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Easthampton City Council

About the Council

Nine people hold the legislative power in Easthampton, and five of them are yours by address. The city is divided into five voting precincts and each one elects a councilor of its own. The other four are councilors-at-large, elected by every voter in the city. Every seat is a two year term that begins on the first secular day of January after the election, so the whole Council is on the ballot at once, every odd numbered year. The Mayor writes the budget; the Council is the body that votes it, sets the tax rate, passes the ordinances, and reviews the Mayor’s appointments.

  • Sets policy and law by adopting and amending city ordinances. An emergency ordinance needs seven votes and repeals itself on the sixty first day unless the Council extends it.
  • Controls the budget. Five affirmative votes carry any measure, ordinance or appropriation order, and five members are a quorum.
  • Elects the city’s own officers. The Council, not the Mayor, elects the City Auditor, the Principal Assessor, the City Clerk and the Clerk of the Council.
  • Can summon the Mayor. Under Section 2-7 the Council may require the Mayor to appear in person and answer written questions, with at least five days’ notice and the questions supplied in advance.
  • Can override a veto by passing a returned measure again with a two thirds vote of the full council.

Council Members

The councilors elected Koni Denham, an at-large councilor, as President, and Felicia Jadczak of Precinct 2 as Vice President.

President · At-large

Koni Denham

Vice President · Precinct 2

Felicia Jadczak

At-large

Kiam Jamrog-McQuaid

At-large

Nathan Markee

At-large

Jonathan Schmidt

Precinct 1

James "JP" Kwiecinski

Precinct 3

Thomas W. Peake

Precinct 4

Amanda Newton

Precinct 5

Tamara Smith

Every councilor has a published city email address, and the city lists all nine with their seats on its own Members & Committees page and in the staff directory at easthamptonma.gov. Email to a councilor is a public record under the Massachusetts Public Records Law.

Meetings & How to Participate

  • When: the first and third Wednesday of every month at 6:00 pm, on the second floor of the Municipal Building at 50 Payson Avenue, and remotely on Google Meet. In July and August the Council meets on the first Wednesday only.
  • Agendas & minutes: posted in the city’s Agenda Center. The remote connection details sit at the top of each agenda, and minutes go up after the Council approves them.
  • Committees: six standing committees do the detailed work before anything reaches the full Council. They are Appointment, Finance, Ordinance, Property, Public Safety, and Rules and Government Relations. The charter requires almost every item to go to a committee first, which means the committee meeting is usually the earlier and quieter place to be heard.
  • Petition the Council: a petition asking for a measure, signed by 100 voters and certified by the City Clerk, obliges the Council to hold a public hearing and to act within three months.
  • Go further: an initiative petition signed by ten percent of the city’s voters puts a measure in front of the Council with a deadline attached, and the charter’s recall provisions let voters remove an elected officer.

Easthampton Agenda Center

Public hearings and meetings are where residents shape city decisions.

Public Hearings & Civic Engagement

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MassCivics last checked this page on October 20, 2026.

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