City Edition
Middlesex County
Everett, Massachusetts
On the bank of the Mystic River, where a chemical works leached poison into the soil for the better part of a century, the Encore Boston Harbor casino now pulls in millions of visitors a year. That cleanup and that bet are pure Everett: a dense, hard working city of immigrants that keeps remaking itself. This guide shows you how Everett works today: the mayor and the eleven councillors who run it, the boards that shape your block, the legislators who carry your voice to Boston and Washington, and the data behind it all.
The Everett Civics Handbook
A plain-language guide to how your city works: who represents you, how decisions get made, and how to make your voice heard. Read it online.
Everett at a Glance
Sources: Massachusetts DESE, district profile · US Census Bureau (data.census.gov).
- County: Middlesex. Everett packs nearly fifty thousand residents into about three and a half square miles, which makes it one of the most densely populated cities in the state.
- Government: Strong-mayor charter. Mayor Carlo DeMaria has led the city since 2007.
- Schools: Everett Public Schools, about 6,908 students across ten schools.
How Everett’s Government Works
Everett runs on a strong-mayor charter. Voters elect a Mayor to run the city and an eleven-member City Council to make its laws, and they elect a School Committee to oversee the schools. The Mayor holds real executive power: appointing department heads, proposing the budget, and signing or vetoing what the Council passes.
The Mayor
The elected chief executive. Runs every department, appoints department heads and most board members, proposes the budget, and can veto Council orders.
City Council
The eleven-member legislative body. Five councillors are elected at large and six by ward, one for each of the city’s six wards. The Council passes ordinances, sets the tax rate, and adopts the budget.
School Committee
Oversees Everett Public Schools. It sets school policy, approves the school budget, and hires the Superintendent.
- Residents elect the Mayor, the eleven councillors, and the School Committee.
- The Mayor runs the city day to day and proposes the budget.
- The Council votes the budget and the orders up or down.
- You take part: public comment, board service, and a call to your ward councillor all shape what happens next.
Explore the Everett Edition
- Mayor’s OfficeThe city’s chief executive
- City CouncilYour eleven councillors
- School CommitteeEverett Public Schools
- City DepartmentsWho does what at City Hall
- Boards & CommissionsWhere residents serve
- LegislatorsYour voice in Boston & D.C.
- Everett HistoryFrom a slice of Malden to a city of its own
- DemographicsWho lives in Everett
- Non-ProfitsCommunity organizations
- Student DataEverett Public Schools by the numbers
Your County Officials
Two of the people with the most direct power over your life are elected countywide. The district attorney decides who gets charged with a crime, and what they get charged with. The sheriff runs the county jail. Both of them answer to the voters of Middlesex County, and that includes Everett. They appear on your ballot. Now you know what to look for.
Every county in Massachusetts elects its own, and the job is the same everywhere: the charging decisions, the jail. Look up any town in the state and see who holds these two offices there.
Your First Civic Action in Everett
You do not have to wait until you can vote to be heard. Here is a concrete path from “I care about this” to “I said it on the record to the people who decide,” using rooms and phone numbers that are already open to you.
- Pick the right body. A park, a road, a pothole, taxes, or a line in the city budget is City Council territory. Your school, a class, a program, or the school calendar belongs to the School Committee.
- Find the meeting. The City Council meets the second and fourth Mondays at 7 PM in the Peter J. McCarren Memorial Council Chamber, City Hall, 484 Broadway, Room 38. Agendas come through the City Clerk’s Office.
- Know your councillors. Everett has six ward councillors, one tied to your own neighborhood, plus five at-large councillors who answer to the whole city. You can reach the Council office at 617-394-2237.
- Speak. The Council opens its meetings to public comment. You check the agenda for the sign-up procedure and you say your piece on the record.
- Or skip the trip. Report a pothole, a broken streetlight, or a trash problem any time through the city’s 311 and Constituent Services line.
- Mayor’s Office: 617-394-2270, mayor@ci.everett.ma.us
- City Council office: 617-394-2237
- City Hall: 484 Broadway, Everett, MA 02149
Local government works best when residents show up. Find your ward councillor, speak at a Monday meeting, or apply to serve on a board.
Sources
This guide draws on public sources, refreshed July 2026: U.S. Census Bureau, Massachusetts DESE School and District Profiles, Massachusetts Legislature (malegislature.gov), and the official Everett government website.