EAST LONGMEADOW – The first meeting of East Longmeadow’s new seven-member Town Council took place July 1, during which former Selectmen Kevin Manley and Paul Federici were named president and vice president, respectively.

Manley and Federici also both received the top number of votes during the June 7 Special Town Election. Manley received 2,129 votes, while Federici gained 1,832 votes.  

The councilors were sworn into office at the start of the meeting by Town Clerk Thomas Florence and afterword commenced discussions about who would be named as president and vice president.

Town Councilor Donald Anderson, a former member of the Planning Board, nominated Manley to serve as president.

“Kevin was by far the people’s choice as far as the number one vote for the seven top finishers,” he noted. “I served at least five years as committee chairman of a five-person board and I understand that there’s always going to be a learning curve and in my opinion I have a tremendous respect for the will of the people.”

Manley, who was elected as a selectman during the April 12 Town Election, said he believes the public has placed its trust and faith in his abilities to “get the job done” as the top voter getter.

“We’re all going to work together,” he explained. “My goal is to build teamwork with everybody here – to work with everybody in a professional and respect their opinions.”

He added he’s worked to build relationships with officials in town hall since becoming a selectman.

“I dove right into it,” he explained. “It wasn’t like I sat at home and [didn’t do] anything. I already have a good understanding of everything that’s going on in the town already; some of the needs we need to address right away in various departments … I’ve tried to make my effort to meet with all the department heads.”

Federici nominated Town Councilor Eric Madison as president and listed some of his qualifications, including his experiences as a member of the Charter Commission, chair of the Appropriations Committee and as a member of the Capital Planning Committee. Madison seconded the nomination.

“I also respect that Kevin was the top vote getter and I respect Kevin and by all means, win or lose, both of those intend to work well with each other,” Madison said. “I don’t think that’s an issue.”

The council also unanimously named Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Robert Peirent as acting town manager for a period of 30 days.

Town Councilor Joseph Ford said he believes Peirent is doing a “very selfless thing” by becoming acting town manager.

“It requires a lot of extra time and attention and he has a full-time job as it is,” Ford said. “I think he’s more than qualified with his background.”

Peirent told Reminder Publications after the meeting he believes the job will be exciting and challenging.
 

“I think the biggest challenge is continuing to do the job that I have as director of Public Works and taking on this temporary responsibility,” he noted.

The council also voted to place an advertisement for an interim town manager position with the Massachusetts Municipal Association with a July 18 deadline.

Madison proposed interviewing candidates during the week of July 25, which he believes would likely result in a start date at the beginning of August for an interim town manager.

Manley said the council has received one resume for the position already.

The council also voted to establish the second Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. as the regularly scheduled meeting of the Town Council. The next meeting is set for July 12.

Another topic that was brought forward during the meeting was the hiring of a new library director. The Library Board of Trustees has vetted candidates and is set to make a recommendation to the council regarding its top person for the job. The matter is set to appear on the July 12 agenda.

Library Board of Trustees Chair Arthur McGuire, who was present during the July 1 meeting, asked the council if there was any way to expedite hiring the library director candidate.

The council agreed July 12 is the soonest that the council could take a vote on the board of trustee’s recommendation.  

“He’s been waiting for a while,” McGuire noted. “I think we can probably persuade him, but I can’t promise that. It depends on his other offers.”

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