(Host) For the first time in 32 years, Dave Lewis is not going to Killington for work.
The longtime town manager stepped down from his position at the end of June.
As VPR’s Nina Keck reports, after more than three decades on the job, Lewis’s imprint can be found just about everywhere in the resort community.
(Keck) Killington is the only town in the state to own its own golf course. Back in the early 1990s, Dave Lewis oversaw construction of the Green Mountain Golf Course as a way to promote year round tourism. Bill Bauer was on the Killington select board at the time and says Lewis’ keen understanding of local laws, planning and zoning were invaluable.
(Bauer) "Fortunately Dave was here as the town really did start to grow. The large development projects really started to come to this area about the same time that Dave took the position."
(Keck) During Lewis’ tenure, the town built a new school gymnasium, a state of the art library, a new town garage and a walkway along Killington Road. He renovated the town offices, the recreation department and put up the large Welcome to Killington sign on Route 4. Gail Weymouth, who directs the town’s library, worked with Lewis for 24 years.
(Weymouth) "We were all sitting around together trying to recall all the things that he had done, and it’s pretty much everything."
(Keck) And Weymouth says he managed to keep the municipal budget low while still providing an impressive number of services. Despite all that, Lewis may be best known for promoting Killington’s bid to secede to New Hampshire as a way to protest Act 60 and what many residents felt were unfairly high property taxes.
Long time Killington resident Beverly Anderson says it deeply divided the town.
(Anderson) "I couldn’t believe we were considering such a thing – I couldn’t’ believe it could go as far as it did. And I continued to be both amazed and distressed as it moved forward."
(Keck) Sitting on his back porch, enjoying his first week of retirement, Dave Lewis admits the issue was divisive. But he felt it was the right thing to do. And as town manager, he says it was his job to advocate the will of the local select board.
(Lewis) "Unfortunately it became perceived as not an attack on Act 60, and didn’t really threaten the credibility of Act 60 – but looked more like Killington just wanted to leave. I don’t think we ever believed we would ever leave. And so going into it, the intent was to try to make a point about Act 60 and unfortunately the point didn’t get quite the way we wanted it."
(Keck) Lewis says his personality and his political persona have always been somewhat bold. Working in a dynamic town like Killington was a good fit he says. But now he’s looking forward to something new. The 59-year old will do some consulting for the Vermont League of cities and Towns and says he may even run for public office.
For VPR News, I’m Nina Keck in Killington.
(Host) And with Dave Lewis’s departure at Killington, the town has a new manager: Kathleen Ramsay.