Chris Lewis has been hired as the new Hallowell police chief. He will start Sept. 5. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal
HALLOWELL – After months of searching, Hallowell officials have hired a new police chief who will take the reins on Sept. 5.
The new chief, Chris Lewis, succeeds Scott MacMaster, who left the post to become a patrol officer in Gardiner earlier this year. The city had been looking to fill the position since February while Sgt. Christopher Giles assumed the interim police chief role.
“I am very excited about the new job,” said Lewis, 51. “Hallowell is a great city, and having that position with this city is a great opportunity. I am familiar with several of the business owners in the area, and I have come and met some of the residents because I was working as a reserve officer. Now it is going to be some exciting weeks ahead.”
Lewis will be paid a yearly wage of $79,229, including benefits.
City Manager Gary Lamb said four people applied for the job and one withdrew, citing concerns over low pay. A committee interviewed the remaining three candidates on Aug. 9 and explained the expectations for community policing and police operations.
The committee had six members, including three city councilors: Berkeley Almand-Hunter, Patrick Wynne and Michael Frett. The councilors were joined by Lamb; Bruce Mayo, who owns Easy Street Lounge; and Augusta Police Chief Jared Mills.
Following the interview process, Lamb recommended the council hire Lewis. The council approved the recommendation unanimously during its meeting on Monday.
“My recommendation to hire Mr. Lewis was based on his training, education, considerable command experience with eight years as a Maine police chief, community policing priorities and communication skills,” said Lamb.
Lewis graduated from Florida State University in 1993 with a degree in criminology. His education soon translated into his first law enforcement job in 1994 as a deputy sheriff in Florida.
He moved to Maine in 1999 to become a patrolman with the Topsham Police Department. Lewis spent the next 21 years working in Topsham. He was a school resource officer, lieutenant and chief of police from 2012 to 2020.
This is also not his first stint with the Hallowell Police Department. Lewis briefly served as a sergeant in Hallowell from July 2020 to July 2021. Though he left that position to teach high school students at RSU 9 Foster Tech in Farmington about careers in law enforcement, he remained a reserve officer for the Hallowell Police Department.
Lewis said he has his priorities sorted out for the job.
“First and foremost, I want to get myself organized. Then looking at what we need to do with our equipment, making sure we are ready to offer services to the city,” he said. “Getting out and getting myself known and letting people know that they can come to me anytime is also a priority.”
He is planning on having meet-and-greet sessions with local business owners and residents to gauge their expectations and figure out a way to meet them.
“It’s a little bit of nerves, but nothing I have not experienced in the past,” Lewis said. “There are some butterflies, but I got to keep those butterflies in a straight line, keep the communication lines open and keep everything going as smoothly as possible.”
Copy the Story LinkSend questions/comments to the editors.
