Selectboard and Board of Sewer Commissioners

The five member Selectboard is the Town's chief elected body responsible for the overall management of Town government. Selectboard members are elected in March for either two or three year terms.

Manchester operates under a Selectboard-Town Manager form of government, whereby the elected Selectboard serves as the Town's chief elected legislative body; the Town Manager reports to the Selectboard and acts as the municipality's chief administrative officer. Under this system of government, the Selectboard sets policy and the Town Manager implements policy and oversees the day-to-day operations of town government. The Selectboard also serves as the Board of Sewer Commissioners.

Selectboard (from left to right) Wayne Bell (vice-chair), Ivan Beattie (chair), newly elected member Lisa Souls, Steve Nichols and Carol Lattuga.

With a mix of veterans and relative newcomers, the Manchester Selectboard is widely regarded for its fiscal restraint, independence and ability to collectively make tough decisions that protect the taxpayers and provide for efficient and effective government. The guiding principle of the Board is that government should tax for what it needs, not what it wants. The Board's hard work is reflected in the fact that the Town of Manchester has the 16th lowest municipal tax rate in the State of Vermont.

The Selectboard typically meets one to three Tuesdays a month, depending on need, at Town Hall in the Kilburn Meeting Room at 7:00 PM to discuss a medley of issues affecting Manchester. Residents, taxpayers and other interested individuals are strongly encouraged to attend and participate in the democratic process. The meetings are normally televised live, and re-broadcasted, on GNAT-TV (local access television) channel 17.

Questions about agendas and dates of meetings should be directed to the Town Manager's Office at (802) 362-1313 or by emailing John O'Keefe, Town Manager.  The Calendar function of this website also has information, such as agendas and minutes, about past and upcoming meetings. In 2008 the Selectboard established Rules that govern the operation of the Selectboard and its meetings. Download the Rules at the bottom of this page.

Current Selectboard members are: 

Ivan C. Beattie, chair (term expires 2011): First elected in 1984, Ivan has over a quarter century of continuous service as a Selectboard member. Prior to serving on the Selectboard, Ivan served as the Chair of the Planning Commission. A graduate of Vermont Technical College, Ivan previously worked in the aerospace industry at Hamilton Standard in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. He currently owns and operates East of Equinox Farm, a premiere Morgan horse farm, in Manchester. Equinox Morgans are known worldwide and Ivan was inducted into the Morgan Horse Hall of Fame in 2005. Ivan was honored as the Vermont League of Cities and Towns Municipal Person of the Year in 1994. He is a past Chairman of the Board of First Vermont Bank and Chairman of the Board of TD Banknorth Vermont. He was named Banknorth Director of the Year in 1999. He has also served as President of the Bennington County Farm Bureau, President of the Vermont Morgan Horse Association, and Director of the New England Morgan Horse Association. He also currently serves as the Chair of the Manchester Board of Water Commissioners. He lives with his wife Jennifer and has three adult children (Vanessa, Megan, and Matthew) and two grandchildren (Chase and Owen Cassan). Ivan's family has lived in Manchester for seven generations.

Wayne E. Bell, vice-chair (term expires 2012): First elected in 2000,  Wayne currently teaches English at Mount Anthony Union Middle School in Bennington and is active in community affairs throughout Bennington County. He was a well known Manchester restaurateur for many years, operating Ye Olde Tavern in the early 1980’s, and The Quality Restaurant on Main Street for over 16 years. In 2007 he was the Grand Marshal for the Bennington County St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Rev. Fr. Bell is an ordained Ecumenical Minister and Celtic Christian priest whose pastoral work supports the Neartu le Cara Community and Giving Fund. He has served as a Justice of the Peace for over twenty years performing officiant and master of ceremony duties for public and private events, weddings, and other celebratory and solemn occasions. Wayne sits on court diversion panels for the Bennington County Center for Restorative Justice.  He attended the United States Air Force Academy and is a graduate of University of Massachusetts Amherst. Wayne lives in Manchester with his wife Tara Dowden, a vice president and certified financial planner with Stifel Nicolaus and Company. They have three adult sons Michael, Matthew, and Nicholas and three Jack Russell Terriers, Sean Patrick, McGee Aran, and Seamus Riley.

Carol M. Lattuga (term expires 2011): First elected to the Selectboard in 2001, Carol graduated from Russell Sage College in Troy, New York with a bachelors degree in English and education. Before moving to Manchester in 1972, she work in human resources in New York City. She currently owns a seamstress business in the historic Depot district of Manchester. She is an active member of the First Baptist Church in Manchester. Carol lives in Manchester with her toy poodle, Coco and three cats. She has three adult daughters, Lisa, Cristina and Danielle. When she is not busy with work or the Selectboard she is hard at work restoring her purple antique Victorian house or babysitting her grandson. 

Steven A. Nichols (term expires 2013): First elected in 2006, Steve also serves as the Selectboard's clerk. Steve is a 1979 graduate of Burr and Burr Academy in Manchester and earned an associates degree in culinary arts from Johnson & Wales University in Rhode Island. He also graduated from the Walt Disney World of Food. Before moving back to Manchester Steve worked for the Marriott Hotel Corporation in West Virginia as director of catering where he was a recipient of the Marriott International Tieffel Award of Excellence. While living in West Virginia Steve was an active board member of several not-for-profits and government tourism advisory boards including the West Virginia Society of Associate Executives and United Way Board of Directors. He founded the Marshall University Culinary School and was an executive chef instructor for the West Virginia Culinary competition at the Greenbrier Resort. Steve was a recipient of West Virginia Chamber of Commerce "Expect the Best" Award. He is currently employed as a manager at Friendly's Restaurant in Manchester Center and serves on the GNAT-TV annual Culinary Extravaganza Event committee. Steve enjoys gardening, cooking, camping and riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle.

Lisa A. Souls (term expires 2012): Lisa was elected in 2010. She is employed by the Bank of Bennington as a mortgage loan officer. She is a member of the Manchester Rotary Club and a past president.