Cohasset Select Board Approves Leary as Town Manager, Orders Cell Tower Site Study

COHASSET -- June 16, 2026, Cohasset Select Board names Michelle Leary town manager and orders study of alternative cell tower sites. The board voted 5-0 at its June 16 meeting to approve a contract for Leary, who had been serving as assistant town manager, with terms to be posted publicly once signed. In a separate 5-0 vote, the board directed Leary to investigate alternative locations for a public safety cell tower on town-owned land, amid an ongoing dispute over a proposed installation at Wheelwright Park that a May 2026 town meeting resolution rejected 199-30. Chair Paul Grady released a June 1 town counsel opinion concluding the resolution was non-binding and that the existing carrier lease conveys vested rights that could not be extinguished by a town meeting vote, with potential exposure to treble damages under Chapter 93A if the town breaches the contract. Leary reported a cell carrier had walked an alternative site at the Recycled Transfer Facility the day before the meeting and was running engineering studies expected back within weeks. The board also appointed Rich Fitzpatrick and Daniel Duffy to two open seats on the Public Safety Facilities Committee, which was expanded to nine members, and approved a $223,000 budget overage on the town hall renovation as the project moves into design development.