State board rules out 2 Marblehead selectmen for administrator vote

MARBLEHEAD ? Only three of the five members of the Board of Selectmen will choose the next town administrator ? and two of them will be on the search committee.Selectmen Harry Christensen and Bret Murray left the room Wednesday as board members prepared to discuss the search process, “reluctantly” as Christensen put it.Both men said they had heard that the State Ethics Commission has ruled that they cannot participate in the search process for town administrator because they both have relatives who work for the town. They are waiting for written opinions from the commission, opinions they requested in August.?I?m disappointed and frustrated,” Christensen said, “but this is not going to hamper me from advising my colleagues on this process when I can.”The deadline for applications is Friday. A consulting firm, Municipal Resources Inc. of Meredith, N.H., will assist the screening committee in sifting through the applicants at a cost of $9,800.Town Administrator Tony Sasso is scheduled to retire next year. Christensen returned to the board this year as the only candidate who served on the search committee that recommended Sasso for the job 17 years ago, in hopes of sharing his experience.On a recommendation by Selectman James Nye the three remaining selectmen approved Selectmen Chairman Jackie Belf-Becker and Selectman Judy Jacobi to serve on the three-member search committee. The third member will be Town Counsel Lisa Mead, who will serve as a volunteer without payment. The search committee will hold initial interviews in executive session, so that semi-finalists will not risk their current employment. They will recommend finalists to the board.?We want to get moving on this,” Jacobi said.