Starting Monday, there is a new face behind the first selectman’s desk in town hall.
For months, Norfolk’s new First Selectman, Henry Tirrell, and veteran First Selectman Matt Riiska have worked toward a smooth transition in leadership.
With Tirrell running unopposed, there was no question of who Riiska’s successor would be, and the men have been meeting weekly to familiarize Tirrell, a one-term selectman, with all the paperwork and projects he will take over next week.
“I know a lot of what’s going on but it will be different to actually be behind the desk,” Tirrell said this week. He will be sworn in Sunday and will head a board composed of incumbent Republican Selectman Sandy Evans and Democrat Leo Colwell, a former selectman.
Tirrell said this week that he expects to take the first year of his incumbency to carry through pending projects and will start to bring his own vision to the job the following year.
“I have a decent amount to chew on right now,” he said. “There is a lot of stuff like the new firehouse that is going on immediately. Basically, I will be getting my feet under me and hopefully by this time next year I will have a framework for looking out into the future.”
The $10-million firehouse project is nearing the point when ground can be broken. Tirrell said one of his first tasks will be to meet with the town’s financial advisor and bond counsel to get a bond anticipation note in place.
Next week will also include a meeting with the Fire House Committee when he expects to get a clearer idea of what the construction schedule will be.
2026 may also bring the construction of three new bridges and, while the state is expected to absorb all costs for them, he will have to arrange upfront financing that will later be reimbursed.
There has been much comment in recent months about Tirrell’s youth as a town leader. “People say I am so young,” he commented, “but I am 38 and I feel 40 creeping up.” Born and bred in Norfolk, he said it was his love of the town that made him run.
Tirrell predicts that younger people will begin to fill posts on town boards and commission in coming years. “There are a lot of people who have put an amazing amount of time and work into the town,” he observed, “but they will want to move on and then the next generation will have to step up. A few people from all walks of life are already doing that kind of stuff.”
Tirrell has already left his former occupation as a brewer with Big Elm Brewery in Sheffield, Mass., and will be a sworn-in Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at the Town Hall. A reception will follow. Family members and guests are welcome to attend.