ATTLEBORO – The Attleboro Redevelopment Authority board voted Tuesday to lay off the agency’s four employees, including the executive director, and eliminate their positions, The Sun Chronicle reported.
The newspaper called the decision “a stunning move” in the long-running feud between three-term Attleboro Mayor Kevin Dumas and the now-fired executive director, Michael Milanoski.
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The mayor has gained a majority on the authority’s board in recent months due to resignations and term expirations. Former Mayor Judith Robbins, who Dumas defeated in 2003, was elected chairman of the board Tuesday.
The vote to fire the staff was 3-1. The sole dissenter was Pret Stevenson, a Milanoski supporter, who labeled the move “a personal vendetta,” the paper reported. Max Volterra, another Milanoski ally, missed the meeting because of an injury.
Robbins said the board had no choice but to get rid of the staff because it would run out of cash to pay them next month.
The ARA is Attleboro’s economic development agency and has been tasked with overseeing the city’s major revitalization projects, including a downtown transportation center and an industrial park.
But the agency has faltered in its efforts, racking up debts and experiencing problems in moving projects forward. It has also been sidetracked by the ongoing feud between Dumas and Milanoski. The Federal Transit Authority and the Mass. Executive Office of Transportation have halted funding until the city agrees on a way forward.
Additional information is available at cityofattleboro.us.
