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Personnel committee recommends three appointments; fire chief nominee warns of west‑side response gaps
Summary
The Personnel Committee interviewed and recommended three appointments — Pamela McNair and Karen to the Commission on Disabilities and Dr. Karen Patty to the Board of Health — and reviewed a five‑year fire chief contract for Jeffrey Goen, who cited rising call volume and west‑side response‑time shortfalls.
The Marlborough Personnel Committee on March 2 recommended multiple volunteer appointments to the full city council and advanced a five‑year employment contract and job description for Jeffrey Goen to serve as fire chief.
Pamela McNair and a candidate identified as Karen were each interviewed for the Commission on Disabilities. Members praised both candidates' volunteer work: Councilors noted McNair's role in quarterly food drives and Special Olympics, and discussed accessibility concerns raised by Karen about her residence. Both appointments were moved, seconded and approved by the committee; they will be forwarded to the full council for confirmation.
The committee also interviewed Dr. Karen Patty for the Board of Health. Dr. Patty, a veterinarian who said she served 11 years on the state board of veterinary medicine, told members that her work connects animal health and public health. Councilors highlighted her local public‑health involvement and philanthropic work and voted to recommend her appointment to the full council.
The lengthiest discussion focused on Jeffrey Goen, the mayor's nominee for fire chief and the committee's candidate for a five‑year employment contract. The mayor's letter, read into the record, praised Goen's more than two decades of fire‑service experience and recommended approval of his contract and job description.
Goen described pressing operational issues. "It was over 9,200 calls this year," he told the committee when asked about workload. He said the department had created a new district west of Route 495 and that data show response‑time shortfalls: "we're only making it to a call within... less than four minutes" in a minority of west‑side calls, a figure the committee summarized as roughly 33% in compliance with the four‑minute standard. He said short‑term priorities include officer development and succession planning, and that a Westside Fire Station and staffing changes should be part of longer‑term planning.
Committee members pressed Goen on overtime, station capacity at Station 2 and whether the department had explored operating its own ambulance service; Goen said Patriot and Star currently provide ambulance coverage and that running an ambulance service would be a large undertaking to consider in the future. The committee moved to approve the contract, job description and appointment and will present them to the full council at its next meeting for final confirmation.
