Plympton Select Board interviews four town administrator finalists, defers decision to Tuesday

PLYMPTON — July 9, 2026 — Plympton Select Board publicly interviewed four town administrator finalists Thursday night, deferring its hiring decision to a Tuesday session. Chairman Nathaniel Sides and members Dana Smith and Dan Cadigan questioned Christine DeMarinville, Taunton's treasurer-collector; Robert Fennessy, the town's current interim administrator; Heather Hamilton, a former Brookline Select Board chair; and Sydney Viveros, assistant town accountant in Lakeville, over roughly three hours beginning at 6:30 p.m. Financial strain dominated every exchange: the board acknowledged using approximately $800,000 from stabilization funds to close the most recent budget and told each candidate the reserve cannot be tapped again. DeMarinville cited Taunton's fourth-place ranking in the Commonwealth for investment earnings in FY25, generating $12.2 million; Fennessy proposed re-registering Cisco's fleet vehicles in Plympton to recapture excise tax revenue; Hamilton pointed to $30 million in grant awards she helped secure at an engineering firm; and Viveros handed the board documentation showing $92,179 in unclaimed state winter-aid recovery funding. The board will reconvene Tuesday at 1 p.m. to deliberate and make a job offer.