SWAMPSCOTT – The Select Board voted to appoint Nicholas Connors to the position of Town Administrator after the Board could not reach an agreement with the initial top candidate, Jason Silva, during negotiations.
Connors’ first day in the position is slated for Oct. 6.
Previously, Connors served as the Assistant Town Administrator for the Town of Milton, a position he’s held since May 2024. Some of his key highlights from the time in that role include the following:
- Conducting financial analysis, reporting, and presentations for the Town Administrator, Select Board, and Department Heads;
- Representing Milton on capital project Owner/Architect/Contractor (OAC) teams for school and fire station building projects; and
- Collaborating on workplace investigations, labor relations, and grievance resolution across municipal departments.
Prior to serving in Milton, Connors also worked as the Principal for Breakwater Public Affairs, as well as the Deputy Commissioner for Public Affairs, Policy and Administration for the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR).
Vice Chair Doug Thompson spoke briefly and gave a breakdown of the development.
“The last public was aware, we took a vote to move forward with two candidates (Jason Silva and Nicholas Connors); we went into executive session and proceeded through negotiations. … We were not able to come to an agreement, so we happily moved along to our second candidate and began conversation with Mr. Connors.
“We came to an agreement through those discussions, and tonight we’re here to approve a contract with Nick Connors as our next Town Administrator,” Thompson said.
Chair Katie Phelan noted that the Town Administrator Screening Committee brought forward three great candidates and commended its work throughout the hiring process.
“I’m very proud of the Board and the way that it came together to understand the benefits of each candidate,” Phelan said. “Doug (Thompson) and I were on the negotiation team that was nominated by the Board to have conversations with each candidate. … We took that task very seriously, and if we came to an impediment, we came to the Board and had another discussion.”
Board member MaryEllen Fletcher reiterated that “nothing was done behind closed doors.”
“We had public meetings. There was an extensive process. We had three great candidates. We made a very clear plan, and Katie (Phelan) and Doug (Thompson) had their marching orders on how to advance. … We just followed through on that,” Fletcher said.
Fletcher noted that the Board was not even in a position to be able to publish a press release on the matter “because we didn’t have a public meeting to have that discussion.”
The Board then voted unanimously to support the Town Administrator’s contract, followed by a vote to officially appoint Connors to the position.
“I am excited and happy to be here tonight. I’m excited to join the team and begin executing the policies, priorities, and objectives you all have,” Connors said. “I look forward to working with everyone.”
