Mark McCoy Named MBTS Police Chief

A packed Select Board meeting Monday marked the beginning of a new chapter for the Manchester Police Department, as longtime officer Mark McCoy was confirmed as the town’s next police chief alongside the swearing-in of four new officers.
“Mark is prepared for this role and has been working his entire career for this moment,” said Tony Barletta, Town Administrator.
McCoy’s confirmation also closes the book on retiring Police Chief Todd J. Fitzgerald’s 35-year tenure on the Manchester police force. Fitzgerald’s official last day is June 30, and a public retirement celebration is planned for Thursday, June 11 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Tuck’s Point Chowder House.
For Fitzgerald, who grew up in Manchester and whose father served on the Manchester police force for his entire career, the appointment by the Select Board of his colleague and friend, Mark McCoy, is personal. McCoy also grew up in Manchester, and his father, Craige “Cracker” McCoy, served on Manchester’s police force as a detective for 18 years.
“Mark has been my second in command for quite some time and I believe wholeheartedly he’s ready for this step forward,” said Fitzgerald.
McCoy’s wife, Heather, and daughter, Ellie, were present at Monday’s meeting to support Mark’s ascent to Manchester top law enforcement position, as was his parents, Craige and Mary McCoy.
Following the announcement of Manchester’s new police chief, four new officers were also sworn in and pinned at the Select Board meeting. New Reserve Officers Garry Abraham and Kenny Paul were joined by two new full-time officers, Student Officer Brandon Berg and Officer Jordan McGonagal.
“Policing is more than a profession, it is a commitment to the community and a relationship of trust with the community,” said McCoy in his first public comment as incoming police chief to introduce the “pinning ceremony” for the town’s newest officers.

In other business …
The Select Board took up two pieces of license issuance business, one for a new natural gas storage facility at the Essex County Country Club on School Street that passed without comment from the public.  Then, a new three-way siphon pole requested by National Grid on School Street was likewise approved after the board was assured the project would not cause any disruptions or road closures.
Then, Town Clerk Christine Dixon presented a recent funding from a state technology grant won by the town for a new software platform from independent company General Code that promises to make managing, searching, archiving, and presenting Manchester’s zoning bylaw easier.  The platform—which is currently implemented in many other municipalities such as Beverly, Topsfield, and Ipswich—the town’s bylaw would be hosted on a separate website, with additional navigation and search capabilities that the current town websites do not have currently.
Dixon said she was presenting the move for an initial review, adding that implementation must be underway before September 2027 in order to receive the grant money.  In all, the cost of the platform is less than $3,000 per year. Members of the Select Board shared initial concerns for the project’s feasibility given the town’s history with considering anything connected to the zoning bylaw.
“You are taking a large swath of data and moving it elsewhere and reorganizing it.  I think it will be difficult to present to the Town Meeting why this is necessary,” said Select Board Chair Ann Harrison.  The scope and rollout of the project was of much concern as the Select Board notes that any changes to the language or ordering of bylaws must pass at Town Meeting first before implementation.
The Board resolved to continue discussing the issue, and aimed for a smaller-scale test of the upgrades to get a better sense of how achievable the full project would be.