Orono’s Town Council unanimously approved the town manager’s departure during a special meeting Thursday night.
Sophie Wilson’s departure, which is how the agenda and councilors phrased her exit, will cost Orono about $95,000. The town will use funds from its approved fiscal year 2024 budget to pay $89,856 to Wilson and $5,000 to Bangor law firm Eaton Peabody.
Wilson will stay on as town manager until Dec. 2, according to a transition plan approved Thursday. Six of seven councilors were present for the meeting.
Orono hired Wilson in 2011 after its former town manager of six years, Catherine Conlow, resigned to take a position in Bangor. Wilson was town manager in the Piscataquis County town of Brownville previously.
Wilson’s exit is the latest in a string of departures among municipal staff, including the retirement of longtime executive assistant Nancy Ward. The council will be responsible for finding an interim town manager and hiring someone to permanently fill the role, and it will be drafting a plan to move forward, Chairperson Geoff Wingard said.
Other recent departures include Assistant Town Manager Belle Ryder, who worked for the town for 11 years, and Kyle Drexler, who was the town planner for five years.
“Sophie has been a great communicator with the council,” said Wingard, who declined to say whether she resigned or was fired. “In the course of that communication, we realized that a transition was in order.”
Wingard thanked Wilson for her 12 years of service on behalf of the council. He personally appreciated her “encyclopedic knowledge of municipal affairs,” and he looked to her as a guide, he said.
It was Wilson’s pleasure to serve Orono, support the council’s governance process and lead a team that provides top-notch services to the community, she said. She worked with four town council chairpeople and many councilors to implement the vision and priorities of the elected body, she said.
Wilson praised municipal staff and volunteers, whose active participation allowed the town to build a pleasant, productive and professional work environment, she said.
“Orono was able to provide expansive services with limited personnel as a direct result of the quality and dedication of its staff,” she said. “Managing and leading this team has been an incredible honor for which I am deeply grateful.”
On Feb. 13, councilors approved a two-year extension to Wilson’s contract, which lasts from July 1, 2019, to June 30, 2026, according to meeting minutes. Five councilors voted in favor, while councilors Sonja Birthisel and Rob Laraway abstained.
Since then, three new people have joined the council, including Daniel Demeritt, Sarah Marx and Matthew Powers.
Nine people spoke during the public comment portion of Thursday’s meeting. Most praised and wished Wilson and the council well. A few people urged councilors to involve employees and the public in its search for a new town manager, arguing it is the most important decision they will make during their tenure.
Former councilor Cheryl Robertson, who resigned earlier this year, said it was an honor to serve under Wilson’s guidance. Wilson’s staff loved her and there was little turnover, she said. Robertson is “sorry for what has happened in the last six months,” she said.
“The offices that I visited were consistent in expressing their job satisfaction,” she said. “They didn’t want to leave. It’s almost dismal what has happened.”
A resident of 13 years asked about a former town employee’s experience and two major settlements of discrimination complaints, but Wingard asked him to stop because public comment must be related to items on the agenda. Residents are welcome to speak with councilors anytime, he said, but he refused to vet any current or former employee’s performance in public.
Former councilor Geoff Gorden is confused about the direction the council has taken over the last year or so, he said. He referred to recent staff departures as an “exodus.”
If the town is no longer going to subscribe to the tenets of the council-manager model of government, the public needs to know what will be the replacement, he said.
Orono was lucky to have Wilson leading the town because she was highly regarded and possibly the best manager in the state, said Meghan Gardner, who is also a former councilor.
“It’s a big loss for the town,” she said. “We are paying out almost $95,000 in this transaction, and that’s a lot of money to the taxpayers. It’s worth considering what direction this council is going in.”