Acton residents enjoyed a smooth two-night Town Meeting this year. After months of committee and forum discussion of issues such as the Department of Public Works building, school budget, Taylor Rd. land purchase, and electrification of Town Hall heating, it seems the voters were talked out. For most of the articles, there weren’t the usual long lines behind the microphone or sighs of relief when someone called to cut off debate.
Night 1: Introductions and a tribute
At the start of Monday’s meeting, Finance Committee (FinCom) member Jason Cole gave a tribute to longtime FinCom member Steve Noone whose unexpected death on April 27 will leave a huge hole in the Finance Committee’s well of knowledge. Noone’s visage was often visible as the front page of the Acton Exchange was displayed on the big screen on stage. The Exchange has published Noone’s obituary in the current issue. Cole’s tribute is at minute 14:29 in the Acton TV recording of Day 1.
A cadre of residents worked to check voters in and serve as ushers, tellers (if hand counts are required), and distributors of the small clickers used for voting.
Making Town Meeting easy; movies for kids and door-to-door bus service
For kids ages 4 and up, AB educators transformed the high school chorus room into a space for play and to watch a movie. New this year, a “wiggle room” was also available for parents with little ones in the Field House gym. Staff set up round tables with folding chairs in the back of the room for people to use. However, no kids brought their parents this year, and Assistant Moderator Bill Mullin had a slow night. On the other hand, a few folks did use the wiggle room to have a quiet (and germ-free) Town Meeting experience.
Each year, the Commission on Disabilities advises the Town on ways to improve accessibility to Town Meeting. Community Services & Transportation Manager Laura Ducharme did two things differently this year, according to van rider Lisa Franklin, member, and sometimes chair, of the Acton Commission on Disabilities. “First, she went on the van as it went around picking people up. Second, she took everyone who signed up for the van and pre-registered them so when we got there we just had to pick up the clicker and go right into the auditorium. It was really a smart, good thing to do,” Franklin said. Ducharme said eight riders took advantage of the van services and that the reason she accompanied the trip was “to advocate for residents and assist the driver with coordination and support throughout the evening.” One resident, who is unable to attend in person for health reasons, voted remotely, a service provided by the Town.
Attendance on Monday night was 427 voters, 2.6% of Acton’s 16,243 registered voters. On Tuesday night, 381 voters weighed in. Voters approved a Motion to Dissolve the 2026 ATM at 8:52 p.m. After the meeting, Acton TV Director Marc Duci made a comment heard repeatedly by attendees: “It was one of the smoothest town meetings I can remember.”
Town Manager Mangiaratti was also pleased with the meeting and expressed support for voters’ support of all the proposals, including budgets, capital investments, a tax incentive to Insulet, and changes to zoning that support economic development. Asked about the large crowd of department and division heads in attendance, he said, “Whether or not they were planning to speak, they were there to observe the meeting and support their colleagues. We have a great group and we all support each other! The IT team led by Karl Voelker really does a fantastic job of making it look easy. It is a big production with lots of moving parts and they orchestrate it masterfully. There were just over 400 people in attendance, but we have to plan each night for more than 1,000 people. The Town Clerk’s office continues to find ways to make the process of attending Town Meeting easier. For example you may have noticed new signage and a new expedited process for check-in.” He also wanted to thank the staff members who help prepare the presentations.
And the seasons go round and round. Mangiaratti said, “Now that we are through Town Meeting we are going to focus on closing out FY26, the start of FY27, and starting the projects that were approved. We will also start the process for planning for FY28 and the next Town Meeting!”
Night 2: Lalli Awards, Jim Snyder-Grant farewell, Articles 10, 13, and 17 – 21
Lalli Awards
Mangiaratti started the second night of Town Meeting by appreciating the “very talented, dedicated, and professional staff who work throughout the organization.” He said that each year the Town seeks recommendations from other employees to identify the Joseph A. Lalli Merit Award for Public Safety and Municipal Public Employees of the Year, awards supported by the Steinberg-Lalli foundation.
