November 3, 2022 By Carol Britton Meyer
Cohasset resident Virginia LeClair has been engaged by the Hingham Select Board as the new Sustainability Coordinator Consultant to perform related work for both Hingham and Cohasset.
"Hingham will administer the contract on behalf of both communities," Assistant Town Administrator for Operations Art Robert told the Select Board Monday recently. "In Hingham, we will work with Virginia to create and advance a realistic plan to improve sustainability in Hingham."
Cohasset's Assistant Town Administrator Michelle Leary and Robert both weighed in on the decision to hire LeClair based on her "excellent prior experience," he said. LeClair's was one of two responses to the second Request for Proposals for this project.
LeClair, who has substantial municipal experience, served as the Town of Dedham's Sustainability Coordinator for a number of years and had direct involvement in developing climate action plans for two Massachusetts communities.
LeClair will provide invoices "in a manner that demonstrates time and deliverables on behalf of each community," Robert said.
The position is funded with a $75,000 earmark in the Fiscal 2023 state budget through a contract with the state Executive Office of Energy & Environmental Affairs. Contract terms allow the funds to be expended over a full 12-month period, which means that LeClair will have the opportunity to work with both communities through Nov. 2023.
In April 2022, Hingham Town Meeting approved $48,000 in the Select Board budget to fund two-thirds of a shared Sustainability Coordinator contract position. "These state funds allow us to maintain this position over a longer term and to free [the earlier appropriated] operating budget funds for other purposes," Robert said.
Select Board Chair William Ramsey said he's "thrilled to partner with Cohasset to add a Sustainability Coordinator position to our staff. As a town, we are fully committed to developing and implementing programs that help us improve the environment and achieve our sustainability goals, and this position will help us accomplish those important objectives."