ORANGE — Chairman Richard Sheridan has resigned from the Selectboard.
He announced his resignation at the beginning of the Selectboard meeting Wednesday night, after a lengthy, closed executive session with his four colleagues.
In his final act as chairman, Sheridan, 72, asked those in attendance to stand, face the flag and say the Pledge of Allegiance. He then, without much explanation, broke the news.
“I have to make an announcement that I really regret having to make, and I don’t want to get into any parameters as to how I came about that,” Sheridan said. “I am resigning my position as chair and I am resigning my position on the board, effective immediately.”
Sheridan turned authority over to Vice Chairman Ryan Mailloux, who said he did not expect the resignation. Before leaving his seat and the building, Sheridan thanked those residents who voted for him. His term would have expired in 2019.
“It’s been a pleasure doing this job, but I don’t feel I can be effective any longer,” Sheridan said.
“If I can’t represent you right, I shouldn’t be sitting here,” he added.
Sheridan has lived in Orange for 47 years, holding several positions in the municipal government. This was his fourth term as a member of the Selectboard, having been elected in 2016 — he previously served three consecutive terms, but chose not to run for reelection in 2013.
Sheridan ran unsuccessfully for a spot on the Selectboard several times in the 1970s and ’80s, and joined the disability access committee in the ’90s and served on the Planning Board for 16 years.
Sheridan’s departure comes after a tumultuous couple of months for the Selectboard. Controversy arose on March 21, when the finalists for the open town administrator position were presented to the Selectboard.
Previous Town Administrator Diana M. Schindler took a three-month leave of absence and later resigned on Aug. 11, 2017. Over the past year, Treasurer Gabriel Voelker served as acting town administrator.
The Selectboard delegated the responsibility of screening 22 applicants to the position to a Town Administrator Search Committee, chaired by Police Chief Craig Lundgren.
When Lundgren gave the five members of the Selectboard the three resumes of the chosen finalists, Voelker was absent among the three.
Voelker’s exclusion from the group of finalists led to an uproar, and Mailloux called it a “slap in the face” not to pick Voelker. He also told Lundgren that “integrity could not have been used” during the selection process, prompting members of the Search Committee to publicly lambast Mailloux in the following meeting.
Mailloux said Voelker had proved her dedication and ability, whereas the other candidates had not, and made Orange “a significantly greater place.”
Selectboard member Jane Peirce suggested Voelker be interviewed as a common courtesy, given the amount of time she has dedicated to the position.
Sheridan, however, called the State Ethics Commission to open investigations against Mailloux and Peirce, alleging they has shown favoritism.
During this time, one of the three finalists withdrew her candidacy for the position.
The storm seemed to subside after several, relatively speaking, calm meetings, during which Selectboard members decided they would interview four candidates for the position.
They asked the Search Committee to select two more names from their ranked list of applicants, and Voelker was one of them.
Last week, the Selectboard interviewed all four finalists, grading them with a point system. At the end of the meeting, the Selectboard members revealed whom they graded highest.
Peirce and Mailloux chose Voelker, James Cornwell and Tom Smith also chose Voelker, but Sheridan chose a different candidate, Clinton resident Kerrie Carnes Salwa, economic development director in Leominster.
The Selectboard has yet to negotiate with Voelker, but its members have voted to formally offer Voelker the town administrator position.
The Selectboard will discuss how it wishes to go forward now that it is a four-person entity.