Bellingham Hires Search Firm for Third Town Administrator Search

BELLINGHAM — March 17, 2025 — Bellingham Select Board votes to hire search firm for third Town Administrator search. The board voted unanimously Monday to retain the Edward J. Collins Jr. Center for Public Management, subject to review of the agreement by town counsel KP Law, after two previous searches failed to produce a permanent hire. Maria Carney, the Collins Center's HR practice leader and a former municipal HR director in Watertown and Barnstable, told the board the firm targets passive candidates — "the best person looking for a job is not looking for a job" — and will work exclusively through a citizen screening committee. The board also voted to re-engage its prior screening committee and to add Tony Corey as a potential new member. In a separate unanimous vote, the board authorized Town Planner Rob Lucier and Housing Authority Executive Director Ed Pelletier to submit an expression of interest for a state Housing Choice Grant to fund senior housing development on a Center Street parcel, with more than 140 Bellingham residents currently on the elderly housing wait list.