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Photo (modified) of Westwood Town Hall by John Phelan from Wikimedia Commons; Inset photo of Connor Read courtesy of Connor Read.
Westwood will have a new Town Administrator on February 1, 2026, following Westwood Select Board's decision at its remotely held meeting of December 8th to approve the contract negotiated between town counsel and Select Board's choice to fill the position, Connor Read.
Currently, the Interim Town Administrator position is held by Molly Fitzpatrick, who stepped into that role from her job as Deputy Town Administrator upon the departure of Christopher Coleman.
Town Counsel Pat Ahearn did not describe specific contract terms, and Select Board members did not have any questions. The board therefore quickly and unanimously voted to approve a new employment agreement to be effective February 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029.
"I'm really excited about it. It was great working with Pat and the team," said Mr. Read. "I've been meeting with Molly [Fitzpatrick] and starting to get read up on the work that's waiting. I'm really excited to be coming on board."
Mr. Read is currently the Town Administrator for the Town of Easton, where he has held that position since 2017. Prior to becoming Easton's Town Administrator, Mr. Read served as Select Board's Citizens Business Advocate, Acting Town Clerk, and both Assistant and Acting Town Administrator.
Partly Cloudy , with a high of 35 and low of 20 degrees. Partly Cloudy for the morning, overcast during the afternoon, partly cloudy in the evening, clear overnight.
This is progress and I am glad to see the Select Board moving in the right direction. However, a majority of voters at last Monday's Special Town Meeting voted to recommend that the Select Board immediately cease its lawsuit against the Westwood Land Trust.
What is the citizen's petition about? I checked the town website, and the only information I could find on town meeting articles was from last year. The public hearing dates for 2026 are posted as February 24-25.
Apparently, you need to submit a public records request through the town's FOIA portal. What a shame, since it should have been posted to the town website upon certification of petition signatures.
Westwood Minute has obtained a copy of the petition and has added a short description of it to the article. A copy of the petition is attached below the article.