Waterford ― The Democratic Town Committee has recommended that Greg Attanasio fill the vacant seat on the Board of Selectmen.

The seat was previously held by Beth Sabilia, who resigned from the board last weekend as she takes the helm of the fledgling Center for Housing Equity and Opportunity in Eastern Connecticut.

Waterford will be one of the 42 towns the center will work with and Sabilia has previously said she chose to resign to avoid any potential conflicts of interest.

Attanasio has served on the Representative Town Meeting for four years, representing the 2nd District.

“In the four years that Greg has been on the RTM, he has shown his ability to work tirelessly for the people of the 2nd District (Quaker Hill), to ask the hard questions and to work with folks from both parties to get things done,” said town committee chair Cathy Barnard in a written statement. “We are thrilled that he will be bringing that experience to the Board of Selectman.”

Attanasio, a Quaker Hill resident, also sits on the Economic Development Committee. He has a master’s degree in business administration and is an account manager at Airgas in Waterford, where he has worked since 2021.

This is the second time this year the board has had to fill a vacancy. It appointed Richard Muckle to serve in February following the sudden death of Selectwoman Jody Nazarchyk.

The town charter states that any vacancy outside of the Representative Town Meeting “shall be filled at the next regular town election, provided that interim appointments shall be made by the Board of Selectmen.”

Republican First Selectman Rob Brule said Thursday he and Attanasio have worked well together over the years and have similar viewpoints on fire services and economic development.

“I’m looking forward to continue a bipartisan conversation on what’s best for the town with Greg,” Brule said.

Brule said he and Muckle will discuss and vote on appointing Attanasio to the board at its meeting on Tuesday.

k.arnold@theday.com

Editor’s note: This version corrects Attanasio’s employment date with Airgas.