Comes from Montclair post
By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
Marc D. Dashield, a self-described "public administration geek" who has spent more than 20 years in the public sector, was tabbed Monday as the next municipal administrator to run the daily affairs of Princeton municipal government.
"This is a great community to work for and a great opportunity," he said after the Princeton Council voted, 6-0, to appoint him to replace the retiring Robert W. Bruschi. "I had to take the opportunity."
Mr. Dashield, the municipal manager for the past four years of Montclair in Essex County, is due to start Oct. 27. His salary will be $170,000.
He will assume control of a town government with a $59.2 million budget and a work force of around 200. Princeton is the fifth New Jersey municipality Mr. Dashield will have worked for in his career.
He first stop was in Elizabeth starting in 1993 as chief of the neighborhood services bureau. He later held different positions including chief financial officer of Franklin Township before he became business administrator of Plainfield and, since February 2010, the manager of Montclair.
Mr. Dashield said he saw similarities between Montclair and Princeton, in that both are progressive college towns.
"It’s just a great community to work for and to try to really do progressive things," he said. "You can’t do any better than going from Montclair to Princeton. You really can’t."
Mr. Bruschi is scheduled to retire Oct.31, so there will be some overlap. Precise details of the transition have not been worked out. Mr. Bruschi said he would be at work that week, and will be available to Mr. Deshield and staff.
"This is an exciting new chapter for Princeton," Mayor Liz Lempert said at the meeting.
Mr. Dashield was one of 17 people who applied to replace Mr. Bruschi, a field narrowed down to four finalists and then a final three.
"We had an embarrassment of riches in this search," Mayor Lempert said.
His competition included Princeton Deputy Administrator Kathryn Monzo, seen as the early frontrunner as the in-house candidate who had the backing of other municipal department heads. Behind the scenes, Ms. Monzo waged an aggressive campaign to influence council members. She enlisted help from people who wrote letters on her behalf, officials said. But last week, sources confirmed that the job was going to Mr. Dashield, not to her.
Ms. Monzo was not at the special council meeting and has not returned repeated phone calls seeking comment. There has been speculation about whether she will keep working for Princeton, now that she has been passed over for the job she had her eye on. One official said Monday that council members took into consideration the possibility of her leaving when deciding whom to hire but went with Mr. Dashield anyway.
Mr. Dashield said he had spoken with Ms. Monzo and was one of many officials saying this week that he hoped she stays."I think she’ll be critical to providing transition even for nothing else. She knows almost everything," Mr. Bruschi said after the meeting. "She’s up to speed on a lot of issues and items, and I think she’ll be critical to helping that adjustment."
Mr. Dashield, 48, is the married father of two teenage sons; the family resides in Kendall Park. He earned his bachelor’s degree and master’s in public administration from Kean University. He served in the Army attaining the rank of captain.
At a post-meeting reception, he mingled with members of the community who had attended the meeting. Those included representatives of the business community and Princeton University.