Todd Selig, Durham administrator, agrees to contract extension through 2030: Details here

DURHAM — Todd Selig, the longtime town administrator, has reached a new contract agreement with the Town Council, extending his service to Dec. 31, 2030.

Selig, who has been with the town for 23 years, said Durham is a place he feels privileged to work.

"Durham is a great community, as are the councils I have worked with," said Selig. "They are forward-thinking, engaged, and they aspire to do great things. They put their resources into innovative ideas, and they care deeply about sustainability and fiscal responsibility. They strive for balance in the things they do."

Selig's last contract agreement came in 2017. At that time, he and the town agreed to a nine-year extension. This time he's agreeing to a seven-year contract, adding five more years to his employment as his current contract would not have expired until 2025.

"The chair and the vice chair asked if I had any interest in exploring the contract a year early," said Selig. "We had done my annual evaluation, and the council was supportive of moving forward with this. I agreed."

Sally Needell, council chair, said councilors feel grateful to have Selig.

"It is clear by doing this early that we wanted to send a message to Todd that we appreciate the work he does here," she said. "From Todd's standpoint, he feels this gives stability for the town departments, knowing they will not need to work for a new administrator in a couple of years. We think the leadership, expertise, and experience he brings to the town is invaluable. So many things are unpredictable these days. Todd looks at them and says, 'OK, we'll deal with it.'"

Vice chair Jim Lewson said extending Selig's contract brings stability to the town.

"Todd performs extremely well in his role," he said. "I think our residents appreciate what an extraordinary job he does here."

Selig said he has seen other communities become fixated on one topic to the detriment of others.

"Durham likes to think holistically, and so do I," he said. "So we work well together. There are nine councilors around the table and a lot of good ideas."

Selig's contract states his salary for 2024 will remain at $173,219 and increase by 2% each year of his contract, though there are provisions where his pay could increase more if needed to keep Selig's pay at an average among a list of managers/administrators of other New Hampshire communities.

The communities Durham compares salary information to are Bedford, Concord, Derry, Dover, Hanover, Keene, Merrimack, Portsmouth and Rochester.

"The town increased their contribution to my retirement fund, and they increased my vehicle allowance," he said. "It is their standard procedure to survey nine similar communities to make sure my salary is in line. I am somewhere in the middle, and I am happy with that."

Durham has all of Selig's annual evaluations of his job performance dating back to 2012 posted on the town website.

"I look forward to the next seven years," said Selig. "I see great things in our future."

This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Todd Selig, Durham NH town administrator, gets contract extension