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HomeMy Public PortalAbout20140227 - Select Board - Meeting Minutes 1 Hopkinton Board of Selectmen Meeting Minutes February 27, 2014 TOWN OF HOPKINTON Board of Selectmen February 27, 2014 A meeting of the Hopkinton Board of Selectmen was held on Thursday, February 27, 2014 at Town Hall, 18 Main Street, Hopkinton, Massachusetts. Selectmen present: John Mosher, Ben Palleiko, Michelle Gates, Todd Cestari, Brian Herr. Officials present: Town Manager Norman Khumalo. [Executive Session was not held prior to this meeting] CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Mosher called the meeting to order in Room 215 with the Pledge of Allegiance. Chairman Mosher stated the public was provided an opportunity to meet all four candidates for the position of Police Chief at a meet and greet in Room 215 of Town Hall held prior to this meeting. Chairman Mosher announced that the Board will interview each finalist for the position of Police Chief individually. He introduced the four finalists: Interim Chief Charles Wallace, Joseph E. Bennett, III, Thomas J. Lynch, and Edward Jeffrey Lee, Jr. He thanked members of the Police Chief Search hiring committee and the Hopkinton Patrolman’s Association. Chairman Mosher stated there will be no public input during the interview process. Each candidate will be asked the same questions and follow-up questions from the Board will be allowed. The following ten questions were asked of each candidate, along with follow-up questions, as necessary: 1. Why Hopkinton? 2. How do you envision working with the Board of Selectmen, given the strong chief role? 3. If you were offered the Chief of Police position with Hopkinton what would be your vision, what would you like to achieve within the first year, and what would be the single most important contribution you could make to improve the department’s effectiveness? 4. What do you see as the priority for policing concerns in Hopkinton? 5. What makes for a great work environment? 6. What would you say is the greatest challenge for this role? 7. What technology trends do you see that will benefit Hopkinton and how would you apply them? 8. What is a high performing team and how do you build one and continue to motivate their progress? 2 Hopkinton Board of Selectmen Meeting Minutes February 27, 2014 9. What characteristics do you possess that will allow you to be an effective leader? 10. What are your views on militarization of the police department? POLICE CHIEF CANDIDATE INTERVIEWS: Charles Wallace: Mr. Wallace is currently the interim Chief of Police for the Town of Hopkinton, having been a member of the Police Department for the past 28 years. The Board questioned Mr. Wallace with the ten interview questions of all applicants, as well as individual Board member follow up questions. He outlined his background with the Hopkinton Police Department and how he has worked his way up through the ranks. He stated it will be important to fill vacant positions within the department and work toward increasing staffing levels given the projected growth of the town and the fact that one-third of the department are approaching retirement. He stressed the importance of having the officers feel they are part of the organization. He indicated use of social media is key today in communicating information to the public, as well as reports of minor crimes. He stressed his strength is that he is fair and he hopes to be remembered for this trait. He feels the youth in Hopkinton are not exempt to alcohol and drug problems and he stated the school resource officer is very important in establishing relationships with the youth. He stated in the future he would like to consider a second resource officer. Mr. Wallace thanked the Board for the opportunity to serve as Acting Chief. Joseph E. Bennett, III: Mr. Bennett is currently a Sargent for the Hopkinton Police Department, having been a member of the Police Department for the past 20 years. The Board questioned Mr. Bennett with the ten interview questions of all applicants, as well as individual Board member follow up questions. He stated he would try to keep an open relationship with the Board of Selectmen and the Town Manager. He would deal with the Town Manager on day-to- day operational matters and have a mechanism in place to keep Board members notified of situational concerns. His vision is to grow the department to meet the needs of a growing community and to utilize untapped skills of the existing staff. He would like to build on the use of technology within the department in conjunction with town hall IT staff. He stated a high performing team works together with the same common goals. Setting high expectations and addressing issues that come up and providing support when mistakes happen contribute to its success. He stated in performing this job you have to work with a high level of professionalism, you have to be transparent, and if something happens to tarnish a relationship to deal with that in an appropriate manner. He thanked the Board for this opportunity and their support of the Police Department over the years he has been a member. A brief recess was taken. Thomas J. Lynch: Mr. Lynch is currently a member of the Franklin, Massachusetts Police Department, having worked there for the past 18 years. The Board questioned Mr. Lynch with the ten interview questions of all applicants, as well as individual Board member follow up questions. He stated he was drawn to Hopkinton due to its similarity with the town of Franklin and the projected growth of the town. He stated the priority for policing in Hopkinton would center around quality of life issues with the continued growth and increase in traffic, as well as emergency preparedness in schools. He indicated one of his challenges in this position would be being an outside candidate and having to learn about the town and the people within the department and the town. He stated he would create a high performing team by setting goals and 3 Hopkinton Board of Selectmen Meeting Minutes February 27, 2014 working with the members to achieve those goals. An important aspect would be to provide the tools and training to achieve these goals and providing a circle of safety. He stated mistakes will be made and working through mistakes is vital. He stressed that his strongest characteristics are that he is selfless and empathetic. He thanked the Board for their time. Edward Jeffrey Lee, Jr.: Mr. Lee has been a member of the Woonsocket, RI Police Department for 25 years and has worked his way up the ranks. The Board questioned Mr. Lee with the ten interview questions of all applicants, as well as individual Board member follow up questions. He believes he possesses leadership qualities and has set a personal goal of becoming a police chief. He was drawn to Hopkinton because of the community pride and teamwork in this town. He stated he believes in community policing, which entails involving the entire community to be successful. He stated the key to prevent bullying on social media is getting parents involved. He indicated there is a lot of growth in Hopkinton so adequate staffing of the Police Department will be a concern. He stated a high performing team is in line with your goals and objectives and as Chief your duty is to set the bar high and once the goals are met to keep moving the bar higher. He stressed as Chief his ethics have to be top notch and the core values he possesses are honesty, integrity, and courage. He stated the organization also has to possess those values. He stated he will be graduating this spring from Roger Williams University with a master’s degree in law enforcement. He is willing to make a long-term commitment if hired in this position and he is a man of action. He thanked the Board. A brief recess was taken. BOARD DELIBERATIONS: The Board conducted deliberations on the Police Chief search and made a decision to name Hopkinton’s next Police Chief. MOTION by Mr. Palleiko that the Board enter into negotiations with Captain Edward Lee to be the next Chief of Police for the Town of Hopkinton, subject to successful background checks, SECONDED by Mr. Cestari. VOTE to Approve: Yes-5, No-0, Abstained-0. ADJOURN: MOTION by Mr. Palleiko to adjourn, SECONDED by Mr. Herr. VOTE to Approve: Unanimous. Meeting adjourned at 12:00AM.