Groveland board OKs interim fire chief job posting

Select Board · Meeting of August 3, 2026

Groveland advances interim fire chief search after both deputies decline. The Select Board voted unanimously to post an interim fire chief job, with an initial three-month term, after Deputy Chiefs Rich York and Daniel Briscoe said work, school and family commitments kept them from taking the role following the fire chief's mid-July absence. In a separate item, the board reviewed a Groveland Conservation Commission document on VZ Memorial Park responsibilities, including a roughly $25,000 annual insurance bill split 50-50 since a 2015 claim drove off the town's prior carrier.

Commission Chair Mike Dempsey said "the commission doesn't agree" with a legal opinion that two park consultants should be reclassified as town employees, and the board sent the dispute to a joint session with town counsel, naming Vice Chair Steven Baker as its representative. Earlier, Newburyport Affordable Housing Trust Co-chair Andrew Shapiro described a $450,000 trust contribution toward 29 affordable senior units as Groveland weighs its own housing trust bylaw.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 3,993 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of August 3, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.