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Leominster council rejects mayor's planning-board nomination after months-long holdover dispute
Summary
After lengthy debate over long-term holdovers, the Leominster City Council voted 5–3 to deny Mayor Dean J. Maserella's nomination of John J. Souza to a new five-year term on the Planning Board, citing concerns about responsiveness, remote participation and the need for an orderly replacement process.
The Leominster City Council on Feb. 25 voted 5–3 to deny Mayor Dean J. Maserella's nomination of John J. Souza to a five-year term on the Planning Board, ending an extended debate about the use of holdover appointments and expectations for board leadership.
Council members supporting denial and the chair of the Ways & Means Committee said they received numerous constituent complaints and that Souza, who has served for decades, had not responded to requests for an in-person interview or for answers to council questions. "I'm not going to support the reappoint," said one councilor, arguing that the city needs a planning-board chair who is present and accountable to the council.
Supporters of Souza, who have cited his long record of service and technical knowledge of zoning, urged caution and an orderly transition if the council chose to remove him now. "He has done a lot of work for the city," another councilor said, adding that an abrupt removal could disrupt ongoing Planning Board business.
The council heard legal briefings before the vote about the charter and state case law on holdovers. City solicitor Attorney Riley explained that holdover doctrine permits officials to continue serving after a term expires until a qualified replacement is appointed, but advised that long-term holdovers were not the intended use of the doctrine and encouraged the mayor to rectify extended vacancies.
On the floor, members debated whether the mayor's withdrawal of the nomination and Souza's written resignation effective June 30, 2026, should lead to an immediate denial or leave Souza as a holdover for a short transition. Ultimately, the council recorded a 5–3 majority vote to deny confirmation. The transcript records the tally as five in favor of denial and three opposed; individual roll-call vote allocations were not specified in the public transcript.
The council chair said the action was aimed at addressing system-wide concerns about extended temporary appointments and ensuring more accountable board membership going forward. The mayor may submit a new nominee; the council has 30 days under charter rules before an introduced appointment becomes effective by default.
Next steps: Council members said they will ask the mayor's office to identify potential replacements and discuss procedural changes to avoid prolonged holdovers. The council did not appoint a successor at the meeting.
