Pepperell Selectmen Hire New Town Administrator at $103,500 Annual Salary

PEPPERELL — November 3, 2014 — Pepperell selectmen hire a new town administrator and set a uniform property tax rate for fiscal 2015. The Board of Selectmen on November 3 unanimously approved a three-year contract with Mark Andrews of Bradford, Massachusetts, as town administrator at a salary of $103,500 annually, effective December 1, 2014, through November 30, 2017, following a search that drew nearly 30 applicants. The board also unanimously appointed Margaret M. Mazzola, assistant to the town administrator, as acting town administrator through February 1, 2015, filling the gap left by the retirement of John Moak. At a tax classification public hearing, Assistant Assessor Maureen Bolger reported assessed values rose 2.4 percent this year, with the estimated fiscal 2015 tax rate at $15.97 per thousand — up from new growth of $124,000 and debt exclusions totaling 46 cents — and the board declined all optional classification adjustments, voting to maintain a single uniform tax rate with an estimated average single-family tax bill of $4,449.