Vice chairman of Saugus board blasts town manager

SAUGUS – Selectmen Vice Chairman Steve Castinetti didn?t pull any punches in an interview about Town Manager Scott Crabtree on Wednesday.A day after a vote to renew Crabtree?s contract failed, Castinetti said the manager is “not doing the job,” and accused him of “intimidating” and “threatening” people.?He lets you know of the positive things that are going on,” said Castinetti. “In the meantime, the morale of the entire town is coming apart at the seams. One year ago, when he was appointed, there was a sigh of relief when the former Town Manager left Town Hall.”Castinetti said since then, “word around Town Hall” is employees would take the former town manager back over Crabtree. The former manager, Andrew Bisignani, is now town manager in Nahant.?They?re walking on eggshells,” he said. “They?re so afraid. His open-door policy he touted when he was running? Try to get in and see him. He doesn?t return phone calls. That?s coming from employees and key personnel in the town.”While Tuesday night?s vote failed to net the four votes needed to extend Crabtree?s contract, the board in turn voted 3-2 to have Town Counsel John Vasapolli draft an article for Town Meeting to drop the required number of votes to three. Selectmen Chairman Michael Serino and selectmen Debra Panetta and Stephen Horlick voted in favor of that motion, with Castinetti and selectman Julie Mitchell voting against.?I think the three of them and the manager will get together to figure out the next move, and try and figure out some way around this,” said Castinetti. “As of last night, his job ends next year. His extension was defeated and we should be looking for a new Town Manager.”Crabtree could not be reached Wednesday. Mitchell could not be reached despite multiple calls.Serino said Crabtree has been doing “great things” for the town and noted he never agreed with the four-vote requirement anyway.?What else do we do?” asked Serino. “Selectmen Castinetti and Mitchell said they don?t support him and never said why. Do we start over when the majority of the board supports him?”Castinetti said he regrets voting to appoint Crabtree last year.?I said from day one, ?He was not qualified,?” he said. “I was extremely disgusted in this board in the way they chose people to look at. If I had to do it over again, Scott Crabtree would not be the town manager. We had so many educated, qualified people for this job that would have blown his socks off.And the majority of this board didn?t want to put anybody up that would support Crabtree.”Castinetti also accused Crabtree of “ruining the relationship” with the state delegation and letting other town issues “fall through the cracks.”?We?ve had vacant positions in town for months and months and months ?” said Castinetti. “He has no management experience. He doesn?t have the education or the experience to manage a municipality like Saugus.”Castinetti acknowledged that town finances “seem to be improving,” but said he thought Crabtree was “inflating the financial position of this town by saying we had a $2 million deficit left by the former town manager.”?We?re a year later with a guy with no municipal experience, all of a sudden we turned the town around?” asked Castinetti. “Suddenly we have money to give employees a raise, soundproof his office, install flat screens? We don?t need an override, a trash fee ? if that doesn?t stink of him over-inflating the fiscal position in town. We didn?t all of a sudden have a windfall of money.”Horlick, however, said Crabtree has worked to “restore the budget” and bring additional money to different town departments all without “a million-dollar trash fee ? or an override.”?When he started April 1, for the first six months he had to deal with the finances of the town and the (Department of Revenue), and that?s been straightened out so much so that the DOR sent a letter saying the town is in better financial shape than it has been in for years,” said Horlick. “We?re not burdening the taxpayers w