BELLOWS FALLS, Vt. – Current Rockingham/Bellows Falls town manager Scott Pickup is moving on from his position in Bellows Falls to become the town manager of Springfield, roughly 10 miles north. Pickup, who came to work for Rockingham in 2020, is currently in the second year of a three-year contract, and he will continue to work in his current position through the end of the calendar year.
After conducting a national search through the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, the Springfield Selectboard recently chose Pickup from some 35 candidates to succeed current Springfield town manager Jeff Mobus, who is at the end of a five-year term, and also happens to be a friend of Pickup.
“This opportunity in Springfield grew out of a conversation with the current town manager Jeff Mobus, who has left a legacy of competent, steady leadership that I hope I can match,” Pickup said in a recent interview.
“Whenever I start a new position, my first instinct is to get out of the office and meet as many people as I can, and listen. The board has some immediate priorities, like all communities here in southern Vermont, such as housing, building a tax base, and maintaining our public facilities so they are good places to work for our staff, and places that the community can be proud of.”
Although Pickup greatly enjoyed his time serving Rockingham and Bellows Falls, and is sad to leave, he is understandably excited about the opportunity and challenge of working for a larger town; Springfield is roughly twice the size of Rockingham, with a population of around 9,000.
Although the decision left some town officials and community members surprised, especially after Pickup played a role in the recent reconfiguration of the town’s three fire departments and upcoming hiring of the new fire chief, Pickup’s plan is to still present the new fire chief at the next Triboard Meeting of the Rockingham Selectboard, Bellows Falls Trustees, and Saxtons River Trustees, on Dec. 30.
According to Peter Golec, chair of the Rockingham Selectboard, whatever decision Pickup and the search committee make on the new fire chief hire, the Rockingham, Bellows Falls, and Saxtons River boards will all confer on the appointment. Rockingham has also started the search for a new town manager, and will be working with the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, as well as the New England Municipal Resource Center, as they narrow their search.
The Springfield town manager position opened up because Mobus had promised his family back when he took the position in his hometown that he would only stay for five years. When the time came, Mobus had recognized Pickup’s work in Rockingham/Bellows Falls, and thought he would be a great fit for neighboring Springfield.
Pickup has praised the town and village boards and staffs, and the community, for their support, and for giving him the resources to do his job. “I will carry one specific lesson with me from my time here in BF, and that is alignment,” Pickup concluded.
“Both elected boards were very clear in their priorities, and that helped me as a town manager to align the resources and talent to accomplish these priorities. All of the staff here have a huge hand in any success that I have had, so I will miss their competence, drive, and friendship. Finally, a heartfelt thank-you to all elected officials, staff, and volunteers who make Bellows Falls and Rockingham a creative and caring community.”