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05/23/2024 11:26 AMThe search for a new town manager is down to two, and residents were invited to meet them at a forum hosted by the Town Council on May 16.
At the event the council introduced the two finalists, Michelle Benivegna of East Haven and Ryan Curley of Portland. Both candidates sat for follow-up interviews with the Town Council on May 22.
Benivegna is currently the director of economic development and director of administration and management in East Haven. Previously, she served as the town's director of human resources and assistant director of administration and management. According to a resume handed out at the event, Benivegna also has a background in fiscal management from her time as an employee at Morgan Stanley.
Curley is in his second term as the First Selectman of Portland. Before serving as the first selectman, he was twice elected as the Portland town clerk and twice elected to the Portland Board of Selectmen. According to his resume, Curley worked as a regional accountant for LAZ Parking in addition to his municipal work.
Benivegna unsuccessfully ran as a Democrat in the 2019 East Haven Town Council race, while Curley is listed as a Republican on the Portland town website. Clinton Town Council Chairperson Carrie Allen said that whoever accepts the position will need to leave behind their party connections.
“Neither of our candidates has been a town manager before, and Ryan’s current position necessitates a political affiliation, but any political leaning would have to be left at the door for either of them if they were to accept this position. Typically, town managers are registered as unaffiliated, and they should bring no political agenda with them,” Allen said.
The two hour meet-and–greet was attended by about 50 people at its peak with a mix of town employees, citizens, and town officials on hand. Attendees were able to introduce themselves to the candidates and ask them questions.
“We’re happy this happened; we wanted to do this. We got good turnout, and we wanted citizens to be a part of this,” Allen said. “While it’s the council that will be making the ultimate choice, it’s important to give the candidates a chance to hear what the people think is important so it’s not just them hearing from us. We want the people to be heard, too.”
The Next Steps
Allen said the next step is for the Town Council to interview each finalist in person again. Allen said those interviews took place on May 22. After that, Allen said the council will discuss the interviews and then come to a decision sometime after that.
“We will give ourselves some time to come to a consensus, and we expect to make the announcement in the week to follow,” Allen said. The Town Charter states that a town manager can only be hired or fired with the approval of at least five out of seven of the Town Council members.
The Town Manager
After former Town Manager Karl Kilduff announced at the end of 2023 that he would be leaving Clinton in February 2024 the Town Council has been working on filling the vacancy as fast possible.
Whoever is chosen to replace Kilduff will be charged with running the day-to-day operations of the town as its chief executive.
According to a job description posed earlier this year “The town manager supervises most of the town departments and their functions and programs and services. The town manager shall see that all policies set by the Town Council, along with the laws and ordinances governing the town, are faithfully executed. He or she will prepare the Town budget for the Town Council’s approval, prepare an annual report, and provide advice to the Town Council on municipal projects and the financial condition of the Town. The town manager serves as the personnel director/human resources director for the Town.”
A town manager is not an elected position; rather, they are hired by the Town Council, which directs the manager in policy matters.
In 2018, Clinton voters overwhelmingly approved changes to the town charter that removed the First Selectmen/Board of Selectmen style of government and replaced it with the Town Manager/Town Council form of government.
In January 2020, Kilduff was hired to be Clinton’s first-ever town manager. Kilduff’s last day in Clinton was Feb. 19. Since then, the town has been led by Interim Town Manager Richard Brown. Brown announced when he took the interim job that he would not be considered for the full-time manager position.
To assist with the Town Manager search, the council hired the search firm Randi Frank Consulting LLC in January. A press release from the town stated that the firm had received 22 applications for the town manager position which were screened for qualifications. Ten applicants were asked to complete a further questionnaire, and six candidates were chosen for screening interviews that were recorded via Zoom.
According to the release, the council met in an executive session on April 17 to discuss the screening interviews and select candidates for the first in-person interviews.
Following in-person interviews with the council members and department heads in early May, the council invited Curley and Benivenga to the second round of interviews.