Laura Allen

By Rachel Ravina, Staff Writer

(Oct. 17, 2019) The firing last month of Town Administrator Laura Allen resulted in a severance package of three months’ pay, Acting Town Administrator Jeff Fleetwood disclosed at the Tuesday night session of the mayor and Town Council.

“I’ve wanted to convey to you all [the Town Council], and also the citizens of the town, the cost, if you would, [of] the town administrator’s contract upon her departure,” Fleetwood said.

Allen was fired on Sept. 16 following a unanimous vote from the Berlin’s Mayor and Council. The circumstances leading up to her departure remain unclear, although multiple reports contended she had been given the opportunity to look for work elsewhere months earlier.

Allen’s contract began in January 2017 and was expected to last through June 202, Fleetwood said. The “contract [was] not paid out in its duration,” he said.

The value of her severance package was $68,048.89, which Fleetwood said consisted of three months of regular pay, as well as accrued vacation and sick days.

Berlin Mayor Gee Williams then addressed the reasoning for the public disclosure of the terms of Allen’s departure.

“Obviously, we had press inquiries, which is fine, but also there were some interesting rumors around town that the severance was $120,000, over $200,000,” Williams said.

“The sky seemed to be the limit, so we just wanted to make sure everyone knows, not to embarrass anyone, but it’s also just hard in many ways, we’re trying to be transparent as we can be within the confines and limits of the law.”