Boxborough Select Board Appoints Lyle McKay as Fire Chief After 2-2 Deadlock

BOXBOROUGH -- June 5, 2023, Boxborough names Lyle McKay its next fire chief after a 3-2 Select Board vote that followed a 2-2 deadlock on a rival motion. The June 5 board session was devoted entirely to interviewing McKay, a shift lieutenant and EMS director in Marion, Massachusetts, and Kevin Grebner, a shift commander in Hudson, New Hampshire, the two finalists from a five-candidate pool vetted through a three-phase process that included input from department captains Malinowski and Gray. McKay, who holds a bachelor's degree in fire administration and is completing a master's in executive fire leadership, described a paramedic-level ALS expansion citing Marion data showing roughly $245,000 in annual per-diem paramedic costs against $400,000 in ambulance billing receipts at comparable call volume. The board split first on a motion to appoint Grebner, with members Dave McKinnon and one colleague voting in favor and Chair Christine Hilberg and two others opposed; a subsequent motion for McKay passed 3-2. McKinnon said he favored Grebner's communication style and grant-writing record, Grebner described securing more than $3.2 million in federal grants in New Hampshire, while Hilberg said the town needs "tactical" rather than "political" leadership coming out of a difficult period. The appointment is subject to contract negotiations and a final police-department background check; terms were not disclosed in open session.