Newburyport Council Unanimously Confirms Kim Turner as Permanent DPS Director

NEWBURYPORT -- April 14, 2026, Newburyport confirms its first female DPS director and approves $350,000 reservoir algae treatment. The City Council voted 8-0 Tuesday to permanently appoint Kim Turner, who has served as interim director since December, marking the first time a woman has held the post in the city's history. The council also approved a $220,000 draw from water enterprise retained earnings, combined with $130,000 in existing funds for a $350,000 total, to fund an alum treatment of the Upper and Lower Artichoke Reservoirs beginning April 27, a response to cyanobacteria blooms that cost the city $100,000 in emergency treatments last year; the original project estimate had been $600,000. In an extended floor statement, Councilor Zeeb warned that the council has steadily ceded authority over development agreements to the executive branch, saying of a prior instance, "I stood on this floor and I jumped up and down and I said, I don't think this is what we want to do," and named the forthcoming Waterfront West project as the next pressure point for that governance question.