator’s duties on an acting basis during the recruiting period. At the suggestion of Hayes, the board will also seek the advice of the New Hampshire Local Government Center in Concord and, possibly, seek interim help from Municipal Resources, Inc., of Meredith. The latter specializes in providing short-term professional help to cities and towns.

Board members also agreed with Shackett that prompt posting of the finance director position with an eye to filling that position before Shackett’s departure was extremely important.

Shackett also advised the board that she had contacted the town’s audit firm for the purpose of getting the audit of the 2007 town finances started and, hopefully, completed before her notice period is up at the end of June.

“I have truly enjoyed working for the town and with the outstanding department heads and employees,” Shackett said. “The Belknap County position is a logical career progression for me. As such, it is an opportunity that I just could not pass up. My general impression is that the county commissioners and Belknap County voters have assembled an outstanding team of department heads and administrators. I look forward to working with all of them.”

The move to the Belknap County position is a big step for Shackett. Gilford’s 2008 annual budget is approximately $12-million, and the town has 85 employees. The county’s 2008 budget, on the other hand, exceeds $26-million. The county payroll, which includes the Sheriff’s Department, corrections, the nursing home, and the county attorney's office, just to name a few, employs 250 people.

Shackett was appointed the town’s finance director in November 2001, and she was given the additional duties of assistant town administrator by Juris on September 1, 2005. The present board named her acting town administrator when Juris was relieved of his duties on March 12 of this year.

Prior to coming to Gilford Shackett was town administrator in Bristol for three years. For eight years before that, she was Bristol’s bookkeeper. Shackett attended Johnson & Wales and Plymouth State University, where she majored in business and accounting.

At the Belknap County offices in Laconia, Shackett will be replacing Nancy Cook, who was fired by the Board of Commissioners on April 8 for reasons that were not made public. The circumstances that led to Cook's dismissal were immediately referred by the Commission to the state Attorney General's office for investigation but no word has reached the public since that time.

Cook has reportedly retained the services of well-known criminal-defense attorney Mark Sisti.