MONTAGUE — Friends and former colleagues of longtime Montague municipal administrator Francis “Frank” Abbondanzio remember him as a devoted member of the community who had a large part in shaping the town into what it is today.
Abbondanzio died Wednesday at age 70, leaving behind a legacy as the longest-lasting municipal administrator in Franklin County, if not western Massachusetts.
In the 1980s, the Air Force veteran became the first administrative and planning professional in the then-struggling town. He played many roles and wore many hats over the decades that followed: part-time planner and administrative assistant, executive secretary, and then, town administrator. He left Montague Town Hall for about five years for a job in the Berkshires, but returned to his old post, eventually retiring two years ago.
Jay Dipucchio, a member of the Turners Falls Fire District Prudential Committee and member of the DPW Planning Committee, said Abbondanzio’s “unique blend of caution and creativity” helped the community achieve goals “where others may not have even seen opportunity.”
“Frank had a vision of what the urban environment of Turners Falls village could become and the practical skills to coordinate its creation while carefully managing Montague’s finances and the growth of all the villages during some very difficult periods,” Dipucchio said.
Deborah Radaway, Montague’s town administrator from 1992 to 1997 between both of Abbondanzio’s terms, praised his humanitarianism, leadership and love for municipal management. She recalled how he attended the annual Massachusetts Municipal Association conference every year and always brought ideas back to Montague.
“His dual passions were historic preservation and arts and culture and you can see the fruits of his labor throughout the community — the streetscapes, playgrounds, the Colle and Shea restorations, River Culture,” she said.
She also mentioned Abbondanzio’s pride for his Montague colleagues and their work environment.
“He advocated for the public safety complex and was an ardent early supporter of the desperately needed new highway garage,” she said. “He knew that incentivizing a great work effort includes providing a safe and inhabitable work space, and to have pride you have to enable it.”
“Everyone in the Town of Montague should be proud to call Frank a leader and a friend,” she added.
Current Town Administrator Steve Ellis also commended Abbondanzio’s commitment to the town he cared so deeply about.
“Frank devoted his career — and really his life — to the betterment of the town of Montague,” Ellis said. “When we look around that community and we see what it is today, so many historic buildings are there in a large part due to his vision, his tenacity and his commitment to preservation.”
Reach Christie Wisniewski at: cwisniewski@recorder.com