WHATELY — The town’s hiring search to fill two positions is set to begin soon, as job descriptions for the highway and building superintendent and tax collector/treasurer were approved by the Selectboard this week.

Whately is looking to replace longtime Highway and Building Superintendent Keith Bardwell, who is retiring at the end of the fiscal year in June, while Treasurer/Collector Amy Schrader is stepping away on April 11.

Town Administrator Peter Kane has been working to tweak the highway superintendent’s job description over the last few weeks to incorporate all the responsibilities Bardwell has taken on over the course of his decades of service to the town.

“[We had to] capture a few items that have fallen on or expanded onto that role,” Kane explained, “just so that we are fully transparent for the next person.”

Bardwell is retiring after a total of 45 years serving Whately. Nearly 40 of those years were spent as the highway and building superintendent, a role he was appointed to at the age of 22.

Schrader is leaving in April after several years of service to the town. She was appointed in 2021 to finish out a one-year town clerk term and then was elected to a three-year term in 2022, which she vacated a year later when she was offered the opportunity to serve as treasurer/collector.

“While I wasn’t looking to leave Whately, I was offered a better opportunity that suits my young family,” Schrader said Wednesday. “I have enjoyed my time in Whately and wish all my co-workers the best. I will still be a resident of the town.”

A selection committee for the highway and building superintendent will be created, with Selectboard member/Highway Department liaison Fred Baron serving alongside either Police Chief James Sevigne Jr. or Fire Chief JP Kennedy. The town is also expecting to ask Planning Board member JD Ross, who has a background in construction, to join to ensure there is building expertise on the selection committee. Bardwell will also serve in an advisory role, but will likely abstain from making a recommendation.

The treasurer/collector job description will have to wait, though, as it still needs to pass through the Personnel Committee. The Selectboard did approve posting the role contingent on the Personnel Committee’s approval and also approved extending Assistant Treasurer/Collector Maureen Nichols’ hours when Schrader leaves.

A selection committee will be formed in the coming weeks for that job, too, with the town expecting to ask longtime municipal employee Lynn Sibley to join alongside Kane and Selectboard Chair Julie Waggoner.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.