Klein resigns from board
He’s the second selectman in a year to step down
TOWNSEND » The Board of Selectmen is once again down a member after Vice Chair Don Klein resigned this week.
The longtime local resident confirmed Wednesday that he had submitted his letter of resignation to the Town Clerk’s office on Tuesday, Sept. 29, after being on the board for a year and a half. Klein was first elected to
‘I got tired of all of the back-door politicking going on and wasn’t able to get anything done on the board.’
– Former Selectman Donald Klein
the board in April 2019 and became vice chair earlier this year.
“I got tired of all of the back-door politicking going on and wasn’t able to get anything done on the board,” Klein said.
“I thought I could get some stuff done, but it turns out you’ve got less authority on the Board of Selectmen than other town boards, so hopefully someone else can come in to get things done,” the former chief said.
Klein did not want to elaborate further on the “back-door politicking,” and said he’ll be spending his time properly enjoying his retirement. Klein was the Townsend fire chief from 2007 to 2014, when he retired. He had also previously worked in the tech industry for 35 years.
Klein is the second selectman to resign in less than a year.
Last November, Sue Lisio resigned from her position as board chair before completing her third three-year term.
The town held off on having a special election to fill her seat since it was within six months of the next scheduled town election. That election, originally set for April but pushed to June due to the coronavirus pandemic, saw Veronica Kell elected to the board as the new clerk while Wayne Miller moved up the ranks to become the new board chair.
Town Administrator James Kreidler said Wednesday that the two remaining selectmen had yet to meet to determine how Klein’s seat will be filled.