PARIS — Out of 54 applicants with more than half the applicants from out of state and from as far away as California, selectmen have chosen a local candidate to be the town’s new manager.

Chairman Sam Elliot said the board will sign a contract with the person on Tuesday when its regularly scheduled meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Municipal Building.

While not identifying the finalist by name, Elliot said he or she was one of four finalists who were interviewed for the position. A fifth finalist who was set to be interviewed dropped out before the interviewing process began.

He called the candidates all “pretty strong” but said the selected candidate, who is expected to be named Tuesday night, stood out among the others. The unnamed person lives within the region, like the other four candidates, and has had municipal experience in Maine.

The candidate has signed the contract, and now the board must sign it Tuesday in order to make it official.

Acting Town Manager Elizabeth Knox, who is also the town clerk, said the board received 54 applications by the Sept. 10 deadline. Of those, 29 applicants were out of state.

The board asked for candidates who had strengths in financial management, budgeting, personnel management, public works and other skills to oversee the town of 5,183 with a budget of $4 million and 20 full-time and 36 part-time employees. Municipal government experience was preferred but other education and experience was considered, according to the advertisement.

Elliot said he expects the new person to be on board in December. That person will replace former Town Manager Phil Tarr.

In June, the board voted not to renew Tarr’s contract and agreed to pay Tarr $20,394 in severance pay, plus benefits, for the next six months. His last day was Sept. 14.

Tarr, who is in his early 70s and a resident of Bridgton, was hired as town manager under a three-year contract that began Jan. 4, 2010. He was paid $57,000 the first year. The contract would have been automatically renewed for two years at the end of this year, but selectmen voted in June to notify him they would not do so.

According to the agreement between Tarr and the board, Tarr agreed not to take legal action for damages or other relief against the town. The town agreed not to challenge his claim for unemployment compensation benefits, if he chooses to apply for them.

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