Negotiations for Swampscott’s new town administrator are ongoing, with the Select Board postponing the agenda item at Wednesday night’s meeting.

“We are still ongoing negotiations so we will be tabling that,” Select Board Chair Katie Phelan said.

Select Board Vice Chair Doug Thompson told the Swampscott Tides that there is no additional information about the process to share at this time.

The Select Board voted 4-1 last week to name Jason Silva as their top choice for the town administrator position. Silva and Nicholas Connors had interviewed with the board for a second time prior to the decision. 

The search began after former Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald resigned in late 2024. Although Fitzgerald’s contract ran through June, he chose to take paid leave during his final months. Department of Public Works Director Gino Cresta has been serving as interim town administrator, though he did not apply for the permanent role.

According to the meeting agenda, the Select Board met in executive session before Wednesday night’s public meeting to discuss negotiation strategy for the town administrator position. The board also entered executive session following interviews and discussion on Tuesday, August 26.

Silva is currently serving as the town administrator in Dunstable. He previously served as Marblehead’s town administrator from June 2018 to February 2022.

Silva’s other past positions include the director of community engagement at Regina Villa Associates from April 2022 to December of that year, the chief of staff for State Sen. Joan Lovely from June 2016 to June 2018, and the executive director of Salem YMCA from January 2013 to February 2015. He also served as Salem’s director of municipal operations and capital improvements from March 2015 to June 2016, and as the city’s chief of staff from January 2006 to January 2013.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in political science from Salem State College as well as a certificate in local government leadership and management and a masters in public administration from Suffolk University.

During his second interview with the Select Board, Silva was asked about his career transitions and why he was interested in Swampscott at this point.

“I wouldn’t have applied unless I thought it was a good fit, that it was a place where I can make a meaningful impact,” Silva said. “This is a great opportunity that’s presented itself to me.”

In his first appearance in front of the Select Board, Silva said that Swampscott “seemed like a place where my interests and my skills align.”

Silva also shared that he felt “cooked” after his time in Marblehead and realized he needed a break from municipal government.

“In the back of my mind, I always felt like I would come back to it at some point but at that moment, it was time for me to step away for my physical health, my mental health, for my family,” Silva said.

In both interviews, Silva spoke a lot about raising staff morale and ensuring that people understand the impact of their work.

“For me (morale) is critically important to the success of the organization, and my personal success. It has become a major priority of mine and a major focus to make sure that people are happy in the workplace and enjoy their job,” Silva said. “I think the foundation for all of that is building trust within the organization, making sure people are communicating transparently what is happening and why it is happening.”

Multiple Select Board members also shared following the second round interviews that Silva’s financial experiences would assist the town. Silva spoke of his experience around budgeting and balancing town needs.

“Clearly he has the financial chops, and he has the experience, so I kind of give him some edge in those categories as well,” Thompson said after the interview.

Updated September 4 at 12:30 p.m. with information from the Select Board.