PATTEN, Maine — Patten Town Manager Gail Albert abruptly resigned on Wednesday from the position she has held since February 2023, according to the town clerk.
When Albert attended a Select Board meeting on Tuesday night, no one mentioned her leaving, according to town residents who attended the meeting.
In an email to inform town leaders of Albert’s departure, Town Clerk Billie Doody said that any correspondence should be sent to Doody or Deputy Town Clerk Willow Brooks until an official decision is made about the town manager position.
Brooks on Thursday also confirmed Albert’s resignation, adding that the Select Board has not shared any details.
Neither Albert nor Select Board members were immediately available for comment on Thursday afternoon.
When Albert was hired, she broke the town’s nearly four-year span without a permanent leader at the helm.
“I really want to take in what is important to the town and the residents to see where I can make a difference and also to ensure the services the town is providing are the best that they can be for the town residents,” Albert said in a BDN interview at the time.
During her tenure, the town faced several high-profile issues, including the controversial Pickett Mountain metallic mineral mining project by Canadian mining company Wolfden Resources, which was eventually denied by the Maine Land Use Planning Commission.
Patten has also seen a townwide vote to save the historic 1845 Regular Baptist church, built by the town’s founders, from Select Board-approved demolition, as well as a recent Maine Environmental Protection Agency violation following the demolition of an asbestos-filled building.
This was Albert’s first municipal leadership role. For 15 years, she was chief of staff for the Cornea Society in Fairfax, Virginia.