Hopkinton town head resigns

Goffstown Editor — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:20:00 GMT

Hopkinton town officials will once again begin the search for a town administrator, as Leon Kenison has announced his resignation.

Kenison, who accepted the job last fall, will serve his last day in Hopkinton on July 17 before taking over as the Nashua Public Works director.

In recent years, the town has gone through several permanent and interim town administrators.

Board of Selectmen Chairman Scott Flood said that while the board hadn’t yet met to discuss the process, he believes the town will handle it similarly to how it did when Kenison was hired.

“I think the process we employed last time worked well where we had assistance from an outside organization and internally had a committee as well to screen the applications before they got to the selectmen,” said Flood. “Personally, I look for someone with management skills, as those are critical.”

In addition to being the Board of Selectmen chairman in Bow, Kenison also has a background in engineering, and he has previously spent 37 years working for the state Department of Transportation.

“It’s going to be more challenging and perhaps incorporate my background in engineering more than being a Town Administrator does,” said Kenison. “There are many things I may be able to help them with.”

Flood said it was Kenison’s wealth of experience in multiple areas that made him a good town administrator, and that he will be missed by the town.

“This did come as a surprise to me,” said Flood. “While it’s a loss for Hopkinton, I can certainly understand where Leon was coming from in wanting to move on to a better position.”

While searching for a replacement for Kenison, Flood said the board would ideally find someone who could bring longevity and stability to the position.

Kenison said he knows what he will miss about his months in Hopkinton.

“It will definitely be the people,” said Kenison. “The staff, the board and just about everyone I met have been great. I met a lot of people since last fall, and I consider it an outstanding staff. It meets the needs of the town and they’re all great people.”

Hopkinton News : resignation

Hopkinton town head resigns