By Katie Farrell Lovett
Staff writer
—
AMESBURY — Mayor Thatcher Kezer's chief of staff Kendra Amaral will leave the town on Sept. 23 after four years working for the mayor.
Amaral has accepted a position as the deputy director of development services for the city of Lowell, overseeing project review, permitting, zoning and code enforcement.
Hired in 2006, Amaral came to Amesbury after having served as the director of research and planning for an expansion project at the Children's Museum in Boston.
As chief of staff, Amaral's role included launching and managing the mayor's AmesStat management program, overseeing human resources, communications, constituent services and special projects. She also managed the Health and Human Services division, the city's larger service contract negotiations, including trash and recycling and cable license, and developing and implementing the city's regional health services program.
She called the move to the city of Lowell "an opportunity to take on a new challenge."
"I've been looking at what the next step in my career would be," Amaral said yesterday. "Lowell offered the opportunity to go to a large city and get some experience there."
Amaral said she counts "bringing the staff forward in a more professional way" as one of her accomplishments in Amesbury. She's also proud of AmesStat and the redesign of the city's budget, capital improvement plan and the annual report, and the improvements around Town Hall.
"We just did a little bit of a cleanup in the auditorium so it doesn't look so dark and so dreary," Amaral said.
Amaral said yesterday she loved working in Amesbury, where citizens welcomed her despite being an "outsider."
"I will miss the community a great deal," she said.
According to a press release, Kezer plans to post the position in a few weeks and may consider a temporary appointment as he searches for his new chief of staff.
In a prepared statement issued by his office, the mayor said, "In all of her activities, (Amaral) preformed exceedingly well and contributed directly to the many successes we have enjoyed as a municipality."
