Town Leadership
The Town Manager’s Office
The Town Manager
Kate Hodges
When a street goes unplowed or the school budget runs short, the person with the most day to day control was never a name on your ballot. Kate Hodges is the Town Manager, hired by the five elected members of the Board of Selectmen to run the town, and they can let her go if they lose faith in her. She is the chief administrative officer: she hires and supervises most department heads, prepares and presents the annual budget, and carries the town’s biggest spending requests to open Town Meeting for the final vote. Hodges came up through the machinery of local government, running parks and recreation in Littleton, serving seven years as assistant and deputy town manager in Concord, and leading the town of Lancaster as its administrator before Dracut’s Selectmen hired her in late 2024. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a master’s in public administration from Framingham State University, and she took over the Dracut office in early 2025.
| Role | Town Manager (chief administrative officer) |
|---|---|
| In office | Since early 2025 |
| Selection | Appointed by the Board of Selectmen under contract, not elected |
| Office | Town Hall, 62 Arlington Street, Dracut, MA 01826 |
| Phone | 978-452-1227 |
| Website | dracutma.gov |
What the Town Manager Does
- Runs the departments. Police, fire, public works, health, recreation, and the rest answer to the Town Manager, who appoints most of their leaders.
- Builds the budget. Each year the Manager proposes how the town will spend its money, then defends that plan before the Selectmen and open Town Meeting.
- Answers to the board. The Manager serves at the pleasure of the elected Board of Selectmen and carries out the policies it sets.
- Reports to Town Meeting. Major spending and bylaws still need the vote of open Town Meeting, where any registered voter can weigh in.
The Administration
- Department heads are appointed by the Town Manager and carry out policy, from plowing snow to inspecting restaurants.
- The Board of Selectmen is the check: it hires and can fire the Manager, sets policy, and appoints residents to many town boards.
- Boards and commissions, many of them appointed by the Selectmen, decide questions like zoning, conservation, and licensing.
Contact & Engage
- Town Hall: 62 Arlington Street, Dracut, MA 01826.
- Town Manager’s Office: 978-452-1227.
- Report a problem: service requests like potholes and missed pickups go through the Department of Public Works at 978-957-0411 or the town’s online tools at dracutma.gov.
- Show up: the Selectmen meet the second and fourth Tuesday evenings at Town Hall, and the public is welcome.
Sources
Dracut government website (dracutma.gov). Verified July 2026.
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