William Post was hired as Waterville’s assistant city manager and has now been appointed the interim city manager following the recent departure of Steve Daly. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel file
WATERVILLE — The City Council has appointed William Post, assistant city manager, to serve as interim city manager until a replacement can be found.
The council met Tuesday and unanimously voted to appoint Post, who has worked as assistant city manager for several months, after City Manager Steve Daly abruptly resigned last month.
Council Chair Rebecca Green, D-Ward 4, thanked Post for his willingness to take on the interim position.
“It means a huge deal for the city that we can move on with minimal disruption to the staff and to the operations of the city,” Green said.
Post said in a phone interview Wednesday that he views the assistant city manager role as one in which he would fill in for the city manager when needed, so in some ways the interim position is filling in as usual. And since he is already familiar with the city, it makes the transition much easier now, Post said.
“It certainly helps to know the department heads and the staff so the transition is easy for them and for me; we can pick up projects and move forward with projects and continue the work I was doing as assistant city manager as well,” Post said.
While serving as interim city manager, Post will receive the city manager pay rate. Post was hired at a salary of $95,000 for the assistant city manager position; in comparison, Daly’s salary for 2022 was $130,000.
Post said he is not interested in taking on the city manager position permanently. He came to Waterville for the assistant city manager role and said he has enjoyed the position.
Daly announced his resignation Dec. 22, in a letter to the council that stated his last day would be Dec. 23, writing that “personal and urgent circumstances” led to his decision. Other local officials have not shared further details about why Daly resigned so suddenly, and Daly has not returned calls seeking comment.
The council approved his resignation at a special meeting Dec. 28, and agreed to waive a stipulation in Daly’s contract requiring he give a 90-day notice of his resignation. The council also agreed to pay Daly four months of salary and a health insurance reimbursement in a lump sum.
Post is the first assistant city manager Waterville has ever had, and began in the position last spring. In the role he oversees several city departments and is responsible for applying for, keeping track of, and administering grants.
Before coming to Waterville, Post spent 26 years working in county and municipal government, including most recently serving as as county administrator for Sagadahoc County. Prior to that he worked as town manager in Rockport, Bowdoinham and Waldoboro.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Southern Maine and a master’s in public administration from the University of Maine. He is a Medomak Valley High School graduate.
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