West Newbury Select Board Launches Interim Town Manager Search, Moves to Interview Finalists

WEST NEWBURY — June 25, 2026 — West Newbury Select Board launches interview process for interim town manager as current manager nears July exit. The board voted unanimously Thursday to begin interviewing three to four finalists identified by consulting firm Community Paradigm from a field of 10 applicants, with all three members — Chair Barry Fogel and members Chris Doyle and Wendy Hapgood — participating in a single session targeting the week of July 7. Town Manager Angus Goldie, whose last day is at the end of July, also reported that the Massachusetts School Building Authority formally accepted the Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School project into its feasibility stage on June 24 — a "major milestone" — while cautioning that a hybrid capital allocation formula proposed by regional committee member Neil Harrington faces the steep hurdle of unanimous approval from all 11 member communities. The board separately voted to cancel its $5,400 ChargePoint EV charger contract by July 31 and operate the town's eight stations as free electric outlets, citing annual user revenue of only about $2,500 against combined warranty and cloud service fees; and endorsed five MEVA bus stop locations along Route 113, with direction to explore a sixth stop east of the town center.