Saugus board appoints acting town manager

SAUGUS – In less than 30 minutes, the Board of Selectmen voted 4-1 on Thursday to tap Michael Murphy, chairman of the Board of Assessors, as the acting town manager in the wake of its vote to suspend then-sitting Town Manager Scott Crabtree.Chairman Ellen Faiella said she would inform Murphy of the board’s decision following the meeting and that his new position will take effect this morning.”The acting town manager serves until the issues we are dealing with are resolved,” she said.In accordance with the town charter, Murphy will only be authorized to act on matters that require immediate attention and make temporary employment decisions under emergency circumstances.Although the meeting was intended to be held in the Town Hall’s first floor conference room, it quickly became clear to the board that the meeting would need to be moved upstairs to the auditorium as residents flooded in by the dozens.Faiella reminded them to show respect for the board as the vexed environment of Town Hall three nights earlier would not be permitted.”There will not be a repeat of Monday night,” she warned.Selectman Debra Panetta explained that she could not vote in Murphy’s favor as “the process was flawed.””The public nor myself had any idea that a vote was going to take place – not like that,” she said referring to Monday’s meeting.Vice Chairman Maureen Dever told Panetta that the results of the prior meeting were not listed on the current agenda and were, therefore, not open for discussion.Before and after the meeting, Town Meeting member Al DiNardo of Precinct 4 walked back and forth in front of Town Hall carrying a megaphone.”We will continue, and we will overcome,” he said in an amplified voice. “Saugus needs Scott.”Referring to the board, DiNardo announced, “They will hear from us pretty soon like President Bush said after 9/11.”Fellow Town Meeting member Peter Manoogian of Precinct 10 said that while he respected Murphy, he is not qualified to fill Crabtree’s position as he is not “an officer designated in the charter.””This is the biggest and grossest misconduct of process,” said resident Shelly Ferraro following the meeting. “These are all the leftover Bisignanis.”Ferraro added that she and fellow residents are aggressively pushing for Crabtree to return to Town Hall.”We’re trying very hard to get him back in there,” she said.Including Crabtree, 36 town managers have served Saugus for an average of 1.8 years since the council-manager form of government was adopted in 1948, according to media archives. Twenty managers were hired on an interim basis and five of them were brought on permanently by the town.Former Town Manager Andrew Bisignani held the position the longest at nine years. However, 12 managers stepped down after less than a year.