Greenwich Town Administrator John Crary To Retire

John Crary, who has served as Greenwich’s town administrator since 2007, will retire next spring.

At a Town Hall press conference Wednesday afternoon, First Selectman Peter Tesei made the announcement that his top aide has agreed to stay on staff until a successor is appointed. The town has hired the municipal executive recruiting firm of The Novak Group of Cincinnati to conduct a national search for Crary’s successor.

Tesei praised the 65-year-old Crary’s “dedication and work ethic” and described him as an “invaluable member” of his administration.

“He has set a standard of excellence and has continuously worked on implementing best practices to improve the efficiency and services of the town,” Tesei said. “John has served as my chief adviser and has been responsible for the day-to-day operations of the town.” He said it is impossible for the town’s chief elected official to carry out those duties and handling the long-term strategies and other daily issues faced by the town.

Tesei said Crary was instrumental in helping the town address the “significant challenges faced by the town during the economic downturn of 2008. He was part of the planning and implementation of bringing the town budget into balance due to the precipitous drop in non-tax revenues.” Tesei explained, “John worked closely with our human resources department to plan the reduction in workforce, establishing an early retirement incentive plan and monitoring the vacant positions during the tumultuous time period.”

That workforce reduction and being able to “make it as humane as possible,” was the accomplishment that Crary said stood out during his career in Greenwich. “There were almost 50 full-time and 40 part-time positions … It was a very painful experience that I did not enjoy,” Crary said.

The town administrator position was created in 2007 by Tesei’s predecessor, Jim Lash. Before coming to Greenwich, Crary served in a similar position for five years in the Town of Darien.

Crary said he had planned to retire this month but agreed to stay on during the annual budget process. “It wouldn’t be fair for the new person to be thrown into the process. I have no immediate need to leave,” said Crary, who earns $192,000 a year. As administrator, Crary helps develop the town’s budget and reviews each department’s annual budget, operations plan and capital improvement program.

Crary also assists with the town’s contract negotiations, the town’s emergency management plan and operations, and has served as interim department head when vacancies occurred including the human resources, parking services and fleet departments. “The town administrator is the one coalescing resource that pulls it all together. My time is spent formulating policy and you need both to operate the town smoothly,” Tesei also said.

Tesei said Crary has been instrumental in changing “the culture of the town … to become more professional” and credited him with helping to create worker safety programs.

Of his seven-year tenure, Crary said, “This really is the capstone of my career.” Crary said he is looking forward “to sleeping in in the morning and getting back to an exercise program, reading and trying to get my cooking skills to where they should be.” The resident of Somers, NY said he also is looking forward to renovating the Venice, FL condo he and his wife purchased last year.

Photo: Greenwich Town Administrator John Crary, left, with First Selectman Peter Tesei. Credit: Barbara Heins.

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