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Interim Town Manager Talks First Order of Business

As of Feb. 19, Clinton is being led by an interim Town Manager, Richard Brown, while the town looks to hire a full-time replacement for former Town Manager Karl Kilduff.

Kilduff, the town’s first-ever town manager, announced his resignation at the end of December 2023. His resignation became effective on Feb. 19. To ensure that town operations could continue as smoothly as possible until a full-time town manager is found, the Town Council unanimously voted on Jan. 17 to appoint Brown as the interim town manager.

Reached for comment on Feb. 21, Brown said that at press time, he had met with department heads and most Town Council members.

“The first order of business is to familiarize myself with the important issues going on in the community and meeting the town staff,” Brown said.

He pointed to the ongoing town budget process as an issue that he would be working on immediately, as well as filling vacancies in the town, such as the finance director and human services director positions.

When it comes to the search for a full-time manager, Brown says that would be handled more by the search firm, but he would be available as a resource if people had specific questions on operations.

“My goal is to make the transition from Karl, to me, to the next fulltime manager as seamless as possible,” Brown said.

In recognition of the large change finding a new town manager is to Clinton, Brown said that he would work to make sure there isn’t a drop-off in service level.

“Karl was doing a phenomenal job with good governance, and people were comfortable with his style. The staff and people in the community should know we will still remain committed to continuing that excellent service,” Brown said.

Brown has over 45 years of experience in local movement service, including serving as a town administrator in New London.

Town Council Chairperson Carrie Allen said Brown will work 21 hours in Clinton and seven hours virtually. He will be paid $140 an hour, according to Allen. Brown is a member of hired Randi Frank Consulting LLC, a search firm the town has contracted with to help find the next full-time manager. The town is paying $15,000 for the consultant service, though it could end up being higher due to travel costs, advertising, and background checks.

“He will serve on the inside as Randi Frank serves us on the outside, searching for our next town manager. We find it effective that Richard will learn first-hand as to Clinton’s requirements of a town manager and can relate that info to Randi Frank in her search,” Allen said last month.