City development director resigns, planning to relocate

LYNN – The city’s director of the Office of Economic and Community Development has resigned.Harold “Hal” McGaughey informed Mayor Edward Clancy Jr. last Friday that he intends to leave the key municipal post and relocate with his wife, Karen, to Sanford, N.C. where she has family.McGaughey, 59, of Lynn, a former salesman and manager for many years in the recycling and alternative energy business, joined the city government nearly five years ago. During much of his tenure, McGaughey focused on the continued gentrification of the downtown business district. Concrete sidewalks gave way to laid red brick. High-intensity sodium-vapor streetlights were replaced with decorative pole lamps. Signage was toned down and given a more uniform standard.”I’ll miss Lynn but I won’t miss the winters,” said McGaughey, who will remain on the job through April. “I knew it was time to make a change.”Once in North Carolina, McGaughey will work for a UK-based energy and recycling company as director of business development for North America.McGaughey replaced Stephen Harausz, the former city development director, in the fall of 2003. He formerly was finance director of the Lynn Economic Development and Industrial Corp. (EDIC). He also has held senior management positions with two Fortune 500 companies and was chief executive officer at USA CRINC, a start-up company that grew $10 million in annual sales in less than two years with operations in several states.McGaughey, who started and eventually sold USA CRINC, Inc., was born and raised in Lynn, attended local schools, graduated from Merrimack College and later earned a master’s degree in business administration from Suffolk University.”Hal will be sorely missed, both personally and professionally,” said Clancy. “He’s a class act. He graciously came in last week and told me what he was planning to do.”