Northborough Interviews Three Fire Chief Finalists, Takes No Vote Monday

NORTHBOROUGH — June 8, 2026 — Northborough Select Board interviews three fire chief candidates and hears urgent radio failure warning. The board Monday interviewed battalion chief Keith Darling of Franklin, acting chief Neil Espazy of Northborough, and West Boylston Fire Chief Mark Sadowski for the permanent fire chief post, with no vote scheduled; scoring sheets are due back to Town Administrator Stephanie Bacon by Monday morning. All three candidates were asked how they would address the expiration of the department's FEMA SAFER grant in fiscal 2028, with Espazy — who wrote the original grant application — noting it cost close to $70,000 to onboard each of the funded firefighters and warning that losing them would be "counterintuitive to finance." Police Chief Brian Griffin and communications consultant Mark Caddy of LBComs presented body camera footage of officers unable to reach dispatchers on dangerous calls, with records supervisor Amy Bullard telling the board the radio failures have been "consistently terrible" throughout her more than seven years in the dispatch center; Caddy said the infrastructure is two generations past its life expectancy and rough estimates put a full system upgrade near $2.7 million, a figure he warned could rise 20 to 25 percent annually if delayed. The board unanimously accepted a $10,950 Edward J. Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant to equip a new Domestic Violence Liaison Officer position filled by Officer Melissa Lonergan, and approved a $1,895,000 bond anticipation note at 2.935 percent interest and $4,202,798 in advances in lieu of borrowing for FY 2027 capital projects.