BANGOR — The city of Bangor is under new leadership.
Belfast native Carollynn Lear took over as city manager on June 16 following Debbie Laurie’s retirement in May.
According to the city council, Lear has spent three years with the IRS with the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate and has extensive experience in government operations and in federal and state tax law.
Lear said she’s still integrating herself into her new role, getting to know people and understanding the issues that are important to residents. Looking ahead, she said that finding ways to address homelessness in the city will be an important focus.
“I think, in many respects, the public drives what issues are important to me,” said Lear. “And I think homelessness is clearly an issue that is important to the public, so it will be a huge priority for the Bangor city government for the foreseeable future.”
Lear said addressing the issue will require leaders inside and outside of city government to put their heads together.
“I think what’s really interesting but also challenging about homelessness is that it really touches almost every single department within the city,” said Lear. “And because it is such a multi-faceted issue and challenge — it takes a lot of people sitting at the table to come up with solutions, and not just within city government, I mean external to city government. There are players there that need to be at the table as well.”
Lear also said the housing shortage is an area of importance.
“The city council specifically identified housing as one of their — or maybe the top priorities — that they hope to address. And I take their direction in that respect,” said Lear. “I agree it’s a huge challenge. As someone moving back to Maine, I have recently purchased a home, and I know how challenging it is to purchase a home within this state.”
Lear said she’s worked in state and federal government, but this will be her first role at the local level.
“I have very purposefully selected a career working in public service and government,” said Lear. “It’s really all I’ve done, and it’s because public service is important to me as it relates to my own professional satisfaction.”
Lear also said she’s looking forward to working with Bangor’s department heads to move the city forward.
“All of those departments have really great leaders already. My initial sort of game plan is to really figure out ways as a leader where I can help them be more effective in their roles,” said Lear. “I don’t think my role is to supplant those experts in their spaces, but rather to think big picture about the city and how we can operate in a way that’s more efficient, more customer-service friendly, as a whole.”
Lear also confirmed that the city is seeking a new director of finance after the resignation of David Little.
Little’s job performance was publicly criticized by City Councilor Joe Leonard during a City Council budget workshop last month.
The city is also seeking a new Public Works director. Bangor’s former Public Works Director Aaron Huotari left the position to become Fort Fairfield's town manager.
Lear said another focus moving forward will be finding the right people to fill those roles and the city's other open positions.
“Probably the highest-impact thing I could do for the city is to recruit and identify top-quality candidates for those roles,” said Lear. “Because those folks are going to be directly impacting the path of the city going forward.”
Lear is a graduate of Northeastern University and spent nearly a decade with the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration.
According to the city, she managed several agency departments that included the Business Office, Legal Bureau, Internal Audit, Human Resources, and Project Management as the assistant commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Revenue.
Lear said she’s happy to come back home to Maine.
“Coming home to Maine was a really purposeful decision,” said Lear. “And so, I don’t have any plans to part any time soon.”