New Manager at Boylston Likes His Utility’s Small Town Feel

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Meet Mark Barakian, general manager of the Boylston Municipal Light Department. He recently replaced former manager Gary Harrington who retired in January.

Barakian is no stranger to the small Worcester County utility that serves a little more than 2,000 meters and has six employees. He has been there for 21 years, serving as general foreman for the last 10.

His first year in the utility industry was right out of high school when he worked a year for the West Boylston Municipal Light Plant in West Boylston which is right down the road from Boylston. He left to start his own construction company but realized it wasn’t for him and took a lineworker apprentice position with Boylston. He attended NEPPA training and worked his way up to journeyman before becoming foreman.

He says the hardest part of his new position is being in the office. "I worked over 20 years outside with the line crew and I loved it. It’s a bit of an adjustment."

What he says he loves about his new job is having a capable, experienced staff he can rely on. Taking his place as general foreman is Mike Lucia, a 20-year employee of Boylston.

"We worked together for years. I know he does his job and I don’t have to worry."

His office staff are both long-timers and according to Barakian, they know their jobs really well and provide excellent service to their customers.

"There is a small town feel to Boylston Light. All of the employees grew up and live in town or neighboring towns."

Boylston is a full-service member of the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company and is involved with the Berkshire Wind Project. It jointly owns a substation with neighboring West Boylston and both utilities are in the process of replacing switch gear and upgrading the transformer.

Employees of Boylston attend NEPPA safety meetings and technical training as well as customer service conferences and workshops.

"I look forward to continuing working with NEPPA and all the new managers in the area," Barakian said.