Buxton’s public works director, Lary Owen, has quit, the latest in a long line of resignations at Town Hall.
Owen’s resignation letter, dated Dec. 19 and addressed to Jean Harmon, chairwoman of the selectmen board, gave no reason, and he declined to comment this week other than to say he personally told his public works crew about his resignation.
A colleague, however, says Owen got “a raw deal.”
Andy Townsend, a captain in the Buxton Fire Department, said Monday Owen treated his crew to breakfast in Hollis following a recent storm. Townsend said the restaurant is about two miles across the Saco River, which divides the two towns.
Townsend said Owen received a letter from selectmen about the incident.
Harmon said Tuesday selectmen received complaints from a “couple of people,” wanting to know what a town truck was doing in Hollis at a restaurant. The five selectmen signed and placed a letter, which Harmon called a memo, in Owen’s mailbox in Town Hall about leaving Buxton with a town truck. Selectman Bob Libby said the board didn’t want him to take town trucks to another town during working hours.
Townsend also said Owen didn’t have a say about design changes of the new town public works garage. Townsend said Owen considered the selectmen’s letter the “final straw,” which led to Owen’s resignation.
“He got a raw deal,” Townsend said.
Libby said Owen was on vacation and would not be back in the office.
“I’m really sick about it (the resignation). He did a great job for us,” Libby said.
Harmon said Owen had done “wonders” for Buxton in improving town roads.
“We’ve lost a good employee,” Harmon said.
Harmon said selectmen appointed Owen to fill a vacancy when Sharon Elwell retired as Buxton’s road commissioner a few years ago.
According to Libby, Owen was not on salary, and earned about $21 per hour.
Buxton Public Works Department has five full-time employees besides the director. Libby said public works foreman Tom Kennie is now in charge.
Owen became the first public works director for the town when voters in a June 2005 referendum approved changing the town’s charter to replace the former highway department with a public works department. The previous road commissioner post was elected, but selectmen hire the public works director.
Owen said he’s a licensed plumber and has returned to that profession. He began plowing snow for Buxton as a part-time employee in 1990. Then, he plowed for the town on a contract basis in a business partnership with Townsend.
Townsend described Owen as a competent employee who got along well with others and worked well with public safety during emergencies.
“Lary was part of a team,” Townsend said.
Buxton has been plagued this past year with a rash of resignations. Last month, selectmen, in a 3-2 vote, hired Officer Mike Grovo as police chief, replacing Jody Thomas. Thomas resigned in July after 16 years as police chief. Then, Cpl. Kim Emery resigned, but later returned to the police department. Other resignations in the police ranks left the department shorthanded.
The former director of Buxton Recreation Department, Chris Barstow, also resigned last year amid accounting problems in that department, which remain under investigation. In the fire department, Bruce Mullen is the third fire chief since Jeff Grinnell resigned in July of 2006.
Selectman Dan Collomy said Tuesday that Owen had two weeks from submitting his letter to withdraw his resignation. “We’ve been through that once before,” Collomy said.
The town is advertising for a replacement, with applications due Thursday, Jan. 15. A current public works employee, Keith Emery, who serves on the town’s Planning Board, said he is interested,
“I’m going after the position,” he said Monday.
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