SKOWHEGAN -- Two of the town's long-time department heads are leaving the town's service.

Fire Chief Dan Adams announced last Thursday that he would be retiring, effective July 6, after 27 years with the Fire Department to start a truck transport service.

A day later, on Friday, 25-year veteran Town Clerk Rhonda Stark turned in her resignation, effective June 13. An elected official, she also has future plans, but declined to talk about them Monday until those plans have been confirmed at another job location.

"We are losing two good people, and I wish them very, very well," Town Manager Philip Tarr said Monday night.

Adams and Stark join a list of people going through the Municipal Building's revolving door.

At least seven others have left the town's service in the last year, including Tarr himself, whose contract is up June 30 and was not renewed by selectmen.

Former Police Chief Butch Asselin left last April to take a job as police chief in Houlton, and Finance Officer Diane Barnes left at the end of June 2007 to become city manager for Calais. After only a year as Skowhegan town planner, Bruce Keller resigned last June to take a post in Nashua, N.H., as a deputy planning manager.

Meanwhile, Mary Jane Clifford retired recently as the town's general assistance administrator, and the position of secretary to the town manager has been refilled at least twice over the last year.

Tarr said selectmen would be talking Monday night about the situation and would be working to get someone in Stark's position before she leaves.

"We think we have an interim solution to a town clerk-treasurer, but I want to talk to the board about it before we say what it is," Tarr said.

Stark's term of office expires next June, so the interim clerk-treasurer would have to run for election at that time if he or she wanted to keep the job.

"It creates an unusual set of circumstances, but I think we have the people in-house, on staff that can do the job," Tarr said.

The search for Adams' replacement is also expected to begin soon. Adams said he will soon begin his own business as DML Transport, working as part of a service that operates nationwide.

Adams began working for the Fire Department when he was 18 and served as deputy chief and interim fire chief before taking on the role of fire chief last year. He said he became eligible for retirement in 2006.

Darla L. Pickett -- 474-9534, Ext. 341

dpickett@centralmaine.com