At the most recent Hudson Board of Selectmen meeting, the board reviewed a proposal to reorganize the Land Use Department.
Town Administrator Roy Sorenson, who has been with the Town for roughly seven months, said, “I’ve obviously identified some areas that might need changes or improvement.”
“One might say, ‘Well, it’s awfully quick to do that after only seven months,’” Sorenson acknowledged. “I think it’s fair to say that I’ve spent a significant amount of time observing and talking with staff.”
Sorenson explained that one concern he identified was the lack of dedicated attention to each division, especially when the department was without a Town Planner.
“I can’t dedicate 100% of my time to give them the leadership they deserve,” he said.
To address this, Sorenson proposed restructuring the department. Currently, the Land Use Department consists of three divisions: Engineering, Planning, and Zoning.
- Engineering includes Town Engineer Elvis Dhima, an administrative aide, and a civil engineer.
- Planning includes the Town Planner, an Administrative Aide II, and an Associate Planner (added a couple of years ago).
- Zoning includes a Zoning Administrator, an Administrative Aide II, and the Associate Planner, who also assists the Planning division.
Sorenson proposed creating a new Director position and renaming the department to the Development Services Department, establishing a horizontal structure across Engineering, Planning, and Zoning.
The new director would be responsible for enforcing collaboration across divisions and encouraging staff to work together on shared initiatives.
Rather than adding new positions, Sorenson said the changes would be internal. For example, Dhima would be elevated to a department head-level position.
“We’re going to elevate him to a department head level, which I believe he has essentially served in for years, though not in title,” Sorenson said. “His productivity and leadership have been evident over the past decade.”
The administrative aide in Engineering would be elevated to a Business Administrator role.
The Associate Planner would remain under Planning but continue supporting Zoning. The Zoning Administrator’s role would remain unchanged, while the administrative aide in Zoning would support both Planning and Zoning.
Sorenson also noted that the currently vacant Administrative Aide II positions would not be filled at this time.
“Who would pick up the slack there?” Sorenson said. “That’s something I’ll work on with the team to identify gaps and solutions.”
He added that during budget season, the town may see a proposal for a full-time GIS Coordinator position.
The Board of Selectmen approved the reorganization proposal and directed Sorenson to communicate with all affected employees, finalize job titles, descriptions, and salaries, and coordinate with the respective collective bargaining units.
The next Selectmen meeting is scheduled for Oct. 14 at 7 p.m.
