By Melanie Petrucci, Contributing Writer
Westborough – Westborough Town Manager Jim Malloy presented alternative forms of government for the Board of Selectmen to consider at their July 11 meeting. This presentation meets one of Malloy’s goals from last year which was to “provide a report about alternative forms of government in Massachusetts.”
The four common forms include: Mayor/Council, Council/Manager, Open Town Meeting/Selectmen/Town Manager and Representative Town Meeting/Selectmen/Town Manager. The first two are city and the remaining are town forms.
According to the Massachusetts Municipal Association, the first form includes an elected mayor serving as chief executive officer with a small legislative body but it also results in smaller citizen participation and centralizes authority.
The Council/Manager model features a smaller legislative body meeting frequently and establishes qualifications for the CEO while retaining the ability to remove the CEO at any time by vote of the council. A negative is smaller citizen participation.
The Open Town Meeting/Selectmen/Town Manager form has direct and broad citizen participation with authority to remove appointed CEO but can be cumbersome with a legislative body less likely to be knowledgeable on issues.
The Representative Town Meeting/Selectmen/Town Manager model involves a larger elected legislative body but is challenged by trying to educate and provide information to this group prior to the decision-making process.
Malloy shared some reasons why the board was having this discussion now. Westborough has an average of 1.9 percent participation of registered voters at Town Meeting which only happens several times a year. Interest groups may at times try to manipulate the votes without fully understanding impacts, he said.
Malloy indicated in his report that he is advocating for the Council/Manager format. His reasons include it provides for a directly elected council that equally shares legislative authority and meets regularly, provides professional administration, authority to hire and fire CEO and fosters impartial decision-making.
This initiative would be met with challenges such as process, public information and support. It would require either the elected charter commission to go through a petition (2,000 signatures) process within an 18th-month statutory timeframe with the recommended governance change placed directly before the voters as a ballot question, or have an appointed charter committee approved by the Board of Selectmen and placing the recommendation before Town Meeting (can also be decided at the ballot box) and then requiring special legislation.
Malloy will post the summary in full on the town’s website and he will include, in detail, how the process will work.
Selectmen asked how many members would be on the council, would they be paid, are they elected by precinct or at large, and would there be an elected school committee and would they report to the Town Council.
Selectmen Bruce Tretter said, “I am very much in favor of improving the town’s government efficiency and support this idea…this discussion is timely as we are looking for a vision for the town and updating the Master Plan.”
Town Moderator John Arnold cautioned the board.
“There is no need to rush and I would like to see a good town-wide discussion,” he said. “I agree that it is worth looking at to make what we do more efficient.”
Town resident Syed Hashmi, commented in support of Town Meeting and that it is “something special.” People who do come are knowledgeable and more people are invested in the government.
The next step would be to schedule a public hearing to get the town’s input in an open and transparent forum.