By Carol Vaughn —
Two Accomack County towns — Onancock and Chincoteague — are looking for new managers.
William H. Kerbin Jr., Onancock’s town manager since 2016, recently accepted a job as town and village manager of Woodstock, Vt., according to a public notice posted on Woodstock’s website.
Woodstock’s population is around 2,900, larger than Onancock, which has around 1,200 residents.
Kerbin starts work in Woodstock on March 25; his last day at work in Onancock is March 20, he said.
Kerbin was picked from a field of 44 applicants and four finalists, according to an Associated Press report. He is replacing the late Phil Swanson, who died last summer.
Kerbin became town manager of Onancock in July 2016, replacing G. Cabell Lawton IV, who retired because of illness.
Before being hired by Onancock, Kerbin was director of development for Oneonta, N.Y. He has more than 17 years of experience working in local government, including nearly a decade as housing planner for Kent County, Md., and a three-year stint as project coordinator for Pocomoke City, Md.
Chincoteague also is looking for a town manager. James West, who currently does the job, is retiring.
Chincoteague has a year-round population of around 3,000, which swells seasonally to up to 15,000, according to information provided to the Post.
The town’s staff includes 52 full-time employees and 17 part-time employees.
West was hired for his second stint as town manager in 2017. He started work in March that year, after the Chincoteague town council ousted former manager Robert Ritter during an executive session on Nov. 7, 2016.
West had served as Chincoteague’s town manager previously, leaving in 2004. He also worked for Chincoteague in the past as director of public works.
Before returning to the town as manager in 2017, West worked as program manager for a company that provides support services for NASA Wallops Flight Facility.
