Woolsey: Email Led to Selectmen Chairman's Ouster

When Phil Bean was ousted as Hampton Board of Selectmen chairman Monday, it came as a surprise to many in the community.

But Selectman Mary Louise Woolsey, who made the motion to remove Bean, said it's something that has been building for some time.

"There has been a leadership problem," she said. "We have been slow to get needed things done."

For example, Woolsey said the joint operations plan with the state to run the beach is "long overdue." 

She also said Bean didn't want to meet except on Mondays, which made it difficult for the board to get things done. Selectman Michael Pierce raised this same concern during Monday's meeting.

"There has been some unhappiness on my part over the management style," Woolsey said.

Bean could not be reached for comment for this story, but defended his accomplishments as chairman during Monday's meeting, ticking off a list of various completed agenda items.

In the end, Woolsey said what prompted her motion to remove Bean was an email Bean sent on May 21 to an outside law firm that represents the town on collective bargaining and other matters.

According to Woolsey, Bean copied the other selectmen on his email, but did not check with them before sending it. The email reportedly asked for an accounting of all bills the town paid to the law firm over a 2-year period. Woolsey said Bean could have obtained that same information from the town's finance director.

She said Bean also asked for copies of all emails from selectmen to anyone within the law firm, and asked that any member of the board emailing the firm in the future copy all other members of the board.

"This was a totally inappropriate thing to do without asking for consent of the board as a whole," Woolsey said. "He's authorizing billable hours on his own without the authority to do it. That's unacceptable conduct."

In addition to Woolsey, board members Dick Nichols, Pierce and Bean himself supported the motion to remove Bean as chairman. Only Ben Moore voted against, and he resigned from the board on Tuesday morning. 

Nichols and Pierce were contacted for this story, but referred questions to the video replay of the meeting. Moore could not be reached for comment.