Former New Castle mayor picked as new Middlesex Township manager
MIDDLESEX TWP — After months of searching, the board of supervisors chose its successor to Jeffrey Winkle as township manager — former New Castle mayor and city administrator Chris Frye.
The decision was announced and approved at a supervisors work session held Wednesday, Aug. 5.
“I’m excited about what’s to come and the opportunity to meet and work with each and every one of you,” Frye said when he introduced himself to township residents. “We love the community. I love solving problems. I love engaging, and I’m ready to learn how Middlesex wants to see themselves in the future.”
Frye’s tenure as township manager officially begins Sept. 1, meaning Winkle will still be the manager for the township’s next full board of supervisors meeting on Aug. 19.
During Wednesday’s meeting, Winkle thanked the supervisors and the residents of the township for their support over the four years he served as manager.
“We’ve had a good four years,” Winkle said. “There have been some challenges, but I think we’ve done a lot of good. I'll be proud to say we’ve done a lot of good with the board and this staff. I won’t be a stranger, but I'm going to go enjoy some family time.”
Winkle announced his impending retirement from the manager role in May.
According to Winkle, Frye was one of at least six candidates considered to replace him.
“We interviewed six or seven candidates out of a pool of maybe 16,” Winkle said. “I think it was his professionalism and his experience. We really thought he was a good fit.”
Frye said he was introduced to the opportunity by Winkle.
“It was like we’d known each other for years when we sat across the table and talked,” Frye said.
Frye was first elected as mayor of New Castle in 2019, becoming both the first Black mayor in the history of New Castle and the city’s first Republican mayor in over a decade. During his tenure, the city transitioned from a third-class city government to a home-rule charter government in 2022 in an effort to improve its financial standing. The effort eventually led to New Castle having its Act 47 financial distress status removed in December 2023 after 16 years.
In 2022, Frye transferred to the newly-created position of “city administrator,” where he stayed for the next four years. Frye was also a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania in 2022, but failed to advance in the primary.
“We’ve accomplished a lot in my six years in New Castle,” Frye said. “Taking that role (of city administrator) has led me to look at other opportunities. I believe I’ve got New Castle to a point where they can sustain and move forward.”
Although he hadn’t been to Middlesex Township before taking the position, Frye said he sees great potential in the township’s future.
“My first impression is that the people are incredibly welcoming and that’s what really has drawn me here,” Frye said. “It seems like growth has taken hold here in terms of housing development and there’s a lot of growth in Butler County altogether. So I’m excited to help steer that.”
