Chapdelaine calls Fall River conversation informal, says he's staying

Details: By Bob Sprague; Parent Category: News; Category: Town Hall; 14 December 2021; Hits: 363

Adam W. Chapdelaine, 2020
Chapdelaine

UPDATED Dec. 16: Town Manager Adam W. Chapdelaine, negotiating his next contract with the Select Board, says he is "committed to Arlington" and has no plans to leave.

YourArlington asked about the issue after the Herald News of Fall River reported Dec. 11 that Mayor Paul Coogan "verified that he’s been in talks with former city administrator, Adam Chapdelaine, who is now the town administrator in the Town of Arlington to possibly return to the position."

That may be Coogan's aim, but Chapdelaine says it is not his.

"The mayor and I started a conversation about ARPA spending that led to a conversation about the vacant city administrator position," Chapdelaine wrote Dec. 13. "While I’m flattered by the consideration, I’m committed to Arlington and have no plans to leave."

'No formality'

Asked when the conversation occurred and whether it involved a job offer, Chapdelaine wrote that he and Coogan "spoke over the last few weeks. There was no formality to it, just a conversation."

Asked about a target date for the Select Board to conclude negotiations with you for a new contract, he deferred to board Chairman Steve DeCourcey, who has been asked to address that question.

DeCourcey has not responded, but the Dec. 20 Select Board agenda includes this item: "Vote: Ratify Town Manager Contract, if appropriate, Stephen W. DeCourcey, Chair"

Before coming to Arlington, in 2010, he served as city administrator under former Mayor Robert Correia and as the Fall River Board of Elections chairman.

Last June, Chapdelaine decided to remain as Arlington's town manager, turning down an offer in Natick -- the third time he has bypassed a position elsewhere since he got the top Arlington job in 2012.

Previous possible positions were in North Attleborough in 2019 and an unnamed Vermont town in 2016. The then-Board of Selectmen fought to keep him, providing a new contract with a $28,000 raise and contract through 2019. The Board of Selectmen agreed Feb. 10, 2016, to pay the manager $200,000 annually starting the next day.