WESTFIELD – Mayor Daniel M. Knapik will send the name of a candidate to serve as the city’s Building Superintendent to the City Council for confirmation later this month.
Knapik said last week that the candidate, Donald R. Torrico, is highly qualified and well suited to fill the vacancy created when Jonathan Flagg resigned from the post on Aug. 14.
“This is an important job to fill,” Knapik said. “Not only does the superintendent run the building department, put deals with the public as well, is responsible for all of the municipal buildings, as well as supervision custodians and other staff.”
Personnel Director Karin Decker said yesterday that Torrico has accepted the city’s offer of employment, made last week, and will assume his new duties of Superintendent of Buildings in November if confirmed by the City Council.
Decker said that Torrico is currently serving as the Building Commissioner in both Lee and Monterey. Torrico has held that position in Lee since 2002 and in Monterey since 2003. Torrico, prior to his municipal post, was a licensed contractor in the private section since 1975.
Torrico is currently serving as the chairman of the Building Official Certification Committee under the State Board of Building Regulations and Standards, a division of the state Department of Public Safety, a post he has held since 2005.
Torrico is also the current president and educational coordinator of the Building Officials of Western Massachusetts, a post he has held since 2005. He is also a director of the Massachusetts Federation of Building Officials.
Decker said that Torrico is certified by both the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Decker said that the city received six applications for the post and interviewed two candidates who best satisfied the requirements, duties and abilities posted in a five-page job description.
“Mr. Torrico was head and shoulders above the other final candidate and the committee sent his name forward to Mayor Knapik for his nomination to the City Council,” Decker said.
The interview committee was composed of Decker, City Solicitor Susan Phillips, Community Development Director Peter J. Miller Jr., and Anthony Paroline, the Building Department Zoning Enforcement Office.
Decker said that Paroline was included in the interview process because of his technical knowledge pertaining to zoning and building regulations.
