Gary Kovack has been tapped to be the new harbormaster in Tisbury. The town’s select board offered Kovack — a former U.S. Coast Guard member — the job of leading the town’s waterfront office during a meeting on June 25.
The previous Tisbury harbormaster, John Crocker, retired on July 2.
As a Tisbury resident, Kovack said during his interview with the select board that he wants to be able to serve his community. One of his children, he said, attends the Tisbury School, and another will begin there soon.
He currently serves as an Edgartown Police officer, and spent 16 years with the Coast Guard — 10 in active duty and six in the reserves. He described his strengths lying in “leadership and maritime knowledge.”
Kovack was recently promoted to a senior enlisted reserve advisor for the guard’s Woods Hole reserve unit, a role he serves while also a police officer. In this role he oversees a team of about 13, although to him, everyone has an equal voice.
“We’re all just individuals,” he said, describing a time he brought his reserve team together to bond and get to know one another. “When you do that kind of thing, it takes the rank out of it. I’m not ‘Chief Kovack’ at that point, I’m ‘Gary Kovack.’”
Three candidates in total were interviewed for the Tisbury harbormaster position on June 25 — Michael Gately, Michael Wilson, and Kovack — during an earlier select board meeting that day.
“It’s a really tough decision; they all bring great attributes to the table,” said select board member Christina Colarusso during the select board meeting Tuesday. “I’m so thankful that we had three candidates of such high caliber apply for this position.”
According to Pam Bennett, human resources coordinator for the town of Tisbury, the screening panel reviewed each application, and “were unanimous in that they wanted to recommend Gary Kovack as the top candidate.”
A motion was then requested by select board member John Cahill to extend an offer of employment to Kovack as Tisbury harbormaster.
Kovack said in his interview he would be able to start “as soon as possible.” At the very earliest, this would mean in two weeks, which he said is according to state law. His written acceptance to the job offer is still waiting to be confirmed.
As there is a gap of several days between Crocker’s departure and Kovack’s potential start date, it is unclear who will run the office during the July Fourth weekend in Tisbury. Town administrator Jay Grande did not return a request for comment.
Once Kovack does start, he said, he wants to meet and become familiar with his team. He said he hopes to educate his team, as well as actively practice the skills he’ll need to know in order to lead. “I’ll want to get involved and learn everything; I need to do every job that I’m telling people to do,” he said.
Select board member Roy Cutrer said he feels confident in terms of Kovack’s Coast Guard and police officer background. Although there could be concern in appearing too “heavy-handed” with police, he said he thinks Kovack understands the differences between police work and what it will take to serve as harbormaster.
“I personally feel that Gary gives us room to grow,” said Cutrer. “I think this is the right choice.”
While there was no discussion about the topic at Tuesday’s meeting, there’s been frustration that it took this long to hire a candidate for the waterfront office. Crocker told The Times that he informed the town in March that he would be retiring in July.
Colarusso told The Times earlier this week that she pushed to have Crocker and a new hire overlap on the job for at least a few weeks. “If we have to pay for two harbormasters for two weeks, so be it,” she said.
“I’m a little disappointed that there wasn’t an overlap,” Colarusso said.
Tisbury resident Lynne Fraker said she’s also frustrated with the time it’s taken for the town to move forward. “It has been a terrible, terrible process,” Fraker said. “Because they’ve known for such a long time.”
She added that she feels bad for a new hire who would be starting at the height of the season when, she said, that could have been avoided.
Still, Fraker is excited to have a new harbormaster onboard. “I’m looking forward to seeing a new vision for the office,” she said.
