Castignetti, of Winchester, was appointed Stoneham Town Accountant last September. He had previously worked in the private sector. By job title, he became the ex officio member of the Stoneham Retirement Board.

With the retirement of longtime Board administrator Elsie Wallace this July and the promotion of administrative assistant Barbara-Jo Belliveau to Wallace’s position this spring, the Board was seeking a new administrative assistant, a full-time job.

Castignetti, on his own, surveyed 17 similarly sized retirement systems. Based on his findings he felt that the administrative assistant’s job should be part-time. Not having the backing of the Board, he took his case to the press, The Stoneham Independent, in a lengthy letter “reaching out to members of the Stoneham Retirement System.”

The full-page letter described how the Stoneham pension fund could earn millions of dollars in compound 8% per year interest on the savings of a part-time job. He said, “Let this costly decision be guided by an entire membership recommendation, not just the decision of 3, 4 or 5 members.” He asked that members call his office to “express their views” on this important matter.

Board members Elsie Wallace, Jim McDermott, Jr. and Janice Houghton strongly disagreed with Castignetti, citing the service that the Board’s staff provides to the members of the Stoneham Retirement System, especially its availability to retirees and survivors who have numerous questions and problems.

Wallace, although retired, continues her role as an elected member of the Board. “As the Board’s former administrator, I can’t speak for other boards, but I know firsthand from the amount of counseling we provide to members, in addition to other duties, we need a two-person, full-time staff,” she said.