The presentation was slightly delayed because the fire department had a call. Then Mangiaratti announced, “This year’s Joseph A. Lalli Merit Award for Public Safety Employee of the Tear goes to firefighter/EMT Charles Dunnigan.” Mangiaratti said that Firefighter Dunnigan’s work over the past several years has demonstrated exceptional initiative and leadership in researching, procuring and managing (PFAS-free) turnout gear for Acton’s firefighters. “His efforts have ensured that Acton firefighters are equipped with safer modern gear that meets evolving health and safety standards and that his work exemplifies the spirit of the Lalli Award.”
Dunnigan thanked and appreciated his “brothers and sisters” in the police department and the fire department and said they “could easily be up here receiving an award. But not this year” — a comment that brought laughter from the audience. He added, “And lastly, I just wanted to thank the residents of the town for voting in the article…at last year’s Town Meeting, that funded and recognized the fact that we needed to get better, healthier gear for us. That type of support doesn’t go unnoticed for sure, so thank you.”
Mangiaratti announced the recipient of the Joseph A. Lalli Merit Award for Municipal Employee of the Year as Assistant Town Planner Nathaniel Ryan. “Ryan has had a remarkable year,” Mangiaratti said. “About half a year into his job –– he just started here a couple years ago –– the planning director said she was moving on and the planning director we hired to replace her went on maternity leave, so it became the Nate Ryan show. …he really stepped up and came through… it can be complicated, and he really stepped up … He did it in a way that made people feel steady and under control … someone people rely on. Strong relationships across departments helped things run smoothly.” He said Ryan stayed positive, had a sense of humor, and made a real impact in a short amount of time.
In his turn, Ryan said, “I got called up from the minor leagues last summer. Although I was the only planner in Town Hall, I was never alone.” He thanked Andrea Becerra, the sustainability director, “for coaching me through my responsibilities, as well as her encouragement when things got really really busy.” He also appreciated Pat Clifford, chair of the Planning Board, “for sitting down with me before every single public hearing and for continuing to take such a hands-on approach” and his family “for listening to my boring stories about zoning [laughter], and my coworkers in land use for making this the best job I’ve ever had…Finally, thank you to the residents of Acton whom I get to interact with on a daily basis. It really is a point of pride, especially as a planner, when we go to conferences and other events, to say that we work for the Town of Acton.”
Appreciation of outgoing Select Board Member Jim Snyder-Grant
Select Board Chair Dean Charter offered a sincere thank you and farewell to Jim Snyder-Grant who had completed his sixth year on the board. Charter said he had known Jim for about 35 years and had started out dealing with him when Charter was on staff. “Who is this oddball who wants to go around trying to eradicate Norway maples and garlic mustard? I found over the years that Jim is a great deal more than that…he cares deeply about the town, always brings a different perspective to many, many issues…and he’s not afraid to support those issues.” He presented Jim with a plaque.
Jim spoke, too. “It’s been a great six years. I’ve been serving with an amazing board, I’ve learned so much. I’ve gotten used to hearing about things early on. John Mangiaratti is good as a town manager at keeping the board informed about things that are happening. I guess I’ll just have to be reading the Acton Exchange now to find out what’s going on, and I’m looking forward to that. I know it’s the right choice for me to step down at this point but now I mostly feel the sadness about it, how much I’ll miss working with the staff and with the board and with all the committees and boards that I have had the honor to be the liaison with. You know you won’t get rid of me, I will still be out in the woods picking garlic mustard.”
Welcome back, scouts
Moderator Jo-Ann Berry welcomed back the boy scouts listening to Town Meeting for a second night. She said, “One of the requirements of the merit badge is to discuss some disagreements in a meeting. “We didn’t seem to have any last night. We’ll see how it goes tonight…”
The second night’s business began with Article 10.
For a wrap up of all of the Town Meeting articles, start with Articles 1-3, 21-40: Routine business and Consent Calendar. Note that articles 14 and 15 were placeholders and not used. The updated Town Meeting article published mid-week has all of the votes in one place, if you prefer to read one summary.
Franny Osman is the Editor-in-Chief of the Acton Exchange and coordinated the complicated coverage of Acton Town Meeting.
