Town Moderator Vacancy Will Be Filled By Town Council On April 8

On March 19, Charlie Beck passed away, leaving a vacancy for the elected position of Charlestown Town Moderator.

The Moderator’s role is to preside over all Budget Public Hearings, manage the business of each meeting, and maintain order. Additionally, the Moderator provides speakers with an opportunity to suggest changes to the budget or warrant items to the Council. The Moderator also has the power to call for votes to determine which conflicting written warrant petitions appear on the Financial Referendum ballot.

The Town Moderator will not have any responsibilities until the May 6 Budget Public Hearing.

The Town Council voted 4 to 1 on March 25 to set a deadline of April 3 for applications and to make the appointment of Town Moderator on April 8. However, Councilor Susan Cooper proposed setting the appointment date for April 22 to allow citizens enough time to learn about the opening and apply. She felt that only eight or nine days were not sufficient for the public to be informed of the opportunity. The other Councilors disagreed with her and Councilor “Rippy” Serra stated that “people know there’s an opening.”

We do not believe that everyone knows there is an opening, and we encourage our readers to share this post with anyone who may be a suitable moderator, and hopefully, they will have enough time before April 3 to submit their application.

If you would like to apply for this position, please ensure that your application is submitted to the Town Clerk, Amy Rose Weinreich, by email at arweinreich@charlestownri.gov before noon on April 3.