The Hampden Town Council unanimously accepted the resignation of Town Manager Jim Chandler on Monday night and agreed to appoint Town Clerk Paula Scott as his interim replacement.
Chandler did not attend the meeting and has not responded to requests for comment.
The council spoke for about an hour in a closed-door executive session before returning to public session and voting on the resignation.
Its members made no public comments explaining what led Chandler to offer his resignation after just a year on the job.
Chandler started working for Hampden in June 2018 after serving as Dexter’s town manager beginning in September 2017. He has also served as Caribou’s assistant city manager and held several other county and municipal government jobs in his native state of Virginia.
[Hampden town manager due to offer his resignation Monday]
After the meeting Monday night, Mayor Ivan McPike, who chairs the council, declined to say why Chandler resigned, citing the confidentiality of personnel matters.
However, Councilor Shelby Wright did say before the vote, “I want to publicly thank Jim Chandler for his efforts on behalf of the town of Hampden.” She also praised “his leadership and guidance” in putting together the town budget that went into effect Monday.
The council accepted both Chandler’s resignation and his resignation agreement. The terms of that agreement were not immediately available.
Scott will now serve as Hampden’s interim town manager and treasurer — a position that Chandler also served.
McPike said the town does not have a timeline to permanently fill the position and will not immediately conduct a search for candidates.