Norwich — The top candidate selected as the new president of the Norwich Community Development Corp. has backed out of the position, after both parties could not reach a contract agreement.

“Mr. James Bellano, who was recently selected for the position of President of the Norwich Community Development Corporation has respectfully declined the offer of employment,” NCDC Board of Directors Chairman Robert Buckley announced in a statement at 11 a.m. Thursday. “NCDC will continue its efforts to recruit a qualified replacement for the recently deceased Jason Vincent, its former well-respected President.”

“When we tried to put pen to paper, we couldn’t come to terms with the position,” Bellano said Thursday.

Bellano, the economic development director in Windham since 2015, was selected as the top candidate at a special NCDC meeting May 18. The board voted in public to offer the position to Bellano over fellow finalist Kevin Brown, former Mohegan Tribal Council chairman. Bellano’s salary was announced later that week at $118,000.

Bellano called the public nature of the selection vote prior to finalized contract terms “awkward" but said the contract issues were the main reason for his decision to decline the position.

Buckley declined further comment.

Mayor Peter Nystrom, also an NCDC board member, said he has asked for a special NCDC board meeting to discuss the next steps. Retired Norwich Public Utilities energy efficiency specialist and former NCDC administrator Fawn Walker has been serving as a temporary transition coordinator for the agency.

Walker, who was not available for comment Thursday morning, has said she is not interested in the permanent position.

“It’s obviously disappointing,” Nystrom said of Bellano’s decision. “The process to find a new person to take the place of Jason will have to begin again. These things happen. They couldn’t come to an agreement on the terms. He had to make a choice for himself, and I wish him the best in what he’s going to do.”

NCDC is in a transition period beyond the need to select a new president. The agency had overseen the city's 10-year downtown revitalization program, which ended in April, reducing some operating revenue. The agency's Foundry 66 shared workspace also saw revenue decline during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Norwich City Council expects to boost its annual funding to NCDC from $150,000 to $200,000, and the city utilities commission also voted recently to increase its contribution from $150,000 to $225,000, both increases starting July 1 with the 2021-22 budget.

c.bessette@theday.com