Former Twisp Public Works Superintendent Howard Moss has been hired on a temporary basis to handle his old job while the town seeks a replacement for his successor, Andrew Denham.
Denham resigned in January. He said the hour-plus commute to his job in Twisp from his home in Conconully had become too difficult, particularly in light of the demands of the public works job. He took the job of public works director in Twisp just over two years ago.
In a recent interview, Denham said there are $4.2 million worth of street, sewer and water improvement projects planned in 2017, “and I want to hand that work off to the right person.”
Mayor Soo Ing-Moody said at last week’s Twisp Town Council meeting, which Moss attended, that Moss would be the ideal interim director because many of the town’s major infrastructure projects were initiated during his tenure and he is familiar with them.
Ing-Moody said the interim position’s duration is uncertain, but the town will continue to aggressively seek candidates for the position.
Moss, who retired to the Seattle area, will work part-time, the mayor said. He had held the public works superintendent job for about four years before resigning in September 2014. Moss came out of semi-retirement to go to work for Twisp in 2010, after working for 32 years for the town of Milton-Freewater in Oregon.
Denham previously supervised wastewater treatment in Mount Vernon before taking the Twisp job.
The town’s public works superintendent is responsible for the municipal water system, streets, storm drainage, parks and swimming pool, vehicle and building maintenance.
“This community is very special to me,” Moss said at last week’s council meeting. “I know these projects and I know the town.”
