By Nicholas Brown
Staff Writer

When Hooksett's new town administrator was 10 years old, he had his career mapped out:

"I would have told you I was going to be a pitcher for the Oakland A's," said David Jodoin, now 43. "I wouldn't have dreamed I'd be a town administrator, especially in Hooksett."

That baseball career never panned out, so Jodoin will become Hooksett's third town administrator in the past 18 months.

Jodoin replaces Moni Sharma, who has held the office for the past year.

Despite the numerous recent changeovers, however, Jodoin plans to stay a while.

"I'm not looking for short term," said Jodoin, who was born and raised in Hooksett. "I made it clear to the council coming into this that I wanted to be here for a long time."

There's evidence to support Jodoin's enthusiasm. He spent the last 11 years as town administrator in Allenstown. After joining the town full time in 1994, he stayed on for some part-time duties between 1996 and 2001, when he was fulltime finance director for Exeter. Jodoin resumed his full-time position with Allenstown in 2001, and has been there since.

"I had a good time here (in Allenstown)," said Jodoin, who lives with his wife and two children in Concord. "I've made a lot of close friends and have a lot of close ties. This will always be my second home."

Jodoin said he welcomes the challenges that will accompany working for a much larger town - Hooksett has about three times as many residents as Allenstown.

"In Allenstown I did a little bit of everything," said Jodoin, adding that he's recently been visiting some Hooksett town council and planning board meetings in order to get acquainted. "But Hooksett's got its own finance director, so I think I'm going to deal more with general administration and management."

Jodoin mentioned several general issues that are afflicting many southern New Hampshire towns like Hooksett, including traffic and population growth.

"Hooksett's got a good draw," said Jodoin, who lived here his 26 years. "There's industry, shopping centers, and the schools are very good."

One of the serious repercussions of this growth, said Jodoin, is that retirees and others on a fixed income struggle with rising taxes.

"When you're older, you should be able to relax and enjoy your home," he said. "Until somebody from the state gets that idea, we're going to have a lot of communities in a tough position."

Jodoin began his professional career with a Concord auditing firm, Plodzik & Sanderson. There he got a taste of town politics, working with municipalities and schools.

Jodoin, who holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Franklin Pierce College, said his mother has repeatedly asked him why he left the firm for a career in town politics. He also cited a dismal three- to fiveyear average tenure for town administrators. and said his gray hair has been a source of some speculation.

"I tell people it's the water turning it gray," he joked. "But they say, 'No, it's the job.'" Jodoin described town administrators as often like the "lightning rods" of the town office, as selectmen get credit when things go well, and town administrators are blamed when things go badly, he said.

"I think it takes a different kind of person," Jodoin said. "It's not for everybody." The Hooksett Town Council is hosting a coffee and doughnut reception for Jodoin on Monday, July 11, in the municipal building's town council chambers from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. The general public is welcome to attend.

"I don't drink coffee," Jodoin said. "So I told them they better have some Mountain Dew for me."