LIMESTONE, Maine — Town officials are reopening the search for a public works director and have four applications in hand for the town manager’s position.
Limestone Select Board members narrowed down the search for a new highway foreman in late February, with Police Chief and Interim Manager Stacey Mahan announcing on Feb. 22 that the town had found a candidate and would be offering them the job.
On March 7, however, officials announced that they would need to continue searching for a new foreman.
Mahan later said that while the town had found an individual, who could not be named, for the position, “it just didn’t go as planned.”
Selectman Greg Ward added that “the individual turned down the offer he was given.”
The meeting occurred exactly two months after former Public Works Director William Thibodeau’s resignation, and the town has since managed to maintain their roads with a limited staff. Limestone Water and Sewer District Superintendent Jim Leighton has filled in during the interim, clearing roads when he is able, and neighboring towns have assisted during particularly harsh storms.
In addition to a new public works director, town officials are exercising a great deal of care in selecting a new town manager following the removal of Matthew Pineo, after he served the town for less than ten weeks, in late 2017. As of March 7, there were four applicants for the post. Their names have not been publicly released.
Selectperson Melissa Devoe said the town will vet applicants more thoroughly than before, to ensure the next manager is a good fit for Limestone.
“The plan is to vet applicants more thoroughly,” she said, “possibly using our police department’s investigative techniques so we get a candidate who, in doing our research, is right for Limestone.”
Devoe said that while someone may be a great municipal manager in Caribou, it doesn’t necessarily make them suited for Limestone. As a result, she said the board is making sure they “ask the right questions” once interviews for the position begin.
