Raymond appoints new lead Code Enforcement Officer

By Dina Mendros

The Raymond Code Enforcement Office has a new head of the department, but he isn’t exactly a new face. Jason Williamson was hired last July as the assistant head of the town’s Code Enforcement Office, and after some on-the-job training by Chris Hanson, he was promoted to his new position by the Raymond Select Board on June 9.

Jay Williamson has been promoted from
Assistant Code Enforcement officer to
be the head Code Enforcement Officer
for the Town of Raymond by the
Raymond Select Board. He has worked
for the town since July 2024.
COURTESY PHOTO   

Williamson, 46, who is married with two young children built a home in Raymond and he and his family moved there about four years ago. He graduated from the University of New Hampshire and has a background in carpentry and building.

He says he got to a point where he didn’t think carpentry and building was a kind of work that he could do for many more years, so he decided to go into code enforcement.

“I thought maybe this would be a good transition for me,” he said.

Williamson says he enjoys his code enforcement job, which he finds both challenging and rewarding.

“The biggest challenges, I would say are when you’re dealing with some issues that crop up with neighbors,” he said. “It seems like you’re taking sides … but you’re really trying to be fair and not infringe on anybody’s rights.” Getting people to see the other side’s point of view “can be extremely difficult,” he said.

Some of the most rewarding parts of his job, Williamson says, include “I’ve gotten to meet a lot of really great people.” He said, “it’s nice when you can help someone figure out and navigate the ordinances and the codes to build a house.”

Also rewarding, Williamson said, is helping people figure out how to work with some of their land so they can sell it to a relative for them to build a house.

“It’s definitely rewarding if you can get somewhere for someone to live,” he said. “Housing is difficult to find these days and when someone can put on an addition to bring in an aging parent or for their child who can’t afford a place. I would say that’s probably the most rewarding.”

An important part of the job, Williamson says, has to do with enforcing shoreline zoning and protecting the waterways, as much of the building that takes place in Raymond is along or near lakes.

For example, in 2021 the town of Raymond was alerted to significant changes along Sebago Lake that violated shoreline zoning. The property owner reached a settlement in the past year which included payment to the town of $640,000 for legal fees and damages as well as replanting trees and shrubs and more, according to a report aired on WGME television.

Although this took place before Williamson was hired, he says that he’s responsible for making sure the remediation takes place and is on track.

“Protecting the water quality, making sure and informing homeowners when they are doing projects in and around the lakes and showing them how to do it in a manner that’s going to be respectful to the lake,” is one of his biggest responsibilities. Williamson said, “Everybody wants to do what they want with their property, but most people understand that there’s a responsibility of being down by the water. When you get people who understand is the most rewarding, I would say.”

According to Williamson, there’s no such thing as a typical day in code enforcement because “each situation can be so different.”

“Some days you might have two, three, four people come in just to make a complaint,” he said. “Other days you’ll have a lakefront property come up for sale and you’ll be fielding calls from real estate agents pretty much one right after the other because the competition is so fierce.”

Other reasons a typical day is hard to define, Williamson said, can be because the types of duties the department takes on not only includes code enforcement but also building inspections and land use. There are a lot of different responsibilities to the job and with only four people in the department, with only two of whom are code enforcers, staff are filling a lot of different shoes.

During his tenure with the town of Raymond’s Code Enforcement Office, Williamson says, “I’ve learned how difficult and multifaceted the job is. I hope I can perform in the job as well as I can.” <

Raymond to establish selection process for new town manager

By Ed Pierce

A selection process will be set up by the Raymond Select Board in the coming weeks to identify candidates and interviews for the town manager position.

Raymond Town Manager Sue Look, who has been serving in that role since January 2024 has resigned, citing more than an hour’s commute from her home in Richmond.

Raymond Town Manager Sue Look, left, has resigned and 
will be leaving her position on March 21. The Raymond
Select Board has appointed Raymond Parks and Recreation
Director Joe Crocker, right, as Interim Town Manager
until a new permanent Town Manager can be chosen.
FILE PHOTOS

Look had been working as the Raymond Town Clerk when she was appointed by the Raymond Select Board to replace Don Willard as interim town manager in July 2023. Willard officially retired in January 2024 after being out on Paid Medical Leave and Look took over as permanent town manager at that time.

She had worked as Raymond Town Clerk for more than a decade prior to her serving in the town manager’s position. Look was born in Lewiston and has worked for the Town of Raymond since July 2014. She formerly served as the Town Clerk for the Town of West Bath and she was originally hired by Willard to replace longtime town clerk Louise Lester who was retiring at the time.

The Town Manager is a fulltime position appointed by the Raymond Select Board and is responsible for administering the policies as established by the Select Board and the Town Charter. The Town Manager serves as the chief administrative officer and head of the administrative branch of the town’s government.

The position’s duties include executive direction and supervision of the administrative services of the town and overseeing the finances of the town. The town manager also is responsible for implementing all town policies and providing all Town of Raymond staff with clear and efficient operating procedures necessary to conduct their assigned tasks.

Other duties of the town manager are to attend and participate in all meetings of the Raymond Select Board, work with the Raymond Budget and Finance Committee in developing an annual town budget, and work with the Select Board to meet the process requirements in time for the annual Town Meeting and tax bill preparation.

The Raymond Town Manager creates and submits to the Select Board an Annual Town report to distribute at the Annual Town Meeting in June, develops and updates annually a five-year Capital Improvement Plan for presentation to the Select Board, and stays up to date with changes in Maine state regulations that could affect town ordinances, policies, and budget. The town manager is responsible for submission of applications for state, federal and other grants for the benefit of the municipality, as approved by the Select Board.

To fill in until a new permanent town manager can be hired, the Raymond Select Board has appointed Raymond Parks and Recreation Director Joe Crocker as Raymond’s interim town manager.

Crocker, 37, joined the Town of Raymond as Parks and Recreation in February 2020 and essentially built the town’s recreation program from the ground up.

He attended Saint Joseph’s College, where he earned a degree in Exercise Science and then continued his studies at New England College in New Hampshire, earning an MBA in Sports and Recreation Management.

Among his many duties as Parks and Recreation Director, Crocker has managed improvements that the Town of Raymond has made to Tassel Top Park and facilities there and providing recreational activities and overseeing a department budget to meet resident needs.

Crocker said he will be a candidate for the permanent town manager position.

“I plan to apply, and if selected, I would be honored to serve the town in this new capacity,” he said. “If the Select Board decides to hire externally, I will gladly continue serving the community as the Parks and Recreation Director.”

Look’s final day with the Town of Raymond will be March 21. <