WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Six months after the Williamstown Select Board found itself unable to offer the town manager job to either of two candidates, it wanted to give the job to both finalists.

 

But forced to make a choice, the board Saturday afternoon decided to offer the post to Gloucester native Robert Menicocci, who finished ahead “by a nose” in the minds of the board members.

 

In a 5-0 vote, the board authorized Chair Andy Hogeland to enter negotiations with Menicocci but also authorized Hogeland to pivot to negotiations with runner-up Alex Torpey if, for any reason, the talks with Menicocci do not bear fruit.

 

“The way I felt was that if either interview [Friday] had been the first interview and then [headhunter Mike Jaillet] said the other guy pulled out, I’d say, ‘OK, we’ll go with this guy,’ “ Hugh Daley said prior to the vote. “That’s how good these candidates were.”

 

All four of Daley’s colleagues agreed that either Menicocci or Torpey would be a good fit for the corner office at town hall.

 

“I’m not typically an on-the-fence person,” said Jane Patton, the only member not to explicitly state a preference prior to the vote. “I would like to leave it with that because I think they’re both spectacular, especially with having this [state] grant to have the HR help, which is going to make either one of them that much more full-throated and have the resources they need.

 

“I’m happy with both, unequivocally.”

 

Daley, who co-chaired the search committee with Patton, extolled the virtues of each finalist but Torpey came across as more of a visionary whereas Menicocci had more experience as a manager.

 

“We’re supposed to be the vision, and we have our operations people deliver our vision – our vision, driven by the people who elect us,” Daley said. “When I draw a distinction between [Menicocci and Torpey], they’re both extremely skilled. I feel one is a little stronger in operations and one is a little stronger on the vision side.”

 

Several members of the board commented on Menicocci’s experience in social justice work, going back to his days at the commonwealth’s Department of Transitional Assistance in the 1990s and continuing through his current post as the director of the Santa Clara County Social Services Agency in California.

 

Menicocci said his interest in that area goes back even further.

 

“When I started my education, I chose the school I chose [Brandeis] on its social justice framework,” he said during Friday afternoon’s interview. “And I’ve carried that through to all my work. It’s timely now because a lot of attention is being given to that work. And there’s more and quicker buy-in given the urgency of the work. But it’s always been out there.”

 

Menicocci talked about his efforts in Santa Clara County to partner with the Government Alliance on Race and Equity – work that likely resonated with a board representing a town that has been wrestling with equity issues for the last two years.

 

He said that the GARE framework helped to “normalize” conversations about equity, particularly racial equity, in his Northern California agency.

 

“We’re well into that work, and there has been some deep payoff on that,” Menicocci said. “They’re uncomfortable conversations, but people learn to get comfortable with the uncomfortable.”

 

Torpey also talked in the interview about his work in the area of equity, including with the South Orange Community Coalition on Race when he was mayor of the northern New Jersey township. And at Friday evening’s public reception at the Log on Spring Street, Torpey’s remarks centered on a call to actively engage a wider variety of voices in the public dialogue.

 

Jeffrey Johnson Saturday picked up on Daley’s comments about Torpey’s strength as a visionary.

 

 “At the top of Alex’s resume, it talks about him being a consultant,” Johnson said. “He may not get the [town manager] position, but It doesn’t mean I wouldn’t reach out to him [for consultation].”

 

Menicocci and Torpey were recruited by GovHR, the same consultant that helped Williamstown on its last two town manager searches, including the unsuccessful effort last fall.

 

They were selected for the final round of interviews by a search committee that stuck it out after that disappointing moment in October when neither finalist was offered the job.

 

Daley on Friday evening at the Log made a point of singling out the efforts of search committee members Andrew Art, Jose Constantine, Melissa Cragg, Dan Gura, Chris Kapiloff, Dave Moresi, Ngoni Munemo, Susan Puddester, Abby Reifsnyder and Geraldine Shen – none of whom signed up for a year-long search, Daley noted.

 

Assuming negotiations pan out with Menicocci, Williamstown will be the latest stop in a 30-year career that has brought him across the continent five times, with three positions in Massachusetts and three in California.

 

On Friday, he was candid about his reasons for wanting to get back to New England this time around.

 

 “When I went out [to California] to do this job, coming up on nine years ago, I thought that was the final step,” Menicocci said. “We sold some property here and really made the move. Almost two years ago, we lost our home in one of the wildfires. That gave us some pause.”

 

Then, he said, the COVID-19 pandemic caused him to reflect on the importance of being near family back east.

 

“It boils down to decisions we’re making along the lines of some pretty crazy stuff happening in the climate change arena and seeing that in California,” Menicocci said. “It’s a move that, to us, seems rational and sane to get out of an environment where there’s a lot of risk. One natural disaster is probably enough to go through.”