NAHANT — Town Administrator Tony Barletta has announced that, effective July 1, he will be moving on to a new position as the town administrator for Manchester-by-the-Sea.
Barletta stepped into the position in 2018.
“There’s never a really right time to step aside, but Nahant is in a very good spot… The finances are stabilized, a lot of the financial goals that we set for ourselves six or seven years ago, we’ve accomplished and are continuing to advance,” Barletta said.
“A lot of the goals have been accomplished, or are on their way toward being accomplished, and staffing-wise, the team is solid,” he said. “We have a lot of good, talented people employed by the town, we also have a lot of talented volunteers… So, I feel confident that Nahant is in a good place to keep making progress.”
Being Barletta’s hometown, he said he wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving if it wasn’t in such a good place. “If Nahant was unstable, I wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving… But I feel like it’s in a good place and can continue to make progress.
He added some of the big capital projects underway to improve elements like the sewer system, the Ward Road Pump Station, Coastal Projects, grants for the coastline, and the sale of the Coast Guard Housing lots. Barletta also included the Lowlands Stormwater improvements and the upgrades to the town’s recreational facilities as some of the biggest accomplishments in his term.
“The thing that means the most to me is the relationships that I’ve built with former and current staff, residents, and volunteers,” Barletta said. “The time spent with them on advancing a lot of the goals the town had, and working through a lot of difficult situations… the time they dedicated toward the betterment of Nahant, that’s what is my primary accomplishment.”
He said he hopes that his successor can keep the town on the path it’s currently on. “The financial goals were the foundation for being able to accomplish all these other things. So, keeping those as a priority and making sure the town is financially sound, as well as trying to maintain the character of the community,” he said.
In a small town like Nahant, Barletta said it’s important to understand what the community has been about, and what it wants to be.
“Trying to keep that small-town community culture can be difficult because of the different policies that are placed on municipalities, or the financial pressures of increasing costs and required services… It’s a delicate balance of keeping the town affordable for residents while also managing the finances of town government in a way that allows you to accomplish these very important tasks that need to be done,” Barletta said.
Board of Selectmen member Rob Tibbo commented on Barletta’s departure from the role.
“I consider this to be a tremendous loss for the town. Manchester has no idea how wonderful a person they hired… And it’s my own opinion that Tony set a very high bar for the future town administrator in Nahant.”
