Town Manager’s Position Defined By George Willett-This Day in Norwood History-June 17, 1938

George Willett In Statement

Through an open letter to the Norwood Board of Selectmen released to the press, George F. Willett, as chairman of the town committee which prepared the town charter, has stated “that it was the intention of that committee that the town manager should carry certain defined responsibilities without interference from any source whatever.” Mr. Willett has made the statement with regard to the manager’s position as a matter of public record, and Judge Clifford B. Sanborn, also a member of the original committee which drew up the charter, told a Free Press reporter after reading a copy of Mr. Willett’s letter that he might be quoted as in wholehearted agreement with it.

A third member of the committee, Judge James A. Halloran, as town counsel has submitted an opinion on certain of the manager’s duties to the selectmen which however has not been released to the press.

The question of the manager’s duties, while these instances are not cited in Mr. Willett’s letter, has come to the fore, it is understood, through two votes of the selectmen, one regarding purchases and the other regarding the hiring of a secretary for the manager’s office, end through the awarding of contracts for town purchases by the board. The board voted that purchases in excess of $500 should be submitted to the board before contracts were awarded, and that the manager should not fill the vacancy in his office with a man.

Mr. Willett’s statement which seeks to clarify the intent and meaning of the charter is printed below:

June 14, 1938 Board of Selectmen,

Norwood, Mass.

Gentlemen:

It has come to my notice that the Board of Selectmen have relieved the Town Manager of certain duties which up to now under the charter have been considered his sole responsibility. As chairman of the town committee which prepared the charter, I wish to make it a matter of public record that it was the intention of that committee, that the town manager should curry certain defined responsibilities without interference from any source whatever.

These duties are specifically enumerated in the charter and they include those which, I understand, have been taken from him. The only deviation from this rule, and which makes it all the more emphatic, is the case of the police department in whose conduct it was considered that there were matters of public policy in which only the Board of Selectmen would be justified in making decisions. It was thought unwise to put this discretion upon the shoulders of one man and so it was specifically stated that in this particular instance, the town manager should, consult with the Board.

In all other matters, however, there was no such provision because one of the main objects of the charter was to do away with interference by individual members of the Board of Selectmen with duties which, if properly carried on, require an expert knowledge and experience which the members of the Board are not likely to have. It is to have the benefit of such experience, free from political influence, that we have a business manager to whom we pay a substantial salary.

If the provisions of the charter are to be set aside and we are to revert to the inefficient methods of government which the new charter superseded, it should only be after a most thorough and exhaustive discussion by our citizens, and I hope that before this matter is allowed to go any further that means will be taken to bring about such a discussion In open town meeting.

Very truly yours,

GEORGE F. WILLETT.

(All articles were originally published in the Norwood Messenger unless otherwise noted)