Town engineer resigns
Town Engineer John Cronin
Town Engineer John Cronin resigned from his position on September 1.
No announcement came from the town, but Mr. Cronin noted his resignation in a conversation with the Reporter Thursday morning.
Mr. Cronin has served the town in the part-time position for five years, but was previously twice elected an assessor and also has served on town committees, boards and task forces through the years.
Supervisor Jim Dougherty called him “an effective day-to-day manager” and “an innovative thinker, always thinking outside the box for new ways to do the job better.”
Mr. Cronin’s resignation comes on the heels of the recent announcement by Town Attorney Laury Dowd that she would leave at the end of the year. In addition to her legal responsibilities, Ms. Dowd has been the town’s point person handling Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4) responsibilities.
With her departure will come a need to fill the MS4 position separately from the town attorney’s role and that could result in a decision to seek a full-time engineer, Mr. Dougherty said. The Town Board also has been discussing the need for more engineering assistance with consideration of grants to residents seeking funds to help with upgrading their septic systems.
“No decision has been made yet and it will be a part of our budget discussions the next few months with a target date of filling the [engineer’s] vacancy January 1,” Mr. Dougherty said.
In the interim, he said the town will use outside engineering firms that have assisted with public works projects in the past. They will be hired on an “ad hoc” basis to deal with individual projects, he said.
