The Saugus Department of Planning and Economic Development might be restructured to attract more qualified and experienced candidates, Town Manager Scott Crabtree said.

Crabtree, speaking during a discussion of the fiscal year 2025 operating budget at a recent meeting of the Board of Selectmen, said that the town has had difficulty finding a second person to work in the department who has the appropriate experience. The department currently only has a director of planning and economic development, Christopher Reilly.

Crabtree said that as a result, he is considering restructuring the department by creating separate high-level positions to focus on planning and economic development.

“I think we increase the salary a little bit as a placeholder to try to get somebody that’s more experienced and make them sort of co-equals so we can attract somebody that’s got experience,” Crabtree said.

He added that it is very challenging to attract qualified candidates for positions like this.

For one thing, Crabtree said, it is important to have a second person in a department is because if the only person there leaves, there is nobody prepared to serve as a successor.

Crabtree also said that, while it is not currently in the budget, adding an administrative position to the department could help provide more support.

“With all the growth in town, all the change, I think it’s important to fill that position,” Selectmen Chair Debra Panetta said. 

Selectman Corinne Riley asked Crabtree if there are any consulting firms that could be hired to help the department in the meantime.

Crabtree responded that the town uses firms like that frequently to help support parts of the town’s government such as the Planning Board, although he added that they are very expensive.

“It’s just not as good as having somebody in house,” Crabtree said. “They can get things done more efficiently, having that knowledge.”