NORTHFIELD — Bernie Kubiak of Amherst was appointed as Northfield’s interim town administrator on Thursday.
Kubiak’s most recent work in municipal government was a tenure of almost eight years as Deerfield’s town administrator, from which he retired in 2013. Before that he had worked as a town administrator in Hadley. Since retiring, Kubiak has been working as a consultant and serves on the Amherst Finance Committee.
“When this is through, I’m gonna start taking my retirement seriously,” Kubiak said.
Kubiak will be working part-time for Northfield, although he said that his hours will be determined as he and the Selectboard assess what the town’s needs are. He will be paid $37 per hour, plus reimbursement for expenses of traveling to and from his home in Amherst.
In addition to the normal duties of a town administrator, Kubiak will assist the Selectboard in its search for a full-time town administrator. He has said that he only wants to stay in Northfield for three or four months, and is not interested in applying for the full-time job.
The Selectboard designated Kubiak’s term to end Sept. 30, but Chairwoman Tracy Rogers said that the term may be extended by a few weeks if the search for a full-time town administrator goes on longer than expected.
At the Selectboard’s Thursday meeting, Rogers said that Northfield’s separation from former Town Administrator Willie Morales had been finalized, with a stipulation that Morales could not apply for any municipal jobs in Northfield in the future.
Following a disciplinary hearing that addressed a number of complaints from the Selectboard, Morales was put on administrative leave in late March, while the town and his attorney worked out a separation agreement. Morales was hired in June 2017.