Worcester Chamber Hires Lt. Gov. Murray
Matt Pilon
Richard Burke, chairman of the board of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, emerged from a chamber vote on Murray's hiring earlier today.
Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray will resign June 2 to take a job with the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, he and the chamber announced this afternoon.
Murray will be replacing outgoing chamber president and CEO Richard B. Kennedy, who announced in September that he would retire at the end of 2013.
At a press conference in Boston, Murray said the chamber first contacted him in March. He initially dismissed the idea because it would require him to end his term early, he said. But he reconsidered after further discussion with his family and the chamber.
"It's a unique opportunity that will allow me to continue to work on economic and community development issues I've worked on for over 15 years of elected office," Murray said.
Gov. Deval Patrick said Murray's departure is a loss, but said he won't appoint a replacement to finish out the term, which ends after next year.
"You have to acknowledge that every once in a while, something comes along that's just right. And that's what this is," Patrick said.
The chamber's board voted on Murray's hiring at its noon meeting today. Several board members walking into the meeting said they were unaware that the chamber's search committee had been talking to Murray.
Richard Burke of Fallon Community Health Plan, the chairman of the chamber's board of directors, emerged from the chamber meeting today just before 1 p.m. and directed reporters to Murray 2 p.m. press conference. He declined to answer questions about the chamber's decision on hiring Murray, but in response to a question about the chamber's finances, which were in the $121,000 in the red in 2011 (the most recent public filing available), said the chamber's finances have since improved and the organization is "quite stable."
In a press release distributed about an hour later, Burke called Murray "a proven leader with a passion for economic development and the ability to lead the business community."
Burke also praised Kennedy's leadership of the chamber.
"For the past nine years, Dick Kennedy led the chamber skillfully, bringing us through a period of economic challenge," he said.
A source close to Murray said this morning that the chamber job pays just over $200,000, which is a boost of from Murray's salary of about $125,000. Kennedy's 2011 base salary was $150,000, according to filings.
Murray surprised some when he announced in January that he wouldn't run for governor.
He has remained a popular political figure with mayors and city councilors around the state, but his political brand has suffered in the public eye following an early morning car crash last year in Sterling, and lingering questions about his political ties to disgraced former Chelsea housing director Michael McLaughlin.
He will leave office while heading up the National Lieutenant Governors Association, with his term in that post scheduled to expire at the end of June.
Content from the State House News Service was used in this story.
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